Zhulan followed up with a sentence, "Anjia?"
Ze'er, "It's the An family from the Ministry of Industry. He was transferred to the Ministry of Industry last year."
Zhulan took note of the An family and said to her grandson, "Your fourth uncle is investigating the An family, so you should stop investigating, lest we expose each other and ruin things."
Ze'er was a little depressed, "Dad also said that he would not investigate anymore. He will wait for the results of the investigation by Fourth Uncle."
Zhulan understands that her grandson is in low spirits. She doesn’t know how depressed he must be since they haven’t investigated the person clearly yet in the first place!
Ze'er was indeed depressed. He had to stop to find out the truth. This feeling was too bad.
After sitting for a while, the two children went to the backyard to look for Yudie and the others. Xuehan asked, "Is Fourth Sister-in-law busy recently?"
"Why do you say that?"
Xue Han said, "The last time I saw her on the street, Fourth Sister-in-law said a few words and then left in a hurry."
"She is checking the He family girl."
"What family?"
Zhulan explained: "The daughter of the He family wanted to see a groom, and the Lin family helped pass the message."
Xue Han raised her eyebrows, "Mingjia."
Then he added: "Minghui, the elder brother, hasn't made any move yet."
Zhulan, "Don't worry about Minghui, this kid knows what he's doing."
Xue Han smiled, "Minghui is indeed a man with big ideas. The county exam results will be announced soon. I wonder how Minghui and I will rank."
"With so many resources in the Marquis' Mansion, it would be strange if they didn't do well in the exam."
She really didn't care about her son and grandson's county exam results, because as she said, her family's resources were too good.
In Chuanzhou City, Changzhi rented a courtyard after entering the city. There were many vacant courtyards where the courtyard was located. It was rented out to students taking the imperial examinations all year round. The price was not expensive, but of course it was still not friendly to students from poor families.
The yard is not big, with only three habitable rooms, plus a kitchen and one for storage.
Although it is not the autumn examination yet, the nearby courtyards are not vacant. Those with financial resources will rent them all year round to avoid having no problem finding a place to live when they need it. During the autumn examination, it is too difficult to find a place close to the examination hall.
Chang Zhi was not idle when he came to Sichuan. He always remembered his personality. He was a scholar studying abroad. After settling down, he visited academies and private schools, but did not dare to go to official schools for fear of being exposed.
When he was not visiting, he liked to listen to stories in the city's teahouses. Teahouses were where the most information was, and where news circulated the fastest.
Today, Changzhi is still sitting in an inconspicuous position in the lobby, peeling melon seeds and seemingly listening to a book, but his ears are actually listening to the idle chatter around him.
"Have you heard that the An family's daughter is not just coming back to visit her family, I heard she is planning to divorce."
Another person curled his lips and said, "Ever since the An family had an official in Beijing, they have looked down on their former son-in-law."
"She's already in her twenties and still wants a divorce. I don't know who would want her."
"You're wrong. Maybe you've already found a new home."
Then they started talking about other things, and there was fear and disdain in their tone towards the An family.
Changzhi drank the tea, his mind turned around for a while, and when the tea was finished, he left with the servant.
The servant said after he left the room, "It would be a blessing for the man if they really get divorced."
Changzhi thought so too, "The An family has done a lot of bad things."
The servant was angry, "Kill them all without leaving any room for them."
Changzhi did not take the carriage back, but walked slowly towards his residence. He had recently investigated many things about the An family. The An family exchanged land for a lot of fertile land, and the people dared to be angry but not to speak out. These were all small matters. The An family had lost their lives, which was a big deal.
Seeing that the master looked normal, the servant asked quietly, "Master, when will you deal with the An family?"
Changzhi knocked the servant's head with a fan, "Your master hasn't taken the exam yet, so you can't expose yourself now. Don't worry, it's not that you don't want to report it, it's just that the time has not come yet."
The boy covered his forehead and laughed, "Your Excellency is right."
Chang Zhi continued walking with a smile, but in his heart he was thinking about the clan rules set by his father. Although the Zhou clan members were proud, they were still cautious in their words and actions. The teachings by words and deeds of a family were too important.
In the evening, Zhulan saw that it was time to go to the government office, but Shuren had not returned yet, so she waited for a while before he returned home.
Zhulan, "Why did you come back so late today?"
Zhou Shuren said as he changed into his official uniform: "I met the King of Qi and talked to him for a while."
"chance encounter?"
"There is no such thing as a coincidence. The King of Qi specifically blocked me. I sold four houses to the emperor, and the King of Qi also had his eyes on me."
Zhu Lan chuckled, "You can't hide your family's wealth."
Zhou Shuren curved his eyes and said, "I knew I couldn't keep it once I took it out. It's impossible for the house prices in the capital to increase significantly. And the Ministry of Revenue also needs money to make up for the shortfall."
Zhulan, "Fill the gap?"
Zhou Shuren stroked his beard and said, "Well, the emperor wants to renovate the examination halls in various places. This money is the extra budget this year."
Zhulan asked, "Isn't it too late to repair it now?"
"It's not too late. It's mainly for the Autumn Examination. This is a good job. I don't know how many people are eyeing it."
"I don't know who will get the flower."
Zhou Shuren changed his clothes and washed his hands and asked, "Do you want to buy a house?"
Zhulan handed over the handkerchief and shook her head, "There are enough houses to be divided up at home, so I won't get involved, to avoid people talking nonsense later."
Zhou Shuren snorted, "Anyway, I've written it down in my little notebook. Some people want a house but it's impossible."
"Okay, let's eat. We have wontons tonight."
"Then I'll eat more."
Neither the couple mentioned Changzhong's grades, they were too confident in their youngest son.
The next morning, Zhou Shuren and Lord Wei went together. After they had walked a few steps, Lord Li came over and greeted them, "My Lord."
Zhou Shuren was puzzled. This Lord Li was the father-in-law of the future second prince. He rarely spoke in the court. This was the first time he took the initiative to stop him from speaking. "What's the matter, Lord Li?"
Lord Li glanced at Lord Wei, and Lord Wei tactfully stepped back a few steps.
Lord Li gritted his teeth and finally made up his mind to speak, "My Lord, my son is mature and steady. Please say a few good words for him in front of the emperor."
Zhou Shuren realized, "For the job of repairing the examination halls in various places?"
Lord Li's ears turned red. He seldom asked for help from others in his life, and he had no ambition to become richer. He thought he could live a peaceful and stable life, but who would have thought that the arranged marriage would make the Li family uneasy. The Second Prince was interested but the Li family was not. The Li family did not have much power, so his daughter's life was difficult.
His daughter's wedding was on the agenda, and the Second Prince had never come to the Li Mansion on his own initiative. Marriage was not what he wanted, but he was heartbroken for his daughter and gritted his teeth to make a plan. He was not seeking wealth but a better future for his daughter, at least to have a child by her side, regardless of the gender, so that she wouldn't be alone for the rest of her life.
What kind of person is Zhou Shuren? His trained eyes can see through people's hearts. "Your Excellency has come to the wrong person. You should go see the Emperor."
Doesn't the emperor know what kind of character his son has? The emperor knows, so he is tolerant of the Li family girl, and also more tolerant of the Li family. If Lord Li asks for this task, the emperor will allow it.