Chang Zhi raised his eyebrows, "You are wrong. You should say that our family knows how to educate children."
My child is indeed talented. As the saying goes, jade cannot be made into a useful object without being carved. It is useless if a child has talent but is not cultivated well.
Lord Qi became even more jealous. Who wouldn't want to become a disciple of the Zhou family? But in the end, except for Marquis Zhou who accepted a student when he just became successful, the others had no chance. It was said that Marquis Zhou's students had good achievements in government service outside, which was one of the reasons why they were jealous of the Marquis' Mansion. The Marquis' Mansion had abundant resources and could have its own family members teach. They could only be jealous and say more jealous words.
Changzhi asked, "Did you predict the topic?"
Lord Qi stroked his beard and said, "Well, do you want to listen?"
Changzhi took a step back and said, "Forget it, just pretend I didn't ask."
He didn't want to think too much after listening, so it was better not to listen.
Lord Qi, "!!"
Chang Zhi left quickly for fear of being caught. Lord Qi wanted to hit someone. Is it possible to trick him like this
In the afternoon, Zhulan rested and talked to her elder brother and sister-in-law, "I told them to stay a little longer, but they didn't want to stay any longer. I don't know if they have reached home yet."
Zhou Shuren spoke for his brother-in-law, "My brother-in-law is worried about home. If Wu Chun doesn't come to Beijing, this place is not home after all."
Zhulan was sad, "This is the last time we will see each other."
Zhou Shuren said: "How about inviting my second brother to the capital?"
"My second brother is not as healthy as my eldest brother."
This is also the reason why Changzhi did not invite us.
Zhou Shuren didn't like his wife being sad, so he whispered, "I secretly asked someone to bet on our son becoming the top scorer."
Zhulan was strangely silent. Seeing Shuren's confusion, she cleared her throat and said, "I heard the odds were high, so I asked someone to bet on it."
Zhou Shuren was amused. They were a couple that really had a good rapport. "How much did you bet?"
Zhulan narrowed her eyes and asked back, "Tell me how much you bet first."
But in his mind, he was counting the money in Shu Ren's hand, wondering if he had stolen or hidden the money.
Zhou Shuren knew his wife better. "I took 300 taels from the eldest brother, 200 taels from Changyi, 200 taels from Changzhi, and I collected 300 taels myself to pledge the full 1,000 taels."
Ahem, this was the money he hinted his sons to give him as a filial gift years ago, and it was not at all false for him to ask his sons for the money.
Zhu Lan was speechless, "Okay, they are quite capable of keeping it a secret for you."
Can Zhou Shuren say that he threatened his sons? Of course not, "He deserves a lesson!"
Zhulan said, "I also bet one thousand taels."
Zhou Shuren smiled even more happily, "Now the odds are one to twelve."
Zhulan also smiled, "I've thought about it. I'll take the money from Changzhong, and I'll give the rest to Minghui and the others."
Zhou Shuren understood immediately, "You want to help Minghui?"
Zhu Lan sighed, "I want to be fair. I heard from Li that Minghui sold the gems given by his second uncle. Unfortunately, I can't subsidize Minghui alone."
Zhou Shuren frowned, "Did you really sell it? Changyi favors Minghui and secretly gives Minghui a lot of good things. Does Changyi know about this?"
Zhu Lan nodded, "I know. This kid told Chang Yi about selling the gemstones. He wouldn't sell them without Chang Yi's permission."
Zhou Shuren pulled the corner of his mouth, "I was wondering why Changyi was so generous during the New Year."
Zhu Lan laughed, "So Ming Huichang is like me, taking advantage of me. He gets the least beatings but the second most good things."
Among several grandsons, Mingyun is the eldest grandson, and Changyi will not surpass Mingyun. Except for his two biological sons Mingrui and Mingfeng, among the other nephews, Minghui got the most good things.
Zhou Shuren asked, "How much silver did Minghui give to Li?"
"I gave him 900 taels at first, and then I sold the gems and got another 1,100 taels."
This is the high price Xue Han gave specially because she knew about this!
Zhou Shuren stroked his beard, "Two thousand taels more plus the betrothal gifts are quite a bit."
Zhu Lan asked again, "When will Wu Ming return to the capital?"
Zhou Shuren stroked his beard and said, "We have to wait a little longer."
After Wu Ming trained all the people sent by the emperor, the emperor was afraid that things would get chaotic if Wu Ming left.
The couple talked about Wu Ming's younger brothers and sisters, and said that they each had their own families. Wu Ning got married and followed her husband, and would not come back unless there was something important. Apart from writing letters to report the situation, they have not seen her for a long time.
The next day, Zhou Shuren stayed after the morning court session. The emperor held his grandson in his arms and said sourly, "You have been thinking about your youngest son recently, but I didn't hold the child in my arms for you to see. This child calls me Master."
The emperor was happy that his grandson spoke early. He didn't know if it was because he had taught too much or had seen Zhou Shuren too much, but his grandson called him "Dad" and "Mom" many times, and not "Grandpa". Instead, he called him "Master" in a slurred voice. He confirmed it several times and felt sour that he had no appetite for the whole day.
Zhou Shuren smiled and embraced his little disciple. How should I put it? It does feel different the more he saw him, especially since he was the one who called him first. He smiled in his heart that the emperor deserved it. Let the emperor say this is your master all day long. The emperor's grandson can be seen to be smart, so he must remember it.
The emperor snorted, fortunately his grandson called him grandpa second.
The prince was the one who felt aggrieved. The son was often taken care of by his father. It would have been fine if the father did not teach his son to call him dad, but in the end he was ranked third!
The emperor felt relieved when he saw his grandson pulling Zhou Shuren's beard again, and said jokingly, "I will follow you to bet on Changzhong. If you lose, you have to give me money."
Zhou Shuren was at a loss for words, "How much did the emperor suppress?"
"Not much, just ten thousand taels."
The prince interrupted, "I also bet 10,000 taels."
Zhou Shuren, "..."
Although he knew that the emperor would not favor Changzhong for ten thousand taels, he wondered if you and your son trusted Changzhong too much.
The emperor bet purely for pleasure, while the prince bet to make money.
The emperor asked, "How about selling the questions you gave Changzhong to me?"
Zhou Shuren thought of his son's desk full of test papers. Ahem, his son must have done a lot of practice this year. "The emperor likes it?"
The emperor motioned the prince to bring two sets of questions over, "These are what the fourth brother brought into the palace with Changzhong's consent. The questions you came up with are really comprehensive."
Zhou Shuren said quietly, "Who told me to want a top scholar to appear in my family?"
He knew the value of these questions. Wu Ming was a true theologian, Chang Zhi was an all-round academic master, and he was not bad either. Together with Rong Chuan, these questions would definitely cause a stir if they were leaked.
The emperor paid more attention to the papers, which not only tested the eight-legged essay but also involved many other miscellaneous subjects. These papers had hinted at the reform of the imperial examination system. "Sell all the papers made by Changzhong to me."
Zhou Shuren loves silver, but he cannot accept it. "I love silver, but I know what silver should be accepted. The emperor needs these scrolls to be presented to me with both hands."
He hopes that the court will get well-rounded talents with real abilities and practical abilities!
The emperor smiled and said, "I knew you would say that. In fact, I haven't prepared a penny."
Zhou Shuren held the emperor's grandson and said, "My little disciple."
The emperor's eldest grandson called out in a particularly clear voice, "Master."
Your Majesty, "..."
Prince, "..."
Zhou Shuren felt relieved and spoke to the emperor's eldest grandson with a smile!
Time flies, and the Spring Examination is finally over. Chang Zhong packed his luggage, listened to the shouts and waited quietly, glancing at Yang Xiu. After all, Yang Xiu was young and had no reliable elders. He had already noticed that Yang Xiu was forcing herself to take the exam.