novelhk Chapter 234 A Female-Dominated World (6)
Chapter 234 A Female-Dominated World (6)
The news of the high-yield, superior seeds was presented to the Empress with great joy upon hearing it. She tasted the seeds and praised them highly.
At a single command, the imperial court purchased all the sweet potatoes at market price, and the farmers on the estate were also taken away. Wangyou's family received a reward of a thousand taels of gold, plus an estate in the capital.
Now that the sweet potato issue was resolved, Wangyou planned to take her family to Fengdu.
The Xie family were originally outsiders, so there were no issues of clan entanglement. Xie San Niang saw that her daughter was promising, so she was naturally willing to go with Wang You. The other fathers naturally listened to Xie San Niang. So the family tidied up the house, sold what could be sold, and left.
The three donkey carts were not in a hurry to travel, and two months later, the family finally saw the city gate of Fengdu.
"This Fengdu looks so imposing; it truly lives up to its reputation as the capital of our Tianfeng Dynasty," Xie Sanniang exclaimed with admiration.
"My lady, the house is all ready, just waiting for you and your family to arrive." Huang Zhong, Wangyou's head steward, walked over with a smile and greeted Xie Sanniang and the others one by one.
"Daughter, you've made the best arrangements." Xie San Niang smiled, not even asking when Wang You had made the arrangements. "If you're not deaf and dumb, you won't be a father-in-law."
The family moved into a large six-courtyard house, and everyone was assigned their own courtyard. Xie San Niang, Wang You, and other female lords lived in the front courtyard, while the back courtyard was arranged by Ling Chen.
After settling in at home, Wangyou went to the Imperial Academy to register. Because she was the top scholar in the provincial examination, she was admitted very easily.
Wangyou only learned after participating in the imperial examination that the probability of becoming the top scholar at the age of fifteen was too low. It wasn't that she lacked knowledge, but rather that she lacked time.
Apart from the annual preliminary examination for children, the other examinations are held every three years. It is basically impossible to take these examinations in a row.
Just like Wangyou started taking exams at the age of ten, she didn't finish the provincial examination until she was fourteen. As for the metropolitan examination, Wangyou calculated that it would be next year when she was fifteen. She was lucky to make it in time, otherwise she would have to wait three more years.
No wonder ancient books were so hard to read; the time commitment was simply too much. Many people spent their entire lives taking the exams, waiting three years after three years!
"The youngest top scholar in history is Wenrou, the daughter of the Minister of Rites."
"Hello, my name is Xie Wangyou."
"You're so beautiful. I've never seen such a beautiful woman before, but you're not masculine at all." Wenrou smiled and hugged Wangyou familiarly. Wenrou didn't have any strange aura about her, so Wangyou let her be.
But what's with this "masculine energy" thing? Even though I've been here for several years, I'm still not used to it.
"You are very beautiful, elegant and radiant."
"Come on, I'll show you around and help you get familiar with the area." Wenrou led Wangyou on a tour of the Imperial College, and finally brought her to her dormitory.
Life at the Imperial Academy was not much different. Not all the students there were successful candidates in the imperial examinations. A large portion of them were people with connections, such as princesses of the emperor and female rulers from powerful families.
However, one advantage of the Imperial College is that once you enter it, you have to put aside all your status, which saves you a lot of unnecessary formalities. Wangyou likes it quite a bit anyway.
"Finally, it's a holiday! Wangyou, let's go to Zuixianlou for a nice meal," she said with a gentle smile.
"Yes, yes, yes, the food at the Imperial Academy is too bland. I want to eat it too, especially the roasted mutton, it's so delicious!" Liu Xiang, the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Anyang, said with a smile.
"Great!" Wangyou was also happy to see this happen.
The three of them walked outside together.
“Miss Zhang, I believe you can definitely become the top scholar. Please accept this silver; you can use it to make some money at the Imperial Academy,” a somewhat shy but firm voice said.
The three exchanged a glance and then tiptoed over to watch the drama unfold. In a secluded corner, they spotted a man and a woman. The man wore a veil, but his eyes were full of affection. The woman appeared gentle, but a closer look revealed disdain in her eyes.
Wangyou couldn't help but sigh. No matter what world it is, there are always people like this. The Tianfeng Dynasty is so harsh on men, yet someone still manages to be deceived.
Wangyou guessed that she had run into the female lead again. As for which male lead she was, Wangyou didn't know yet. At least the one who was eagerly handing over money was definitely not the female lead. At most, he was just cannon fodder.
“Isn’t that Zhang Jieyuan? Wangyou, she’s in the same year as you, but she’s not the Jieyuan from Qingzhou Prefecture, she’s the Jieyuan from Haizhou Prefecture.”
"I'm leaving, I'm hungry." Wangyou had no interest in watching the show anymore and walked away. Seeing this, the other two asked their attendants to find out which family's young master it was, so they could avoid him.
When Wenrou and Liu Xiang caught up with Wangyou, they saw her holding two candied hawthorns in her hand, about to eat them.
"Wangyou, you actually like candied hawthorns? Isn't that something only men like?" she said gently with a smile.
"There's no rule that says only men can eat this. Besides, it's sweet and sour, so delicious!" Wangyou wouldn't compromise herself for other people's opinions; she just wanted to be happy.
Fengdu isn't actually that strict. You can still see quite a few men on the streets, but they're always accompanied by women. However, compared to men in smaller places, the men here are relatively more free.
Are you two very hungry or just a little hungry?
"You're not very hungry, are you, Liu Xiang? How about you?"
"I'm not very hungry either."
"Let's go shopping for a while and then have dinner. After dinner, we'll all go home and find our own fathers."
"Okay." The two readily agreed, and Wangyou strolled leisurely along the street.
"Wangyou, why did you buy these? These are all men's items. Do you have someone you like?" Wenrou looked like she had discovered something amazing.
"What are you saying? I bought it for my father and his younger brothers. You can buy some too. It's all a token of your affection." Wangyou looked at an exquisitely carved rouge box, picked it up, and smelled it.
“My dad usually only uses things from Jubaoge; he wouldn’t even look at anything bought on the street!” Liu Xiang didn’t intend to make a move. Her dad lived a refined life and wouldn’t even glance at things bought on the street.
"This rouge is nice. Did you make it yourself?"
"This lady has a good eye; the rouge was all made by my wife, from fresh flowers picked from the mountain," the vendor said with a smile.
Who carved this box?
"It was carved by my second husband. Does Your Majesty want it?"
"Yes, the carving is quite good, it takes at least ten years of experience. Can you carve openwork?"
"Yes, yes, look, this is the hollowed-out ball carved by my second husband."
"Great, I'll take all of these. And please wrap up all these boxes of rouge for me."
"Alright, that'll be five hundred coins in total."
Wangyou gave the stall owner one tael of silver and said, "With the rest, carve a sand table for me. Use plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums as the patterns. Carve five of them, and try to make them all the same."
"Okay, how can I contact you once the carving is finished?"
"Once it's carved, send it to the Xie residence in the south of the city. Just say that Xie Wangyou asked you to send it. My mother will make up the difference in the money."
"Okay, Your Majesty, don't worry, I will definitely complete it with high quality and quantity." The stall owner happily agreed.
Wenrou and Liu Xiang didn't get a word in edgewise. Seeing that Wangyou was about to move on to the next stall, she thought about it and decided to buy her father a box of rouge. Whether it was good or not was secondary; the important thing was the sentiment.