Tianliangyuan

Chapter 239 Arrival in Beijing

Chen Xiangxiang only made a brief appearance here before being sent back.

Xu Zhaozhao and Xu Jun'an entertained the Chang family father and son together, and even had someone specially send over osmanthus black tea.

"Let's not beat around the bush. We are extremely grateful for the help the county magistrate has given to our Chang family. If the county magistrate has any requests, please just give them. As long as it does not violate the laws of Daxing or human ethics, our Chang family will not dare to say a word."

"Lord Chang, you flatter me. To be honest, the reason I am willing to lend Young Master Chang a hand is because I had the honor of meeting your son once in Wannian County. At that time, I was wearing a veil, so the young master did not recognize me. However, I heard that he praised the fine wine of my Hundred Fruit Garden and even spoke up for me. I am grateful and have no way to repay him. In this way, we can call it even."

Master Chang looked at Chang Yuande and noticed a hint of sudden realization in his son's expression, then he understood that what Xu Zhaozhao said must be true.

However, it's impossible for both sides to be completely even.

To earn a chance to become a student of the Imperial Academy simply by speaking up for someone is an extremely unfair deal.

“In that case, my son and I thank the county magistrate once again. In the future, if the county magistrate or the Marquis’s mansion has any requests, my son and I will certainly not hesitate to accept them.”

"Lord Chang, there's no need for that. You and your son are both civil officials, while my family has been military officers for generations. Now, only my third brother is pursuing a civil career. Even though my maternal uncle's family has taken care of him many times, there are too many people and too much gossip in the court, and there will always be times when he can't be taken care of. In the future, I will have to trouble you two to protect him."

Master Chang understood; this was paving the way for Xu Junting.

But Xu Junting has already been granted a title, so why would he need this old man's help?

Xu Zhaozhao stayed there for only a quarter of an hour before getting up to take her leave.

Before leaving, she asked one more question: "I wonder if the eldest young master is married?"

Chang Yuande paused for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Not yet. I haven't completed my studies, how could I dare to delay the beauty's time?"

“The eldest son is a blessed man, and I believe that your good fortune will also bring blessings to the entire Chang family.”

After saying that, Xu Zhaozhao left.

Master Chang was intrigued. He thought of the young girl he had met earlier. Could it be that he wanted to arrange a marriage for her?

After chatting with Xu Jun'an for a while, Master Chang learned that the woman he had just met was named Chen Xiangxiang, and her father was also about to arrive in the capital to take up his post. However, the specific official position would have to wait for the Ministry of Personnel to issue an official document, or rather, for His Majesty to summon him, before a decision could be made.

The Chang family is not what it used to be.

Master Chang guessed that since Lord Chen was being transferred back to the capital, his official position would be at least a fifth-rank official, and with the support of the Marquis's family, his future should be secure.

Chang Yuande, being the eldest son of the Chang family, would never marry a concubine's daughter. Therefore, marrying a cousin from the Marquis's family would be a good choice.

When Xu Zhaozhao asked Chen Xiangxiang again, Chen Xiangxiang's face turned red, and she didn't dare to lift her head. Her flustered and somewhat shy appearance clearly showed that she was shy, which meant that she had fallen for him.

Xu Zhaozhao passed the message to Chen Cong, asking him to find a way to test this young master Chang.

If Chen Cong is also satisfied, then the marriage will be possible once Uncle Chen arrives in the capital.

Ultimately, Xu Zhaozhao just wanted to cultivate some of her own people as soon as possible.

Military generals generally do not want to associate with civil officials, while most civil officials look down on military generals, always thinking that they are ignorant, strong but rude.

However, the officialdom in Daxing was relatively good, and civil officials were quite tolerant of those who were truly skilled in both civil and military affairs.

For example, they were very tolerant of Xie Zheng.

As for Xu Han, he deliberately cultivated the image of a rough man, whether it was his true nature or he simply wanted to stay away from power struggles is unknown.

Xu Zhaozhao had a good impression of Chang Yuande, though the possibility that he might have been deliberately trying to attract her attention could not be ruled out.

But for Xu Zhaozhao now, the Chang family is just a small family, and she really doesn't take them seriously.

If she could get Chang Yuande into the Imperial Academy, she would naturally have ways to block his future as well.

Therefore, whether the Chang family father and son harbored ulterior motives is not the issue.

Xu Zhaozhao wanted to use the Chang family father and son, but what she valued most was their abilities.

After all, she had no intention of giving the Chang family father and son important positions for the time being. A few words of support in court would be enough to improve Xu Junting's situation among the civil officials.

As for what happens next, let's observe for now.

Whether or not to arrange a marriage between Chen Xiangxiang and Chang Yuande is not something to rush into, after all, Chen Xiangxiang is still young, and Chang Yuande has no plans to get married for the time being.

That's good.

Let's hold off for now, so we don't get questioned again.

In April, Chen Cong's father, Chen Shiguang, and his wife arrived in Beijing after a long and arduous journey.

They finally arrived in the capital. The house that Chen Cong had previously prepared in the capital had already been tidied up, but because of the old lady, Chen Cong and his sister were still living in the Marquis's mansion.

Now that Chen Shiguang, the head of the family, has come to the capital, Chen Cong and his sister wanted to move out, but the old lady arranged for them to stay at the Marquis's residence first.

Wang Ruolan and Li Shi had no objections to this, knowing that they wouldn't be staying for long.

The main reason was that the old lady felt sorry for her nephew and wanted him to stay by her side for a few days since they hadn't seen each other for many years.

This is also understandable.

“Cousin and cousin-in-law, please don’t refuse. Stay at the Marquis’s residence for a few days to ease your fatigue from the journey. Besides, you’ve just arrived in the capital, so there are some things you can discuss with your second brother and the brothers Jun’an and Jun’ting. We sisters-in-law can also get together and have some private conversations.”

The old lady insisted on not letting him leave, so Chen Shiguang naturally couldn't insist any further.

However, Chen Shiguang also made it clear that he could not stay there for an extended period.

Chen Shiguang previously served as a sixth-rank county magistrate in Shangxian, which was essentially a large and relatively wealthy county.

Now that he has been transferred to the capital for his political achievements, the specific arrangements will depend on the Ministry of Personnel's considerations.

If it were an ordinary county magistrate being transferred, the emperor would naturally not meet with him; there would be no need, as the official position would be too low.

But Chen Shiguang was different. His achievements were outstanding, and he performed exceptionally well in the previous provincial examination. In the subsequent metropolitan examination, three people from his jurisdiction passed the imperial examination, which was quite remarkable!

Therefore, the possibility of the emperor summoning him is extremely high.

Moreover, Chen Shiguang's main achievements lie in education. This time, he was transferred to the capital and there is a high possibility that he will be assigned to the Ministry of Rites, the Imperial Academy, or the National University.

However, considering Chen Shiguang's experience as a local official, Xu Zhaozhao thought that Chen Shiguang should be transferred to the Ministry of Rites.

Chen Shiguang and Xu Junan were talking in the study, and there was no one else in the room.

"Uncle, according to the family's guess, there is a very high chance that you will be hired by the Ministry of Rites this time. The reason for inviting you here today is to ask your opinion: would you rather teach at the Imperial Academy or join the Ministry of Rites?"