A Dilemma
He stood up and said, "I'm going to go talk to Shangde. This is outrageous!" Before he finished speaking, he had already walked out the door.
Madam Chen looked at Madam Cui: "This... should we send someone to stop them?"
Madam Cui shook her head and smiled, "Since he's going, we'll save ourselves the trouble. Alright, let's wait here."
"Do you think the Princess will agree?" Madam Chen asked.
Because Xu Xi had lived in the academy for a while and had some acquaintance with Shimo, Madam Chen had met Xu Xi a few times and quite liked this confident and intelligent girl. If the academy expelled Xu Xi because of its rules and regulations, Madam Chen would feel it was a great pity.
It's not that I feel sorry for Xu Xi —gold shines wherever it is. Having caught the eye of Kang Shilin and Xiao Ruotong, and with their recommendations and praise, Xu Xi can't hide her brilliance even if she wants to—it's that I feel sorry for the Beining Academy.
The best students here, as soon as they show even a little talent, are snatched up by the Capital Women's Academy. There's no need for force; just a hint that there's a special admission spot available, and these students will rush to the Capital Women's Academy without hesitation. This greatly angers Grand Princess Shangde.
The Capital Women's Academy. After the Empress passed away, the Emperor had no intention of establishing a new Empress, so he wanted Grand Princess Shangde to take charge of the Capital Women's Academy. After all, Grand Princess Shangde had served as the headmistress of the Beining Women's Academy for many years and was very experienced. Her status was also noble enough to make her fully qualified to serve as the headmistress of the Capital Women's Academy.
Unexpectedly, Consort Jin managed to snatch the position of headmistress of the Capital Women's Academy by simply charming the Emperor. Although an imperial censor impeached her, arguing that it was inappropriate for Consort Jin, who was not the Empress, to perform the duties of one, the Emperor dismissed the accusation. This demonstrates the Emperor's favor towards Consort Jin.
If it weren't for Consort Jin, who held a higher rank than Noble Consort Cen Noble Consort Cen, whose family was powerful and who had two adult sons, the Emperor might have directly made Consort Jin, given his favor towards her.
Because Noble Consort Cen held a higher rank than Consort Jin, the headmaster position should have been held by Consort Cen, even if it wasn't Grand Princess Shangde Noble Consort Cen. However, the Emperor made an excuse, saying that Noble Consort Cen was busy managing palace affairs and couldn't attend to the academy, so Consort Jin would take over. Otherwise, they could switch places.
Compared to the academy, Noble Consort Cen would naturally prefer the management of the inner palace. She herself knew that the emperor's words were not to be refuted, otherwise she would be stripped of her power as empress. So she immediately stepped forward to say that her abilities were limited and she could no longer take on the affairs of the academy.
Therefore, the position of headmistress of the Capital Women's Academy fell to Consort Jin.
In short, this matter left Grand Princess Shangde with a deep grudge.
She already disliked Consort Jin, and this incident made her dislike Consort Jin even more.
Therefore, Madam Chen felt that if Grand Princess Shangde followed the rules and expelled Xu Xi from the academy, and the Capital Women's Academy got a huge advantage, she would probably be so angry she would vomit blood.
However, the reason why the Women's Academy has maintained such a superior status and is so sought after over the years is because of its strict regional admission system.
Once the door is opened, people who are not registered residents of Beining can also study here. Those from the capital who cannot enter the Capital Women's Academy but whose families have some power will definitely come here. The real aristocratic families look down on the Beining Women's Academy, but the daughters of collateral branches of aristocratic families and minor officials are still very willing to come.
Grand Princess Shangde is mainly known for adhering to the rules, so people will use Xu Xi's matter to refute and question her. If Consort Jin then uses this matter to her advantage, it might force Grand Princess Shangde to resign from her position.
In short, this matter presents Grand Princess Shangde with a dilemma.
What Madam Chen could think of, Madam Cui could naturally think of as well.
She sighed and rubbed her temples. "Yes, this is indeed a difficult matter. Xu Xi hasn't been at the academy for long, and she hasn't taken the North Academy's promotion exam. But I heard from the teachers that this child can memorize a book after only reading it once or twice; she has a photographic memory. Such a clever child is extremely rare, even among boys. Several teachers who teach the Four Books and Five Classics feel that she's not suitable for any class and are already giving her private lessons. They think Xu Xi can definitely take the exam next year. Letting such a student go like this, I'm afraid the teachers won't agree."
"How could such a thing happen? That Lady Wei is utterly depraved; she has done countless evil deeds," said Madam Chen.
The Wei Family's affairs wouldn't normally spread so quickly. But what can you do when the Marquis of Suiping's Residence has always been a source of gossip?
First, the Prefect of the Capital discovered the baby swapping incident, then Lady Wei's domineering behavior caused her mother-in-law to suffer a stroke. Moreover, the timing of these events was very close, one wave after another, and everyone's attention had not yet shifted.
Now it has been revealed that Xu Xi is not the Lady Wei, but the daughter of Zhao Yuanxun, the Earl of Suiping, and Lady Zhu. Lady Wei switched the child in order to make her son the heir apparent. To prevent Lady Zhu from recognizing the child, she switched the child with a country girl.
Such a thing was too bizarre and too convoluted; even an opera troupe wouldn't dare to perform it. But Lady Wei did it, and this incident led to the discovery of her own case of killing Minister Wen's grandson in place of her father. Lady Wei was beheaded, and the entire Wei Family was exiled.
This incident caused a sensation throughout the city, and everyone is still talking about it.
So when Madam Chen saw Zhao Yuanxun, the person involved, Madam Chen secretly glanced at him and found that Xu Xi really did look quite similar to him, which made her even more amazed.
Madam Cui was always serious and didn't like discussing such trivial family matters. She dismissed Madam Chen with a few words, and after thinking for a while, she took a carriage and went to the Grand Princess Shangde's Residence.
Kang Shilin is an unreliable fellow. What if he tries to provoke Grand Princess Shangde and angers her? Wouldn't that backfire? It would be better for her to report and analyze these pros and cons to Grand Princess Shangde, so that the princess doesn't do something she'll regret.
When Madam Cui arrived at Grand Princess Shangde's Residence, she found Kang Shilin pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back, like a millstone spinning in the wind.
As soon as Madam Cui entered, Kang Shilin exclaimed, "Look, look! This Shangde has actually run back to the capital. Why did he run off like that? We just came up empty-handed!"
Shen Feiyang, the youngest son of Grand Princess Shangde, who was exchanging greetings with Madam Cui, called out helplessly to Kang Shilin, "Uncle, my mother didn't know you were coming, otherwise she would have been waiting for you at home."
That's right, the reason why Kang Shilin, this ugly old man, has lived to such an old age without being beaten to death is because his family background is also very prominent.
His deceased mother was also a princess of the Great Jin and the late emperor's aunt. Kang Shilin was the late emperor's cousin and the current emperor and Grand Princess Shangde's cousin. His father was the late Duke of Anguo, and the current Duke of Anguo is his nephew.