Eager to Get Closer

"Do you know who Lord Wu of Ministry of Personnel Wu Huaisi is? He's Mister Kumu's eldest disciple and Teacher Zhao's senior brother. Do you know who Teacher Zhao's second and third senior brothers are? They're Minister Gong Cheng Lord Gong, the Left Vice Minister of Ministry of Works, and Minister Lord Wu Zong, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review."

"Lord Wu?" someone exclaimed, "Is he also Master Teacher Zhao's senior fellow student?"

"That's right. Mister Kumu and his three senior brothers are extremely protective of their own. If you offend them, they might not bother with you. But if you Gao Xing Teacher Zhao, they'll make you regret it. Not to mention yourselves, even your superiors, can they afford to offend the Minister of Ministry of Personnel?"

Everyone shook their heads.

Even setting aside offending the Minister of Ministry of Personnel, if any official in the Ministry of Ministry of Personnel expresses dissatisfaction with their superior, their career is likely over.

"You also know about Mister Kumu's relationship with the Emperor. Back when Mister Kumu took Teacher Zhao as his disciple, the Emperor gave Teacher Zhao a shop as a gift, saying it was for his junior sister. Some time ago, the Heir of the Earl of Zhongqin offended Teacher Zhao, and the Emperor, without saying a word, directly stripped the Jia Songlin, Earl of Zhongqin the Palace Guards and demoted him by one rank."

The constable's eyes showed pity as he said this, "I heard that some of you provoked Teacher Zhao this morning? Where did you get the audacity to provoke Teacher Zhao? Do you think you're more powerful than General Jia?"

He clicked his tongue twice, turned his head away, and ignored them.

The people seeking information didn't come together, but in twos and threes. While the constable was boasting, six or seven people had gathered around him.

After hearing what the constable said, the people looked at each other in dismay, each one filled with lingering fear.

Fortunately, before they could disrespect Teacher Zhao, a fool jumped out to make an example of her, letting them know that Teacher Zhao was not to be trifled with, and that the powerful figures behind her were even more untouchable. They escaped a terrible fate.

One of the most astute among them immediately said, "You all chat, I'm hungry, I'm going out to buy a sesame seed cake." Without waiting for anyone to reply, he went straight out the door.

After leaving the house, he didn't go out onto the street, but instead headed in the direction Zhao Ruxi had pointed out that morning.

Fortunately, this area was full of wealthy and powerful families, with their houses occupying vast areas, and only two or three households living in such a large area. The main gate of the Green Plantain Courtyard, which Zhao Ruxi had partitioned off, was located at the original corner gate of the house. The student walked along the wall for a while and then saw the gate of the Green Plantain Courtyard.

"Excuse me, is this Teacher Zhao's residence?" the man asked.

The gatekeeper is Sun Jiawang, oh no, it's Xiaoming.

After the military training ended, Zhao Ruxi saw that he was quick-witted, very intelligent, and of good character. He had performed very well during the training, so she decided to mentor him and gave him a formal name, Zhaoming.

Zhaoming is currently being assigned to the Green Plantain Courtyard, where he takes turns working as a gatekeeper with another man in his twenties named Yang Song. Being a gatekeeper is a leisurely job, allowing him plenty of time to study.

"Indeed." Zhaoming sized him up. "What business do you have with my master?"

"I am a painter from Anzhou Province named Zhong Duo. Teacher Zhao said he is recruiting people for management, and I would like to volunteer for the position of class leader." Zhong Duo took out a name card he had secretly written from his pocket. "This is my name card. Please present it to me for me, young man. Thank you."

Seeing his respectful attitude, Zhaoming's impression of him improved somewhat.

He knew, of course, that he had nothing to offer that warranted respect. But the fact that someone would treat a mere gatekeeper with such deference meant that the other person held his master in high regard.

"Wait here, I'll go in and report to the master." Zhaoming invited him into the gatehouse and sat down, then took the invitation and went into the courtyard.

Zhao Ruxi was listening to Zhou Chun report on the workshop's situation when she heard Zhaoming's report. She said, "Let him in."

A short while later, Zhaoming led Zhong Duo in.

"Student Zhong Duo greets Master." Zhong Duo kept his head down the whole way, not daring to look around. When he arrived in front of Zhao Ruxi, he didn't dare to raise his eyes and respectfully bowed.

"Being a class monitor involves a lot of trivial matters and a lot of things to worry about. Everyone comes from different places and has different social statuses. Some are from prominent families, and some may even hold higher official positions than you. Managing these people is not easy, and you might even have to put up with their mistreatment," Zhao Ruxi said.

She looked at Zhong Duo: "Why don't you go back and think it over before applying again?"

Zhao Ruxi had mentioned to Zhang Changshen that it was best for those who wanted to learn painting to be under thirty-five years old, and she was worried that someone like Zhou Wenbai would come along.

After being reminded by her, Zhang Changshen realized that he was too old, and even if he learned the skills, he wouldn't be able to serve the government for long, which would be a waste. So he lowered the age requirement even further, and the document he issued clearly stated that the applicant must be under thirty years old.

Therefore, these trainees are all relatively young.

Zhong Duo was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, and seemed to be a fairly composed person.

Without hesitation, after Zhao Ruxi finished speaking, he bowed and said, "I have considered everything you said, Master. I am willing to serve my colleagues."

Zhao Ruxi was very satisfied.

She was about to speak when Zhaoming, who had only been gone a few minutes earlier, came back in, holding two invitation cards. "Miss, two more people have submitted their invitation cards."

Zhao Ruxi glanced at Zhong Duo: "Please invite them in."

The two men entered and were visibly taken aback when they saw Zhong Duo.

After they explained their purpose and expressed their desire to be class monitor, Zhao Ruxi said, "In that case, tell me, if you were the class monitor, how do you plan to manage the class?"

The fact that these three were able to inquire about Zhao Ruxi's background from the constables after school and then quickly make the decision to come here to volunteer shows that they had clearly figured out the benefits of being a class leader.

With Zhao Ruxi's strong background, being the class monitor and managing the class for her would give me more opportunities to interact with her. Once I became friends with her, if she put in a good word for me or said a few nice things in the evaluation, I could get an excellent grade, and my future would be bright.

Even if Teacher Zhao doesn't speak up for me in front of my superiors, having more contact with her and getting more pointers on my painting would still be worthwhile.

In addition, being a class monitor may be tough, and you might offend people. But it's also a great opportunity to build connections.

Those who come to learn painting include scions of prominent families and officials of higher rank than them. Once you become friends with them, you'll have no shortage of opportunities for promotion in the future.

Therefore, as soon as Zhao Ruxi finished speaking, the person who came after her said first, "I'll go first."

He immediately launched into a long explanation of his strengths and advantages, and how he would manage the class. His words implied how outstanding he was and what powerful connections he had.

After he finished speaking, Zhao Ruxi remained noncommittal and asked Zhong Duo and the other person, "Which of you two will speak first?"

The two exchanged a glance, Zhong Duo gestured for them to go first. "Brother, you may go first."