Preventing It
Madam Cui was a renowned woman of great talent in the capital. Her learning was no less than that of some of the great Confucian scholars in the capital, and her abilities were also quite good. Otherwise, Grand Princess Shangde would not have invited her to preside over the management of the academy.
Because of her management of the academy, Madam Cui paid close attention to the questions and essays for each imperial examination. Grand Princess Shangde believed that she had a certain ability to judge the quality of essays and poems.
"The evaluation is very high," said Madam Cui. "I don't Zhiwei young age, has such a broad perspective and such profound insights. She often hits the nail on the head and has unique insights. Every time I read her articles, I feel refreshed and enlightened. The teachers often applaud her articles."
She stopped there and didn't say anything more.
She only stated the facts; other matters were not her place to interfere.
Grand Princess Shangde nodded after hearing Madam Cui's words.
She frowned, her fingers tapping rhythmically on the armrest, her gaze unfocused as she looked ahead.
Madam Cui knew her well, knew that when Grand Princess Shangde was unable to make a decision on important matters, she would unconsciously make this small gesture.
She sat to the side, even holding her breath, afraid of disturbing Grand Princess Shangde.
After a while, Grand Princess Shangde stood up. "I need to go to the palace."
Sending someone to the government office to request the posting of the exam papers was a good idea, but some things, once done, leave a trace.
If anyone uses this incident to their advantage, accusing her of being a princess who neglected her duties and interfered in the imperial examinations, the consequences will be severe, no matter how reasonable her demands may be.
Men rule this world; emperors, princes, and ministers are all men. They usually act independently, their conflicts running deep. But if a woman dares to intrude into their domain, they will tear that outsider to shreds.
Unless this woman is extremely powerful and can directly control their lives and deaths.
Empress Shengyao accomplished so much back then; it could be said that half of the Emperor's ability to secure his throne was due to Empress Shengyao. Yet, in the end, there were still many things she couldn't accomplish, from the grand scale of ascending the throne herself to the smaller matters of female succession.
Now, Grand Princess Shangde has instigated disturbances during the imperial examinations. Regardless of whether she is in the right or wrong, this infringes upon the interests of men, and they will unite to attack her. The label of "princess interfering in politics" will be slapped on her head.
Besides, even if the results are posted, so what? There's no first place in literature, but there's a clear winner in martial arts. Who can say that Zhao Ruxi's essay is necessarily better than the top six? The county examination is determined by the preferences of the county magistrate or the prefect of the capital. Whoever he decides is number one, that's the rule of the county examination. Even the emperor can't say anything about it.
Even if the other candidates thought Zhao Ruxi's essays and poems were good, they wouldn't admit it and slap the face of the prefect and the top six.
The fact that the Prefect of the Capital dared to do this suggests that he had already thought the issue through thoroughly.
In the first round, he didn't suppress Zhao Ruxi, giving her first place; second place in the second round, seventh place in the third round, and finally, Zhao Ruxi's ranking was guaranteed to be in the top five. In the eyes of the Emperor and all the court officials, this was already giving Grand Princess Shangde, Mister Kumu, and the Layperson Zhiwei a lot of face. No matter how powerful a woman is, she cannot suppress a man; this is a matter of principle.
Since the Prefect of the Capital has already given her face, it would be unreasonable for her to cause trouble if she went to make a scene.
That makes sense, but Grand Princess Shangde simply couldn't swallow this bitter pill.
She couldn't do anything else, but she could go to the palace to sow discord among the prefects of the capital.
As she walked out of the hall and was about to descend the steps, she saw a servant leading several people in hurriedly, the one in the lead being Zhao Ruxi.
"Your Highness, the Eldest Princess." Zhao Ruxi stopped and bowed upon seeing the Grand Princess Shangde.
"Why are you here?" Grand Princess Shangde asked, puzzled.
Just now, Matron Yin relayed Zhao Ruxi's message, saying that she would come to express her gratitude after the announcement was posted. How come I saw Zhao Ruxi so soon?
Zhao Ruxi smiled wryly, "After Matron Yin left, I found out what my mother had said to her, so I rushed over."
Matron Ruan was the head steward of the Earl of Suiping's Residence. She was able to climb to this position among all the maids not only because she was shrewd and capable, but also because she had the ability to judge the situation and flatter.
Zhao Ruxi went from being the legitimate daughter of the second wife to the legitimate daughter of the first wife, and from being an outsider who was ostracized to becoming the actual person of power in the Earl of Suiping's Residence. Matron Ruan saw all of this. Naturally, the main people she needed to flatter and curry favor with changed from the old lady and Lady Zhu to Zhao Ruxi.
However, Zhao Ruxi was usually too busy, leaving early and returning late. After returning home, she would just eat and sleep. Matron Ruan could not find a suitable opportunity to win Zhao Ruxi's favor.
Although Lady Zhu's words to Matron Yin were meant to stand up for Zhao Ruxi, Matron Ruan still felt that Zhao Ruxi should know about this matter.
The court affairs that Zhao Ruxi analyzed for the old lady and Lady Zhu were not discussed with the servants, but Lady Zhu would sometimes mention them unintentionally, saying that Zhao Ruxi's understanding of the court was better than that of many men.
Now that she had the opportunity, as soon as Matron Ruan saw Matron Yin off onto the carriage, she immediately sent her maid to tell Zhao Ruxi everything that Lady Zhu had said to Matron Yin.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Ruxi rushed to Beining.
Grand Princess Shangde had no choice but to turn around and let Zhao Ruxi sit down in the hall.
Madam Cui had originally followed Grand Princess Shangde home, but now she also returned and sat down.
Grand Princess Shangde offered the tea and waited quietly for Zhao Ruxi to speak.
"Your Highness, my mother doesn't understand things outside, and she's always trying to protect me. She also thinks I'm smarter than everyone else in the world, which is why she said those things to Matron Yin. Please forgive her, Your Highness, for the sake of her being a mother." Zhao Ruxi stood up and bowed solemnly.
"Your mother is right. I have no intention of blaming her at all. On the contrary, I thank her for reminding me. You don't need to be nervous. Please sit down." Grand Princess Shangde raised her hand to indicate.
Matron Yin stepped forward to help Zhao Ruxi up and then helped her to her seat.
"Even so, my mother's words will surely put His Highness in a difficult position. The imperial examination is a major event for the court. If the princess interferes, regardless of whether she is right or wrong, she will inevitably be attacked. How can we, for our own selfish reasons, put His Highness in an unjust position?"
"Furthermore, there is no first place in literature, but there is a second place in martial arts. Which article is the best is naturally determined by the Prefect's own preferences, so how can you say he is wrong? Even if it is posted, as long as the quality of the articles is not too different, no one can judge which is better or worse. Once the ranking is set, it cannot be changed. If Your Highness interferes in this matter, people will surely say that you are being unreasonable."