A Shock or a Joy?
Zhao Ruxi, who was being targeted by Qi Xugu, was sitting in the hall of the Earl of Suiping's Residence, listening blankly to the praise from her eldest and second aunts of the Zhu Family.
"... Indeed. Our Miss Xi is beautiful inside and out, exceptionally talented. Not to mention the capital, no woman in the whole country can compare to her..."
Even Lady Zhu, who had a ten-centimeter-thick filter of love for her daughter, couldn't stand it anymore.
She interrupted her sister-in-law's boundless flattery and asked, "Sister-in-law, what brings you here today?"
"It's nothing. I was just thinking that the imperial examinations are coming up soon, and my niece is working so hard studying, so I brought some tonics for her to help her recover," said Lady Meng Zhu Heyu's wife, with a smile.
Zhu Hehuai's wife, Lady Cao, added, "Yes. Also, spring is coming soon, so we'll bring some fabric to make a few spring clothes for our niece."
Zhao Ruxi and her mother exchanged a glance, their faces full of helplessness.
After the Earl of Suiping's Residence's family divided their property, she and Zhao Jingli took their respective places, and Lady Zhu had taken her to the Zhu Family. In the past two years, she had also returned to the Zhu Family with Lady Zhu to pay New Year's respects.
Compared to the Marquis of Suiping's Residence before the family division, the Zhu Family was relatively harmonious. Zhao Ruxi had a good impression of her two uncles and aunts. The Zhu Family were not the kind of people who were materialistic; they valued family ties more than power and money.
But she became increasingly busy, and when Lady Zhu went back to her parents' home, she couldn't bear to take her back with her; in addition, Zhu Family's uncle had many sons, and even though she had two older cousins, they were both married, so there were no girls of marriageable age to associate with her. Therefore, she didn't have much contact with the Zhu family.
Zhao Ruxi found it strange that her two aunts were still acting like this when they arrived.
Finally, Lady Meng revealed the answer to the mystery.
She smiled at Lady Zhu and said, "We've come today to tell you that your eldest brother has been promoted. We'd like to invite you and your family of four to have a simple meal together during his day off to celebrate."
Lady Cao added, "A few days ago, my husband wrote several articles and, along with some other friends, submitted them to Lord Peng. For some reason, Lord Peng specifically summoned my husband the other day to offer him some pointers and told him that if he has any questions in the future, he can simply come to his door. If he has time, he will definitely read them."
As she spoke, she turned her head and looked at Zhao Ruxi with a smile, "We don't have much interaction with Lord Peng. Your second uncle used to submit essays to friends. But there are so many scholars in the capital, even if Lord Peng had three heads and six arms, he couldn't possibly read them all. We've thought about it and figured that we're lucky to have received guidance from Lord Peng this time, thanks to our niece."
Hearing her sister-in-law's words, Lady Meng quickly added, "Miss Xi, your eldest uncle is the same. He's been in the Ministry of Personnel for who knows how many years, and he's never been promoted. In terms of ability and background, every official in the Ministry of Ministry of Personnel is better than him. This time, he was only promoted because Minister Wu took pity on Miss Xi."
Hearing these words, Lady Zhu felt secretly pleased, but still said aloud, "You mustn't say that. My elder brother and younger brother's good fortune has nothing to do with Miss Xi. You mustn't say such things again."
"We understand, we know what's important," Lady Meng quickly replied. "We only dare to say this to you; we wouldn't dare say it in front of outsiders. Otherwise, wouldn't we be causing trouble for Minister Wu and Lord Peng?"
Lady Zhu breathed a sigh of relief, "It's good that you know, sister-in-law."
The two ladies of the Zhu Family sat for a while, then went to pay their respects to the old lady and personally invited her to the banquet before leaving.
After seeing her sister-in-law and brother's wife off, Lady Zhu returned to the old lady's place and saw her daughter sitting opposite the old lady. The two of them were drinking tea and eating snacks, looking very content.
She asked, "Have you spoken to Minister Wu and Libationer Peng?"
Zhao Ruxi quickly waved her hand, swallowed the pastry in her mouth, and took a sip of tea. "This has nothing to do with me. Didn't you say that your two uncles' opportunity has arrived?"
Lady Zhu sat down, took the tea offered by the maid, and chuckled, "Do you think I don't know whether they have good fortune or not? I don't believe it's not because of you."
Zhao Ruxi glanced at her, then at the old lady, and said, "To be honest, there's something I'm involved in that's thanks to me. I'll tell you both in advance so you won't be caught off guard."
Lady Zhu had intended to have a sip of tea, but upon hearing her words, she put down the teacup she had just brought to her lips.
Her expression turned serious. "What is it?"
The old lady also looked at her granddaughter with a hint of nervousness.
They all knew that Zhao Ruxi had a very broad perspective. She didn't care about trivial matters, such as Zhu Heyu and Zhu Hehuai being promoted or receiving guidance because of her, and she didn't feel that it was her achievement or something to be proud of.
The fact that Zhao Ruxi is bringing this up so seriously means it must be something important.
Zhao Ruxi told Kang Shilin and Xiao Ge about how she had asked her to come yesterday, how Xiao Ge planned to appoint her as a county princess, and how she had helped Zhao Yuanxun obtain an official position.
Before she could finish speaking, Lady Zhu slapped her. "You silly child, how can you be so foolish?"
She then wanted to reprimand Zhao Ruxi for giving up the position of county princess. But seemingly realizing something, she glanced at the old lady and swallowed back the words she was about to say.
In her view, whether her husband became an official or not was irrelevant; her daughter's status and position were of utmost importance. But the old lady might not think so. In her eyes, the future of her son and grandson was the most important thing. She was afraid that if she said too much, her mother-in-law would Gao Xing.
Unexpectedly, the old lady immediately began to scold Zhao Ruxi: "You silly girl, how could you do such a foolish thing? Your father is getting old and his health isn't good. How high can he rise in his official career? At most, he can only serve for two or three years, just to have his fun. You can be made a county princess, that would be something that would benefit you for a lifetime. If that's not possible, you could ask the prince to restore our family's original title. What's the point of having such an official position if it doesn't provide food or clothing and is just hard work?"
Lady Zhu: "..."
Okay, after hearing the first half, she felt relieved, thinking that her mother-in-law had truly changed completely. But after hearing the last two sentences, she became expressionless.
In the old man's heart, his granddaughter was important, but the Zhao Family's title was also extremely important.
"Can it still be changed now? Before the imperial decree is issued, you should quickly go and talk to your master, and ask him to mention it to the Emperor." The old lady urged Zhao Ruxi anxiously.
"Uh, it can't be changed," Zhao Ruxi said.
With the border war over, the previously busy system has taken a break. She had just mentioned this matter to Kang Shilin yesterday, so the system inquired about the results and relayed the news to her for free. She then discussed it with the old lady and Lady Zhu.
Otherwise, given her personality, she would absolutely not make a fuss before things are done properly. Wouldn't it be a waste of her Gao Xing if things didn't turn out well?
Of course, this news was good news to her, but to the old lady and Lady Zhu, it was more of a shock than a joy.