Is This Zhao Zhiwei?

Ordinary candidates in the capital city would never have seen Zhao Ruxi. But those children from wealthy and powerful families who had seen Zhao Ruxi in art competitions or heard about her deeds would often say "never seen her" or "don't know" when asked this question, and would never talk about Zhao Ruxi's appearance.

Children from powerful and wealthy families are actually the most discerning in their understanding of who they can and cannot offend.

Just kidding. Putting everything else aside, Zhao Ruxi's master is Mister Kumu, and her senior brothers are all incredibly powerful, none of whom they can afford to offend. Not to mention, the Emperor also favors her greatly, and it's said that Noble Consort Cen is extremely fond of Zhao Ruxi as well.

When Zhao Ruxi encountered problems with grain supplies at the border, he used his exceptional mathematical skills to recalculate the figures that Guo Jitong had miscalculated for the Ministry of Revenue of Revenue, ensuring that the grain supplies could be delivered to the border quickly, thus contributing to the stability of the country. For this reason alone, he deserves their respect.

Not to mention Zhao Ruxi's exceptional beauty.

In their hearts, Zhao Ruxi was undoubtedly a goddess, someone who could not be desecrated or violated.

These out-of-town candidates were probing her appearance; what were they thinking? Didn't they know what they were sizing her up? They were simply hoping to marry Zhao Ruxi.

Pshaw! Even the fourth young Layperson Zhiwei of the Prince Jingping's Estate didn't fancy him, and he's rejected countless sons of wealthy and powerful families in the capital. Why would he want them? Don't they all take a good look at themselves? Toads trying to eat swan meat, dreaming big but not real!

They didn't mention the children of wealthy and powerful families, and naturally, those who had seen Zhao Ruxi at the painting competition didn't dare to either. Even if they passed the imperial examinations and became officials, they would still be just one of many officials struggling to make a living in the capital. The wealthy and powerful families were not people they could afford to offend. Putting aside their attitudes, Zhao Ruxi herself was a noblewoman, and that was not something they could discuss.

Therefore, even now, the scholars from other places still don't know what Zhao Ruxi looks like, or whether she is beautiful or ugly.

Of course, there were relatively few candidates who wanted to find out about Zhao Ruxi's appearance and marry her, after all, the imperial examinations were not easy to pass in those days. Most of those who could pass the Jinshi examination were over twenty-five years old, and their children were old enough to run errands.

Some of these successful candidates were not very friendly to Zhao Zhiwei, and their words were intended to vilify and belittle her.

The Great Jin has been established for several generations, and the number of official positions in the court is limited. The selection of officials is held every three years, and there is nowhere to place those who are selected. Therefore, the number of successful candidates in each session is decreasing. This time, I heard that the court only plans to recruit about 120 successful candidates.

The number of Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) was already limited. Zhao Zhiwei, a noblewoman, had already become a renowned figure in the art world, living a life of comfort and success. Why would she want to compete with them for these limited resources?

This mentality, coupled with male chauvinism, led to a rumor circulating among these people that Zhao Ruxi was extremely ugly; otherwise, why would all the talented men in the capital remain silent about her appearance? She must be unattractive.

Besides, if a woman is beautiful, does she need to study so hard? Even if she comes from a noble family with a title, if she's pretty, marrying a nobleman of equal standing wouldn't be a problem. Why bother studying so hard for a better future?

Therefore, it can be inferred that Zhao Zhiwei must be very ugly.

But the rumors persisted, and since no one had actually seen it with their own eyes, everyone remained very curious about this only female candidate. Today, everyone came to participate in the palace examination, eager to see what this seemingly ugly but talented woman from the capital was really like.

Those who are enthusiastic about attending literary and poetry gatherings are mostly young people. Zhu Hehuai has only been to one or two, so he doesn't know what these people think of his niece. Otherwise, he would definitely beat someone up.

The imperial examination path was arduous, and it was not uncommon for grandfathers and granddaughters to take the exam together. Zhu Hehuai had no particular interest in taking the palace examination with his niece. He was worried that his niece, a young woman, would feel uncomfortable coming here alone, so after arriving, he stood outside waiting to accompany her inside.

Zhao Ruxi had long anticipated being surrounded by onlookers like monkeys during today's palace examination; she could also guess what the other candidates were thinking. Therefore, she didn't bother to arrive so early, but instead waited until 8:40 to arrive at East Glorious Gate.

Anyway Earl of Suiping's Residence isn't far from the palace, and now that we have pocket watches, it's convenient to check the time, so there's no need to worry about being late.

Upon arriving at East Glorious Gate, before she even disembarked from the carriage, Zhu Hehuai spotted the insignia of the Earl of Suiping's Residence on it. He quickly approached and called out, "Zhiwei."

He was a close elder to Zhao Ruxi, and usually called her "Miss Xi" at home. Now, when they were out together, he was very careful about his behavior.

"Uncle." Zhao Ruxi's eyes lit up when she saw Zhu Hehuai. After Lady Luo put down the stool, she helped Lady Luo down from the carriage.

Although she was now skilled enough to leap nimbly and lightly from the carriage, she did not want to be known as "unruly" or "rude" in addition to her reputation as a "talented woman." She did not intend to be unique.

She was unwilling to compromise with others, and even less willing to let the male scholars feel that she cared about their gossip. Therefore, she dressed as a woman again today, in the same clothes as when she went out, except that she chose a light blue skirt with a matching dark blue top. The colors were elegant and the style was simple. Her hair ornaments were also simple, with a sapphire hairpin and two pearl flowers. She looked fresh, elegant, and dignified. Most importantly, she did not look out of place among the group of male scholars who were all dressed in cyan or blue.

"Uncle, how long have you been here?" she asked as she followed Zhu Hehuai toward the crowd.

"I've been here for a while."

"Is everyone here?"

"Everyone's saying, 'You're the only one left out,'" Zhu Hehuai joked.

Zhao Ruxi couldn't help but laugh.

"Heavens, heavens, look!" A scholar standing on the outskirts of the crowd glanced over unintentionally and saw Zhao Ruxi walking towards them. He exclaimed in surprise.

To maintain silence, everyone spoke in hushed tones. His call wasn't actually loud, but everyone heard it.

Everyone turned their heads.

Everyone saw a tall, beautiful woman with bright eyes and white teeth walking towards them. As she got closer, she was clearly heading towards East Glorious Gate.

Could this be Zhao Zhiwei?

The thought had barely formed in their minds, before they could even dismiss it, when an official from the Ministry of Rites approached Zhao Ruxi and said, "Layperson Zhiwei, you've finally arrived. Everyone's here except for you."

The official in charge of the Ministry of Ministry of Rites, surnamed Mo, happened to be the same official who had supervised Zhao Ruxi's provincial examination. He had a very good impression of her, so he was very friendly and spoke in a joking tone.