The Marquise: I Earn My Own Worship

"This is?"

The Emperor of Chu picked up the painting on the table, and Chu Qinling came forward when he saw this.

"Father, this is Kang'er and me. Yesterday, Kang'er and I peeled chestnuts together. Look, those golden chestnuts on the table are the ones we peeled. Mother's painting is so beautiful. Mother, Mother, can you give me this painting? I want to show it to Kang'er next time he comes."

Chu Qinling's eyes lit up, and he held onto Concubine Ning's sleeves tightly with both hands, his eyes fixed on the painting.

Concubine Ning was saying, "I'll give it to you."

The Emperor of Chu touched Chu Qinling's head.

"You're getting along really well with that kid from the Duan family. What's the matter? Do you really enjoy playing with him?"

Chu Qinling pouted, dodged the Emperor Chu's hand, and ran to the other side of Concubine Ning.

"Kang Ge'er is straightforward and treats people sincerely, so my son is willing to associate with him."

The Emperor of Chu took the painting and sat aside before he spoke slowly:

"Oh? Really? You don't like any of the playmates I found for you before?"

"Oh, Father, please don't bring those people into the palace for me. I don't like them. They're always timid and won't play with me. They even stopped me from feeding the fish, saying they were afraid I'd fall into the water. It's pointless. I'm not stupid. Am I supposed to just lie around in this room and not go anywhere?"

Chu Qinling kept on complaining, then sat on the bench on the other side, leaned over the table and looked at Emperor Chu and continued:

"But Kang Ge'er is different. He takes me everywhere, picking flowers, fishing, and even shelling chestnuts. Chestnuts have thorns, but I think this allows me to live a normal life. I'm a little weak, but I haven't taken medicine for a long time, and I feel much lighter than before."

"I can do three sets of Tai Chi in the morning and eat a lot. I used to be out of breath after walking in the yard for a while, but now I can run around freely in the yard. Father, I am really happy. These are things I never thought of before."

Chu Qinling counted on his fingers what he could do. The Emperor Chu and Concubine Ning beside him never thought that Xiaoliu had so many worries at such a young age.

With tears in her eyes, Concubine Ning stepped forward to embrace Chu Qinling, patting his back gently as she did when they were little, her voice choked with sobs:

"It's okay, it's okay. Our Ling'er will get better slowly."

The Emperor of Chu also felt sad. Among all his sons, the one he loved and cared about the most was Little Six. As he grew older, he was always afraid that one day this little one would leave them before him.

So we have been looking for famous doctors over the years. Fortunately, Xiaoliu's health is gradually getting better now, and Le Rou doesn't have to cry all day long.

The old lady Duan had some experience. She must have had this experience because she had a weak son at home and she worried about him a lot.

Thinking of this, I saw the painting in my hand of two children peeling chestnuts.

"If you throw me a wooden peach, I will repay you with a jade pendant."

The Duan family is a good family, helping to relieve the emperor's worries, and it is good that Duan Silang can guess his thoughts.

"That Duan family's Silang seems to be fully recovered and can enter the officialdom. The Duan family doesn't even have a decent descendant now, which is really a disgrace to the Duan family's ancestors."

The truth about Emperor Chu had to be revealed. Concubine Ning held Chu Qinling in her arms and glanced at Emperor Chu with her phoenix eyes.

"Your Majesty, what are you talking about? You personally appointed Duan Silang as the Imperial Certification Officer. If you didn't like him, you wouldn't have said it in front of me."

The King of Chu was not angry even though his secret was exposed. It was true that he had forgotten about this person before and only remembered him today.

"Duan Silang is quite acceptable. Mr. Guo from the Ministry of Justice had admired him before. Since it was he who submitted the article, why not assign him to the Ministry of Justice?"

Concubine Ning nodded disapprovingly and said, "I don't understand the affairs of the previous dynasty either. Your Majesty, please accept my order."

The King of Chu shook his head upon seeing this.

"You, you, I don't know how to say hello to you. Ling'er is good friends with that kid from the Duan family. If the Duan family is good, Ling'er will have a good network of contacts in the future. You usually care about Ling'er, so you should also pay attention to this aspect."

Concubine Ning's heart skipped a beat. Is His Majesty testing her?

"Your Majesty, there is some truth in what you say. If Ling'er becomes a prince in the future, he certainly can't work too hard. After all, it's better to have someone to help him."

Concubine Ning showed an anxious look on her face and looked at Emperor Chu.

"Your Majesty, you must choose carefully for Duan Shilang."

When the Emperor of Chu saw the imperial concubine, who was almost thirty years old but still young and innocent, he couldn't help but laugh and pretended to be angry.

"How dare this woman discuss state affairs."

Concubine Ning wasn't afraid of him either. She pouted and said, "I don't care. Your Majesty, you said it yourself. Our Ling'er is still so young and in poor health. You must make careful plans for him."

The Emperor of Chu looked at the two people, one big and one small, opposite him, with the same expression, and his heart softened. These were his most beloved woman and son, so how could he not make good arrangements for them?

On June 19th of the 17th year of Mingde, the Ministry of Personnel issued a document appointing Duan Jiashilang of Duan Bofu as the chief official of the Ministry of Justice (from the sixth rank).

The news shocked the entire capital. A second-place candidate was actually ranked on par with the top three in the first place. The top scorer in this year's imperial examination was only a sixth-rank attendant.

The first to receive the news was Duan Bo's Mansion. It was like a stone was suddenly thrown into a calm lake, and the Duan Mansion was in an uproar.

Song Shengfu also had a look of disbelief on her face. In her previous life, Duan Jing'an started out as a ninth-rank investigator and it took him four or five years to become the head of the Ministry of Justice.

And now his starting point is the Chief Clerk of the Ministry of Justice, which is only one step away from being the Chief Clerk, but in his previous life, Duan Jing'an took more than four years to achieve this goal.

As expected, things are unpredictable. A word or a small action can cause a huge difference.

You should know that among the Jinshi who participated in the imperial examination, the Shujishi who passed was only the seventh rank.

Ding Jia, Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice

At this time, the family was having dinner around a table. Bai looked at her eldest daughter Meishu, and then at her husband Ding Haimo.

He opened and closed his mouth again and again, but never spoke.

Ding Haimo had noticed his wife's unusual behavior a long time ago, and when he saw that she hadn't spoken for a long time, he took the initiative to ask.

"Why, I see you've been in a bad mood today."

Seeing this, Ding Meishu put down her bowl and chopsticks and looked at her mother with some concern.

"Is mother feeling unwell?"

Mrs. Bai felt a little annoyed when she looked at the two people in front of her. Why was she the only one struggling while these two people acted as if nothing had happened?

"You've heard that the Duan family's Silang has been dismissed. The Duan family has had many happy events recently."

"Of course, it's spread all over the house. My daughter even heard that it's something at the Ministry of Justice headquarters. My father is also in the Ministry of Justice now. What rank is this?"

As a girl in the boudoir, Ding Meishu naturally had no idea about the ranks in the officialdom.

"Dushi is only a sixth-rank official. The Duan family kid is really lucky. He was granted exemption from the exam even though he injured his leg. Those who took the imperial examination for Shujishi were only seventh-rank officials. Those who failed the exam were either ninth-rank officials or sent out to other places."

Ding Haimo sighed, thinking back to when he was ranked seventeenth in the second class of the imperial examination, failed the imperial examination, and was assigned to the Ministry of Justice as a clerk, and he has come to where he is today step by step.

When Ding Meishu heard her father say this, she remembered that when she was old enough to remember, her father was the chief official of the Ministry of Justice, and seemed to be a sixth-rank official. This means that Duan Silang's starting point in his official career was so high.

Seeing the two father and son talking back and forth, Bai Shi didn't understand what she meant, so she spoke directly:

"I went to a banquet during the Dragon Boat Festival and saw Duan Silang from afar. He was handsome, dignified, and had a great appearance. Now the threshold of Duan Bo's house is probably about to be trampled down."

As soon as these words were spoken, the two of them understood what they meant.

Ding Meishu's face flushed red, she lowered her head and stared at her bowl, she stammered:

"Mother, what are you doing? I can't bear to hear such words."

Bai looked at her eldest daughter with pity. She gave birth to a daughter and two sons. This was her eldest daughter, and she gave her basically everything she could.

From a little meaty ball to the graceful young girl she is today, Bai has put in all her efforts.

Now that she is at the age of marriage, she has to find a good husband for herself even if she is extremely reluctant.

She thought Duan Silang was a very good person. Now he had a good position and his family background was suitable for her. Apart from his family being a little weak, he had no other shortcomings.

The most important thing is the family motto of not taking concubines. She and her husband are indeed in love, but no matter how loving they are, her husband still took a concubine and gave birth to a concubine's daughter, who is now raised by her.

She had personally experienced what it was like for her beloved husband to go to another woman's room, and she didn't want her daughter to be like her.

"Silly child, you are old enough. This is a matter of life and death for you. Why shouldn't you listen to it?"