Reborn in Liangshan: I built the strongest lineup

After a long while, a word suddenly popped into Zhao Mingcheng's muddled mind:

"What did you just say... with what? Divorce what?"

But he was not clear-headed at the moment, and was in a daze, so he did not react immediately.

When he came to his senses, there was no trace of his wife in the house.

"Husband, wife."

Zhao Mingcheng tried calling out, but no one answered from inside the house.

"Husband, wife?"

Zhao Mingcheng suddenly felt a little scared, and the alcohol sobered him up a bit. He tried calling out again, but still no one answered.

He struggled to his feet and stumbled toward the outer room. Because he was drunk, he was particularly unsteady on his feet and kept bumping into things along the way. When he finally reached the outer room, he looked around and saw that it was empty. There was no one there!

The door was ajar, and a gust of wind blew it open a crack, also blowing a piece of paper on the table that was being pressed down by a jade dragon-patterned inkstone.

"what is this?"

With his mind somewhat clearer, Zhao Mingcheng stepped forward, picked up the paper, and tried to open his sleepy eyes to examine it carefully. The first thing that caught his eye was the large "Divorce Agreement" on it.

"Divorce! How could you just get a divorce?!"

Zhao Mingcheng was in a panic, but he seemed to sober up considerably and quickly continued reading:

"May this be of good advice to Mr. Defu:"

I recall the days when we'd return to the Guilai Hall, betting on books and spilling tea, our words on the *Jinshi Lu* (Records of Inscriptions on Metal and Stone) so tender and poignant! I had hoped for a secluded life in the mountains and forests! But since your return to Bianjing, you've spent your days with drunken eyes gazing at ancient artifacts, wine stains obscuring rubbings. The ambition of Ouyang Xiu in his *Jigu Lu* (Records of Ancient Inscriptions) has turned into a mound of wine, a source of deep regret!

Yes, it's clear that Li Qingzhao still gives Zhao Mingcheng a lot of face, including with the "Jinshi Lu" (Record of Metal and Stone Inscriptions). She's essentially acknowledging Zhao Mingcheng's previous achievements. After all, before his decline, Zhao Mingcheng was indeed a remarkable individual. If the "Jinshi Lu" were fully completed, he would be a leading figure in the field of epigraphy!

Zhao Mingcheng's mind began to clear at this moment. He slapped himself hard and forced himself to continue watching.

"Today I see you pawning the 'Shence Army Stele' for wine money, the rubbings scattered like broken armor! Years ago we admired Xu Xi's 'Peony Painting' together, but we couldn't exchange it for our clothes, and we looked at each other sadly all night—now you're spending a thousand gold pieces to buy wine, how tragic!"

Did you exchange the wine? You exchanged the "Shence Army Stele" for wine yourself?

Zhao Mingcheng felt like the sky had fallen. Wait, did he not even check what it was before switching the wine? That's not right!

Zhao Mingcheng went mad, stumbling back into the inner room and frantically searching among the walls covered with calligraphy, paintings, and inscriptions.

It's gone, it's gone, the Shence Army Stele! It's really gone!

"No!"

Zhao Mingcheng slumped to the ground, his eyes vacant. He thought he had just casually exchanged a painting for wine, but he never expected to get the "Shence Army Stele" in return!

That's a rare copy! How could it have been exchanged for a jar of wine?

Zhao Mingcheng forcefully threw the wine jar on the ground, and along with the sound of the jar shattering, his sobs echoed in the room.

And in Li Qingzhao's letter of divorce, there were also the final words:

"I now return the jade dragon-patterned inkstone: I hope that when you are awake, you will use it to write on the inkstone and not fail the paper of Chengxintang; when you are drunk, you will touch the stele and still remember the oath of Shuangyutang; when you are choked with sobs while writing on the paper, you will still hear the tea boiling in Guilaitang."

See, Li Qingzhao was still soft-hearted. Although she was determined to leave, she still hoped that Zhao Mingcheng could turn over a new leaf and regain his scholarly integrity.

Zhao Mingcheng clenched the paper in his hand, opened his mouth as if to howl, but no sound came out.

"May you henceforth live as long as gold and stone, and find solace in the land of Chang'an. Yi'an's last words."

"Madam, Madam, Madam..."

……

Li Qingzhao no longer cared how much Zhao Mingcheng cried. She left without hesitation, taking only a few changes of clothes and some jewelry with her, leaving everything else to Zhao Mingcheng.

As for herself, she planned to try her luck at the "Jixianju" that the Dayi Army had previously established in Bianjing, to see if she could secure a minor official position there.

Jixianju was built under the personal supervision of Tao Zongwang, the commander of the Dayi Engineering Army, after the capture of Bianjing. It was used to attract talents from all over the country to Dayi and to provide accommodation and food for talented people who had no place to stay temporarily.

But the prerequisite is that you have to be a truly talented person.

A few days before the army entered the city, Jixianju officially began recruiting talented people. Originally, Li Qingzhao tried to drag Zhao Mingcheng along, but Zhao Mingcheng scolded her severely, so she had to give up. But now that she was free, she could go without any worries.

"Young lady, are you looking to give Jixianju a try?"

When she appeared at the entrance of Jixianju and struck the Jixian Drum, everyone around her looked at her with great surprise.

It was a woman? How dare she?

The onlookers began to whisper among themselves.

"Who is this person? Can she handle it?"

"Jixianju needs talented people, not concubines. Have you come to the wrong place?"

"I just saw several strong men who couldn't meet the requirements of Jixianju. This girl's chances are slim!"

……

"You guys are so ignorant, don't you know who she is?"

Although there were various doubts among the people, there were still discerning people who immediately recognized Li Qingzhao.

"Does this gentleman know this person?"

"Of course, in the second year of Yuanfu in the previous dynasty, she was only sixteen years old. Her poem 'Like a Dream: Last Night the Rain Was Sparse and the Wind Was Strong' caused a sensation in the capital. Back then, all the scholars in the capital were amazed. If you are old people in Bianjing, how could you not know her great name?"

A knowledgeable local from Bianjing spoke up to introduce the item, immediately causing a stir in the crowd!

"My God! It's her! The talented woman from back then! Li Qingzhao!"

"I remember now! Yes, yes, that's her! But didn't she get married and go to Qingzhou? Why is she back?"

"Is there any need to say more? Qingzhou was captured long ago, and they were probably sent to Bianjing for safekeeping as people from the previous dynasty."

"Interesting. Is this a plan to pledge allegiance to the Prince? But if they truly intend to pledge allegiance, why not come themselves? Why wait until the Prince enters the city?"

……

There were all sorts of voices around her, but Li Qingzhao pretended not to hear them. After finishing her drumming, she stood there quietly, waiting for the person in charge of Jixianju to come out.

And today, there happens to be a senior figure from the Dayi family in Jixianju.

Zhu Gui, the leader who first followed Ren Yuan all over the country and was in charge of investigating various hotels, will be one of the heads of Jixianju in various places in the future.

"So you are the Qingzhou Yi'an Hermit. I've heard so much about you."

Zhu Gui was somewhat aware of Li Qingzhao's fame.

"You actually know me, sir?"

Li Qingzhao was somewhat surprised. No matter how she looked at him, Zhu Gui seemed like a businessman, not an official at all. Yet, as soon as he appeared, everyone else in Jixianju clearly took him as their leader, which meant he definitely had real skills.

“I admired Mr. Zhu’s reputation when he visited Qingzhou.”

Zhu Gui smiled and gestured for Li Qingzhao to enter.

"The adults aren't going to test me, are they?"

Li Qingzhao raised an eyebrow, wondering if this was a bit too easy.

"The layman's abilities are not something the mastermind can test; the prince and the strategists will be the ones to test them. My duty is to make sure the layman is settled in first."

Zhu Gui's words were neither humble nor arrogant, and were well-organized.

"Would the Dayi Kingdom really allow women to hold official positions?"

Li Qingzhao asked in return.

"At Jixianju, anyone with talent, regardless of gender or age, is welcome to come."

Zhu Gui said with a smile.

"As for official positions, there are quite a few female leaders in our Dayi Army. As Your Highness said long ago, who says women are inferior to men?"

"As long as you have confidence in yourself, you may follow me inside now!"

After hearing this, Li Qingzhao glanced at Zhu Gui's expression and, without hesitation, immediately went to greet him.

In terms of talent and learning, Li Qingzhao was second to none!