After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

In less than half a month, the Imperial Guards had compiled all the information they had gathered about Jiang Xiaoqi and returned to the palace to report back.

A thick stack of papers was handed to Prince Zhao Hongsheng of the Great Zhou Dynasty, who eagerly began to read them.

Jiang Family's Only Son in Changshou Village, Changshou County, Xinghe Prefecture?

No! That's not right! She must be a woman disguised as a man!

This boy's identity must be fake!

According to the records, this only son of the Jiang family already has six older sisters, two born of the principal wife and four born of concubines.

Clearly, this was the mistress of the house suppressing the ambitious concubine in order to consolidate her position...

That's why they resorted to this desperate measure: having their daughter pretend to be a son from the moment she was born!

From then on, the Chiang family had an eldest son and grandson, which secured Mrs. Chiang's position, and her two older daughters also had a powerful backer!

Perhaps the rest of the Chiang family were also kept in the dark. Apart from Madame Chiang and her close confidantes, no one else knew the truth!

Otherwise, why would the patriarch of the Jiang family have allowed his granddaughter, who was disguised as his grandson, to actually take the imperial examination?!

Isn't this like the God of Longevity hanging himself, tired of living?

That's right! That must be it!

Zhao Hongsheng felt he had figured out the truth! He was even somewhat impressed with his own intelligence!

However, Madame Chiang was truly selfish, choosing to sacrifice her own daughter's life for her own status.

Selfish! So selfish!

Don't they ever think about when this cross-dressing will ever end?

Are you suggesting that young girls should never get married and should live their lives like men?

No no no!

Zhao Hongsheng felt that he was the only person besides the person involved who knew the girl's secret, so he had a responsibility to save the girl he had his eye on!

Expose it? No way! The young girl has already passed the imperial examination as a man and become a scholar. If we rashly expose the truth now, the entire Jiang family might be executed.

He didn't want the little girl to be in any danger, nor did he want her to suffer even the slightest bit.

To be able to attend the clan school, pass the imperial examination for the title of Xiucai, and even achieve the top three honors as a girl, his little girl is truly more intelligent than all the boys in the world!

Ahem, but not him, after all, he was the only one who discovered the little girl's secret!

Having discovered the "background" of his beloved, Zhao Hongsheng is now both excited and conflicted.

What's exciting is—

He learned her name: Jiang Mingfei. Although it sounded a bit too masculine, it was still quite nice. She was the seventh child in her family, so he would call her Xiao Qi from now on, or Seventh Sister, hehehe.

The dilemma is—

He needed to figure out how to create a second opportunity to meet her, and how to restore her identity as a woman without bringing shame upon her family. He had to come up with a foolproof plan.

Zhao Hongsheng was lost in his own thoughts, completely unaware that the whole thing was just his own imagination.

At this moment, he was still marveling at how talented, beautiful, and elegant the "Little Seven Girl" he had his eye on was; it could be said that "beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

However, if Jiang Xiaoqi knew that a twelve or thirteen-year-old boy had his eye on her, she would be speechless.

It wouldn't just give you goosebumps, it would make you want to throw up your last meal!

Having been a boy for nearly eleven years, the title "Seven-Seven Girl" was utterly shocking to him.

The past life is getting further and further away from oneself, and many things from the past have become blurred. The longer one stays in the Great Zhou era, the more blurred one's memories of the past life become.

He can only remember some very important things or very useful knowledge, such as his foreign languages. He has tried English, Russian, French, and German, and so far he has not forgotten any of them.

Unfortunately, none of this is useful in Da Zhou, and there are no foreign friends here, are there?

The so-called barbarians who attacked the northern border back then have long since been incorporated into their country's territory in later generations.

Back then, there were no southern or northern barbarians; everyone was a compatriot, belonging to the same country.

The real enemy is overseas, on the other side of the sea.

Jiang Xiaoqi was eager to grow up and become a high-ranking official.

If he could win the emperor's favor before he turned thirty, he would persuade the old emperor to go to sea and conquer that tiny island across the ocean!

Although the area is resource-poor and the people are short and ugly, it still has a considerable amount of silver deposits.

The Great Zhou could easily use some means to acquire all the silver mines and develop its economy.

Thinking about this, Jiang Xiaoqi had some trouble sleeping, even though he hadn't really slept in the past ten years.

However, you don't feel tired doing anything in the study space. After you come out, it feels like you've taken a deep nap.

Two years later, I will take the provincial examination at the age of thirteen. Wouldn't it be too conspicuous for a thirteen-year-old to take the metropolitan examination?

But haven't there been prime ministers at the age of twelve and generals at the age of fourteen in history?

It's not unreasonable for him to become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) at the age of thirteen, is it?

The sooner they become officials, the sooner they can eliminate that jackal who has bullied their country for so many years!

By nipping any wolfish ambitions in the bud, we are also eliminating a lurking threat for future generations.

This benefits the country, the people, and future generations; it is a meritorious act for the present and a benefit for generations to come!

Unexpectedly, a bout of insomnia caused Jiang Xiaoqi's thoughts to wander to such an extent, leading her to connect her lack of experience in learning foreign languages ​​with neighboring countries.

Jiang Xiaoqi came up with a "strangulation plan" from several neighboring countries, wanting to send those who are not yet so developed to meet their demise as soon as possible. He really went to great lengths.

Having finally made up her mind to pass the imperial examinations three years later, Jiang Xiaoqi stopped tossing and turning in bed and settled into her study space while lying flat.

After laying out the drawing paper in the space, he had to mark the locations of several surrounding countries according to his memory.

This is different from the map of the Great Zhou he drew before, where he had been to many places in the Great Zhou.

As for the other places overseas, he could only sketch a rough outline based on the world map he remembered.

After all, although this place is considered the same world as later generations, the continental plates are actually still constantly moving.

Even if it's slow, a slight deviation from the flight path could mean failing to reach the destination.

The current attempt to draw overseas maps is just an experiment, and we will gradually explore the possibilities for our first overseas voyage in the future.

Starting with the mindset that success is not guaranteed will prevent you from becoming greatly disappointed when you stray from your destination.

On the other side, Zhao Hongsheng finally came up with an idea after much thought.

In a few days, it will be the day of the palace examination, and the Jiang family's candidates will all be going to the palace.

Why not find an opportunity to get acquainted with Qiqi's father, grandfather, and brothers-in-law, and build good relationships so that he can have a legitimate reason to visit the Jiang family in the future?

I wonder what questions my father plans to ask in this imperial examination. If I could find out in advance and then tell the Jiang family, wouldn't I become their great benefactor?

Zhao Hongsheng tossed and turned in the prince's quarters, lost in his daydreams.

However, his ideals were far from reality. He had no chance to even see the palace examination questions, especially since Emperor Zhao Yong of the Great Zhou Dynasty hadn't even released the questions yet.

Zhao Hongsheng's concern is futile; at least it saves him from making a fool of himself.

However, this stubborn prince was convinced that Jiang Xiaoqi was a girl, and he was incredibly persistent about it.

He even had the audacity to consider stealing the palace examination questions for a "girl" he had only met once. That's truly outrageous.

It's hard to say whether he's clueless or just love-struck, but Jiang Xiaoqi is oblivious to all of that. Right now, his heart is only set on the stars, the sea, poetry, and distant horizons.