In the novel "Joy of Life," the protagonist wakes up at Li Chengze's residence.

Chapter 233 Two Years

Tao Jingyang's eyes widened slowly after hearing this, he was extremely shocked.

It's like suddenly finding out that the intern you personally mentored, whom you still thought was just a naive college student, has actually become the CEO of a listed company behind your back.

No wonder Li Chengze bestowed the title of Duke upon You Ran while she was unconscious.

It seems she was already capable of handling things on her own a long time ago.

Seeing that Zhu Youran's demeanor seemed to have changed completely, she realized that this girl had been pretending to be well-behaved all along. Tao Jingyang thought for a moment, "But I don't need any powerful backers, nor do I need you to be my shadow."

Zhu Youran cried out urgently, "My lord..." She was sweating profusely, thinking that Tao Jingyang thought she was ruthless because he heard that she had killed many people.

Feeling a pang of regret for saying those words, she hurriedly tried to come up with a defense, but when she couldn't, she clung to a powerful figure again, pleading, "I won't kill anymore, I won't kill anymore, I won't kill anyone again."

Tao Jingyang's legs were being held, and his body was swaying back and forth. "You can kill according to the law. I didn't know you were capable of these things before. Now I'm planning to put you into the Supervisory Council. What do you think?"

The Censorate? Zhu Youran looked up in a daze.

"But I didn't pass the exam. Besides, the Censorate is the hardest place to get into."

The Censorate is responsible for fighting corruption. It is independent of the imperial court, overseeing both the imperial family and officials.

Ye Qingmei was established with this idea in mind, but Emperor Qing later changed its usage.

“You are a special talent, so you’ll be recruited through special channels.” Tao Jingyang lifted her up and patted her shoulder like an old man. “What were you thinking when you killed the bandits?”

Zhu Youran lowered her eyes and pursed her lips. After a long while, she said, "It's exhilarating. I just feel that they deserved what they got."

Seeing that Tao Jingyang didn't blame her, and that things had come to this point and she had already confessed everything she needed to know, You Ran no longer hid anything.

She still remembered Xie Bi'an's expression when he saw her kill, and their conversation when they piled up the bodies into a small mountain and set it on fire.

..........

Xie Bi'an stood there with his sword in hand, his clothes clean, as if he had only come to enjoy a bonfire performance.

“When I killed someone for the first time, I wasn’t as calm as you.” The wind blew across their faces, carrying a slightly unpleasant smell. He covered his nose and said, “I also didn’t kill as many as you have.”

The blood on half of You Ran's face had dried; if you rubbed it with your fingertips, blood clots would fall off.

The sprayed blood was foul-smelling, sticky and viscous, covering the entire body, even the hair, and all of it had solidified, feeling as hard as stone.

At this moment, she stared intently at the fire and saw one of the people burned on the fire sit up.

You Ran knew that it was the tendons that had shrunk from burning, not a case of a corpse coming back to life.

Seeing that she remained silent, Xie Bi'an started to make conversation again, "You're not a talkative person, so why do you always act differently in front of Miss Tao?"

"Because only by being more cheerful can I talk to the young lady a few more times."

You Ran didn't want to say much, but simply asked, "Why is there no blood on you?"

She then stared at Xie Bi'an's robes and face, where not a single drop of blood could be seen.

"After killing a lot, you'll know where the blood will splatter." In other words, it's all about dodging.

Therefore, when Xie Bi'an killed someone, he moved gracefully and spun around. In no time, he even took off and spun 360 degrees.

Emotions are not techniques, but rather how to dodge blood.

Seeing that the pile of people was on fire, Xie Bi'an wanted to take her down the mountain and planned to come back in the afternoon to collect the medicinal herbs.

Leisurely, he slung the knife behind his back and secured it with a leather strap.

She said coldly, "Troublesome. Bloodstains can be washed off." Xie Bi'an looked away, nodded, and then seemed to be reminding her...

"His Highness dislikes the smell of fish, so his subordinates are careful about it."

"Your Highness doesn't like it?" You Ran paused upon hearing this, then fell into deep thought.

..........

"He deserved it..." Tao Jingyang repeated the phrase.

"Good and evil are never so clearly defined, and you still have a lot to learn. But fortunately, you don't have an excessive amount of compassion, which makes you well-suited for this kind of work."

At least there won't be internal conflicts, or people being too timid to speak or act.

Seeing that the matter was a done deal, Zhu Youran hesitated slightly and asked, "Won't it cause controversy if I go through the special admission process?"

Tao Jingyang returned her a strange smile, "It's okay."

“You can use Fan Xian as a shield, since he didn’t take the imperial examination anyway.”

..........

Several months later, Fan Xian knocked on the door of Zhu Youran's office.

He pushed the door open and stood in front of Zhu Youran's desk without even sitting down.

"Big sister, can you please stop using me as a scapegoat?"

Fan Xian stood with his hands on his hips, speechless. In the past few days, whenever someone mentioned that Zhu Youran got into the Supervisory Council through connections, someone else would bring up that he also got his official position through connections.

Heaven and earth can bear witness, he acted bravely and righteously in Niulan Street!

Zhu Youran was reciting the law when she saw him come in and said, "I'm sorry."

"..." Fan Xian stood there for a moment, then asked, "And then?"

She didn't look up, only saying, "That's all. That's all the Imperial Preceptor taught."

[Fan Xian]: Damn it, so you're saying I'm the only one who gets to wreak havoc?

..........

The imperial examinations arrived as scheduled.

Fan Ruoruo and Fan Wujiu both passed the imperial examination and became tribute students.

Ye Ling'er has also passed the martial arts exam, ranking first. She should be able to easily become the top martial arts scholar.

The emperor and the imperial advisor took the palace examination together, and men and women entered the palace together. This was the first time in history that such an event had occurred.

However, among all the students in the academy, Fan Ruoruo is now the only woman.

She stood tall and straight among the crowd, her posture as elegant as a crane, her mind firmly fixed on the words her brother had spoken before he left.

"Although you've met everyone in the hall, you might still feel nervous. Remember, don't be timid or hesitant. As a woman, you don't need to be humble or submissive. Speak and act boldly."

This eliminated her only remaining insecurity.

After the imperial examination, the results were announced. The new top scholar was Yang Wanli; the second-place scholar was Fan Ruoruo; and the third-place scholar was Tang Rufeng.

Yang Wanli was a representative of those who supported the new class and was first sent to serve as an official in the local area.

Fan Ruoruo was a symbol of supporting gender equality, so she stayed in Kyoto and took a position in the Ministry of Personnel.

Tang Rufeng is the epitome of beauty.

Just like his name, he was handsome and elegant, and was assigned to the Ministry of Rites.

The remaining two hundred or so candidates were assigned official positions based on their abilities, and at least half of them were scholars with ideas similar to those of Yang Wanli.

With the spring imperial examination, the court returned to normalcy.

The clouds drift lazily by, and time changes and stars shift.

The swallows of Northern Qi came to Qing Kingdom twice, and the first time they returned with plump bodies full of food.

He brought back the Qing Kingdom's troops for the second time.

The rice has been harvested twice, and the high yield has long filled the granaries of the Qing Kingdom.

The Northern Qi were green with envy, watching the Qing Kingdom grow stronger day by day. Their officials were so anxious they were practically spinning tops.

I know that if things continue like this, we really won't be able to beat them in the future.

They sent messengers several times, saying that all people in the world suffer and that Tao Jingyang should make the core technology of seed cultivation known to the world.

No offense, but brother Lao, it's true that all people suffer, but the people of Northern Qi are not the same as the people of Qing.

What, do I have to spend money to manage your family affairs? Is Daqing yours to do?

Have you no shame, you bastard?

Tao Jingyang made it clear that if you wanted it, you had to pay for it; it was impossible for it to be given away for free.

It replied: "I have no money, but you can take my life."

When two countries disagree, they can easily go to war.

The Dongyi people, caught in the middle, trembled with fear, daring not to participate or speak.

The international situation is being treated like a child's game.

......