There is a god in the sky

Chapter 412 Promotion

Xiao Ji did not wait for Shen Lan to come out.

He had only exchanged a few words with Fu Qingyan when someone came to him, saying that the Emperor wanted to discuss matters with him.

Although Xiao Ji only oversees the Ministry of Justice, all the ministers in the court know that the emperor consults him on many important matters that he is undecided about.

Perhaps it was because the two were close in age that they were more favored by the emperor than some of the older ministers.

"Cousin, go quickly. I'll wait here for Miss Shen to come out."

Xiao Ji reached out and placed his hand on Qingyan's shoulder. "Qingyan, you and Miss Shen are not a good match. Don't listen to your father's random arrangements."

Fu Qingyan chuckled, "I know, cousin. How could I do such an unethical thing? Don't worry about my father; he's unpredictable."

After Xiao Ji left, Fu Qingyan suppressed a smile, ate a little pastry, drank a few cups of tea, and instructed Guan Shu, "These pastries are good. Have the waiter pack some up. Miss Shen will definitely be hungry when she comes out later."

While doing his work, Guan Shu muttered to himself, "You seem to care too much about Miss Shen. Don't let the young master misunderstand."

"No, in their eyes I'm just a little brother."

Reading the book, I still don't understand. Shen Lan isn't even older than his young master.

Shen Lan had a good grasp of today's test questions and wrote them smoothly without any obstacles.

In the eyes of the proctor, this girl was confident and skilled, much better than many candidates who were scratching their heads in frustration.

"We hope we don't actually get outdone by a woman," the examiners thought, frowning.

The results will take half a month to arrive, but news of Shen Lan entering the examination hall has already spread throughout the capital.

"I heard that Shen Lan took the Mingfa exam. Could it be that the court intends to recruit a woman to formulate laws?"

"If that's true, then aren't we women blessed?"

The patriarchal system did not mean that all women lacked the will to resist; they simply lacked the means and the determination.

Shen Lan has been promoted.

Many people are curious: how can a coroner get promoted?

Moreover, she was a woman.

Marquis Pingyang looked at his son with regret.

"Since the founding of the dynasty, Da Xi has also appointed many female officials."

However, most of them have no real power; they are just honored by the leaders of their respective industries.

This Shen Lan, who was able to be appointed as a coroner by the late emperor with her own abilities, has now surpassed all the other students with her skills.

The court is in an uproar today. Most officials oppose letting Shen Lan pass the imperial examination. She is a woman, and there has never been a precedent for a woman to participate in the imperial examination, let alone pass it.

However, some people support her, saying that she was originally an official and therefore different from others, and should not be treated the same as others.

Now she's a seventh-rank prosecutor. If she could become our daughter-in-law, I wouldn't have to worry about you anymore.

Fu Qingyan was both amused and exasperated. "Father, don't play matchmaker. My cousin will be furious with you if he finds out."

Fu Qingyan knew in his heart that the more outstanding Shen Lan was, the less likely he was to have a chance.

"Fine, I guess I wasted my breath."

Marquis Pingyang ordered his steward to prepare a gift to congratulate Shen Lan on her promotion.

When Fu Qingyan returned to the room, he saw the table covered with papers and began to tidy them up one by one.

The results of the imperial examinations won't be announced until tomorrow, so he dares not throw these things away, because he'll probably still need them.

He pulled a painting from the bottom layer.

The painting depicts a girl boating on a lake, her back to the viewer, yet it carries an inexplicable sense of loneliness and desolation.

He wasn't thinking about any particular person when he painted this picture; he painted it based on his feelings. Only after he finished did he realize that it had some of Shen Lan's charm.

He rolled up the painting and put it into a porcelain vase, then took out another famous painting and put it into a wooden box, intending to give it as a congratulatory gift to Shen Lan.

Shen Lan's courtyard is no longer peaceful.

A group of officials arrived to deliver the good news, and then all the neighbors flocked over.

Shen Lan was home alone and hadn't made any preparations, so she had to take some money and ask the neighbor's child to buy some candy and snacks.

"I knew this girl was extraordinary before, otherwise how could the Marquis of Pingyang's family have sent betrothal gifts to her?"

"That's right, Miss Shen is beautiful and has an outstanding temperament. She is clearly different from ordinary girls."

"You can't call her Miss Shen anymore, you should call her 'Sir'."

Shen Lan was also an official before, but as an eighth-rank coroner, he was looked down upon by everyone and no one took him seriously.

Now she's a proper official, which means she's changed allegiances and is no longer the same as her neighbors.

Shen Lan didn't usually interact with them, and they often gossiped about her behind her back.

Now that everyone is offering their congratulations so warmly, she feels embarrassed to send them away.

After receiving congratulatory gifts from other officials' residences one after another, the guests gradually dispersed.

People are often envious of those who are doing better than themselves.

But if the gap is too big, you won't even feel jealous.

This is probably the difference between Shen Lan and the other people in this alley today.

In just one day, the congratulatory gifts at Shen Lan's home had piled up like a mountain.

People from the neighborhood all sent some gifts, whether it was a basket of eggs or a live chicken.

As for the gifts sent by officials, most of them were beautifully packaged, and these families were giving them out of respect for the Xiao family and the Marquis of Pingyang.

Shen Lan stood in the courtyard, feeling that it was time to move to a different place.

When Li Ye arrived, she was planning where to buy the house.

"Congratulations." Li Ye gave her an exquisite dagger, saying it was a gift from the Emperor and the most valuable thing he owned.

Shen Lan confiscated it.

“It is not appropriate to give away things bestowed by the emperor to others. There is no need for such formalities between you and me.”

Li Ye later carved a hairpin with a dagger and gave it to her; it was an exquisite ebony hairpin.

"This is from Li Ge; you should be able to use it."

Shen Lan guessed that what Li Ge gave her was very valuable, but she didn't expect it to be a large mansion with five courtyards.

It's quite a coincidence that it's the big house next to the Criminal Investigation Department.

"Li Ge really thinks highly of me. How could he possibly think that a mere seventh-rank judge like me could afford such a grand mansion?"

Li Ye had clearly been instructed beforehand, and he advised her, "This place is no longer suitable for you to live in. The best locations in the capital are all expensive. Since he can't live here anyway, why don't we stay here for now?"

"Easy for you to say. Isn't he just trying to keep our relationship a secret?"

Few people know about Li Ge's background; those who do are probably already dead.

Li Ge and she were also in private dealings, and probably no one would associate an orphan with a high-ranking eunuch.

“Recently, there have been far fewer impeachments against him by court officials. After the Imperial City Guards were dismissed, he has rarely appeared in court. As a result, there is less attention being paid to him.”

Shen Lan frowned.

"This is not right."

She witnessed firsthand how Li Ge was targeted by the court officials.

Given the petty nature of these civil officials, how could they possibly let this go so easily? Especially since they had a blood feud with Li Ge.

Has anything unusual happened in the palace lately?

Li Ye thought about it carefully, "No, the harem is much more lively now that there are a few more concubines. The emperor is busy with state affairs and rarely sets foot in the harem."

That's not what Shen Lan wanted to hear.

But perhaps she was being too sensitive. Someone as intelligent as Li Ge would surely have been prepared for any trap set for him.