Chapter 32 Is this question really appropriate?
"Do you think they would feel ashamed when they heard these eight words?"
"I don't know."
"Forget it, let's not talk about them. It will affect my mood."
"Your Majesty is wise."
"Did you see the proofreader in the court yesterday?"
"Yes, I saw it."
"how do you feel?"
"He has a very unique temperament, with a strong scholarly air. He stands in the court neither servile nor overbearing. He is calm and steady, and has profound knowledge. He is a well-deserved young talent."
Emperor Qing was surprised.
"Let's put everything else aside. How do you know he's so knowledgeable? He didn't say much."
"After the court was dismissed yesterday, I had a conversation with the proofreader. I learned from the conversation that he had read almost all the books in the Qilin Hall in the past few years. I then investigated and found that he could talk about not only our Qing Kingdom, but also the situation of other countries, whether it was the court or the folk customs, local customs, mountains and rivers, and scenic spots. He is indeed a child prodigy. His memory is really terrifying."
If Mei Cheng'an heard this, he would doubt his life. Chen Pingping only asked him two questions, both about a place in Northern Qi. Was it necessary to exaggerate to this extent?
He is praising me to death, he is praising me to death!
Emperor Qing also became interested after hearing this.
"This is true!"
"I am not lying. Your Majesty can summon him to test him at will. I have confidence in him."
Emperor Qing smiled.
"You old man, this is the first time I've seen you praise someone like this. I'm afraid you've taken a liking to him and want to bring him into the Overwatch Council."
Chen Pingping smiled embarrassedly.
"Your Majesty, I do have this idea. Your Majesty also knows that the Overwatch Council has always only recruited talented people. Now that I have met such a young genius with such terrifying memory and knowledge, it is inevitable that I will be excited. Otherwise, Your Majesty, please give him to me. I am of great use. It would be a waste to keep him in the Qilin Palace."
Emperor Qing laughed and waved his hands quickly.
"He is not an object. How can I give him to you just because I say so? If you want him, go and talk to him yourself. It has nothing to do with me."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I will go and persuade him then."
"Let me make it clear first, if they don't agree, you can't force them."
"That's natural."
"Have someone escort Dean Chen out of the palace." These words were spoken to Eunuch Hou.
"My minister retire."
Emperor Qing watched Chen Pingping walk out of the imperial study with a smile, and the smile on his face disappeared.
The first time Chen Pingping met Mei Chengan, he was able to chat with him freely and even test his knowledge. This was not normal. Why was Chen Pingping interested in him? Ordinary people might be curious about the title of a child prodigy, but for Chen Pingping, a child prodigy? Even if Zhuang Mohan came, he might not be so interested.
It's even more abnormal that he comes to me to ask for someone after only talking to me once. What is this old guy up to?
Eunuch Hou pushed Dean Chen out of the imperial study, called a young eunuch, and ordered him to escort Dean Chen out of the palace safely. After making sure that Chen Pingping had gone far away, he turned around and returned to the imperial study.
"Go check if Chen Pingping and Mei Chengan had any previous interactions."
Eunuch Hou took the order and left.
He came back after a while.
"Your Majesty, Dean Chen and the proofreader only met once three years ago, and that was in the Supervisory Council. At that time, the Mei Family Canteen was going to expand its business in Danzhou, and Dean Chen called him over to ask a few questions. They haven't met since then. Yesterday was the second time they met. After the court was dismissed, Dean Chen took the initiative to let Mei Cheng'an push him out of the palace, and Dean Chen was taken away after leaving the palace."
Danzhou...A hint of tenderness flashed across Emperor Qing's eyes, but it quickly disappeared.
If this was their second meeting, it would make sense for them to chat together. Could it be that this old man was really excited by the sight of prey? Mei Chengan was really so knowledgeable. If so, he couldn't have been pried away by Chen Pingping. The Supervisory Council needed talents, but the court didn't need them either?
Emperor Qing thought for a moment and then spoke.
"Call Mei Cheng'an. I want to see him. Wait, don't call him yet. Call the Imperial Academy Director, the Junior Secretary of the Honglu Temple, the Junior Secretary of the Taichang Temple, and the Minister of Rites first."
"Yes."
Soon, these ministers gathered at the door of the imperial study and looked at each other.
"Master Guo, do you know why His Majesty suddenly summoned you?"
The Taixue Ling who was asking the questions was in his sixties and his beard was beginning to turn grey.
Guo Youzhi shook his head. He was also wondering what was going on.
Xin Qiwu, the Shaoqing of the Honglu Temple, looked left and right. Among the officials present, the highest was the Minister of Rites, a second rank, and the lowest was the Director of Imperial College, a sixth rank. In between were himself and the Shaoqing of the Taichang Temple, both fourth rank officials. What were they doing?
Soon, Eunuch Hou came out from the imperial study.
"Your Majesty, please allow the gentlemen to enter."
The four people walked into the imperial study in confusion.
"See Your Majesty!"
"Everyone, get up. I have called you here because I want you to work together to write a test paper. There is no limit to the number of test questions. You can base your questions on your own knowledge or on the various books in the Qilin Hall. In short, the coverage must be wide. I will give you three days. You can come up with as many questions as you can. Can you do it?"
Give the test papers! They were called here just to give the test papers! I was so scared. They urged me so urgently that I thought something big had happened.
The four of them breathed a sigh of relief. It didn't sound that difficult.
Guo Youzhi asked tentatively: "Your Majesty, it is not difficult to make a test paper, but I don't know who this test paper is for..."
Emperor Qing didn't even look at him, as if he didn't hear it.
Eunuch Hou spoke at the right time.
"Master Guo, just follow His Majesty's orders. Why ask so many questions?"
Guo Youzhi quickly pleaded guilty.
"I spoke too much, please forgive me, Your Majesty."
Emperor Qing just waved his hand.
The four of them took their leave in unison, left the imperial study, and headed straight for the Qilin Palace.
Control Yuan.
"His Majesty asked someone to check the news of your meeting with Mei Cheng'an."
Chen Pingping was bending over and watering the flowers and plants with a watering can.
"understood."
"Do you really want Mei Cheng'an to join the Overwatch Council?"
"Your Majesty will not let him come."
"You know, I even asked His Majesty for someone."
Chen Pingping scooped another bucket of water and sprinkled it down.
"I made someone unhappy the other day, so consider this as an apology." "Although I don't know what you were planning, I feel like you've succeeded."
Chen Pingping put down the ladle.
"Trust me so much?"
"With your shrewdness, every move you make has a deep meaning. If you act rashly now, aren't you afraid that His Majesty will see through your intentions?"
Chen Pingping paused.
"Your Majesty can't tell, because I'm really just apologizing, and no one would believe me if I told them."
"Then will you go to Mei Cheng'an and persuade him to go to the Supervisory Council?"
"Yes, but not now."
"When?"
"When the time is right."
The shadow turned and went out, and came back after a while.
"Your Majesty has summoned the Imperial College Director, the Minister of Personnel, the Junior Official of the Honglu Temple, and the Junior Official of the Taichang Temple to the palace, and asked them to prepare a set of examination papers."
There was a hint of smile on Chen Pingping's lips.
"Is this your plan?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? How can I guess what Your Majesty is going to do?"
"whispering sound."
Inside the Qilin Hall, Mei Cheng'an looked at the four people at the door. After understanding their purpose, he welcomed them in and introduced them to each other.
This is the first time a customer has visited us in a few years, so we must treat him well.
After walking two steps, everyone saw at a glance the large schematic diagram in the middle of the aisle.
"This is the guide map I drew based on the layout of the bookshelves in the Qilin Hall. You can clearly see what type of book you want to find from the diagram. Just follow the map."
The four ministers all focused their eyes on the schematic diagram. Mei Cheng'an's classification method was not that unusual, but this schematic diagram had never been heard of before. The layout of the bookshelf was clear at a glance. With this diagram, it would indeed be much more convenient.
"In that case, I will not bother you gentlemen any more. Please do as you please."
On his way back to his desk, Mei Cheng'an was wondering what kind of candidate was so awesome that he could have four ministers to set questions for him. Only a prince could be worthy of such a configuration. The eldest prince was leading the troops outside, and the third prince was still young. So there were only the crown prince and the second prince left. But it was none of his business, as he had not yet finished replicating the Huayang acupuncture method.
During lunch, several people sat around Mei Chengan's desk. All the things on the table were put aside, and the food was placed on the table, although most of them were repeated.
After everyone had dinner together, Mei Chengan's desk was returned to its original state and Xin Qiwu helped him clean it up.
"Thank you, Master Xin."
Xin Qiwu sighed and said angrily, "Why are you thanking me? Master Xiaomei is too polite. We used your dining table, so isn't it our duty to help you clean up?"
"Wait a minute, Lord Xin is a fourth-rank official, and I am a seventh-rank official. Why are you calling me Lord?"
Xin Qiwu winked.
"I saw it all that day. The Crown Prince had a very pleasant conversation with you. I'm sure the Crown Prince admires you very much. Lady Xiaomei is young, but you have great literary talent and write excellent poems. You are also valued by the Crown Prince, so your future is limitless. I'll tell you in secret that I am also a disciple of the Crown Prince."
When Mei Cheng'an was watching dramas in his previous life, he liked Xin Qiwu's death very much. He thought it only happened to Fan Xian, but now it seems that he would do the same to anyone the prince admires. It's interesting.
"Then I will accept Lord Xin's good words."
"You're welcome. This is what happened. You know it. His Majesty asked us to come up with a question. I don't have any idea what question to come up with. You've been in this Qilin Palace for so long. Do you have any suggestions?"
"Oh, this matter is not a big deal. Then I will help Lord Xin with some advice."
"Excuse me, excuse me, I'll treat you to a meal when I'm done."
"Oh, it's no big deal, Master Xin, follow me."
"Eh!"
Mei Cheng'an took Xin Qiwu and first went to the history department and picked up a book at random.
"Sir Xin, since His Majesty has asked for a wide range of topics, the requirements are simple and the questions are not difficult. For example, this book talks about the history of Northern Qi. Who was the predecessor of Northern Qi?"
"Wei."
"Look, this is just a test question."
"Ah, isn't this too obvious?"
"The reason why the Wei Dynasty fell apart is not so obvious."
"This is okay."
"Okay, isn't there one? Quickly write it down and let's follow the train of thought. After the Great Wei split, how many vassal states were there? Which countries were they? This question is not simple, is it?"
“I can’t even say it.”
"I'll make a note of it."
"oh oh."
"Let's move on. Look at this book. It's about Dongyi City. What's the name of the mayor of Dongyi City?"
"Si Gu Jian."
"What is Si Gu Jian's real name?"
"I do not know."
"I'll make a note of it."
"Isn't this too much? No one knows Si Gu Jian's real name."
"Ah, so that's it. Forget it then. Do you know what Si Gu Jian's sword intention is?"
"do not know."
“Do many people know about this?”
“Not much, but not a little either.”
"I'll make a note of it."
"Oh."
"Next we..."
"Please wait a moment, Master Xiaomei."
Mei Chengan turned around.
"What's wrong, Master Xin?"
“Is it really appropriate for us to pose the question this way?”
.........
(End of this chapter)
