Wu Shi’s eyes reddened with emotion: “Husband, you are truly wonderful! I was merely sighing casually—you needn’t go to such lengths for me!”
…Shen Rusong’s feelings were somewhat complicated. He studied Wu Shi carefully—her emotions were indeed genuine, not sarcastic.
He tentatively began: “What do you think of Yiyi—well, Yuan Jie’er—as a child?”
Wu Shi didn’t understand why Shen Rusong suddenly brought up Yuan Jie’er, but she answered honestly: “She seems like a good child.”
“I want to register her under your name as well.”
Nanny Tong had already discussed this with her, though they had originally planned to observe the child’s character a bit longer.
Now that Shen Rusong had brought it up, Wu Shi agreed without hesitation: “Very well. I have been unfortunate, unable to give you a son or daughter. This way, I can at least have both a son and a daughter.”
Shen Rusong stood up and embraced her: “Who says you have no fortune? An Ge’er and Yuan Jie’er will be registered as the twin boy and girl you gave birth to—our legitimate eldest son and eldest daughter! I insist on giving you that immense fortune!”
Wu Shi was dumbfounded.
She looked up at Shen Rusong in astonishment from his chest—was such a thing even possible?
Then she heard Shen Rusong’s gentle voice: “An Ge’er has been raised by you from the start anyway. As for Yuan Jie’er—well, her fate is extremely auspicious, bringing prosperity to the family! A child is born and raised within the inner household—outsiders have no way of knowing the exact details. It so happens that no celebratory banquet was held for An Ge’er back then.”
Hearing this, Wu Shi’s face flushed.
Shen Rusong didn’t notice and continued on his own: “We’ll just say she gave birth to twins but kept it quiet for fear they wouldn’t survive, like the Guo family did.”
“But—but, the servants in the household all know!”
“Hmm, your concern is valid. I was thinking—the residence here in Anyang and the lands outside the city sold for quite a sum this time. Why don’t I purchase some farmland outside Fengjing to present to your father as a gesture of filial respect?”
Ah? Not only giving her two children, but also buying land for her father?
Wu Shi was completely bewildered by Shen Rusong’s extravagant and unexpected generosity.
“This is absolutely unnecessary!” Coming to her senses, Wu Shi shook her head urgently. “Last year when Father came to the capital, you even specially sent travel expenses—that was more than enough!”
“Capital officials are different from those serving in the provinces—they receive far fewer gifts. Your father is an upright official, and living in the capital as a guest is not easy! As his son-in-law, how can I stand by and watch my father-in-law endure such hardship?”
“Ming Hua will take the examinations next month, and isn’t it said he has a great chance of passing the Autumn Examinations? If so, next year not only will marriage arrangements be discussed, but he may also press on to take the spring examinations. There will be many matters to handle, and funds will likely become even tighter.”
Wu Shi fell silent.
She knew her own family’s situation well. Her father was a scholar from a humble background; the little wealth her maternal family had accumulated only came after her father entered official service.
She had also heard that expenses in the capital were very high, but she couldn’t possibly exploit her husband’s family to subsidize her own.
After some thought, Wu Shi shook her head: “Thank you for your kind intention, husband. Father has his official salary. At most, we can help out when my brother gets married next year.”
What could a sixth-rank official’s meager salary accomplish in the capital? Shen Rusong inwardly scoffed.
His father-in-law, Wu Tianheng, had been able to gain a little extra while serving in Qingzhou Prefecture. But now, as a Left Assistant Director in the Secretariat, he was left with nothing but “noble poverty.”
What kind of place was the Secretariat? Working daily under the watchful eyes of high-ranking officials and still thinking about making extra money? Wouldn’t that be risking the entire family’s lives?
Fortunately, this position was considered crucial. Wu Tianheng was specifically responsible for verifying and checking memorials from the Ministry of Rites and reviewing approval slips. In other words, he was among the first to see the memorials received by the Ministry of Rites and the comments or approvals from the emperor and high-ranking officials.
When Wu Tianheng first arrived in the capital to report on his duties, he was well aware of his circumstances. He had no connections or financial backing, and his only notable qualification was his legitimate Jinshi status.
However, this wasn’t the late years of the previous dynasty, when governance had collapsed and official positions were openly bought and sold. Among civil officials of the seventh rank or higher, who wasn’t a Jinshi? For those of the fourth rank or above, it was almost exclusively those who had achieved second-class honors in the imperial examinations, with third-class honors being as rare as phoenix feathers.
Thus, Wu Tianheng only hoped to be assigned to a substantive position outside the capital as soon as possible. If he could even be promoted by one rank, he would consider himself incredibly fortunate. As for lucrative posts or assignments to wealthy regions, he dared not entertain such hopes.
Unexpectedly, after waiting for over a month and finally mustering the courage to report to the Ministry of Personnel, he happened to witness two grand councilors engaged in their daily squabble.
Both of these high-ranking officials had assumed their positions after last year’s political upheaval and belonged to different factions.
One rolled up his sleeves and slammed the table, accusing the other’s faction of favoritism in personnel appointments within the Ministry of Personnel, claiming they were filling their departments with incompetents. The other responded with cold sarcasm, mocking his opponent for being paranoid, petty, and lacking the magnanimity befitting a grand councilor.
Adhering to the highest principle of “even if my people can’t advance, I won’t let yours benefit,” after their heated exchange, the draft list of recent official appointments and transfers was finalized.
Wu Tianheng, who hailed from a small rural area, was not only poor and without connections but also had few close relatives. Along with a dozen other fortunate grassroots officials, he secured an excellent opportunity to serve as an official in the capital.
But that wasn’t all. When the six grand councilors convened to discuss the final list, Wu Tianheng hit the jackpot for the month.
During the meeting, the Zhongshu Ling, Han Chongguang, observed his colleagues’ passionate arguments while reviewing the duty reports of the candidates.
He belonged to no faction and aligned with no prince, remaining a loyal minister who followed only the emperor. As long as the others’ disputes didn’t involve him, he was content to watch the spectacle.
However, he still had to carefully select those entering the Zhongshu Sheng to avoid letting in troublemakers from other factions, especially since several low-ranking but critical positions were available this time.
As he flipped through the reports, he came across Wu Tianheng’s submission.
Hmm, the handwriting was good, and his annual evaluations were satisfactory. Considering his humble background, such assessments suggested both competence and integrity.
He then requested Wu Tianheng’s detailed resume for further review.
A Juren from the sixth year of Yuan He—who was the chief examiner for the provincial examination in Shouzhou that year? With his excellent memory, Han Chongguang quickly recalled: Oh, the chief examiner was one of his own disciples.
A Jinshi from the ninth year of Yuan He—well, that was even more reassuring. For the past few imperial examinations, the emperor had personally appointed staunch loyalists to oversee the metropolitan examinations, excluding any grand councilors from the process.
Clean background, and he could even be considered his grand-disciple. Alright, he’s the one.
Han Chongguang set this duty report aside separately.
After the closed-door meeting of the grand councilors, filled with sarcasm and sharp exchanges, the list to be presented to the emperor for review was finalized.
I prevented my opponents’ lackeys from advancing.
I gained a group of capable workers and potential scapegoats for future use.
I demonstrated to His Majesty and the court officials my commitment to appointing talent based on merit, impartiality, and selflessness.
This was a triple win! All factions were satisfied.
Thanks to the maneuvering of various forces, although the dozen or so lucky commoners had varying levels of positions, not a single one was eliminated—all received appointments.
The grand prize winner was naturally Wu Tianheng. Though he remained a lowly sixth-rank official without a promotion, he was assigned to the Secretariat—the second-ranked among the Three Departments and Six Ministries!
How many local officials of fifth or even fourth rank would gladly pay out of their own salaries to trade places with him!
Moreover, even if he failed to make a name for himself in the Secretariat in the future, as long as he didn’t commit any mistakes, it was common practice for capital officials to be transferred out with an extra rank. Once posted to the provinces, simply mentioning that he had served in the Three Departments would earn him respect from everyone.
Wu Tianheng, the man with dog-shit luck, dominated Fengjing’s gossip charts for nearly half a month, becoming the name countless minor officials gnashed their teeth over in their drunken dreams.
After being dizzied by the fragrant, heaven-sent pie that had fallen into his lap, Wu Tianheng suppressed his upturned lips and racing heart and took up his post.
Faced with the various overt and covert obstacles and petty schemes thrown his way, Wu Tianheng deftly navigated them while secretly jotting everything down in a small notebook.
As an orphaned, clanless poor boy who had clawed his way up from the bottom, how could he retreat in the face of such a promising career advancement?
The work itself wasn’t too difficult, and he quickly became adept at handling it.
It was just the work environment that was always tinged with a sour, vinegary smell.
Assistant Director Wu thought, This is nothing!
Back when he had shown his talent for studying, he had already endured countless jealous and malicious words, including insults targeting his ancestors and female relatives—none were spared.
Now, with all this indirect, veiled criticism—some so subtle and even eloquently phrased—Wu Tianheng felt like smiling and replying, “You all are surprisingly well-mannered!”
But soon, he couldn’t smile anymore.
No other reason—living in the capital was truly no easy feat!
According to the dynasty’s regulations, a sixth-rank official’s annual salary was sixty taels of silver and sixty hu of grain.
Back in Qingzhou, which official with any real power relied solely on this meager salary to get by? Valuing his reputation, he had never taken what he shouldn’t. Over a decade of serving as an official, he had accumulated several thousand taels of wealth, all of which he converted to silver and brought to the capital.
Originally, he had planned to spend a few hundred taels to grease the wheels and secure an early appointment. But now, with this excellent assignment, he would likely have to stay in the capital for several years.
Renting a house, buying furniture and supplies, his son’s education, socializing with colleagues, and maintaining relationships with family—none of these expenses could be avoided.
After all, you could live frugally, but if you took it too far, you’d effectively cut yourself off from social circles.
Not to mention the daily expenses for the entire family’s food, clothing, and other necessities. He didn’t even dare to buy a carriage, walking to work every day. Only when his wife attended banquets would he temporarily hire a small sedan from a carriage service.
Even so, in less than a year, he watched his wealth shrink by more than ten percent. Assistant Director Wu gasped in shock.
His son would be getting married and entering official service in a couple of years—the biggest expenses were still ahead!
Promotion and wealth—why did it feel like promotion came with financial loss for him?
If he couldn’t cut expenses, the only option was to find ways to increase his income.
But he had neither financial resources nor manpower. If someone were to approach him now, he’d have to wonder if his “well-mannered” colleagues had finally come to their senses.
Just as Wu Tianheng was at his wit’s end over money, he came across the memorial submitted by the Marquis of Suning.
Since it concerned a noble title, it had been forwarded to the Ministry of Rites.
The reason was that the heir of the Marquis of Suning was on the verge of death. The imperial physician had officially notified the family to prepare for the funeral arrangements, and the young man was now lying in bed, counting his remaining days.
Neither the Marquis nor his heir had any brothers, so when the time came, they would have to adopt a son from the Shen clan’s collateral branches to inherit the title. For a hereditary noble title like that of the Marquis of Suning, the Marquis’s Mansion would inevitably have to submit a memorial to the emperor to request permission.
The old Marquis’s memorial carried three layers of meaning. First and foremost, it was to ask the emperor if he could assign a better imperial physician or bestow some secret palace medicines.
After all, there was only this one precious heir—what if a medical miracle occurred? Author’s Note:
Suddenly realized that a few lovely readers have also bookmarked the upcoming stories! Thank you, everyone! One story features a corporate worker turned mystic, and the other a captivating beauty with a touch of madness—both are currently being drafted!