But now... For her and Zhao Wang's future, she will definitely train Zhao Wang well. Not seeking to ascend to the throne, even if they go to their fiefdom to become a king in the future, they must have the ability to hold on.

  Unlike Empress Dowager Bi, who had left early with her son, Concubine Quan did not hurry back, but instead went to a pond on the east side of Taiye Pool called Qianli Pond, where she ordered palace staff to bring some fruit, tea and refreshments, and sat alone enjoying the view.

  Feng Xuan's last scream was even more piercing than before, and the sound traveled far from Changxin Palace, penetrating the thick palace walls and leaving a faint but heart-wrenching echo in Tianpin's ears. After that, everything returned to calmness, and Feng Xuan could no longer make a sound.

  Chu Huashang picked up the bean green glaze porcelain plate on the table and smashed it down. The delicate golden pumpkin cake inside rolled all over the floor. The palace maids around were so frightened that they knelt down, but Chu Huashang was no longer angry. She stood up and looked towards the main gate of Changxin Palace not far away, where Wen Gui Bin and Zhao Wang were just walking out.

  Chu Huashang smiled coldly and got up to greet her. Wen Gui Bin saw her, a look of surprise on her face, and said from afar: "Hasn't Concubine Tian returned to the palace yet?"

  Chu Huashang walked closer, her icy expression shifting from Wen Gui's body to Zhao Wang's. Her lips curled up slightly as she said lightly: "Sister isn't the same, lingering in Changxin Palace? Little sister likes watching the fish in Qianli Pond, perhaps big sister enjoys watching the thrill of killing people?"

  Wen Gui looked at her coldly and said, "It seems that Tan Bin doesn't have anything important to say. I'll take my leave first."

  Zhao Wang held onto Wen Gui's hand and wouldn't let go, he was intimidated by Feng Xuan Shi. At this time, looking at the expression on Tuan Hua Niang's face, he didn't dare to stay any longer. As he followed Wen Gui wanting to leave quickly, Chu Hua Shuang reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

  Wen Gui Fei and Zhao Wang had to stop. Chu Hua Shang looked at this seven-year-old, still naive little boy, with a hint of a smile in her eyes. She squatted down, staring into Zhao Wang's eyes: "Your new mother seems to be treating you well, even going to great lengths to cultivate you." As she spoke, she couldn't help but laugh: "Look at your pale face, didn't your mother scare you?"

  Wen Gui Fei was already impatient, and she brushed off Tan Fei's hand saying: "The child of the principal wife of Prince Zhao, it's not up to others to teach. Your Highness, let's return to Bi Xiao Palace, Mother will cook you a mountain medicine congee to drink."

  Zhao Wang heard this and hastily nodded, still smiling: "The dishes Empress Dowager cooks are really delicious, I want to hurry back and eat." Indeed, he was still a child, the terrifying scene just now had already been forgotten.

  Tianpin no longer blocked the way, watching as Wen Gui pin pulled Zhao Wang's hand further and further away. Behind them, Tianpin still stood quietly, gazing at Zhao Wang's slender back, her voice low and mocking:

  "Madam Guan has fed you till you're full and dressed you warmly, and she has also helped you take revenge on your enemies to vent your anger, but that's all she can give you."

  Wen Gui Niang couldn't help him gain power in the court, let alone help him become the crown prince. But if he chose to side with the Chu family, he would have the entire territory of Huguang and its military forces at his disposal, as well as all the connections and influence that came with being under the command of General Chu.

  Thinking of this, Empress Dowager let out a cold laugh. As the eldest son of the Emperor, he only saw the benefits of being full and warm in front of him, and thought that the charity given to him by Mr. Xu was the best gift under heaven.

  A child without spirit is better left unborn.

  After Zhao Wang's recognition of his mother was settled, the competition between Concubine Tan, Concubine Wen Gui, and Concubine Hui in the palace became even more intense.

  Nowadays, the only ones Emperor Taizong of Northern Wei likes are these three and Consort Jing. Empress Erzhu has been neglected to the point of being dispirited. After New Year's Day, Emperor Xianwen never visited her again. She gradually lost her former dignity but did not take any action. Due to the empress' depression, people in the palace no longer paid attention to her and instead focused their eyes on the three consorts.

  The Empress's body was not yet fully recovered, and serving in the bedchamber was not a lot. After Consort Hui became pregnant, her imperial favor naturally went without saying. Usually, the ones recorded most frequently in the "Imperial Diary" were Consort Tian and Consort Wen. These two had simply reached an impasse, both having gained favor due to their reputation as talented beauties, and because of their rivalry for Emperor Zhao's affections, their resentment towards each other grew deeper by the day. As for what would happen between them in the future, it was truly hard to say.

  In the harem, where turmoil never subsided, the winter days of the ninth year of Qianwu passed in the blink of an eye. On the first day of March, the peach blossoms bloomed in the Youlin Garden, and the Emperor and Empress Dowager strolled together to enjoy the scenery, smiling and saying to the crowd, "It's already early spring."

  It was also the day when the successful candidates of the imperial examination entered the palace for their trial. The emperor, in high spirits, supported the empress dowager as they went to the Golden Hall to receive the homage of the new jinshi degree holders.

  Such things were not supposed to be spread in the palace, and the concubines from noble families had no interest in those who came from poor families and spent ten years studying hard to become top scholars. However, this year's imperial examination was extraordinary, as Emperor Taizong of Northern Wei immediately issued an edict in the grand hall, appointing the martial arts champion as the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, and appointing the second-place scholar in the literary examination as a secretary in the Ministry of War, and the third-place scholar as a secretary in the Ministry of Justice. Among the remaining scholars, two were appointed as military governors of the northwest frontier region, five were appointed as judges of Suzhou, Danyang, Zhenjiang, Jiangning, and Jinling, and ten were appointed as judges of Huainan and Shandong provinces.

  This news spread quickly, and a violent shockwave went from the imperial palace to the capital city, and then throughout the country. The women in the harem were all shocked, and the concubines began to write letters to their fathers and brothers, secretly inquiring about the situation in the court. However, after all, it was court politics, and no one dared to discuss it openly, but there were many private actions.

  Tuoba Hong's actions have already touched the nerves of the great families of Qin. The imperial examination selects talents, seemingly fair, but also has many drawbacks. All those who topped the list and became jinshi could not immediately get an official position, but had to be recommended or selected by local officials or officials in the capital. For example, if there was a vacancy in the Ministry of Rites, the Minister of Rites had the right to recommend a qualified jinshi for appointment.

  It's not that easy to become an official, and in many cases, there aren't many vacancies in various regions. Even if there are vacancies, most of the people who get recommended are from aristocratic families - apart from the imperial examination system, there is another system called "yin'en" (hereditary privilege), where if your ancestors had made contributions or held official titles, the emperor would grant you a privilege to become an official without taking the imperial examinations.

  So in this era, without a good family background, even if one passed the imperial examination, it was difficult to be recommended as an official. Many juren spent their entire lives in "idle positions" and finally had no choice but to return to their hometowns to become school teachers.

  Of course, among the nobles, there are indeed talented and learned individuals. According to the Qin Dynasty's laws, those with hereditary titles were not allowed to take the imperial examination and could only rely on "Yin En" (hereditary privilege). This is another kind of misfortune...

  The imperial examination is held once a year, and following the convention of previous years, those fortunate enough to obtain official positions are mostly sent out of the capital city, starting from the seventh-rank county magistrate - this is the rule, and it's also reasonable. Being able to read books doesn't mean one can be an official, starting from the grassroots level is what should be done.

  But with a wave of the emperor's hand, this group of workplace rookies rose to prominence overnight, from fourth-rank deputy commanders of the military affairs bureau, fifth-rank officials in the six ministries and strategists for the regional military governors, to sixth-rank administrative assistants...

  The high or low rank of the official products is not enough to make the aristocratic families panic. The most critical issue is that those who were awarded the title of "Hui Zi" are all in important positions, and being a consultant in Youzhou, a key town in the northwest, is more enviable than those three-product scholars in the Hanlin Academy. Those two Langzhong from the Ministry of Officials and the Ministry of Punishment, looking at the emperor's intention, want to reuse them, with unlimited prospects in the future. After being cultivated for several years, who knows, they may even climb up to the position of Shilang or even Prime Minister...

  They are all sons of humble families. The emperor has made such a big fuss, where will the aristocratic families be placed? After a few years, these officials from humble backgrounds will have grown in power and will inevitably clash with the clans that stand in their way.

  The sons of aristocratic families also started as officials from low-ranking positions, with this group of poor and powerful people pressing down on their heads. How can the official career be smooth?

  The emperor gave all the real power and fat differences to this group of people, leaving less and less living space for the world.

  Many people found that the downfall of the Shen family was just the beginning. From then on, the sky of this Great Qin Dynasty became increasingly ominous.

  The matter of the imperial examination caused a great stir in the court, and there were not a few who jointly petitioned the emperor to reconsider. But the current Emperor Taizong was not the same as he was three years ago; he directly threw the opposing memorials into the fire pit of the Jianzhang Palace, and then ordered the military ministers to enter the palace for an audience. The next day, several ministers from the Military Affairs Department engaged in a war of words with the Confucian scholars on the court, and also exposed several officials who had petitioned against them as being corrupt, cheating on the imperial examination, and embezzling funds. After this meeting, no one dared to raise any objections again.

  On the third day after the imperial examination, Empress Xiao sent a message to the various palaces that the Emperor had issued an edict to select girls from the families of Zhao, Wei, He, Xie and Ren for marriage into the palace.

  After the chaos of the previous day, the harem was again thrown into turmoil by Tuoba Hong.

  From Empress Xiao down to the selected maidservants, no one expressed joy at this news.

  But Empress Xiao still sat upright in the main seat of Changxin Palace, instructing the consorts: "These five clans all made contributions during the 'North Palace Rebellion' and the extermination of the Shen family. The Emperor is rewarding them with this method, sisters must understand the Emperor's kindness." After speaking, she smiled again: "Our Emperor is a wise ruler, there are not many people in the harem compared to the previous emperor. The five new younger sisters will enter the palace soon, most likely living in various palaces and side halls, they are all one family, you should get along well with each other."

  Those present, including Jing Fei, couldn't help but laugh. The triennial draft was already a headache, and the Emperor had inserted an additional imperial appointment.

  The imperial concubine selection was different from the draft, which was to bring the girl out of her mother's house with great ceremony and welcome her into the palace. Naturally, the rank above is also much higher than the draft.

  All the concubines felt threatened.