Chapter 72 - 67: So This Is What It Feels Like to Be a Whale?

Chapter 72: Chapter 67: So This Is What It Feels Like to Be a Whale?

"What is everyone doing?"

"What’s going on!"

"How dare you block the gate to my Tenth Prince’s Mansion?"

Relying on his extremely brutish strength, Zhao Ci forced his way through the crowd.

He looked over at Zhu Li.

He saw her eyes were a bit glazed over, a dopey, giggling smile on her face.

"Heh, heheh..."

"What the..."

Zhao Ci was at a complete loss. ’Can you really get overwhelmed just by picking out ducks?’

When Zhu Li saw Zhao Ci arrive, she grinned foolishly and said, "So this is what it feels like to be an official?"

’An official?’

Er...

’Oh, never mind then!’

’Damn it, these people are more ridiculous than the last. How do you look anything like an official?’

Zhao Ci asked in a low voice, "Who are all these people?"

Before Zhu Li could answer,

the people in front of the mansion excitedly clasped their hands and bowed one by one.

"Greetings, Tenth Prince!"

"Your Highness! We are all students who have come to the capital for the imperial examinations. We heard the Tenth Prince’s Mansion is recruiting Mansion Officials and have come specifically to assist you."

"Your Highness, I live on the outskirts of Lingge. I have a house and land..."

’Oh?’

’So they’re here for the imperial examinations!’

Zhao Ci finally understood. Because of the system of establishing a household, the imperial examinations of the Great Yu had a special provision: the Prefecture Examination.

In the regular imperial examinations, only provincial graduates could participate in the metropolitan examination held in Lingge.

However, if you were under eighteen and had attained both the Scholar and Martial Scholar titles, you could participate in the Prefecture Examination. Those who passed would be qualified to remain in Lingge as Junior Officials. If they were chosen by a Householder, they could even directly enter a mansion and become a Mansion Official.

For them, being a Junior Official in Lingge wasn’t actually that appealing, as it was impossible to get a lucrative post.

But being a Mansion Official allowed them to achieve real merit. Whether they latched onto a Prince or Crown Prince in the future, or followed a Great Clan Mansion Official back to their home region, it was an excellent option.

Most importantly, those who had surpassed the Physical Body Realm had already become provincial graduates. The Scholars under eighteen were precisely the type who had good talent but were in desperate need of resources.

If they could join a mansion, it would help them build the best possible foundation for their cultivation.

’Tsk, tsk!’

’Just a few days ago, this place was completely deserted. The moment the Xingyu Pill Association rose to prominence, everyone came flocking over.’

Still, Zhao Ci was a bit baffled. "Isn’t the Prefecture Examination about to start? You should come back after you’ve passed..."

As soon as he said this, the crowd looked a little ashamed.

Zhu Li poked Zhao Ci in the waist and whispered, "The martial arts portion of the Prefecture Examination is brutal. Many are skilled in combat but come from poor families with no resources. A lot of people in this situation try to find a great clan to sponsor them beforehand, but the great clans usually can’t be bothered to give them a second glance."

Zhao Ci was thoughtful. "I see..."

Zhu Li whispered, "Actually, I think we should take this opportunity to pick some good candidates before the Prefecture Examination begins. I heard last night that the Zhu Family and the Feng Family have gathered many young people from their in-law families to participate in this examination.

As soon as these people pass, they’ll directly enter Zhao Yong’s service as Mansion Officials. Most of them come from wealthy backgrounds and have strong foundations, which puts us at a great disadvantage."

Zhao Ci’s mouth twitched. "They can do that?"

The Imperial Clan Court stipulates that a mansion can have ten officials, and at least five of them cannot come from the seven great Merit Clans.

Furthermore, the other four Mansion Officials also cannot come from the same great Merit Clan.

This rule was mainly to prevent the formation of cliques and to support young people from commoner backgrounds.

But he never expected such a workaround.

Using the young talents from their various in-law families could indeed significantly raise the quality of their Mansion Officials.

This loophole was being exploited to a ridiculous degree.

"The Prefecture Examination has been around for so long; there are tons of tricks to it."

Zhu Li’s small face was full of seriousness. "I was worried you wouldn’t understand since you’ve just established your household, so I made a point of asking around. Otherwise, if our mansion is full of rookies, it’ll be embarrassing for me as the Chief Mansion Official when we’re out and about."

Zhao Ci: "..."

’She’s already appointed herself Chief Mansion Official?’

But Zhu Li was right. The Prefecture Examination had existed since the tenth year of the household establishment system. After developing for several hundred years, there were indeed many ins and outs.

Although his old uncle was trustworthy, for some reason he was clearly resistant to the idea of Zhao Ci establishing a household to compete for merit, and had been constantly teaching him the way of the salted fish.

He wouldn’t even introduce people from the main Xiang Clan, let alone from the branch families. Besides, the Xiang Clan’s foundation in Lingge was already weak, and they had absolutely no intention of picking a side in the struggle for the throne. Even if Zhao Ci tried to recruit from them, he wouldn’t find anyone good.

’What a pain!’

Still, having a workaholic secretary like Zhu Li really saved him a lot of trouble.

Zhao Ci turned his head and saw a sheet of red paper pasted prominently on the wall. It had words to the effect of "The Tenth Prince’s Mansion is sincerely Recruiting Mansion Officials." The fact that so many people had gathered this early in the morning was likely the result of the news spreading overnight.

He swept his gaze over the crowd. Every one of them had shining eyes, their expressions full of enthusiasm.

A quick count revealed there were actually more than forty people.

He thought for a moment and said, "Alright! In three days, I will host a banquet at the Tenth Prince’s Mansion. Anyone eligible for the Prefecture Examination can attend. You can all freely display your martial arts and academic talents.

I will select five people from among you to be my reserve Mansion Officials. Anyone who becomes a reserve Mansion Official, as long as they sign a contract on the spot promising to serve in the Tenth Prince’s Mansion upon passing the Prefecture Examination, will immediately receive a Top-Grade Qi Cultivation Pill."

WHOOSH...

The crowd exploded at his words.

A Top-Grade Qi Cultivation Pill! In the past, this was a high-end luxury item worth one hundred taels a piece—a sum that would take a family of four several years of nonstop work to earn. It was simply not something they could afford.

To put it in perspective, they would agonize for ages over buying a single Low-Grade Qi Cultivation Pill.

And he was just giving away a Top-Grade one...

They never expected Zhao Ci to be so generous.

He was giving away a pill worth five hundred taels just like that.

"Also..."

Zhao Ci added with a smile, "As long as you become a Mansion Official of the Tenth Prince’s Mansion, you will be supplied with one Top-Grade Qi Cultivation Pill every month until you break through to the Physical Body Realm. However, there is one condition: you must consume it in my presence."