Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 253

The next day was the official start of the autumn hunt, so naturally there was no sleeping in.

The ordeal last night lasted a long time, which resulted in Xie Jiu sleeping very soundly. As a result, when she was woken up this morning, she was a bit grumpy because she hadn't had enough sleep.

So, the Emperor received a solid kick from Consort Jin right there on the bed.

Although this amount of force was nothing to Zhao Xingjin, who was skilled in martial arts, the experience was quite novel.

In the past, when they fought, it was always playful banter, but today's kick was clearly full of resentment, and he really used his strength.

"Sweetie, come back and catch up on your sleep later." Zhao Xingjin had eaten and drunk his fill last night and was in a great mood. He wasn't angry at Xie Jiu's actions at all. Instead, he held her in his arms and coaxed her softly, "I'll hunt a deer for you. We'll roast it tonight. How about that? Fresh venison tastes amazing."

Xie Jiu rested her chin on his shoulder, her eyes barely open, humming softly, and lightly punching him with both hands.

After venting his anger for a while, he finally stood up and looked up at Zhao Xingjin.

"The Emperor's word must be kept."

"Natural arithmetic."

Zhao Xingjin kissed her forehead.

Xie Jiu then wrapped her arms around his neck and insisted that he carry her out of bed.

This was a sweet moment, and no matter what Xie Jiu did, Zhao Xingjin found it adorable, so how could he possibly object?

He enjoys that feeling himself.

So they picked her up and placed her on a chair in front of the dressing table, then called someone in to help her wash and change.

After having breakfast, the two headed to the hunting grounds together.

The Empress, Consort Guo, Consort Xin, and others were already waiting.

Seeing Zhao Xingjin and Xie Jiu arrive together, both in high spirits, one couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking how favored Consort Jin still was.

The Empress was not in a good mood. Although there was no rule that the Emperor had to rest at the Empress's place on the first day at the hunting grounds, she did not want outsiders to see the Emperor favoring Consort Jin.

Especially since Xie Jiu had invited Consort Guo and Consort Xin to dinner yesterday, the Empress felt that Xie Jiu truly had both favor and connections.

In fact, that's exactly what Xie Jiu thought.

Ever since the new concubine entered the palace, the Empress insisted on arranging for Consort Lu to live in Jingming Palace. When that failed, she then sent her to Consort Zhuang's residence. Xie Jiu realized that the Empress could not tolerate her at all and was trying every means to deal with her.

Furthermore, Chen admitted that she had instructed someone to tamper with Wei Jieyu's tea. Xie Jiu saw this clearly; Chen was just taking the blame for someone else. Who else could she possibly work for?

She wasn't the empress yet.

The Empress is wary of all women from good families, yet she also wants to capture and exploit the women from lower-class families that Zhao Xingjin likes. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Xie Jiu knew that to gain a foothold, having the emperor's favor was not enough; she needed to have connections in the court. However, Xie Wei was not in a position to help her win over the court officials, so she had to do it herself in secret.

If you can't associate with the powerful and wealthy, then choose those who come from humble backgrounds but are capable and not valued.

Some of these people are clever and will come on their own when they sense the opportunity, so Xie Jiu needs to maintain her favor and thus attract people to serve her.

For example, during this autumn hunt, she had already planned to meet this year's newly appointed top scholar.

Because the autumn hunt and the autumn imperial examination were close together, Zhao Xingjin specially arranged for the top three candidates—the Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua—to participate together. The Zhuangyuan was named He Anshi, a student from Donglin Academy, the academy run by the Xie family. Perhaps he could use this connection to recruit him. According to Xie Jiu, He Anshi's family wasn't well-off; his becoming Zhuangyuan at such a young age was incredibly auspicious. He had been studying at the Xie family's Donglin Academy since passing the county-level imperial examination, relying on the academy's support to reach this point—no easy feat.

With these thoughts in mind, Xie Jiu waited for Zhao Xingjin to announce the start of the hunt, then excused himself to take a walk to get some fresh air and began to wander around.

To her surprise, He Anshi was clever and shrewd, and actually took the initiative to approach her.

Moreover, she came with Xie Wei.

"Your humble servant greets Consort Jin." He Anshi bowed respectfully.

He was from the North, tall and thin, with fair skin. His appearance wasn't outstanding, but he was decent-looking, with thick eyebrows and big eyes. He looked energetic and, to be honest, didn't seem like a weak scholar, but rather someone who practiced martial arts.

Indeed, someone from such a poor family background who could persevere in their studies and achieve academic success must be someone with strong willpower.

"I haven't congratulated the top scholar yet," Xie Jiu said with a gentle smile. "After more than a decade of hard work, his efforts have finally paid off."

He Anshi immediately said, "I owe my success today and the opportunity to pass the imperial examinations to Donglin Academy, which did not despise my poverty and dullness and was willing to accept me into the academy, exempt me from tuition fees, and carefully teach and cultivate me. In fact, I have been indebted to Lord Xie and Consort Jin for many years."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jiu knew that the other person was someone who knew what was going on.

Not those self-important, aloof, and arrogant scholars.

Although being the top scholar in the imperial examination is prestigious, there is no shortage of such scholars in the court. The Hanlin Academy is full of such scholars, and there are many who have served for twenty or thirty years but are still not considered top scholars.

Conversely, there are also those who barely pass the imperial examinations but eventually rise to the rank of first-grade official.

Even more remarkable is Wei Zhang, who, despite only passing the provincial examination, never participated in the metropolitan examination, yet rose to become Zhao Xingjin's chief minister based solely on his talent.

Therefore, if you want a smooth career path, you still need to cultivate your career. It's not enough to just pass the exam and enter officialdom to rise to great heights and become rich and powerful.

He Anshi understood this principle, so he seized the opportunity to try and get in touch with Xie Jiu.

Knowing how to maintain appropriate boundaries and prevent gossip from spreading, she met with Xie Wei first, and then came with Xie Wei to meet Xie Jiu.

He was also secretly plotting to make Xie Jiu believe that he was introduced by Xie Wei.

"Lord He has not forgotten where he came from. Even after becoming the top scholar, he still cherishes the memory of the academy where he studied. He is truly a man of great loyalty and righteousness, which is truly touching." Xie Jiu accepted his gratitude and then asked, "May I ask what your current arrangements are in the court?"

The top three in the imperial examinations could be directly appointed to official positions. The rest had to study in the Hanlin Academy before they could be assigned to other positions. Some were quickly assigned to other positions, while others were appointed as probationary scholars and continued to study and be re-examined. For example, Zhou Zhiqing and his batch of those who passed the examinations would stay in the Hanlin Academy and become close ministers of the emperor. The rest would be given higher and better positions and assigned to other positions.

Sometimes, even the top-scoring student needs to study before making any arrangements.

As expected, He Anshi said, "The Emperor has not yet appointed any official positions, saying that he will make plans after the autumn hunt."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jiu knew that Zhao Xingjin wanted to continue to assess these newcomers through their interactions during the autumn hunt.

So he smiled and said softly, "Then Lord He will have to put on a good show."

"I would like to, but unfortunately I am not good at riding or archery. Archery is one of the Six Arts of a Gentleman, and I have studied it, but I cannot ride a horse." He Anshi smiled bitterly.

Xie Jiu was just waiting for him to ask for help, so she said, "I also find this hunt boring. All the people who can ride and shoot have gone out, leaving us here to wait. I'll suggest to His Majesty that we do something else to amuse ourselves, so that those of us who can't ride and shoot can participate and experience the joy of sharing the pleasure with the Emperor."

Hearing this, He Anshi breathed a sigh of relief.

He naturally understood that Xie Jiu meant to help him.