When Pei Jing found some time to visit Zhao Hui's home, he mentioned that a few days ago, Xue Rui went to the Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce to inquire about their residence. At that time, Xue Rui claimed to be Cao Zixin. Because Pei Jing had seen him once, he did not suspect that it was a fake name. Now that he asked Xue Rui's business in the capital, Doctor He and Zhao Hui could not explain clearly. Coincidentally, Yu Shu and Yu Xiaoxiu came back, so they went to the room to ask.
Yu Shu knew that Xue Rui wanted to conceal his identity, so she did not mention that he was from a government official's family. She vaguely said, "It seems like he is also doing business, but I did not ask about it in detail."
Since Pei Jing knew about Jing Chen's departure, he accepted the request of Doctor He and his wife. He said to Yu Shu, "The shops under my name have been informed. If anyone sees someone who looks like Jing Gongzi walking on the streets, they will inform you early in the morning."
Yu Shu expressed her gratitude, "Thank you Uncle Pei for your concern."
Yu Shu was pulled away by Zhao Hui to talk to her for a bit, asking her if she felt uncomfortable. After Doctor He took her pulse, she let her go back to her room to drink her medicine, leaving Yu Xiaoxiu to sit with the adults.
Back in her room, Yu Shu did not delay much. She sat in front of her desk and took out a paper, pen, and abacus. She began to study the Xiang Wang Ye's eight characters that she obtained today.
Right now, Yu Shu's thinking was very simple. She could not ask for perfection, but she would calculate as much as she could. Even if she could answer the time and location of Xiang Wang's lost item tomorrow, it would be better than handing in a blank paper.
She had inquired about it at the People-training Hall. Although each subject had a hundred yuan, it was not guaranteed that one hundred people would pass. In other words, the Directorate of Celestial Surveillance wouldn't take the second-best candidates to make up the numbers. Instead, it was necessary to gather a hundred candidates. The selection of the hundred yuan was very strict. Usually, only twenty to thirty people would pass the astrology subject. The rest of the places would be left empty. Therefore, there were at most five hundred places for a master of change each year. The number of people who passed was less than a hundred. As for a great master of change, it was even more difficult.
Therefore, handing in a blank paper or making up the numbers was a dead end.
Yu Shu was busy calculating and didn't even notice that someone had sneaked in. Zhao Hui told Yun Dou to heat up the stove in Yu Shu's room and keep an eye on her so that she wouldn't freeze if she sat for too long.
When the sky turned dark, Zhao Hui personally came to light the lamp and watched Yu Shu eat and drink her medicine. She walked around the room and went out to get someone to bring a mattress. She temporarily nailed a 'curtain' outside the window facing the desk to block the wind.
Several times Yu Shu went to the toilet, she was muttering to herself. There was one time when she forgot to bring toilet paper. She helplessly squatted in the pit and called for help. This made Zhao Hui not know whether to laugh or cry.
Yu Shu didn't put down her pen until the gong struck the third watch in the street outside. She opened her sore eyes and picked up a few pieces of papyrus marked on the table with her dark fingers. She frowned when she checked the number of disasters calculated on them.
"What's going on? Did I miss it?"
Under her cautiousness, she calculated the time of calamity for the Prince of Xiang's journey back to the capital from the eighth month to the twelfth month of this year. In order to prevent any omissions, she made a total of one hundred and twenty calculations and repeated them. But in these four months, the time of calamity showed that the Prince of Xiang only had two minor illnesses, one was drowning and one was bleeding. Unexpectedly, there was no sign of losing anything. It was obvious that the Prince of Xiang lost something. What was going on?
Could it be that the thing was lost after he returned to the capital?
Yu Shu thought for a long time. She picked up the pen and calculated again. She planned to include December.
Another two hours passed and the gong sounded at the fourth watch of the gong. She put down the pen again and checked the dense data line by line. Gradually, she frowned.
Still nothing!
Not believing it, Yu Shu collected all the messy toilet paper on the table and checked them one by one. She did not miss a single day for more than 130 days. She made sure that she did not miss any day.
This made Yu Shu worried. Her Time of Calamity Nomological Code had never failed until today. What was wrong with it? Why couldn't she predict it?!
Yu Shu knocked her forehead with one hand. Her scalp was itchy, and she thought hard. Unknowingly, the sky outside gradually brightened, and the remaining candle on the candlestick went out with a "puff" sound. She suddenly raised her head, grinned, and chuckled evilly. No one knew how terrifying this crazy red-eyed look was.
*
*
*
She didn't sleep for the entire night. The next morning, however, Yu Shu walked out of the door in high spirits while carrying her book case. She sat on the carriage that had been waiting outside the door for a long time. Xue Rui didn't come. He only asked the coachman to bring a message to her. After she handed in her papers, he told her to leave the Taicheng Bureau and go to another place to meet him. He didn't say where.
Xue Rui's carriage was warmer than the sedan, so Yu Shu did not feel cold all the way. She got off the carriage and wrapped herself tightly in a cotton-padded jacket. Then she followed the crowd into the examination room for female visitors.
The process of entering the examination room was simple. It was the same open-air venue as the examination of Yi Li. Only a small half of the seats were filled. After the bell rang, Yu Shu quickly sharpened her Mozi and answered on the examination paper given by the Celestial Commissioner. She also marked her birthplace and name on the side. Then she dipped the paper in cinnabar and pressed her fingerprint. She handed in the paper early.
Today, Yu Shu did not purposely look for Ji Xingxuan to sit. She handed in her papers and left with the servants. She lowered her head and dutifully left Taicheng Si. Standing outside the door, she let out a long breath of turbid air. Her mood suddenly became much more relaxed.
No matter what, this subject was finally over. Regardless of whether she passed or not, she just had to wait for the last subject, Arithmetic. It was her absolute strength!
Yu Shu made up her mind. She felt very sullen in this Uncanny Arts exam. She was so depressed that she could not speak. She made up her mind that she would not hold back in Arithmetic. She must get into the top three. If she could not become a Great Fortune Master, she would first take the exam to become a Great Fortune Master!
The snow on the road melted and there were ice shards everywhere. Yu Shu picked up the clean road and walked to the side of the street. She got on the carriage and said to the coachman, "Go find your Master Xue."
*
*
*
The carriage drove to a bustling street in the northern part of the city, and it stopped outside a building. Yu Shu got off the carriage and stood on the street that was bustling with people, and she raised her head to look at the imposing two-story building before her. There was a plaque above the door, and it wasn't open for business. She thought in her heart, Could this be the restaurant that Xue Rui mentioned opening earlier?
"Excuse me, are you Miss Lotus?"
Yu Shu looked back and saw a man coming out of the door. He was of medium height and had a round face. He looked like he was in his thirties and had a simple smile.
"Yes, it's me."
The man looked at Yu Shu and immediately led her into the restaurant. He smiled and said, "I am Lin Fu. I have been waiting for you for a long time. Please come in." The outside of the restaurant was brand new.
The interior was bright and spacious. The walls were green, the floor was made of red wood and sandalwood. Tables, chairs and flower vases were placed in their respective positions. There were no lack of tea plates, tea bowls, chopsticks and so on. Facing the door was an eight feet square counter with a jade qilin head on top of it. Behind it was a row of colorful banners and signboards. The windows were separated into four groups on the north and south sides. Two rows of glass screens with flowers, birds and fish were placed on the east and west sides of the first floor, forming three groups. On the east side, there was a staircase that led to the second floor. Every three steps, there was a flower pot that carried small holly. On the north side, there was a door that led to the backyard.
Yu Shu looked up, down, left, right, west, north and south. She couldn't help but admire the master who arranged the Fengshui. This place was really good at attracting wealth and wealth. If she was the one cleaning the place, she would not be able to do it so well.
It was not resplendent, but it was exquisite and pleasant, especially the glass screen. Yu Shu had seen the green glass window in Old Mistress' room at the Ji residence, so she knew that there were already people who made glass in the An Dynasty. However, it was not as arrogant as Xue Rui, who used twelve whole sides of glass to make a screen.
Lin Fu was not in a hurry to bring her to see Xue Rui. He allowed Yu Shu to walk around the restaurant and asked, "Where is your boss?"
"He is resting at the back. He asked me to show you around the restaurant. Do you want to go up to the second floor?"
Yu Shu was too lazy to climb the stairs and said, "Not for now. Bring me to your boss."
"Yes, this way please."
Lin Fu brought Yu Shu to the backyard and saw another well-built building. It had two floors and a corridor. Three sides of the building blocked the light from the yard. One side was cool while the other side was sunny. It was a combination of Yin and Yang, and the weather was good.
They walked to a house in the northeast corner. Lin Fu knocked on the door and said, "Master, Miss Lianfang is here."
A voice could be heard from inside, "Come in."
Lin Fu pushed the door open and invited Yu Shu to enter alone. There were no curtains on the door but the windows were made of glass. Unlike other houses, the windows were made of paper, and the room was very warm.
Xue Rui was sitting in front of a round table under the east window, reading the accounts. There was a cup of tea in his hand that emitted a sweet fragrance. He wore a brownish-green silk gown and a black suede armor on the outside. The pair of topaz buttons on his neck were extremely eye-catching. When he saw Yu Shu coming in, he put down the account book and asked with a smile, "Are you done with the exam?"
"Mhmm."
Yu Shu was used to his changing expressions. Last night, when she saw him off, she was too lazy to talk to him. Now, he was smiling. She tried to figure out if he was in a good or bad mood. She walked up and sat opposite him. She picked up an empty cup and poured some tea. She said, "Is this the restaurant you said you wanted to open a while ago? It's quite ostentatious. Not bad. Let me know in advance on the opening day. I'll come to support you."
Xue Rui shook his head and said, "I'm not looking for you to support me. Take a look at this contract. If there's anything you don't like, tell me."
He took out a piece of paper from the account book and handed it to her. Yu Shu took a look and her face changed. She couldn't swallow the tea in her mouth.
Strictly speaking, this was a contract, an employment contract. She was hired to be the manager of this restaurant, responsible for the accounts and personnel. The price was clearly stated. She would be paid eighty taels of silver a month, plus five percent of the restaurant's profits. The contract would last for three years, and it was a death contract.
"What? You don't want to sign? Who was the one who swore yesterday that if anything happened to me, she would be fearless with just a word. This didn't make you go through a mountain of knives or a sea of fire, but you're afraid? Do you want to go back on your words? "Xue Rui looked at her with a smile that wasn't a smile.
This time, Yu Shu was in a difficult position. Looking at Xue Rui's face and the atmosphere in the room, if she dared to say no, he would be angry the next moment. So she braced herself and said, "Last time, didn't you say that if I failed the Dayan exam and couldn't get into the Taishi Library, then I would help you?"
Xue Rui said, "I did say that, but I didn't think that you would only take the Yi Li and Uncanny Arts exams. Arithmetic wasn't one of them. There are so many people who talk too much about their words in the Yi Li, so you definitely won't be able to enter the rankings. Even if you get the Uncanny Arts, you'll at most be a Yi Li teacher. The Imperial Historian Library won't accept you unless you can get into the top three in arithmetic, then you might have a chance."
Yu Shu was not convinced and said, "How do you know that I can't get into the top three?"
Xue Rui said unhurriedly, "I heard that Mister Han Wenguang's disciples are going to compete in mathematics this year. The chances of you getting into the top three are slim."
"Han Wenguang?" Yu Shu thought the name was familiar. She suddenly remembered and took a deep breath, "The old man who taught the three mathematicians?"
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