Sima Puhua comforted him with a look of pity. "San Lang, you have understood His Majesty's intentions. It's not that I don't want to help you, but I really don't have the strength to."
Jin Lanting smiled faintly. "His Majesty is naturally more insightful than us officials. If you don't mind me overstepping my authority, I do have a list of candidates."
Sima Puhua was surprised. "Oh? San Lang, please tell me. "
Jin Lanting, who no longer had a beard to show his ambition, smiled. "The three candidates for the spring examination are Minister Yin, who has been a scholar of the Hanlin Academy for many years; Minister Yan of the Dongyuan Pavilion; Minister Chen of the Left Loose Cavalry; Minister Yan of the Yellow Gate; Minister Yan of the Yellow Gate; and Li Jifu, Gao Tingshu, and Wu Congxian, the top three in the Palace Examination. These young talents can all be assigned to different rooms."
Sima Puhua habitually stretched out two fingers to twirl his beard, carefully weighing the pros and cons. Finally, he nodded. "This candidate is flawless. San Lang is indeed San Lang."
Jin Lanting dismissed it with a smile, as if nothing had happened.
Sima Puhua secretly glanced at the man beside him. What a good retreat in order to advance!
The old minister, who originally didn't think highly of Jin Lanting's prospects, suddenly gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "San Lang, don't worry. When I retire and return to my hometown, it will be time for San Lang to advance in the Ministry of Rites."
Jin Lanting smiled but didn't say anything.
Sima Puhua said softly, "San Lang, my two disappointing children will be handed over to you in the future. Please take good care of them."
Walking to an open area, Jin Lanting raised his head to look at the endless palace ridges in the distance. He said calmly, "If I really have such a day, it's not impossible for the Sima family to have two ministers."
Sima Puhua, who understood the deep meaning, smiled knowingly. He didn't take it seriously, but he was also full of longing.
— —
After Qi Yanglong and Huan Wen walked side by side for some distance, Qi Yanglong walked towards Zhao Yang, the Commandery Prince of Changshan. Tantanon also parted ways and walked towards Chen Wang.
Because of the blind scholar, the old Royal Prince, who was in a bad mood, clearly didn't expect that the head of the secretariat would take the initiative to approach him. For a moment, he was caught off guard. In terms of military achievements, this member of the imperial clan was actually more outstanding than Yan Zhenchun and Yang Shenxing. Facing an elder who was a generation older than Zhang Julu and Huan Wen, he still felt some respect. The saying that civil and military officials despised each other couldn't be applied to everyone.
Qi Yanglong smiled and said, "Commandery Prince Changshan, you shouldn't have said those words to Lu Xu earlier."
Just the mention of that young scholar made him angry. The Commandery Prince of Changshan said disapprovingly, "Don't tell me that brat will complain to the Emperor? Besides, Your Majesty doesn't have the time to uphold justice for such a trivial matter, right? "
Qi Yanglong pointed at his chest and sighed, "We scholars are very narrow-minded."
The Commandery Prince of Changshan laughed loudly. "Lord Qi, what are you saying? How can there be scholars in the world who would trample on themselves like that?"
Qi Yanglong joked, "Otherwise, why is there an ancient saying that it's never too late for a gentleman to take revenge?"
The Commandery Prince of Changshan was stunned. Then, he said in realization, "Now that Lord Qi has mentioned it, I understand. You're different from us martial artists. For us, we'll settle our grudges today and never wait a night."
Qi Yanglong sighed emotionally for no reason. "At the beginning of each dynasty's founding, the imperial court was filled with both civil and military officials. When the dynasty finally fell, the court was filled with civil and military officials shouting without restraint while the military officials could only mutter and moan."
The Commandery Prince of Changshan was puzzled. "Heh, This King originally thought that Lord Qi was helping that brat surnamed Lu. I'm a little confused now."
Qi Yanglong smiled. "I didn't think much of it before I came to the capital. Now, I'm beginning to feel that there are too few martial artists like the Commandery Prince of Changshan in the imperial court."
The old Commandery Prince restrained his expression. "Lord Qi, if you have something to say, just say it. If you continue to beat around the bush, This King won't feel at ease at all. It's better to just scold This King directly."
Qi Yanglong shook his head and strode away.
— —
The two bigwigs of the Menxia Province, Huan Wen and Chen Wang, walked together. Aside from official business, they did not have much of a personal relationship.
Huan Wen went straight to the point. "Chen Wang, don't be angry if I tell you. Although you and that Sun Yin are both from Beiliang, this old man actually doesn't like you."
Chen Wang did not seem surprised. He smiled gently and said, "Birds of a feather flock together. Tantanon is a straightforward person. Naturally, he would like to associate with Sun Yin. For someone like me who doesn't show his emotions, I'm too bureaucratic and crafty. I don't have much elegance. It's reasonable that Tantanon wouldn't want to get close to me."
Huan Wen raised his eyes and looked ahead. Not far away, Yan Jiexi and Han Lin were walking together. Cai Nan was deliberately keeping a distance from Tang Tieshuang. These small scenes were all part of the study of officialdom.
Huan Wen was in a daze.
Chen Wang asked, "What's Tantanon thinking about?"
The old man's eyes were absent-minded. He said in a hoarse voice, "All the officials are busy. Everyone is smart and calculative."
Chen Wang was speechless.
The old man turned around and asked, "Is it true that every dynasty can't escape this calamity?"
Chen Wang nodded, but then shook his head.
The shrewd old man grunted. There was no need for Chen Wang to explain anything.
The old man put his hands behind his back and said with a wry smile, "The smartest people in the world are all here. In the end, the remaining idiots all ran over there. "
The old man was silent for a moment. In the end, he called out Chen Wang's name.
Chen Wang said softly, "Tantanon, please speak."
The old man curled his lips. "If, and I'm saying if, one day someone needs to stand out and speak up for those idiots, and I'm already dead by then, can you say a few words?"
Chen Wang stopped in his tracks. He pursed his lips tightly and did not immediately give a reply.
The old man did not have the patience to continue waiting. He walked forward slowly and muttered to himself, "How sad it is when there are only smart people like us left in the world."
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