Her guards

Chapter 32 Exam Preparation

After Zhao Tan ascended the throne, his mother, as one of his women, also entered the capital, and he, the child, moved in with her.

He wandered around the palace like a cat or dog, climbed over the wall of an abandoned courtyard, and saw a small child lying under the eaves inside.

The child was thin and small, like a puppy vying for food with him.

No, it should be like a puppy he bit to death, motionless.

A crow landed on the child, seemingly about to peck at the rotting flesh, when suddenly the seemingly dead child reached out and grabbed the crow, biting its neck...

The crow cawed and flapped its wings in fright, and he too was startled and fell off the wall.

He fell to the ground, and when he came to his senses, he was furious. How could catching crows to eat scare him!

He wasn't afraid even when he was thrown into a pile of dead dogs and corpses; he even ate the meat of dead dogs and cats.

He climbed back up the wall, and at that moment a palace maid rushed out.

The palace maid cried out and reached out to shoo away the crows.

The crow flew away.

In the eyes of the palace women, she had driven the crows away, but in his eyes, it was the child who had let go of the crows' beaks, causing them to flee in panic.

Blood was scattered across the child's face and neck.

The palace maid, in a panic, picked up the child and cried.

"Oh dear, you've been pecked... Even crows are bullying you... My poor Your Highness."

He leaned over the wall and pursed his lips. The blood wasn't from a crow's peck, but from a child biting a crow's neck.

The palace woman, sobbing, carried the child inside. Perhaps she was immersed in grief, or perhaps he spent his days mingling with pigs and dogs, devoid of any human presence, because she did not notice him.

However, as the palace maid turned to go inside, the dark eyes of the child she was holding looked at him.

His face was covered in blood, but his eyes were calm and quiet.

He had seen many kinds of eyes: disgust, mockery, cruelty, sorrow, pity, lewdness...

But even though he could ignore so many different kinds of gazes, at that moment, no, when he thought about it again after more than ten years, Wei Jiao's body still stiffened.

He couldn't describe the feeling—fear, shock, or excitement.

Wei Jiao let out a sneer, as if exhaling a breath of stale air that had been lingering for more than ten years.

"What treasure? It's nothing but something worse than pigs and dogs."

……

....
"Miss."

The door was pushed open, and sunlight poured in.

Yang Luo looked up, squinting because the sunlight was too bright, and looked at the young guard standing at the door.

The guard was carrying a bowl of steamed rice.

Even if you have to study extremely hard, you still have to eat.

Mo Zheng said to place the rice bowl on the table.

Yang Luo put down her pen and looked at him with a smile.

Mo Zheng frowned slightly at the look in her eyes: "What?" What did this young lady know about her this time?

Yang Luo said, "You advised me to save money, Ah Sheng, I've already saved a lot of money thanks to you."

She reached out and started counting on her fingers.

“A maid, a cook, a handyman, and a coachman.”

Mo Zheng smiled and said, "It's alright. Once Miss has accomplished her great task, just reimburse me for the amount of money needed for these people."

Can this great undertaking succeed? Yang Luo paused slightly.

Mo Zheng raised an eyebrow: "What? You didn't pass the exam?"

She looked down at the open book on the table, filled with words.

"Your handwriting is quite good." Yang Luo was amused and looked down at her own handwriting. Yang Luo, who lived in Baima Town, also read and wrote, but only to recognize characters and not to improve. After entering the Ding'an Duke's Mansion, the Ding'an Duke's wife hired a female tutor to teach her to read and write. She said that the noble ladies in the capital were proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and in order not to be looked down upon, she was told to study hard behind closed doors.

She naturally obeyed, and to avoid embarrassment, she studied day and night, learning whatever she was told to learn, and was grateful to her uncle and aunt for their careful nurturing.

Of course, I later learned that this was just a way for my uncle and aunt to keep her at home and prevent her from going out.

However, it has come in handy now.

Yang Luo sighed inwardly, then put those thoughts aside and asked, "Ah Sheng also knows calligraphy?"

Mo Zheng said, "What's there to understand? Anyone with eyes can tell the difference between beauty and ugliness. Look how neatly it's written, how beautiful it is."

Yang Luo was amused again and nodded: "Yes, yes, Asheng is right."

She also examined the words she had written, a hint of pride in her expression.

Yes, she writes really well.

"Hurry up and eat, so you won't have the energy to write tomorrow," Mo Zheng said.

Tomorrow is the day for the Chinese Academy to select study partners.

Yang Luo smiled as she went to wash her hands, then sat back down to eat, while Mo Zheng checked the things she needed to bring for the exam.

But there's really nothing I need to bring, just some personal items.

The academy provides writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, musical instruments, and other instruments, and maids are not allowed to be brought along.

"The exam is not like the one for men to take at the Imperial Academy, since they are just accompanying the princess to study. The application form is the first hurdle. After being selected, you can take the exam. The main purpose is to see if you have really studied, write some characters, write an article, and demonstrate your skills. The palace women observe your behavior and speech."

Yang Luo explained it in great detail, as if he had personally participated in it.

Mo Zheng didn't bother to ask whether it was true or not; she already knew about this young lady's abilities—she was a prophet.

"I don't need your protection this time, I'll rely on myself," Yang Luo said, finishing his meal in large bites and handing it to Mo Zheng. "You can take care of Miss Liu for me."

This time she used Miss Liu's calling card. She wasn't a rat; she would repay Miss Liu, at least ensuring that she and her servant wouldn't starve to death like they did in their previous life.

Mo Zheng took the rice bowl and said, "I went to see her yesterday, and Miss Liu has already moved out."

Yang Luo wasn't surprised. Miss Liu discovered that the invitation had been chewed up by rats. Fearing that the authorities would find out and question her, she naturally had to hide and pretend she hadn't come to the capital. That's how it was in her previous life.

"Find out where she moved to," Yang Luo said. "Give her some money so she can make it home and not go hungry."

Mo Zheng responded with a "yes," took her rice bowl, and went out. Turning back, she saw Yang Luo muttering something to herself.

Was she being diligent, or was she pondering something else? Mo Zheng closed the door.

……

……

A bag of money was thrown in front of the meat cleaver.

Zhang Sheng was somewhat puzzled: "What is this?"

Mo Zheng laughed and said, "This is the money my young lady gave to Miss Liu and her servant for their meals."

Peach Blossom chuckled, took the money bag and shook it: "This isn't enough, we still need to get medicine for Miss Liu."

Mo Zheng said, "Then Sister Peach Blossom can only wait for the Liu family to come and ask them for it. My young lady only gave this much."

Peach Blossom smiled as she put the money away: "Your young lady is really something. She stole something so important from someone else, left a few pieces of paper to frame the rat, and just swaggered away. She's not afraid of being reported to the authorities at all. I really don't know if she has a brain or not."

Mo Zheng smiled and said, "Because Miss has me as her bodyguard."

Although Yang Luo did not give any instructions, after stealing the invitation, Mo Zheng asked Tao Hua to find a way to get close to Miss Liu.

Peach Blossom first used the pretext of selling braised meat on the streets to get close to the Liu family's maid, and then offered to have a secret recipe to cure diseases.

After two doses of medicine, Miss Liu's illness improved significantly, and her trust was gained. Then, to Miss Liu and her servants, who were panicking and trying to hide because they had lost their invitation, they recommended a place to stay... the back house of a pork shop on the street.

The bustling street was safe, and the back of the shop was quiet and undiscovered. Although a young lady from a scholarly family had to eat pork, Miss Liu, who was both sick and afraid, didn't think too much about it and accepted it gladly.

In this way, Mo Zheng kept the person under her watchful eye.

Miss Yang's boldness comes from prophecy; though she has no prophecy, she takes control of the unknown in her own hands.

(End of this chapter)