By a twist of fate, the illegitimate son of the Marquis's family marries the county princess.

The last day of March in the fifteenth year of Shun'an

Wen Zongji, wearing the court robes he had received from the Ministry of Rites, went to the Hanlin Academy to take his duty.

Lu Nian'an and Wu Fengyuan had already started their shifts, but he was the only one who showed up on the last day.

Early this morning, Wen Zongji reported to the Hanlin Academy's Book Hall. After completing the formalities, the head scholar arranged for Wen Zongji to be accompanied by the reading scholar Yan Zhengyun.

Yan Zhengyun led Wen Zongji back to the office.

This office was extremely large, with more than a dozen desks set up for the officials of the Hanlin Academy to work on.

As soon as Wen Zongji entered, he saw Lu Nian'an and Wu Fengyuan.

Yan Zhengyun led Wen Zongji to an empty desk and said, "Editor Wen, this will be your desk from now on. Editors are generally responsible for compiling national history, editing classics, and drafting documents. You've just started your shift, so don't rush to do these things. Take a few days to familiarize yourself with the environment of the Hanlin Academy, and then go to the Classics Hall to look at historical materials."

Wen Zongji nodded: "Thank you for your guidance, Scholar Yan."

Yan Zhengyun didn't say much, gave some more instructions on the precautions for the Hanlin Academy, and then turned around and went back to his office, which wasn't far from Wen Zongji's.

The Attendant Reader was a fifth-rank official, belonging to the leadership of the Hanlin Academy, and naturally had his own dedicated office.

Wen Zongji sat down in his seat, and Lu Nian'an and Wu Fengyuan came over together as soon as he sat down.

Wu Fengyuan joked, "Brother Wen, you're really something, reporting on the last day right on time."

Wen Zongji smiled wryly: "I accompanied the county princess out of the city for a few days. If I hadn't had to report for duty today, the county princess wouldn't have wanted to come back."

Pei Rujing was like a wild horse, completely out of control. The reason they came back so late was because they had gone too far and spent a lot of time traveling.

Lu Nian'an suddenly realized: "No wonder I haven't seen Brother Wen go to Ruijintang. The news that Ruijintang is going to hold a competition for the top ten storytellers has spread. I heard that as long as the top ten are selected, they will receive one hundred taels of silver. Many people have come to sign up these past few days."

Wu Fengyuan had also heard about this: "Brother Lu said that Ruijintang belongs to Brother Wen. Could this storytelling competition also be Brother Wen's idea?"

Wen Zongji readily admitted, "It was just a minor skirmish."

Wu Fengyuan laughed and said, "Brother Wen really can't sit still."

"I'm not as well-off as Brother Wu."

"Who doesn't know that when the county princess got married, her dowry stretched for miles? With the county princess around, would Brother Wen ever lack money?"

"I am a dignified man, how can I always take money from the county magistrate?"

Wu Fengyuan nodded in understanding: "That makes sense."

Wen Zongji had no intention of discussing these personal matters with them, and instead asked, "How have you been feeling these past few days?"

Lu Nian'an said, "I've been looking at historical materials, but haven't been assigned any tasks yet."

Wu Fengyuan said, "Me too. I've heard that all the newly appointed officials in the Hanlin Academy are like this. They're not qualified to participate in compiling history unless they've read historical materials and classics for a month or two."

Wen Zongji was not surprised by this.

This is generally the case with government departments.

……

While Wen Zongji was engrossed in reading history books at the Hanlin Academy, Pei Rujing went to Xinya Garden to attend a mahjong club gathering.

When Zuo Mingxuan saw her walk in, she playfully circled around her and said, "The county princess is becoming more and more radiant. It seems you've had a very enjoyable trip out of the city these past few days."

Pei Rujing walked over and sat down: "How did you know I went out of town for sightseeing?"

She didn't publicize it.

"I heard it from the gatekeeper when I went to the Marquis's residence the other day to play mahjong with the county princess. Tsk tsk, Young Master Wen only has a few days off after the imperial examination, and he spent them all with the county princess."

Pei Rujing raised an eyebrow: "He is my husband, he should be with me."

"Your Highness, you seem to be having a lot of fun. Could you tell us where you went?"

Everyone else looked at her expectantly.

The sensation this caused among them exceeded Pei Rujing's expectations.

These women, no matter how low their social status, couldn't be that bad. Over the years, they had met Pei Rujing at banquets more than once.

Everyone knows that Princess Anhe is proud and noble, and she doesn't take anyone seriously.

They were always curious whether, after getting married, the proud Pei Rujing would remain as upright and uncompromising as ever, or whether reality would wear down her edges.

After joining the mahjong club, they saw Pei Rujing more often. On the surface, Pei Rujing seemed unchanged, still arrogant and unrestrained, and marriage seemed to have no effect on her at all.

But they were really curious about Pei Rujing's married life.

Upon learning that Pei Rujing and Wen Zongji had gone out of town for several days and had not returned, they became even more curious and scratched their heads in bewilderment.

Now that Zuo Mingxuan has asked the question, these people no longer hide their curiosity.

Pei Rujing looked up and saw several intense gazes. Slightly speechless, she said, "This is my private matter. Why should I tell you!"

Zuo Mingxuan knew Pei Rujing too well, and upon hearing this, she was not discouraged. Instead, she flattered her, saying, "Your Highness has managed to get Young Master Wen to obediently accompany you on your outing outside the city, which shows you have a knack for managing your husband. Most of our members are already married and would like to learn from Your Highness. Are you perhaps too stingy with your guidance?"

The others immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes, we all want to learn."

"My husband spends all his time in brothels and doesn't come home at night. I'd like to ask the county magistrate for advice on how to win him back."

Pei Rujing frowned: "Your husband frequents brothels, what's the point of keeping him around? Just castrate him."

"...It's not that bad, Princess."

"I don't have much to teach you. If you need someone with better castration skills, I can find you one."

"Ahem, well then, everyone, let's go play mahjong."

Zuo Mingxuan pulled Pei Rujing out of the crowd and into the back room.

"Princess, you really know how to come up with ideas."

Zuo Mingxuan didn't know what to say.

"She asked for advice on how to control her husband, and you actually want her to castrate him? That's outrageous."

Pei Rujing looked at him with disdain: "What's the use of keeping a man who's been used up by other women!"

Zuo Mingxuan: "..."

I almost forgot that the county magistrate is very intolerant of any wrongdoing.

If Wen Zongji dares to do that, there's no guarantee he won't be humanely killed by her.

"Forget about that. I've been following Ruijintang's Top Ten Storytelling Competition these past few days. Quite a few authors have signed up, and it's doing quite well."

Pei Rujing almost forgot about this: "Let's go take a look together tomorrow. We're going to be judges soon, so we should at least find out what judges are supposed to do."

"That's exactly what I was thinking. Let's invite the others as well."

Pei Rujing nodded: "You're in charge of informing them. By the way, I plan to use Xinya Garden as the venue for the judges to select the top ten stories. Tell the members of the mahjong club not to come here for gatherings during those days."

"it is good"