AWB Chapter 3: Add money, but no work!
Chapter 3: Add money, but no work!
Dengwen drum.
The direct appeal system was a unique feature of the feudal era.
Gu Jingzhi and Lao Huang slowly walked towards the gate of the imperial city, where a big drum was placed.
"Old Huang, twenty years after the founding of the Great Xia, the Emperor set up a drum for reporting news at the palace gates. Has anyone ever struck it?"
"Sir, Old Huang has never heard of..."
Huh? its not right!
Old Huang's eyes suddenly widened: "Young Master, you... you... you're not going to beat the drum to report it, are you?"
"hehe!"
Gu Jingzhi smiled and suddenly beckoned to someone in the crowd. That person was a servant from Ning Hou's Mansion, sent by Song Yu to follow him.
The man also noticed that Gu Jingzhi hooked his finger at him, but pretended not to see it. Gu Jingzhi was not in a hurry and just looked at him with a smile.
Finally, the man couldn't hold it anymore and walked towards Gu Jingzhi helplessly.
Gu Jingzhi pointed at the big drum outside the imperial city gate and said to the man, "Do you know what that drum is called?"
The servant was stunned for a moment, and looked at the place where Gu Jingzhi's finger was pointing. His expression suddenly changed: "Big, big master..."
"hehe!"
Gu Jingzhi patted the man's shoulder and said with a smile: "Go back and ask Song Yu, if that drum sounds, can the Ninghou Mansion and the Song family withstand it?"
"Hey, Master, I..."
"Go ahead, don't miss out on the important event!"
Gu Jingzhi just smiled slightly, then turned around and continued walking towards the gate of the imperial city.
……
In the Ninghou Mansion, Song Yu was proudly holding a cup of tea and sipping it carefully.
Gu Jingzhi agreed to give the opportunity of passing the imperial examination to Gu Xiu, thus fulfilling her two wishes.
The eldest son inherited the title of the Marquis, the younger son was able to enter the officialdom through the imperial examination, and he could also suppress Gu Jingzhi, the eldest son of the Marquis, which really made her feel satisfied.
As the prime minister's concubine's daughter, she had not had an easy life since childhood. After marrying into the marquis's mansion, she was suppressed by Gu Jingzhi's biological mother. After she gave birth to two sons for Gu Heng with great difficulty, Gu Jingzhi's biological mother also passed away. She was promoted from a concubine to the marquis's wife.
Even her father Song Pu had to look up to her.
Now that the future of her two sons was settled, Gu Jingzhi, who was regarded as a thorn in her side at that time, also asked to leave the Marquis' Mansion. Song Yu felt so happy.
"Xiu'er, you still have to perform well in the palace examination in three days. Don't be careless!"
She knew that her son was not talented.
However, the palace examination only considers ranking, not elimination. As long as my son's essay is decent, it doesn't matter if his ranking is a little lower.
Gu Xiu had heard this several times and said impatiently, "Mom, don't worry! You've said it several times, I've taken note of it all!"
"Don't be impatient. If it weren't for your mother's plan for you and your father's tacit approval, you..."
"I know! I will do my best in the palace examination and there will be absolutely no mistakes. So don't tell me!"
"..."
Seeing her son's impatient face, Song Yu's good mood disappeared in an instant. She looked at her stupid son and was about to scold him.
The butler outside the door came jogging with a breathless servant.
Seeing this, Song Yu immediately became displeased: "He's still running breathlessly in this mansion. Doesn't he know the etiquette?"
"lady!"
The servant fell to his knees with a thud: "My lady, something bad has happened!"
I'm fine!
Song Yu looked at him with disgust and said, "You scoundrel, why don't you tell me the reason and see how I punish you!"
"Madam, the eldest son, he asked me to tell Madam..."
Gu Jingzhi?
Song Yu frowned. What happened to him?
"What did you tell me to say? Tell me now!"
"He asked me to ask Madam, if the drums outside the Imperial City Gate sounded, would the Marquisate and the Prime Minister's Mansion... be able to withstand it?"
"what?"
Song Yu was startled, then slammed the table and stood up angrily: "He actually dared to beat the drum to report the incident?"
Gu Xiu on the side was also dumbfounded.
The people here don’t know the reason, but they know!
I originally thought that the coward was frightened by them, so he honestly gave up the opportunity to pass the imperial examination and walked out of the mansion in disgrace.
Unexpectedly, this was just a temporary solution, and he dared to go and beat the drum to appeal for justice.
How dare he?
Song Yu cursed angrily: "Useless trash, why didn't you stop him?"
"Husband, Madam! It's too late! They've already reached the gate of the Imperial City, and I dare not stop them!"
"..."
Song Yu was furious, his eyebrows raised, and he looked at the trembling servants and cursed: "Get out, get out!"
The servants fled as if they had been pardoned. Song Yu was still not satisfied, so she grabbed the teacup on the table and smashed it to the ground.
"Gu Jingzhi, that beast, how dare he...how dare he do this?"
If the drum outside the imperial city gate sounded, not to mention her, a mere woman in the backyard, even the entire marquis's mansion, and even his mother's family, would not be able to bear it!
After all, what she did... was cheating in the Spring Examination, an attack on the imperial court and the emperor.
"Mom! How dare that loser Gu Jingzhi threaten us like this? I'm bringing people to capture him right now!"
Although Gu Xiu was a fool, he knew the seriousness of the matter.
Everything had been arranged long before they plotted to seize Gu Jingzhi's fame.
Regardless of whether Gu Jingzhi agreed or not, with the Ninghou Mansion and the Prime Minister's Mansion as the two powerful forces, no one outside dared to accept Gu Jingzhi's petition.
But I didn't expect Gu Jingzhi to be so cruel and want to directly beat the drum to report the incident.
Song Yu was awakened by his shout. Seeing Gu Xiu walking out the door, he could not help but scolded, "Come back, what are you doing?"
Gu Xiu kept walking: "I want to teach that loser a lesson!"
"Bastard!"
Song Yu immediately chased forward, grabbed Gu Xiu and angrily scolded him, "Can you please stop causing trouble at this time? And you're still teaching that beast a lesson? Are you going to act wildly at the gate of the imperial city?"
"..."
Gu Xiu finally calmed down after hearing this, but he was still unwilling to give up: "Mom, are we just going to wait like this? If he beats the drum to report the incident, we're finished!"
"What do you know?"
Song Yu snorted coldly: "He is just threatening us!"
"threaten?"
Gu Xiu seemed to have thought of something when he heard this. His anger turned into joy as he said, "I was just saying... This idiot has been a coward his whole life. How could he dare to actually make a move? He must be just pretending!"
Song Yu's eyes darkened as he asked, "What if he really knocks?"
"what?"
The smile on Gu Xiu's face froze: "Mom, didn't you just say..."
"What if?"
Song Yu looked outside coldly: "The reason he sent the servant back to deliver the message was just to tell us that whether the drum for the announcement will sound or not depends entirely on whether his name will be replaced after the results are announced tomorrow!"
"..."
Gu Xiu suddenly felt aggrieved: "How dare this loser threaten us like this?"