Free Web NovelChapter 184: Chapter 184: The National Academy Examination Begins
Shen Ningning waited with a pounding heart.
Her eyes were fixed on the Shopkeeper as he retrieved a thick stack of ledgers from the very bottom of a cabinet.
The Shopkeeper flipped back and forth through the pages. Finally, he said, "Found it. It’s right here, but..."
Before he could finish, Mo Lingwei had already taken the ledger and handed it to the incredibly excited Shen Ningning to see for herself.
Shen Ningning’s watery eyes shimmered with immense joy. "It’s the pattern from the Ruyi scepter! It’s identical!"
She was all too familiar with the lotus pattern drawn on this page of the ledger.
Her gaze shifted downward to the line for the customer’s signature, and the little girl froze.
"This..."
The Shopkeeper gave an apologetic smile. "It seems the customer who ordered the Ruyi scepter picked it up from the shop in person, so they didn’t leave a detailed home address. They did leave a name, though."
Mo Lingwei watched Shen Ningning’s long lashes tremble. She reached out her small hand and gently stroked the space where the name was written.
The two words, "Lady Xin," were written in an elegant, graceful hand.
With the passage of time, the Xuan paper had yellowed slightly, but the ink of her mother’s signature was still clear.
It was as if the waters of time had surged forward, stirring shimmering ripples in Shen Ningning’s dark eyes.
She choked back a sob. "Is this my mother’s handwriting?"
The Shopkeeper glanced at it. "It should be. Whenever a customer picks up an order, we ask them to sign to confirm."
Shen Ningning looked at the two words again and again.
Mo Lingwei pressed his lips together and looked up at the Shopkeeper. "I’ll buy this page. Name your price."
The Shopkeeper was stunned. "Sir, I-I can’t do that. We might still need that lotus pattern for the shop in the future."
Mo Lingwei didn’t waste words with him and made a direct offer. "One thousand taels of silver."
The Shopkeeper looked troubled. "Sir, you..."
Mo Lingwei cut him off, his voice crisp and domineering. "Three thousand taels."
The Shopkeeper was flabbergasted. He came to his senses and said, "Sir, this isn’t about money. This ledger left by my master isn’t just a simple pattern book. It’s the inherited craft of our trade."
Mo Lingwei took a slow breath. "I understand."
He immediately turned his head and looked at his guard, Wu Fang. "Go find the Magistrate. All of this shop’s crafts are to be designated for exclusive use by the court."
The Shopkeeper’s jaw nearly dropped.
’My little silver building has what it takes to become an exclusive supplier for the court?’
Shen Ningning wiped away her tears and quickly said, "Brother, you don’t have to go to such great lengths. I just wanted to look at it for a moment."
Mo Lingwei knew how much she wanted to find her parents, but it was in Shen Ningning’s nature to not want to trouble others.
Thus, her words were met with only a faint smile from him. "I’ll handle it. Don’t try to persuade me."
"Wait, wait, Sir!" The Shopkeeper, snapping back to reality, hurried to stop the guard.
He looked at Mo Lingwei, the shock still evident in his eyes.
’No wonder I felt this gentleman and the little girl had such a noble air about them. They must be important people from the palace.’
"Sir, I can understand how you feel. However, I’m also well aware of the level of my own craftsmanship. Becoming an exclusive supplier for the court would be a blessing my ancestors would smile upon, but I’m truly not up to such a great responsibility."
The Shopkeeper turned to Shen Ningning. "Little miss, how about this? I’ll tear off the part of the page with the name on it. I don’t want your money, I’ll just give it to you as a gift. Would that be alright?"
Mo Lingwei was instantly satisfied.
’This Shopkeeper is a smart man. He knows that even if he became an official supplier, he’s mediocre compared to the master artisans in the palace.’
’Besides, the concubines in the court are not easy to please.’
’It’s better to do these two nobles a favor now than to be punished for some offense later.’
Shen Ningning’s eyes lit up with a pleasant surprise. "Really? Oh, but I can’t just take it for free."
She immediately reached for her purse to get some silver.
Mo Lingwei stopped her hand. "As long as I’m here, you don’t need to pay."
As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Fang took out a one thousand tael silver note and placed it on the Shopkeeper’s counter.
The Shopkeeper was overwhelmed by the favor. He quickly took the page, folded it into a strip, and tore off the section with the handwriting.
Shen Ningning held it carefully, as if it were a precious treasure.
Mo Lingwei led her away by the hand. The little girl didn’t forget to call back, "Thank you, Uncle Shopkeeper! I’ve never met my mother. This is the first time I’ve ever seen her handwriting."
After she left, the silver building’s Shopkeeper remained dazed for a long time.
He couldn’t help but sigh. "That poor little girl. But why does she look so familiar? She looks like that Blessed Girl I saw the other day..."
「In the carriage.」
Shen Ningning kept holding the slip of paper, looking at it over and over.
The handwriting of the two words, "Lady Xin," was nearly seared into her heart.
A faint smile played on Mo Lingwei’s lips the entire time. He didn’t disturb the little girl’s quiet moment.
The words were on paper, but the moment Shen Ningning touched them, it was as if she had reached across time to touch her mother’s fingertips from years ago.
The little girl sniffled, her bright dark eyes welling up as she said with a sob, "This is the closest I’ve ever been to my mother."
Mo Lingwei comforted her. "Don’t be too sad. I’ll take you to the palace to find Consort Rong now. Since the Shopkeeper said it was a pair of Ruyi scepters, Consort Rong must know who Lady Xin is."
Shen Ningning threw herself into his arms, her small hands wrapping around Mo Lingwei’s neck.
"Thank you, Brother!" Her hot tears fell onto his collar.
Mo Lingwei’s body stiffened for a moment, then he let out a soft laugh, his dark, narrow eyes filled with blatant adoration.
"What are you thanking me for? Haven’t you helped me a lot, too? Life is normally dull, but finding your parents is the most important thing to me right now."
After entering the palace, the two went straight to the outside of Consort Rong’s hall.
When Mo Lingwei said he was looking for Consort Rong, the Chief Palace Maid was full of apologies.
"My deepest apologies, Your Highness the Crown Prince. Her Ladyship has caught a cold due to the changing weather. She was up all night and only just fell asleep after taking some medicine."
Mo Lingwei’s eyes narrowed. "She’s ill?"
The Chief Palace Maid nodded.
Shen Ningning then said in her soft, sweet voice, "It’s okay, Big Sister. We’ll come visit Consort Rong another day. I hope she gets well soon."
The Chief Palace Maid smiled. "This servant will be sure to pass on the Commandery Princess’s words."
Mo Lingwei took Shen Ningning’s little hand. "Let’s go. We’ll sit in Zichen Palace for a while."
The Chief Palace Maid escorted the two all the way to the palace gate and only returned inside after they were out of sight.
Inside the hall, purple gauze curtains hung down, blocking most of the light, and the faint scent of medicine filled the room.
The Chief Palace Maid lightened her steps, walked around the Mica Screen into the inner chamber, and saw a beautiful woman with black hair and pale skin sitting on the bed.
"Your Ladyship, the Crown Prince and Princess Funing have left," the Chief Palace Maid said.
Consort Rong, on the bed, had a listless expression and somewhat pale lips.
She glanced to the side. "Did they say why they came to see me?"
"They did not," the Chief Palace Maid shook her head. "However, this servant has heard that the Crown Prince’s men recently went to the Cold Palace to investigate Qing He."
Consort Rong closed her eyes and pressed her temples. "The person is already gone, what is there to investigate? I am tired. You may leave."
"Oh, right. Princess Funing’s investiture ceremony should be soon. Go to my private storeroom and take the poetry collection *Flower Dream* that I personally transcribed, and send it to her along with the original copy."
"Yes." The Chief Palace Maid then took her leave and walked toward the private storeroom in the side hall.
After opening it, she found the well-preserved poetry collection inside. One was the copy transcribed by Consort Rong, and the other was the original, one-of-a-kind volume.
The Chief Palace Maid opened the copy transcribed by Consort Rong to check it carefully, then placed it back in the box after confirming there were no mistakes.
If Shen Ningning could have seen it, the little girl would have been shocked to find that Consort Rong’s handwriting was remarkably similar to the script of her mother’s that she had just obtained.
「Half a month went by in a flash.」
On the first day of the tenth month, the entrance examination for the National Academy officially began.
Shen Ningning arrived early by carriage. Lu Shaoyuan had also come to take the exam.
It wasn’t yet time for the side gate to open, but two long lines had already formed outside the National Academy.
The little girl glanced over the crowd, estimating there were over three hundred people.
"Wow," she whispered in surprise to Lu Shaoyuan, "so many people are here for the exam. The pressure is intense."
To prepare for the exam, she had only slept for two hours a night for the past half-month, spending the rest of her time studying with the mad scholar.
Lu Shaoyuan laughed. "Don’t be scared. A lot of these people aren’t qualified at all; they’re just here for the experience. After all, the bar for the National Academy is so high that ordinary people could never get in their entire lives."
Just then, a gong sounded, and the side gate of the National Academy opened.
Four teachers appeared, accompanied by six Attendant Students and Protectors.
The lead teacher had a long beard and a stern expression. "Men and women, separate. Form orderly lines on the left and right to enter."
Shen Ningning quickly joined the other young ladies on the right. Everyone had to submit their identification papers, as well as a letter of recommendation signed by their local County Magistrate or Magistrate, to be eligible for the examination.
When it was Shen Ningning’s turn, the Attendant Student in charge of registration checked her identification papers and letter of recommendation.
But instead of letting her in, he held out his hand. "Where’s your silver?"
Shen Ningning froze.
’What silver? You have to pay to take the exam? No one told me that.’
