Long live Emperor Wu!

Chapter 16 I’m looking for a book
When Wu Rou came back with the book, she saw four more maids in Xiliang Pavilion.

The four maids were still busy cleaning around. When they saw her coming back, they quickly stood in a row and bowed their heads in salute.

The leader was a blond-haired, blue-eyed bearded girl who looked to be in her 20s. She lowered her head and said:

"We are the maids assigned by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and we are responsible for serving the charming people's food and daily life."

Wu Rou was first dazzled by her golden hair, and then her words "Charming Talent" aroused goosebumps. She was stunned for a moment, and her mouth stammered:

"Ah...that's me."

"My servant's name is Arthurs, and they all call me Asi. I am 21 this year, and I am a ninth-grade female officer." Hu Nu said.

A few young people standing behind also came out to introduce themselves:

"My name is Caiyi. I am 13 years old this year and have been in the palace for less than a year."

"Me too, my name is Sanchun, her name is Siqiu, we are sisters." The third girl was quite lively, pointing to the person behind her, and said with a smile.

Only then did Wu Rou realize that the two at the back looked similar and wore the same palace clothes, making them more like twins.

"There are no rules." Arthurs turned his head and glared at the two sisters with his blue eyes, "Answer well."

The two girls quickly stopped their smiles, took another step forward, saluted and said:
"My name is Sanchun. She is 13 years old this year and is a new junior palace maid."

"My name is Siqiu. She is 11 years old this year, and she is also a new junior palace maid."

Wu Rou looked at the two of them and thought of her two younger sisters. The smile on her face couldn't help but get bigger and she said:

"Three Spring, Four Autumn, this name is easy to remember. You don't have to be so formal. I'm older than you, just think of me as your sister."

After they heard this, they laughed again. Miharu said:

"The talent is so beautiful. No wonder His Majesty loves you so much. There is no talented person in the harem who has been given a title. You are the first one."

Wu Rou couldn't help but feel embarrassed for a moment, and said to herself in her heart, no matter how embarrassing it is, you have to get used to it... and then looked at Cai Yi next to her.

Caiyi looked very shy, her head lowered so much that all she could see was a layer of soft down on her hairline, with a small black mole hidden under the down.

"Caiyi, where are you from?" Wu Rou asked as gently as possible.

"This slave is from Bingzhou."

"Then we are from the same hometown. My home is in Taiyuan Prefecture."

Caiyi then raised her head and glanced at Wu Rou, her eyes brightened with surprise, and then she quickly lowered her head, her face turned red, and she whispered:

"Yes."

Wu Rou looked at that Ah... Arthurs?

She is older than Wu Rou, and naturally much taller than Wu Rou. Even though she lowers her head, she is still a step taller than Wu Rou.

Her blond hair was styled in a palace maid's bun, and her lowered blue eyes were like gems.

The ninth-grade female official wears the same color as the junior palace maids, except that the skirt of the skirt is embroidered with a tangled grass pattern and is wider.

When she saw Wu Rou looking at her, her whole body was obviously stiffer, so Wu Rou asked:
"After all, there are not many barbarians in the palace. Arthur, where are you from?"

"My slave is from Gaochang and lives in the Turks. The Turks were defeated six years ago. I was taken into the Yeting Palace as a slave by the Turks as a prisoner."

Turks... are like thunder.

She heard Aye say that Turks were formerly called Rouran, and later they were divided into east and west parts. Their relationship with the Tang Dynasty was full of twists and turns.

When Emperor Gaozu raised his army, he once cooperated with the Eastern Turks, but later the king with whom they were friendly collapsed and his younger brother came to the throne, and the war broke out again.

How far did the fight go?

When His Majesty first ascended the throne, she was only four or five years old and lived with Aye in Yuzhou.Jieli Khan of the Eastern Turks led a large army to invade his hometown in Bingzhou and robbed more than [-] people. It was very cruel.

Aye said that at that time, many people opposed His Majesty's ascension to the throne, and there were many rebels, so troops were used everywhere. Suddenly Jieli Khan took advantage of the opportunity and attacked the border of Chang'an. Fortunately, His Majesty personally led the army to confront each other in front of the formation. It took threats and inducements to scare him away.

Every time Aye talks about it, he gnashes his teeth with hatred, and is sure that His Majesty will not suffer this loss and will definitely get it back.

Sure enough, six years ago, His Majesty sent his generals to go on an expedition and wiped out the Eastern Turks in one fell swoop, and the Turkic king Jieli Khan was captured alive.

The once arrogant Turkic king was so frightened that he flattered him, saying that his majesty was the common master of all the foreign states in the world, and he regarded him as the 'Khan of Heaven'.

I don’t know if it’s because he was so flattering that His Majesty didn’t kill him, but he is now serving as a general in Chang’an City.

Even the Turkic king was recruited to be a general, and there was nothing strange about several Turkic women serving as maids in the palace.

but……

"Where is Gao Chang? Are they all blond and blue-eyed like you?" Wu Rou asked.

"Gaochang is a small country in the Western Region, bordering the Turks. Not all slaves are slaves, there are also people with black hair." Arthurs said respectfully.

Wu Rou looked up into her eyes, smiled, and said, "It looks good."

Arthur's body became stiffer before his eyes.

Then she took a few steps back, looked at these people and said seriously:

"It's really strange. Even though I saw you for the first time today, I feel like I like you both, as if we are already familiar with you. I think this is probably fate.

I would also like to introduce myself to you. I am 14 years old and my family calls me Arou.It was less than three months after entering the palace.Although your family is well off, you have endured hardships and are not that particular, so you can relax.

As for my temperament, Aye often said that I am somewhat masculine, responsible and hard-hearted. Although my name is Arou, my heart is not as soft as that of ordinary women.

I think it’s not that I’m not soft, I’m obviously very good to my own people, but I just particularly hate betrayal.I gave a favor to others, and that's it if I don't return it. If you dare to hurt me, I will never let it go easily. "

A hint of anger flashed across Wu Rou's young and immature face, and then she said:
"So, I only have one request for you, which is to be loyal. It doesn't matter if you are a little stupid or casual. You must think what I want and be anxious about what I want. As long as you are sincerely good to me, I will protect you and will never I want you to endure hardships with me."

As she said this, she turned around and walked aside, looking for a small exchange ticket for a pound of copper coins, and each person was given one, which was equivalent to two hundred copper coins.

The monthly salary of a ninth-grade palace maid is fifty cents, and the new entry-level palace maids have no money.

"This is a meeting gift. I like each of you, so they are all the same. Every time I get a reward in the future, I will share some with you. Then I will give it according to your rank or merit."

At first she didn't want to give too much.

Aye said that going from less to more is a reward, and going from more to less is a punishment. No matter how outrageous it is at the beginning when it is too much, or how appropriate it is when it is too little later, it cannot give the people below the illusion of going back further.

While she was saying this, she added:
"Of course, if you have any difficulties at home or need anything, you can tell me and I will find a solution for you."

The four of them, Arthurs and Caiyi, didn't have much reaction. One was cautious and the other was shy.

Sanchun and Siqiu, who were standing behind, were young after all. After receiving the money, they happily thanked:

"Thank you for the gift, Charming Talent."

Wu Rou felt her feet knocking unconsciously.

No matter how many times I hear it, I really can't get used to this title.

Wu Rou held her forehead: "Um... just call me talented person, don't add the word "faint".

"Okay, thank you for the talent reward." The two people said in unison.

……

……

Wu Rou memorized the roster for three days day and night, and finally passed the test under Xu Chongrong's review.

She didn't know if it was her own illusion, but when she looked at Xu Chongrong with dark circles under her eyes, Xu Chongrong not only looked at her with less contempt, but also showed pity for her in his eyes.

Then... he threw her a book list and asked her to go to Hongwen Hall to find books to read.

It was still the same, random checks were required, but this time she was given a month.

Wu Rou took a look and saw that they were all sacrificial rituals, royal funeral hierarchies, systems, etc...

Her scalp was almost numb. Although ordinary people also had rituals and funerals, as a matron, she naturally had to learn and manage them, but there were never such a large scale and so many rules.

She used to think that the concubines in the harem could just compete for favor, but it turned out that her fifth-grade concubine was no different from a female official.

Especially... His Majesty the Emperor doesn't like her yet.

Wu Rou asked Arthur to take her to Hongwen Hall. Not long after walking through the collection of books in the room, she saw the figure of an acquaintance...

King Jin.

It was noon at that time, there was almost no one in Hongwen Hall, and the cicadas outside were screaming heartbreakingly.

Across a row of bookshelves, Wu Rou could only see half of his shoulders, with his back to her. His thick black hair was still tied in a heavy bun, but the hair tie turned yellow.

Wu Rou was doubting whether it was him, so he turned around, reached out and stuffed the book in his hand into the compartment, then looked up and saw Wu Rou, and was stunned again.

He always seemed surprised to see her.

"I have met His Highness Prince Jin." Wu Rou smiled, as if teasing a child, "Why does His Highness Prince Jin always seem to have been caught for doing something wrong?"

Li Shan lowered his eyes, then raised his eyes and looked directly at her, and said quietly:

"Martial talents, there is a difference between superiority and inferiority. Are you talking to me too casually? Although I am young, I am not your brother."

When Wu Rou heard this, the smile on her face gradually became smaller, her eyebrows became disappointed, and she lowered her head.

She said nothing and walked out dejectedly. Li Shan happened to be walking out as well. There were layers of books between the two of them. The tall and short books on the bookshelf blocked the view. Occasionally, one could catch a glimpse of the other person's shadow in the gap.

Li Shan glanced at her and saw that she had been very lively just now, but now she suddenly became extremely sad, and he wondered if he had said too much.

Then she heard Wu Rou whisper:

"I don't have a brother. It would be great if I really had a brother like you."

She didn't expect King Jin to talk to her, but she really said it to herself.

If she had a younger brother who, like Prince Jin, was anything but ordinary at first glance, how could the relatives of the Wu family dare to ignore them?

Maybe he would even try to fawn over them and give them benefits, hoping to provide them with help in times of need so that one day he would become famous and get a reward in return.

"What are you doing here?" Li Shan suddenly asked, his voice still calm, but much gentler than before.

"I came looking for a book. Empress Chongrong gave me a book list and asked me to read it. She said it was for random inspection." Wu Rou said quickly, but she didn't dare to smile like a child.

(End of this chapter)