Do you know the long song of laughter?

Chapter 421 Awarding Officers
Gu Tingyu didn't know what method he used, but he went to the Dongchang Marquis's mansion and persuaded the Dongchang Marquis to release the person.

After returning home, he sent someone to invite Gu Tingye over.

"Just send someone directly to the Marquis of Dongchang's mansion to pick him up." Gu Tingyu said.

"Thank you." Gu Tingye thanked.

"What are you going to do with them?" Gu Tingyu asked.

"I plan to send them away from Bianjing."

Anyway, Gu Tingyu already knows it, so there is nothing to hide.

"You are still as soft-hearted as ever. You should know that doing this will still cause troubles in the future." Gu Tingyu said.

"If I just have them killed and buried somewhere, I'm afraid Big Brother won't be able to sleep, right?"

Gu Tingye smiled, turned and left.

Gu Tingyu was stunned for a long time, and suddenly laughed: "Haha, interesting."

Indeed, if Gu Tingye really killed Man Niang and her siblings, he would be a little worried.

Although considering what Man Niang did, there was nothing wrong in Gu Tingye killing her.

But after all, Man Niang gave birth to two children for him, so it was a bit too cruel for Gu Tingye to do that to her.

Although he disagreed with Gu Tingye's approach, as Gu Tingye said, if Gu Tingye killed someone, he would be a little worried.

……

After Gu Tingye left Gu Tingyu, he asked Shitou to drive the carriage himself to the Dongchang Marquis Mansion.

Speaking of which, Gu Tingye used to come to Dongchang Marquis Mansion frequently.

At that time, Xiao Qin would bring him back with her in order to disguise herself.

The doorman knew Gu Tingye and had obviously received instructions long ago. When he saw Gu Tingye coming, he led him directly to the side door and knocked.

Not long after, the side door was opened and the people inside came out carrying two twisting sacks.

Gu Tingye asked someone to load the sacks onto the car and let Shitou drive.

They came to the place where Man Niang and the others were imprisoned before. Shi Tou called people out and carried the two people in.

"Untie the sack!" said Gu Tingye.

Shitou untied the two sacks, revealing Man Niang and her brother, who were tied up and looked embarrassed.

"Woo~"

Man Niang looked at Gu Tingye with hatred in her eyes. She kept struggling and wanted to say something, but her mouth was blocked and she couldn't make a sound.

Gu Tingye gave Shitou a look, and Shitou pulled the cloth out of Man Niang's mouth.

"Gu Tingye, you have such a cruel heart." Man Niang said gritting her teeth.

"If I were really cruel, you and your sister would have been dead for who knows how long!" Gu Tingye said lightly.

"How dare you!" A trace of fear flashed in Man Niang's eyes, and she said sternly: "We are good citizens, you dare to kill us?"

"Ah!"

Gu Tingye sneered and said, "With my status, if I kill two civilians, do you think the government will really investigate further? What's more, I don't need to do it myself!"

Gu Tingye really didn't mean to scare Man Niang by saying this. With his status, if he really wanted to kill Man Niang and her siblings, he would not be involved at all.

"I am the mother of Chang'er and Rong'er, you can't do this to me!" Man Niang was really scared when she heard it.

"If it weren't for the child, do you think you would still be alive today?" Gu Tingye sneered.

"What do you want?" Man Niang asked angrily.

"I will let you go, but you have to leave Bianjing and never return to Bianjing in your life. You only have this one chance. If you dare to come back, don't blame me for being rude!" Gu Tingye said coldly.

"Woo~"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Dazhi nodded anxiously.

"I can promise you, but I want to see the child before I leave, otherwise you can kill me!" Man Niang said.

"You think I don't dare?"

Gu Tingye looked at Man Niang with murderous eyes.

Man Niang did not retreat, she held her head high and looked at Gu Tingye.

Gu Tingye hesitated for a moment and said, "Okay, I can let you see the child, but you should think clearly about what to say and what not to say!"

"Of course I know that, but you want me to see the child like this?" Man Niang said indifferently.

"Shi Tou, ask someone to buy her some clothes and prepare some hot water." Gu Tingye said.

……

"Zhong Huai, what are you doing?"

When Li An heard that Gu Tingye had arrived, he went out to greet her. Seeing that she brought a woman with her, he roughly guessed her identity.

"She wants to see the child." Gu Tingye said.

"Should I ask someone to take her there?" Li An asked.

"Thank you for your help." Gu Tingye nodded.

"Small things."

Li An asked Desheng to lead the group over, but Gu Tingye was worried and asked Shitou to follow as well.

After everyone left, Li An asked, "How did you rescue them?"

Gu Tingye briefly recounted what had happened.

After listening to this, Li An was silent for a while and asked, "So how do you plan to deal with them?"

"Once she sees the child, I will send them away from Bian Jing." Gu Tingye said.

Li An moved his lips. He felt that this was not the best way, but there was no other way.

Xiao Qinshi already knows about Man Niang's existence, and she will definitely look for Man Niang's whereabouts next.

It’s not safe to stay in Bian Jing, but we can’t let Gu Tingye kill people, right?

So in the end, Ang Lee said nothing.

"By the way, I heard that the government will soon grant official titles to last year's new Jinshi candidates. Congratulations." Gu Tingye said with a smile.

"I have received a notice from the Ministry of Personnel, asking me to go there the day after tomorrow to wait for appointment." Li An said.

If it weren't for the incident involving Rong Feiyan, he would have been appointed as an official after the Lantern Festival.

It's already February and a lot of time has been wasted.

Gu Tingye chatted with Li An for a while, and then asked Li An to go to his house for a wedding banquet in a few days. After Man Niang saw the child, he took Man Niang away.

……

A few days passed in a flash, and the day of appointment arrived.

Li An came to the Ministry of Personnel and met Sheng Changbai and Yang Tao, whom he hadn't seen for some time.

"Congratulations, Zi Lian." Li An said with a smile.

After the imperial examination, Yang Tao and Liu Wan'er's marriage was settled.

Yang Tao returned to Yangzhou to announce the good news and at the same time took care of his own marriage.

Because after being appointed as an official, he will be sent to serve as an official in a remote place.

Given his rank, the possibility of him staying in Beijing was very slim, so the two families set the date for the wedding in early February.

We are a bit pressed for time, but there is nothing we can do.

Speaking of which, there are quite a few wedding banquets to attend this year.

Gu Tingye and Yang Tao are both getting married in February, and next up is Sheng Changbai and Qi Heng, both of whom are getting married this year.

When Rong Feiyan was abducted, Princess Pingning was terrified.

She waited for a few days, and the emperor had no intention of punishing Prince Yong, so she took the initiative to propose marriage.

To put it nicely, her behavior is called refusing to accept a toast and then drinking a forfeit wine. To put it bluntly, she is shameless.

I don't know how many people secretly laughed at Princess Pingning. Of course, there was also jealousy in this. In any case, the marriage between Qi Heng and Princess Jiacheng was settled.

Yang Tao touched his nose and said, "Why do I feel like you are gloating over other people's misfortunes?"

"Haha, when you get married, I will be your elder. When we meet next time, remember to offer me tea!" Li An said with a smile.

"Go to hell." Yang Tao gave Li An a cold look.

"What? You don't want to get married? Then I'll go and tell Sister Wan'er." Li An joked.

"Zi Qian, stop making fun of Zi Lian." Sheng Changbai came to his rescue.

"Zecheng, you have to control your brother-in-law. He is too talkative." Yang Tao said with a smile.

After joking for a while, Yang Tao said seriously: "Zecheng, I can't go to your wedding, I can only congratulate you in advance."

Perhaps the Hai family had already made arrangements for Sheng Changbai. When the two families were discussing the wedding date, the Hai family suggested holding the wedding in September this year and there was no rush.

Yang Tao had already taken up his post by then, so naturally he could not attend.

"It doesn't matter if people don't come, as long as the gifts arrive. And don't forget my share, otherwise I will suffer a great loss." Li An said with a smile.

"Ha ha!"

When Li An said this, Sheng Changbai and Yang Tao both laughed, which diluted their reluctance to part.

"quiet!"

An official came over accompanied by several minor clerks.

Everyone quickly quieted down.

The official stood on the steps in front of the courtyard, gave an official speech, and then asked a clerk to read out the appointment.

At the beginning, what we read were the appointments to the top three. Last year, the imperial examination admitted more than 270 people, of which the top two and top three combined had only more than 60 people, and there were just over 200 people in the top three.

Among these people, except for a few who had some connections and arrangements, the rest were granted civil service positions without real jobs.

These people are either lucky enough to have noble people to help them, or they will stand out in the examination in the future. Otherwise, they will basically have no chance of being given a real job in this life.

After reading the top three appointments, the next one is the second one.

Li Ang and his friends were all in the top two, so they listened very carefully.

I read the names one by one and quickly got them.

"Yang Tao, a native of Yangzhou, was appointed as the county magistrate of Dongxiang County, Tongzhou."

The county magistrate is an eighth-rank official. Yang Tao ranked relatively low among the second-class candidates, but it was quite good for him to be appointed as a county magistrate, especially in a place located in the south of the Yangtze River.

Yang Tao also smiled when he heard the appointment. Tongzhou is only a few hundred miles away from Yangzhou, which is not far. He was very satisfied.

Next, the names were called out one by one, and by the time the top ten or so in the second class were called, they were already county magistrates of the seventh rank.

Many people think that the county magistrate is a ninth-rank official, but in fact, the county magistrates during the Sui and Tang dynasties were all fifth or sixth ranks.

In the Song Dynasty, depending on the size of the county, the county magistrate was basically either the seventh rank or the minor seventh rank.

In some large and important counties, the county magistrates are all of the sixth rank.

"Li An, a native of Yangzhou, was awarded the title of Imperial Academy Scholar!"

"Wow~"

The appointment caused an uproar.

Although after each imperial examination, a small number of talented people would be selected to enter the Hanlin Garden, the number of places was very small. Apart from the three people in the first class, there might only be one or two places for the second and third classes together.

I didn't expect that someone would take it away.

For those whose appointments have already been read out, it doesn’t matter, because they no longer have a chance anyway.

But those who ranked ahead of Li An were very unwilling. Li An was selected as a Shujishi, which meant that perhaps only one of them could be selected as a Shujishi, or even no one else would have a chance.

Li An felt a little dizzy. He had been worried that he would not be able to stay in Beijing, but he did not expect that he would not only stay in Beijing, but also be admitted to the Hanlin Academy.

As mentioned earlier, the Hanlin Academy is the government's secretariat.

Of course, the Shujishi had no right to speak.

During the morning court session, several officials would sit on both sides of the main hall. They were the Shujishi, whose duty was to draft imperial edicts for the emperor.

The emperor's words were not just casual remarks, they were not equivalent to imperial decrees.

Some imperial edicts of the morning court, including ordinary ones, were drafted by the Shujishi, issued after the emperor reviewed them, and also kept as archives.

It seems that they have no rights, but the Hanlin Academy Shujishi is a short-term official position, and the purpose of entering the Hanlin Academy is mainly to allow them to learn.

After studying for one or two years, or at most three years, you will be reappointed.

In addition, the Hanlin Academy Shujishi is also called Chu Xiang, which means reserve prime minister as the name suggests.

Xianggong does not only refer to the prime minister. All officials above the third rank in the court are respectfully called Xianggong.

The prime minister was called the Grand Prime Minister.

In other words, once selected as a Shujishi, as long as there are no problems along the way, one can become an official of the third rank or above in the future.

There are not many official positions above the third rank in the court. For example, the six ministers are all of the second rank.

With this said, everyone knows the value of Shujishi.

"quiet!"

The official from the Ministry of Personnel who came over to announce the appointment frowned and shouted coldly.

The scene fell silent instantly.

"Go on." The official said to the clerk.

Upon hearing this, the clerk continued to read.

"Sheng Changbai, a native of Tongzhou, was awarded the title of Hanlin Academy Scholar."

That’s right, the Sheng family’s ancestral home, Youyang, is in Tongzhou, which is where Yang Tao will soon take up his post.

Because of what happened before, this appointment did not cause much stir.

And compared to Ang Lee, Sheng Changbai is more famous.

Firstly, Sheng Changbai ranks high, and secondly, Sheng Changbai is the future son-in-law of the Hai family.

The fact that the Hai family has five Hanlin scholars is no joke, so many people think that Sheng Changbai can enter the Hanlin Academy.

Soon the appointments of the three top scorers were announced, with the second and third place winners going to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites respectively.

And it was an official position of the seventh rank.

These two departments, one is in charge of the promotion and appointment of officials, and the other is in charge of the imperial examinations. The starting point is no worse than the Hanlin Academy.

The next position was the number one scholar, but no one had high expectations because every time the number one scholar was awarded the title of editor in the Hanlin Academy.

This official position was responsible for recording the words and deeds of officials and compiling official records. In addition, he would explain the meaning of scriptures to officials and draft some ceremonial documents, which were actually the speeches of officials on certain specific occasions.

Yes, there were speech scripts in ancient times as well.

There was no surprise this time, Lin Yizhi was awarded the sixth-rank position as an editor in the Hanlin Academy.

After a few years of being sent out to other places, he would at least be the magistrate of a state, which saved him more than ten years of hard work.

Sheng Hong had the Wang family's care and he also had to make arrangements on his own, but it took him more than ten years to become a magistrate. The gap was obvious.

After the appointment was read out, each of them received the appointment document and official uniform. Li An and Sheng Changbai both received green ones, while Yang Tao received blue one.

The appointment documents are the documents they report to their respective yamen.

The required time for taking office varies depending on the place. Since Li An and his team are in Bian Jing, they will take office in half a month.

"Should we find a place to have a few drinks to celebrate?" Sheng Changbai said.

"Why are you looking for a place? I have a restaurant at home. I'll treat you." Li An said with a smile.

"No, the engagement day will be in a few days, and I have a lot of things to do." Yang Tao shook his head.

He returned to Beijing this time, on the one hand to wait for appointment, and on the other hand to accept a job offer.

The day for engagement will be set in a few days.

His term of office is two months. After the engagement, he has to go back to Yangzhou to get married, and then he has to rush to Tongzhou to report. It's a lot of things to do.

(End of this chapter)