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Home/ There’s A Beauty / Chapter 81 (Part 1)

Emperor Xuanguang stopped You Shu, who was almost kneeling on the ground, and asked knowingly, “Lord Zhao, what is the purpose of your visit?”

You Shu replied respectfully, “Reporting to His Majesty, I heard that you wanted to set up an inspection department to investigate the corruption cases in the Ministry of Household Affairs, so I came here to request His Majesty to let me join.”

A minister frowned upon hearing this, “Lord Zhao, please be careful what you say. The matter in the Ministry of Household Affairs still needs to be investigated. Why are you directly convicting them of corruption?”

Everyone in the Ministry of Household Affairs, from the ministers to the subordinate officials, have been imprisoned. There are hundreds of people in total, and no one has been spared. If the evidence was not conclusive, how could the master, who had always been magnanimous and lenient, eliminate them all? 

But these people are still defending the criminals, how on earth could they be appointed as the court officials? Are they loyal to those noble families or the master? You Shu felt indignant and ignored the other party’s questioning, only looking up at his master with his bright black eyes.

Emperor Xuanguang felt so hot by the other party’s eager gaze that he picked up the tea cup and slowly took a sip to relieve his dry throat. Then he said in a deep voice, “I haven’t spoken yet, but Lord Sun took the lead in teaching people a lesson. Is it Lord Sun’s government office here or this emperor’s Qianqing Palace?”

The minister was startled and quickly kowtowed to plead guilty, saying that the humble minister had overstepped his bounds and deserved death. 

However, Emperor Xuanguang neither shouted nor responded to him. He beckoned You Shu to his side and said gently, “I have always heard that Lord Zhao is very skilled in solving cases and managing politics, but I have never heard that you are also very proficient in accounting. Lord Zhao must know that the most important task in thoroughly investigating the corruption cases in the Ministry of Household Affairs is to sort out the accounts. Therefore, I especially asked the ministers to recommend officials who are the most skilled in accounting in each department.”

Speaking up to this point, he changed his tone and said bluntly, “Taking on this job is equivalent to confronting nine out of ten powerful officials in the court, and even I have to withstand tremendous pressure, let alone subordinates. Those who enter the inspection department may be threatened with intimidation, bribed, framed, or even assassinated, all of which are possible. Lord Zhao, you need to consider three points: first, do you have the ability to participate in this case; second, do you have the courage to participate in this case; third, can you afford the consequences? If you still have doubts, I suggest you leave the palace immediately and consider carefully before making a decision

Although he had the ability to protect You Shu, he didn’t want to see him jump into the fire pit. Furthermore, he also wanted to see how deep You Shu’s feelings are for himself and how far he could go. Emperor Xuanguang never believed in the so-called “love at first sight”, but when it came to a stubborn donkey like You Shu, he really couldn’t tell. He knows that this person is not someone who talks casually, let alone acts on impulse.

You Shu said without thinking, “Your Majesty, since I dare to enter the palace to ask for the job, I am also willing to bear the consequences. Didn’t His Majesty prepare many coffins for people? You can also prepare one for this official. I am even willing to die for the emperor!”

Wow, what a tough temper! Ou Tai and others couldn’t help but glance at him, but they saw him take a step forward and confidently say, “As for whether this official has the ability, Your Majesty only needs to test it. In terms of actuarial calculation, if this official ranks second in Dayong, then no one would dare to call himself first.” Regarding his intelligence, You Shu is extremely confident, even to the point of being arrogant.

Wow, what a big mouth! The ministers became even more surprised, and several of the recommended capable officials showed signs of dissatisfaction. They are also experts from various departments, and they can manage very complex accounts in an orderly manner, so they are highly valued. However, Lord Zhao’s words actually trampled on all of them. So how could they be willing?

Emperor Xuanguang pressed his fist against his lips to prevent himself from laughing loudly. You Shu is still like that, not understanding interpersonal communication, let alone the way of being an official. He says what he wants, without having any idea of how much hatred he has unconsciously drawn towards himself. 

However, it is precisely because of this that his uniqueness is revealed. Moreover, now he holds his head and chest high, full of fighting spirit, like a peacock who meets his sweetheart, trying to stretch out his feathers and showcase his best and most beautiful side. This appearance is extremely rare, but also very interesting.

Trying hard to suppress the laughter that was about to surge into his throat, Emperor Xuanguang waved his hands and said, “It seems that Lord Zhao is quite confident in himself. Anyway, I will give you a few questions to test you.”

Question setting? Isn’t this method too low to show off one’s own skills? You Shu frowned and said quickly, “Your Majesty, you don’t need to ask questions. You just need to bring in a bag of rice and a copper basin.”

Several capable officials were prepared to do the questions together with him and get the answers first to suppress his arrogance, but after hearing this, they all showed puzzled expressions.  

Although Emperor Xuanguang was also very curious, he didn’t ask any more questions and waved at Wei Chen, who personally made a trip and brought back the necessary items to the hall in just a moment.

After flattering his master with a smile, You Shu then walked over and grabbed a handful of rice at random, which he threw into the copper basin, explaining, “This official is exceptionally talented, especially in counting. I can get an accurate result with just a glance. This handful of rice weighs 8 taels and 27 gm, with a total of 3076 grains. If you don’t believe it, just count and weigh it.”

This is the first time that he has demonstrated his terrifyingly accurate calculation ability, hoping that his master will be impressed by him. Thinking like this, he looked at the person above him with eager eyes, and his black and bright eyes were filled with six words— begging for praise and begging for importance.

Emperor Xuanguang tilted his head slightly to avoid this fatal gaze. Damn it, he almost put his palm on You Shu’s head. The peacock that just opened his feathers has now turned into a puppy trying to please his master. Why is he always so cute?

However, everyone else did not think Lord Zhao was cute, but rather felt that this person was very reckless. Just by grabbing a handful of rice, you can figure out the weight and quantity. Is there such a divine person in the world? Verify! Be sure to verify it clearly! If there is even a slight difference, he would definitely be ridiculed to the extreme, making him feel ashamed!

When all the capable officials were about to move, the emperor had already sent word, ordering Wei Chen to verify it. Wei Chen took the weighing rod and weighed it repeatedly. It was indeed 8 taels and 27 gm. Finally, he bent down to count the grains of rice. As soon as he counted around three hundred, he became dizzy and made frequent mistakes.

The ancients regarded the art of numerology as a side branch and rarely studied it. Generally speaking, it was considered a great achievement if an average person could count to a hundred. After that, he had to use wooden sticks, beads, and other objects to mark their progress. 

Those who could play the abacus very smoothly were considered masters, and those who could set aside counting tools and proficiently use mental arithmetic were able to surpass the world.

When Wei Chen counted to three hundred, he could already be considered extremely capable and didn’t lose face, but he still showed a look of shame. He arched his hand and said, “Your Majesty, this servant is incompetent. Please forgive me.”

Emperor Xuanguang waved his hand, “It’s okay, you divide the rice into several sections, each person count a small handful, and then add up the resulting numbers.”

This is a good idea. Everyone quickly accepted the order, each one grabbed a handful, put them on the plate, and started counting them carefully. The originally silent hall now echoed with noisy counting sounds: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven… Huh? No, count again, one, two, three, four… You can’t use the abacus, and there are no wooden sticks, beads, or any other tools. Everyone was miserable and they really wanted to make Lord Zhao look like a fool.

Emperor Xuanguang had never seen his ministers in such a state of confusion, and was quite amused. He stood up and walked down the hall to check around. He seemed very serious, but in fact he was secretly paying attention to You Shu.  

You Shu was used to being his master’s little tail. As soon as he saw his master coming down, he immediately clung to the other party, but he didn’t dare to make any mistakes, and could only circle around him constantly. Now he finally understood why those kittens and puppies always like to rub against their masters’ legs, because only in this way can they ease the longing of not seeing each other for a day. And it’s not just one day that he hasn’t seen his master?

Thinking about it, it feels as if he hasn’t seen his master for hundreds of years. His big round eyes were wide open, hot and bright. From time to time, he glanced at his master’s side face. When the other party focused his attention on others, You Shu would cautiously lean over, pretending to touch his master’s arm accidentally, rub his thigh, or sneakily tug at the hem of his clothes, and then quickly let go.

Emperor Xuanguang’s spiritual sense is so powerful, so how can he not know what You Shu is doing? He is like a puppy, but his temperament is even ten times more clingy than a puppy, but he does not dare to reveal it. Instead, he goes around in circles to cover it up, pretending to accidentally rub it here, or touch it there. Do you really think that I don’t feel it?

Emperor Xuanguang almost laughed out loud when he saw You Shu secretly stretching out his fingertips to lift the bright yellow silk ribbon on his dragon pendant, his intoxicated look as if he was touching the real skin. He never knew that County Magistrate Xiao Zhao, who is always very charming, upright and selfless, actually had such a… hard-to-describe side.

If Emperor Xuanguang had come from modern times, he would probably replace the words “hard to describe” with “foolish”. With a high IQ and negative emotional intelligence, it’s really difficult for You Shu to pursue someone.

One walked around the hall, while the other followed closely, both of them enjoying themselves. Two-quarters of an hour later, everyone finished counting the rice grains one after another, and then found an abacus to add them up. They came up with 3078 grains, which was two grains more than Lord Zhao’s answer.

Several officials had mocking expressions on their faces, but You Shu pointed at one of them and said, “You counted two extra.”

“Wei Chen, help him count again.” Emperor Xuanguang believed in You Shu, and the others gathered around and counted silently. After half a quarter of an hour, they got the answer. Sure enough, the person counted wrong.

The person immediately knelt down to plead guilty, and everyone showed an indescribable expression of shock. Just grab a handful of rice and throw it into a copper basin to accurately determine the weight and quantity. What kind of terrifying calculation ability is this? There is also eyesight, hearing, and hand feel. That is to say, Lord Zhao’s comprehensive abilities have far exceeded the range that ordinary people can imagine.

Well, when Lord Zhao said he was exceptionally talented, the other party was really not bragging! I’m convinced, I’m totally convinced!

Seeing everyone’s expressions of admiration, You Shu looked straight at his master, the faint dimples on his cheeks revealed the excitement in his heart. Now, the master should be impressed and reuse him, right?

Emperor Xuanguang endured it again to prevent himself from showing any expression other than seriousness and coldness. He walked back to his seat and sat down, praising, “Lord Zhao is indeed a great talent. From today on, I will appoint you as the deputy envoy of the inspection department to cooperate with Ou Tai in investigating the corruption case in the Ministry of Household Affairs.”

You Shu was overjoyed and immediately bowed down to accept the order, as if he had obtained some great fortune. Several other officials were also selected to sort out the accounts with him.

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