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墨書 Inktalez
Because the conditions offered by Qin Yaru were very generous, even promising free access to all the books in Nangyun Study, the monetary aspect was secondary. In a situation where this library was the most valuable heirloom of a prominent family, being able to copy books was indeed an extraordinary offer.
Many family libraries do not allow anyone other than direct descendants to enter.
Even though the number of books in Nangyun Study was considerable and, while not extremely precious, still rare, there were quite a few applicants.
Especially since it was just the first day; as soon as the notice was posted, more than a dozen people showed up. Although there were no candidates with notable titles such as Jinshi or Xiucai, Qin Yaru was still quite satisfied.
At least everyone who came had the title of Xiucai. With so many people, surely they could find at least one qualified "teacher."
However, with so many applicants, it was natural to set some questions for testing.
For the young and ambitious Scholars, participating in the test was not difficult, but having a woman quietly asking them to take a test felt somewhat humiliating.
Moreover, usually only teachers assess students; it is rare for students' parents to evaluate teachers.
Furthermore, while Qin Yaru appeared modest on the surface, her tone was quite bold: "These questions encompass various knowledge from the Gentleman's Six Arts and some common life knowledge. Finally, there will be a set of Psychological Test questions. Because they are somewhat trivial and time-consuming, those who do not pass will still receive a travel allowance from me. I will not let anyone leave empty-handed. By the end of the month, those who pass the Psychological Test and answer more than fifty percent of the questions correctly will have their best performer accepted as my son’s teacher."
Although Qin Yaru was exceptionally beautiful and listening to her felt like a pleasure, she implied that among those present, even achieving over fifty percent correct answers would not be easy.
After all, everyone present were scholars; how could they tolerate such disdain?
"You, a young Wife, want to test Zhao?"
A middle-aged man with nearly gray hair waved his sleeve and left. More people turned away without even glancing back, while others couldn't help but mock Qin Yaru, ridiculing her as an ignorant woman who did not understand etiquette.
Some of these individuals likely just wanted to join in for fun or temporarily find a job to support their families; they did not genuinely wish to teach a mere four-year-old child. Others followed suit, believing that Qin Yaru should not be allowed to humiliate them.
As they left, Qin Yaru did not mind. Since she was choosing an enlightening teacher for her son, it had to be someone suitable. If no one fit that description, she would rather endure some hardship herself than let her son be poorly taught.
After all, there were still many young Xiucai who either needed jobs out of necessity or were curious about what kind of questions a young woman like Qin Yaru could come up with to test them; they stayed behind.
However, when these individuals began answering questions, most looked bewildered while a few showed genuine interest.
In fact, the questions posed by Qin Yaru were not particularly difficult. Aside from basic knowledge from the Four Books and Five Classics relevant to this era, they also included fundamental concepts from geography, mathematics, natural sciences, and biology that would emerge later. Most of this content was already familiar to people of this time and did not contain overly obscure topics.
Of course, there were some very simple natural science questions that no one had paid attention to yet in this era. The simplicity of these questions made it hard for anyone to realize they were being challenged; it served as a warning to those proud scholars who considered themselves exceptionally knowledgeable.
As for the Psychological Test, it is a simple and widely used test that they often employed in the military, confirmed to be very effective by many experts. The background was slightly modified to make it more suitable for this era.
The people present may not have seen this before and found the questions bizarre and nonsensical, yet they were quite useful.
A group of scholars was left frustrated and defeated by this 'tricky' and 'peculiar' set of questions, yet they felt embarrassed to admit their ignorance—"A rides a fast horse, traveling twenty miles every hour, while B takes a carriage, traveling fifteen miles every hour. On a certain day and time, A travels from Yangzhou to Hangzhou and then back, while B travels from Hangzhou to Yangzhou. How many times do they meet, and when?" Such questions had nothing to do with them; there was no need to know!
Scholars are still concerned about their reputation. Given that some could answer these questions, it was indeed embarrassing for others not to know.
After being stirred up by a set of test questions, the group of scholars inevitably complained to their classmates and teachers upon returning. Unexpectedly, aside from many scoffing at them dismissively, it piqued the curiosity of several agile-minded classmates who were younger and had a strong spirit of exploration.
Even a few retired Confucian Scholars learned about this special set of questions from Qin Yaru's family and even had their students copy them out for review.
Although these Confucian Scholars were still mindful of their reputation and would not visit in person, the materials produced by Qin Young Lady became quite popular within the esteemed circle of Confucian Scholars in the country.
Most individuals referred to as Confucian Scholars have achieved a high level of knowledge and cultivation, with rich experiences and advanced age. At their level, most possess an open-minded disposition and would not harbor prejudice against Qin Yaru simply because she is a young woman. They openly discussed her work without hesitation or embarrassment, often engaging in heated debates where two elderly men combined could easily be nearly two hundred years old, arguing passionately.
Qin Yaru was completely unaware of this; she only knew that on the second and third days, more and more people came to participate in the assessment. By the fifth day, there were even eighty-nine participants taking the exam.
When the results were announced after ten rounds, a sixteen-year-old boy emerged as the top candidate.
As he stood before her, Qin Yaru couldn't help but facepalm. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with the boy; in fact, although he looked young and seemed somewhat inexperienced in speech, his demeanor exuded nobility. His eyes sparkled with curiosity, and he showed great fondness for Da Lang. The two quickly bonded, indicating that Da Lang had a very good impression of him.
Qin Yaru checked his records; he had started participating in exams from the third round onward and had attended every subsequent exam, improving his scores each time. Initially, he only answered ten percent of the questions correctly; later on, his accuracy increased round by round until he reached seventy-five percent correct answers by the tenth round.
At this point, considering the current extreme backwardness and low prevalence of natural sciences among the populace, such a person would be an all-around excellent teacher even in the Twenty-First Century.
After all, teachers must specialize in different subjects; a language teacher might struggle with math problems even if they aren't completely incompetent compared to students. Few can master math, language arts, geography, and natural sciences all at once.
It is worth noting that Qin Yaru had prepared ten different sets of questions; although they were not entirely unrelated, it would be impossible to go back for answers and return to take the test again.
As for the Psychological Test, he scored ninety-eight points. This clearly indicated that his temperament was beyond reproach—indeed better than most contemporaries.
Although he was young, he possessed genuine talent: quick-wittedness, an exploratory spirit, a willingness to learn, charm with children, and an impressive score on the Psychological Test made him an ideal candidate for teaching.
However, looking at his attire—though simple in style—it was made from exquisite silk brocade. His belt was gold-plated, and his accessories were made of jade. In terms of status, he was at least noble or possibly even royal.
Moreover, his surname was Zhao; he introduced himself as Zhao Zichang. Although there were many people with the surname Zhao below him, seeing someone dressed lavishly with luxurious accessories in Kaifeng would naturally raise suspicions about his extraordinary identity.
Although there are quite a few fallen royal relatives in the Song Dynasty now, even some wealthy merchants might spend money to marry ten or eight county princesses to flaunt their status. However, they would never be fallen royal relatives.
As for Pang Yuanying, the adornments on him were merely gold, not jade.
Qin Yaru was conflicted—was it a bit excessive to have a young master from an obviously noble family as her son's teacher?
But just as she was struggling with this thought, the proud young man was already sitting upright in a chair, and her son Da Lang didn’t even discuss it with his mother before he ceremoniously raised his teacup, bowed, and called him Master.
The young man cleared his throat lightly, his eyes filled with curious excitement. He pretended to be serious as he stroked his smooth chin, mimicking a gesture of stroking a beard and smiling. After rummaging through his belongings for a while, he finally pulled out two glass beads and handed them to Da Lang as a greeting gift.
Qin Yaru was left speechless and could only accept it. Just a few days ago, she had thought that without the luck of a time-traveling girl, she could casually find a Confucian Scholar as a teacher. Little did she expect that before long, she would wish she could chew those words up and swallow them back—what was a Confucian Scholar compared to directly encountering an absolute "high, rich, and handsome" individual? This truly embodied the essence of a female protagonist.
With everything settled, the teacher officially began his role. Zhao Gongzi taught quite well. After being troubled for several days, Qin Yaru told Gao Feng about it. Gao Feng laughed at her worries and didn’t take it seriously at all.
Qin Yaru decided to let it go; after all, this person had come to her door himself. She hadn’t seen any parents of lost children come looking for them, so she figured it was just her luck—there was no point in overthinking it.
Moreover, Gao Feng had already discussed his own matters with their older brother Qin Wenyuan. The siblings' first meeting after five years clearly mattered more to Consort Qin than finding a "teacher" for her son.
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