A few days later, the carving contest was held as scheduled.

Zhenbei lifted the curtain of the car and looked at the stadium surrounded by people, and her eyes froze.

She clearly saw the yellow figure, sitting upright on the round stone platform, at this time, it was the last round of the competition, and there were only ten contestants left!

Her gaze was fixed on the emaciated but unusually determined back, until the carriage turned a corner, and the arena was no longer visible, Fang retracted her gaze, leaned against the wall of the carriage, and smiled slightly with relief.

"Hey! Zhenbei, do you think Murong Wan will win the game and take the work of the imperial eagle in his hands again? Princess Keya watched her every move intently, and finally couldn't help but ask.

"Miss Murong is indeed very likely to win the championship, after all, this work has poured the energy and hard work of her and her deceased brother! But if you want to take on the position of the eagle, there is little hope! Zhen Bei took the teacup handed over by Nangong Ke, thanked him slightly, and replied casually.

"Why? Doesn't it mean that whoever wins the championship can get ahead? Why didn't it work when I came to Miss Murong? Princess Keya asked with wide eyes, and without waiting for the other party to answer, she suddenly said in a loud voice, "Oh! Princess Ben got it! It must be that the Chen family will be doing ghosts behind their backs, right? ”

Zhen Bei took a sip of tea gently, and in her eager gaze, Fang said slowly: "This matter has little to do with the Chen family!" Can the princess know, why there are countless contestants, and why all the imperial carvings in previous years were produced in the Murong family and the Chen family? ”

"Well—" Princess Keya was stunned, her brows tightened and she thought for a long time, and she clapped her hands and said, "It must be that other people are not qualified and have no talent in this area!" And this Murong and Chen family is a family of carvings that has been passed down from generation to generation, not only in terms of talent, but also in the guidance of their parents! What did Princess Ben say yes or no? ”

Zhen Bei smiled: "You are not bad, but it is too far-fetched to rely on this alone to dominate the imperial eagle in your hand!" You must know that even a century-old family will produce mediocre people, and in the same way, there are some talented and intelligent people, even if they do not have the guidance of a master, they can be inspired by the works of previous masters and achieve a blockbuster! ”

"There's some truth to what you're saying! However, in this case, why did no one take that position from these two hands? Princess Keya seemed to be in a fog when she arrived, and said with a bitter face.

"Family!" Zhen Bei no longer circled with her, and said bluntly, "The position of the imperial carving seems ordinary, but in fact, it is not only a personal carving skill that can be competent!" After all, such a position is responsible for some major royal projects, and it is difficult to do it by one person, and it also requires apprentices and craftsmen and a huge network of craftsmen to be able to exert their hands and feet! In other words, in the matter of judging the carving champion, the judges will consider the family! ”

"Oops! Speaking of which, it doesn't depend on the family, so what's the point of this carving competition! You mainland countries are really, and you always like to engage in these impractical things in Wen Zou Zou, why don't you just choose to decide on the imperial carving? Save those poor children, participate with so much expectation, but return disappointed! Princess Kaya said angrily.

Zhen Bei glanced at Nangong Ke, who was smiling bitterly on the other side, and said with a smile: "The princess doesn't have to be so indignant and excited, this stuffy thing is not a secret, and all the contestants already know it." Since they knew that the job of the eagle could not fall on their heads, they still rushed to participate, so naturally there were other benefits? ”

"Really?" Princess Keya's expression froze, and she said in disbelief, "Why? ”

"First of all, although it is not easy to win the championship due to family involvement, if you are talented and your work is outstanding, and you are favored by a certain referee, and someone will support you from then on, it is not difficult to mix up the number one in the future, which is naturally a great thing; Secondly, anyone who enters the top ten can enter the list of imperial workers, participate in the work of the royal nobles, and earn a considerable income. In addition, all contestants who are not eliminated in the first round will each receive ten taels of silver! Don't underestimate these ten taels of silver, they may not be worth mentioning in the eyes of the princess, but in the eyes of ordinary people, they are a family's chewing food for several years! Zhenbei explained.

After listening to this, Princess Keya thought seriously for a long time and sighed: "The Murong family has been defeated, it seems that the best ending for Miss Murong is to recognize a good master!" ”

"Even if the prestige of the Murong family is still there, it is impossible for Miss Murong to become the candidate for this imperial eagle, she knows this better than anyone else!" Nangong Ke, who had never spoken, suddenly interjected.

"What do you mean by that?"

"In our Nanyang Kingdom, all royal positions need to be held by men!" Nangong Ke lowered his eyes and looked at the tea in his hand, curled his lips and smiled.

For some reason, Zhen Bei actually sniffed out a mild taste from his expression.

Nangong Ke would even show a sneering look? Zhenbei involuntarily looked him up and down intently, as if she had seen him for the first time.

"Look! Even if you look down on our women, you domineering and domineering men, you don't want to think about it, if it weren't for our women's control, how could you ......" Princess Keya muttered in a low voice with no anger on her face.

In the end, she also understands that she is in a foreign country, and she does not dare to question the rights and wrongs of her master.

But apparently the other two people in the carriage still heard clearly.

Nangong Ke was not angry, he put down the teacup, carefully wiped his fingers with a white handkerchief, and said with a pleasant face: "Actually, it is not completely impossible for Miss Murong to be elected as the new imperial eagle!" Rules are meant to be changed, and if the one who sits in the most noble position is a person who values the world's stereotypes as things, these already extremely unfair rules will surely be abolished sooner or later! ”

When he said this, he glanced at Zhen Bei meaningfully.

Zhen Bei seemed to understand the meaning of his words, and an unruly face involuntarily appeared in her mind, her heart beat wildly a few times, her face turned red, but her tone was still stable: "Relative righteousness, don't you think that the governance of the country and the country still needs a person who is as gentle as water and as steady as a mountain?" ”

Nangong Ke shook his head with a smile and said, "It's really hard to assert this for my brother!" However, if the latter is not interested in that position at all, and just wants to be like water like a mountain, silently guarding the side, and just happens to be able to comply with the will of heaven, why not? ”

Zhen Bei was stunned for a moment, it seems that Emperor Nanyang has revealed the arrangements after the age of 100 to Nangong Ke.

"Brother Gu and I are confidants, so we shouldn't be surprised!" Nangong Ke let out a long sigh.

"Nangong Ke is a person as pure as jade, and he is abrupt!" Zhen Bei said guiltily.

Nangong Ke smiled gently, turned to look out of the car, and diverted the topic: "If nothing happens, we will be able to reach the imperial city in three days!" ”

Zhen Bei responded absentmindedly, and sighed secretly: Fang Cai was so aggressive for that person, after all, it hurt the heart of the person in front of him!

Princess Keya on the side heard it in a fog, although her brain was not as bright as these two, she was not stupid, and she knew that some things should not be investigated!

The carriage had already left the city gate, and everywhere it passed was full of green trees, grass and wild flowers, and she simply hung up the curtain of the carriage and enjoyed the beautiful scenery while eating pastries.

Zhen Bei and Nangong Ke sat on both sides of the game as usual.

Suddenly, Princess Keya said happily: "Ah, there is really a village ahead!" ”

They had already learned from others that it was about a day and a half away from the next city, and that this village, which was between the two cities, could be used as a place to stop, so they deliberately chose to set off after lunch.

Zhen Bei and Nangong Ke both put down the chess pieces in their hands and looked out the window, and saw through the bushes on the side of the road, a village of about ten households at the foot of the mountain came into view.

Most of the houses in the village are made of wood, and the wood is made of high fences and walls, and trees such as acacia or willows are planted in front of each house.

At the head of the village, three dolls dressed in colorful green clothes and pigtails were lying on their stomachs in the grass to catch crickets and play.

Hearing the sound of horses' hooves, the three dolls raised their heads together, clapped their hands and smiled: "It's a guest who has come to stay overnight again!" ”

It turns out that because of the special terrain of this village, it has become a fixed foothold for out-of-town travelers, and the people in the village not only go to the mountains to hunt, but also earn some expenses to subsidize their families by providing food and lodging, which has also become a sideline business for the villagers!

"Dolls, where is your father?" Uncle Feng, who was in charge of driving the car, drank the horses and asked a few children.

"Dongzi, Niuniu, the last guest stayed at your house, this time it's our turn!" A boy in a grass-green coarse cloth shirt said confidently.

"This is natural, is it possible that we will still cheat and rob it?" The boy, who was a little taller than him, pursed his lips and said disdainfully.

"Where's Niu Niu?"

"That's it, Brother Niu, don't worry!" The only girl in red said with a smile.

The boy, who was called Da Niu, nodded with satisfaction and walked straight towards the carriage.

"Uncle, are you here to spend the night? Live in my house, there are three comfortable free rooms in the house, my mother will clean and wipe inside and out every day regardless of whether there are guests or not, but it is clean! ”

Uncle Feng saw that the master in the carriage had no special orders, and the child was neatly dressed and looked like a tiger, and he was rolling his two black eyes, looking at himself expectantly, so he nodded with a smile and said, "Youlao, this little brother, is leading the way ahead!" ”

Da Niu took a long breath and said happily: "Hey, uncle, please come with me!" ”

Before he could finish speaking, the man was already running forward like an arrow off the string.

Uncle Feng shook his head with a smile, and drove the carriage slowly after the little figure.

Da Niu's mother is a kind woman, she is dressed in a clean and simple coarse cloth shirt, and her hair is coiled on the top of her head, which looks very neat.

The rooms used as guest accommodations are indeed as Da Niu said, they are cleaned spotlessly, although the furniture in them is simple and rough, but it is better to be tidy, and the bedding is also fluffy and soft, with a good smell of just basking in the sun.

Even Princess Keya, who has always been picky, was unexpectedly satisfied this time.

"Try it once in a while, the lifestyle of ordinary people is also quite good!" She walked around the room a few times, grinning.

There are three rooms, one each occupied by Zhenbei, Nangong Ke and Princess Keya, and Uncle Feng, the coachman, rested in the stove room.