When the old Protector heard this, he looked at Zhou Gu and looked at him carefully, trying to see something on his face. However, he found that his grandson, after a trip to Jiangning County, seemed to have grown up.
Let him not see his inner thoughts.
He raised his eyebrows and said deliberately: "It's not that little girl who doesn't like you, right?"
"How is that possible?" Zhou Gu retorted.
"Oh? Why is it impossible?" the old Protector asked.
Zhou Gu opened his mouth to say, "She wanted me to hug her that day." But looking at the old Protector's old face, he would not say it. He only said, "It's impossible for her to look down on me anyway.
"
The old Protector laughed and scolded, "What kind of precious golden pimple do you think you are? You still have to be liked by others. In my opinion, if a girl says she's not in a hurry, she just doesn't like you that much. If she does, she probably hates to marry you."
.”
Zhou Gu frowned, "She is different from other women."
"Why is it different?" asked the old Protector.
"She is not an ordinary boudoir girl." It was naturally impossible for Zhou Gu to tell the old protector how unconventional Su Rong was and how different her thoughts were from ordinary girls. At least the daughters' families in Beijing would never know about her.
When fighting for women with Xie Lin, she would ask him how many people he had beaten by himself, and was more concerned about his fights. She would also tell him that if something like this happened again in the future, she would help him.
Therefore, with her temperament, it makes sense that she is not in a hurry to marry him and does not want to be bound by a high-class compound early. After all, at the beginning, he said that his grandmother and mother had good rules, so she backed down.
Although I got along with him as usual, I didn't necessarily want to be restrained by the high wall of the Protectorate's mansion.
The old Protector sat up straight and said to him: "Tell me carefully and let me listen too. Why is she different from ordinary women in the boudoir?"
The old Protector didn't think about how deviant Su Rong was and how outrageous his actions were. What he thought about was that Su Rong had inherited Princess Zhenmin. Princess Zhenmin was a weak and silent person back then.
Yes, but he is a person who does great things.
"There's nothing to say. It's just that her thoughts are different from those people's. She's not the kind of person who hates marrying." Zhou Gu said cryptically.
The old Protector listened to the story with only a vague understanding. Seeing that Zhou Gu was not willing to elaborate, he stopped pressing him and said, "It doesn't matter if you don't want to get married. She is indeed still young. She has just gotten hairpins. It doesn't matter if she waits for two years. Then you
What’s your idea?”
Zhou Gudao: "I'm not in a hurry."
The old protector of the country nodded. He didn't hear Zhou Gu say that he would not marry. He understood in his heart that Zhou Gu no longer resisted the marriage. He was very happy, stroking his beard and said: "You are about to end in Jinqiu. Since
In this way, this year we will focus on your scientific examinations. As for your marriage, you can let your mother and the Su family discuss it first and then discuss it next year."
Zhou Gu pinched his fingers and finally asked: "Grandpa, what if I don't want to end up this year?"
He was still struggling at first, but since Su Rong said there was no rush, he had nothing to struggle with. Since he didn't have to deal with the marriage, he didn't have to rush to the end, and he didn't have to stay in the capital, so he could travel. Anyway, she
Say there's no rush.
The old Protector frowned, "You don't want to end this year? Then what do you want to do?"
"I want to travel and take the scientific examination in three years." Zhou Gu still expressed his thoughts.
The old Protector unexpectedly did not reject it outright, but frowned and asked: "Why do you have such an idea?"
Seeing that there was something going on, Zhou Gu immediately sat upright and said to the old protector of the country: "Grandfather, it is better to travel thousands of miles than to read thousands of books. I still want to go out for a walk, observe the people's sentiments, and understand the people's sentiments before taking the imperial examination and becoming an official in the court.
Only by understanding the various aspects of people's livelihood can we know what the people need, so that we can better make decisions for the people in the future."
The old Protector did not speak.
Zhou Gu looked at him, "Didn't you teach me since I was a child that the Protector's Palace is for protecting the family and the country on the battlefield? But when it comes to me, I have three older brothers who all grew up in the army.
My family has many people to support me, so I won’t need to go to the battlefield in the future. It’s because my father and uncles all joined the army and died on the battlefield. You discovered that sometimes, protecting your family and your country doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be on the battlefield.
On the battlefield, we fight with real swords and guns, showing off our bravery, but when a powerful enemy from the Wei Dynasty comes to invade the country, the opponent has strong soldiers and horses, and the national power is strong. If there is a war, we can only shed blood on the battlefield, but cannot save the country. Just like sixteen years ago,
Didn't Daliang save the country by Princess Zhenmin alone? Princess Zhenmin was just a weak woman. Although she sacrificed herself and ruined her life, she single-handedly made the Wei Dynasty sign a thirty-year non-infringement agreement.
Peace treaty. Generally speaking, the national strength of Daliang was still not good at that time. If a country wants to be strong, how can it be changed by a mere warrior? It must be an auxiliary minister who can be good at literature and martial arts to assist the emperor, rejuvenate the people, benefit the people's livelihood, and make the country rich.
, only then can we have a strong army. One day in the future, even if the Wei Dynasty invades, they will not be able to do anything to me."
Zhou Gu remembered these words clearly, and it was precisely because he remembered that he did not resist to the end. He listened to his grandfather and no longer thought about joining the army, but devoted himself to studying literature with the prince and Qin Taifu.
Of course, he has not neglected the art of war and martial arts in these years. After all, the prince also has to practice martial arts every day.
The old Protector naturally remembered this sentence. He said it to Xiao Zhou Gu with a straight face more than ten years ago. At that time, he also received a letter from Princess Zhenmin, saying that she probably didn't have much time left to live. The only
The one thing she couldn't let go of was her daughter. She would entrust her daughter to Xie Yuan and Su Xu to take care of her in the future. They would protect her and grow up safely. But after all, her life experience was special. After much thought, she was afraid that Xie Yuan and Su Xu would
Xu will be unable to protect her one day, so he still has to find someone to rely on. If her life experience is not discovered in the future, her daughter will at most be said to be a lowly prefect and not worthy of the Protector's Palace.
Young Master, but old Duke, you should know that her life experience cannot humiliate the Young Master of the Protector's Mansion. This is enough. She hopes that her life experience will not be discovered and she can live a peaceful life, but if she
If her life experience is discovered, then using the lintel of the Protector's Palace can always protect her and make it less difficult for her.
The old protector naturally agreed without saying a word.
At that time, there were two grandsons who were about the same age as Su Rong. One was the third son, Zhou Che, who was three years older than Su Rong. The other was the youngest fourth son, Zhou Gu, who was one year older than Su Rong. However, Zhou Che was a concubine and had a weak body when he was a child.
It was not good. After thinking about it, he still chose Zhou Gu.
Because he felt that if he chose Zhou Che, he would have wronged Su Rong by being a concubine, regardless of whether he was in good health or not. The child of Princess Zhenmin and the King of Nanchu would naturally be a better match for Zhou Gu, who was their direct descendant.
Seeing that the old Protector had not spoken for a long time, Zhou Gu asked aloud, "Grandpa?"
The old Protector came back to his senses and nodded, feeling very pleased, "It's rare that you still remember what I said to you when you were a child. That's true."
Zhou Gu didn't want to hear praise, he just wanted to know whether he agreed or not.
The old Protector thought for a moment and asked: "Have you already had an idea about this matter? Or did you just have an idea?"
"I've had it for a long time. I was afraid you wouldn't agree, so I never said it." Zhou Gu said directly.
The old Protector's beard curled up, and he snorted, "Is there anything I wouldn't do for your own good? You idiot, how can you walk as far as I can with the salt you eat? Let me tell you, your grandfather and I will only do this for the rest of my life.
Don’t miss it.”
Zhou Gu nodded politely, "Yes, yes, do you agree or not?"
The old protector felt that it was rare for his grandson to be calm and willing to discuss with him, which showed that he had grown up. He asked: "Since you have had this idea for a long time, have you told the prince and Taifu Qin? Taifu Qin is interested in your golden autumn scientific examination, but
Give high hopes.”
After all, Grand Tutor Qin only has two students, one is the prince and the other is him, so the prince naturally does not have to end up.
"I told the prince, but I didn't tell Taifu Qin, for fear that he would disagree." Zhou Gu said.
The old protector of the country nodded, thought for a moment, and said: "Prince Qin will definitely not agree to your not participating in the golden autumn scientific examination. After all, it is said that this year's candidates are very talented people, and they are all working hard to win the first prize. Prince
You can't be dismissed, you are the hard work of Qin Taifu, he has long wanted to see how you can rank when crossing the single-plank bridge with those talented students from all over the world."
Zhou Gu's face dropped.
The old Protector looked at him and changed his voice, "I also want to see how well you have learned under Qin Taifu these years. In this way, you will still take part in the Golden Autumn Scientific Examination. After the scientific examination, I will report to His Majesty
, saying that you are still young and lack experience, I will ask you to go out and practice for two years. After you come back from the experience, you can enter the court again. I believe that Your Majesty will sell me a favor. After your scientific examination,
I will leave you a temporary position, and then you can report on your duties after you return to Beijing with experience."
He really didn't expect that this time the old Protector was so easy to talk to, that he actually agreed to his travels, and even thought of a countermeasure for him.
The old Protector snorted, looked at his bright eyes, and reminded him rudely, "Have you ever mentioned it to that little girl? You'd better get her consent. Otherwise, you'll be out for a trip.
Every time you go to a place, you won’t stay too long, and it’s difficult to send letters. Don’t wait for you to come back in two years. People will no longer remember you and won’t want to marry you.”
