331 Little Ah Yu’s Pursuit
w.a.n.g Wulang, knew what an imperial order was because the teacher had once specially spent the entire lesson teaching them about the Great Chang Nation’s conferment system.
Female relatives of officials of the fifth rank and above, as long as they did not make a huge mistake, could request for an imperial order.
Female relatives usually refer to legitimate wives, mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and even maternal grandmothers.
It was very easy for a fifth-rank official’s female relatives to be conferred the t.i.tle. As long as they wrote a memorandum, the state would basically agree.
These were usually mediated by the Emperor’s close ministers or someone in the court.
However, ordinary officials who entered the bureaucracy through the imperial examination would still find it difficult to advance to a fifth-rank official even if they worked hard for their entire lives.
Unless they made a great contribution or became a top scholar.
w.a.n.g Wulang felt that he could not do it.
Although the w.a.n.g brothers were often praised by the teachers of Qingmu Academy, w.a.n.g Wulang did not like to study. He preferred to practice martial arts with Mr. Ding.
“Little Sister Ah Yu, let’s change the gift. Grandma might not like that imperial order.” w.a.n.g Wulang negotiated with Ah Yu.
Little Ah Yu ran to Old Madam w.a.n.g and raised her head to ask, “Grandma, Grandma, don’t you like imperial orders anymore?”
Old Madam w.a.n.g glanced at w.a.n.g Wulang, who was following behind. With a single look, what else did she not understand?
She sneered. “I like it, but if someone doesn’t want me to like it. Forget it. Anyway, I’m an old woman. No one dotes on me or loves me. What’s the point of asking what I like or don’t like?”
Little Ah Yu was anxious. “No, Grandma, I dote on you. I love you! I’ll earn a n.o.ble t.i.tle for you in the future then. I’ll earn a lot. I’ll also be the top scorer, okay? Grandma?”
Hearing this, the people around her smiled kindly.
The village chief’s wife, who had come to help, said to her, “Ah Yu, it’s good that you have this thought, but in our Great Chang Nation, girls can’t take the imperial examination.”
“Why not?” Little Ah Yu did not understand.
No one could explain why. In any case, since ancient times, women were not allowed to take the imperial examination. It had long become a rule that had been established for thousands of years.
It wasn’t as if there hadn’t been such a thing before. In the neighboring West Wind Nation, there had been many incidents of women who had taken the imperial examinations since the founding of the country.
However, there were no proper academies for women. Usually, it was only the n.o.ble women who were nurtured by their families to partic.i.p.ate in the imperial examination.
In the end, they usually served the Imperial Family and only a few of them really managed to gain a foothold in the bureaucracy.
Old Madam w.a.n.g said, “Because we don’t have a women’s college here. Without a college, there won’t be teachers. Without teachers, there won’t be students, so no women will partic.i.p.ate in the imperial examination.”
Little Ah Yu understood it in her own way. “Is it because everyone is too busy at home and doesn’t have time to learn?”
It was still alright in the w.a.n.g family. Men did more work than women. Sometimes, after they finished their work in the fields, women were usually only responsible for washing clothes and cooking at home. Even the ch.o.r.es of drying clothes, sweeping the floor, chopping firewood, and starting fires were given to men.
However, this was not the case in other families. Men usually only did physical work. When they were free after the farming season, they would neither go out to look for work nor help at home. Even if the women at home were exhausted and sick, they would not help.
Therefore, the girls in the village usually had to start doing ch.o.r.es from the age of three. The easy ch.o.r.es at home were handed over to them.
The boys only started working after they were 12 years old. When they were not farming, they were all running around like crazy monkeys.
Little Ah Yu saw everything.
She’d remembered it in her heart.
“Then when I grow up, I’ll open a women’s academy and let the sisters study!” Little Ah Yu said. “I also want to study and take the imperial examinations for Grandma, Mother, Eldest Aunt, Second Aunt, Third Aunt, and Grandma. I’ll give them an imperial order each!”
Her childish words made everyone laugh.
Even Madam Feng, Madam Ma, and Madam Zhang laughed until they cried. Little Ah Yu was a blessed child. She might really be able to take the imperial examination.
They could somewhat believe it if she said that she would obtain the imperial order for her Grandma and Mother.
However, it was naturally impossible to obtain one for all the people around her.
However, they did not know that later on, Little Ah Yu really fulfilled her promise, causing the w.a.n.g family to have the most n.o.ble women in the history of the Great Chang Nation, directly breaking the historical record.