Chapter 136: The Ancient Style of Flexing

Since Shen Ancai and his brother were here, Shen Yuejiao must be around as well.

Sure enough, right behind them, Shen Yuejiao was riding a purebred horse with a pitch-black, glossy coat, looking utterly at ease. Upon seeing Shen Shi, she put on a feigned look of surprise and said, "Shen Shi, why aren't you riding?"

"Don't tell me you're scared? Even a woman like me dares to ride a horse—what are you cowering for?"

"Little brother is still just a child," Shen Yue娥 frowned, unable to understand why Yuejiao disliked him so much.

"A child? Sister, I'm the child here," Shen Yuejiao pouted, gesturing with her chin. "Look at him. We invited him out, and he claimed he had no time, yet he ran all the way here to lead a horse for some old man. He's a total embarrassment to the Shen family."

What? An old man?

Zhao Zhen felt a slight twinge of displeasure. He was only in his thirties—surely he didn't count as an old man yet!

However, seeing that Shen Yuejiao was just a young girl, he held his tongue.

Shen Shi first frowned, then a half-smile played on his lips.

Zhao Zhen was really taking one hit after another today. The worst part was that he had no way to vent his grievances. After all, it was he who insisted on pretending to be a wealthy estate master, wasn't it?

"Haha, Little Sister Yuejiao, who's managed to piss you off again?"

At that moment, a tall, bright red steed came galloping over. The rider was a handsome young gentleman dressed in pristine white robes.

His arrival caused Shen Yuejiao's eyes to turn into the shape of little hearts. Shen Yue娥, on the other hand, looked somewhat uneasy, clearly unimpressed by this young dandy.

"Zixian, look at my good brother here. Instead of keeping us company, he ran off to lead a horse for some old codger," Shen Yuejiao complained in a spoiled, whining tone.

Old codger? There she went again.

"Brother?" Tang Renxian's eyebrows twitched. It was his instinctive, male-animal reaction to a rival competing for a female.

Shen Yue娥 hurried to explain, "Young Master Tang, this is our paternal cousin we mentioned earlier, Shen Shi, the Literary Scholar."

The reason Shen Yue娥 explained was to prevent Tang Renxian from any misunderstandings. After all, Shen Shi had just entered officialdom, and offending a Minister's son was no trivial matter.

"Oh? So this is Cousin Shen!"

Upon learning that Shen Shi was their cousin, Tang Renxian's attitude shifted instantly, though warmth was hardly what he felt. At the same time, he cast a critical look at the old man on horseback.

Huh? Never seen him before.

And naturally so. If he recognized him, he wouldn't be the Minister's son; he would be Lord Tang himself.

"Hey! Old man, what official rank do you hold?"

Not recognizing him meant the man certainly couldn't hold a higher rank than his own father, and Tang Renxian addressed Zhao Zhen with complete disrespect.

Old man! That was the third time. And this time it was "old man" with an even more derogatory suffix.

Zhao Zhen's face turned livid. But since he was the one who had declared beforehand that his identity must remain hidden, no matter how furious he was, he had no choice but to swallow it. "No rank."

As the Emperor, naturally he held no petty official rank—he was the supreme ruler of all.

"Hah, just a commoner in plain white clothes, then."

Tang Renxian, however, thought otherwise. In his eyes, having no rank meant having no official position. And without an official position, one was absolute scum, worth less than dirt.

"You old fogey really know how to pull rank based on your age. Do you have any idea that the one leading your horse is a magistrate appointed by the imperial court!"

To be honest, in Tang Renxian's view, since Shen Shi was leading his horse, this old fellow had to be some sort of official after all.

If Zhao Zhen turned out to be an official, Tang Renxian would gladly cozy up to a superior. That much he could understand.

Lately, countless people were coming to pull strings for promotions. The threshold of his family's estate was practically being trampled flat.

Yet Zhao Zhen claimed to have no rank, meaning he was no official at all. One could easily imagine the utter disdain written all over Tang Renxian's face.

Having dismissed Zhao Zhen, he stopped looking at the rankless nobody and turned to Shen Shi instead. "Cousin Shen, if you're looking to secure an official post, I can certainly help. Why bother wasting your time waiting on some old hanger-on of a minor official's relative or neighbor?"

Furthermore, he insinuated that Shen Shi was only leading the horse because the old man was some lowly relative or elderly parasite connected to an official.

What a mess this had turned into. Just look at Zhao Zhen's complexion... Heh, heh, heh.

"Brother Renxian, is asking you even useful? You aren't an official yourself, you know," Shen Yuejiao chimed in with a sweet, coy voice.

As the saying goes, it takes all sorts to make a world. Tang Renxian loved precisely this—women acting spoiled and coy. Puffing himself up with self-importance, he assumed an air of superiority and said, "As the saying goes, 'Even a doorman at the prime minister's residence holds the rank of a seventh-grade official.' Call me what you will, I am a Minister's son, which makes me at least the equivalent of a third-grade official. Once I step in, is there anything that cannot be accomplished?"

"Well, if Uncle were to step in, do you think my brother could get a promotion?" Shen Yuejiao rolled her eyes, displaying a craftiness that far belied her youth.

She didn't actually like Shen Shi, because the arrival of Shen Shi's branch of the family had stripped her own household of the exclusive title of being the sole official-producing family in the Shen clan.

Yet she was far from short-sighted. No matter how much she disliked Shen Shi for stealing her thunder, she understood that official posts were valuable treasures, and only men could hold them.

Looking further ahead, if they were to become in-laws, having someone in her maiden family in power could only benefit her, never harm her.

Yes, she was just that precocious and scheming.

"Haha!" Tang Renxian burst into laughter. Not only did he fail to see any malice in Shen Yuejiao's scheming, but he found her utterly adorable and devoted to her family. Exercising immense patience, he asked, "What is your cousin's current official post anyway?"

"He's a Literary Scholar."

"There you have it. The lowest-ranking official my father ever meets is a fifth-grade prefect. His post is simply far too insignificant."

"Can't Brother Renxian put in a good word for him?" Shen Yuejiao pressed further.

"Of course I can. But this is something I can handle entirely on my own. Why bother my father? His Excellency is a high official. Wouldn't it be much better to let your cousin Shen serve as a prefect first, and then have my father promote him later?"

"Oh! So that's how it is. Brother Renxian is so wonderful!"

Shen Yuejiao wasn't entirely satisfied with this arrangement. She had heard her father say that the younger an official was, the easier it was to climb the ranks. However, since Tang Renxian had already put it that way, she knew that pressing the matter further would be counterproductive. Thus, she immediately put on an expression of utter joy and profound satisfaction.

"Listening to you talk, you'd think the imperial court belonged to your family!" Zhao Zhen finally failed to hold back.

He could let other things slide, and he had even accepted being called an old man, but these two had started dividing up imperial official posts right in front of his very eyes.

If Zhao Zhen had known the modern internet slang for "showing off and acting superior," perhaps he wouldn't have been quite this furious, but he didn't. So, what were they trying to pull by carving up his official appointments right in front of him? Did they treat him like a dead man?

"Tee-hee, old man, you might not believe it, but Lord Tang enjoys the utmost trust of the Emperor. Do you even know what place this is? This is the Imperial Royal Stables—not just anyone can waltz in here."

Without missing a beat, Shen Yuejiao subtly flattered Tang Renxian before continuing in a shrill, warning tone, "You'd better watch it, or you'll tick off Brother Renxian and he'll have someone throw you out on your ear!"

"You! Both of you! Fine! Fine! Fine!"

Zhao Zhen truly felt he hadn't checked the almanac before stepping out today; he was actually being taunted in his own private stables and threatened with eviction.

Zhao Zhen turned around to look for his guards.

Figures—they were still a thousand feet away! It would take far too long for them to get here. Should he handle this himself, then?

With that thought, he glanced at Shen Shi. Shen Shi merely offered him a faint, serene smile.

At that single smile, Zhao Zhen's rising fury suddenly evaporated.

That was right—he still had important state business to attend to. How could he possibly blow his cover now...

"This is a riding ground. I wonder if you dare to race me a round?"

Zhao Zhen's mind worked quickly, smoothly steering the situation back onto its original track.