C15 Honor first!

In this way, only one hundred and twenty-five people passed the test. It was really unexpected.

At this time, Chu Linglang said, "Go to the silk needle and thread. In a while, you can choose eight songs from the musical team. You have the time to form a team and practice. Play together, remember to play smoothly. As for chess, you will naturally be the winner and enter the next round. As for painting, you can naturally create it yourself! When she performs, you must embroider your name on the silk and hand it over in the end. Do you understand?"

Yulan and Chunhe muttered in a low voice, "Our empress dowager is so amazing. She has such a good idea and even cares about us. Even the rules are written by her."

"I understand."

The young ladies hurriedly looked for companions in the same group. The silk needle and thread were collected by their mother.

Second Mrs. Du was glad that she was wise to find the daughter of her cousin's family. She was proficient in all kinds of arts, but she was also unhappy. Why did the daughter of the countryside woman write? She obviously had not learned to write. When she went back and dealt with them, she would naturally not be able to choose them.

"Mother, I wrote chess, but no one is in my group." The daughter of Second Mrs. Du walked over and said leisurely.

"Look at you. Don't you know who will be playing chess? This stupid head is really annoying. Just like that, entering the palace is also a worry."

"Madam, don't be anxious. Yutong also wrote chess. Let her be in her group." First Madam said with a smile.

Second Mrs. Du wanted to scold her, but thinking that she had come today to make things easier for her disappointing daughter, she thought that it would be better for her daughter to be in the bottom, so why would her daughter know how to play chess? My cousin was a famous businessman, so my daughter naturally spent a lot of money to hire a master. With my aunt's help, she was naturally stronger than her daughter.

"Alright, let you, Yutong, play with her." The First Madam thought that this was the first time she had called Yutong by her name, so she quickly waved at Yutong to signal her to come over.

"What's wrong, Mother?"

"You play with her."

Yutong did not respond.

Second Mrs. Du wanted to teach her a lesson.

The First Madam said, "Yutong, this sister hasn't found someone in the same group as her. Moreover, they are all from the same residence, so you should play with her."

"Mother, are we really from the same residence? Then why are they treating us like this?" Yutong said gloomily.

"That sister has already found someone in the same group as me. She also said that we are fated to be together. My name is Yutong, and her name is Yulan." As she spoke, she pointed in Yulan's direction. Yulan also smiled at her.

"Then go and tell that sister that we have other people in the group, okay?" The First Madam said patiently.

"Alright! Mother, I'll listen to you." Yutong said obediently. After saying that, she ran towards Yulan.

Second Mrs. Du smiled with satisfaction. She thought that she had spent a lot of effort yesterday to stop the other madams from entering the palace, but she had forgotten about her. Today, she was the perfect foil.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the first performance was the first group of the zither. The song was called "Spring Silkworm." The performers were Shang Yating, Yi Yaitian, Shen Mengyou, and so on.

Chu Linglang closed her eyes. Chunhe and Yulan asked, "Is the empress dowager asleep?" Yulan shook her head, indicating that she did not know.

After the performance, there were five mistakes in this song. The first was "Spring Silkworm," the second was "Bright Moon," the third was "like a girl playing the zither." The fourth was "like a girl playing the zither," the fifth was "like a girl playing the zither".

Everyone stared at the woman in front of them in shock. Her words seemed to have a deeper meaning, as if she was a national zither master, and she was very accurate.

"Why? Didn't you hear me? Then I'll say it again. Are you not satisfied with the zither I prepared?"

"No, no, the empress dowager's zither is very satisfied." Chu Linglang deliberately did not prepare a famous zither, but used an ordinary one to test them.

"Then why did you change my zither to a white jade zither? Are you cheating?"

Yi Yaitian thought that she had spent a lot of time persuading them just now. If the empress dowager asked them, how would she answer? She had to remain calm.

"Who changed the zither?" Chu Linglang asked angrily.

Everyone pointed at Yi Yaitian, their eyes staring at her as if they wanted to cut her into pieces. It was her who had dragged everyone down.

Yi Yating said in shock, "Your Majesty, I am not satisfied with your zither. As the saying goes, good horses need good saddles. The same goes for the zither. No matter how good your zither skills are, you still need a good zither to complement it. Only then can the tune be beautiful and smooth, and your thoughts be connected."

"Very good. You have entered the next round, and all of you have been eliminated." Chu Linglang said softly.

"Why? Your Majesty, this is not fair."

"Very good. If this is not fair in my eyes, then I can say it out loud. I will answer you, why did she stay? Because in the face of benefits, you betrayed your teammates. You knew that changing the zither was a bad idea, but you did not stop her in advance. Now, you are running over to pretend to be innocent. Look at your teammates. At least they are smart enough to face problems and not cower."

The Emperor heard everything clearly from the outside. He admired the way this empress handled things, and a quarter of an hour ago, the Emperor had a headache and listened to the eunuch's reminder. He even whispered that he should not be noisy. Later on, he realized that his behavior was inappropriate, so he ordered someone to move a chair and listen to the music.

The eliminated young ladies could not leave, and they all sat down with their heads down. Their mothers were also unhappy, but in front of the empress, they could only force a smile.

The next tune was the "Art of Chess", by Cheng Manyao, Sheng Duyao, Shangguan Ruofu... Ten groups of chess, Du Ruyan and Du Yutong, Shang Xuebai and Bai Lin, Feng Qiao and Gong Yuehan...

Chu Linglang looked at it carefully, then pointed to Chunhe and said, "That's the daughter of who? Why is it that only her face is normal, and she looks so watery?"

"Reporting to the empress dowager, that is the second thousand gold of Prime Minister Shangguan's Mansion, and she is called the number one daughter of Xiliang. She is beautiful, intelligent, kind-hearted."

"Oh? Then how is she matched with the Emperor?"

"Empress Dowager, it is said that she has someone she likes, and they are childhood friends. This time, she should be following the empress dowager's order. Oh, that's her mother, Lady Bingqing." Chunhe pointed to the table in front of her.

"What a beauty! No wonder my daughter is so watery. This Lady Bingqing has a good temperament."

"That's right! Empress Dowager, Lady Bingqing is from a noble family. She and Prime Minister Shangguan are a man and a woman. They are a match made in heaven!"

"Hmm, this zither tune is also not bad." Chu Linglang closed her eyes in intoxication.

After playing the zither, Chu Linglang felt relaxed and at ease. She enjoyed the tranquility brought by the music, as if a hundred spirits were circling the palace. Chu Linglang slowly opened her eyes, and just happened to finish the last set of chess.

Chess group: Du Yutong, Shang Xuxue, Feng Qiao … Victory.

Second Mrs. Du looked at Mrs. Du fiercely, and wanted to swallow her alive. Mrs. Du lowered her head, thinking, how could it be? Yu Tong's chess skills were shallow, and she only occasionally played chess. Even the chessboard was carved out of discarded wood. At this moment, she was both happy and scared.

The Second Mrs. Du could not take it anymore and questioned loudly, "Miss, please check carefully if you have made a mistake. Both of them have the surname Du."

Yulan replied politely, "Second Mrs. Du, this servant has really checked. Please rest assured, every chess master has watched from the beginning."

The Second Mrs. Du lost control in her anger, "That little slut clearly didn't invite a chess master to learn from her. How could she have played my family's Ruo Fan? There must be a trick."

Chu Linglang could not listen anymore, "Second Mrs. Du, you mean that I have cheated?"

Second Mrs. Du quickly explained, "This servant is not talking about the empress dowager, but someone here is cheating."

"Second Mrs. Du, are you suspecting my maid? Or the chess master? Are you suspecting my eyes as a person who uses people?"

Second Mrs. Du saw that the situation was getting worse, so she said, "It must be the mother and daughter who are cheating. She has been at odds with me in the residence all this time, and now she treats me like this. How bitter is my daughter's life?" As she spoke, she started to cry.

Du Yutong knelt down when she heard that, "Your Highness, she lied. She is clearly targeting my mother in the residence. My mother is clearly First Madam, but she locked my mother in the firewood room and fed her steamed buns. That year, my mother was born, and I only wanted to get a roasted chicken from the kitchen for my mother. In the end, she used a spatula to burn me."

"You are slandering me. If it's really as you say, why are you still so fat? I usually have a bad temper, but I never deducted anything from you. In the name of the heavens and earth, it was my sister who was unwilling to be the matriarch, so I took over. The food and drinks that I gave you are definitely the highest in the Du Mansion." Second Mrs. Du said with tears in her eyes.

Chu Linglang hurriedly asked Mrs. Du, "Is what she said true? Don't be afraid. With so many madams here, if you have any grievances, just tell me. I will definitely help you."

"Yulan, help Yutong to sit down."

The other madams were whispering to each other, but they were also staring at the young empress dowager in front of them. They wanted to see how she would handle this. In Xiliang Country and other countries, their husbands had always been their faith. And this young girl actually wanted to meddle in other people's business. It was better to see it for herself.

"Empress Dowager, I don't have any grievances. Our sister treats us very well, but Yutong's aptitude is not as good as Ruo Fan's. We will automatically withdraw from the competition." Mrs. Du said calmly.

Yutong roared and shouted, "Mother, you are lying. Why are you lying? You have been teaching me to be honest since I was young. Even the empress dowager said that she would help us, but you are lying."

Mrs. Du looked at Yutong with a profound expression, as if she was talking to a silly child. If she said it, our lives would be even more miserable. If it was not good now, you would still be alive.

"You little girl, Second Madam has really doted on you. When we go back, we will dote on you even more." Second Mrs. Du saw that she didn't dare to say it, so she started to threaten her even more.

Chu Linglang could not bear to watch anymore, "Mrs. Du, lying to me is a sin. It will even implicate your General Du. I promise you that I will set up a female house to monitor the behavior of the men in the family. If the officials are serious, they will be directly disqualified from all official positions."