Chapter 33 What's wrong with me being alive?

In the twentieth year of Xuanyuan, the imperial examination, which was supposed to be held the following autumn, was moved to November of this year.

The reason for this was that when Xie Yu strongly supported Zhang Diancheng in re-measuring the land of various prefectures and counties, in order to prevent problems before they occurred and avoid the risk of people's suffering caused by land annexation again, he set up agricultural and sericulture bureaus in the counties, and agricultural and sericulture offices in the prefectures and counties to manage the county agricultural and sericulture bureaus.

Whenever there were cases of powerful families or officials encroaching on farmland, the common people would write petitions and report them to the Agriculture and Sericulture Bureau. The officials would promptly seal the petitions and send them to Yongdu by express mail, where Zhang Diancheng would personally review and handle them.

Once verified, he will be immediately dismissed from his post and beheaded.

To prevent officials of the Agricultural and Sericultural Bureau from embezzling funds, seventeen additional imperial censors were appointed to conduct irregular inspections in the local areas.

The agricultural and sericulture departments worked diligently, risking their lives, daring not to slack off in the slightest, and even less daring to harbor any thieving thoughts of encroaching on farmland.

However, the loophole actually lay with the censor in charge of grain transport.

While supervising grain transport in Linxia Prefecture, Cen Jinshan, the imperial censor in charge of grain transport, obtained a famous painting in Linxia Prefecture and presented it to Zhang Diancheng.

Zhang Diancheng was far from being poor; he loved collecting rare and valuable paintings and calligraphy, each piece worth a fortune. Many of his students were also experts in this field. If they were lucky enough to find a rare and precious painting and please Zhang, they would naturally be promoted.

What Cen Jinshan found was the last masterpiece of the late master painter Huangfu Maomao, "Evening Clouds over the Hundred Yue Regions." His descendants, lacking talent and facing financial ruin, had no choice but to sell this prized possession.

Cen Jinshan's salary was not enough to buy this painting.

So he came up with a wicked idea: he colluded with a money exchange in Linxia Prefecture and embezzled nearly half of the prefecture's savings.

The people of the prefecture had vouchers for their savings, but when they needed to withdraw money, they couldn't get it. At first, the money shops made various excuses, but when they realized they couldn't hide it anymore and things got out of hand, Cen Jinshan actually took the seal of the grain supervisor and asked the local government to use force to suppress them.

The people of the prefecture dared not speak out in anger, and waited for a full year before the government, seeing that the situation had calmed down and relaxed its vigilance, finally found an opportunity to appeal to the emperor in Shangyong.

The tragic scenes of the Cangnan people's suffering are still fresh in our minds, yet some people are still so audacious as to commit crimes against the wind.

Emperor Xuanyuan was furious and rebuked Zhang Diancheng, ordering him to suspend morning court for three days to investigate the matter.

Ordering the court to cease proceedings, while not an extremely severe punishment, was enough to cause a highly respected prime minister to lose face.

This means that he is no longer trusted by the emperor.

The punishment was that Cen Jinshan's entire family was executed, and all officials in Linxia were dismissed and investigated.

A few years ago, during a period of great turmoil, the faces of officials in the bureaucracy had changed drastically. The corruption case at the imperial palace and the unrest in Cangnan resulted in the punishment of a large number of officials, some of whom were executed, some were demoted, and some were exiled. The leak of the Yin-Yang Three Volumes of He's Military Strategy led to the execution of another group of officials.

With beheadings occurring one after another, the court needed new people to fill the vacancies, so Emperor Xuanyuan issued an edict to hold an additional imperial examination this year.

The imperial examinations were originally held every three years, but in order to recruit new candidates, they were changed to be held annually.

The chief examiners were Xun Xian, the Left Chancellor, and Jiang Xiantang, the Imperial Censor.

The scientific expedition had just ended when another incident involving "agreed disciples" came to light.

The person involved was Xun Xian.

The term "disciple" simply refers to the students who passed the imperial examinations that year; they were the disciples of the chief examiner of that year.

These students, promoted by the chief examiner, naturally became his henchmen and formed a faction with him.

A "promised student" is someone whom the examiner selects as one of the more outstanding students in that year's cohort and wants to recruit early on. They will then make a private agreement with the student, promising that if the student passes the exam, he or she will become their student.

The bait was the exam question from that year's provincial examination.

Among the people Xun Xian recruited, one was a student from Han Hong Academy named Han Song.

His original ranking should have been second place in the first class, with Sheng Yu'an and Chen Luan being the top three. After the incident, the second-place candidate's results were revoked, he was imprisoned, and permanently banned from participating in the imperial examinations.

The same applies to other candidates who were "prescribed" in the same year.

This time, Emperor Xuanyuan seemed to have lost his temper, unlike when he had scolded Zhang Diancheng. He sat silently on his high place, looking down with disdain, his eyes full of disappointment.

"Minister Xun, have you started cultivating your own faction as well?"

The two prime ministers of Daqing had different ways of surviving. Zhang Diancheng secured his position with his own achievements and the backing of the Crown Prince, while Xun Xian was able to remain prime minister for many years entirely because of his unwavering loyalty to Emperor Xuanyuan.

Despite his lack of notable political achievements, his position in the court remained unshakeable, entirely due to his unwavering loyalty to Emperor Xuanyuan, without forming factions or seeking personal gain.

Emperor Xuanyuan suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow.

His beloved son passed away suddenly; his loyal followers betrayed him and chose to become outlaws and bandits; his elder brother, who had grown up with him, became estranged from him and was determined to resign; and his sons fought each other to the death, plotting how to seize his throne.

He had thought that Xun Xian would always be loyal to him, and only to him, until he died.

I am all alone, that's all.

The popularity of "On Women" was also exposed at the same time.

The person in charge of investigating the "agreement disciples" was Zhao Xingli. He was so dedicated that he also investigated the rampant circulation of banned books.

Pulling up a radish brings up mud, and they unexpectedly discovered a large-scale, unfinished academy that had appeared out of nowhere in Yongdu City, and Sheng Changlong, who was providing financial support behind it.

This matter, which could not be kept secret sooner or later, finally came to the attention of Emperor Xuanyuan.

When Xie Wenjun and Chen Liangyu also knelt beneath Emperor Xuanyuan's dragon throne, he slowly uttered the questions deep within his heart in a calm yet manic tone.

"Is my being alive an obstacle to you?"

Emperor Xuanyuan raised his hand and flipped a book onto the ground in front of Xie Wenjun. The pages were spread out, and it was "On Women," which she had translated into vernacular Chinese based on Yao Jifeng's first draft.

"You spent three years at Taihuang Temple, just to compile this stuff?"

When Chen Liangyu was summoned, she happened to meet Xie Wenjun outside Chongzheng Hall. They entered the hall together and knelt down to beg for forgiveness. Her expression showed a spirit of fearlessness and indifference.

Emperor Xuanyuan's questioning came straight at her. Under the emperor's wrath, Chen Liangyu couldn't help but feel a little worried. She glanced at Xie Wenjun out of the corner of her eye and saw that Xie Wenjun, who had just been in a self-sacrificing and righteous manner, was now in tears and overwhelmed with grief.

She sobbed, her eyes blurry with tears, and looked at Emperor Xuanyuan, softly calling out, "Father."

Tears welled up in her eyes.

Emperor Xuanyuan's expression relaxed.

He felt guilty towards Empress Huixian and her daughter. He had previously thought he was putting the greater good first and neglected them for a long time. After Empress Huixian passed away, Xie Wenjun grew up day by day and her appearance and temperament were very similar to her mother's.

Thinking of this, his voice softened slightly, but he maintained his accusatory tone due to his royal dignity.

"When I ask you a question, just answer it. If you have any grievances, tell me them as well."

"Your subject knows his sins!" Xie Wenjun prostrated himself, pressing his forehead to the ground, then straightened up and said, "In the past, Father Emperor was busy with state affairs, so he did not often have time to visit Mother and me. Every time he came, he was more haggard than the day before. At that time, Mother often could not sleep at night because she could not share Father Emperor's worries. When she could not fall asleep, she could only find some leisure books to pass the night. Mother's greatest regret before she died was that she did not have the opportunity to enter the academy and study with three or five friends.

Emperor Xuanyuan was also moved, knowing in his heart that Xie Wenjun's words were true.

When he was still a prince and she was still the fourth daughter of the Rong family, Empress Huixian longed for lofty mountains and vast seas. At that time, her favorite thing to do was to hold poetry gatherings and compete with He Yunzhou in poetry and lyrics, the two of them going back and forth in fierce battles.

She had also told him that if she could study for the imperial examinations, she would surely be among the successful candidates.

“When I was observing the mourning period, my mother appeared to me in a dream again and told me about her regrets in life. I couldn’t bear to see my mother restless in the afterlife, so I wanted to do something to comfort her spirit.”

Xie Wenjun cried so hard that tears and snot flew everywhere, her rouge and face powder all mixed together.

"Your subject is guilty and is willing to accept any punishment!"

Chen Liangyu couldn't tell how much of what she said was true and how much was false, but seeing the sorrowful look on Emperor Xuanyuan's face as he endlessly reminisced about Empress Huixian, she felt that this hurdle was about to be overcome.

While Xie Wenjun turned her face away to wipe her tears, she raised her hand to cover her face and winked at Chen Liangyu.

Got it, playing the emotional card!

So when Emperor Xuanyuan let Xie Wenjun go and instead questioned her about the academy and the Shengchanglong business, Chen Liangyu immediately followed suit, kowtowed and begged for forgiveness, and then pinned the whole story on Chen Yuanqing.

"Your Majesty, the casualties during the retreat from the northern border were heavy, and nearly 200,000 soldiers were later demobilized. Although we relied on the Emperor's grace, the court provided pensions to the parents, wives and children of the deceased soldiers and distributed them to the demobilized soldiers to settle down. The Ministry of Revenue allocated more than half of this money, and the rest was made up by the grain cultivated by the northern border army and the tax silver collected from the Shuofang trade route. However, the amount was huge, and my father was always worried. Even after filling the gap with the gold and silver that Your Majesty had given to the Marquis's mansion, it was still not enough. In a moment of confusion, I came up with this inferior solution and distributed the shortfall in money and grain to the merchants in the countryside."

Chen Liangyu bowed deeply again, his forehead hitting the ground with a "thud".

"Your Majesty deserves to die!"

Emperor Xuanyuan stepped down from the imperial platform, circled the two women twice, and snorted.

These words, a mixture of truth and falsehood, are truly impeccable.

It is true that Marquis Xuanping used the gold and silver he had given as rewards to make up for the losses of the dismissed soldiers and the pensions of the fallen soldiers. It is also true that the shortfall was distributed to the merchants in the form of "donating official positions". However, it is hard to say whether this military expenditure was related to the rise of Shengchanglong.

If one were to investigate further, Sheng Changlong's accounts would not be difficult to examine, and Emperor Xuanyuan would not bother to fuss over such trivial matters.

"And what is your explanation for the academy?"

Xie Wenjun interrupted, saying, "The academy was something I asked General Chen to do. Since I can't leave the palace often, I ordered her to handle this matter."

There were other people kneeling in the Chongzheng Hall.

Today, besides confronting the two women about "On Women" and the academy, the more pressing matter at court is dealing with the "agreement to become disciples." Therefore, Xun Xian, Zhang Diancheng, and a group of officials responsible for handling the case are all present.

There were also two censors from the Censorate who came to report and impeach.

Emperor Xuanyuan kicked the book "On Women" off the ground with his toe and said irritably, "Such exaggerated and misleading books should be burned. If anyone is allowed to spread them again, they shall be punished with fifty strokes of the cane and imprisoned."

After considering it for a moment, he said, "You can keep the academy if you want! Just play around with it, and consider it fulfilling your mother's last wish."

A rare scene unfolded.

Generally speaking, at this time, civil officials would surely step forward to advise against it, saying things like "building academies is a waste of resources and manpower, and women's education is putting the cart before the horse," making a reasonable matter seem unacceptable.

Surprisingly, no one objected.

In particular, the two imperial censors standing at the rear did not utter a word about Emperor Xuanyuan's preservation of the girls' academy.

"You two, step back!" Emperor Xuanyuan waved his hand to dismiss them.

Chen Liangyu and Xie Wenjun exchanged polite greetings and then left.

The moment Xie Wenjun turned around, her expression returned to normal, as if she were not the one who had just been weeping and showing deep affection for her father.

When Chen Liangyu recognized the faces of the civil officials and the two censors, he understood why they hadn't stood up to object.

At the birthday banquet of the old princess of the Eastern Palace, they were among those who lost a poetry contest. Losing to Grand Tutor Gu's granddaughter was somewhat forgivable, but losing to a courtesan was a huge loss of face.

Chen Liangyu and Princess Jiangning were both present that day.

Fearing that the shame of their defeat would be brought up again in front of the emperor, they tacitly kept their mouths shut.

Moreover, even if the academy, which was used to fulfill Empress Huixian's last wish, were to offer advice, it would be almost impossible to reverse the emperor's will.

After weighing the options, it's best to remain silent.

Chen Liangyu's forehead was red from the hard banging. Xie Wenjun pulled her to an empty corridor next to Chongzheng Hall and took out a small box from his sleeve.

Upon opening, a cool, medicinal aroma wafts out.

Why do you carry liniment for sprains and bruises with you?

"I had planned that if bringing up the Empress Dowager didn't work, I would learn from those people in the Censorate and stage a scene where I would run into a pillar to show them what I was doing."

Xie Wenjun rubbed her fingertips in circles on the ointment until it melted a little, then reached out and touched the red and swollen area on Chen Liangyu's face.

Chen Liangyu did not turn her head to avoid it.

A cool sensation traveled across my forehead, and I felt a tingling itch between my brows.

It was just a red patch, without even breaking the skin. According to her habits, she wouldn't bother to apply medicine herself; it would disappear after a good night's sleep.

Xie Wenjun paid special attention, carefully massaging the ointment until it blended seamlessly with her skin.

Chen Liangyu thought to herself, "As expected of a princess from the Eastern Palace, she can be so serious and meticulous even with something as small as applying medicine."

Suddenly, a barely perceptible sigh was heard. Chen Liangyu asked, "What's wrong?"

Xie Wenjun said, "It's not easy to fool my imperial brother."

Chen Liangyu nodded in agreement.

In front of Xie Yu, favors are not so easy to sell.

Author's note: Thank you for reading this far!