Chapter 110: Sacrifice one's relatives for the sake of justice, and achieve success in imperial science

Song Mansion.

Li Nuo walked out of the room and stretched comfortably.

Today is September 10th.

Ten days later, his lifespan had increased from 180 days to 210 days.

Not only did it not decrease, but it actually added a month.

Unlike before, he needs to work hard to earn a living for himself.

These days, whenever he finds time to stamp the Ministry of Justice, the numbers on the cover of the code go up rapidly.

A few days ago, by observing the changes in the numbers on the code, Li Nuo determined another unjust case.

The Ministry of Justice then punished a ninth-rank minor official who had taken human lives lightly. Half of the 40 days of life that was added to his life came from that increase.

Li Nuo did not go to court to judge the case, but simply stamped his seal behind closed doors. The officials supervising the Menxia Province could not find any problems.

Not to mention finding fault, they couldn't even enter Li Anning's yamen.

The improvement in life expectancy went smoothly, but the candidates for the imperial archery examination had not been decided yet.

After the imperial examination, most of the talented people with outstanding archery skills ended up serving in the military.

Military officers and civil officials are not in the same system. The name of Dali Temple frightens civil officials below the fourth rank, but it has no control over military generals.

Unlike other subjects, you don’t need to practice after the imperial examination.

Archery is a basic skill for military generals, and once in the army, they must practice regularly.

But even though there were countless people in the army who were proficient in archery, Li Nuo had no way to attack them.

These days, under his wife's hands-on teaching, Li Nuo can also shoot a few arrows in a decent manner, but he is still far from the requirements of the imperial examination.

In the Imperial Examination, Zhou Yu did not disappoint Li Nuo.

These days, he no longer hung out with Song Yu and the others, but instead focused on improving his riding skills.

Every time Li Nuo went to supervise, he could see him sweating profusely on the horse field.

His driving skills also improved by leaps and bounds under this devilish training.

Even Li Nuo, a layman, could see his progress.

Li Nuo was very pleased about this.

The only drawback was that he had no way to qualitatively verify Zhou Yu's training results.

In fact, according to Li Nuo's original idea, even if the dandy boys like Song Yu and Zhou Yu did not commit crimes or do something seriously harmful to the world, it would be very easy to catch them if things got serious.

But Zhou Yu only went out to practice driving and went home to sleep, not giving Li Nuo any chance to show off.

Not only that, Li Nuo also heard from Song Yu that Zhou Yu always ranked first in every law examination in the academy.

Even those top candidates in the imperial examinations could not beat him in the law test.

This guy not only memorized the law book, but also studied many real cases. His understanding of the law is unmatched by ordinary people.

His father is a doctor in the Imperial Guard, so it is easy for him to get some information that others cannot access.

Zhou Yu, who is so self-disciplined and self-controlled, makes Li Nuo depressed.

Does this count as shooting oneself in the foot?

After lunch today, Li Nuo was planning to go to the horse farm again, but he saw Song Yu supporting the limping Zhou Yu and walking slowly towards him.

Li Nuo was stunned for a moment, then walked over quickly and asked with concern: "What happened?"

Zhou Yu forced a wry smile and said, "Brother Li, I'm not feeling well, so I can't go practice driving today."

In fact, whether he practices driving or not is his own business, but he just feels that he should tell Brother Li to avoid him making a wasted trip.

Li Nuo looked at Zhou Yu and asked with a sullen face, "Who did it?"

In the imperial examination, the competition for the top scorer in a single subject is actually more intense than that for the top scorer in all subjects.

A top scorer in all subjects must be proficient in everything, while a top scorer in a single subject only needs to specialize in one subject.

As long as you perform top-notch in this subject, you can be admitted as an exception even if you are weaker in other subjects.

There is only one top scorer in each subject, and there is nothing those people cannot do to clear the obstacles for themselves to win the championship.

There is less than half a year left before the imperial examination. If Zhou Yu gets injured and affects his performance in the imperial examination, wouldn’t he be finished?

So Li Nuo's expression was very ugly.

Song Yu said to Li Nuo helplessly: "Brother-in-law, I really can't do anything about it this time. Zhou Yu's injury was caused by his father."

"Forehead……"

Li Nuo put away his angry expression.

It is natural for a father to blame his son, and the government has no right to interfere.

Not to mention beating him to a limp, even if he was beaten to death, the maximum sentence would be three years in prison.

This is what the Daxia law stipulates.

But he still asked doubtfully: "What did you do to make your father treat you so harshly?"

These days, Zhou Yu is a role model of the second generation of officials. Unlike other playboys, he does not hang out with others. He practices driving very hard every day, so hard that even Li Nuo was moved when he saw him.

He really couldn't figure out any reason why the doctor from the Imperial Guards would beat him.

When Zhou Yu mentioned this, a trace of depression appeared on his face, and he said: "Second Mother and Mother had a quarrel, and I just said a few words on behalf of Mother, and Father used family rules on me. I accepted that he beat me, but Second Mother should not be rude to my Mother..."

It must be said that Li Nuo supports Zhou Yu this time.

As a son, Zhou Yu must stand on his mother's side.

In this matter, the doctor of the Imperial Guard acted inappropriately.

A wife is a wife, a concubine is a concubine, the wife is superior and the concubine is inferior, this is written in the law.

How could a concubine have the courage to quarrel with the wife?

Even if the wife beats her to death, she won’t have to pay with her life.

It must be that the doctor in the Imperial Guards was overly fond of her on a daily basis, which gave her, a concubine, the courage to quarrel with the wife.

Of course, under modern laws, everyone is equal, and beating people to death is not encouraged.

But modern laws do not support having a mistress, and people's traditional moral concepts also support the legal wife rather than the mistress.

Although the doctor of the Jiabu Department was Zhou Yu's father, Li Nuo was still very angry that he had treated Zhou Yu so harshly.

Zhou Yu was not only the son of his imperial doctor, but also Li Nuo's hope for the imperial examination.

If he doesn't vent his anger, he might not be able to concentrate on driving practice.

We also have to give the doctor in the driving department a little deterrence. If he beats his son every few days for no reason, and makes Zhou Yu practice driving one day and recuperate for two days, when will he be recognized by the legal code?

Li Nuo looked at Zhou Yu's depressed and resentful face, coughed lightly, and said, "Your father was indeed wrong in this matter. Do you want to teach him a lesson?"

Zhou Yu was slightly stunned and asked, "How do I give it?"

Li Nuo whispered something in his ear.

The Langzhong of the Jiabu Department was a fifth-rank official, which was just within the jurisdiction of the Dali Temple.

He doesn't have to commit any big mistakes, just small ones like eating, drinking, gambling, whoring, or being late or leaving early, and they can put him in jail for a day or two to let him reflect on his mistakes.

This way, Zhou Yu can vent his anger and practice driving with peace of mind, he can also shock the doctor in the driving department, and he can also improve his cultivation and lifespan. It is really killing two birds with one stone.

After hearing what Li Nuo said, Zhou Yu's eyes flickered slightly.

It would be fine if he was beaten himself, it is natural for a father to beat his son.

But he couldn't swallow the tone of his mother.

If this incident were to just pass like this, that vixen would definitely not take her mother seriously at home in the future.

Zhou Yu thought about it carefully, and said to Li Nuo: "My father likes to leave early, and he always leaves the Ministry of War two minutes before leaving the office. According to Article 103 of the "Employment System Law", officials must be punctual when leaving and entering the office. Those who are late or leave early..."

…

Ministry of War.

"Meet Mr. Zhou."

"Master Zhou is gone."

"See you tomorrow, Master Zhou."

Zhou Ting, a doctor in the Imperial Guards, packed up his desk and walked out of his office. Along the way, officials from the Ministry of War greeted him.

Zhou Ting responded to them indifferently and slowly walked out of the Ministry of War.

Normally he would always have a smile on his face, but today he was in a bad mood and had a stern face all the way.

Everything is going well in the government office. It is said that the Right Doctor of the Ministry of War will be transferred to the army, and the Vice Minister revealed that he has hope of taking over the vacant position.

Although his official position was not promoted, the Ministry of War was the main department and compared with the Langzhong of the Ministry of War, the Langzhong of the Ministry of War undoubtedly had a brighter future.

But things at home are a little hard to describe.

He was already annoyed by the discord between his wife and concubines at home, and his son added to the chaos, so he couldn't help but punish him with family rules.

Thinking about it afterwards, he actually felt very regretful. Zhou Yu had finally turned over a new leaf, and he really shouldn't have hit him.

If he ever turns back to his old self, it will be too late to regret.

He decided that after he returned, he would give the second wife a good scolding and tell her not to always compete with the mistress, as he had indeed been too indulgent towards her before.

When Zhou Ting was about to walk out of the Ministry of War, the bell for closing the office had not yet rung.

He returned two quarters of an hour earlier.

Don't underestimate these two quarters of an hour. If you wait until after the court is dismissed, when most officials are going home, the road will be blocked by carriages and sedan chairs, and you will have to walk at least half an hour longer.

Even if he arrived a quarter of an hour later, he would encounter officials who had the same idea as him and left early.

Although this was considered early resignation, if caught by officials from the Censorate or the Dali Temple, one would have his salary deducted and be put in solitary confinement for reflection.

But that is only legally and morally speaking. In all the major government offices, there are too many officials who are late and leave early, and they simply cannot manage it unless someone is deliberately targeting him.

Zhou Ting walked out of the Ministry of War and was about to get into the sedan chair when he was suddenly stopped by two figures.

One of the men with a square face asked, "Sir Zhou, the court is not over yet, where are you going?"

Zhou Ting looked at the two of them, his heart skipped a beat, his brain working rapidly, and he said, "I am going to the Imperial Household Temple to check the number of horses lost last month. Do you two adults need anything?"

Although he walked out of the Ministry of War before leaving the office, if he didn't say anything, who would know whether he went home or went to another government office?

A gaunt man said, "Sir Zhou, there is no problem with going to the Imperial Household Department, but the Dali Temple received a report that someone anonymously reported that Sir Zhou left the yamen early every day. The Dali Temple verified that this was true. Sir Zhou, please come with us..."

Zhou Ting was shocked. It was obvious that the people from the Dali Temple came prepared, and their target was him.

With so many people being late or leaving early, why not arrest others but him?

Who reported him?

The first people he suspected were the Langzhong of Zhifang and the Langzhong of Kubu. The position of Right Langzhong of the Ministry of War was about to become vacant, and in the entire Ministry of War, they were the only ones who could compete with him.

But those two people wouldn't be so naive as to think that this charge could bring them down, right?

In the past, Zhou Ting was quite afraid of the Dali Temple.

But now, it is heard that Zhou Yu is very close to the son of Lord Li, the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple. With such a relationship, even if he goes to the Dali Temple, it will not be the worst outcome.

The Dali Temple's carriage stopped in front of the Ministry of War.

Zhou Ting got on the carriage, and it slowly drove towards the Dali Temple.

At the entrance of the Ministry of War, two feet that had just stepped out of the threshold of the yamen were retracted.

The two military officials were shocked.

Lord Zhou was arrested by the people from the Dali Temple because he left home two quarters of an hour early?

They were originally planning to leave early, so they immediately returned to the government office, sat back in their seats, and began to pretend to organize the files.

What happened at the gate of the Ministry of War soon spread throughout the entire ministry.

On this day, the Minister of War was not at home, and the two vice ministers left the yamen a quarter of an hour after the bell rang for the end of the day.

The other officials of the Ministry of War waited for another half hour before leaving in fear.

At this time, Zhou Ting, the Langzhong of the Imperial Guards, had already arrived at the Dali Temple.

When he got off the carriage, he saw a figure standing at the gate of Dali Temple and his expression was slightly stunned.

Zhou Yu stood there with his back straight and said calmly, "Dad."

Zhou Ting finally realized something and said in disbelief, "Is it you?"

Although Zhou Yu didn't say anything, silence meant consent.

He didn't intend to hide it.

He just wanted to let his father know that he was no longer the Zhou Yu of the past.

He has the determination and ability to protect his mother.

Along the way, Zhou Ting had thought of all his lifelong enemies, but he never expected that it was his own son who reported him to the Dali Temple.

His face was filled with rage, and he suddenly raised his hand: "You rebellious son!"

Zhou Yu closed his eyes, ready for the slap.

However, he felt no pain on his face.

Zhou Ting's palm did not fall on Zhou Yu's face, but patted his shoulder gently, and couldn't help laughing: "Good, good, very good..."

After saying this, he ignored Zhou Yu and strode towards the Dali Temple.

Instead, Zhou Yu looked at his father laughing as he left. After a moment of silence, an expression of shock and worry appeared on his face.

Could it be that his father was mad at him?

Zhou Ting was not actually angry.

The moment he saw Zhou Yu, he understood everything.

When he was reported to the Dali Temple by his own son, he did not feel angry but happy.

Extremely happy.

What is the Dali Temple? Just this name has frightened countless officials. The Dali Temple can arrest or release officials below the fourth rank in the court at will. How many people can order the people in the Dali Temple to do things?

Two months ago, he would never have thought that Zhou Yu could become friends with the son of the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple.

This kid has finally made it.

He no longer has to worry about the Zhou family having no successor.

Isn’t this something to be happy about?

…

At the Song Mansion, Li Nuo was waiting quietly.

He was not directly involved in the affairs of the Zhou father and son.

After arranging everything for Zhou Yu, he came back and was playing Gobang with Mu'er.

At a certain moment, the numbers on the codex fluctuated slightly.

Three more days were added to his life.

For officials in the court, being late or leaving early was a minor crime, similar to visiting a brothel. At most, they would be fined some salary and locked up for a day to reflect on themselves.

Before arresting him, Li Nuo knew what the sentence would be.

Taiyue Ling Liu Shang was a seventh-rank official, and Jiabu Langzhong was a fifth-rank official. They were charged with similar crimes, but Jiabu Langzhong was charged with more serious crimes, which was reasonable.

But Li Nuo still stood there in a daze, with an extremely surprised expression on his face.

The changes in the code are not just about life span numbers.

There is an extra page of portrait on top of the code.

It was the portrait of the doctor of the Imperial Guard that Li Nuo had seen once.

Zhou Yu's father actually has a special skill recognized by the law...

Li Nuo heard from Zhou Yu that his father had been the top scorer in the imperial examination more than 20 years ago.

But Li Nuo didn't think much about it at the time.

Even if he was very strong in the imperial examinations back then, more than 20 years have passed. How much of his skills are left?

Liu Shangcai had only been studying for three years when he didn’t even recognize the legal code, let alone more than twenty years.

In order to verify whether the doctor's expertise was from the imperial examination, Li Nuo didn't even play chess with Mu'er and hurried out. The moment his hand touched the carriage, a strange feeling immediately emerged in his heart.

A strangely familiar feeling.

Butler Wu was about to ask where the young master was going when Li Nuo suddenly said, "You sit in the car, I'll drive."

A moment later, Butler Wu sat in the carriage, his mind extremely tense, ready to use his true Qi to control the trajectory of the carriage at any time.

There are special roads in Chang'an for horse-drawn carriages. Although they will not hit pedestrians, if they overturn or hit a carriage traveling in the opposite direction, the young master's small body will not be able to withstand it.

However, to his surprise, the young master drove the carriage quickly and steadily, not at all like it was his first time driving.

Although he had practiced several times on the horse track, this improvement was too great.

Li Nuo drove the carriage quickly and steadily on the driveway.

If he had known that the doctor's driving skills had not diminished in twenty years, he would not have made things difficult for Zhou Yu.

Originally, he just wanted to give Zhou Yu some motivation, but he didn't expect to have such a big unexpected gain.

A flat road can't test one's true driving skills, so he plans to verify it on the professional road at the racecourse.

They soon arrived at the Yunmeng Academy's horse farm. There were not many people practicing the Imperial Examination at that moment, so Li Nuo picked a carriage at random and chose an empty track.

The first time, he drove very slowly.

One was to get familiar with the feeling, and the other was to avoid scaring Butler Wu.

Not far away, several figures were sitting on the lawn to rest.

At this time, most of those who are still practicing here are poor kids who feel their driving skills are too poor and want to make up for their shortcomings with hard work.

The children of wealthy families have been studying the Imperial Examination since childhood. Most of them have already mastered the Five Imperial Examinations well. The last six months will be used for their relatively weak subjects.

But these people are all the best in the imperial examination.

They didn't need to be so diligent. With their abilities, they could compete even for the top spot in the imperial examination.

But they didn't know what was wrong with Zhou Yu. He had been practicing the Imperial Examination like crazy recently, which also made them feel a sense of crisis.

Zhou Yu's Imperial Examination score was originally ranked among the top three in the academy.

The top three are working so hard, it’s obvious that they are aiming for the top spot in the imperial examination.

This made many students at Yunmeng Academy feel uneasy.

Especially those who are already outstanding in the Imperial Examination.

Originally, no one worked very hard. They just ate and played, and in the imperial examination, everyone relied on their own abilities.

Now, when they were eating, drinking and having fun, they had no mind to have fun at all when they thought of Zhou Yu working hard to improve himself on the racecourse.

It was a rare occasion that Zhou Yu did not come today, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. During their breaks, they would occasionally take a look at the abilities of other people who were practicing the Imperial Examination here.

After Li Nuo finished the first lap, someone couldn't help laughing: "Why take the imperial examination if you haven't studied it? You might as well find a way out as soon as possible..."

When Li Nuo drove the carriage and finished the second lap, everyone still had smiles on their faces. The man just now said again: "This guy does have some background in the imperial examination..."

After Li Nuo finished the third lap, the smiles on their faces began to fade.

In the fourth round, everyone's expressions became serious.

On the fifth lap, they stood up from the grass.

…

At the end of the tenth lap, everyone's eyes lost their spirit and they stared ahead with dull expressions.

They watched with their own eyes as the man stumbled in the first lap, but each lap thereafter became more and more skilled than the one before. By the tenth lap, Yu Ke had reached the pinnacle of his skills.

Zhou Yu's imperial examination is currently recognized as the strongest in the academy.

But Zhou Yu's strength in front of this person is like the difference between a son and a father.

Zhou Yu is not even as good as him, so they are even worse off.

When did such a powerful guy as the Imperial Examination appear in Chang'an?

If he were to take part in the next imperial examination, who could compete with him for the top spot?

A young man glanced in the direction of the track, patted the dirt off his butt, and waved his hand in a disinterested manner: "No more practice, let's go..."

Seeing no hope of surpassing that person, everyone lost interest in practicing driving and left one after another.

"Why practice driving? It's boring."

"Let's go to Baihua Tower. Today is my treat."

"Since you are treating me, I will invite three..."

"Let's go together, let's go together..."

…

On the Yuke track, Li Nuo jumped off the carriage and breathed a sigh of relief.

Old ginger is still wise. The doctor in the driving department is still strong and has superb driving skills, which is more than enough for him to cope with the imperial examination.

No wonder Zhou Yu’s imperial examinations were so good, it turned out to be a tradition.

Not to mention the first four items, he even shot the target of "Zhuqinzuo" very accurately.

But only in the car.

Once he got off the car, his archery skills returned to normal.

But once he got in the car, he became a different person.

Li Nuo looked around.

There were a few spectators not far away just now, but at some point, all of them were gone.

Butler Wu sat in an unused carriage, staring at him with wide eyes, and asked in shock: "Master, when did your driving skills become so good?"

Li Nuo said: "I read a few books and learned from them."

Butler Wu moved his lips but did not ask any more questions.

Although it sounds a bit outrageous that one can learn such great driving skills by reading a few books.

But how can the master's son be compared to ordinary people?

After returning to the Song Mansion, Li Nuo could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After Leke, there is no need to worry about Yuke.

I just feel a little sorry for Zhou Yu.

I pushed him so hard these days, but in the end it was all in vain.

Dad is dad.

If Li Nuo wanted to compete for the top spot in the imperial examination, even Zhou Yu would not be able to beat him.

By then, if Zhou Yu could really win the first place in the imperial examination besides him, Li Nuo could also give him some slack.

His goal was to pass the imperial examination and he did not have such a strong desire to be the top scorer in a single subject.

But Zhou Yu is different.

He was a gifted student, and if he didn't get first place in the imperial examination, he would most likely have failed.

He rewards sincerity for sincerity. If others treat him as a friend, he cannot treat them as a sucker.

This is also a favor he owes to the Zhou family.

If you perform well in all six subjects, a slight slack in one subject will not affect the final result.

Two days later in the morning, Li Nuo saw Zhou Yu again in the Song Mansion.

Compared to two days ago, Zhou Yu is now in high spirits and looks radiant.

The doctor from the Jiabu Department was released yesterday.

This time he turned against Tian Gang and killed his own relatives for the sake of justice. Not only did he not punish Zhou Yu, he also punished the concubine by making her kneel in front of Zhou Yu's mother's door for two hours to admit her mistake, which was also a disguised admission of his own mistakes.

In the past, when Zhou Yu ate at the Zhou residence, he always sat in the third row.

But starting from yesterday, he replaced his stepmother and sat next to his father at the Zhou family's dinner table.

This represents an improvement in his family status.

Zhou Yu said to Li Nuo gratefully: "Brother Li, thank you so much this time!"

Li Nuo waved his hand and said, "We are all friends, you are welcome."

Song Yu expressed envy of Zhou Yu's improved family status.

His father often beat him, no matter whether he did something right or wrong, and never apologized after beating him.

Dali Temple seemed to be a good place to change people. After careful consideration, he said to Li Nuo: "Brother-in-law, do you want to send my father to Dali Temple to stay for two days? I think he also needs to reflect on himself..."

Before he could finish his words, he was hit on the head by the sole of a shoe.

Song Lian came from behind and raised the boot in his hand angrily.

"Dali Temple, right?"

"Reflect on yourself, huh?"

"You are such a rebellious son! You are rebelling against heaven!"

(End of this chapter)