Jiang Lun was startled and his pace quickened unconsciously. He walked to the gate of the mansion and looked at the expressionless officials. An inexplicable uneasiness welled up in his heart.
"What do you mean?" Jiang Lun asked in a deep voice, trying to read some clues from the officer's face.
However, the officers seemed not to have heard anything and continued to stand there motionless.
Jiang Lun frowned and was about to speak again when he saw a familiar figure hurried out of the mansion.
"Lun'er, you're back!" Jiang Wensong, the eldest master of the Jiang family, stood at the door. Just as he was about to come out, he was stopped by the police. There was a bit of anxiety and worry in his voice.
"Uncle, what's going on?" Jiang Lun walked quickly to Jiang Wensong and asked in confusion.
Jiang Wensong glanced at the officers at the door and said, "I don't know what happened. They suddenly came and surrounded our mansion tightly, not allowing anyone to enter or leave."
Jiang Lun's heart sank when he heard this. He remembered the chaos that had occurred in the Imperial Examination Hall before, as well as the words shouted by the student who committed suicide. He had a vague sense of foreboding.
"Could it be because of the Spring Examination?" Jiang Lun murmured to himself.
Jiang Wensong's expression suddenly changed when he heard this: "Something happened during the Spring Examination? What about your father?"
"I got separated from Sanlang Xue when I came out of the Imperial Examination Hall. I think my father is still in the Imperial Examination Hall." Jiang Lun answered immediately, but he guessed that something must have happened there.
"Uncle, please tell my mother not to worry too much. I will go to the Imperial Examination Hall to find out what happened and why it involves our Jiang family."
Jiang Wensong nodded in agreement. "Okay, Lun'er, you must be careful. The situation is unclear right now, so don't act rashly."
Jiang Lun smiled slightly, and assured his uncle, "Uncle, I understand. I'm just going to get some information. There won't be any danger."
After saying that, Jiang Lun turned and left, hurriedly blending into the crowd on the street again as night fell.
…
As night falls, the cells deep within the imperial prison in the capital are dark and damp, as if swallowing up all light.
The air in the torture chamber was filled with a strong smell of blood, which mixed with the shrill screams, making people's heart palpitate.
The tribute students were tied up hand and foot, hanging helplessly on wooden racks, their clothes ragged and bloodstained.
Their breath was weak, as if it could go out at any time, and their cracked lips were pale, reflecting the pain and despair on their faces.
The executioner brandished the bloody whip and tortured these tribute students again and again.
Whenever someone revealed some information, the jailer on the side would hurriedly record it, fearing that any word would be missed. This information would eventually be presented to Chen Jin who was listening to the trial in the inner hall.
At this time, Chen Jin was sitting behind the desk in the inner room, flipping through the interrogation statements with a serious expression. His brows were furrowed, as if he was trying to find clues from the messy information.
"Eunuch Chen, you are safe!" Zhou Ziliang, the head of the Ministry of Rites, hurried to the imperial prison, his voice filled with a hint of nervousness and respect.
"The Ministry of Rites has found all the cheating candidates' Spring Examination answer sheets." He reported carefully.
Chen Jin was still concentrating on the interrogation statement in his hand. Without even looking up, he asked, "Do you have the results for Zhang Hua and Yan Boxi?"
"Yes." Zhou Ziliang responded quickly, and took the two test papers from the attendant and placed them gently on the desk in front of Chen Jin. "According to your instructions, the answer papers of these two tribute students have been selected separately."
Chen Jin nodded slightly, indicating that he understood.
Seeing this, Zhou Ziliang took two steps back and waited for further instructions.
The sounds of torture, screams, and recording... these sounds echoed in the imperial prison, forming a tragic picture of purgatory on earth.
This undoubtedly made Zhou Ziliang, who was stepping into this place for the first time, frightened and unable to calm down. He could only stand there silently, waiting for Chen Jin's further instructions.
Chen Jin slowly opened the answer sheet and frowned at first glance.
The name of Zhang Hua from Qianzhou was prominently displayed at the beginning of the volume, and the contents of the three copies in three days were correct. However, the handwriting was very different from the image of a well-read tribute student.
Even those country children who are just learning to write can probably write three times more neatly than Zhang Hua's.
"Has the Ministry of Rites reviewed it?" Chen Jin put down the test paper in his hand, tapped the paper lightly with his fingertips, and asked thoughtfully.
"I've reviewed it," Zhou Ziliang replied. "When we examined it, we also found it quite absurd. This handwriting doesn't seem like it was written by a scholar."
Chen Jin pondered for a moment, his fingertips tapping on the test paper revealing his turbulent thoughts. Soon he turned and shouted outside, "Where is Zhang Hua's body now?"
The jailer outside the door quickly stood at the door and responded: "It has been taken back to the morgue. The coroner is performing an autopsy. It will be ready in an incense stick of time."
Chen Jin nodded, not wanting to rush. He picked up Yan Boxi's answer sheet again and pulled out the one from the third day. He glanced at the beginning of the paper, but what he found was beyond his expectation.
Yan Boxi did not use "On Rewarding Loyalty and Honesty" as the title, but instead used "One must be honest in words and loyal in actions" from "The Analects of Confucius" as the title, and wrote the entire test paper with ease.
The handwriting is like that of a master, revealing an extraordinary temperament; the writing is as logical as the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, and it reads like a stunning masterpiece, which is breathtaking.
Chen Jin finished reading it in one go and couldn't help but sigh with emotion, "What a pity!"
How could such a talented student be willing to resort to opportunistic cheating? Nor would he disdain to belittle his own talent by knowing the test questions in advance.
However, the cheating case in the Spring Examination started when leaked test questions were found in his luggage.
Regardless of whether Yan Boxi is innocent or not, he is already deeply trapped and cannot escape.
I can only say that all this is a trick of fate, and it’s a pity for his talent.
Chen Jin stood up and walked towards the morgue. Seeing this, the jailer hurried forward and said politely, "Eunuch Chen, the morgue is extremely filthy. I'm afraid it will be disturbing to your body."
Hearing this, Chen Jin sneered: "Filthy? Our family crawled out of a pile of dead bodies, how could we be so taboo about such things?"
He had just taken two steps when he suddenly turned back and ordered, "There's no need to torture Yan Boxi. Put him in solitary confinement, send him some water and food, and don't let anyone embarrass him."
The jailer heard this and bowed respectfully, saying, "Yes, I'll do it right away."
In the morgue, the coroner finished the autopsy and was scooping water from a wooden bucket to wash his hands. The assistant beside him recorded the autopsy results in detail for later review.
Chen Jin's arrival broke the brief silence. Everyone saluted him, and the coroner's assistant immediately handed the autopsy record to him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
