Upon seeing this, the officials from the Ministry of Rites panicked, but still refused to admit that someone had cheated or impersonated another candidate in the examination hall, and instead began to make excuses.
"Nonsense! Stop talking nonsense! Today's events must have been orchestrated by someone with ulterior motives. Our Ministry of Rites has been wronged. You unruly people, stop spouting nonsense."
"Guards! Arrest these troublemakers and throw them in jail!"
Upon hearing this, no one dared to make the slightest move. Whether it was the Imperial Guards or the people from the Ministry of Rites, they all stood frozen in place, not daring to budge.
Gao Yang just laughed loudly, the bloodstains all over his body standing out conspicuously in the sunlight, their vivid color reflecting his current state.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he laughed loudly. But as he laughed, he let out a grief-stricken cry, staggering as he shouted:
"After years of hard study, everyone says that learning is good."
Full of confidence, he entered the examination hall, only to fail time and again, leaving him with nothing but resentment.
Year after year, time slips away, time slips away again.
I thought no one had the insight, but little did I know they simply lacked the silver.
Young talents turn into the elderly, and thick black hair turns gray.
He was filled with resentment at his unfulfilled ambitions, and died with nothing to show for it.
It was all for naught, nothing at all.
Gao Yang laughed loudly while reciting poetry, but finally collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.
Upon seeing this, Chen Changli quickly went forward to help him up.
The other students, their eyes bloodshot, shouted, "I thought no one had the insight, but it turns out they just had no money!"
They thought that after so many years of hard study, they would finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, but in the end they found that without status or money, they were nothing in the eyes of the people in the Ministry of Rites.
Their formulaic essays were all worthless; without money, they were nothing.
Looking into those resentful eyes and listening to their shouts in unison, Xue Xingzhao felt his legs go weak.
Especially when he saw Yuan Hui arrive with the Ministry of Justice, he instantly collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at the gazes directed at him, completely losing his vitality.
He's finished, and the Xue family is finished too.
*
Several days have passed, and the discussion about the cheating in the imperial examinations in the capital remains intense.
The Beijing Times also published many students' opinions on the imperial examinations, which led to a significant increase in the newspaper's sales recently.
Furthermore, Jiang Yimian protected Gao Yang inside the examination hall, which allowed him to leave alive. In fact, the fact that the cheating incident was successfully exposed was also largely due to her.
For a time, among the discussions about scientific expeditions, besides Gao Yang, Jiang Yimian was the most frequently mentioned.
This result led to an increase in the number of people buying in front of Baoxiangfang every day, and even the sales of the newly launched incense balls in the shop increased significantly.
Looking down at the crowds below, Liu'er was amazed. "I was worried that the invigorating and calming pills you made might not sell if the imperial examination was canceled. I never expected that they would still attract so many students to buy them."
Jiang Yimian simply smiled; these invigorating and calming syrups were originally prepared for the students.
However, nowadays, those people buy incense pills not to review their books, but to hurl insults at the officials in front of the Ministry of Rites.
The cheating scandal involving proxy exams has caused a huge uproar these past few days, and it's known to almost everyone.
The emperor was furious and ordered a thorough investigation to restore fairness to all students.
To appease the students, the Ministry of Justice posted daily progress reports in front of the ministry's gate, gradually figuring out how much bribe the Ministry of Rites had received over the years and how many people had successfully paid money to obtain official positions.
Looking at the list of names and amounts of money, the crowd was both angry and terrified.
The sheer volume and the enormous amount of bribes were beyond the comprehension of ordinary people like them.
In recent days, the Ministry of Rites has undergone a major reshuffle. All the officials involved in the cheating scandal have been imprisoned. Those who bought their official positions and the scholars who took the exams for others are all being treated the same, awaiting execution in the autumn.
In no time, the Ministry of Justice's cells were filled with these people.
Thinking about what happened in front of the Ministry of Rites, Liu'er couldn't help but shudder. "Miss, you don't know this, but a few days ago, someone threw excrement in front of the Ministry of Rites, and many officials involved in the cheating in the imperial examinations were drenched from head to toe."
That scene was incredibly satisfying, but the smell was just too strong.
Jiang Yimian just smiled, not expecting that the way those scholars vented their anger was so down-to-earth.
Just then, a loud shout rang out from outside, "They're here! They're here!"
Jiang Yimian then looked outside Baoxianglou and saw that the people who had been gathered at the entrance to buy newspapers were now craning their necks to look at the street. She asked curiously, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Liu'er just smiled and explained, "It was the people from Yan Yue Pavilion who were taken away. Look, Miss, Ashu and Xiaochun squeezed out to go see them."
If there hadn't been so many people at the entrance, she would have definitely squeezed through to see it.
Jiang Yimian looked at the few girls squeezed in the crowd and sighed helplessly. When her gaze fell on the prison van moving outside, she saw a woman with disheveled hair sitting inside.
Qiu Niang lowered her head for a moment when she saw those resentful eyes, but she was extremely resentful in her heart. She had only helped Lord Xue collect silver, and she hadn't embezzled a single penny. What did it have to do with her? Why were they arresting her?
And those students, when they learned that Yan Yuege was involved, people would come to block her door for several days in a row, scaring her so much that she dared not go out and could only hide in the basement of the shop. She never expected that the people from the Ministry of Justice would still come looking for her.
This matter has nothing to do with her; she just wants Baoxiangfang to close down.
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