Qin Wan looked at the Fourth Prince again and asked with a hint of doubt, "Even a woman like me knows about things like predicting the test questions. As a prince, and having participated in government affairs for many years, how could you not know about it?"
The Fourth Prince's face turned pale with anger. Unable to convince Qin Wan, he could only say, "As a woman, you are attending court and you are not afraid of being punished by your father!"
Qin Wan couldn't help but laugh. Fortunately, she was behind a screen, and the courtiers were too far away to see her expression. She pressed her handkerchief to the corners of her mouth and said, "Fourth brother, do you think it was the Crown Prince's idea for me to sit here, or mine? Or was it Father's idea?"
The Fourth Prince's body swayed. He was so angry at Qin Wan that he had never thought that this would be what his father meant!
He took a deep breath and brought the topic back to cheating in the imperial examinations. "Examination cheating is a major issue. I don't believe that the emperor will always protect you! Don't get complacent!"
Qin Wan and Xie Qingben hadn't figured out who was behind the imperial examination cheating case yet, but when the Fourth Prince said this, was there any need to ask who was behind it?
Qin Wan looked at Xie Qing and saw him quietly gesture and nod slightly. Then she looked at the Fourth Prince and said, "Don't worry, Fourth Brother. Father will never protect anyone who cheats in the imperial examinations. Similarly, those who cheat in the imperial examinations will never escape the severe punishment of the law."
After saying this, she slowly stood up and took a step forward. Her slender and upright figure was reflected on the screen, showing a certain solemnity and seriousness. "The investigation into the imperial examination cheating case and disaster relief is underway. Please wait and see."
Lord Yu stepped forward at this moment and said, "Your Majesty has already handed the matter of imperial examination cheating over to secret agents for a thorough investigation. Court officials need not worry."
The Fourth Prince seized on Lord Yu's remarks and asked, "Why wasn't the case brought before a joint tribunal of the three courts? Why was it handed over to the spies?"
Lord Yu turned and stared at the Fourth Prince, saying, "The boxes used to hold the examination papers have always been made of golden nanmu wood. For some reason, this year, a hole has been eaten away by insects. I am completely baffled, and Your Majesty is also puzzled. How could this golden nanmu box be eaten away by insects, and how could a large amount of ink be poured into it, staining all the papers?"
"Your Majesty originally thought that this imperial examination cheating was probably caused by an examiner accepting bribes and leaking the exam questions, but now that this has happened, could it be an attempt to prevent anyone from seeing the papers? If the answers are good, why not let anyone see them?"
"Or is it that the exam questions weren't leaked, and the problem lies with the copying or marking? Otherwise, why would they destroy the exam papers? Such acts of destroying evidence clearly show a guilty conscience!"
When Lord Yu spoke the last four words, he pointed to the sky and the earth, and spoke so powerfully that the Fourth Prince looked annoyed and frightened for a moment. He thought he had hidden it well, but he didn't know that all this had not escaped Lord Yu's eyes.
He could not escape the eyes of the emperor and eunuch Zhang standing in the dark.
The emperor looked at the fourth prince, extremely disappointed. He shook his head, snorted coldly, and walked away.
The Fourth Prince did not know that the Emperor had been there, but facing the questioning of Lord Yu, he could no longer hold on to this matter at the court meeting. He quietly retreated and secretly thought about how to deal with this matter.
The matter of cheating in the imperial examination was "lightly" exposed at the grand court meeting.
However, the emperor did not make his ministers and students wait for long, and the case of cheating in the imperial examination was closed.
The case had to be closed, because when we investigated further, we found that all the key figures who had come into contact with the box containing the test papers had died suddenly.
In addition, it was also found out that the test paper was not leaked. It was indeed the person who copied the test paper that leaked it. In the end, the spy was quick and saved the transcriber's life. When he found out the name of the person who copied the test paper, someone took the opportunity to replace the test paper.
Except for the mastermind behind the incident, all the people involved in the case were dragged out and beheaded, which was considered an explanation to students all over the world.
As for the mastermind behind the scenes, the emperor already knew who it was. It didn't matter if there was no evidence. He didn't need evidence to punish the fourth brother.
However, before that, the palace examination must also be held.
The emperor originally planned to invalidate the results of this examination. However, after summoning all the court officials to hold several small meetings in the Qianqing Palace, they decided to hold the palace examination as usual.
However, this time the palace examination will no longer admit all the candidates, but only select ten people with real talents and knowledge from the more than one hundred people.
In other words, this will be the imperial examination with the fewest number of candidates admitted in history.
The rest of the candidates will take part in the special examination held after the provincial examination in the autumn of this year.
For those who have delayed their journey and stayed in the capital, the emperor will arrange for them to live in the imperial farm and provide them with food and accommodation.
Those who are willing to live outside will be subsidized with ten taels of silver for accommodation. In short, the court and the emperor are full of sincerity.
Soon, the palace examination began.
After careful consideration, the emperor decided to recall Sun Quanxue to take part in the palace examination. Only one test would reveal whether he had real talent and knowledge.
The spring examination tested practical agriculture, sericulture and water conservancy, and the palace examination was still practical, testing law, case-solving and human relations.
The law asks about politics, human ethics asks about solving cases and human relationships.
For example, if a son sues his father, how to judge the case should be determined based on the laws of human ethics.
Why are you asking these questions?
Because local officials not only have to manage government affairs but also have to judge cases. Local officials who cannot judge cases will take human lives lightly, causing complaints from the people.
And why ask the son to tell the father?
Because it is difficult for an honest official to judge family affairs.
Are there always major crimes happening in the local area? Most of them are just trivial disputes between neighbors.
On the day of the palace examination, Qin Wan was also among the crowd. The new "Jinshi" who entered the Hall of Supreme Harmony to prepare for the exam were dumbfounded when they saw a woman there.
However, no one dared to say a word, and all knelt down to pay their respects at the command of the ceremonial officer.
The emperor didn't waste any words. After calling them up, he said a few words of encouragement, asked them to sit down, and handed out the test papers.
These newly-minted scholars were also furious.
They were admitted based on their real talents and knowledge, but after the imperial examination cheating case, the court now only accepts ten people, and those who were originally only in the top three will be eliminated.
They looked at the test paper and listened to the emperor's oral test questions. For a moment, they didn't want to answer. They would be eliminated anyway, so why should they answer the questions carefully?
Qin Wan looked at these students, then glanced at the emperor. When she saw him nod, she stood up and walked around the hall.
The students felt a familiar presence brushing past them, and when they saw the hem of her dress, they knew it was the Crown Princess, and they didn't even dare to raise their heads.
Some of the timid ones had shaking hands, but their handwriting was still neat and did not affect their answers at all.
Some seem calm, but their minds are in a state of confusion when they put pen to paper.
Qin Wan took in the expressions, movements, and essays of all the students. After a leisurely walk around, she stood in front and said calmly, "I see some students haven't started writing yet. It seems they are thinking about how to answer the questions. This is good, and they are thinking carefully."
(Does anyone remember the heroine’s title? Princess Changping, so the emperor would call her by her title: Changping.)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
