Chapter 402 Assassin!
He was still quite willing.
Xie Yao nodded again, obviously agreeing with his words, "Your Majesty is right, but... I see that they are both in love, but they are still hesitating, which is a bit unbearable."
Xie Yao smiled at Xiao Ji and said, "Perhaps it's because I have such a good husband like Your Majesty that I feel that all lovers in the world should be together."
Xuan Yue is not an impulsive and willful person, and he will not change his inner thoughts because of her actions.
She just pushed.
You will be happy sooner or later, so why can't you be happy earlier?
Xuan Yue had a very difficult life in the past, and he would have to do a lot for her in the future. Now, he was being scolded to death by people from all walks of life in the court, the people in the country, and even the common people and scholars.
Even the Xuan family and Master Xuan were implicated.
In this case, what's wrong with giving Xuan Yue a little sweetness?
Xiao Ji naturally listened to Xie Yao in everything. He had no objection to this matter in the first place, and now after listening to Xie Yao's clear and logical explanation, he had even less objection.
Instead, he praised her, "Yaoyao is wise and virtuous. Yaoyao really deserves to be the most virtuous queen in the world."
When Xie Yao heard this, she couldn't help but glare at Xiao Ji again. Can he speak?
The Chinese New Year holiday was over, but the festive atmosphere was still there, and Xie Yao, Xiao Ji, and the court officials all started to get busy.
Some preparatory work for the election of female officials was done before the New Year, and the grassroots selection has also been completed.
In fact, the selection at the grassroots level is somewhat redundant.
After all, there are not many families who can afford to send their daughters to school, and even fewer families who are willing to teach their daughters to study more.
The female officials selected this time were either daughters of civil officials or daughters of wealthy businessmen. Some were teachers, great scholars, and the like.
There aren't many people.
After the New Year, these people arrived in the capital one after another to take part in the final examination. The already bustling capital became even more lively because of this.
This was the first time in the world that a female official was elected. It had been discussed since the beginning of the year. The only time the popularity dropped slightly was before the New Year, when news came out that the Zhenbei Army had won another victory.
Xie Yao and Xiao Ji were listening to Xuan Yue and Xuan Shu's report on the matter.
Xie Yao naturally entrusted the selection of female officials to these two people. Needless to say, Xuan Yue and Xuan Shu were very capable and they handled the matter in a proper and steady manner.
"My Lady, the students on the list have arrived in the capital one after another, and have checked into the inn as you instructed."
Since they are all women, Xie Yao naturally has to consider more, such as preparing an inn for these people. Of course, they still have to pay for the room themselves.
However, these candidates all come from wealthy families, so they naturally have no shortage of this money.
If someone really has no money, Xie Yao also told Xuan Yue that he could borrow it first.
After all, these candidates are people with real talents and knowledge.
Because it was the Queen Mother's personal order, even though some of the candidates were spoiled and felt that the inn was too small, they did not dare to make a fuss and were all very well behaved.
Xie Yao was very satisfied.
She instructed: "Have someone guard these inns and don't let any accidents happen!" There were many people who wanted to make trouble in the selection of female officials this time, and she must not let these people get the chance.
The selection of female officials this time, just like the selection of Xuan Yue and Xuan Shu, is a milestone.
As long as it succeeds this time, the next time will be a natural progression.
If something goes wrong this time, whatever you want to do next time... will only be more difficult.
Xie Yao is not interested in challenging the limits; she wants everything to be settled smoothly and smoothly.
"yes."
Xuan Yue and Xuan Shu responded at the same time, "Please rest assured, Queen."
Xuan Shu added, "Your Majesty, Lord Xuan has moved to the inn these days!"
When Xuan Shu spoke, she was naturally not talking about herself, but Xuan Yue.
Xie Yao really didn't expect Xuan Yue to be able to do this, and she was immediately relieved. Xuan Yue's status was still very different from that of a group of examinees.
When those candidates go out now, the most common addresses they receive are "daughter of so-and-so" or "sister of so-and-so".
But Xuan Yue is Lord Xuan, an official appointed by the imperial court.
With Xuan Yue around, the people below will definitely pay more attention to those inns.
Xie Yao looked at Xuan Yue with admiration in her eyes, "Thank you for your hard work, Master Xuan. You have done a great job."
"But there are many people in the inn, so Lord Xuan should be careful."
However, Xuan Yue was not an examiner this time, nor was he responsible for setting the questions, so he was able to stay in the inn. Otherwise, he would have to keep a sufficient distance or even be isolated.
Xuan Yue originally just wanted to do things quietly and didn't want to "show off" in front of the Queen. Now that Xuan Shu had exposed her, she felt a little embarrassed.
But she soon returned to normal, "I will follow your Majesty's orders."
The spring examinations in previous years were scheduled for February, and this year's examination for female officials will also be held in February. As for the venue, the same examination hall for the spring examinations in previous years was used.
Xuan Shu is responsible for inspection and maintenance.
After reporting Xuan Yue's matter, it was Xuan Shu's turn to talk about the examination room. She had thought about it on the way here, and now said: "Your Majesty, the examination room conditions are difficult, and it is cold in February. In the past, every year, there were candidates who fell seriously ill after the exam."
But if the examination room could not be opened before the time came, even if he died of illness inside, that was his fate.
Those who can pass the examination and become a Juren rarely do so by studying hard in seclusion. They must travel around and understand current affairs before they can cope with the imperial examination.
Those people couldn't hold on, let alone the little girl who usually never left the house?
It would be fine if it was a sunny day, but if it unfortunately rained, Xuanshu was worried that something serious would happen.
Xie Yao had also thought about this, but she had already done a lot for this. If she continued to give female officials convenience in assessment, it would probably make people even more dissatisfied.
Fortunately, during the special examination last year, Xie Yao and Xiao Ji had paid attention to the examination requirements.
We have made some improvements under the previous conditions, and it would not be surprising to make some improvements now.
Xie Yao discussed this matter with Xuan Shu for a while, and then sighed: "A good body is very important."
Even if you have a lot of knowledge, what good will it be if you can't pass the exam?
All she can do is to try to improve the conditions, but it has always been the Spring Examination, she can't change it, right?
Every season has its own problems.
Xuan Yue said: "Your Majesty has already done a lot, and these still need to be done step by step."
You can't become fat in one bite.
Being able to take this step now is a great encouragement for them.
Xie Yao nodded, "Go and arrange it."
Xuan Yue and Xuan Shu then withdrew.
In the blink of an eye, it was February and the time for the female official examination had arrived. On the day of the examination, Xie Yao went to the examination room in person.
In fact, not many people took part in the female official assessment this time.
Xie Yao had already looked at the list in advance. There weren't many people coming to see them off for the exam today, but there were many people coming to watch the fun.
Amidst the hustle and bustle, the clear singing and chorus instantly quieted the originally noisy environment.
"The Queen has arrived—"
Everyone knelt down immediately, not daring to look up. They could only vaguely see the bright yellow phoenix chariot coming towards them.
The road was cleared, and Xie Yao arrived at the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall without any obstruction.
At this moment, everything is ready, including the female general who has verified her identity, the candidates who have taken the test, and their families who have sent them to the test... They are just waiting for the time to come to officially enter the Imperial Examination Hall.
But at this moment everyone was a little excited.
No one expected that the Queen Mother would come in person, and no one had heard any news about it beforehand.
"No need to be polite."
Everyone felt that the Queen's voice was majestic yet friendly, "I am not the protagonist today."
"Today is the day for the female official examination. I believe that all the candidates have made sufficient preparations over the past few days. Now is the time to verify it."
"I hope that all candidates can calm down, exert their full strength, and hand in satisfactory answers."
"After the exam, I and His Majesty will review your papers one by one. I hope you will live up to yourselves."
There was no profound truth in Xie Yao's words, they were just pure encouragement, but the candidates present were so excited that they wanted to write ten masterpieces immediately!
"Thank you, Queen." Everyone thanked her in unison, with an unstoppable momentum in their voices.
Momentum is very important, and Xie Yao's presence today and her words today are tantamount to boosting the momentum of today's candidates.
Today, not only the candidates taking part in the exam came, but also many scholars in Beijing came, naturally to watch the fun.
Especially those who participated in the protest a few days ago, naturally came today to see what the female official examination that the Queen insisted on holding was like.
They were jealous when the Queen herself came.
After all, His Majesty has never attended the imperial examinations in person in the past.
The Queen's words of encouragement made them even more jealous.
The Queen also said that the Emperor and Empress would personally review the answer sheets of today's examinees, and these people were almost jealous to death.
How could the imperial examinations in the past be treated like this? With thousands or tens of thousands of examination papers, how could the emperor and empress have the time to review them all?
In other words, only the test papers selected by the chief examiner can appear before Your Majesty.
The Queen is so kind to these people.
Boom!
At this moment, the sound of bells rang out, telling everyone that the time had come and they could enter the Imperial Examination Hall.
Xie Yao raised her lips and said, "Go ahead."
She did not leave in a hurry, but waited for the candidates to enter the examination hall one by one.
In the past, examinations required public body searches, and all belongings were checked to see if anyone was carrying anything to cheat.
Since they were all women, it was impossible to search them in public, so several tents were set up at the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall.
The tents were filled with female generals who had served under the eldest princess in the past. As for which tent to enter for a body search, it was a random check on the spot, and every time ten people were searched, the female generals in the tent would be replaced.
Eliminate all possibility of cheating.
Xie Yao sat on the phoenix chariot, waiting until the last candidate entered the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall and the gate was closed.
Only then did he order his men to return to the palace.
"Let's go!" As soon as the eunuch spoke, the students and common people around him knelt down again, "Let's respectfully see off the Queen."
The phoenix chariot traveled for a while, and a figure appeared on it. He sat next to Xie Yao through layers of gauze curtains.
Xie Yao bent down and held the chin of the person in front of her with her hand, as if she was looking at his appearance.
Finally, he said with satisfaction: "Not bad, you will stay by my side and serve me from now on."
Xiao Ji let Xie Yao do what she wanted, and said with a smile, "Thank you, Madam, for your kindness."
Xiao Ji wanted to come along today, but he didn't want to steal Xie Yao's limelight, so he disguised himself as a guard and hid among the accompanying guards.
Firstly, he was reluctant to be separated from Xie Yao for such a long time, and secondly, he was worried that someone would take this opportunity to harm Xie Yao.
Xie Yao said: "Your Majesty, I told you, there will be no danger."
She certainly wouldn't act rashly. Her trip today was sudden and the news hadn't leaked, so naturally no one expected her to show up and make any preparations in advance.
Besides, she also made arrangements around her, so there were definitely enough people to protect her.
Xiao Ji said: "Drive carefully--"
Before he could finish his words, he suddenly pounced on Xie Yao, hugged her and rolled around on the soft carpet in the sedan.
call out--
There was a sound of breaking through the air, and a feather arrow was shot to the place where Xie Yao had just sat. The arrow head sank into the chair, and the tail feathers were still trembling.
The crowd outside the sedan chair was already in a commotion.
"assassin!"
"Protect the emperor!"
Everyone started to move, in order amidst the chaos. Some people guarded the sedan chair, while others chased in the direction from which the arrow came.
But there was only one arrow, and no other movement.
Si Nan led the team personally and quickly caught the person.
After a narrow escape, the sedan continued to move towards the palace. Xiao Ji stepped forward, pulled out the feather arrow on the chair, threw it out, and someone picked it up immediately.
"Investigate, investigate thoroughly." Xiao Ji said in a very cold voice, "I want to see who dares to assassinate me under my nose!"
The target of the assassination was the queen.
But Xiao Ji took the matter over directly.
He couldn't allow people to criticize him, saying that his queen acted inappropriately and that was why she was hunted down. If they wanted to criticize him, they could criticize him. He didn't care!
Although everyone didn't know why the emperor suddenly appeared in the empress's sedan chair, they all agreed and immediately made arrangements.
Back in the Yangxin Palace, Si Nan had already interrogated the man and was now reporting.
"Your Majesty, Madam, this man must be the assassin from Northern Frontier. He said all this was for Northern Frontier."
Xiao Ji sneered, "It seems that those people not only murdered the two Xuan Lords and assassinated the Queen, but also colluded with Northern Frontier."
For the northern border?
If he is really from Northern Frontier, he should be the one to be assassinated.
He was sure that the ones who took action were... people from Xia!
Xiao Ji raised his hand and frowned, and asked, "Has the assassination of the two Xuan Lords not been investigated yet?"
Si Nan said, "There has been no progress yet." He was not responsible for this matter. If there was any news, Lord Zhao and Lord Wu would have come to report it long ago.
Xiao Ji said: "Let's investigate today's incident together."
"Also," Xiao Ji reminded, "check the post station to see if there has been any unusual contact recently."
When Xiao Ning left the capital, coupled with the incident with Hu Yanyuan... the Northern Frontier assassins in the capital had already suffered a fatal blow, and there should be only a few left.
He didn't think that the officials of Xia State who had a grudge against Xie Yao could command these people.
These people must have had connections with Northern Xinjiang or people from Northern Xinjiang, which is why they were able to contact these undercover assassins.
Even if there is no evidence, he must investigate it thoroughly!
Today's assassination happened in broad daylight, and Xie Yao stayed outside the palace long enough, so many people came to see her.
Seeing the assassination, many people were talking about it in the capital. However, the assassin was caught on the spot, which made people very happy.
Xiao Ji was furious, and many people came in and out of the Yangxin Palace, making the entire palace seem more majestic and solemn.
The servants below dared not even breathe, for fear of angering the Emperor and Empress and incurring their wrath.
After all the instructions were given, only Xie Yao and Xiao Ji were left in the Yangxin Palace. Xie Yao then looked at Xiao Ji and said softly, "Your Majesty is wise. I was not thoughtful enough today..."
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