After Liu Laosan took Shen Congrong out, Chu Heng and his companions, led by the eunuch, lowered their heads and took small steps into the imperial study.
Kneeling down obediently.
The emperor's eyes fell on Su Yongzhang and Xiong Feng, and his smile widened. "Before, I always thought that a place like Lizhou couldn't produce many talented people. You guys have changed my opinion of Lizhou a lot. Not bad!"
Su Yongzhang and Xiong Feng hurriedly thanked him.
The emperor then turned his attention to Chu Heng and others, focusing on examining their knowledge.
This question took up most of the day.
It was almost dark by the time this group of people came out of the imperial study.
Yang Yu, who had brought them here, had already left. The palace servants sent them out of the palace but did not say how to accommodate them. For a moment, everyone became worried.
At this moment, an inconspicuous guard at the side reminded: "I heard that the Grand Tutor has invited you to rest at his mansion. If you don't have a place to stay, you might as well go and ask. The Grand Tutor is kind and will definitely receive you."
Chu Heng and the others all changed their expressions, not knowing whether to agree or not.
Just when they were in trouble, the carriage from the Yong'an Marquis's Mansion arrived.
The guard could no longer maintain the smile on his face.
Shen Congrong got off the carriage and waved to everyone, "Cousin, Brother Xiongfeng, sir! Come home with me!"
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, thanked the guards, and walked towards Shen Congrong.
In the Second Prince’s Mansion.
The housekeeper hurried into the study and said, "Your Highness, the Grand Tutor went to the city gate to stop some people today, but failed. Those people all followed the Yong'an Marquis into the palace and stayed in the imperial study for most of the day. In the evening, I had someone remind them to go find the Grand Tutor, but they were kidnapped by the Yong'an Marquis again."
Murong Xu slammed the table angrily, "What does Liu Laosan want to do? Are you going against me?"
The housekeeper hesitated and said, "I don't know, but among the candidates there is the grandson of Marquis Yong'an. Marquis Yong'an did not openly oppose Your Highness, but he treasured this grandson very much and regarded him like the apple of his eye.
It just so happens that the other candidates have some relationship with the grandson of Yong'an Marquis. That child is only ten years old and does whatever he wants. There is nothing we can do about him."
"Hmph! I think it was Marquis Yong'an who did it on purpose! Since I can't use that old man, it would be a hindrance if he were kept around!" Murong Xu clenched his fists fiercely.
The butler asked in a low voice: "Your Highness, what should we do?"
Murong Xu pondered for a moment, then raised a sneer at the corner of his mouth, "Since Yong'an Hou is so ungrateful, he should be taught a lesson!"
If Liu Laosan had not been reluctant and stood by and watched coldly when Chen Tian's matter came, Murong Chen would not have snatched it away. Murong Xu had always been very dissatisfied with Liu Laosan, and this time he ruined his plan again. How could he tolerate this?
The butler obeyed and retreated.
At this time, everyone who was resting in the Yong'an Marquis Mansion was also talking about the matter of the Grand Tutor.
"We ran into Lord Taifu as soon as we entered the city today, and the soldiers mentioned Lord Taifu again when we were leaving the palace. I always feel that it is not a coincidence." Zhou Ran supported his chin with one hand and looked at everyone thoughtfully.
Xi Mu nodded with emotion, "You can all notice it, and others must have noticed it too. The emperor has not appointed a crown prince, and the only adult princes are the second, third, fourth, and sixth princes.
Although the Sixth Prince was born to the Queen, he was destined to have no chance of becoming the Crown Prince due to a congenital illness. This left three princes, of which the Second Prince was raised by the Queen since childhood and was considered the most favored of the three princes.
But the second prince had been exiled to the border by the emperor for having a secret meeting with a woman in a Buddhist temple, and he had just returned not long ago.
The granddaughter of this tutor is the Second Prince's wife, which means that the tutor is a member of the Second Prince's party. If you accept the tutor's kindness, it means that you have already chosen your side."
Zhou Ran and others felt a little scared.
Someone covered his chest and said anxiously: "We are all powerless, what will happen if we don't stand in line?"
They all came from Lizhou, and were like duckweed in the imperial capital, without roots or ties.
Xi Mu took a deep look at the man and said slowly: "This is a test of your intelligence and vision. Since you want to be an official, you naturally cannot be alone, especially in this imperial capital. Who doesn't have a few people behind them?
Even today, we were able to escape perfectly only because of the protection of Marquis Yong'an, but Marquis Yong'an established himself in the imperial capital with his real ability, and the emperor is behind him, so even the princes dare not force him to take sides. Congrong and Yongzhang have the marquis with them, and they are still young, so they don't need to worry about these things, but we are different.
As long as you enter the officialdom, there will always be people looking for you. It's up to you to choose!"
The more Zhou Ran listened, the heavier his mood became. He murmured, "This one mistake could implicate the entire clan! Brother Xi, Brother Chu, do you have a foolproof plan?"
The two looked at each other and smiled, "We have a good relationship with Lord Tang. If we want to seek asylum, we will naturally follow Lord Tang."
Zhou Ran knew who the Lord Tang they were talking about, and immediately fell into deep thought.
Others also gathered in twos and threes to discuss the matter.
The next day, the official decree of appointment of officials came down from the palace. Most people were sent out and were asked by the emperor to leave immediately. Only Chu Heng, Zhou Ran and the younger children were left in the imperial capital.
Xi Mu was overjoyed. After receiving the order, he immediately went back to his room to pack his luggage. With tears in his eyes, he looked at Chu Heng and Zhou Ran, "We will meet again someday. You must be careful in the imperial capital."
As he spoke, Xi Mu leaned close to Zhou Ran's ear and whispered, "The Second Prince is not right. Don't be tempted by the benefits."
Zhou Ran was stunned. Before he could ask any more questions, Xi Mu had already left Yong'an Marquis Mansion quickly with his luggage.
Chu Heng went to the Ministry of Justice, and Zhou Ran entered the South City Yamen. Both of them did not hold high official positions and had no real power. On the contrary, some of those who were sent out to other places actually became sixth-rank local officials and held real power.
When the Grand Tutor received the news, he almost vomited blood and secretly hated the emperor for his ruthless tactics.
At the same time, Shen Congrong went to Bo College with Su Yongzhang and Xiong Feng.
Bo Academy was in the palace. The three of them followed the palace attendants all the way and met several nobles.
The palace attendant took them to the Bo Academy and handed them over to Steward Qi before leaving.
Manager Qi was a serious middle-aged man. Looking at the three half-grown children in front of him, there was a flash of contempt and ridicule in his eyes. He sent them away without saying a word.
The three were at a loss.
Su Yongzhang asked with a pale face: "What should we do?"
Shen Congrong took them to find other officials, but everyone just greeted them and went about their business, and no one paid any attention to them at all.
Su Yongzhang couldn't help but feel discouraged, "Brother Xiong Feng, cousin, are they all excluding us?"
Xiong Feng nodded calmly, "It's obvious. Forget it. Since Manager Qi doesn't care about us, we should just do our own thing. Doesn't Congrong like reading? Let's go read a book!"
The three of them went to the archive room, where there were not only various books that were not available to the public, but also many files.
The three people who were originally depressed suddenly became happy after seeing these books. (End of this chapter)
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