The journey from the second courtyard to Fengtian Prefecture, a distance that should have taken only an incense stick's time by carriage, took the teenagers a full half hour.
They stood straight and solemn, they were handsome, and they looked straight ahead.
Not only were the locals attracted, but even the students in the Wenchang Pavilion couldn't help but follow behind to find out what was going on.
When Xu Mo stopped in front of the Fengtian Prefecture gate, there was already a huge crowd behind him. He looked at his younger brother and sister, then rushed to his friend and nodded. Finally, he raised his drumstick and, in full view of everyone, began to beat the grievance drum.
Once, twice, three times.
The deep, resonant sound of the drums, like ripples on water, spread outwards from the main gate of Fengtian Prefecture throughout the entire city of Fengjing.
Some people were startled awake from their slumber, some busy people looked up, and some even stood up abruptly.
In the past, the grievance drum was only used to announce the magistrate's rest. Ordinary people who wanted to file a complaint had to write a complaint and then go to the yamen to file it.
Shocked by the great injustice, the people then took over the task of appealing the injustice by striking the drum, which is how the phrase "striking the drum to appeal for justice" came about.
To highlight the injustice and to intimidate the court and the public, the drumbeats were incredibly loud.
Those who were close by looked uncomfortable, and Jiang Sheng also frowned. Fortunately, a pair of hands reached out and covered her ears.
Xu Mo, standing before the grievance drum, seemed not to hear it and continued to strike it calmly.
Four, five, six.
The drumbeats were still echoing when Xu Mo stopped and hung the drumsticks back up.
"Why did you stop knocking, brother?" Jiang Sheng looked up in confusion.
The characters in the storybooks would start banging on the door, and it wouldn't stop until they'd struck dozens of times.
Chang Yan withdrew his hand, saying, "It's not that the louder the drumbeat, the deeper the injustice. Brother stopped because he didn't want the drumbeat to disturb the people."
Beating the drum to appeal for justice was a last resort; as long as it could alarm Fengtian Prefecture and attract the attention of the people of Fengjing, that would be enough.
As soon as he finished speaking, the gates of Fengtian Prefecture opened.
Fengjing truly lives up to its reputation as the capital; its efficiency is remarkable.
A dozen stern-looking constables stepped forward, followed by a meticulous old man. They were not surprised to see so many people, but fixed their gaze on Xu Mo and asked, "Who is beating the drum, and what is the purpose?"
Xu Mo slowly cupped his hands in a basic gesture of respect, saying, "Greetings, Your Excellency the Prefect."
The gesture he made was quite sophisticated.
Ordinary people had to kneel to file a complaint, while only scholars who had achieved official rank could refrain from kneeling before the court and instead use proper etiquette.
The Prefect of Fengtian's expression changed slightly, and his voice became much more polite, "No need for formalities, just come into the court and tell me what grievances you have."
His yamen runners quickly opened the gates of Fengtian Prefecture and stood by with their fire and water sticks, well-trained.
The Prefect of Fengtian straightened his official hat and stepped steadily onto the bright mirror hanging high above.
The truly crucial moment has finally arrived.
Xu Mo let out a long breath, and after exchanging a final glance with Chang Yan, he lifted the hem of his blue robe, stepped over the knee-high threshold, and entered the main hall of Fengtian Prefecture.
Both Qi Huai and Jiang Sheng were barred from entering.
They could only watch as the upright figure in blue stood below the hall, surrounded by a group of yamen runners, yet undaunted, looking directly at the Prefect of Fengtian in the hall, and declared in a resounding voice, "Student Xu Mo accuses the Imperial Examination of having his examination papers switched and his results missing."
He didn't mention Huiyuan or the Fang family, attempting to distance himself from the Qi family.
But even these two sentences were enough to cause an uproar throughout Fengjing.
Almost instantly, they remembered Fang Yuan who had been blown into the sky, He Jiashen's book, and then looked at the stubborn young man who stood tall like a green bamboo, and seemed to understand something.
In the hall, the Prefect of Fengtian's expression changed from polite to subtle, mixed with a hint of hesitation.
But with so many people of Fengjing watching, and right under the emperor's nose, he couldn't run away even if he wanted to. He could only take out his gavel and rebuke, "The laws of the Dayu Dynasty are strict and do not tolerate slander and defamation. You say your exam paper was tampered with, do you have any evidence?"
“Of course there is.” Xu Mo said calmly. “According to the laws of the Great Yu Dynasty, students who fail the exam can check their exam papers ten days after the results are announced. The students found the papers on the walls of the examination hall. Only the students’ names were on the papers; the rest were unfamiliar.”
The evidence for this statement is insufficient.
Xu Mo then presented the previous scroll of paper, saying, "To prove my innocence, I will rewrite the entire examination paper from memory. I only hope that the Prefect will clear my name and prove that the Great Yu Dynasty is a just and upright place, free from any filth!"
By this point, the Prefect of Fengtian was already stunned.
There are many excellent students who can recite poems and lyrics at will, but very few can write out a two-meter-long exam paper from memory and then recite it again.
When he opened the scroll and began to read its contents, even the beard of the Prefect of Fengtian trembled.
He couldn't help but ask, "You said you failed the exam?"
“Yes,” Xu Mo said quietly. “The students’ failed exam papers are still posted on the gate of the examination hall.”
But the writing on this scroll is so outstanding, even the style is so elegant and fluent. Even though the characters are not visible on the scroll, the ability to cite classics and the incisive and comprehensive summary are enough to prove how insightful and brilliant the author is.
How could someone like that possibly fail the exam?
The Prefect of Fengtian's hands were trembling. He couldn't wait to order his yamen runners to bring Xu Mo's exam paper from the examination hall. After comparing it with the paper in his hand, he was filled with disappointment.
The writing styles are completely different from those of the same person; the skill levels of the two are worlds apart.
If the failed exam paper belonged to Xu Mo, then his complaint would be malicious slander and defamation of the imperial court, which, according to the law, would be punishable by five years in prison.
Conversely, who else could take away this brilliant and ingenious article?
The Prefect of Fengtian's mind raced, his hands clasped tightly together.
Fengjing is full of powerful and influential people, with high-ranking officials of the third rank everywhere. There are aristocratic families all over the place, and the emperor is watching from the dragon throne. Anyone who can become the prefect here is the most shrewd of all.
If he was still only wondering and speculating when Xu Mo was beating the drum, it is now clear that Xu Mo and the others are coming for the Fang family.
That's the Fang family!
As an ordinary student from Anshui County, wouldn't it be better to swallow this insult? Why insist on going head-to-head with a top-tier family? You're really asking for trouble.
At this point, the actions of the Prefect of Fengtian are crucial. If he sides with the Fang family, he will have to appease the situation, but he will offend the people of Fengjing City and ruin his reputation for half a lifetime.
If he sides with Xu Mo, he will offend the Fang family, and his position as Prefect of Fengtian will be over.
It's so hard to choose!
After hesitating for a long time, the Prefect of Fengtian finally gave a bitter smile and slammed his gavel down. "Guards, take the tokens to the examination hall and retrieve all the examination papers of today's candidates."
Although he feared the Fang family and the instability of his official position, being under the emperor's nose and serving as the Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture in Fengjing, the most important thing in judging cases was to be fair and just.
This is the backbone, the pride, and the bottom line that has been upheld for half a lifetime.
This was also the key to his becoming the Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture.
A yamen runner stepped forward and rushed to the examination hall as quickly as possible. Accompanied by several successful candidates from the examination hall, he spread out hundreds of examination papers in the hall and compared them one by one with Xu Mo's examination paper.
When they compared the exam paper of today's top scholar, the yamen runners and the scholar in charge of helping were all dumbfounded.
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