It's said that being an official in the capital is difficult.
The biggest reason is that being under the emperor's nose brings immense wealth and power, with easy promotions like the fifth rank within three steps and the third rank within five steps.
It was a gathering place for prominent families and a place where royalty were everywhere.
As the prefect, you must be fair and impartial, because the emperor sits in the capital watching you, and can punish you on the spot for even the slightest selfishness.
But when you encounter a powerful family, royalty, or the legitimate sons and daughters of high-ranking officials, who dares to be absolutely impartial and incorruptible?
Therefore, anyone with a bit of family wealth or background would rather serve as the prefect of a remote town like Anshui County for three years than become the prefect of Fengjing.
The old man felt increasingly heartbroken as he thought about it, and his hands trembled like a sieve.
As the prefect, he wanted to restore justice to Xu Mo.
As a subordinate official, he feared the Fang family.
Reason told him that he should attach himself to a powerful family, at least to keep his official position, and at least Xu Mo was weak and seemed to have little ability to resist.
But his unyielding integrity during his studies and his lofty ambitions as an official constantly tormented his conscience.
After careful consideration, the Prefect of Fengtian finally brought down his gavel. "This matter involves cheating in the imperial examinations, and is of great importance. Please allow me to report to the Emperor before making a decision."
This tactic is called neutrality, also known as kicking the ball, or shifting the blame.
Butler Fang was stunned, Xu Mo frowned, and the hall was completely silent.
The Prefect of Fengtian didn't care about any of that and slammed his gavel again, "Guards, adjourn the court."
The constables struck their fire-and-water sticks, their authoritative shouts echoing throughout the hall, leaving even the most helpless people no choice but to bow and leave.
The people outside Fengtian Prefecture were still not satisfied. Some criticized loudly, some whispered, and some sighed with regret, but without exception, they all dispersed.
Only Jiang Sheng and her siblings, Qi Huai and the others huddled in a corner waiting.
The first to come out was Butler Fang. He didn't even glance at Jiang Sheng and his sister at the front, only at Qi Huai and Zhao Yuan, before leaving with a cold and arrogant air.
Then came Xu Mo.
This young man, who had experienced twists and turns, anxiety, and a profound lesson from the aristocratic family, left with his back straight and returned still upright and resolute, only with more deep thoughts and insights, and a touch of mature understanding.
Indeed, setbacks make people grow.
"Big brother." Jiang Sheng was the fastest, rushing towards the blue figure.
Wen Zhiyun and Chang Yan followed closely behind, "Big Brother."
"Brother Xu." Qi Huai, An Jun, and Zhao Yuan also gathered around.
Just moments ago, Xu Mo was all alone, but in the blink of an eye, the place became a bustling marketplace, with his younger siblings and friends chatting amongst themselves, each word filled with concern.
He smiled and waited for everyone to finish asking their questions before giving a unified reply: "I'm fine. Although the Prefect can't be absolutely impartial, at least he didn't favor the Fang family."
That's enough.
Only those who have experienced it know that the power and threat posed by powerful families are something even the Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture cannot withstand.
Xu Mo is very satisfied with the current outcome.
“But our eldest brother still hasn’t returned from his guild meeting,” Jiang Sheng muttered softly. “Haven’t we wasted twenty days of our time?”
If Anshui County was so remote that the top scholars it produced were looked down upon by the people of Fengjing.
Today's top scholar title is the most powerful symbol of Xu Mo's talent and the key to his smooth path in the capital.
Most importantly, they have already offended the Fang family and cannot get back the Huiyuan, making the road ahead even more difficult.
"It wasn't all for nothing; at least we won the hearts of the people," Qi Huai analyzed. "The people have discerning eyes, and the Fang family is in a hot seat."
"Pah, serves them right. Why did they have to target Brother Xu's top score?" Zhao Yuan cursed. "I heard it clearly outside. They had their eyes on Brother Xu a long time ago, thinking they had everything in place, but they didn't expect Brother Xu to win the top score."
This was the Fang family's oversight, and the only flaw in their scheme.
In other words, Xu Mo's talent saved him.
Unfortunately, the powerful families were too difficult to shake, and the Prefect of Fengtian could only play the role of a neutral and cunning official, unable to uphold justice for Xu Mo.
"By the way, the Prefect said he wanted to report this. Where should he report it to?" An Jun asked the crucial question.
Everyone fell silent.
Only Chang Yan, with an unwavering composure, uttered two words: "The Imperial City."
The Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture was directly under the jurisdiction of the Imperial City, and the people in charge in the Imperial City were... the Emperor.
This is truly a bittersweet answer.
The reason for the joy is that the emperor is not incompetent; he is not only diligent in governing for the people, but also fair and just.
The worry is that the imperial family is somewhat weak-willed, especially in this era where powerful clans hold sway, and their actions are always constrained.
Even with such a serious matter involving a ghostwriter, they only managed to protect An Jun, and the rest were left to their own devices.
Now that there's cheating in the provincial examination, can he really clear Xu Mo's name and restore fairness and justice to today's students?
It's tough.
Even the emperor couldn't decide life and death with a single word, so powerful families were elevated to an unparalleled position. No wonder the Fang family was so arrogant that they only sent a steward when summoned by the Fengtian Prefecture.
"Is the court destined to continue like this?" Qi Huai said indignantly. "The Ming family is clearly the master of this dynasty, yet all the major families are colluding with each other, and they can't even uphold justice!"
There's a reason for this.
The late emperor was cruel and tyrannical. His campaigns in the south and north emptied the national treasury. Although the territory was conquered, the people suffered greatly and could not make a living.
In his later years, he realized the drawbacks and decided to delegate power to aristocratic families, supporting these already illustrious clans and giving them the ability to control the emperor.
If the emperor's decision is reasonable, the noble families will second it.
If the emperor's decision is unreasonable, the powerful families can join forces to overturn it.
This was originally intended to prevent the next emperor from being cruel and inhumane, but unexpectedly, the imperial family was too cowardly and suffered repeated defeats in their confrontations with the powerful families, ultimately being controlled by them instead.
Having tasted the sweetness of control, the powerful families' ambitions grew ever larger. Through marriage and other means, they bound most of their families together on the same boat, sharing both advancement and retreat.
They used their numbers to suppress the Heavenly Family, worked together to seek benefits, and became increasingly united.
"Is there really no other voice in the entire officialdom?" An Jun asked in confusion.
Qi Huai snorted, "Of course there are. The imperial family has also promoted many poor students, but how many lifetimes would these solitary people have to work hard to compete with aristocratic families with a century of history?"
As the eldest son of the Minister of Rites, he truly understood this deeply.
"So, even if we report this to the imperial court, there's still nothing we can do about the Fang family?" An Jun asked blankly, his eyes gradually losing their light.
After years of studying hard, hoping to make a name for themselves, they ended up working for the powerful and wealthy.
No student could bear it, let alone this group of energetic and passionate teenagers.
I watched as the light faded from their eyes, and they either hung their heads in dejection or became listless.
Chang Yan's lips moved, as if he wanted to say something.
A strong voice rang out behind them, “Who says there’s no way? Who says fairness and justice can’t be provided? This court isn’t just about the Fang family and his cronies.”
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