"Your Highness, my father has gone mad!"
"Before I left home today, he actually told me that if I didn't pass the imperial examination, he would kick me out. Has he already stopped wanting me as his son?!"
"Doesn't he have any idea how well I've studied?"
On the day of the provincial examination, before entering the examination hall, Yun Shu grabbed Ye Jingchen's sleeve and complained.
From the time Gu Beichen topped the list of successful candidates until now, he has been worrying for two whole years. Yun Shu's originally chubby body has shrunk so much that the word 'fat' can hardly be used to describe him anymore.
Ye Jingchen knew that Yun Shu would definitely lose weight when she grew up, but he never expected that it would be for this reason!
Xie Chang'an pried Yun Shu's hand off Ye Jingchen's sleeve. "The exam is about to start, you should go in!"
Wu Zemin and Gu Beichen are now more famous than ever before, and their appearance is sure to cause a sensation. Therefore, only Ye Jingchen and Xie Chang'an came to see Yun Shu off to the examination hall today.
Having been tormented by Yun Shu's nagging all morning, Xie Chang'an was already impatient. If he could, he would just want to kick Yun Shu into the examination room.
"Don't panic. The county exam has five parts. Although you're not good at poetry, prose, regulated verse, or reciting the Four Books and Five Classics, you'll definitely be fine with policy essays and classics. As long as you do well on these two parts, you won't have to worry about failing the county exam," Ye Jingchen comforted him.
Unlike students from poor families, the sons of noble families also took the imperial examinations, but they only needed to have the title of a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations) and did not need to rank too high to pull strings and be granted official positions.
Throughout history, the world has always been unfair. With connections, the threshold is low; without connections, the threshold is insurmountable.
"I've told you the trick, hurry up and go!" Xie Chang'an pushed Yun Shu, directly in front of the yamen runners at the entrance who were checking the candidates' eligibility and whether they had cheat sheets.
Yun Shu only had time to throw Xie Chang'an a resentful look before she had to undergo the inspection by the yamen runners.
After watching Yun Shu enter the examination hall, Ye Jingchen left with Xie Chang'an.
He took a day off today to take Yun Shu to the exam hall, giving him a whole day of free time.
"It's just a small county-level examination, what's there to give as a gift!" Xie Chang'an complained.
What a waste of his time!
"This is the first major hurdle in a child's life, and as a friend, of course I should encourage and support him in person!" Ye Jingchen said with a smile.
Xie Chang'an rolled his eyes and said sarcastically, "Just friends? The way you are now, you look more like his father than Marquis Zhongyong!"
"Do I look that old?" Ye Jingchen touched his face, feigning surprise.
Xie Chang'an was too lazy to pay attention to this drama queen and disdainfully took a step away from him.
The more he disliked him, the more Ye Jingchen wanted to get closer to him.
He put his hand on Xie Chang'an's shoulder, looking like a close buddy, and leaned close to his ear to ask, "Shall we make a bet on whether Yun Shu can pass the county exam this time?"
"What's the point of gambling? After studying in the Wenhua Hall for so many years, even a blockhead could pass the county examination!"
Even with a hand on his shoulder and half the weight of a teenager, Xie Chang'an was completely unaffected and did not stop walking at all.
Ye Jingchen thought what he said made sense, and then suggested, "Then let's change the way we bet. Let's bet on whether he can get the top score in the county examination?"
Xie Chang'an's lips twitched. "The Marquis of Zhongyong isn't awake yet, are you not awake either?"
We must have confidence in our own children.
"Are you addicted to being a father?" Xie Chang'an's words shut down Ye Jingchen's next words.
"You—you must have been a lonely bachelor until the end of your past life!" Ye Jingchen was speechless for a long time after being rebuked, and chirped maliciously.
"Aren't you one?" Xie Chang'an asked casually.
"No, I have a younger brother! My brother is so filial. He takes care of my food, drink, and clothes. He's the perfect brother!" Ye Jingchen boasted.
Xie Chang'an: ......
"Then how does your younger brother compare to the little madman?" Xie Chang'an asked deliberately.
"Ahem—they're all younger brothers, and they all respect me as their older brother. What's there to compare?" Ye Jingchen wasn't fooled. No matter what he thought, his words were all about treating everyone equally.
"Also, Jinghe isn't crazy at all. Stop calling him 'little madman,' or I won't stop him if he tries to trick you next time!"
Xie Chang'an smiled dismissively. "Him?"
"You're underestimating him like this; you'll pay the price someday!" Ye Jingchen kindly reminded him.
"We'll see!" Xie Chang'an said dismissively.
As they talked, they unknowingly arrived in front of the Jingzhao Prefecture government office.
Today, the government office is going to try a case that has caused a sensation in the capital, so the area in front of the government office has long been crowded with onlookers.
After dropping Yun Shu off, it was quite late when they arrived here.
However, although there were no seats available at the entrance of the government office, there were plenty of private rooms in the teahouse across the street, as long as you were willing to spend the money.
The No. 1 private room in the teahouse faces the entrance of the government office, offering a wide view and comfortable seating. It's convenient to enjoy tea, melon seeds, and other snacks while watching the commotion.
Since the previous Prefect of Jingzhao was dismissed and investigated by the emperor four years ago, the position of Prefect of Jingzhao has been cursed for the past four years, with a different person being appointed every year.
The position of Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture was crucial to the safety of the capital. Although it was only a fourth-rank official position, it was of paramount importance.
Everyone wants to compete for this coveted prize.
Sure enough, over the course of four years, court officials, nobles, and powerful families engaged in a power struggle, scheming and plotting against each other for the position, which only created countless personal grudges.
However, regardless of which side wins, the elected Prefect of the Capital cannot hold the position and will always step down due to various problems.
Today is the day when the prefect in the hall should step down.
Before being transferred to the capital, this Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture had served as the Prefect of Le'an County in Qingzhou.
Under his governance, Le'an County was peaceful and prosperous, and his outstanding achievements earned him the emperor's favor.
But these were all just illusions created by powerful families to deceive the emperor.
In reality, Le'an County was far from peaceful; its people were enslaved by powerful families and were not much better off than those in Jizhou County before.
However, this former prefect of Le'an was rather cunning. He pretended to stand against the powerful families, and when the people were oppressed by them, he would feign kindness and use small favors to deceive them into being grateful to him, thus manipulating them at will.
If Ye Jingchen hadn't instructed Xie Chang'an to conduct background checks on all the collateral relatives listed in the Wang family's genealogy, they might not have discovered this deeply hidden, hypocritical and sanctimonious man.
After that, they meticulously set a trap for this person, pushing him to the position of Prefect of Jingzhao.
The previous Prefect of Jingzhao also came from a prominent family.
With the aristocratic families winning twice in a row, how could the nobles and court officials in the capital be willing to accept it? Naturally, they would try every means to find fault with this Prefect of the Capital and bring him down.
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