After all the ministers returned to their seats, the Shangshu Ling began to read out the list, reading out the rankings of the first exam according to the rankings of the re-examination list.
"Hu Xu, who ranked first in the re-examination, also ranked first in the first examination."
"He Yuqing, second in the first class of the re-examination, also ranked second in the first class of the re-examination."
"The re-examination ranked third in the first class, and Wang Chuanbai took the lead and ranked fourth in the second class."
Wang Chuanbai could not hide his excitement. Who would have thought that he would have such an opportunity to become the third place in the imperial examination? He really had to thank Zhao Xiu for giving up his position!
Some were happy and some were worried. The rankings of the Jinshi candidates fluctuated greatly. The Jinshi whose re-examination score was lower than the first one cursed Zhao Xiu in his heart and wished he could drag him out of Wutai and cut him into pieces.
After the announcement, the sage stared at the two ministers of the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Revenue and said with a smile, "Do you have any objections, my Lords?"
The ministers replied, "No objection."
Then the sage kept three people from the first class and dismissed them and the other candidates.
The saint moved his buttocks and secretly hammered his waist. After sitting on it for a long time, the dragon throne became uncomfortable.
After finally getting over the pain, he saw that all the ministers were waiting to hear his instructions, so he slowly said, "The results of the re-examination have been released in front of the palace. Generally speaking, the rankings are not much different from the first examination. This shows that, with the exception of Du Hui and Zhao Xiu, there was no cheating among the officials in charge of this imperial examination, the invigilators, and the candidates. Since there was no cheating, from today onwards, all officials of the Ministry of Rites and the invigilators of the Imperial College are released and return to their respective positions and duties."
Seeing that he was about to downplay the matter, the Minister of Personnel frowned and stepped out, saying, "Your Majesty, I have a report."
The saint raised his eyelids and glanced at him, "Yes."
The Minister of Personnel said, "Your Majesty, the issue of cheating in the imperial examinations is of grave importance. To deal with it so lightly would only encourage perverse tendencies. The imperial examinations are administered by the Ministry of Rites. Since there has been a case of cheating by leaking questions, the officials in the Ministry cannot escape the blame for their negligence. Furthermore, Zhao Xiu, a mediocre talent, was able to win the third place. Besides Du Hui's leaking questions, how can we be sure that the officials in the Ministry of Rites did not condone this?"
The Minister of Rites had been feeling humiliated these days. After the re-examination in front of the palace today, he finally cleared the name of the Ministry of Rites. He is now much more confident. But when he saw that this man was about to cause trouble again, he finally couldn't stand it anymore.
"Why is Minister Wang trying to seize this opportunity to accuse us? The results of the palace re-examination are right before our eyes. All the Jinshi candidates present earned their honors through genuine talent and knowledge, without any cheating. Furthermore, Zhao Xiu's accusation against Du Siye for leaking questions remains unresolved, yet Minister Wang is eager to pin the blame on him and us. Is he worried that he's too old to wait for the Censorate's results?"
The ministers suppressed their laughter.
Minister Wang's expression sternly retorted, "Minister Cui, are you trying to shield a guilty minister? Du Hui's omission of the exam papers and his fraudulent conduct are already established facts, so what room is there for rebuttal? Could it be that Zhao Xiu is destroying his own reputation in order to frame a minister who has shown him such appreciation?"
"The human heart is unpredictable, and this possibility is not impossible."
"It's a farce."
The sage raised his hand, and the two men reluctantly shut up. "My dear ministers, there is no need to argue about this. Where is the Imperial Censor?"
I've been searching for a long time, but I can't find anyone.
"I am here." The Imperial Censor came out from the front row and replied.
The sage coughed dryly and asked, "Can you find any evidence to prove that Du Hui leaked the test questions?"
The Imperial Censor replied, "There is no concrete evidence. We only found that he had correspondence with Zhao Xiu."
"What did Du Hui say?"
"Master Du admitted that the article was written by Zhao Xiu and that he made the annotations, but he still denied leaking the test questions to Zhao Xiu and causing him to pass."
"What about Zhao Xiu?"
"Zhao Xiu said that the article was written under the guidance of Master Du, and it was not created by one person."
The sage pondered for a moment and then asked, "Since you are in charge of investigating this case, what are your thoughts?"
The Imperial Censor glanced at Minister Wang and said, "I think Zhao Xiu has no reason to lie, both emotionally and logically."
Minister Wang continued, "Your Majesty, the matter is now clear. I beg Your Majesty to make your decision."
The Minister of Revenue stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the imperial examinations concern the very foundation of our nation. Such acts of fraud must not be tolerated and must be severely punished to serve as a warning to others."
"Oh?" The sage looked at the Minister of Revenue, "What do you think, Minister Luo?"
Minister Luo bowed and said, "Du Hui leaked the exam questions and cheated. He should be dismissed from his post and demoted to a commoner. Yuan Zuzhi and Lou Jing, who had close ties with him, were convicted of shielding the perpetrators and should be demoted. The Ministry of Rites failed to oversee the matter and was derelict in its duty. Their authority to administer the examinations should be relinquished and returned to the Ministry of Personnel."
As soon as Minister Luo said this, Minister Wang quickly stepped forward to support him, "I second the motion."
Many court officials came forward to agree.
"I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
"I object." A calm and powerful voice emerged from the noise of the blind migrants, sounding quite pleasant.
The sage's gaze swept around until it landed on Lou Yunchun, who stood like a dagger among the ministers. He then said happily, "Lou Shaoqing, I want to hear your opinion."
"Your Majesty, during the reign of the previous emperor, the Ministry of Personnel was transferred to the Ministry of Rites because officials in the Ministry of Personnel were appointing officials based on personal connections, accepting bribes, and selling official positions. If they were to regain control of the imperial examinations, not only would it be difficult to convince the public, but it would also undermine the foundation of the new system."
These words touched the heart of the saint.
Minister Wang refuted coldly, "Do you have any evidence for what Lou Shaoqing said?"
When the previous emperor was in power, the country was unstable, so he turned a blind eye to the small actions of these ministers. Over time, old accounts became difficult to settle.
Lou Yunchun asked in return, "Do you have any evidence to support Zhao Xiu's slander of Du Siye?"
Minister Wang choked and was unable to answer.
Hu Xu then said loudly: "Your Majesty, I have a report."
A hint of interest flashed in the saint's eyes. "Yes."
Hu Xu bowed to the Imperial Censor and politely retorted, "Just now, Your Excellency, Imperial Censor, judging by common sense, Zhao Xiu had no reason to lie. Similarly, judging by common sense, Du Siye had even less reason to leak the test paper."
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