Fourth Master did not participate in this retest. He may not know the answer to the retest for a while, but he will eventually find out.
Moreover, although the Fourth Prince had never dealt with Nian Gengyao, he had received several letters from him. The words in those letters were all about national affairs, so he was certainly not one of those ignorant Manchu bannermen who only knew how to fool around all day.
Sure enough, the Minister of Rites reported the results of the re-examination personally presided over by His Majesty in the main hall of the Qianqing Palace the next morning.
Judging from the results of the re-examination, this re-examination case was caused by the resentment and false accusations of the unsuccessful candidates. Nian Gengyao passed the examination again and became the top scholar in the second class of the imperial examination.
After the Minister of Rites finished his report, whispers arose in the court.
But no one dared to stand up and say a bad word.
After all, the retest was conducted under the Emperor's very nose, with all the princes present, and in the end, the Emperor himself set the questions.
If anyone were to stand up and voice any objection now, wouldn't that be a slap in the face to His Majesty? Wouldn't that be a slap in the face to the princes?
Furthermore, the whispers among the crowd were not about the re-examination of the imperial examination, but rather about the affairs of Huguang behind it.
But now that things have come to this, His Majesty's meaning is clearly very clear.
Halfway through the morning court session, His Majesty indeed brought up the matter of collecting taxes in Huguang based on land tax. At this moment, Guo Xiu stepped forward from the crowd, neither humble nor arrogant.
The Fourth Prince stood at the front, and when he lowered his eyes, he noticed the clenched palms and the visible veins of his eldest brother, the Prince Zhi, who was also standing at the front.
After Guo Xiu finished his report, His Majesty, sitting above, spoke in a deep, booming voice that sent shivers down everyone's spines: "Do any of you ministers have any objections?"
The ministers didn't move first, but the princes did.
Prince Zhi stepped forward first: "Your son has no objection."
As soon as Prince Zhi stepped forward, Prime Minister Ming followed suit, saying, "Your subject has no objection."
Next came the Third Master and the Fifth Master, with the Crown Prince a little later.
Today, Prime Minister Su claimed to be ill and did not attend court, but his protégés were not in a hurry to step forward.
The Fourth Prince waited until the Crown Prince stepped forward before lowering his eyes and stepping forward to say, "Your son has no objection."
With His Majesty above, he can clearly see the restless thoughts of his ministers below.
He smiled deeply: "Very well. Since there are no objections, then all departments shall grant permission and implement it on a chosen date."
The meaning of the various ministries' approval is to have the six ministries draft a set of regulations as soon as possible, based on the memorial submitted by Guo Xiu and Nian Xialing.
The matter has come to this point, and everything is set in stone.
The court officials were well aware that the seven prefectures of Huguang were just the beginning.
After the court session ended, the Fourth Prince, as usual, went to Yonghe Palace to visit his mother.
Consort De knew that things were not peaceful in the court today, but the empress dowager was not allowed to interfere in politics, so Consort De naturally did not bring it up.
Consort De simply asked Granny Zhao to serve tea with concern: "Now that you, Fourth Prince, have your own ideas, I, as your mother, don't need to interfere. I'll just say one thing: your Imperial Father is the ruler of the world, but he is also your father, and the father of all the princes."
Consort De was genuinely worried that her son's loyalty and uprightness were causing him to become estranged from the Emperor.
As for who will inherit the throne, that remains to be seen. Right now, the Prince of Zhi and the Crown Prince are locked in a life-or-death struggle. Who can say for sure who will ultimately ascend to the throne?
Consort De is currently hoping that the fourth prince can rise from a prince to a duke or even a prince while the emperor is still alive, and that he can have as many powerful backers as possible.
The fourth brother is a smart man. As long as the one who ascends to the throne in the future is not like the eighth brother, he will not do something like ruthless extermination.
Consort De even thought of the Fourteenth Prince; in a few years, the younger princes would also be growing up.
The Fourteenth Prince's temperament makes him particularly suited to offering absurd advice.
Consort De's mind was in turmoil, and her gaze toward the Fourth Prince was filled with concern.
The Fourth Prince first stood up, cupped his hands in thanks to Consort De for her concern, and then sat down without saying much: "Your son understands."
Upon hearing the Fourth Prince's words, Consort De felt even more worried.
Seriously, that fourth brother is such a blockhead.
Consort De was furious and, unusually, she gave her son a hard time: "You know, but I don't think you know anything at all. Go back to your Ministry of Revenue and get busy."
Consort De raised her hand to shoo the person away.
The Fourth Prince was always a man of few words; even when he wrote a letter to his father, the Emperor, he would present it as a memorial to Su Peisheng.
After all, the Fourth Prince was indeed preparing to write a memorial to his father, the Emperor, to plead his case.
It was only by chance that a letter from Li Chenjiao's family arrived, which sparked the Fourth Master's interest.
However, the fact that the Fourth Prince wrote letters home to his father, the Emperor, was something he was somewhat unwilling to let others know.
After all, even when the Fourth Prince was younger, he never wrote letters to his father, the Emperor.
The Fourth Prince has always held his father, the Emperor, in the highest esteem, but this time—
Deep down, even the Fourth Prince himself felt that he was being presumptuous and audacious.
But when he heard his mother say that his father was not only the Emperor but also his father, the Fourth Prince did not show it on his face, but countless thoughts had already flashed through his mind.
His mother told him to treat his father as his own father, but he had already done so long ago.
I don't know who gave him the courage back then.
When the Fourth Prince took his leave of Yonghe Palace, the midday sun had just risen, making him unconsciously squint.
Fourth Master suddenly realized that he had thought of Li Chenjiao.
He could find no one as audacious as him in his backyard.
The Fourth Prince tilted his head slightly, his fingertips tracing the corner of his robe: "Return to the Ministry of Revenue."
Su Peisheng had known this all along, so he wasn't surprised.
"By the way, the servants in the East Courtyard aren't enough for Master Li. You should go to the Imperial Household Department later and have them bring some people back to the East Courtyard for your master to see."
The Fourth Prince had known for a long time that there weren't enough people to serve in the East Courtyard, but every time he went there, he saw that although there weren't many people serving in the East Courtyard, everything was done properly, so he didn't mention it.
Now I remember.
Su Peisheng paused, unable to understand why his master had suddenly turned to Master Li of the East Courtyard, but he still politely agreed.
However, Li Chenjiao, who lived in the mansion, was taken aback when she heard Xiao Luzi say that the Imperial Household Department had sent servants for her to choose from.
After all, it happened without any reason.
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