Madam Su was also having a hard time. She took in her nephews and nieces from her mother's family and got into big trouble. Of course, she regretted it now because she was so proud of it before. She even intended to suppress Madam Hou. When she saw her nephew coming over, she was so angry that she trembled: "What are you doing here? You two siblings have caused your aunt so much trouble."
Yan Ziming's face turned pale. He knelt down in front of Madam Yan as soon as he came in, and cried on the ground, "Aunt, she is not my sister. My sister went with mother. She was a maid beside my sister. Her name was Tao Yuzhu. She is not my sister. She said she would take care of me for my sister..."
Madam Su stood up in shock. She couldn't believe such a ridiculous thing. She rolled her eyes and almost fainted. "How dare you...how dare you do such a ridiculous thing? How can your parents rest in peace in their graves?"
"Aunt, I was wrong. Please save me. I was ignorant at the time and was fooled by that girl Tao Yuzhu." Yan Ziming knelt down and crawled to Madam Su's feet, hugged her legs and cried bitterly.
Madam Su really wanted to faint. How could a maid who served others have the right to occupy the position of the eldest daughter of the Yan family and enjoy the blessings for these years? Madam Su hated her nephew for hiding it for so long. If she had known it earlier, she would have strangled the dead girl to death. How could she let her harm the marquis's mansion like this?
But she couldn't faint, and gritted her teeth and said, "Come with me. We need to talk to your uncle and the marquis about this matter. I don't know whether I can save you and your aunt."
The Marquis was just hesitating about looking for his second brother to talk about the division of the family when his second brother came with his wife and the nephews of the Yan family. The second master Su of the Marquis's Mansion told him about Tao Yuzhu's substitution. The Marquis was also shocked and couldn't believe it. Their entire Marquis's Mansion was played around by a maid. Thinking about how they had wanted to praise this girl to the sky before, the Marquis wanted to poke out his own eyes.
The Marquis' wife also almost fainted. She was also a person who cared a lot about face, but the girl she was holding in her arms a while ago was actually a servant. She also opened her own private storehouse and gave the girl a lot of jewelry, hoping that after the girl became the princess of Zhenbei Palace in the future, she could bring the Marquis' Palace and her son to her.
"My Lord, what shall we do now?"
The Marquis walked around the room several times, and finally stopped and said with an unpleasant expression, "There are only two ways now. One is to go to His Majesty and apologize, saying that our entire mansion has been fooled by that girl. The other is that you, my second brother, need to go to the Zhenbei Palace. No matter what, you must see the prince and explain the matter. Then..." The Marquis was depressed again, "Just wait for His Majesty to decide."
In fact, even if the family is divided now, it may not be possible for the Marquis's Mansion to clear itself of any involvement: "I will try to ask the Empress in the Palace to help mediate." This means whispering in the ear of the marquis.
"It's the only way."
So the two masters of the Marquis' Mansion acted separately, one went to the palace to ask to see the emperor, and the other went to the Zhenbei Palace to ask to see the prince who was recuperating. The Marquis's wife was so angry that she sent people out to spread the true identity of the fickle woman.
All of this was part of Mu Cheng'an's plan. Of course, even if the news had not been revealed from the Marquis' Mansion, he would have found a way to find the old people in the Yan family to testify to Tao Yuzhu's true identity. Not all of the servants in the Yan Mansion had followed him to the capital, so there would always be someone who could recognize Tao Yuzhu. If that didn't work, he could ask other members of the Yan family to come to the capital and the truth would be revealed.
Another purpose of exposing Tao Yuzhu's identity is to make fun of the old emperor. The old emperor is not upright, so how can the son he raised be any better? He is so desperate for a maid who was born a slave. When the old emperor finds out, he will probably be so angry that he will vomit blood.
The old emperor was indeed almost vomiting blood by what Marquis Yongchang said. He really wanted to immediately raid the entire Marquis Yongchang Mansion and hold him accountable. Marquis Yongchang was no longer shameless at this time. He knelt in front of the old emperor and cried, declaring that the mansion had no knowledge of this matter, otherwise they would never have taken in that girl. How could they let a maid who was born a slave replace a young lady, even if she was just a young lady from a merchant family?
The old emperor was so angry that his nostrils flared. How could there be such a bold girl in the world, and Jin Xuan was so attracted by her that he did not hesitate to disobey the emperor's order. What a sin she had committed!
"Someone, come and put this good girl in jail immediately!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
He was originally just being held in custody, but now he was thrown directly into the prison.
At the Zhenbei Palace, Mu Chengan calmly listened to Master Su II explain the true identity of Yan Zhifu, no, Tao Yuzhu, and then pointed at a person and said, "Take him to Mu Jinxuan and ask him to repeat the matter again."
Master Su Er was a little dumbfounded. He vaguely knew that the relationship between the prince and the little prince was not harmonious, but the scene he witnessed with his own eyes was more than just disharmonious. It seemed that the prince clearly did not take the little prince seriously at all.
The servants naturally listened to the prince and brought Master Su Er to Mu Jinxuan. Ever since the imperial physician declared that one of his legs could not be healed and would be left disabled, Mu Jinxuan had been in a semi-crazy state, which made Master Su Er a little scared when he first saw him.
But no matter how scared he was, he had to face Mu Jinxuan's murderous eyes and explain the girl's identity and origin truthfully. Compared with the young prince, the prince was more awe-inspiring. He made his legs tremble just by sitting there without making a sound. When he left, he found that his vest was wet.
"Young Prince, if Yan Ziming hadn't revealed that Tao Yuzhu had replaced his sister, we in the Yongchang Marquis' Mansion would have been kept in the dark by them. My wife has never been back to her parents' home since she married into the mansion, and this was the first time they had seen them since they came to Beijing. They believed everything they said, and no one had expected that she would do such a bold thing. Young Prince, please forgive us in the mansion for our crime."
Master Su Er lowered his head and said everything he was going to say. The only sound in the room was breathing. Of course, the sound was from the young prince. Master Su Er waited for a while but saw no movement. He secretly looked up from below. He was shocked by the sight. The young prince's eyes were red and veins on his forehead were bulging.
"Get out!" Mu Jinxuan suddenly picked up the tea bowl next to him and threw it at Master Su Er, shouting angrily.
He happened to see this scene, so Master Su II subconsciously dodged to the side and was not hit. This made Mu Jinxuan even more angry. He was already a cripple, and even this useless thing dared to bully him? He struggled to get down to the ground and teach this bastard a lesson regardless of his leg injury.
But after escaping the danger, Master Su Er slipped away as quickly as he could. Didn’t the young prince tell him to leave? If he stayed any longer, he doubted that he would be able to leave the Zhenbei Palace safely. At this time, he heard a thud of something heavy falling to the ground, followed by screams. Master Su Er was so scared that he ran out for his life.
He knew nothing, he saw nothing. Anyway, he had made clear the identity of that little girl Tao Yuzhu, so what the young prince thought had nothing to do with him.
In fact, he couldn't understand why the young prince fell in love with that girl and insisted on canceling the marriage proposal from the Grand Tutor's Mansion and marrying her. In his opinion, even if the identity of Miss Yan was replaced by that girl, she was far from qualified to be the young prince's wife. Even if he was attracted by her beauty, wouldn't it be the same if he brought her into the mansion and spoiled her however he wanted?
You see, in the end, such a big joke was made. It really cannot be blamed on the Yongchang Marquis Mansion. In the final analysis, it was the young prince himself who was blind.
Mu Jinxuan struggled so much that he fell off the bed again, causing a second injury to his calf. The servants around him hurried into the palace to invite the imperial physician. When the imperial physician came, Mu Jinxuan finally calmed down a lot. After the imperial physician re-treated the leg injury, he sighed in his heart. The injury was already quite serious to begin with, and this injury was compounded. The little prince's leg would be even more severely damaged in the future.
However, he did not say this to Mu Jinxuan. He only left the medicine and told the servants to take good care of him. He told him to stay in bed and rest during this period so that he could recover soon. The implication was that any further effort would only prolong the time he had to rest in bed.
But after the imperial physician left, Mu Jinxuan asked the eunuch beside him: "Where is Zhifu now? I want to see her, right away."
Although he was very in love with Yan Zhifu in the past, his mind was full of love and affection. However, this was the first time he took the initiative to ask about Yan Zhifu's whereabouts since he injured his leg. Compared with his own life and future, love and affection had to take a back seat.
The eunuch could not figure out what the master had in mind for Miss Yan, who was said to be a substitute, so he said cautiously, "The emperor knows about this. Miss Yan and Master Yan have been detained to interrogate the murderer who plotted against the master."
"It's definitely not Zhifu. I want to see her."
The eunuch had no choice but to go out and inquire about Yan Zhifu's situation. It turned out to be more serious than he knew before. He hurried back to tell the young prince: "Master, after the Marquis of Yongchang came to the palace, the emperor was very angry. Miss Yan was sent to the sky prison by the emperor. What should we do now?"
"Hurry, carry me to the palace. I want to go to the palace. I want to go to the palace to see His Majesty."
The servants around him tried to stop him, but it was impossible. They could only prepare as many soft cushions and quilts as possible to reduce the vibration on the way to the palace. During this period, no one went to inform Mu Chengan first, but someone reported to him everything that happened here, big or small.
Mu Cheng'an now treats this adopted son as a piece of fun. Look, he doesn't have to do anything himself in the future, and he has injured himself again. Even if there was a chance of recovery originally, this last chance is probably gone now.
Now he is entering the palace for that woman, and the old emperor still wants him to inherit the power of the Zhenbei Palace despite such a bastard.
Although this was also due to Mu Chengan's failure to teach him, would the old emperor dare to let Mu Chengan take over and let him teach? So the root of the problem still lies with that old guy.
You should bear the consequences of what you raise yourself.
"Grinding ink."
"yes."
Mu Cheng'an began to write a letter, writing down all the big and small matters concerning Mu Jinxuan in the mansion, the movements in Yongchang Marquis' Mansion, and the situations that happened in the palace. He wrote densely on several pages and then called Wu Yi. Mu Cheng'an didn't say a word, but Wu Yi knew that this was another letter to Tao Yuanjing, and asked him to contact him less frequently recently.
At this time, outside, because of the actions of the wife of the Marquis of Yongchang, the news about Yan Zhifu's substitution spread quickly. People in the capital did not expect to hear such a piece of gossip. They also felt that the woman was too complicated and whoever was targeted by her would probably end up in trouble.
The son of Minister Yan was imprisoned. How could he come out safely? The once romantic and suave young man might disappear from the capital. And what about the young prince of the Zhenbei Prince? Ha, he ended up with a crippled leg.
"If you ask me, that woman is probably the reincarnation of a fox spirit. She specializes in sucking the essence of men. If her essence is sucked away, she will be in trouble in the end."
"Have any of you seen that woman? Is she really so beautiful that she caused these two men to fight over her and even disobey the emperor's order?"
"Of course she is outstanding. If she is not outstanding, how can she charm these two men?"
"Forget it. Didn't you hear that her surname wasn't Yan, but Tao or Tao? She was originally a little maidservant beside Miss Yan, just a lowly servant. Does she really think she is so beautiful? Maybe the son of Minister Yan and the little prince are regretting it now."
This incident made many noble ladies in the capital city extremely alert. No matter how much they doted on their sons, they could not allow them to listen to them in everything, especially when it came to marrying a wife. They should marry a virtuous woman and not let their sons follow their temper. If they met a woman like Yan Zhifu, the whole family might be in trouble.
The ones who were most fortunate and gloating in this matter were the Taifu's Mansion and the family that was originally engaged to Minister Yan's Mansion. These two families had their engagements broken off one after another for the same reason. One can imagine how angry they were, but because of the existence of the Zhenbei Palace, they dared not act rashly. They could only hold their noses and swallow their anger, and wait for an opportunity to retaliate in the future.
Although the reason for the engagement was not because of the girl in their family, the environment at that time was like that, and the reputation of the girls from the two families was greatly affected. The girl who was going to be engaged to Yan Rushong would have been ruined by Tao Yuzhu, but was saved by Mu Chengan who noticed Tao Yuzhu.
Now, the reputation of their girl has been affected a little, but it is better than the result of one of these two men going to jail and the other becoming crippled.
The old lady in the Taifu Mansion hugged her granddaughter in her arms and said, "Fortunately, this marriage was cancelled and she didn't marry into the Zhenbei Palace. Otherwise, she would have married a disabled man. I'm afraid that it doesn't matter if his legs are disabled, but in the end, his heart is also disabled. If she marries him, she will suffer for the rest of her life."
"If you ask me, that person is also blind. He really thought he had taken a fancy to someone of some importance, but he didn't expect that he was just a maid who served someone else."
The granddaughter's mother said something more vicious: "Perhaps it is because she serves others that she knows how to serve those men and please them. If it were you, I would say that the young prince should not harm other good girls. Anyway, the imperial decree has been issued and the emperor has granted them a marriage, so they should live a loving life for the rest of their lives."
The old lady pointed in the direction of the palace and said, "I'm just afraid that person won't agree."
"Old lady, I heard that the young prince of Zhenbei Palace was carried into the palace." A little girl came to report.
The old lady stroked her forehead and said, "Now it depends on who can win between that person and the young prince."
Yes, who can win over whom? The result was known at the Taifu Mansion that day. Mu Jinxuan went to the palace and when he returned, there was an extra woman by his side. According to the news inquired by the Taifu Mansion, Mu Jinxuan had a maid named Tao Yuzhu by his side.
It was also at this time that the old lady understood Mu Jinxuan's thoughts. What arranged marriage was between him and Yan Zhifu, but Yan Zhifu had died at the hands of bandits long ago, so this arranged marriage was actually in name only.
Therefore, was it really for Mu Jinxuan's good to bring Tao Yuzhu out and keep her by his side as a maid?
But that's not necessarily the case. In this way, Tao Yuzhu will never be able to get rid of her status as a slave. She will be beaten, scolded and punished by her master. If his master is not satisfied with her, he can sell her off. The days when she was pampered in the palm of her hand are gone forever.
Similarly, Yuan Jing also learned about Tao Yuzhu's fate from another letter from Mu Cheng'an. Tao Yuzhu is now carefully serving Mu Jinxuan's food, drink and daily life in the Zhenbei Palace. Everything has to be handled by her. Even if Mu Jinxuan is in pain and can't sleep in the middle of the night, Tao Yuzhu, as his maid, certainly can't sleep. If she doesn't do a good job, it is common for cups to be thrown at her.
Yuan Jing looked at him and sneered. So this was true love. In the life without him and Mu Chengan, the love between these two people was so touching that countless people envied them. Perhaps it would be passed down to future generations and become a beautiful story.
But now, a broken leg and a lie have burst their feelings like a bubble, leaving Yuan Jing somewhat disappointed. When he first heard that Mu Jinxuan went to the palace to see the emperor, he thought that Mu Jinxuan was pleading for Tao Yuzhu. Although the result now is also a plea, it is not quite what he thought.
This matter went far beyond that. Within two days, Minister Yan was demoted to a commoner by the angry old emperor, who found some fault with him. His whole family became poor and Yan Rushong was imprisoned in the Tianlao. As for the Yongchang Marquisate, they did not fare any better. Their title was taken away, but at least their lives were saved.
When the commotion had not yet subsided, the day of the imperial examination results was finally arrived. The students who had been watching the show were all feeling a little confused, as if this imperial examination was not that important. In all these days, there had not been even a single proper literary gathering, and when they got together privately, they only talked about the gossip about those three people.
By this day, the nervous and excited mood had finally calmed down a little, and I was looking forward to the results of the examination.
Outside the Ministry of Rites in the capital, there was a bustling crowd of people. There was also a specially built colorful pavilion in front of the yamen, which was several levels higher in specifications than the imperial examinations and provincial examinations.
Yuan Jing was a 14-year-old candidate who was not very famous among all the candidates. After all, those who came to take the examination came from various provinces of Daxia, and there were also candidates who had accumulated over the years. Some of them were in their fifties or sixties and still came to take the examination, and there were also fathers and sons who came to take the examination together.
However, candidates from the same province were quite optimistic about Yuan Jing, Yu Xiao and Zou Weiting, but this only meant that they could enter the second class. As for the first class? It was too difficult. There were several well-known talents in their twenties in this examination, and they came from families with a strong literary style, so the chances of getting the first class were relatively high.
Yuan Jing looked at his two classmates jokingly, "You guys won't bet on who ranks higher this time?"
The two looked at each other. Yu Xiao glared, while Zou Weiting smiled good-naturedly: "I am very satisfied to be ranked second this time. In the current situation... it is better to keep a low profile. But Yuan Jing, you don't have to worry."
Considering Yuan Jing's age, even if he is particularly outstanding, it is estimated that no one will be willing to win him over. Even if he considers the face of his teacher, he still has his senior brother Di Rong in the capital to stand in front of him, so being young is not necessarily a bad thing.
Yu Xiao rarely agreed with Zou Weiting's words: "If I had waited another three years to take the imperial examination, I might have gotten a higher ranking, but three years is too long. I can't let you, Yuan Jing, fight alone."
Yuan Jing laughed when he heard this. The three of them drank tea and chatted while waiting for the announcement of the results. Finally, the list came out and someone called out the names, but they started from the eleventh place onwards. Those who were able to have their names called out were ecstatic when they heard their names.
"Thirteenth, Wenchang Prefecture Zou Tingwei."
"Congratulations, Brother Zou." Yuan Jing, Yu Xiao and others who knew him congratulated him. This was a very good result. Of course, if he was willing to wait another three years, he might be able to make further progress.
"No. 27, Yu Xiao from Wenchang Prefecture."
"Haha, I passed the exam. The ranking is better than I expected." Yu Xiao laughed happily first. He was only two years older than Yuan Jing, but in terms of experience and vision, he was three generations behind Yuan Jing. Of course, when it comes to poetic talent, Yuan Jing admits that he is not as good as Zou Weiting, let alone Yu Xiao. This kind of talent is probably innate and can only be compensated for by acquired skills. To use the teacher's words to comment on the poems written by Yuan Jing, they are too mechanical.
However, this kind of poem with too much craftsmanship is sufficient to cope with the imperial examination.
Yuan Jing’s name was never heard afterwards, but both Yu Xiao and Zou Weiting believed that his ranking would be higher than theirs, so he would definitely be in the top ten.
A total of 200 Jinshi were admitted this time, with two types of candidates, those who were on the list and those who were not. After the announcement was made, the team started reporting backwards from the tenth place, and each announcement would be met with a lot of cheers.
"Brother Zhang, I knew you could get into high school. Sure enough, you are in the top ten. Congratulations, Brother Zhang."
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