Chapter 324: The Lady of the Marquisate vs. the Younger Prince 67
Jing Yu and Ji Yunhuan sat in the attic drinking tea, looking down from the window, taking in everything.
He tapped the table with his index finger and said in a deep voice, "Arrange two more people to keep an eye on him and make sure Kong Liang's life is saved. We should also keep a close eye on the Kong family. Some people are bullies and like to threaten others with women and children."
"Yes!" Chen Peng responded and went down to do it immediately.
Ji Yunhuan took a sip of tea and stared at the chaotic crowd below with a frown. Many people who claimed to be from Lushan Academy appeared and were arguing with Kong Liang.
There was no telling how many people with evil intentions were hiding in the crowd. As long as Kong Liang was killed, all problems would be solved at the source.
Killing the chicken to scare the monkeys, other candidates will not dare to make trouble even if they still have doubts in their hearts.
"Yun Ye, go down and help Kong Liang. Beat anyone who dares to touch him. No need to reason. You can't win against those literati anyway."
Liang Yunye slipped out from under the bed and went away happily.
Jing Yu was speechless. "When did he hide under the bed? He hid it very well. Why did Chen Peng, this idiot, teach him these things? After learning the skills of stealth assassination, is he going to be an assassin in the future?"
Ji Yunhuan coughed lightly. She felt that this might not have been taught by Chen Peng. Liang Yunye learned it purely on his own.
After Liang Yunye went down, the arrogance of those literati was suppressed. Liang Yunye's image of being chivalrous and brave, and eliminating harm for the people has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. He is not good at speaking, so whoever he hits, it means that person is up to something, and he never makes mistakes.
The situation is very good. It won't be long before the news of cheating in the imperial examination spreads throughout the capital.
Jing Yu sat down next to Sister Huan with a smile on his face, his eyes sparkling, and with a wagging tail, he looked like a big dog.
"The poetry collection for the imperial examination is published every year. This year, Pei Ci Fu felt guilty and found an excuse to prevent the poetry from being released from the Imperial Examination Hall. Thanks to my father-in-law's secret mediation, this matter was able to go so smoothly. I am really touched that my father-in-law can help me like this."
Ji Yunhuan spat out a mouthful of tea and coughed violently. After a long pause, he spoke:
"Don't make a fuss about something that hasn't even been decided yet! My father never got involved in the party's fight for the throne, and he was loyal to the emperor and his country. It's obvious that there were examiners who were not afraid of power and acted according to the rules. What does this have to do with my father? Don't talk nonsense!"
Jing Yu chuckled, "Yes, yes, yes! Sister Huan is right, my father-in-law is the most upright person, and he will naturally act impartially."
"Sister Huan is good to me, and my father-in-law is also good to me. I remember them all in my heart. I am not like some ungrateful people who pretend to be ignorant when they know the truth and really think that they have caught the emperor's eye for no reason, and don't even think about what kind of person they are..."
Jing Yu criticized Liang Wanzhou for a while, and then heard Sister Huan praising him in her heart. Although Sister Huan didn't admit it, she was very happy in her heart.
As Jing Yu was talking, his hands started to get naughty. Ji Yunhuan pinched Jing Yu's paws, straightened his messed-up collar, and said angrily:
"Stop making trouble! Look down, Minister Zhao is here. You and your father cannot show up. Whether you can bring the person into the palace depends on Minister Zhao."
Minister Zhao came to pick up his wife and daughter and took them home. As he passed by this street, he naturally heard about the cheating in the imperial examination.
He was also a newly crowned top scholar. He tested Kong Liang's knowledge on the spot and felt that the boy was indeed talented, so he brought him back home.
The next day, at the imperial court meeting, with Jing Yu's secret escort, Minister Zhao brought Kong Liang to the palace to meet the emperor safely, and everything went smoothly.
Inside the Golden Palace, Kong Liang knelt in the center and revealed the chaos of the imperial examination in a dignified manner. He represented not only himself, but also those students who had studied hard.
He did not target any examiner, but instead directed his criticism at Zheng Jie.
"Mr. Zheng is not a learned man, and the teachers at Lushan Academy can all testify to that. I don't know how he plagiarized my poems. I dare not frame Mr. Zheng, and I am willing to confront him in court. I beg Your Majesty to investigate and clear my name."
When Zheng Jie was invited into the palace, he was already frightened out of his wits. He couldn't even speak clearly, let alone compose poems or discuss the classics. He was soon silenced by Kong Liang.
Pei Ci Fu shook his head slightly at the officials from his own lineage, indicating that they should not worry about it.
Zheng Jie is so unpresentable that he has no choice but to be abandoned. The Zheng family is finished!
Minister Zhao was filled with righteous indignation. He knelt down and said to the emperor: "Since ancient times, cheating in the imperial examination has been a serious crime. It is not too much to confiscate the family property and exterminate the clan! Zheng Jie is a young man with no official position. How can he manipulate the examination? In my humble opinion, all the examiners who participated in the examination that day are suspects and must be investigated!"
Soon, all the examiners arrived and Liang Wanzhou was brought in by the royal guards.
Liang Wanzhou was so scared that he thought he was all-powerful and everything was going smoothly. How come the matter was reported to the emperor so quickly?
There was no need for further interrogation, as Liang Wanzhou sold out Examiner He immediately.
"It was all Lord He who instigated this. He asked me to accept bribes and let the candidates who brought in cheats in. There were seven or eight candidates who gave money to bring cheats in. The top three candidates in the examination had already been decided. I was just deceived and made a big mistake because of a slip of the mind. Please have mercy on me, Your Majesty!"
The emperor sat on the dragon throne, furious, "Come here! Throw these two people into the death row, this matter ends here, I am tired, I will withdraw from the court!"
Pei Cifu immediately knelt down and took the lead in shouting: "Farewell, Your Majesty!"
Minister Zhao was filled with passion and stood in front of the emperor, advising him: "Your Majesty, please be clear! Accepting bribes and bringing in smuggled items are indeed the faults of Marquis Xuanwu. He deserves death."
"But changing the exam papers and deciding the top three is not something that a captain in charge and a mere examiner can do. I think the chief examiner cannot escape the blame!"
Pei Ci Fu only regretted that he had not been able to kill Shangshu Zhao and Kong Liang last night, which made him so passive today.
The top three in the provincial examination would not rank too badly in the palace examination. He had already sold the qualifications for the top three places. They were all from the lineage of the second prince. Everyone knew it and from now on they were all on the same boat.
The chief examiner can see most of the exam questions, and the top three will be given the most questions. As long as you prepare well in advance, you can still bring in cheat sheets if you really can't remember them, and everything will be fine.
Unexpectedly, Kong Liang suddenly appeared. There were many examiners marking the papers, and he could not cover up everything. In the end, Kong Liang's paper was recognized as the first.
The names of the examiners were all covered and the papers had been transcribed, so the handwriting was the same. All one had to do was swap the contents of the two people's original papers and re-transcribe them according to their handwriting, and the result would be perfect.
Pei Cifu argued: "I have no relationship with the Zheng family. How could I ignore my own future and the reputation of the Pei family for the sake of the son of the Zheng family? I would never dare to deceive Your Majesty. I beg Your Majesty to understand clearly."
"As the chief examiner, I have indeed failed to supervise the examiners under me. I am ashamed and cannot face Your Majesty."
Pei Ci Fu lowered his head. Even at his old age, he shed tears in the Golden Palace and sobbed.
The second prince also came over and knelt, crying sincerely, "I am also guilty. As an inspection ambassador, I failed to discover the trick and caused your father to worry about this matter. I am unfilial and I beg your father to punish me."
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