During their stay at the Yuelai Inn, they heard from the locals that some scholars in the neighborhood had hanged themselves after failing the imperial examinations. None of these families were wealthy, and the scholars had taken the exams several times in a row, which increased the burden on their families. Some of them could only participate in the last imperial examination.
The scholars had a habit of reciting their exam papers from memory. When they had their transcribed papers reviewed by acquaintances, everyone said that their answers were very accurate and that they would pass the exam if nothing unexpected happened. But now, they had suffered such a blow, which had greatly traumatized them and made them contemplate suicide.
Inside the study, Yin and Yin sat facing each other, their brows furrowed. Kangxi kept issuing orders to them. The Dragon Guards had always come from the mountains and forests and had never traveled on the main roads. They stayed in government inns, so they were not very clear about the true situation.
"Fourth Brother, the managers are here!" Qingyan and Yingenjueluo went out, saying that they wanted to order a set of jewelry and had the managers of Linglong Pavilion come over directly.
"This servant greets the master and the fourth master!" The shopkeepers quickly bowed as they entered.
"Let's get started," Yin said, waving his hand. "Have you been transporting jewelry to Yangzhou recently? How are the road conditions?"
Qingyan sat upright beside Yin, her head bowed as she stared at her sleeves, seemingly studying the Suzhou embroidery. The shopkeeper, unable to get any guidance from his master, could only follow their agreement and tell the truth.
"Fourth Master, the situation is extremely bad. In order to get the goods out, we've been sending large sums of silver at the checkpoints as bribes. The guards all insist on operating at night, and absolutely no carriages are allowed near during the day. Linglong Pavilion has hosted several banquets for the Prefect, all of them the highest-level banquets at Yuelai Inn. After all this bribery, Linglong Pavilion has lost at least tens of thousands of taels of silver during His Majesty's two-month southern tour." Three managers from Linglong Pavilion came in total, and even Manager Yang, who was closest to Yangzhou, sighed repeatedly.
"And you? Manager Yang, we just met a few days ago!" Yin remembered Manager Yang. When they left Yangzhou, their first stop was his Linglong Pavilion.
"Yes, Master summoned me, and I rushed over at top speed. Once I entered Shandong, the situation became even more dire," Manager Yang sighed.
Shandong is the hometown of Confucius. To outsiders, it is a place of worship for scholars. The scholars here are constantly being tricked by the examiners, which is unbearable for them.
"Did you travel all the way here at night?" Qingyan understood. It was all just a facade. He traveled alone during the day, but he knew how to do it at night.
Shopkeeper Yang nodded directly and said, "On the day the results were announced, the scholars gathered at the examination hall. It was the government that sent yamen runners to drive them away. Some of them were injured. The situation in Yangzhou was similar. Lord Cao promised that after His Majesty's southern tour, he would personally give them a reply."
Qingyan rolled up her small handkerchief, and the scholars might cling to it tightly, but that didn't matter.
"Why are you making it sound so nice? Those scholars carried the God of Wealth there, and he was placed at the entrance of the examination hall. The chief examiners had all left beforehand, otherwise they would have been blocked at the entrance by the scholars," said Manager Wang, who lived in the second courtyard of Yangzhou.
The God of Wealth is placed at the entrance of the Examination Hall?!
Pfft!
Several spitting sounds of tea being sprayed rang out. Apart from Qingyan, the rest of the group were stunned. This... was blatant dissatisfaction.
"You're right, those scholars who made the biggest fuss all seem to have hanged themselves." Manager Yang tried hard to recall.
Instantly, everyone understood that someone in the capital had suppressed the news. Otherwise, why would Kangxi, who had been observing the movements of the imperial examinations in the south, have not heard anything?
As evening approached, they saw off the shopkeepers. Yin leaned wearily against his chair, staring blankly outside. These examiners in the officialdom were all personally selected by Emperor Kangxi, and some of them even came from impoverished families.
Having spent many years on their official careers, they had long forgotten their former ambitions.
"Fourth Brother, do you think those people committed suicide?" Qingyan had been trying to figure this out. They couldn't bribe the coroner, so to find out, they had to send a servant who knew about coroners to investigate.
"Eru, go to the scholar's house yourself and see how many of the scholars on the list have not yet been buried," Yin instructed, pointing to the list on the table.
The trouble caused by the scholars whose scores were stolen is another matter entirely. All the people on the list were replaced, and news quickly came from the Imperial Examination Office that if that paper had appeared in the provincial examination, it would have been a good result.
Yin kept staring at the letter. Kangxi hadn't responded for a long time, and the transcribed dossier kept returning. Yin was worried that Suo'etu and the others wouldn't let it go.
"Little Darling, have Bayan take some men to relocate that scholar. Give the shopkeeper a long leave; we absolutely cannot let them work again." Yin silently considered whether it was time to rearrange the plans.
Qingyan listened to Yin's arrangements and quickly got to work. These managers were hard-earned, and Qingyan would feel heartbroken if any of them were injured.
Bayan stood at the door, listened to Sulan whisper a few words to him, and then rushed outside.
Yin tapped his brow with his right hand, hoping that Bayan hadn't arrived too late.
"Little darling, you need to be prepared to replace this manager at any time." Yin was unsure of himself. If Suo'etu seized this opportunity and used the imperial examination to bribe the manager, a breach would be opened at Yuelai Inn.
What?!
"It shouldn't be a problem. We've already helped them, how could anything go wrong?" Qingyan trusted her people, and what Yin said made sense.
"One should always be wary of others!" Yin said directly.
Qingyan fiddled with her handkerchief, thinking about who could take over. Suddenly, she realized that all the other managers were secretly training an assistant, but this person wasn't.
She fell silent instantly. The Yuelai Inn held a special position as a transit point for imported goods, all of which were extremely lucrative.
"Si Si, could you investigate this?" Qing Yan thought about it and lost her confidence.
Yin pinched her cheek. Recently, he had discovered several people at the Yuelai Inn. These were servants of officials in the capital. They lived at the Yuelai Inn and were very familiar with the innkeeper.
"What did you discover?" Qingyan asked.
After the twins were born, he found that he would only give her a few pointers and let her do things on her own, which was a significant change from his previous tendency to take on everything himself.
"Observe the last few people who left Yuelai Inn?" Yin gave a hint. Those people had all appeared in front of her, so she probably hadn't paid attention.
Qingyan was completely bewildered. It was just a fleeting glimpse of someone passing by. She was so focused on eating that no one below noticed her. That's what deserves a beating.
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