"Brother Li, Brother Zhou, what you said is biased. Regardless of what the examination questions are, I do not agree with the fact that recruiting soldiers has more advantages than disadvantages."

"As the saying goes, soldiers can be kept out of service for a thousand days, but they cannot be left unprepared for even a single day. The peace and tranquility of our Great Qi today is the result of countless soldiers sacrificing their lives and blood."

"A country without soldiers is like a house without doors. Isn't this just opening the door and waiting for robbers to come?!"

"As soon as the new emperor ascended the throne, he was able to discover the malpractice of the army eating empty salaries, and issued an order to rectify it with great vigor. It can be seen that the new emperor is a man with sharp ears and eyes and a broad mind."

“…”

They talked passionately and Shen Qianchen found it interesting. She liked hearing people praise Gu Jue the most.

She pursed her lips and smiled, raised her hand to call the waiter, and ordered a pot of snow-soaked plum blossom wine to relieve the heat.

"You have a lot of ambitions in mind?!" The blue-robed Li Juren sneered again and shook his head disapprovingly, "You are too naive!"

What he said was almost like saying that they had become stupid from reading too much.

Mr. Li gave a cold smile, as if he was the only one sober among the rest, and continued, "Haven't you heard about it? In May, when the new emperor ascended the throne, he dismissed an imperial envoy."

"Since ancient times, the censors have been in charge of supervision, not only inspecting the officials, but also advising the emperor to prevent the emperor from listening to or believing in one side."

"The new emperor was so arbitrary right after he ascended the throne. The imperial envoy made a direct appeal, but he not only refused to listen, but forced the envoy to bang his head against the pillar in public in the Golden Palace, causing an uproar in the court. However, the new emperor felt that the censor's threat of death was an act of insubordination, so he not only dismissed the censor from his post, but also used force to suppress all officials, making them dare not speak out in anger."

Mr. Li spoke with righteous indignation and sincerity, and his voice became increasingly louder and louder, almost making one think that he had witnessed the scene in the Golden Palace that day.

Most of the students present were from other places, so their sources of information were limited and they had never heard of these things before. Some were shocked, some were curious, some sighed, and some were indignant.

"Brother Li, are you telling the truth?" The forty-something Zhou Juren with a goatee frowned and asked Juren Li, "Who is that censor?"

Mr. Li straightened his chest calmly and said seriously, "How can I make up such a big thing out of nothing?"

"The censor's surname is Ji. I won't tell you his name. You can go to the capital to ask for it."

"Alas, Lord Ji is also pitiful. He has been an honest official all his life and impeached many corrupt officials. He is loyal and brave, but because of a few honest words of advice, the emperor was displeased and brought disaster upon himself. Not only did the new emperor dismiss him, but he also banned the three generations of the Ji family from taking the imperial examinations! This is simply murdering people and destroying their hearts!"

Many students were touched by what Mr. Li said.

They were all scholars who had studied hard for ten years in order to take the imperial examination. However, the new emperor's casual words extinguished the hopes of three generations.

Mr. Zhou was more and more emotional, shaking his head and sighing, and said, "I heard that the new emperor forced the emperor to abdicate and seize the throne, so it's no wonder that he is more martial."

The atmosphere suddenly became depressing and solemn.

Many students looked unhappy. Some were more or less persuaded by the two men, while others were skeptical about Censor Ji's affairs and felt that they had to find out more about Censor Ji before making any comments.

Shen Qianchen moved closer to Gu Jue and whispered in his ear, laughing, "This Mr. Li is really well-informed. He even knows what happened in the court."

She narrowed her eyes and glanced meaningfully between Mr. Li and Mr. Zhou.

What these people did was too obvious. They deliberately spread rumors among these students and influenced public opinion, causing them to be prejudiced against Gu Jue.

It is obvious who is the mastermind behind Mr. Li and Mr. Zhou.

Ji Mingzhi was dismissed from office, and the Ji family was punished by being banned from taking the imperial examinations for three generations. It seems that Ji Mingzhi and "the person" behind him are neither convinced nor willing to give up.

Yes, when Gu Lang was in power, apart from being extra cautious towards Gu Jue, he was quite tolerant towards other ministers, and even had a laissez-faire attitude. As long as nothing major happened in the court, Gu Lang could pretend that everything was fine.

As time went on like this, the military generals of Kang Hongda's party and the civil officials headed by Wei Jingze became more and more greedy, and they sucked the blood and flesh of the court like leeches.

These people were used to living a comfortable life, and it was difficult for them to go from luxury to frugality. Now, of course, they would not want to have a too powerful monarch over them, so they wanted to suppress Gu Jue and make him make concessions.

Shen Qianchen's eyes turned cold. They really had a good plan.

At this time, the waiter served the two of them snow-soaked plum wine with a smile on his face. The white porcelain wine pot was placed in a dish of crushed ice. From the wine to the wine pot, everything was icy cold, and wisps of white smoke were still coming out.

Shen Qianchen poured a glass of wine for Gu Jue, handed it to him, and whispered, "Three glasses at most."

This snow-soaked plum blossom wine is not a strong liquor, but just glutinous rice sweet wine soaked in plum petals, so Gu Jue can also have a few drinks.

Gu Jue took the wine glass, took a sip of the snow-soaked plum wine, and raised his eyebrows.

For Gu Jue, who has been in the army for many years, this kind of sweet wine can hardly be called wine. It can only be regarded as a kind of fruit juice. However, it is quite suitable for girls to drink.

Seeing that Shen Qianchen's glass was half empty, he added more wine to her glass.

Shen Qianchen looked at the blue-robed scholar who stood up suddenly at the next table. The blue-robed scholar looked around and said seriously, "It has only been more than two months since the emperor ascended the throne. He has exempted the people from taxes and investigated corruption in the army. These measures show that the emperor is determined to clean up the bureaucracy and correct the atmosphere."

“I shouldn’t.”

He did not think that the new emperor Gu Jue was a tyrant who would not listen to advice.

Some nodded, some shook their heads. These students debated for such a long time, but still could not reach a consensus. No one could convince the other. Everyone had their own ideas and their own persistence.

Shen Qianchen curled his lips, picked up the wine glass casually, and took two sips of the cool and sweet wine. He felt that there were still a few smart people with sharp eyes and minds among these scholars.

Logically speaking, Wei Jingze has been in the court for decades and has seen countless people. How come he is not as good as this nerd who is a total stranger to Gu Jue? Gu Jue has never been the kind of person who would be led by the nose by others.

When Shen Qianchen put the wine glass to her lips again, she felt the man next to her approaching her again. His thin lips "inadvertently" brushed her earlobe again, and he whispered, "I recently asked the Ministry of Personnel to arrange for officials to report to the capital."

Shen Qianchen blinked, her eyes moved, she also knew this.

Gu Jue apparently ordered officials to come to Beijing to report on their work, but in fact he also had the intention of reforming the system and streamlining the number of officials. However, now everyone else just thought that this was the first "report" after the new emperor ascended the throne.

The mere "performance report" had actually made many people in the court nervous.

Therefore, Wei Jingze didn't make a fuss early or late, but chose to start making a fuss at this time.

Now it was the time for the imperial examination, and there were many scholars in the capital. Since ancient times, students have always been very self-righteous, noble and proud. Because they have not experienced any storms, they are often too upright. These people have always been the easiest to be instigated.

Immediately afterwards, Li Juren also stood up and applauded the Qingyi Juren, saying, "Brother Xuan is really eloquent."

Perhaps he was too excited, and his body bumped into the chair behind him, making a "click" sound, which immediately attracted more curious eyes, and even other tea drinkers in the lobby looked at these scholars.

Li Juren and Xuan Juren looked at each other, raised their chins disapprovingly, and said, "Brother Xuan, since you are so protective of the emperor, it seems that you should have an idea of ​​how to answer the question of 'garrisoning troops'."

At first glance, what Mr. Li said was puzzling. However, considering that he had previously mentioned that there would be a question on "stationing troops" in this year's examination, the meaning behind his words became meaningful, as if he was saying that Mr. Xuan was flattering his superiors for the sake of fame.

For these self-righteous scholars, this is already a serious insult.

"..." Xuan Juren's face suddenly turned red, with a look of shame and anger.

Many students around him looked at him strangely, some scrutinizing him, some looking contemptuous, some suddenly realizing, and some shaking their heads and sighing...

Shen Qianchen also frowned and looked at Mr. Li and Mr. Zhou with displeasure.

She hated them saying bad things about Gu Jue. When would they ever stop?

If Gu Jue hadn't been here, she would have wanted to rush up and use her needle to teach these guys who were spreading rumors and causing trouble a lesson.

Although Gu Jue thought the little girl looked cute when she was angry, like a kitten sharpening its claws, he still felt distressed when he saw her angry. He immediately raised his hand to smooth her brows and poured her more wine.

Mr. Li left Mr. Xuan speechless, but he felt quite happy at the same time.

He pulled up the corner of his lips, forming a complacent arc, feeling as if he had won the final victory in the verbal attack on the emperor.

He slowly looked around, enjoying the admiring gazes of others, and calmly bowed to the others, asking them to express their opinions: "Brother Wang, Brother Liu, what do you think?"

Mr. Wang: “…”

Mr. Liu: “…”

When Li Juren's eyes swept across Gu Jue at the next table, he saw that Gu Jue had an extraordinary demeanor and some of the elegance and nobleness of a scholar, so he smiled and asked, "What do you think, brother?"

To him, Gu Jue's silence was tantamount to agreement.

Gu Jue took another sip of the fragrant snow-soaked plum blossom wine, and his slender fingers casually turned the small white porcelain wine glass with a broken plum branch in his hand, and asked casually, "May I ask your name, brother?"

Mr. Li bowed and replied, "No need to mention your surname, Li."

Gu Jue asked the other party's last name, but he had no intention of introducing himself. He smiled and said, "As the old saying goes, listening to both sides will lead to enlightenment, while believing in only one side will lead to ignorance. I have never met that Ji Yushi, so it is really not appropriate for me to make irresponsible comments on his character."

“…”

“…”

“…”

Originally, Mr. Li asked Gu Jue about his opinion on the new emperor, but Gu Jue turned the conversation to Censor Ji. At first it sounded like his answer was irrelevant, but upon closer thought, it made people feel that it was worth pondering.

None of them knew Censor Ji, nor did they know what exactly happened in the Golden Palace that day in May, or whether this incident was true or false, or how true or false it was.

Gu Jue took another sip of wine gracefully, and then continued slowly, "I have heard that Censor Ji is honest and fair. I have long admired Censor Ji. Could you please help me introduce him to someone, Brother Li?"

He sat upright at a square table, his lotus-colored robe making his fair skin look as white as mutton-fat jade. There was a faint smile at the corner of his lips, his smile was like a clear breeze, and his every move revealed his elegance and dignity.

As long as he wants, he can easily make people feel like spring breeze; as long as he wants, he can easily make people speechless.

Mr. Li choked, his eyes flickered, and he laughed unnaturally, "Brother, you misunderstood me. How could I know Censor Ji?"

He found himself in a dilemma. If he said that he knew Censor Ji, he would be helping Censor Ji to condemn the new emperor. If he said that he did not know Censor Ji, then what rights did he have to speak up for Censor Ji without any evidence?

At this time, Xuan Juren had calmed down and asked, "Brother Li, from whom did you hear about Ji Yushi?"

"..."Mr. Li was speechless, his expression stiff.

If he cannot say today from whom he heard the story of Censor Ji, then he is "biased".

Mr. Li's eyes wandered for a moment, and he could only say vaguely, "This matter concerns the political affairs of the court, so I can't say the name of this person. Anyway, it is true that Censor Ji hit his head against the pillar, was dismissed, and his three generations were not allowed to take the imperial examinations."

Gu Jue took out the folding fan that Shen Qianchen had won just now, and spun it flexibly between his slender fingers. Then he casually opened the folding fan and sighed, "Brother Li, three people can make a tiger. You'd better listen to both sides. The most feared thing is this kind of 'knowing the result but not the reason'."

When Gu Jue spoke, his words were clear, neither fast nor slow, neither high nor low, and his tone seemed to carry a soothing and melodious rhythm like the sound of a piano. Listening to him, one could not help but be drawn in and follow his train of thought.

Xuan Juren and several other students were all thoughtful.

As scholars, they studied hard for ten years and turned a deaf ear to what was happening outside in order to concentrate on their studies. But now that they have reached their current level and are only one hurdle away from passing the imperial examination, they have to start paying attention to state affairs. There has been no shortage of questions discussing current affairs in the imperial examinations and palace examinations over the years.

Mr. Li was sweating profusely and could only say with difficulty, "Thank you for your guidance, brother."

After he finished speaking, he sat back and drank his tea with his head down.

"My dear brother, I think you are very measured in your words," Mr. Zhou, who was standing next to him, suddenly raised his eyes to look at Gu Jue and asked casually, "Are you here to take the imperial examination this year as well?"

No one noticed that Shen Qianchen's eyes suddenly lit up when he heard these words, and he stared at Gu Jue without blinking.

Gu Jue nodded and said to Mr. Zhou, "That's right."

After saying that, Gu Jue turned to Shen Qianchen and said, "Let's go, we still have to visit the Lantern Festival."

Gu Jue threw a piece of silver on the table and left the teahouse with Shen Qianchen.

Inside the teahouse, several scholars watched them leave with different looks in their eyes.

Shen Qianchen was pulled forward by Gu Jue, staring at him, staring at him, staring at him with burning eyes.

The sun had completely set, and the sky outside had turned a deep dark blue. A faint crescent moon appeared in the night sky.

The night breeze was cool and refreshing, gently caressing their hair and clothes.

The two walked forward in the night wind. Gu Jue said as he walked, "I have ordered river lanterns. Let's go to the shop to get them first, and then go to the lantern festival and release the river lanterns."

As for what Gu Jue said, Shen Qianchen actually listened with one ear and out with the other, and just nodded blindly. His mind was actually on other things, and his eyes were bright.

After walking half a block forward, Shen Qianchen saw that there was no one around, so he gently pulled Gu Jue's sleeve and called out in a tender voice, "Jiu Xia."

She looked up at him, her eyes slightly raised, the corners of her eyes curled up, and her pupils as hot and bright as the sun.

She just stood there in the silver moonlight, like a blooming pink lotus, coming towards me with a bit of the freshness unique to a young girl, smart and pretty.

"What's wrong?" Gu Jue stopped, turned to look at her with a faint smile.

The two stopped at the entrance of an alley. There was no one else around. The high walls of the alley cast a deep shadow, which just happened to hide the figures of the two people in the shadow.

Shen Qianchen bit her lower lip slightly, her eyes brightened, and she asked a question that she had been curious about for a long time but had no chance to ask: "Have you ever taken the imperial examination?"

There are many legends about Gu Jue in the capital and even in Da Qi.

One of them is that when Gu Jue was young, he once anonymously participated in the Spring Examination. That year, Xie Wenjing was the chief examiner. He was a tutor and taught Gu Jue, and he recognized Gu Jue's handwriting. If not for this, Gu Jue would have had a chance to win the first place.

Gu Jue: “…”

Gu Jue stared at Shen Qianchen in a daze for a long while before he asked with a strange expression, "What did you hear?"

Shen Qianchen: "..."

Shen Qianchen was originally very curious, but after he said that and looked at her like that, she suddenly felt embarrassed. Her eyelashes drooped and her eyes wandered.

Gu Jue looked at her embarrassed expression and found her cute no matter how he looked at her, so he reached out and held her in his arms.

He chuckled softly, seeming to think it was quite amusing.

Shen Qianchen's cheek was pressed against his chest. She could feel his laughter coming from his strong chest, vibrating her eardrums along with his heartbeat.

Boom boom boom! Shen Qianchen no longer knew whether she was hearing his heartbeat or her own, and she felt even more embarrassed.

She simply gave up and put her arms around his waist.

After a moment, she heard his smiling voice coming from above her head:

“I have never participated in the examination.”

Huh?! Shen Qianchen leaned against his chest and blinked, then blinked again. She was so shocked that she forgot her embarrassment for a moment.

She took two steps back like a cat whose tail was stepped on, looked up at him, and couldn't help asking, "Really?"

Gu Jue suppressed his laughter and nodded confidently.

Then, he held her hand and continued walking forward, smiling and saying, "But I did pass the autumn examination."

Shen Qianchen paused again, his eyes lit up again. In other words, the rumors were not all false, right? !

"He won the first place." Gu Jue said again.

Shen Qianchen listened with great interest, and silently counted on his fingers. Gu Jue had the Autumn Examination when he was fourteen, so he should have taken the Autumn Examination that year. After that, he went to the North, so it should be impossible for him to take part in the Spring Examination the following year.

Shen Qianchen couldn't help but ask again out of curiosity: "Which pseudonym did you use?"

Of course it was impossible for Gu Jue to take the imperial examination under the name "Gu Jue", otherwise he would be exposed.

In fact, she also had a guess in her mind. That was a pseudonym that Gu Jue often used. She asked him deliberately and wanted to hear him tell her in person.

A glimmer of nostalgia appeared in Gu Jue's eyes, and he smiled and said, "Yin Jiuxia."

"Yin" is of course the "Yin" of Queen Mother Yin.

As expected. Shen Qianchen chuckled secretly, and his steps became lighter.

The two went to a lantern shop on the street and picked up a basket of river lanterns that Gu Jue had reserved.

When I came out of the lantern shop, I heard an unfamiliar male voice coming from the alley next to me: "Sir, may I have a word with you?"

Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man in a green robe standing in the narrow and dark alley a few steps away. He was thin, with a slightly hunched back, and looked at them with a sweet smile.

Gu Jue raised his eyebrows but didn't go over.

The middle-aged man cleared his throat and said, "Sir, I am not a bad person. I just want to say a few words to you."

He took two steps towards Gu Jue and looked around carefully. After confirming that there was no one else around, he asked quietly, "Master, do you want to buy the test paper?"

After a pause, he added five more words: "The examination paper for the imperial examination."

There will be a second update later~ 　　There will be a side story next. All the things that are not explained in the main text will be in the side story. If you feel that you haven't read enough, just read the side story. Anyway, the timeline follows the main text, so there is no difference. Update at the usual time.

You said it was too hasty to end? But when the emperor was forced to abdicate, he started to finish.

Now, the Huang family has been solved, the Chu family has been solved, and the prince has ascended the throne. The prince is so powerful that the court dare not mess around. Without Qianchen, the harem, the prince will not face a life-and-death catastrophe. The plot is actually very complete.

The rest are in the extra chapter.

(End of this chapter)