Shen Cui couldn't hold it in any longer, and since there was no one to talk to, she could only complain to the system: [This guy is the same, he came to see Er Pang, he could just say no. It’s normal for the brothers, whose surnames can’t be written with one stroke, to come and visit after not seeing each other for three years. 】
The system said: [Doesn’t the host know? Mu Yunchuan still hasn't considered the host as one of his own. He does treat the No. 1 training target a little differently. If he's too direct about it, wouldn't that be like handing you a handle? 】
Chen Cui thought about it and it was true. Although the two of them were no longer in a hostile relationship, if her "kindness" in the past few years was all a disguise, her true nature would be hard to change, and she was just waiting for Erpang to graduate from high school. If he knew that he was sincere towards Erpang, he would probably have other ideas, such as asking him to help Erpang in his career.
He was so cautious only to protect himself, and Erpang was indeed concerned about his elder brother, so she did not expose him and only said, "Since you have met, you two should talk for a while. I'll go prepare dinner first."
As she spoke, Shen Cui stood up and left the space to the two of them, thinking that if she was not there, Mu Yunchuan would not have to be so polite.
"I just heard that my eldest brother is ill. Although my sister-in-law said that you are well, it is still reassuring to see you in person." Mu Erpang carefully looked at Mu Yunchuan's face while speaking, and couldn't help but sighed calmly, "Mom also fell ill. Why don't you adults take care of your health? No one can worry about you."
As soon as his little housekeeper's tone came out, Mu Yunchuan couldn't help but curl his lips, "I'm fine. I came here to tell you something."
As he spoke, he straightened his face and said, "The chief examiner of the examination has come out."
Mu Erpang was too busy joking to care about it anymore, and asked in a serious tone, "Can other people in our academy listen?"
It is not yet the twelfth lunar month, and according to the custom of this dynasty, the court usually announces the news at the beginning of the new year when candidates from all over the country gather in the capital.
Although Mu Yunchuan's current official position is low, he is only a sixth-rank editor in the Hanlin Academy, but scholars all over the world are vying to enter the Hanlin Academy because Hanlin officials are considered to be close ministers of the emperor and there is a high possibility that they will be appointed by the emperor to serve as imperial readers.
Although Mu Yunchuan did not have much experience, he performed exceptionally well in the palace examination. He was also the only genius in this dynasty who won six top honors in a row, so he had the opportunity to meet the emperor from time to time.
The reason why he was so sure was that he had heard accurate news, rather than just hearsay.
Mu Erpang asked this question because he was worried that if this inside information could not be shared with other people in the academy, only he would know it.
A hint of surprise flashed in Mu Yunchuan's eyes, as if he didn't expect that Mu Erpang's first thought was whether he could share the news with his classmates. However, this was Mu Erpang's own choice, so he didn't interfere. He just said, "In fact, the court said that the news would be announced after the New Year every year, but in fact, at this moment, some candidates have already started to inquire through various channels. At most half a month, this matter is no longer inside information."
This meant that everyone could listen together. Fat Mu thanked him and went to call other people over.
When everyone was present, Mu Yunchuan continued, "The emperor originally intended to let Mr. Shen be the chief examiner again this year, but Mr. Shen said that he was old and worried that he might not be able to do it. But the emperor insisted that Mr. Shen recommend someone, and Mr. Shen finally recommended Mr. Pang. It was really unexpected."
After several people finished listening, Mu Erpang looked at the others with a confused look on his face.
Lao Buyu helped explain, "Old Master Shen is the Grand Secretary we mentioned earlier in the academy. He doesn't value empty reputations and doesn't like people calling him "Grand Secretary," so he's usually just called 'Old Master Shen' or 'Mr. Shen.' And Grand Secretary Pang is the Second Secretary... He doesn't like people calling him "Second Secretary" or "Second Secretary," either."
Lao Buyu gave Mu Erpang a subtle 'you know' look, and Mu Erpang nodded in understanding.
As the second-in-command, he always doesn't like people repeatedly reminding him through the title that there is someone above him.
There is no need to say what happened next. Elder Shen and Pang Ci Fu did not get along, but Elder Shen recommended Pang Ci Fu as the chief examiner. Isn't this unexpected, as Mu Yunchuan said?
But in fact, when Mu Yunchuan said this, he had roughly guessed the reason in his heart - the descendants of the Shen family had never entered the officialdom. It was said that it was Lord Shen who asked his descendants to hide their identities and return to their hometown to take the exam.
The imperial examination required the names and resumes of three generations of a family to be recorded, and the relevant imperial examination personnel could see this when copying the rankings.
If they see it, it will spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred. Why should we hide it?
Therefore, Elder Shen asked for grace from the late emperor and prepared a "fake" household registration certified by the late emperor for the descendants of the Shen family.
Chen is not a common surname, but it is not a very unpopular surname either. Even in a small place like Yongning County, there are several families with the surname Chen. It is absolutely impossible to tell just from the surname. And we cannot rule out the possibility that the surname Lian in the fake household registration has also been changed.
So basically, except for the late emperor and Lord Shen himself, no one knew what fate the descendants of the Shen family had.
The late emperor passed away due to illness a few years ago, and many things were not explained clearly to the current emperor, who was the crown prince at that time. That fake household registration is one of them.
Now is the time to recruit people. The current emperor proposed to let Elder Shen be the chief examiner. On the one hand, it is naturally because he trusts him. On the other hand, he is actually urging him to release the younger generation of the Shen family as soon as possible.
However, Lord Shen firmly declined and instead recommended Pang Ci Fu, who had always been at odds with him.
Then it is very likely that among the candidates taking the examination this year, there are descendants of the Shen family.
In this way, his descendants would pass the examination under Pang Ci Fu, who was at odds with Lord Shen, and there would definitely be no doubt about the fairness of this examination.
This concerns the situation in the court, which is the real secret that cannot be told to outsiders. Moreover, there is actually no need for Mu Erpang and others to know it. Elder Shen did this because he did not want to give any privileges to his descendants. On the contrary, it is beneficial to them, the same class of candidates. Therefore, Mu Yunchuan stopped at that point and did not say anything else.
Mu Erpang digested the information that Lao Buyu helped to explain, blinked his eyes, and asked Mu Yunchuan hesitantly: "Then is Pang Ci... Is Scholar Pang good at poetry?"
Mu Yunchuan didn't know about the "hardships" he had suffered under Liu Xuezheng and Wang Shangshu, so he didn't expect him to ask this, but he still answered: "I haven't heard that the old man has such a hobby."
Mu Erpang finally breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he didn't meet the examiner who was fanatical about poetry again. Liu Xuezheng's poem titles are tricky and obscure, while Wang Shangshu's poem titles are vague and difficult to write, which still makes him feel scared.
Seeing him like this, Mu Yunchuan naturally realized that poetry was probably his weakness.
He glanced at the sky and said, "It's still early, bring me the poem you wrote recently."
Some people knew Mu Erpang's resume earlier. Just knowing that he was Mu Yunchuan's younger brother made them envious and jealous. They thought that if they had such a capable brother who could give them careful guidance in private, perhaps they would be able to pass the exam without any obstacles like Mu Erpang.
Little did he know that the two brothers were together less often than they were apart. Every time they met for a short time, it was when Mu Yunchuan had not finished his exams and their levels were far different. They were not as close as other people's brothers, and Mu Erpang had never taken the initiative to ask Mu Yunchuan for guidance.
Mu Erpang immediately went to the classroom to get the poem. Lao Buyu and the other teenagers looked at each other, and then left the hall tacitly, so as to avoid Mu Yunchuan commenting on it in front of others and having to save face for Mu Erpang.
In just a blink of an eye, Mu Erpang took out a stack.
Mu Yunchuan didn't expect there to be so many, and then he heard him say, "This is what I wrote after I came to the capital. The writing before that...is even worse, so I won't show it to you, big brother."
Mu Yunchuan quickly counted in his mind. These were all written after he came to the capital. That means he could write a poem every two or three days. Regardless of whether it was good or bad, he was very diligent.
He lowered his eyes, fixed his gaze on the paper, and quickly read through ten lines. He already understood some of the problems.
"Diligence is a good thing, but when it comes to poetry and prose..."
After just saying a few words, Mu Yunchuan's expression suddenly changed - that splitting headache and feeling of being pricked by needles came back again!
The hand holding the paper trembled slightly, only for a moment, but Mu Erpang, who was receiving his instructions for the first time, was looking at him with nervousness and expectation, and he also noticed his reaction.
“Brother, you…”
Mu Yunchuan quickly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his expression was calm again. "Your poetry is pretty good, and since you said this is your shortcoming, it means that you are better in other areas. Although the imperial examination is difficult, if you perform normally, it won't be difficult to get first or second place."
These were the polite words he usually said. Mu Erpang nodded and did not show any disappointment, but he could not hide the concern on his face.
He no longer looked obese, with narrow eyes and a high nose bridge, and he looked about 50% like the young Mu Yunchuan.
So blood relationship is a very wonderful thing. Seeing him like this, Mu Yunchuan felt a little complicated.
"I still have some official business to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Mu Erpang nodded and sent him out.
Just then, Shen Cui and Zhou Shi had almost finished preparing dinner. Shen Cui took the bowls and chopsticks and was about to go to the main hall to set the table, when she saw Mu Erpang coming back after seeing someone off.
"Is your elder brother gone?" Shen Cui asked casually as she entered the main room.
Since there was no one around at the time, Mu Erpang immediately told her what had happened, and then sighed, "My eldest brother said he was fine, and he was talking to me when his hands suddenly started shaking. I don't know what's wrong with him. But he kept it a secret and I couldn't ask any more questions, so I could only tell mom."
Shen Cui connected the previous and subsequent situations, and there was nothing she couldn't understand - Mu Yunchuan rarely changed his mind towards his own brother, and wanted to give him some advice, but ended up being "sanctioned" by the law!
This is actually good news.
"Don't worry about it for now, I'll take care of it." Shen Cui, who was in a good mood, couldn't help but curled up the corners of her mouth.
It’s not that Chen Cui is so boring, she just feels happy seeing Mu Yunchuan in pain.
But everyone has a rebellious mentality, let alone someone like Mu Yunchuan.
As he walked along, he could not sense the existence of any law and thought he had to rely on himself.
Naturally he has his pride. The rules are now being pushed into a corner, restraining and hobbling him time and time again. How can he be happy?
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