Lu Xingjian's eyes narrowed slightly. He didn't speak, but glanced at Steward Li.
He was still unaware of what had happened at Kunning Palace.
One of the civil officials spoke up: "Your Majesty, as far as I know, Yuexi is the pseudonym of Yang Zhen, son of Grand Secretary Yang and student of Chief Minister Li."
Another person stepped forward and said, "The poem 'Guihu Qu' was indeed written by Yang Zhen."
“Especially the line ‘Next year when the osmanthus blooms, you will be at Yuhuatai. The birds of Long will carry messages, and the carp of the river will send letters,’ which is said to be the finishing touch.”
Lu Xingjian's hand clenched quietly in his sleeve, but he remained expressionless, simply dismissing the palace servants.
During the banquet, some people were already whispering among themselves:
"Could it be that Yang Zhen and the Empress had an affair?"
Someone said with a meaningful expression, "There's no smoke without fire; it's not entirely baseless."
Soon, the news spread far and wide.
Lu Xingjian had excellent hearing and noticed something was amiss at the table.
But they were too far away to hear what they were talking about.
The high-ranking officials seated near him wouldn't be so arrogant as to spread rumors to his face and cuckold the emperor.
Soon, a young eunuch serving wine reported the unusual events at the banquet to Chief Steward Li.
Steward Li's forehead throbbed, his face tense: "Have you seen clearly who is spreading these rumors?"
The young eunuch mentioned several names.
Steward Li's eyes flickered with uncertainty before he finally asked, "These people all seem to be from Yuyao?"
The young eunuch couldn't answer.
Manager Li is a quick-witted person; he always sends people to investigate anything that is uncertain.
Only after receiving a reply did they report to Lu Xingjian.
After hearing the report, Lu Xingjian remained silent for a long time, only placing the jewel-encrusted gold wine cup he had been playing with on the table.
The voice was very soft, yet icy cold and devoid of any emotion:
"The Minister of Rites, Liu Ji, along with officials in charge of the imperial examinations, including those responsible for overseeing and supervising the examinations, went to the imperial court to meet the emperor."
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