Rule over Ming Dynasty

Chapter 259

The spring snow fell, and the walls of the Forbidden City stood tall.

Ever since "Heaven's heart is subordinated to the sun, the imperial physician Liu Wentai and other foreign officials and internal officials were cut off frequently passing notes", the inside and outside of the palace walls are now like two worlds, and there has been very little news delivery.

Zhu Youtang talked with Wang Yue for a long time, and the outside world didn't know what the couple talked about.

When Wang Yue left Qianqing Palace, he was no longer worried as he was when he came, but his pace was a little brisk.

Wang Yu and Hu Jun, who were anxiously waiting for the news at home, couldn't help shouting excitedly when they learned that they could enter the Metropolitan Procuratorate as military officers.

It's just that it's a holiday after all, and every family can enjoy this rare long holiday with peace of mind, especially the first spring snow in the second year of Hongzhi came very timely.

Being an emperor is not much different from an ordinary house. Zhu Youtang likes to enjoy the snow on the viewing pavilion during the holidays. As for the night, he naturally rides a horse, rings the bell, and sings...

The tree wants to be quiet, but the wind doesn't stop.

It is said that after the Lantern Festival holiday, everyone should be most concerned about the verdict of the Huichanghou case, but another matter is quickly making noise.

On the first day after the end of the holiday, the Ministry of Rites announced the list of ten examiners for the Enke Examination.

Among them, the most eye-catching candidate for the examiner is not Liu Jian, the most popular left servant of the Ministry of Rites, nor Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites who has been used to it over the years, but Wang Yue, who has just been promoted to the Zuodu Censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.

Who is Wang Yue?
A scum who flirts with eunuchs.

A main fighter who once only wanted to make contributions.

A traitor who was stepped into the mud by the former civil servant group and the Xianjian.

……

When the news was announced, it not only stimulated many serving officials, but also some ministers who had already retired or dismissed could not sit still.

Since Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the prime minister system, the civil official group has actually been without a leader, but after so many years of groping, they have unanimously elected ministers who often bear the title of emperor to carry the banner of the leader of the civil official group.

Now Wang Yue, who was not a minister, served as the chief examiner of the examination, which not only broke their original order, but also strengthened the imperial party's strength virtually.

Others can discuss it, even Wan An and Liu Ji, but Wang Yue is a demon who kills officials without blinking an eye, but he must never be the chief examiner of the examination.

"The chief examiner of the examination is always a Ci minister, and Wang Yue is no more than a top three scholar!"

"The chief examiner puts morality first. How can Wang Shichang and He De be the chief examiner?"

"With such a person presiding over the talent promotion ceremony, how can the country prosper? When will ZTE come?"

……

Facing the news that Wang Yue was appointed as the chief examiner of the examination, the elders who controlled the public opinion of scholars in the capital fanned the flames one after another, pushing countless scholars to jump out and oppose Wang Yue.

Just as they organized candidates to go to the yamen of the Ministry of Rites to protest, but before they launched an official letter to attack, a new piece of news spread quickly.

"On February [-]st, the Enke Examination will be held at the Shuntian Gongyuan."

As the date of the general examination was quickly finalized, the candidates who were about to make trouble were the first to wake up.

Although everyone knows that the examination date is always in February, the imperial court chose to start the examination on the first day this time, which caught many candidates off guard.

The so-called justice is actually worthless in front of fame.

Say one thousand, say ten thousand, if they don't get the admission ticket to the officialdom, what happens to the court has nothing to do with them, so they all went back to prepare for the exam.

Because the candidates who were preparing to make trouble went back to prepare for the exam, things couldn't make trouble.

In Dashi Yongfang, a sedan chair crossed the streets and alleys.

The several attendants were tall, and they seemed to be very careful to see if anyone was following them. They did not enter the house at the innermost part of the lane until they ensured that there was no one behind them.

An old man in black robe came down from the sedan chair. The old man removed the black robe. It was Ma Wensheng, the former censor of the left capital of the capital procuratorate.

Although Ma Wensheng had already resigned, but because he was an out-and-out northerner, he had already settled down in the capital, and there were already two elderly people present in the hall.

Even though he has retired, his identity and status have not changed, so he sat on the top seat without hesitation.

As soon as Ma Wensheng took his seat, he slapped on the tea table furiously: "Damn it, the emperor clearly did it on purpose this time. How can the auspicious day of the zodiac happen to be on the first day?"

"Master Ma, I'm afraid we won't be able to stop this time!" The old man sitting next to him was older than Ma Wensheng, but he pointed directly at the core.

The other old man also nodded silently. Now that the court has been completely controlled by the emperor, this means can't stop the emperor from going his own way in the selection of the chief examiner.

Ma Wensheng narrowed his eyes, and said angrily: "Wang Shichang is cheap!"

The reason why he targeted Wang Yue in this way was not only for the sake of the court's official governance, but also for the elimination of traitors among civil servants, and even for the resentment in his heart.

Many people don't know that he and Wang Yue are actually the same age, but Wang Yue's military talent is far superior to his, so he has always been more brilliant than him.

When the Ming border area faced the invasion of Mandulu and other tribes, Wang Yue reported the victory to the court, and he knew that the frontier army had lied about military achievements, so he sent his son to lie about military achievements.

It's just that the imperial court checked the merits reported by the two of them, and found that Wang Yue's great victory was correct, but his reported military achievements were not true, so he was punished by the imperial court to suspend his salary for three months.

It was precisely because of the fact that he lied about his military achievements that he became a big laughing stock in the border areas, and it was also from that time that he hated Wang Yue to the core.

Fortunately, I was quickly appreciated by a certain court chief, and also found a good backer. In the 11th year of Chenghua, he replaced Wang Yue as the trilateral military affairs of the general system, Ningxia and Gansu.

Although Wang Yue was enshrined as a marquis for several years because of his military achievements, he became the target of the civil official group to eliminate him because of his close relationship with Wang Zhi.

Later developments were all within reason. After Wang Zhi's downfall, Wang Yue was exiled to Anlu by the court.

A criminal who was banished to Anlu because of a crime, but he, Ma Wensheng, has become a gentleman of integrity all over the world in one fell swoop, which is quite different from Wang Yue.

It's just that who would have thought that after the new king ascended the throne, an unbelievable change took place.

Although he was promoted to be the censor of Zuodu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, because of the slackness of the four matters, one is to ask the king to be dismissed to vent his personal grievances, and the other is to plead the crime of the first corrupt minister of the Ming Dynasty, Shang Shumin.

But it was a coincidence that the court found out that Li Min was sitting on millions of taels of stolen silver, which made him shameless to stay in the court, so he resigned in desperation.

Now, Wang Yue has not only become famous all over the world, but also returned to the capital as the censor of Zuodu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and now he broke the rules and served as the chief examiner of the general examination.

Facing such a beautiful Wang Yue, he naturally wanted to destroy him, but he really lost this time. It can only be said that the current emperor is too powerful.

"Master Ma, don't forget what that person said, we are not targeting Wang Shichang!" The oldest old man seemed quite wise, but he suddenly reminded him.

The old man who had been silent all this time had no access to the core matter, and immediately asked curiously: "Who is that?"

"Does this still need to be asked?" The oldest old man glanced lightly and pointed to the roof with his finger.

Dongsheng Inn, business is booming again.

Although the place was rejected by the candidates due to the murder case, as the start of the exam approached, and it was very close to Suncheon Gongwon, many candidates stayed here again.

"In my opinion, His Majesty is protecting the Marquis of Huichang!"

"Isn't it? Is there any reason not to kill Marquis Chang?"

"In order to avoid the death of Marquis Huichang, I even moved out the non-existent palace records!"

……

After all, Wen Shu was not as interesting as criticizing the current affairs. Several scholars who had lunch in the front hall talked about the case of Huichang Hou again, but they all pointed the finger at the current emperor.

Judging from the recent signs, the probability of the imperial court releasing Huichanghou has greatly increased.

As early as the Lantern Festival, the Huichang Marquis Mansion requested to release Huichang Marquis Sun Ming to go home for the Lantern Festival, and this request was granted. Now that the holiday has passed, there has been no court ruling.

In the past, when there were any disputes, the imperial court always adopted this method of quiet handling, first delaying the matter, and then making a decision without paying attention, so naturally it would not cause too much public opinion.

"It's a bunch of nonsense!" Just then, a voice suddenly sounded.

Several people present were headed by Tan Bo, and Tan Bo turned his head to look at the young man in front of him with some stupidity, and immediately said with a sullen face: "Report your name!"

The people around saw the conflict here, especially the foolish young man who bumped into Tan Bo with some background, they couldn't help turning their heads to look over.

"Guangdong Juzi Hai Kuan!" Hai Kuan was never a timid master, and he also revealed his identity.

Tan Bo looked Hai Kuan's clothes up and down, and asked with disdain: "Hai Kuan? You are so crazy, you dare to accuse me like this, I wonder what kind of background you are from?"

"My ancestor followed the Taizu to pacify the world. It was Hai Xunzhi, the commander of the Guangdong Guard, and my father, Hai Da'er, was from a hundred households in the left guard of Qiongzhou!" Hai Kuan was proud of his family background, and he also reported his family background.

Tan Bo's eyes couldn't help being contemptuous, and he taunted directly: "Military status, hehe... If you fail the Jinshi exam, your descendants will always be military status, and they will never have a bright future! With such a humble background, It's a shame you still have the face to show off your might in front of this young master!"

"I will pass the exam!" Hai Kuan responded immediately with a stubborn temper.

"We didn't show off our power, but just told the truth! If His Majesty hadn't come to Shuntian Mansion to support the Yin of Shuntian Mansion in digging into this case, who would have known that Marquis Huichang would do such insane things?" Xu Hong and Hai Kuan were companions , Even if you seriously state your position.

Tan Bo looked Xu Hong up and down, but he said with the same disdain: "You are the one who wanted to kidnap Miss Qian's family, right? You are eloquent, but you only have one thing for another, and now if you don't behead Huichanghou, you are covering up!"

"Isn't it rare that the iron certificate of the Danshu given by Emperor Yingzong is a piece of waste paper?" Xu Hong found out that the son was really unreasonable, so he asked seriously.

Tan Bo saw that this stunned young man dared to argue with him, so he said angrily: "The state owns the state law, and the family has family rules. Today, the Marquis of Huichang slaughtered seventeen lives of the Qian family. How can there be any reason not to kill them?"

"Mr. Tan, do you really not understand or pretend to understand? There are national laws on this matter, but there is also the iron certificate of the alchemy written by Emperor Yingzong to the Huichang Houfu, so the matter cannot be both. Not to mention that the case has not yet been settled, You criticize His Majesty for protecting Huichang Hou here, but you are just showing off your tongue. If you decide, how can you ensure that the case can be settled?" Xu Hong didn't give in at all, and started to question again.

"Put yourself in front of others!"

"Although we are sons, we should share the worries for His Majesty!"

"Your Majesty even beheaded the Marquis of Qingyun, this time it is absolutely not to shield the Marquis of Huichang!"

……

Tan Bo was about to explode, but the disciples present were moved by Xu Hong's words, and the disciples who were watching around responded one after another.

When everyone questioned that the emperor should not do this, and he should not do that, but if they were to judge this case, what should they do?
Feeling the pressure around him, Tan Bo realized that real fists and kicks were not dominant, so he left with one sentence: "They are all ignorant people, it is a shame to be with them! When I get my name on the gold list, I will know who is the best!" A man of insight, who is righteous in heart!"

Xu Hong, Hai Kuan and the others looked at each other in blank dismay. Although they found that Tan Bo was still boasting, they also knew that the hero might really be judged by his achievements in the future.

In the following time, Dongsheng Inn will no longer dispute the case of Huichang Hou, but everyone prepares for the exam silently and decides to compete in the exam.

On February [-]st, the Enke test came as scheduled.

In the past, the first round was the first, but now everyone knows that the current emperor emphasizes practical affairs. For example, last year's Enke Township Examination obviously emphasized the third round.

When thousands of candidates lined up to enter the tribute courtyard, there was the sound of locking the courtyard.

The content of the first general examination is three questions from the Four Books, and four questions from one classic selected by candidates from the Five Classics.

For example, Xu Hong studied the "Book of History" in the Five Classics, so he took the four questions of the book, and other candidates may take the "Book of Songs", "Book of Rites", "Book of Changes" and "Spring and Autumn".

In the past, this kind of examination was not only a big competition of basic skills, but also a big collision of luck for candidates. Stereotype essays did not lie in innovation, but in the quotations between words.

Hai Kuan and other candidates faced the questions and began to answer them seriously.

Generally speaking, the chief examiner, deputy chief examiner and eight fellow examiners are the inner curtain officials, who will stay in Jukui Hall after the start of the examination and wait for the examination papers to be approved, while the outer curtain officials are responsible for the order of the examination room and the distribution of examination papers. .

In addition to watching the candidates enter the hall in Mingyuan Building on the first day, Wang Yue led the examiners back to the Jukui Hall behind, and delivered the sealed and transcribed red paper in the afternoon of the third day.

Since there was no intention of cheating, the work of approving the test papers went very smoothly.

Although there are three general examinations, they are different from the rural examinations.

At the end of each rural examination, you can hand in the papers and leave the Gongyuan to rest, and then enter the Gongyuan the next day to continue the next exam; The exam will start on the day.

In the early morning of the next day, the test papers for the second round were sent out, and this time the exams consisted of imperial edict, verdict, form, and imperial edict, which had always been considered the least important.

When the thousands of students saw the last question, it was as if the group had been locked in a body spell, showing a strange non-stationary picture in the lens.

(End of this chapter)