Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 176 Instigator

Cui Qiao walked to the window and looked down at the scholars in the veranda. Until the end, she didn't see anyone giving up the exam.

He twirled his long beard and his eyes became deeper and deeper.

Da Xixun sat for a while, muttering "Xiang Ling Gu Xi", then suddenly thought of something and stood up suddenly.

"Cui Shangshu, you are brave, you are doing it openly..."

Cui Qiao didn't look bold, her face became more and more gloomy, and she waved her hand to stop what Da Xixun was about to say.

"Come this way."

The two of them avoided others and walked aside. Da Xixun whispered: "I just remembered that Xue Bai's father's name was Xue Ling, but the saint promised Xue Bai a head."

"Have you received the imperial edict?" Cui Qiao asked, "I have never received an imperial edict naming him as the leader."

Da Xixun's eyes widened and he said in surprise: "You haven't just entered the officialdom, so what's the use of sophistry?"

"It's just one year late. He is only seventeen years old, so why be anxious?"

"But the right minister agreed to him..."

Cui Qiao said: "Someone will bear the consequences of this matter. You can ask the right minister again."

"I'm going to..."

Da Xixun just moved, but after thinking about it for a moment, he glanced at Cui Qiao doubtfully, without asking who was responsible for the "someone's responsibility".

As long as someone is concerned, it will be the easiest way for him to say that he does not know the name of Xue Bai's father.

"Then there's no need to ask. I don't see anything in this question."

The two said no more and turned back to the pavilion.

Chen Xilie sat cross-legged and seemed to be asleep; Yang Guanghui did his duty faithfully and was still watching everything happening in the examination room for Yang Zhao, but did not find anything abnormal.

The time leakage drained away little by little, and gradually it came to Youshi.

"Boom!"

"Winding!"

With the sound of a bell, Tianbao's seven-year Spring Examination came to an end, and the officials began to collect the papers.

The poem title of each examination paper reads "Provincial Examination of Xiangling Gusel", word for word.

~~

To the north of the Court of Rites, the third session of the Ming Jing Department is about current affairs.

Du Wulang put down his pen and let the clerk take away his paper. He was stunned for a moment, feeling empty and melancholy.

He felt that his answer was average, and it was normal to fail, and it was justifiable to win. If you can win the Ming Sutra at the age of seventeen, it is indeed a good achievement. If not, there is actually no regrets.

After rubbing his chubby face, he regained his smile and packed his things, especially the inkstone given by Xue Sanniang.

After leaving the examination room, I saw Yang Xuan yawning from a distance.

"How did you do on the exam?"

"It's not bad." Yang Xuan said, "I wrote my name and filled in some words, so it won't be too confusing."

"Do you still know about 'pull white'?"

"Haha, I learned hundreds of words a year in order to win the exam."

Yang Xuan seemed to have just woken up, and then he regained his energy. He put his arms around Du Wulang's shoulders and said, "Come with me to grab the land in Dongshi! Damn it, there are several ditch heads in Chang'an who have joined Wang Zhun's friends. It's called Xing or something, I don't recognize that word, you come to be my military advisor."

"Hey, your grandfather has become an important minister of the country, so he should know some things."

Du Wulang got out from under Yang Xuan's arm and ran away.

"Give way and let the five children of Chunwei live their lives."

After squeezing through the crowd and running dozens of steps south, he passed by the south courtyard of the Ministry of Rites and saw Xue Sanniang in the distance. Across the crowd, she was standing behind Liu Xiangjun, looking so demure.

For a moment, everyone else lost their color in Du Wulang's eyes and became like a tide, but she was the only one who stood out.

"Sanniang!"

He waved his hand and squeezed over there, paying no attention to the conversations of the people around him.

There were sighs and sighs everywhere. Nearly 3,000 tribute students from all over the world gathered in Chang'an. Every year, only a hundred people were admitted to the Ming Dynasty, and only about 20 people were admitted to the Jinshi. Most of them came to serve as foils.

From time to time, you can always see people throwing their pens on the ground and swearing angrily.

"No more exams!"

"Hey, if you want to make a future, go to Bianzhen, if you can bear the bitter cold."

"A man has learned calligraphy and swordsmanship. Why should he fear the bitter cold in order to gain merit? If he fails in this subject, he will just ask for a recommendation to serve under General Gao."

"Go together."

"Think lightly, there are many heroes who want to surrender to the Anxi army..."

Du Wulang squeezed through this group of people, and there were still people in front of him cursing.

"How has there been no question leaked in this examination room?"

"Isn't it just a leak? There are also people who lose their fathers and don't honor their filial piety, even if they want to get a Jinshi title, they don't even have the dignity to do so."

"Are you talking about Xue playing cards? I heard that his grandfather is not dead and has shown up."

"If we don't talk about Xue playing cards, wouldn't Yang be literate? 'My grandpa is a high-ranking official, and I can win the exam if I can read'."

"Just accept your fate, you have no family background and you are not shameless enough. You will never win in your life..."

Occasionally, some joyful conversations can occur.

The most talented and famous people of the world often gather together.

"Zhongwen! Here... in the study room, I will introduce you to Qian Zhongwen, a great talent in Wuxing. Don't look at him. He is young, but his poetry is excellent."

"I've met Brother Wenfang, Brother Zhenyi, don't say that. This is my first time in this class, I just came to get acquainted with him."

"How about poetry?"

"Brother Zhenyi, I didn't do well in the previous exams. But today's poem, describing scenes and emotions, is what I'm best at. I..."

Young Qian Qi was very confident about today's poem topic. He didn't know how to describe it, but Li Qijun and Liu Changqing who were chatting with him had already met more acquaintances.

"Brother Congyi, Dafu. Come and introduce to you, Li Jiayou and Li Congyi, the Li family of Zhao County, who is quite famous for his poetry, and this..."

"Brother Gao Thirty-five who wrote "Yan Xing Ge"! I have long admired your name!"

"..."

When Du Wulang passed by, he was called by Gao Shi. He hurriedly said hello, passed them, and ran all the way to Xue Sanniang.

He did not forget to greet Liu Xiangjun first, and then touched the heads of the Xue brothers.

"How did Goro do on the exam?"

"It doesn't matter how you do in the exam, as long as you pass or fail." Du Wulang asked, "Are you worried?"

Xue Sanniang's eyes dimmed as soon as she heard this. She didn't know what to say about her worries. She didn't know whether she should say that she was worried about the return of her grandfather, or that she was worried about the marriage.

"It's okay. I'm just worried that you won't do well in the exam."

"Us? Oh, by the way, where is Xue Bai?"

Du Wulang looked back and found Xue Bai easily, and said hello quickly.

When Xue Bai saw them, he just waved his hand to let them go first, and he turned around and headed east.

"Something happened again?"

Du Wulang keenly realized that something was wrong and quickly chased after him.

~~

Daozhengfang, Fengwei Building.

Xue Bai climbed all the way to the attic, and Du Jin hurriedly greeted him.

Maybe they were too connected to each other. Although Xue Bai's face was calm, she still asked: "Something happened?"

"Go in and talk."

The two people's hands naturally held each other's hands. Later, when they saw Du Wulang hurriedly followed into the courtyard, the two people naturally let go of their hands and stopped entering the house. They stood leaning on the railing.

"The title of the poem is taboo," Xue Bai said.

Du Jin turned pale and asked, "Did you give up the exam?" "No."

"How can you not give up the exam?! It's too late before the results are released. We have to ask the examiner to cancel your paper."

Xue Bai actually knew the impact of breaking taboos, but he didn't feel it so deeply.

Not to mention that the father's name clearly appears in the title of the poem. Even if it is just a homophony, it is considered a taboo. This will be difficult for later generations to understand. Then, the consequences of violating the taboo are also difficult for modern people to understand.

"Abandoning the exam will only delay a year, but breaking a taboo will delay your reputation and future for a lifetime. Give up the exam. Someone will definitely target you for this matter. If you do it so blatantly, you are simply seeking death." Du Jin said: "We will kill this person. Man, let’s win another title next year.”

At this time, Du Wulang was running up the stairs.

Du Jin took this opportunity to stick to Xue Bai and comforted him softly: "It's okay. We will get rid of anyone who dares to block your way."

"It doesn't matter. It's a single-plank bridge. It's normal for it to sway."

Xue Bai then hugged Du Jin and let go before Du Wulang climbed up to the pavilion.

"There must be someone who can instruct Cui Qiao to convince a minister of rites. This person is very powerful. The sage allows me to give advice. He dares to be so blatantly disobedient and very courageous."

"Ge Nu? Li Heng? Zhang Si? Zhang Ting?"

"It would be better to be Genu, but probably not. Genu has suffered at my hands several times, and he doesn't dare to take action against me when my Holy Family is strong. Besides, I haven't provoked him recently."

Du Wulang had already rushed to the side. He didn't understand what was going on, but he didn't bother him. He just stood aside and watched to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.

"There are several more possibilities."

Du Jin said, looking at him as if he was in the way, and analyzed it carefully.

"Don't underestimate the power behind those vendors who sell white rattan paper and collection notes. A piece of white rattan paper can be sold for hundreds of dollars, which even the imperial court can't afford. The collection is a weapon used by aristocratic families to manipulate the examination room. There is no price for it. City. The Yang family of Jinke Hongnong, the Li family of Zhaojun, and the Cui family of Qinghe all had a large number of disciples who applied for the exam. For example, your friend Li Jiayou came after Li Qiao, the prime minister, and he and Cui Rong, Cui Qiao's father, were both "four friends of the article" ', so many prime ministers who entered the imperial examination were their disciples. Not only do you want a top scholar, Yang Dang also wants three places, and Yuan Zai has gone too far in his campaign."

It is true that Yuan Zai is very capable, but his method of building reputation among the poor family does seem a bit greedy. This matter was done under the banner of Yang Zheng, and everyone knows that Xue Bai is the host and guest of the Yang Party's shogunate, and even the bamboo paper is his Made.

The aristocratic family felt threatened, and it was indeed possible to force Cui Qiao to teach Xue Bai and Yang Dang a lesson. In other words, Cui Qiao did this partly because of this pressure.

"It should be more than that." Xue Bai said: "If that's the case, they won't just target me. They will use other methods to remove me and all the three places we want."

"Then you will know only after the results of the rankings are released. If you fail the rankings first, it will be a deterrent to those poor people who defect to the Yang Party."

"Yes."

"There is another possibility that Dong Gong or Zahu wanted to prevent you from becoming an official. The question is, how did they convince Cui Qiao?" Du Jin thought about it and said, "After all, they made Cui Qiao disobey the holy will..."

When Xue Bai heard these words, he thought in his mind and pondered: "What if it is not so disobedient to the holy will?"

"The saint has promised you a status."

"But it didn't say what year I won the championship. In the eyes of the saint, does he really care that I won the championship a year or two too late at my age? This incident just taught me a small lesson."

"Because you want to get high on the list, the saint thinks you are too crazy? In addition, there are people who are slandering you... The saint may not necessarily acquiesce, but they insist that the saint will not be very angry."

Xue Bai said: "It would be simple if it were just that. But this matter also involves Xue Ling, so the rumors that he is dead may not be a coincidence."

"Cui Qiao must know the inside story."

"He is an important official of the imperial court and cannot be investigated."

"Check Zhang Si." Du Jin said, "She wants to find Xue Ling. Maybe she might know something."

"Is she still betting?"

Du Jin's eyes flashed with coldness, and he said calmly: "Can you quit?"

"..."

Listening to their conversation, Du Wulang became increasingly uneasy. Finally, he asked, "What's wrong with Xue Ling?"

Xue Bai was not in a hurry and said, "If you don't do it, it will affect your marriage."

"Huh? What can I do?!"

~~

At the same time, Li Linfu heard Da Xixun's report.

"Because Xue Ling is insignificant and his subordinates are dull, I forgot his name at first. However, I think Cui Qiao wants to teach Xue Bai a lesson. It is not a big deal."

There was no expression on Li Linfu's face that showed he had nothing to do with himself or was gloating about his misfortune.

Because he is the prime minister first, and he hates changing his orders without his permission.

The reason why he agreed to Xue Baizhong's first prize was not because he lost to Xue Bai, but because he followed the saint's will. He did not allow anyone to dare to disobey or even change the saint's mind.

The names of those who could bypass him and change the saint's mind were written down by him, and most of them had been crossed out.

"Alang, Cui Qiao is here."

"He's smart enough not to wait for the truth before sending someone to look for him."

Li Linfu dismissed Da Xi Xun and sent someone to scold Chen Xilie. He then invited Cui Qiao to see him.

Everyone was wearing purple robes, and Cui Qiao was from a well-known family. Even Li Linfu removed the screen and welcomed him in person.

"The right minister is too solemn, I can't afford it... I really can't afford it."

"Is there anything else Mr. Cui can't afford?"

Cui Qiao looked bitter and said straight to the point: "I'm here today to give an explanation to the Prime Minister."

Li Linfu knew as soon as he heard that this matter was not as simple as Cui Qiao dealing with Xue Bai without permission.

"Indeed, many people came to me and asked me to stop Xue Bai from winning the ranking and teach him a lesson."

"Who is there?"

"Except for a few noble families who hope to have disciples on the list, a few princess consorts who have a grudge against Xue Bai, and Duke Zhang of Shangzhu Kingdom... I am really helpless under the heavy pressure."

~~

There is a luxurious house on the bank of Qujiang River, which is a secret gambling house.

Ever since Da Xi Yingying left the support of King Shou, she became a slave who betrayed her master in the eyes of powerful gamblers. Her gambling house has plummeted, and now there is a new gambling house attracting the powerful.

Zhang Si gambled all night, and it was not until early morning that he yawned and took a carriage back to his mansion.

When passing by Xiuzhengfang, suddenly, there was a sound of fighting outside the carriage.

"Who doesn't open his eyes?!"

Zhang Si immediately became angry, opened the curtain and looked around, but was surprised to see four strong masked men holding big sticks beating her guards.

This startled her, and she couldn't help but exclaimed: "There's someone here! Where are the patrols...?"

A big man had already reached into the car, grabbed her hair and dragged her out.

"Don't touch me! I'll give you money..."

"Who told you to come to our sworn brother?!"

"Ah! What?" Zhang Si was stunned, "Who?"

"Xue Ling, who asked you to find him?!"

Zhang Si couldn't help but be surprised. He didn't expect that Xue Ling, who was begging for nothing, would have such a desperate friend. He couldn't help but said: "He...he owes me a thousand guan..."

"Looking for him just because of this little money?!"

"This little money? I...I..."

"Hey, this bitch won't tell the truth, she's so embarrassed!"

"No! Please...I am telling the truth, he really owes me a thousand guan..."

"Fart! We are having a great time in the mountains. You stupid bitch can spread the word and trick my brother into returning to Chang'an?"

"No, no... it was my husband's idea. He was drinking with his friends. Speaking of this, someone came up with a way... everything I said is true!"

"Which friends?"

"Many people." Zhang Si couldn't remember and cried: "We are all people with the same surname, princes and princesses, just those people... They should be the princess's consort who had trouble with Xue Ling's son. I was drunk that night It was so bad that I don’t remember it.”

When she said this, one of the four big men said: "Ah, by the way, her sister is the Crown Princess. If the Crown Prince wants to find my brother, just kill her!"

"Prince? You scared me to death. You're going to kill me!"

"No!" Zhang Si was shocked and cried: "It's not the prince! It's just a matter of owing money, really!"

"If you don't believe me, which princess's consort are you talking about?!"

"In short, he is a friend of my husband. He invited a group of people to drink. They have five surnames and seven looks, and are relatives of the clan. My husband is friends with everyone. 'This is a good idea from the prince-in-law!' He said so at the time... …”

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(End of this chapter)