King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

Tang Bohu and Xu Jing were not pushovers either, so they quickly walked to the table and sat down.

Tang Bohu relied on his age, and since Xu Jing was implicated, he naturally had to stand up and speak.

"My Lord, this is just an excuse. Please tell us what your plan is. We would like to hear it."

Zhu Tan poured a cup for Tang Bohu, and watched Tang Bohu drink it up under his gaze, and then said: "Your painting is bad, draw more. Tang Jieyuan is right. This is indeed just an excuse. I am just afraid that you will run around before you finish the exam."

Tang Bohu suppressed his anger and did not jump out.

Xu Jing interrupted him and said, "My Lord, what you said is true. What's the point of deliberately making fun of two unknown people like us?"

Zhu Tan pondered, "I didn't intend to tell you, but if the king doesn't keep it secret, then the minister won't keep it secret, so even if I tell you, you may not believe it!"

"Since you don't tell us, we can't jump to conclusions." Tang Bohu saw that Zhu Tan wanted to tell him the truth, so he said.

Zhu Tan pretended to be reluctant, and finally sighed and said, "Some people want to take advantage of this examination to cause trouble. If I'm not mistaken, you will definitely be involved in this examination. Not to mention becoming a juren, you won't even be able to keep your head."

Tang Bohu snorted disdainfully, and Xu Jing's face darkened. Tang Bohu also noticed Xu Jing's expression and asked, "Brother, what's wrong with you?"

Zhu Tan's heart trembled, and he said, "I wonder if Shao Xi, the Earl of Changhua, has anything to ask of you?"

Xu Jing broke out in a cold sweat. Zhu Tan was right.

Although the Earl of Changhua did not mention the imperial examination, he established a good relationship with the invigilator Jiang Rong and introduced Jiang Rong to Liang Chu and Cheng Minzheng.

Moreover, this matter also involved Hua Chang, the head of the Household Department. Hua Chang had a relationship with Shao Xi, the Earl of Changhua.

He was just imagining it, and after hearing what Zhu Tan said, it would be strange if Xu Jing didn't break out in a cold sweat.

As a scholar, how could he not know what the current court meant by cheating in the exam? Even without evidence, it was enough to ruin a person's future.

Tang Bohu noticed the change in Xu Jing's expression, and it was obvious that Zhu Tan had hit the nail on the head. He quickly asked, "Brother, why don't you speak?"

Xu Jing was slightly startled, and said: "Brother Bo Hu, I almost made a big mistake and almost dragged you into the water, but this matter is very difficult to handle!"

The Xu family originally helped Shao Xi in his career, but as Shao Xi rose through the ranks, the Xu family became Shao Xi's subordinates.

If Shao Xi used the Xu family's knife, the Xu family would not be able to fight back at all.

Shao Xi would not do anything bad to him, so Tang Bohu would not have a good ending. Xu Jing was hurting Tang Bohu, so it was difficult for him to explain.

Seeing that he had made an unexpected discovery, Zhu Tan's plan became even more perfect, so he continued, "Mr. Xu, answer Tang Jieyuan's question! This will help me clear my suspicion and prevent Tang Jieyuan from thinking that I am not a good person."

Seeing Tang Bohu looking at him, Xu Jing had no choice but to tell him everything he knew.

Zhu Tan who was standing by also heard it. Although he didn't know what Shao Xi was planning, given their friendship, he would definitely be implicated in the end.

Therefore, the most important link is Ma Wensheng’s disciple Jiang Rong. Only his disciple could connect Ma Wensheng and Ma Cong.

Although Tang Bohu did not fully understand what Tang Zheng said, Xu Jing became alert. When he thought that the exam was about to begin, he became a little worried. However, when he thought that the Spring Examination was approaching, he became a little worried.

He recalled the relationship between him and Xu Jing after he came to Beijing.

Liang Chu was his teacher and also his teacher. Logically, he should have talked to Liang Chu, but Xu Jing introduced him to Cheng Minzheng and Li Dongyang.

Zhu Tan also made it clear that Li Dongyang and Cheng Minzheng would serve as the chief examiners, or deputy examiners, of this spring's imperial examination.

What's worse, he and Xu Jing had written many papers for Li Dongyang, Cheng Minzheng and others. Li Dongyang admired them very much, not to mention Cheng Minzheng.

If a great disturbance arose in the scientific examination, he and Xu Jing would inevitably be implicated.

In fact, neither of them nor Chu Tian had thought about this problem. After all, they were all political rookies and only saw the surface.

"I'm going to ask Changli."

Xu Jing became even more panicked and stood up to leave, but when he saw Tang Zheng, his expression changed again.

There is absolutely no way Zhu Tan would let him leave now!

Zhu Tan smiled coldly: "Shao Xi, why don't you go find him? Do you think Shao Xi will tell you the truth? You are just a pawn. Shao Xi wants to kill me, Ma Wensheng, or others, which means he has given up on you. Once he achieves his goal, how do you think he will retaliate against you?"

Tang Bohu clasped his fists towards Zhu Tan and said, "My Lord, leaving us here is useless. Shao Xi said that Xu Jing should contact Jiang Rong, but Xu Jing has not contacted him yet! There must be a way!"

“I caught you, do you think Shao Xi is an idiot? If it wasn’t you, he would definitely go find someone else.”

Zhu Tan could not tell Tang Bohu and Xiao Qi what he knew, but since he knew that Shao Xi was most likely the one who did it, he naturally had a countermeasure.

"What should I do?" Xu Jing sat down, looking confused.

Tang Bohu saw what Zhu Tan was thinking, so he said, "My Lord, you kept us here on the pretext of painting, so there must be some use for us. Please tell me clearly, my Lord."

"Tang Jieyuan, you are too straightforward. You don't understand Infernal Affairs or espionage. So let me explain it to you."

What Zhu Tan wanted was Tang Bohu and Xu Jing to be his "traitors", but he did not have full confidence in whether they could cooperate.

If you cooperate well, you can fight back; if you cooperate poorly, you will be courting death.

Tang Bohu and the other two understood the traitor's intention and asked them to be spies to inform Zhu Tan about Shao Xi's later death.

The two couldn't help but look at each other. Is this even possible?
Will he be regarded by both sides as a chess piece that is worth discarding?

Zhu Tan took out his best trick and said, "The emperor said that there will be rewards regardless of whether you pass the exam or not."

What Zhu Tan said could not be considered a simple lie, however, Zhu Youtang was talking about the portrait, while Zhu Tan was deliberately leading Tang Bohu and his thoughts to the imperial examination.

Tang Bohu and Xu Jing were both stunned. Tang Bohu was even more surprised and asked: "Your Majesty, have you also heard about this matter?" "Yes!" He nodded.

Zhu Tan is still trying to fool the two people.

"Even if I have a hundred guts, I will not forge an imperial edict! If you don't want to leave, you can stay here. I will let you leave when the exam comes. But if you leave now, it means that you have been recorded by the emperor. If you dare to mess around, it will be treason."

One is Shao Xi, the Earl of Changhua, and the other is the Emperor. What else is there to choose from?
Tang Bohu and Xu Jing saluted together, facing the direction of the imperial city.

The two men dragged Zhu Tan onto a boat, but Zhu Tan was very clear about his steering skills.

Of course, an experienced person is needed to handle it, so he immediately ordered someone to call Ma Wensheng and his father-in-law Ye Shen over.

This matter must be kept secret and try not to be discovered by others.

Ma Wensheng and his son, led by Ye Shen, came to a side hall.

Zhu Tan didn't bother to be polite and told everything he knew and could have anticipated.

Ma Wensheng is indeed a battle-hardened politician. As soon as he opened his mouth, Zhu Tan and others were shocked.

"It is impossible for Changhua Earl Shao Xi to accomplish this alone. Shao Xi may just be the beginning. There will definitely be more people who will take advantage of this Spring Examination to stir up trouble."

"Who else could it be?" Zhu Tan said expectantly, and everyone's attention was focused on Ma Wensheng.

"We haven't found any yet, but Li Dongyang and Cheng Minzheng can be removed. One is the Minister of Punishment, and the other is the Right Prime Minister of Rites. They are most likely the chief and deputy supervisors of this joint examination. There is no need to ask for trouble. Liu Jian, as the chief minister of the cabinet, naturally does not want this to happen. The same goes for Xie Qian. Liang Chu, as Tang Bohu's teacher, went to Annan, so he can also be excluded."

Ma Wensheng used the method of elimination to eliminate most of the ministers, and there were only seven or eight who really wanted to oppose him.

"My biggest suspect is Liu Daxia. Although Wang Shu and I are known as the three gentlemen of the Ming Dynasty, there is a deep grudge between Liu Daxia and me. In addition, Shao Xi, Zhou Shou, and Zhou Yu all have deep grudges with the Marquis of Jianchang. It is difficult to determine who they can persuade."

Zhu Tan will definitely become suspicious of Zhou and the other two. There is already a huge conflict between them, but after Ma Wensheng said this, it becomes a bit difficult to deal with!

"Mr. Ma, what should we do now?"

"The Marquis has been prepared for this. This is disrupting our plan. I will send Ma Cong to serve in various major military offices, and my disciple Jiang Rong will be asked to participate in the Southern Ranking Assessment. This way, the connection between the Marquis and me can be cut off."

After hearing what Tang Bohu said, Zhu Tan understood that the imperial examination in the Ming Dynasty was divided into two sections, the northern and southern sections, and the examination papers were also different.

The questions on the Southern List are more difficult than those on the Northern List. The reason why Ma Wensheng asked his disciple Jiang Rong to take the exam was, on the one hand, because he did not want to be suspected, and on the other hand, because it would make it more difficult for him to pass the exam, which was a great sacrifice.

Ye Shen waited for Ma Wensheng and the others to finish their words before he said, "I have an idea. That is Hua Chang, the Imperial Censor of the Ministry of Revenue. I have dealt with him before and know him a little. He likes to hear things without evidence the most. If there is no evidence, he will report it to the emperor. If this guy can be kicked out of the Censorate, it would be great."

As Ye Shen was talking, he felt himself falling into the water and was pulled under by someone.

However, for the sake of his daughter Ye Luzhu, he also had a very strong excuse.

If I don’t find a way to help Zhu Tan at this time, I will suffer a great loss!
Zhu Tan kept nodding his head, and then told him about his plan to release Tang Bohu and two other men as spies.

Ma Wensheng agreed with this and winked at Tang Bohu and Xu Jing.

"You two candidates have not entered the government yet, so you don't know the dangers involved. If this incident really causes a stir in the world, you will be stripped of your official positions at best, or beheaded at worst."

Although Tang Bohu and Xu Jing were calm, they couldn't help but shudder when they heard Ma Wensheng's words.

They all knew Ma Wensheng. Although he was not a high-ranking official, he was a powerful figure in the area and had a lot of say.

Tang Bohu clasped his fists towards Ma Wensheng and said, "Mr. Ma, we all understand this matter. Please, Mr. Ma and Lord Hou, just tell us."

Ma Wensheng nodded gently, "I won't let you perform any dangerous tasks. After you go out, do your job well. If anyone talks to you about this exam, you must notify me and also notify me."

Zhang Wei walked over and said to everyone, "My Lord, Mr. Luo Yin from the palace has come with news. The Emperor has ordered that my Lord release these two students immediately."

Zhu Tan curled his lips, as if the emperor's brother-in-law had seen his memorial. Tang Bohu and Xu Jing were both stunned. They both felt that all this was arranged by His Majesty Hongjun.

Zhu Tan pondered for a moment and said, "Zhang Wei, you and Brother Bo Hu go to Shuntian Hall and take care of the painting case. Xu Jing, give me the 100,000 taels of silver later."

Ma Wensheng and others were stunned when they heard this, Tang Bohu was stunned, and Xu Jing felt heartbroken.

But they soon realized that Zhu Tan was just playing dumb, which was in line with the character of the Marquis of Jianchang, who was overbearing and domineering.

After Tang Bohu took Xu Jing away, Zhu Tan frowned at Ma Wensheng.

"Master Ma, I will go to the palace to report to His Majesty."

"No!" he shouted.

Ma Wensheng quickly stopped him.

"My Lord is just speculating on this matter and has not confirmed it. If we tell His Majesty now, it will arouse His Majesty's vigilance. What we need to do is to find out who is behind the scenes and let him know who is behind the scenes, not just Shao Xi and two Zhou Shou and Zhou Yu. Such people can't do it. Only when we figure it out can we do more things!"

Although Zhu Tan knew that what Ma Wensheng said was true, he was still unwilling to use Tang Bohu's hand, and eventually put Tang Bohu to death.

"If we don't say a word to the emperor, Tang Bohu and the others will be implicated and their future will be affected."

As for Ma Wensheng and others, Zhu Tan did not trust their character.

The politics of the Ming Dynasty is too complicated. Not everyone is like Yu Qian, Yu Shaobao!
"This is easy." Ye Shen thought of a solution. "Lord Ma can write a letter about this, but you should notify the cabinet and ask them to suppress it first and then investigate it. Tang Bohu, Xu Jing, and even Jiang Rong all have sufficient evidence."

Hearing this, everyone was a little surprised.

What kind of reason is this? (End of this chapter)