Country and Beauty

The ancient Ministry of Rites was equivalent to the combined functions of the present Minister of Public Information and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Education and Culture. Until the imperial examination system was implemented, the Ministry of Rites was limited to diplomacy, sacrifices, banquets, and various ceremonies. At this time, the Minister of Rites, Pei Xian, Chunyu Ding, the Minister of Rites, as well as the Minister for External Affairs and the Attendant, were all busy as a spinning top.

Other than responsible for arranging the examination rooms, assigning the examiners and editing the exam questions, Pei Xian was in charge of many other matters. Along with the rise of the Imperial Examinations, the case of malpractice followed, and for the first time in Chinese history, it came into being like this.

This time, the number of people who registered for the Elementary Scholar examination amounted to over 7800 people in the entire Qin State. Xie Fei had initially predicted that there would not be more than 1000 people who would participate in the examination, because there were only 30,000 students in the different regions of Qin State, which was less than three in a thousand. Among them, less than a third of the people had reached the Elementary Scholars level. The imperial examinations were bound to be the first time, so most people would take a wait-and-see attitude. It would be great if they could open up the situation for the second or even third time.

In fact, Xie Fei was wrong. Those cold warriors who had been studying hard in Jin State for more than ten years, with their illustrious family background, as well as the recommendations from powerless officials and aristocratic families, for whom there was no hope for them to become officials, for whose sake they could rely on their own abilities to make this trip. Han Shi who was under the protection of the Jin State and under the protection of the various families were all plotting their future. Furthermore, the children of the various families in the north were also participating.

From then on, the place was overcrowded with more than 7800 students. Only 500 of them were admitted, and the admission rate was less than 7%. With such a small entrance rate, it was easy to imagine the pressure they would have to compete for it.

It has to be admitted that the Chinese are smart, have policies and strategies, which have been common to the Chinese for a thousand years. Of course, this era did not have the endless methods to cheat like the future generations did. However, as long as there was a person, there would be a way!

Ying Chuan and Pei Xian were close friends, and Ying Chuan had a concubine with the surname Yang. She was born into the Humble Class, and had a younger brother, Yang Liang. She wanted her brother to take the Imperial examinations, but after learning that the recruitment rate was extremely low, she was afraid that her brother wouldn't be able to pass and thus wanted to use the backdoor to drag the relationship between them.

As a servant of the imperial court, she naturally knew that her master had a deep relationship with the Minister of Rites of the imperial court. With the wind blowing on his pillow, how could the pingyuan not endure the pressure of the Young's? He could only nod in agreement.

The young man came to Pei Xian's residence carrying a heavy gift. The young man did not see Pei Xian at all, he had only left behind the letters and gifts that he had personally written for him.

This matter was not settled yet, but Liu Lang still went back to his concubine Young's and patted his chest to assure him. The matter was settled. Even though Yang Liang's knowledge and intelligence were mediocre, he was still young and arrogant. He was too little to worry about. This type of person could never have any ambitions, so once he obtained one, he would rashly proclaim it. The Imperial Examinations had yet to begin, and while the others were still studying, he was already singing a wild song of alcohol, declaring that this time's Imperial Examinations would definitely bring him to high school.

There was a saying that said it without any intention, that was unintentional. This matter had actually been overheard by a imperial guards spy, and this spy took the initiative to go up and ask Yang Liang's words. Yang Liang did not know of the sinister nature of humans, and instead started to bluster about the entire matter. imperial guards's spy immediately made a decision, controlled Yang Liang, and then reported the matter to the higher ups.

The imperial guards had the privilege of going straight to the ears of the heavens, but in the course of a few events, Xie Fei actually found out. Xie Fei was so angry that his hair stood on end. Xie Fei ordered the imperial guards to investigate this matter thoroughly. In order to obtain a good impression of Xie Fei and gain a place in the army, Xie Tian gave his all.

It was fine if he did not check, but after he did, he was shocked by the fact that the Minister of Rites and Rites had secretly accepted bribes from the Left Chief Emissary Pan Zhen, the right-hand judge Zhang Pu and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Lu Qingfeng.

Xie Fei was so angry that he scolded Pei Xian right in front of his face. Pei Xian still did not know what happened and was stunned by Xie Fei's scolding. Seeing that he was still in a daze, looking like a dead pig that was unafraid of boiling water, Xie Fei immediately became angry. Xie Fei grabbed the Lan Tian Jade paperweight on the table and used it as a concealed weapon, smashing it towards Pei Xian.

Pei Xian was the immediate emperor, and his entire body's martial arts had long reached perfection. Forget about a scholar like Pei Xian, even brazen generals like Beigong Chun and Du Ceng did not dare to be careless when facing Xie Fei. This time, Pei Xian was smashed until he was bleeding profusely!

Seeing Pei Xian's miserable state, which was like that of a fierce ghost, Xie Fei was a little unable to bear it anymore. His eyes were round, and even though Xie Fei was usually laughing and laughing in a weird way, when he turned serious, that kind of imposing manner that meant that he had lived for a long time in a position of power, even Pei Xian himself did not dare to resist.

Xie Fei said angrily: "Jing Si, do you know your crime!"

Being scolded by Xie Fei hurt him and he still had a bit of anger left in him, let alone one person. He turned his head and said generously: "Your subject, I don't know what crime you have committed to offend His Majesty!"

"Humph!" Xie Fei coldly snorted, then returned back to the side of the table and fiercely threw the case file at Pei Xian's face.

Pei Xian scolded him, and hit him, he was not afraid, because he did not do anything wrong. Xie Fei was not a bloodthirsty person, but he was responsible for the big event in the Imperial examinations, so he was truly afraid. Pei Xian knew that in this emperor, what he hated the most were corrupt officials. At the beginning of the year, Hebei Road's transfer made Ji Fu full of money and embezzled public rations. Under Xie Fei's rage, he was sentenced to be dismembered into a five horse state, and now, such a thing actually happened to him. Not only did he accept five hundred taels of gold, his subordinates also took part in the bribery process. Pei Xian was so scared that his soul left his body, trembling like a chicken.

Xie Fei gritted his teeth in disappointment, "Jing Si! "You are already following my elder, how can you do such a foolish thing?!"

Pei Xian knelt on the ground, perspiring in cold sweat. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and said: "This subject understands, this subject understands his wrongs, this subject …

Xie Fei waved his hand, "Don't just give us your life, we know that you are completely ignorant of this matter. But, don't you know that you are innocent?

Pei Xian said: "This official is guilty!"

Xie Fei rubbed his cheeks, closed his eyes and said: "I have something that I need you to do. I wonder if you would be willing to do it?"

Pei Xian said: "This subject is willing to go through fire and water for His Majesty.

Xie Fei said: "I am not lying in front of you. The so called Imperial Examinations are just a formality. It is a method I used to subdue the Humble Class of the entire world. The reason why the imperial examinations were announced was, on one hand, to give the Humble Class scholars a way out, and, on the other hand … We do not wish for a clan like the Lang Xie Wang to appear in the Qin State in the future to control or interfere with the government. Now, no matter if it's the Lou's, the Schell's, or the Zhuge family, they all have a large number of disciples participating in the Imperial examinations. Even if they relied on their own abilities to pass the first place, some rumors would inevitably appear. I have to admit, in terms of knowledge, the children of influential families do have some genuine talent.

Pei Xian went silent, but in fact, it was the same. Especially Xie Shang, Xie Yi, and Xie Qing who were part of the second generation of Schell's. All of them had true talents and there was also Empress Zhuge's brother, Qing Feng. Now, there were many rumors that they would definitely pass the Imperial Examinations. However, they had no way to refute them, because if they weren't the Emperor's unfilial sons, then they would be the Emperor's brother-in-law.

Xie Fei looked at Pei Xian and said, "Your Eldest Young Master Zhu, Second Young Master Feng, are all famous for their literary talents. Even if they don't take the Imperial examinations, they will still be able to make a name for themselves in the future. I also hope that you can make Pei Tu and Pei Zi Yun give up on the Imperial Examinations! "

In the letter, Pei Xian's eldest son, Pei Si, became the crown prince's concubine and often rode the horse (as the emperor's adviser). Without proper knowledge, it was impossible for him to achieve such a position.

At this moment, Pei Xian finally understood that since the beginning, Xie Fei knew that he was innocent. He first scolded him, causing him to gain credit for his crimes and act as a scammer to block the way of the Imperial Examinations, which would kill all the children of the influential families in Qin State. It could be imagined that he had offended Lu Chengming, the Minister of Government, Xie Kun, the Empress, the Minister of Industry, Pang Ze, and even the Great General Beigong Chun. Now, if he followed Xie Fei's instructions, he would become the public enemy of the entire Qin State, and it would be difficult for him to take even a single step further.

Pei Xian clenched his teeth and said: "Your Majesty, this subject shall give a fair answer to all the students!"

"En!" Xie Fei nodded his head: "We will not make things difficult for you. On the day of the Imperial examinations, we will have people publicize the criminal evidence of Pan Zhen, Lu Qingfeng, Zhang Pu and the others.

Pei Xian heaved a sigh of relief: "This subject understands!"

Xie Fei said: "Alright, you may leave! In addition, on the exam papers, first use a piece of paper to write down the names of the examinees, so that the examiners do not know the names and places of the examinees. This way, there will not be any unfair situations.

Pei Xian said: "This subject obeys!"

Xie Fei looked at Pei Xian's figure that was getting further and further away, and was filled with emotions. Although all dynasties have taken a severe blow to the fraud of the imperial examinations, but it is in keeping with that sentence, there are policies and countermeasures. Dummy, record, this method is not omnipotent, in the Ming and Qing dynasties exposure, they will also take the method of leaving a secret note on the paper, so as to cheat.

The act of cheating was the most unfair thing to those examinees who were truly talented and had no connections. However, since the beginning of the examination, this kind of situation would always appear.

Xie Fei was only one person, he was not a god, and the only thing he could do was to call it fair. Even so, Xie Shang, Xie Yi, Xie Shu, and Zhuge Qingfeng had received unfair treatment. Ordinary examinees had received unfair treatment, and they had received the sympathy of ordinary people.

Xie Fei patted his bulging belly and thought, "Looks like it's still not easy to be the emperor!"

Xie Tian saw that he had grabbed Pei Xian's true proof, but Xie Fei did not deal with him. He only beat him up, this kind of punishment was too light! Xie Tian gave no thought about it, he could only ask his advisor, Zhang Bin, for help after he returned!

Zhang Bin said: "Your majesty has only used this as an excuse to show off. See, in the future, Pei Xian's life will be even more miserable! Now, he used all the power he could muster to scout and investigate the fraud. This way His Majesty will be happy to see it! "

Xie Tian nodded!

Zhang Bin suddenly asked Xie Tian: "Do you know why His Majesty does not attack the Jin State, and wants to unify the world?"

Xie Fei shook his head: "The Sacred Will is hard to predict!"

However, Zhang Bin smiled and said: "Actually, His Majesty has already made his move. His first step is to let all the scholars under the heavens return to their hearts, and then, he will have a large amount of useful materials. In fact, His Majesty was in a difficult situation right now. Many of the Qin State s, because they did not have any suitable officials to manage them, had no choice but to adopt the small county's He Da County, small county's He Da County's tactics. With Qin State's strength, it should take at most two years to destroy Yan State and Jin State would only need at most one year. But Your Majesty, why not attack and unite the world? "

Zhang Bin continued to speak: "That's because His Majesty is currently lacking in manpower, especially talent, the dignified six divisions' Ministry of Industry, responsible for all the works, roads, ditches, cities, etc. They still need to manage the development of weapons, but the number of officials in the Ministry of Industry is not even thirty, and such personnel are difficult to maintain normal operations, at the end of the day, the most lacking in talent are the people in the Qin State. All these talents were previously gathered in the hands of the various families, and all of the families are incompatible with His Majesty. As long as the examinations are successful, even if there is a bastard son who can enter the Emperor's list, in less than ten years, all of the talents in the world will belong to His Majesty! "

"This way, your majesty will let go and start a war!" Xie Tian said excitedly: "I still have a chance to build a career!"

Zhang Bin rolled his eyes at Xie Tian, and then said coldly: "Don't be too happy too early. It's not like the Qin State does not have any aristocratic families; Even if we were to attack Jin State and conquer the world, it would not be an easy task.

Taiping 6th year, February 24th. This was the day when he would be able to obtain the title of Elementary Scholar. The Elementary Scholar examination was also known as the county exam. Historically, there had been local officials in charge of it, so there was no need to pay attention to it. There were no special examiners either. In accordance with the usual practice, the local county was responsible for the examination and admission of papers, and the central government did not send any other school officials to supervise the examination. However, this was the first time the Qin State held an Imperial Examinations. Furthermore, in many counties, they did not even have the most basic subjects, and in many counties, they did not even have a single examinee.

It was a quarter to ten, and the sun had just risen. Now, the show was officially starting! The examinees who were called had their bodies searched, and their bodies were completely devoid of anything to enter. Inside the examination hall, there were pen, ink, and paper, as well as the four treasures that had been specially prepared.

In reality, searching the body in the future was a violation of human rights, but in reality, as long as one was able to obtain fame, no one would care about that. Rows and rows of examinees with different expressions were filing in. At this moment, the sound of orderly footsteps came from the main street in front of the examination hall. The examinees turned around and realized that it was a team of black-clothed, black-armored soldiers.