Jiuxi

Chapter 1000 998 [Thorns Hidden]

The next day, early in the morning.

Qin Zheng looked at his nephew who was becoming more and more mature and steady, and said calmly: "Why did you come so early?"

Ever since the court returned to the old capital and Qin Zheng resumed control of the Weaving Bureau, Yang Jingxuan was transferred back to the main office. He no longer directly commanded the spies in the branch offices, but returned to his previous job - responsible for summarizing and analyzing intelligence from various places. His authority was increased compared to before, but he had no staff under his command that he could directly use.

Yang Jingxuan bowed and said, "Greetings to my uncle."

The two are close relatives by blood, so there is no need to address each other by official titles when they meet in private.

"no."

Qin Zheng motioned him to sit down and talk, then asked, "What's the matter?"

Yang Jingxuan's eyes were full of bloodshot, obviously because he hadn't slept the whole night, and his voice was a little hoarse: "Uncle, nephew has checked the relevant files these two days and found that there are serious problems with this special examination."

Qin Zheng asked calmly, "Are you trying to say that someone cheated?"

“Maybe it’s a more serious problem than fraud.”

Yang Jingxuan coughed lightly and continued, "Uncle, I have checked the questions of the imperial examinations in the past twenty years and found that the seven articles of the special examination can find similar questions in the past, and they are all in the fields that the great scholars in Jiangnan are very good at and pay attention to. As the president of the special examination, Lord Kong, the Minister of Rites, should understand the good intentions of the court and should always take Jiangbei scholars into consideration when setting questions. However, he did not do so. Instead, he deliberately chose the topic categories that the scholars in Jiangnan have practiced for a long time. His heart is despicable."

"Since you also know that this is a heart-breaking statement, why do you say these things?"

Qin Zheng lowered his eyelids slightly, and then said: "The Textile Bureau must also rely on evidence when doing things. What's wrong with Minister Kong setting questions according to past practices? As long as he didn't collude to cheat and didn't directly leak the test questions, you want to take action against the current Minister of Rites based on your specious speculation?"

Yang Jingxuan lowered his head, but his tone became more and more firm: "I dare to guarantee with my life that Minister Kong must have colluded with some examiners and is suspected of leaking the test questions. I just need to send someone to investigate and we will know the answer."

Qin Zheng looked at him expressionlessly and asked, "Is it because most of the candidates who passed the Enke exam this time are from Jiangnan?"

Yesterday evening, the Imperial Examination Hall determined the A and B lists. Lu Chen knew the result very quickly, and the Textile Bureau naturally knew it as well.

Yang Jingxuan simply replied, "Yes."

Qin Zheng picked up the teacup and took a sip, then slowly asked, "Do you know why I want to transfer you back to the headquarters?"

Yang Jingxuan looked at him calmly and answered, "Because during the three years when my uncle left the central government, as the Jiangbei inspector of the Weaving Department, my nephew only obeyed the orders of the King of Qin. Although my uncle was in his hometown, he knew the situation of the Weaving Department very well. Therefore, after taking over the Weaving Department again, the first thing he did was to cancel my nephew's inspector's power."

Qin Zheng asked again: "Do you have any resentment?"

Yang Jingxuan shook his head and said, "No. There is no need to elaborate on the past. Uncle must have your considerations for doing this. How could a nephew have resentment in his heart?"

Qin Zheng's usually expressionless face finally showed a hint of relief.

But the next moment Yang Jingxuan said bluntly: "Uncle, the intentions of Minister Kong and others are self-evident. They want to use this imperial examination to closely unite the scholars and prominent families in Jiangnan, so as to achieve the goal of opposing the King of Qin and hindering the new policy. I think that although this move is under the banner of fairness and justice, it is an act of using public resources for personal gain. If they are allowed to regard the imperial examination as a means of court struggle, it will not only make the scholars in Jiangbei disappointed in the court, but also seriously damage the overall situation of the court."

"Let's put this matter aside for now."

Qin Zheng placed the teacup on the table beside him and said earnestly, "If you can understand why I transferred you back to the General Office, you should not continue to interfere in matters related to the King of Qin and the new policy."

Yang Jingxuan looked at him in confusion.

Qin Zheng continued, "Of course, I am very pleased that you did not deliberately leak the information held by the Textile Bureau to the Lu family's secret guards."

Yang Jingxuan suppressed his doubts and said sincerely, "I have never forgotten your kindness in saving my life and cultivating me. How could I do such a thing behind your back?"

Hearing this, Qin Zheng's face showed some sadness.

He and his sister had a very good relationship back then, but unfortunately he was unable to get away due to official duties after Heluo fell, and did not see her for the last time. Fortunately, he rescued her only son, Yang Jingxuan standing in front of him, before the Jing army's cavalry appeared.

Qin Zheng sighed and said slowly, "You are the only one left in the Yang family now. Your uncle doesn't want you to continue to be involved in this vortex, so he arranged for you to do those paperwork. Jingxuan, you know that the gentle atmosphere in the court is just an illusion. If you get too involved at this time, especially if you get too close to King Qin, it may not be a good thing for you. You have been out there for a long time in the past few years, and you will achieve something in the future if you calm down and polish yourself. As for King Qin, I am your uncle, and I kept you away from these disturbances. I think he won't blame you."

Yang Jingxuan was very smart and instantly realized the mystery hidden in Qin Zheng's words.

He looked at Qin Zheng in disbelief and said softly, "Uncle, do you think there will be unexpected changes in the future?"

Qin Zheng did not answer, but said solemnly: "Jingxuan, I hope you will remember my words. You are still young and have a long way to go in the future. You must take good care of yourself, otherwise I will be even more sorry to your mother."

Yang Jingxuan's eyes dimmed, and he lowered his head and replied, "Yes, uncle."

After he left, Qin Zheng drank half a cup of herbal tea, stared ahead with deep eyes, and a conversation emerged in his mind.

A conversation that took place many years ago.

It was during the first Northern Expedition, when the Qi army had just won a great victory in Lei Ze, a rumor about Lu Chen's life suddenly began to spread in Yongjia City, slandering him as a descendant of Yang Guangyuan. At that time, Li Duan hesitated and decided to believe Lu Chen. The most important thing was that the Northern Expedition could not stop, but as an emperor who had achieved success through many hardships, Li Duan could not completely trust Lu Chen and had no backup plan.

To this day, Qin Zheng still clearly remembers his answer to Li Duan: "I understand. I will secretly place someone beside Lu Chen in case of emergency."

The person is gone, but his words are still fresh in my mind. More than six years have passed in a flash.

Qin Zheng slowly stood up and walked out.

"Wait a little longer and see again."

He said this in a tone so light that it was almost inaudible.

……

Three quarters past noon, in the Imperial Palace.

When Lu Chen stepped into the Qinzheng Hall, several ministers were already present.

He stepped forward and saluted without looking away, saying, "Your Majesty."

"No need to pay tribute."

Queen Mother Ning's expression showed no emotion. She said to Yuan Yuji beside her, "Give the King of Qin a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Lu Chen stood up, sat down and looked at the important officials in the hall.

The two prime ministers and Qin Zheng, the director of the Weaving Bureau, were all present. In addition, there were the two chief examiners in charge of this special examination, the Minister of Rites Kong Yingdong and the Vice Minister Liu Jideng, as well as Li Liangyu, the director of the Innovation Bureau.

Lu Chen said to Queen Mother Ning respectfully, "Your Majesty summoned me to the palace. I guess the results of the imperial examination are out?"

"Yes."

Queen Mother Ning smiled, but it was a somewhat forced smile, and then she said to Kong Yingdong, "Mr. Kong, this year's special examination is the first of the eight new policies. Now that the King of Qin, the two prime ministers and Li Zhushi are all here, please inform everyone of the results."

"The minister obeys the order."

Kong Yingdong bowed and then subconsciously looked at Lu Chen.

What caught his eye was a face with a faint smile.

During the more than half a month when he had the final say in the Imperial Examination Hall, Kong Yingdong had imagined more than once how he would use a wide range of evidence and arguments when facing Lu Chen, hoping to refute the other party so that he would be speechless and have to accept the result in the end.

Because he knew that Lu Chen lacked knowledge and knew nothing about classics and literature. This time, even the two prime ministers could not argue with him logically, let alone a military man who was always arrogant?

But at this moment, although Lu Chen did not deliberately put on a majestic attitude, Kong Yingdong felt a cold pressure.

However, the arrow was on the string and had to be shot. He had no room to retreat, so he forced himself to calm down and said, "This year, a total of 3,762 scholars entered the special examination. During the inspection, 109 were expelled for bringing in illegal materials. In addition, 42 people left the venue for various reasons, either voluntarily or by punishment. Therefore, a total of 3,611 answer sheets were received. According to the court regulations, 360 candidates were selected. As of yesterday evening, the names of 18 candidates in the A list and 342 candidates in the B list have been confirmed."

In fact, everyone could feel that the atmosphere in the palace was rather depressing. Lu Chen was very clear that Empress Dowager Ning had been discussing with these important ministers for some time before he entered the palace.

He still smiled and asked: "Minister Kong, I wonder how many of these 360 ​​tribute scholars are from Jiangbei?"

Kong Yingdong knew he couldn't escape, so he made up his mind and said, "Your Majesty, among them, thirty-three tribute scholars are from Jiangbei."

After hearing these words, Empress Dowager Ning subconsciously became nervous.

She had never thought that this would be the result. When she heard the details from Kong Yingdong, she knew that trouble was coming, so she immediately asked someone to summon Lu Chen into the palace.

Watching the smile on Lu Chen's face gradually fade away, Queen Mother Ning couldn't help but look at the two prime ministers on the other side. At this moment, their worries were almost the same. They were afraid that Lu Chen would immediately explode without caring about the consequences after hearing this answer.

However, to their surprise, although Lu Chen stopped smiling, he remained calm. He just frowned slightly and said, "Less than 10%? This is probably not good, right?"

Kong Yingdong felt relieved. As long as Lu Chen took the overall situation into consideration and did not overturn the table, his plan would have a hope of success.

So he stepped forward and faced Lu Chen, and said calmly: "Your Majesty, please allow me to explain in detail. This result is completely in line with regulations."

Lu Chen did not stop him.

Kong Yingdong then gently waved his sleeves and began his last speech in the court of Da Qi.

(End of this chapter)