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

No one had expected that this turmoil would develop to this extent, and Zhu Tan and his team had no control over it at all.

Not long after, they received news that Li Dongyang, who was marking the papers again, had copied down the papers of Tang Bohu, Xu Jing and the other two.

You should know that among these candidates, more than 80% can pass the imperial examination.

Li Dongyang's innocence alone ruined the future of thirty-four students. Li Dongyang's ability to shirk responsibility surprised Chu Tian.

However, that very night, an even more shocking news came, catching Zhu Tan and the others off guard again.

Ma Cong and Jiang Rong were both planned by Ma Wensheng, so why were they involved in this matter?
The city administration made a mistake.

They were originally street thugs, and Zhu Tan controlled them very well, but some of them did not listen to him.

The streets are full of people selling questions, who can make a profit from the difference.

The money he earned was not even a fraction of the reward from Chu Tian. Instead, he fell into a trap and became the real accomplice in cheating in the exam.

It's like Zhu Tan was leading the way and breaking through from five directions, but unexpectedly his home was robbed and the pagoda was about to collapse.

Zhu Tan looked at Zhang Wei, who was kneeling on the ground, crying loudly and slapping himself desperately, and forced himself to suppress the anger in his heart.

Even if Zhang Wei was killed, there would be no point. Even if these rats were chopped into pieces, it would not be able to soothe the pain in his heart.

Ma Wensheng and Ye Shen had never expected that something like this would happen. They looked at each other, their minds racing as they thought of countermeasures.

If he was really charged with cheating, Zhu Tan would be severely punished even if the Emperor had confidence in Chu Mu.

Before the two of them could come up with a plan, Zhu Tan had already burst into laughter. It seemed that he was not angry, but just laughing.

Ma Wensheng asked, "Have you thought of a solution, Lord?"

"My brother-in-law is the current emperor, Emperor Hongzhi."

Ye Shen frowned and said, "That is the Marquis's last trump card."

"My brother-in-law is the current emperor, Emperor Hongzhi!"

Zhu Tan was not crazy. Ma Wensheng and Ye Shen also understood that Marquis Jianchang wanted to create trouble.

Anyone who hears such words would be pissed off to death.

Zhu Tan was also forced into a corner, otherwise he would not have brought up Zhu Youtang.

He cleared his throat and said, "The questions didn't come from me. At most, it was due to poor discipline. I handed in those bastards. Now the most important thing is the assessment!"

Ma Wensheng and Ye Shen wanted to slap themselves. They were implicated by Zhu Tan, and because they cared about Zhu Tan, they forgot the point of the matter.

Zhu Tan continued, "I originally thought that Tang Bohu and Xu Jing would turn against us, but now they haven't. We have the upper hand. At most, we will be reprimanded by the emperor, but some people will be beheaded for crimes in the imperial examinations."

I like you, come here if you dare!

Zhu Tan thought, Zhang Heling's whole family was dead, he was Zhu Youtang's only brother-in-law, and he still had no children!

Even if it was a fire or a hole in the dragon throne, Zhu Youtang could endure it!

The memorial submitted by Hua Chang spread quickly.

It is said that during this examination, while the ministers in the court were in a meeting, the candidates and common people were discussing privately in the alleys, and they were all talking about the fact that Cheng Minzheng, the Right Prime Minister of the Ministry of Rites and the Hanlin Academy, had sold the examination questions to those students.

Xu Jing and Su Tangyin from Jiangyin both said that they had obtained a test paper and showed it to everyone.

As the censor, after learning about this matter, Cheng Minzheng asked the emperor for permission to have officials from the Ministry of Justice review the case again to show fairness.

This memorial was just delivered this morning, and I don't know where it came from.

Perhaps because Cheng Minzheng was arrogant and domineering in his daily life, he made many enemies in the officialdom, and soon two other censors reported his memorials.

Zhu Youtang was very concerned about this matter and immediately asked Li Dongyang, the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion, to handle it.

Li Dongyang was a veteran after all, and he quickly gave his suggestions.

Li Dongyang thought that Hua Chang's participation was purely hearsay. After all, the list had not yet been released, and Xu Jing, Tang Yin and others might not be on the list.

If Li Dongyang wanted to make further progress, it would take some time, so he asked his superiors to postpone the result to March 3nd.

Zhu Youtang agreed, which led to Li Dongyang's ability to cover up the truth and withdraw more than 30 test papers.

Afterwards, he wrote another letter to Zhu Youtang, saying that Tang Yin and Xu Jing's papers were not included in the imperial examination at all.

Zhu Tan and others also heard about it at first, but not in such detail.

Since he, Ma Wensheng and Ye Shen were not ministers and did not have a good relationship with the cabinet ministers, it was impossible for them to know about this matter at the first time even through the channels in the palace.

If Zhu Tan had not always been by Zhu Youtang's side, he would have had no chance.

At noon, the result of the punishment came out. Hua Chang was found to have spread rumors and caused trouble, and the memorial he submitted was also false, so he was directly thrown into jail.

Hua Chang, as the plaintiff, was thrown into jail, which caused a great sensation.

The other two were a little anxious and submitted memorials, saying that even if Hua Chang had reported the wrong person, he was still loyal to the court.

Lin Tingyu also listed six problems with Cheng Minzheng, saying that it would be unfair if the matter was not thoroughly investigated.

Cheng Minzheng had offended a lot of people, and this added fuel to the fire. Even Li Dongyang was dragged in by him, accusing him of suspected cheating in the process of grading the test papers.

The best way is to let those people write letters.

Zhu Youtang also couldn't figure out the ins and outs of this matter, so he asked the East Court to bring Hua Chang, Xu Jing, and Tang Yinzhi to the Zhenfu Division for investigation.

Dongxunsi refers to the Dongxunsi, which has a higher status than the Censorate.

The current director of the East Factory is a eunuch named Yang Peng, who is highly valued by Zhu Youtang. Zhu Youtang has strict controls on the East Factory and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Yang Peng is also a very good person, not as bad as portrayed in the TV series.

Although Yang Peng has good character, what are the East Factory and the Imperial Guard? Wouldn't that mean he would lose a lot of skin?

This day was just like this, it can be said to be a dazzling farce.

Not to mention other people, even Zhu Tan, who was outside the situation, couldn't see it clearly. He couldn't even tell the difference between a human and a ghost.

Chapter 72

As the night deepened, February in Kyoto was much cooler than in the previous life.

Zhu Tan put on a sable fur coat, said goodbye to Ma Wensheng, and planned to meet Guo Ning.

Guo Ning works in the Special Service Department and knows a lot of people, so he takes extra care of Tang Bohu and Xu Jing.

As soon as Ye Mo and Ye Shen came out of the hall, they saw Ma Yuexian standing at the door.

Zhu Tan was a little incoherent and asked, "Miss Ma, how is your injury?"

Ma Yuexian was just about to send Ma Wensheng's wife over, but was so frightened by Zhu Tan's loud shout that she almost dropped the herbs in her hand.

Turning around, she saw Chu Mu asking about her situation. Her face suddenly turned red and she stammered, unable to speak.

His chest was kicked by Zhang Yuanying and it was black and swollen. Could it be that the pain has not subsided yet?

"No problem, thank you, sir."

Ma Yuexian left in a hurry, she was in a very strange mood.

She was so concerned about her privacy by a grown man, which was completely contrary to her previous teachings and her principles.

Ye Shen sighed. He knew that Zhu Tan had some difficulty controlling his lower body. It was not an exaggeration to describe him as a pervert. However, it also depended on who he was.

He was just a minor official, and sending his daughter into the palace to be a concubine would not disgrace his origin.

But Ma Yuexian is Ma Wensheng’s granddaughter after all, so you can’t tease her like this, right?

Unless Chu Tian really wants to marry Ma Yuexian, he must be wary of Ma Wensheng's dissatisfaction.

After leaving the door, Ye Shen said in an almost pleading tone: "My Lord, your body and desires are the same. How many heroes in history have died because of beauty? Don't hurt your body, that would be a pity!"

Zhu Tan stopped and looked a little embarrassed.

He was just worried at first, but as soon as he said it out loud, he felt like he was teasing Ma Yuexian. However, Ye Shen's words made him very unhappy, and he didn't take it to heart at all.

Although he did travel to this world, it was true that with great power comes great responsibility, but it was too tragic that he couldn't even survive.

Kaishen's diary and some famous scholars have mentioned in his diary that when he sees a woman, he will want her, and want several of them. Such a man is very difficult to control.

Zhu Tan didn't bother with Ye Shen, thinking to himself, it's easy for you to say it, but if a beautiful woman appeared in front of you, could you still hold back?
But Zhu Tan was very respectful to Ye Shen and responded casually.

Ye Shen saw it and thought, well, he just ignored his words and didn't take them to heart! After saying that, he walked away.

As soon as Guo Ning arrived at Cheng'an Hou, he knew that Zhu Tan was coming, and immediately took Zhu Tan inside.

"Second brother, you are here so late, you must want me to look after Tang Yin and Xu Jing, right?"

"You are quite smart..."

Before Zhu Tan finished speaking, Guo Ning had already spread his arms and shrugged.

“Second brother, it’s useless for you to say that. The Jinyiwei can no longer intervene. They don’t even take the Jinyiwei seriously. They just treat them as trash. I can’t do anything.”

Although Guo Ning was the master of a marquisate and a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, his status was much lower than that of the Eastern Depot.

Due to the power of the East Factory, not only the nobles but even the royal family had to treat him with courtesy when they saw him.

Zhu Tan was surprised and asked, "Why has my brother-in-law suppressed the East Factory and the Imperial Guards since he became the emperor? Is that true?"

"Well! After the emperor ascended the throne, the power of the East Factory and the Embroidered Uniform Guard has indeed been weakened a lot, but it is only compared to before the late emperor. In fact, the East Factory has always been unruly. Excuse me for being frank, in the current situation, the emperor is very tightly controlled, the imperial guards are rampant, and the officials are gradually corrupt. If they unite, it will be troublesome!"

Zhu Tan raised his eyebrows and said, "Third brother, you are not referring to something else! How did you know?"

"It was such a grand occasion today. Li Dongyang's steward went to see Zhang Yu, the chief horse steward, early in the morning. Zhang Yu also met Yang Peng, and then the East Factory drove out all the Jinyiwei in the Zhenfu Yamen. At noon today, the East Factory started investigating the imperial examination case. Although I didn't get a number, I heard that Hua Chang, Xu Jing, Tang Yin and others were all beaten black and blue. It was obvious that they had to be tortured to make them confess."

Zhu Tan's heart was shocked and he said, "Severe torture? Damn it, they simply don't listen to the orders of the East Factory Master!"

"This is the usual style of the East Courtyard. The emperor asked us to investigate this matter thoroughly, and Yang Peng and his men will take advantage of it. If Second Brother wants to deal with Tang Bohu and Xu Jing, he must do it himself. I am far from qualified to do it alone."

"You come with me first and gather some Ti Ti knights. I will also bring servants with me and go to the Pacification Office together."

Zhu Tan was getting a little impatient. If Tang Bohu was tortured to death, why was he running around?
Guo Ning didn't say anything, but did it anyway. He had suffered a lot that day, and this time he was going to take it out on the people from the East Factory and let them see the power of the three heroes of the capital.

The three most talented men in the capital gathered together, including Xu Guangzuo. Although he did not have an official position, he was still the son of Duke Dingguo.

His family background is higher than that of Zhu Tan and Guo Ning, and he can be said to be a big banner.

The three heroes of the capital were indeed overwhelmed by the Zhenfu Division. Now the entire Zhenfu Division was surrounded by people from the East Factory. The big boss Yang Peng was among them, and he immediately ordered them to be stopped.

Although Zhu Tan and the other two had revealed their identities, the Eastern Depot still refused to let them in, leaving only the three people from the capital waiting outside the Zhenfu Gate.

Zhu Tan was so angry that he wanted to laugh, but he hit a wall!

Since he came into this world, he has never been treated like this. It is just as the rumors say, he only cares about his brother-in-law!

"Everyone heard it. It was the Dongchang who refused to let me in. They all used all their strength, sticks and knives to beat him up severely."

If Zhu Tan retreats at this time, he will become a weak target, which is equivalent to handing the East Factory a knife. How can he survive in the future?
Jia Zhang, Zhang Laoliu and others, as well as several brocade-robed knights around Guo Ning, agreed in unison.

They have been with Zhu Tan for more than a month, and they all know that their second uncle is a man of his words and takes very good care of his subordinates.

They were all eager to try, holding weapons, ready to rush into the Zhenfu Division at any time. If anything happened, Marquis Jianchang would naturally be there to take charge.

Just when the two were on the verge of a fight, the door of the Pacification Office opened, and a eunuch in a bright red robe walked in. With him were more than one or two hundred servants from the East Factory, all of whom were Yang Peng, the manager of the East Police Station.

Yang Peng sneered.

"Don't think that no one is really in charge of this matter! You bastards! If you want to cause trouble, be naive!" (End of this chapter)