Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

The palace city of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Qianyang Palace, the first quarter of the afternoon.

In the spacious hall, the bronze crane of longevity and happiness flashed a heavy, dark yellow light, and from its sharp beak came out milky white ambergris smoke, which was refreshing and lingering.

All the eunuchs and palace maids serving in the palace were sent out of the palace. Except for Jia Cong who came to the palace to make a report, Emperor Jia Zhao only left his confidant Guo Lin to accompany him.

The door of Qianyang Palace has been closed tightly, and the palace guards have been arranged to guard the area ten steps outside the palace.

In the hall, the light was dim because the doors were closed. Lamps and candlesticks were all lit, blending the bright yellow candlelight, flickering and illuminating the entire hall.

There was an easel in front of the imperial desk, on which hung a drawing of a musket with intricate lines. This was a component drawing that Jia Cong had redrawn based on the standard breech-loading rifle, and it was originally intended to be used today.

At this time, the emperor and his minister stood in front of the easel, behaving in an unusual manner.

Jia Cong looked quite youthful and kept giving instructions on the blueprints, explaining in detail the various features of the breech-loading rifle. Emperor Jia Zhao listened with great interest and asked questions from time to time.

The king and his minister were chatting happily. Seeing this, Guo Lin, who was standing by, felt something strange in his heart.

Jia Cong explained to Emperor Jia Zhao the general process of the development of the breech-loading rifle, and highlighted that the shortcomings of the existing construction technology of the Great Zhou Dynasty had caused great obstacles to the development of advanced firearms such as the breech-loading rifle.

The reason why he used an obscure way to instill these ideas into Emperor Jiazhao was also to explain to the emperor the limitations and difficulties of the subsequent development of the Firearms Bureau.

This not only reasonably corrected Emperor Jiazhao's excessive expectations for firearms, but also laid the groundwork for the environment and conditions needed for future firearms research and development.

While explaining the difficulty of developing firearms, he also explained in detail to Emperor Jiazhao that the newly-made breech-loading musket had a huge improvement in range, power, accuracy, etc. compared to the improved Rumi gun.

Moreover, the forging strength and precision of the newly made firing pin of the breech-loading rifle have reached the pinnacle of the Great Zhou's iron casting technology.

A single firing pin can support the firing of thirty bullets, which is enough for musketeers to deal with the required musket volleys in a small or medium-sized battle.

If a single soldier carries multiple spare firing pins, it can meet the needs of high-intensity firepower in large-scale battles.

Emperor Jia Zhao was inspired after listening to Jia Cong's explanation. The gloomy mood brought about by the imperial examination cheating case in recent days seemed to be swept away.

At that time, Jia Cong led the musketeers and galloped across the battlefield in Liaodong. The thousand-man musketeer team displayed amazing power in the two great victories of Yafu Pass and Qingyuanji, and wiped out the Jurchens outside the pass in one fell swoop.

At that time, the musketeers were only using the improved Rumi gun. If all of them were equipped with new breech-loading rifles that were several times more powerful than the Rumi gun, the power of a thousand-man musket team would be extremely powerful!

The emperor was very much looking forward to the power of the breech-loading rifle, so he asked Jia Cong to plan and determine the time, and arrange a breech-loading rifle test-firing drill in the firearms workshop in anticipation of his personal arrival.

Emperor Jiazhao said, "Mr. Jia, your success in creating the breech-loading rifle came at the perfect time.

Although the Great Zhou was stable on all sides, the border areas were still unstable. The attacks from the remnant Mongolian and Tuman tribesmen, Anda Khan, in the nine border states and several other prefectures were becoming more and more frequent.

The barbarian countries along the West Sea in the western border of Yunnan occasionally harass the border; the threat of Japanese pirates along the southeastern coast has never been eliminated since the Yong'an period.

The Great Zhou was located in the heart of the Central Plains, with a vast territory, abundant resources, a large population and a large population. It had always been coveted by the barbarians from all over the world.

Speak with peace, maintain peace with force, and combine firmness and flexibility - these are the keys to building a country.

I need sharp firearms like the breech-loading rifle to prepare my army, intimidate the barbarians, and punish the evil and stubborn.

Let me ask you, if I ask you to make a thousand new breech-loading rifles, how long will it take your firearms workshop to make them?"

……

When Jia Cong heard this, he was slightly shocked. Emperor Jia Zhao had big ambitions in mind and asked for a thousand breech-loading rifles.

The breech-loading rifle is more complex in structure than the improved Rummit gun, and its construction difficulty is greatly increased.

With the current technological level of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the forging capabilities of the Ministry of Industry's firearms workshop, it would be an extremely difficult task to produce a thousand breech-loading rifles.

Jia Cong said: "Your Majesty, the forging of the various parts of the breech-loading rifle is at the peak of the forging skills of the Great Zhou Dynasty. The various craftsmen used in the firearms workshop are all first-class talents in the Great Zhou Dynasty, so it can be built smoothly.

However, the number of craftsmen in the workshop is limited, and the speed of producing muskets is restricted. According to my estimation, the firearms workshop can only complete the forging and assembly of 50 breech-loading rifle parts in a month.

A small number of obsolete guns will also be eliminated, and it will take nearly two years to complete the construction of one thousand breech-loading guns."

Although Jia Cong gave a construction time, Emperor Jia Zhao felt it was too long at first.

But Jia Cong had just explained to him that the performance and power of the breech-loading rifle were several times greater than that of the improved Rumi gun. The two were incomparable, and the difficulty of manufacturing was naturally several times greater.

Therefore, it is reasonable for Jia Cong to say that it would take two years to complete one thousand qualified breech-loading rifles.

However, state affairs were urgent and changing rapidly, and Emperor Jiazhao could not wait for two years.

He thought for a moment and said, "Two years is too long. There is a compromise."

Jia Cong said: "Your Majesty, if we expand the scale of the firearms workshop, select more first-class craftsmen, and intensify their training, we can increase the monthly output of the workshop.

The breech-loading rifle is still in its infancy. After being verified in actual combat, it will continue to be improved and finalized. If the first batch is thousands, it will cause considerable waste.

In my opinion, the power of a breech-loading rifle is several times that of the improved Rumi gun. The firepower created by 500 breech-loading rifles is far greater than that of a thousand improved Rumi guns.

Therefore, only 500 breech-loading rifles are needed for the first batch to be built, which will be enough for His Majesty to prepare for war by forming an army.

As long as the firearms workshop is fully expanded, I estimate that by this winter, the workshop should be able to complete the production of 500 breech-loading rifles."

When Emperor Jia Zhao heard this, he was excited. According to Jia Cong's estimate, 500 breech-loading rifles could be manufactured in half a year, and the army could be formed by the end of this year.

For a newly manufactured powerful firearm, this is a very fast equipment efficiency.

Emperor Jia Zhao was in a good mood and said with a smile: "Go back and write a detailed plan for this matter. I will mobilize the relevant officials to assist in this matter with all their strength."

Just as the emperor and his minister were both looking forward to the breech-loading rifle, a voice came from outside the palace gate: "Your Majesty, the Minister of the Dali Temple Wei Guanyao has an urgent memorial to submit."

Emperor Jiazhao was slightly stunned after hearing this. Wei Guanyao, the Minister of Dali Temple, had always been experienced and steady, and had never made any urgent reports to the emperor. What urgent matter was it that made him so anxious to see the emperor?

Emperor Jiazhao suddenly thought that the Dali Temple was working together with the Court of Inquisition to investigate a major case of cheating in the imperial examinations. Could there be something unusual in the cheating case? The emperor's face tightened slightly.

He said, "Call him into the palace!"

The eunuch outside the palace slowly pushed open the door. Not long after, Wei Guanyao was summoned by the eunuch and hurried into the Qianyang Palace.

He saw that the Qianyang Hall was brightly lit with candles. Weiyuan Earl Jia Cong was also in the hall, rolling up a scroll on the easel. He felt a little strange.

However, he knew that Jia Cong, as the Director of the Firearms Bureau, was involved in the military and national secrets of firearms manufacturing. It was not surprising that he would have a private conversation with the emperor in the palace.

Moreover, although the matter he reported today was a bit tricky, it was not confidential. He was afraid that it would spread tomorrow, so there was no need to avoid Jia Cong.

……

Wei Guanyao said, "Your Majesty, there has been an unexpected situation in the examination fraud case. As this matter is of great importance, I dare not delay, so I am eager to enter the palace to see you."

Emperor Jia Zhao looked solemn and asked, "What's the unexpected situation?"

Wei Guanyao replied, "Half an hour ago, Wu Liang, the main culprit in the examination fraud case, committed suicide by hitting his head against the rack in the torture room of the Magistrate's Court due to the coercion of the Magistrate's Court Zhou Yuanshi!"

Emperor Jia Zhao's face changed, he stood up from the throne, and asked sternly: "How could such a thing happen? Didn't Wu Liang already sign a confession? How could he be forced to confess?"

Wei Guanyao replied, “Your Majesty, the reason Wu Liang was brought to justice was because of the impeachment of the Imperial Censor Sun Shouzheng in court, but also because the successful candidate Zhou Yan reported him to the Court of Inquiries.

In Zhou Yan's complaint, he mentioned that Wu Liang's classmate and close friend Lin Zhaohe was suspected of cheating in the exam questions.

Yesterday, Lin Zhaohe was arrested after returning to the city. At the request of Zhou Yuanshi, Yang Hongbin, the chief judge of the Dali Temple, escorted Lin Zhaohe to the criminal room of the Magistrate's Court to confront and interrogate him with Wu Liang.

Zhou Yuanshi tortured Wu Liang and forced him to confess that Lin Zhaohe had committed fraud. Wu Liang initially said that Lin Zhaohe had not committed any fraud, but later he could not bear the torture any longer and agreed to confess the truth.

After the jailer untied Wu Liang from the rack, Wu Liang took advantage of the situation and hit his head against the rack and died.

Yang Hongbin, the chief judge of the Dali Temple, was present as a jury. He said that the torture used by the court was too severe, the confession was not properly induced, and the interrogation was too aggressive, which caused the prisoner Wu to suffer a mental breakdown and commit suicide, resulting in the tragedy.

After listening to Wei Guanyao's narration, Emperor Jiazhao's face became gloomy and he looked furious.

Wu Liang was the main culprit in the fraud case. More than a dozen imperial examination candidates were implicated because of him. Now Wu Liang committed suicide before he was brought to justice.

The examination cheating case will lose its support as a result. How can it be justified, how can it be concluded properly, and how can it face the criticisms of scholars all over the world!
However, in addition to Wu Liang's death, which caused trouble for the imperial examination fraud case, Emperor Jia Zhao was obviously concerned about more than just this one. With a gloomy face, Emperor Jia Zhao asked: "Why was Lin Zhaohe implicated in the fraud? Why didn't anyone report it to me in advance?"

After listening to Emperor Jiazhao's questioning, Wei Guanyao felt a little confused. Wu Liang's death would bring the examination fraud case to a standstill, which was the crux of the matter.

If His Majesty doesn't pay attention to this matter, why would he pay attention to Lin Zhaohe? This person is not the key to this case...

Although Wei Guanyao was confused, since the emperor asked him a question, he naturally had no reason not to answer.

He said hurriedly: "Because when Wu Liang was arrested, Lin Zhaohe happened to be out of town to visit a friend, so he could not be questioned and no charges were brought against him, so we can only postpone the case and handle it separately.

Until this person's guilt is determined, we dare not report to the emperor."

After listening to Wei Guanyao's explanation, Emperor Jia Zhao found it to make some sense, but his brows were still furrowed, and there was a strange anger in his eyes.

At this time, Jia Cong was standing aside with a scroll in his hand. As the saying goes, a bystander sees more clearly, and he saw the strange expression of Emperor Jia Zhao clearly.

He and Wei Guanyao had the same feeling that Emperor Jiazhao seemed to have a special concern for Lin Zhaohe.

As the top scholar in Hangzhou Prefecture, Lin Zhaohe had some fame among the candidates, but Jia Cong could not understand what connection he had with the almighty Emperor Jiazhao and why he had attracted the emperor's attention.

If there is anything else that is noteworthy about Lin Zhaohe, it is that he is ranked third in this year's imperial examination list, right after Jia Cong.

……

When Jia Cong thought of this, he couldn't help but be moved. He was a candidate for the Spring Examination, so naturally he was very concerned about matters related to the Spring Examination.

His teacher Liu Jing'an was not only known as the literary saint, but also served as the Grand Master of the Ministry of Rites before his retirement and served as the chief examiner of the imperial examinations several times.

Therefore, few people could match Liu Jing'an's mastery of all the tricks of the spring examination, including preparation for the examination, marking papers, selection, and ranking.

As Liu Jing'an's most respected disciple in his later years, Jia Cong would naturally explain all matters related to the Spring Examination to this young disciple in detail.

Jia Cong had a rare and famous teacher like Liu Jing'an, which enabled him to understand the affairs of the Spring Examination to the same extent as the three chief examiners of the Spring Examination.

Therefore, he was naturally very clear about the evaluation rules for the palace examination essays.

The most important thing is that as long as the essays of the top 18 candidates in the palace examination are of a similar standard, their essays will be directly submitted to the emperor for review.

As expected, the top three candidates in the palace examination were among the top eighteen candidates on the list.

As Lin Zhaohe ranked third in this year's imperial examination, his essay paper for the palace examination would definitely be submitted to the emperor for review. This was the only chance for Emperor Jiazhao to notice him.

But even for this reason, Emperor Jiazhao knew of Lin Zhaohe's existence, and should not have shown such unexpected anger when Wei Guanyao mentioned that the other party was involved in imperial examination fraud.

Unless Lin Zhaohe's palace examination essay, when submitted to Emperor Jiazhao for review, not only left an impression on the emperor, but also aroused some kind of appreciation and high attention.

Jia Cong could even vaguely speculate that on the palace examination gold list that was supposed to be posted on the 15th but was temporarily sealed by the Ministry of Rites, Lin Zhaohe was very likely to be selected as one of the top candidates by Emperor Jia Zhao.

Considering Lin Zhaohe's talent as the top scorer in the Hangzhou Prefecture exam and his reputation as the third on the list, it was not surprising that such a result occurred in the end.

Only in this situation, when Emperor Jiazhao heard that Lin Zhaohe was involved in imperial examination fraud, would he feel so angry at being deceived and fooled.

Jia Cong's mind flashed with thoughts, and he thought of this possibility in a very short time. He was sure that this was not just his groundless speculation, but was very close to the real reason.

Just now, Emperor Jiazhao showed unusual attention to Lin Zhaohe, and Dali Temple Minister Wei Guanyao also showed confusion.

This is actually not surprising, because Wei Guanyao was not the chief examiner or subordinate official of this year's Spring Examination, and he knew very little about the inside story of this year's Spring Examination.

He probably knew that Lin Zhaohe was ranked third on the list and was a scholar of some importance.

But he would only analyze and locate the problem from the perspective of the three judicial departments. If Lin Zhaohe was found guilty of cheating, it would become a strange story in this examination...

He was not like Jia Cong, who was in the middle of the situation and had a vested interest in it. Naturally, he did not have Jia Cong's keen ability to analyze the crux of the problem and guess the deep-seated reasons in a moment.

If Jia Cong knew that when the palace examination papers were being graded, Emperor Jia Zhao asked the three chief examiners to each nominate a candidate for the top prize, the person recommended by the Minister of Personnel Chen Mo was Lin Zhaohe.

He will know that his speculation is absolutely correct...

……

On that day, Jiang Liu wandered around the streets and found out all the details of the fraud case, which gave Jia Cong a good understanding of the whole story.

The chief examiner Xu Liangxiong accepted a visit from a candidate before the exam, which was inappropriate behavior. The essay questions he set during the exam gave the candidates an opportunity to take shortcuts, so he was guilty of dereliction of duty and selling questions.

But after careful consideration of the whole incident, Xu Liangxiong did not intend to cheat. It seems that many coincidences led to the incident.

According to rumors circulating in the market, Wu Liang did not bribe or collude with Xu Liangxiong. He just paid a visit to him and got guidance on how to write a topic.

Xu Liangxiong also failed to be selected as the chief examiner of the imperial examination. The topic he proposed was originally worthless and was just an elegant thing for scholars to do in social interactions.

However, the day before the examination, the chief examiner Huang Hongcang was murdered, and Xu Liangxiong hastily took over as chief examiner. In order to avoid complications, the court kept the news secret.

Therefore, when Jia Cong and other candidates went to the Imperial Academy to take the exam, they were all very surprised to hear that the chief examiner had been changed.

But by chance, Wu Liang learned in advance about the change of the examiner, and his originally worthless topic suddenly became a shortcut to fame and fortune.

If another candidate were to encounter such a coincidence and opportunity, would he remain unmoved and unmoved? I'm afraid it would be difficult...

Therefore, in Jia Cong's view, Wu Liang was guilty of cheating and fraud, but his crime was not punishable by death. However, in the end, he committed suicide because he did not want to frame others, which made people feel sad.

Jia Cong thought back to the day after the palace examination, when Lin Zhaohe took the initiative to talk to him. Although it was only a few words, the other party's manners and demeanor left a deep impression on him.

Such a person, with extraordinary talent and luck, and a bright future ahead of him, must be cautious in his behavior. Jia Cong, based on his intuition, did not believe that Lin Zhaohe would commit fraud.

He privately pondered and sorted out the details of the fraud case and found that the direction of the whole thing was influenced by many terrifying coincidences, either obvious or hidden. It seemed that it was some kind of destiny that made it impossible for these people to escape the disaster...

……

Emperor Jiazhao was filled with anger because of Wu Liang's sudden suicide and Lin Zhaohe's implicated crime, and was thinking about how to deal with the situation.

I heard someone say, "Your Majesty, I am also a candidate for the imperial examinations. I have paid much attention to the cheating cases in the imperial examinations and have heard many rumors. I have some humble opinions, but I don't know whether I should speak out or not."

When Emperor Jia Zhao saw Jia Cong suddenly speak, his eyes lit up slightly and he said, "Mr. Jia has solved many major cases in Jinling and is proficient in the art of investigation and solving cases. If you have any insights, please feel free to tell us."

Jia Cong said: "Your Majesty, I have never been involved in this case. Most of my knowledge of this case is from hearsay in the market. I dare not make rash judgments on the people involved in the case.

But now the imperial examination candidate Lin Zhaohe is suspected of fraud, and there are still doubts. I just heard what Lord Wei said, and I feel that there are quite suspicious points in Lin Zhaohe's case.

Although I did not know Lin Zhaohe before the imperial examination, I met him once when I was leaving the palace after collecting the examination papers.

Although they only exchanged a few words, this man was calm, gentle, and well-mannered, and he did not seem like the kind of person who would be frivolous or try to get things done.

Lin Zhaohe was from Hangzhou Prefecture. The imperial examinations in the south of the Yangtze River have always been prosperous, especially those in Yongzhou in the north. It goes without saying that Lin Zhaohe was able to become the top scorer in the Hangzhou Prefecture, and his extraordinary talent in the imperial examinations was outstanding.

With his talent and shrewdness, it was not difficult for him to pass the imperial examination. This can be seen from the fact that he was ranked third on the list.

With his ability, there is really no need for him to take risks and do something as risky as cheating in the imperial examination.

Furthermore, as for Zhou Yan, the candidate who reported Wu Liang, I have heard rumors in the market that this person is the candidate who failed the imperial examination this year.

The motive of the person who failed the exam to report the successful candidate is questionable. Was he resentful of his failure? Was he speculating when reporting Lin Zhaohe? This needs to be clarified and studied in depth.

Third, the suspect Wu Liang had already signed a confession to the crime of fraud. This alone had ruined his future career in the government, which was a fate worse than death for a scholar. However, he did not commit suicide because of this.

Why did he become so emotional that he even committed suicide when Zhou Yuanshi forced him to testify that Lin Zhaohe had committed fraud? This is unreasonable.

I believe that although Wu Liang's career prospects were ruined due to fraud, he still had a desire to live and a conscience. Under torture, he did not want to frame his classmate and close friend, and he was so desperate that he decided to commit suicide.

A conviction through torture can only be justified if all three aspects, namely, witnesses, physical evidence, and circumstantial evidence, are present.

Now that the eyewitness Wu Liang is dead, the physical evidence has not been mentioned, and what about the circumstantial evidence? How can we convict the guilty party when all three are scattered?

I think that, in the absence of complete evidence, the criminal's suicide is more likely to prove Lin Zhaohe's guilt than the torture used by the Magistrate's Court..." (End of this chapter)