Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 639: The Storm is Hard to Calm

Ningrong Street, Earl's Mansion, Jia Cong Courtyard.

Midway through May, the weather is gradually getting hotter. After noon every day, the sun shines through the sky, losing the gentleness of spring and gaining the brightness of early summer.

Jia Cong sat at his desk, flipping through some documents and writing and drawing on a piece of rice paper.

After entering the palace to report on the affairs of the breech-loading rifle to Emperor Jia Zhao, Jia Cong compiled a construction strategy after leaving the palace.

After the strategy was reviewed by Emperor Jiazhao, the emperor summoned the ministers of the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue to work with Jia Cong to formulate a strategy, set a deadline, and ordered each government office to be responsible for preparations, recruit more craftsmen, and purchase construction materials.

This day was a day off, and although Jia Cong was at home, he got up early and went into the study. He calculated the number of craftsmen to be recruited for the workshop, the allocation of personnel to each construction workshop, and took notes of everything.

He also carefully reviewed Liu Shizhen's accounts for the construction of the breech-loading rifle, including the list of consumables such as refined iron, wood, gunpowder, etc., and marked the omissions and deficiencies.

After the hour of Chen passed, the sun gradually rose higher, and large patches of mottled shadows leaked in through the carved window lattices of the desk.

As time passed, the mottled and swaying light and shadows slowly moved on the sandalwood table, making Jia Cong's eyes dazzling.

Yinglian, who was wiping the bookshelf in the study, put down the cotton cloth in her hand, hurried to the desk, and gently lowered half of the rolled-up bamboo curtain by the window to block out the light and shadow.

It was early summer and the sun was getting hot. Jia Cong and the girls and maids around him changed out of their soft, windproof spring clothes and put on thin, light summer clothes.

Yinglian was wearing a moon-white round-necked gauze dress today, with a blue vest embroidered with green-calyx plum branches on the outside, and a solid-color unembroidered white silk skirt on the bottom. She was slim and clever, beautiful and delicate, and pleasing to the eyes.

The summer wind is scorching, the thin clothes make the skin moist and fragrant, the cardamom leaves are just beginning to bloom, I try on a new gauze dress, the spring breeze blows my sleeves softly...

The last ray of sunlight that had not yet been blocked by the bamboo curtain was shining on Yinglian's pretty cheek. The rouge mole between her eyebrows was bright red and breathtaking.

Jia Cong felt the light on the desk become softer. He looked up and met Yinglian's eyes. They couldn't help but smile at each other.

……

In the sunny armchair in the main room, Qingwen was threading a needle. Her long and slender eyebrows seemed to be frowned, and her pair of bright eyes were fixed intently on the needle and thread in her hands.

She was sewing a pine green soft silk gown with a moon-white gauze lining, which was to be Jia Cong's summer undergarment.

As the hour of Chen was coming to an end, the sun gradually rose higher, the scorching heat began to grow, and the flowers and trees in the nursery in the yard looked somewhat listless.

Jia Cong looked through the window and saw Lingguan pushing open the door. Her hair was black, her waist was slender, her steps were light, and the gold hairpin with spring orchid and pearls on her head sparkled in the bright sun.

She picked up the kettle from the corner, filled the jar with clean water, lifted her skirt, and carefully watered the green plants in the flower bed.

Lingguan came from a poor family and knew more about farming than the other girls. She knew that in midsummer, flowers and trees needed to be watered before noon, otherwise they would be exposed to the scorching sun and would easily wilt and wither.

Before Lingguan had watered the nursery, Zhishao, with two maids, hung leather ropes in the yard to hang out everyone's washed spring clothes to dry in the sun, and then packed them into boxes for the next year.

Jia Cong felt warm and at ease as he watched everyone busy in the yard. He flipped through the manuscript paper in his hand again, and after sorting out the main points and details, he packed it up and put it back on the bookshelf.

While wiping the bookshelf, Yinglian asked, "Master, it's your day off today, why are you so busy? Are you still busy with government affairs?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "There have been a lot of things going on in the government office recently, and I have to think about it a lot, not because it is official business, but because I feel it is necessary to do it well."

……

At this time, footsteps were heard outside the courtyard gate, and Jia Cong heard Zhishao's clear and pleasant voice: "Miss Shi and Miss Xing are here, the third master is in the study."

Jia Cong saw a figure swaying at the door of the study. Shi Xiangyun came in with a bright smile, followed by Xing Xiuyan with a smile on her face.

Their maids, Kui Guan and Zhuan Er, also followed them into the study, holding several gifts in their hands.

Shi Xiangyun wore a long coat with a cross collar and a bright red background with a golden bamboo leaf pattern, paired with a white pleated skirt with dark patterns. She looked bright and pretty, and radiant.

When she saw Jia Cong staring at her dress, she was not shy at all. She even turned around in front of Jia Cong, with the hem of her skirt slightly open, showing it to him generously.

He smiled and said, "Third brother, my new shirt looks great, doesn't it? Does it look familiar to you?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It does look familiar, but I just can't remember it for the moment."

Xiangyun smiled and said, "Last year, my third brother was awarded the best tribute satin by the palace. He knew that I like to wear red, so he gave me a piece of red satin with a gold bamboo pattern. It was made of this, but you forgot it."

Jia Cong suddenly realized something and said with a smile, "I thought of it as soon as you mentioned it. It really happened. Giving that piece of cloth to sister Yun is really a good gift to the right person. This dress looks really good on sister Yun."

Xiangyun was delighted by Jia Cong's praise, and her smile became more brilliant and beautiful. She said, "I know that Third Brother is on leave today, so I came here specially to give him a gift."

Then he pointed at the gifts in Kui Guan and Zhuan Er's hands and said, "My aunt sent many boxes of gifts from Jinling, all of which are special products from Jiangnan.

They are all Suzhou silk, tea, porcelain, fans, sachets, bamboo mats, perfumed ointments, incense sticks and other items.

I have been running all morning, and the old lady, the wife, Sister Feng, and the sisters from all over have all delivered them. This one is for my third brother."

Yinglian came up and took the thing, and Jia Cong fiddled with it with interest.

Shi Xiangyun smiled and said, "I know that Third Brother often travels to Jiangnan, and he is used to seeing these things. I don't think they are too rare. It's just a courtesy.

This was picked by my aunt in advance, and she specifically said it was reserved for my third brother. It’s strange that she doesn’t even treat me like this…”

Jia Cong thought that Baoling Hou Shi Nai was transferred to Jinling to replace Zhang Kangnian as the right vice minister of the Ministry of War in the temporary capital, and most of the things would go smoothly.

Otherwise, Baoling Hou Chen would not have had the leisure to prepare various gifts and send them back to Shenjing to give as gifts.

He smiled and said, “Although I have been to Jiangnan several times, I was always in a hurry and have never seen many things. These items are naturally rare.

Sister Yun, my uncle has gone to Nanjing to perform his duties. Is everything going well?"

Xiangyun suddenly smiled bitterly and said, "My aunt said in her letter that my second uncle is very proud of being an official there. Everyone respects him as a noble official in the capital, and it is much easier for him to do his official duties.

My aunt also said that Jinling is moist and mild, unlike Shenjing, which is dry, hard and cold, and that everything is good. I heard that they are so happy that they don’t want to leave. They will probably just leave me in Shenjing and not care about me anymore..."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It's a good thing that my uncle has a smooth career. They will live in Jinling in the future. It doesn't matter if they don't care about my sister. I will support my sister and make sure she doesn't suffer any grievances."

Xiangyun smiled and said, "I will remember what you said, Third Brother. You are not allowed to deny it in the future. I know that Third Brother has money, so I can just eat at your rich house in the future."

Xing Xiuyan, who was standing by, suddenly asked, "Cousin, didn't they say the results of the palace examination would be announced on the 15th? How come so many days have passed and there is still no news?"

Xiangyun's eyes lit up, and she shouted, "I've been thinking about this too. They say that Third Brother is the top scorer in the imperial examination, and he will definitely pass the palace examination. I've been waiting to see what happens, but how come so many days have passed and there's still no news?"

……

After hearing what the two said, Jia Cong's face darkened slightly. Since he left the palace that day, there have been many disturbances regarding the Spring Examination cheating case, which has not yet been resolved.

At sunset that day, a large number of people from the Dali Temple went straight into the Magistrate's Court and took away all the suspects of examination cheating. The news spread, and the trial of major examination cheating cases was transferred to the Dali Temple.

Later, rumors spread in the officialdom that Zhou Junxing from the Court of Judges came to the palace to plead guilty for Wu Liang's death. He knelt at the gate of Qianyang Palace for two hours, but the current emperor did not receive him.

Finally, he asked Guo Lin to convey a message, asking him to be careful in his work. If he made mistakes again, he would be severely punished for all his crimes, and then he would be expelled from the palace.

After the news spread in the market, almost everyone, whether officials in the court or candidates stranded in Beijing, were happy.

The wave of failed candidates leaving Beijing that had lasted for several days finally subsided.

……

However, as one wave subsides, another one rises.

Just two days after Jia Cong left the palace, dozens of failed candidates gathered at the Ministry of Rites, rang the drums at the gate, and jointly wrote a petition to accuse the officials of this spring's imperial examination of misconduct. Before the end of the examination, they accepted the candidates' greetings and flattery, wrote poems and essays to flatter them, and gave advice on the topic, which tarnished the reputation of the imperial examination and led to the proliferation of cheating.

Seventy-three candidates who failed in this year's imperial examination jointly reported that they had doubts about the judging of the papers. They wrote to the court to have a thorough investigation conducted and to make it known to the academic community in order to restore the reputation of the imperial examination system.

The candidates' statements also included an appendix listing various private matters, namely the improper behavior of dozens of officials who had taken the imperial examinations. Before the examination, they had visited and interacted with the candidates, and there were even records of them accepting bribes with gold and silver.

The Ministry of Rites was shocked after receiving the report from the candidate. The Minister of Rites Guo Youchang went to the palace that day and reported the matter to Emperor Jiazhao, who was furious.

Zhou Xianyang, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, impeached the officials of the Spring Examination for misbehavior, which led to cheating in the examination.

Emperor Jiazhao ordered the Dali Temple and the Court of Inquisition to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter, but this was an act of self-examination and self-correction by the court. The extent and depth of the incident were all controlled by the emperor and officials on a case-by-case basis.

But now, more than 70 candidates have jointly filed a complaint, exposing the improper activities of officials in the Spring Examination to the public, in broad daylight, and in full view of the public, attracting the attention of the world.

With the situation developing in this way, the emperor and officials suddenly lost the initiative. How could they control the scale of the matter? No wonder Emperor Jiazhao was furious.

……

The suicide of Wu Liang, the main culprit in the previous fraud case, has already put the imperial examination case into an embarrassing situation.

Now that seventy-three candidates have jointly filed a complaint, the momentum is so strong that even a ruthless and cruel official like Zhou Junxing dare not act rashly.

And the matter did not end there. After the first batch of seventy-three people jointly filed a complaint, it caused huge ripples in the city of Shenjing.

Although most of the failed candidates have left Beijing after the trend of candidates leaving the capital in the past few days, there are still many candidates who remain in the capital for various reasons.

Moreover, there are also quite a few local candidates in Yongzhou. Adding the two together, there are still nearly a thousand failed candidates in Shenjing City, and the number and power are indeed considerable.

Many candidates knew about their peers' actions and thought of taking advantage of the chaos, so they followed suit and stirred up the trend. Later, two groups of candidates jointly filed a complaint...

The seventy-three people who jointly filed the complaint had already created an alarming momentum, and the emperor and officials did not dare to take it lightly, not to mention the unpredictable later comers.

This matter has become a situation where the law cannot hold everyone responsible. The Ministry of Rites, Dali Temple and other government offices are fully aware of the seriousness of the situation and are handling it with increasing caution, not daring to take any extreme actions.

Originally, considering Zhou Junxing's sinister intentions, the emergence of such a trend of complaints would most likely play into his hands. He would certainly take the opportunity to escalate the situation, gather the blame, and highlight the merits of the Magistrates' Court.

But Wu Liang committed suicide unexpectedly. He was guilty and was severely reprimanded by the emperor. Zhou Junxing was unable to restrain himself and protect himself, so how could he dare to provoke him?

Faced with this situation, he followed the pace of the Dali Temple and did not dare to overstep the mark.

……

The appendix to the petition signed by 73 candidates was checked by the Dali Temple and the Court of Inquisition, and it turned out that all the misconducts of the officials in the Spring Examination listed therein were true.

This appendix to the petition is much more detailed and more weighty than what the Dali Temple and the Magistrates’ Court found.

In fact, if you think about it carefully, such a situation is reasonable.

Before the imperial examination began, guided by the blue booklet, the candidates started a trend of paying homage to the officials who were to be selected in the spring examination. This kind of thing could not be hidden from others.

The candidates would visit and interact with each other, either at banquets or in conversations, and would always tell each other about the officials they had visited and what happened during the visit.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the candidates in this imperial examination are the most aware of the fact that those officials who took the imperial examination in spring had violated the rules, and the appendix to this confession is so detailed.

……

However, in addition to the usual records of visits, the appendix also recorded several cases of officials' corruption, all of whom were officials waiting to be selected in the spring imperial examination, and they brazenly accepted gifts of money and property from candidates.

After investigation by the Dali Temple and the Court of Inquisition, it was finally confirmed that the incidents were true and the officials involved were not only guilty of misconduct, but also of corruption and lack of integrity.

However, the Dali Temple inquired about the relevant candidates who made the report and found out which candidate had provided the evidence regarding official corruption in his confession.

But no one could explain it clearly because this confession was jointly written by more than seventy candidates.

After being re-told, supplemented, and copied many times, and finally finalized, no one can tell which content was written by which candidate...

This confession seems to be a mess and it is difficult to trace its basis, but it is clearly organized and every word is true, making it difficult to refute.

By the time Wei Guanyao, the Minister of the Dali Temple, presented the results of the investigation of the candidates' confessions and the appendix to Emperor Jiazhao, the emperor had a gloomy face and was full of thoughts, but he had already lost the opportunity.

This joint confession shows that the above officials' improper behavior and corruption are in full view of the public. It is impossible to avoid covering it up. We can only face it head on...

After Wei Guanyao left the palace, the Dali Temple issued several arrest warrants on the same day, and the Jinyiwei were ordered to arrest the officials involved in accordance with the law. The three judicial offices all worked at high speed almost simultaneously.

……

Almost all the officials who took part in the Spring Examination had their behavior and conduct before the examination exposed to the world one by one.

Among the eighteen examiners in the spring examination, fourteen had received greetings, exchanged poems, and received guidance on topic writing.

Among these fourteen people, five had accepted gifts of money or property, which constituted the crime of corruption and bribery.

There were dozens of examiners under the examiners. Except for a few who kept themselves clean, most of the officials were involved in matters such as paying candidates visits, interacting with them, giving them guidance, and drafting questions for circulation.

Moreover, the official positions and reputations of all the examiners were much lower than those of the chief examiner and co-examiners.

The more such officials are, the stronger their desire for fame is. Being able to be selected as an official in the Spring Examination is a golden opportunity for them to accumulate fame and advance their careers.

Therefore, most examiners are eager to see candidates pay a visit and give them guidance...

……

After the Dali Temple issued the arrest warrant, dozens of officials were escorted to the Dali Temple by the Embroidered Uniform Guard to be questioned by the Three Judicial Departments.

Some officials involved in misconduct were temporarily released after the interrogation, but their careers would most likely suffer setbacks when the Ministry of Personnel conducted performance appraisals and held them accountable.

Those officials who were suspected of fraud and corruption in the Spring Examination never came out after entering the Dali Temple, and an even more unpredictable end was waiting for them.

In just a few days, more than a dozen examiners, examiners, and deacons involved in the case were detained.

As the storm gathers momentum and those involved confess and become implicated, the number of officials behind bars will surely continue to rise…

……

When Xing Xiuyan saw that she mentioned the topic of the results, Jia Cong looked a little solemn, with his eyes slightly lowered, and no one knew what he was thinking.

I couldn't help but feel a little regretful. Why did I bring up this topic and make my cousin worry about it for nothing...

Shi Xiangyun saw Jia Cong's expression and asked in a crisp voice, "Third brother, I heard from the maids in the mansion that they have been out of the mansion on business these days, and I heard that there is a big case of cheating in the Spring Examination outside.

Sister Lin mentioned it last time, saying that the reason the results were not released on the 15th was because of a major fraud case. Has the matter not been settled yet?"

Jia Cong saw two pairs of bright eyes staring at him intently, and his concern was beyond words.

He smiled and said, "There has been a lot of chaos outside these days, but it is none of our business and there is no rush. Once things calm down, the court will naturally post a new notice."

After hearing what Jia Cong said, Xing Xiuyan smiled peacefully, looking pretty and charming.

He said, "It doesn't matter when the list is posted. My cousin is the top scorer, so he will definitely pass the exam no matter what."

(End of this chapter)