The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 354 What you touched, I touched too.

Shen Ye's table is simple, clear, and easy to understand.

The list above shows the items, and the corresponding dates are below.

Each entry is followed by the name and place of origin of the Minister of Personnel, a list of dismissed officials and their places of origin, and the number of fellow townsmen serving in the same court.

What does it mean?
Zhen Yan didn't understand it at first, but he knew in his heart that the Crown Prince would never have made such a table for no reason.

The first line of the form, under the column for Minister of Personnel, clearly lists Li Shanchang as his place of origin as Bozhou.

During the inspection he presided over in Beijing, 235 people were dismissed at once!
Upon seeing this number, some people gasped, thinking to themselves that this inspection in the capital was truly ruthless, removing so many people at once. How were the officials in the capital supposed to live their lives?

However, when people looked closely at the hometowns of these dismissed officials, many discerned the underlying reasons:

Most of those dismissed came from the Suzhou-Hangzhou area, but none from Bozhou or the surrounding areas.

Seeing this, everyone understood: this Lord Li had given some face to his fellow townsman during the imperial examination he presided over.

Then, everyone's attention shifted to the second line, where they saw that the name of the Minister of Personnel had changed to Yang Xian, whose hometown was Suzhou and Hangzhou.

The number of people dismissed during the inspection he presided over was a little less, at 132!
However, none of the hundreds of Suzhou and Hangzhou officials who were dismissed in the last round were actually dismissed, as if no one from their region was serving in the imperial court anymore.

On the contrary, more people from Bozhou were dismissed this time.

Is this revenge?
It seems the saying "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river" still holds true.
The third Minister of Personnel was Hu Weiyong. The number of people dismissed during this review was similar to that during Yang Xian's time, but the distribution of their place of origin had changed again...

One line, two lines, three lines...

Emperor Qianxi stared at the contents of the large white silk cloth, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

However, when he saw the record of the last imperial examination, his face darkened.

Because the person in charge of the last imperial examination was Ma Qi's father, Ma Sihan, and this Minister of Personnel dismissed only a few people, more than forty.

However, none of those who were dismissed were from Ma Qi's hometown, nor were they related to Ma Qi's family by marriage.

Normally, Emperor Qianxi would never pay attention to where these dismissed officials were from, but at this moment, a chill ran through him:
Even Ma Sihan has ulterior motives!

I had always thought he was a reliable and loyal minister!

Unfortunately, although he thought this in his heart, he couldn't say it out loud.

After all, Ma Qi was one of his important ministers, and he had to give him the respect he deserved.

Ma Qi's expression darkened when he saw his father's name.

He was a smart man; he understood the Crown Prince's intentions, and the Emperor must have guessed them as well.

Now that his father's name is on this list, he feels like he's shot himself in the foot.

But what can he do?

Who told my father to have done favors during his inspection tour of Beijing back then?
However, on the other hand, who in the position of Minister of Personnel doesn't offer favors?

You can't blame Dad for this!

If it weren't for the favors his father had accumulated back then, how could Ma Qi have smoothly risen to his current position?
Ma Qi's mind was in turmoil. He couldn't help but glance at Emperor Qianxi, only to find that Emperor Qianxi was also looking at him.

Just as he was hesitating whether to apologize on behalf of his deceased father, Emperor Qianxi looked away in another direction.

But there was a clear hint of disgust in his eyes.

That's right, disgust.

For so many years, the Emperor has always held her in high regard, so why would he look at her like that? Could this be the legendary "hate the house because of the crow"?
Zou Yunjin, the Minister of Personnel in charge of this assessment, was also in a bad mood at this moment.

Shen Zhumo's death had already caused him great distress.

Now the Crown Prince has released this list again—isn't this clearly saying that all previous Ministers of Personnel have tampered with the capital examinations?
For a time, he felt immense pressure and even doubted whether he could continue serving as the Minister of Personnel.

After all, the position of Minister of Personnel now gives him a feeling of trepidation and walking on thin ice.

He couldn't help but glance in the direction of the Crown Prince again.

The Crown Prince's move was brilliant! Luckily, I didn't offend him.

Just as everyone was silent, Shen Ye suddenly asked Zhen Yan, who was standing to the side, "Lord Zhen, do you understand what this picture means?"

Zhen Yan understood it long ago.

However, he didn't want to say it!

However, if one insists that they didn't understand it, that would be deceiving the emperor.

Moreover, that's not all; the Crown Prince will definitely give him a further "education" on the spot about what the table actually says.

He hesitated for a moment, but finally braced himself and replied, "Judging from this table, I found that none of the Ministers of Personnel dismissed their fellow townsmen during the capital inspection."

He let out a long sigh of relief after saying that.

He finally said it, but his heart felt heavy.

Shen Ye patted Zhen Yan on the shoulder and said, "Lord Zhen, you are very observant."

"Through so many inspections in the capital, I've calculated that nearly five thousand officials have been dismissed."

"But none of these people are from the same hometown as the Minister of Personnel who is in charge of the capital inspection."

"My lords, isn't the odds a bit too small?"

At this point, he turned his gaze to Zhen Yan and asked, "Lord Zhen, why do you think this is?"

Zhen Yan knew why, but he dared not say. Because this matter was far too complicated.

If he were to reveal the truth, those former Ministers of Personnel from the previous dynasty would be forgiven, since they've been dead for countless years anyway.

But what about the recent Ministers of Personnel?

Especially Ma Sihan's son, Ma Qi, who is currently serving as the Minister of Revenue.

If you offend someone too badly, you'll be in big trouble later.

Seeing that Zhen Yan remained silent, Shen Ye smiled and said, "Lord Zhen, you are the man who dared to submit the 'Number One Memorial in the World' to His Majesty. Do you not even dare to speak a word of truth?"

"Do you fear certain people more than you fear His Majesty?"

These words hit the nail on the head, directly striking Zhen Yan's sore spot, and he felt all eyes on him.

He even noticed that the Qianxi Emperor, who was standing to the side, was staring at him with a gloomy look.

One wrong word could cost you your life!
His heart trembled; he knew he had nowhere to turn.

After a moment of hesitation, he said in a trembling voice, "Your Highness, I have absolutely no such intention."

"I believe there is only one reason for this situation: without exception, all the Ministers of Personnel have taken care of their fellow townsmen during the capital inspection process."

After saying the last sentence, Zhen Yan suddenly felt a sense of relief.

All the worries vanished at that moment.

Ma Qi glanced at Zhen Yan with a cold look in his eyes—if he could, he really wanted to kill this guy!

How dare you slander my father, Ma Qi!

But right now, Zhen Yan is confronting the Crown Prince and many other princes, and has submitted the "Number One Memorial in the World." It's simply impossible for me to touch him.

At this moment, Ma Qi truly experienced the feeling of lifting a stone only to drop it on his own foot.

Just then, he suddenly noticed that several old friends were looking at him with strange eyes.

It's as if it's saying, "So your old man was just such a despicable scoundrel!"
Maqi almost had an urge to rush up and fight them to the death.

Fortunately, Shen Ye spoke up again at this moment.

He said calmly, "Lord Zhen, with so many Ministers of Personnel manipulating the capital's examinations and favoring their fellow townsmen, isn't that enough to show that they are not fair in the process?"

"Does this indicate that they are also interfering with or even manipulating the Beijing-Chahar Railway?"

Shen Ye bombarded Zhen Yan with a barrage of questions, leaving him overwhelmed.

The Ministers of Personnel listed on this list were all renowned officials.

If I were to speak ill of them in public, I don't know which deity I would offend—after all, they all have descendants!

Moreover, these descendants are certainly not ordinary people.

However, he couldn't leave such an obvious question unanswered.

He could only reply with a dry, curt "Yes!"

Shen Ye looked at Zhen Yan, who looked dejected, and found it a little funny.

He said calmly, "Lord Zhen, in terms of status, I, the Crown Prince, am surely a bit higher than the Minister of Personnel, aren't I?"

"Not to mention that I haven't spoken to anyone close to me, even if I had, it wouldn't be as harmful as the manipulation of the capital inspection by previous Ministers of Personnel, would it?"

"But Lord Zhen, why don't you say that these Ministers of Personnel are specifically targeting me, the Crown Prince?"

"Could it be that, in your opinion, Lord Zhen, manipulating the capital inspection is the privilege of all officials, while His Majesty and we princes are not allowed to interfere?"

These words were like a thunderclap, exploding in Zhen Yan's ears.

That's so cruel!

Zhen Yan realized that if he didn't handle things properly, no one could protect him.

Moreover, in other people's eyes, he is at best a pawn crossing the river, so who would be willing to genuinely protect him?

After thinking it over, he looked around and solemnly replied, "Your Highness, I have absolutely no such intention."

"Before seeing the Crown Prince's statistical table, I... truly did not know that there were so many manipulations in the capital inspection."

At this point, Zhen Yan's momentum had completely collapsed, and he was even somewhat at a loss.

Under the Crown Prince's relentless pressure, he had long lost his initial confidence.

Zou Yunjin's face was ashen; he felt that his time as Minister of Personnel was coming to an end.

Not only will Emperor Qianxi no longer trust him, but he will also suffer enough from the gossip among his ministers in the future.

Who did he provoke?

Just when Zou Yunjin thought the Crown Prince would "pursue the enemy to the bitter end" and settle the matter in one fell swoop, Shen Ye grabbed Zhen Yan's hand and said in a friendly tone, "Lord Zhen, don't be afraid, ignorance is no excuse!"

"You submitted your petition without knowing the facts, out of a sense of public duty!"

"I believe that my father will not have any objection to you just because you spoke out for the court."

Hearing the Crown Prince's words of comfort, Zhen Yan not only did not relax, but became even more uneasy—shouldn't the Crown Prince press his advantage and kill me after defeating the enemy in one move?
Even if it costs me my life, shouldn't you at least not be so vindictive? How could you have such an attitude? What exactly does the Crown Prince want?
Was he trying to show off his magnanimity?
　The first update of the day is here! Please support me, everyone! Recommend my posts, I'll do anything!
　　

(End of this chapter)