Poet Immortal, Poet Sage, Duke of the State!

Qinzheng Hall.

The morning court session proceeded as usual.

Several officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works successively reported on the floods in the south, the relief of the victims, and the repair of the river channels, and Emperor Daming approved them all.

After several officials reported on a few matters of state, an official from the Grand Tutor's faction stepped forward from the queue, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, the position of Minister of Personnel has been vacant for some time now. The Ministry of Personnel is burdened with heavy affairs, and the position of Minister cannot remain vacant for long..."

As if pre-arranged, after this official opened the conversation, another official stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, Minister Chen Wenyuan has served in the Ministry of Personnel for many years, is familiar with its affairs, and is highly experienced. He opposed his own son's exceptional entry into the Hanlin Academy, which shows his impartiality and integrity. I humbly request Your Majesty to grant Minister Chen the position of Minister of Personnel..."

"I second that opinion."

The official in charge of the Ministry of Personnel stepped forward, holding his official tablet, and said, "Lord Chen has served as an official for decades, diligent and incorruptible. He is respected by everyone in the Ministry of Personnel. His refusal to allow his own son to enter the Hanlin Academy further demonstrates his impartiality. He is truly the only candidate for Minister of Personnel..."

Their words brought silence back to the hall.

The rest of the court officials mostly kept their heads down, looking down at their noses and inwardly silent. No one stood up to agree with them, nor did anyone openly oppose them.

Even Wu Guojiu did not continue to oppose Chen Wenyuan this time.

Chen Wenyuan's promotion to Minister of Personnel was inevitable, and officials from the Grand Tutor's faction stood up to support him.

If he were to object at this point, he would undoubtedly offend the entire Grand Tutor's faction.

Chen Wenyuan stood among the court officials, his face calm, his hands hanging at his sides, looking very composed.

However, the clenched fists hidden in his court robe sleeves indicated that his inner state was not as calm as he appeared.

The Emperor of Da Ning leaned back on his dragon throne, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.

As emperor, he may seem to be the ruler of a country, but he cannot go against the tide and oppose most of his ministers.

A moment later, he put down his teacup, glanced at the assembled officials in the hall, and was about to speak when a man suddenly stepped out from the ranks of civil officials.

The man was dressed in a blue official robe, with a thin face and white hair and beard. After he stopped, he cupped his hands to Emperor Da Ning and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say."

All eyes of the officials turned to him, and stepped forward to meet Zhang Huai'an, the Censor.

The censors were not high-ranking officials, but the people in the Censorate were not to be trifled with. They would remain silent most of the time, but once they did speak, it was always to impeach some official.

They do not belong to any party in the DPRK, but no party in the DPRK wants to provoke them.

Upon seeing the censor step forward, Chen Wenyuan's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition suddenly arose within him.

The Emperor of Da Ning looked at the Censor-in-Chief and nodded, saying, "Minister Zhang, speak frankly."

Zhang Huai'an clasped his hands in a fist salute and said, "Your Majesty, I recently heard about a play among the common people called 'The Case of Chen Shimei.' It tells the story of a scholar named Chen Shimei from the previous dynasty who, after passing the imperial examination with top honors, was chosen as the emperor's son-in-law. He then abandoned his wife and even sent men to kill her and their children to cover up his crimes. Later, an official who was not afraid of powerful figures executed him with the tiger-head guillotine. This play is extremely popular in the capital now; almost everyone knows it, and even young children on the street are learning to sing it."

Chen Wenyuan was taken aback when he heard this. He was sitting in court, what was he talking about?

Zhang Huai paused for a moment, then continued, "I believe that Chen Shimei's experience is quite similar to that of a certain official in the court. They both came from humble backgrounds, passed the imperial examinations, and then curried favor with the powerful and wealthy, abandoning their wives and mistreating their children..."

Chen Wenyuan's face turned pale; he already knew what the censor was going to say.

Zhang Huai'an's gaze swept over Chen Wenyuan, and he spoke again: "Now the people in the capital are talking about it. When they mention Chen Shimei, they think of this important minister surnamed Chen. I believe that the Minister of Personnel is an important position in the court, in charge of the promotion and evaluation of officials throughout the country. This person should be chosen in a way that is trusted by all officials and respected by all people. If someone with a bad reputation among the people is chosen, it will probably damage the face of the court and make the people of the country feel disheartened."

Zhang Huai'an never revealed who this important official in the court was, but everyone knew who he was referring to.

Chen Wenyuan stood there, his face deathly pale.

The gazes of all the court officials fell upon him, like countless needles piercing him at once, leaving him completely bewildered.

At that moment, he had only one thought in his mind.

What does the case of Chen Shimei have to do with him? How come he's never heard of it?

Emperor Da Ning listened quietly to Zhang Huai'an's report, remained silent for a moment, his gaze lingered on Chen Wenyuan for a brief instant without speaking, then looked away and said calmly, "I have considered this. The affairs of the Ministry of Personnel are numerous and complex. Minister Chen has served as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel for many years, and has made great contributions. However, the position of Minister requires someone who can oversee the entire situation. Zhou Zhengming, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, has been diligent and conscientious in his tenure and has acted fairly. He is hereby promoted to Minister of Personnel and shall assume office immediately."

After Emperor Da Ning finished speaking, his gaze swept across the hall: "Does Minister Zhou have any objections?"

Still in a daze, Zhou Zhengming, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, trembled slightly. He quickly stepped forward, his voice filled with excitement and surprise, and repeatedly said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your great favor!"

In terms of both seniority and background, he is no match for Chen Wenyuan.

Therefore, he never even considered the position of Minister of Personnel being vacant.

To his utter surprise, this incredible stroke of good fortune actually fell into his lap.

The Emperor of Da Ning stood up and said calmly, "Court is adjourned."

As the civil and military officials gradually withdrew from the main hall, Zhou Zhengming, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was surrounded by the officials who congratulated him. He returned their greetings with a smile.

Chen Wenyuan stood still, listening to the surrounding discussions, as motionless as a wooden sculpture.

Soon, he was the only one left in the empty hall.

With his position as Minister of Personnel now secured, he had no further chances.

He never imagined that he would lose the official position he had always dreamed of because of a play.

Chen Wenyuan didn't know how he walked out of the main hall or the palace gate.

He neither went to the Ministry of Personnel nor returned to the Chen residence.

He walked the streets of the capital, seemingly oblivious to the hustle and bustle around him.

From a place where a crowd had gathered ahead, bursts of cheers could be heard from time to time.

Chen Wenyuan could hear the people's discussions even from a great distance.

"That felt good, really good! Well done!"

"This ungrateful bastard who killed his wife and children deserves to be beheaded!"

"This play is really well written!"

"Of course, I've heard that the writer of this play is none other than Chen Chang'an, the great talent who wrote the play based on the time of the Yan Kingdom..."

"Is this Chen Chang'an some kind of literary genius reincarnated? He's so good at composing couplets, writing poems, and even writing plays. He seems to have it all..."

"The most talented scholar in the capital, what do you think?"

"What do you mean by 'the number one talent in the capital'? Calling him the number one talent in Da Ning is no exaggeration at all..."

……

Chen Wenyuan listened blankly to the people's discussions, his mind reeling.

The case of Chen Shimei, which cost him his position as Minister, was actually written by Chen Chang'an?

He did it on purpose, he must have done it on purpose!

This is his revenge on himself!

"puff!"

The pent-up emotions of the past few days finally reached their peak at this moment. His body trembled, and he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, collapsing straight onto the streets of the capital...