Marrying a treacherous official

The spring imperial examinations were held at the examination hall, with questions on policy, essays, poetry, and classical texts. The examinations lasted for three days, and those who passed were awarded the title of Jinshi (进士) and made the dragon gate.

The Minister of Rites served as the chief examiner for this imperial examination. At 1:15 a.m., all candidates had entered the examination hall, the hall was immediately locked, the examination papers were distributed, and the spring examination officially began.

Qingyun Street, which is adjacent to the examination hall, becomes bustling and lively from the moment the rooster crows.

In teahouses and taverns, the most talked-about topic was who would be among the top three in the imperial examination. Underground gambling dens also opened early, with gamblers betting on famous figures and talents from all over the country flocking in, turning this imperial examination into a veritable feast.

A secret scroll quietly began to circulate among the people.

By the time the common people in the teahouse were discussing whether the secret exam paper contained the actual questions for the imperial examinations, the situation had completely spiraled out of control.

"I heard this is this year's policy essay topic. I don't know if it's true or not. If it is, I wonder how many officials in the Ministry of Rites will lose their heads."

"The imperial examinations aren't even over yet, and the questions for the policy questions have already been released. Who is leaking the questions? What kind of fairness is there left in this imperial examination system?"

"If these secret exam papers contained real questions, those privileged children would surely have obtained them in advance and solved the problems long ago. In that case, what future would students from poor families have?"

Public outrage was palpable, and the matter quickly reached the ears of court officials through word of mouth, and was reported up the chain of command until it reached the Emperor himself.

Emperor Chenghe swept his sleeve in the Hall of Diligent Governance, knocking all the memorials on the dragon desk to the ground. All the officials knelt down and kowtowed, and the hall was deathly silent.

"This is the first batch of imperial disciples since my ascension to the throne. Who dares to tamper with things right under my nose? Whoever is involved in this imperial examination fraud case will be executed!"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger."

Old Ge stepped forward from the front of the civil officials. As the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and concurrently the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, his position was equivalent to that of the Left Chancellor. He should step forward to share the burdens of Emperor Chenghe.

"This matter urgently needs to be thoroughly investigated in order to give an explanation to all the students in the country. I propose that the Censorate intervene, conduct a thorough investigation of the examiners of the Ministry of Rites, and bring the person who leaked the exam questions to justice."

"It is common knowledge that Censor-in-Chief Xia and Minister of Rites Zhou are sworn brothers."

Cui Zemin said indifferently:

"Besides, they are also in-laws through marriage. If a civil official investigates another civil official, it will only uncover countless connections. How can this matter be investigated thoroughly?"

"In General Cui's opinion, who should be responsible for thoroughly investigating this matter, and how should it be investigated? General Cui, you should come up with a plan."

Old Ge glared at him angrily, then spread his hands, as if to abandon the matter.

"The strategy of separating civil and military power that Ge Xiang initially proposed, such as civil officials in charge of military generals and military officials in charge of civil officials, could be applied to this civil examination fraud case."

Cui Zemin offered his frank advice to the emperor:

"Your Majesty, I humbly request that the Palace Guard be dispatched to seal off the examination hall, escort all the Ministry of Rites officials present, detain the examinees, seal the examination papers, and have the Right Wing of the Court of Judicial Review preside over the trial of the examiners, with the Censorate overseeing the investigation, to thoroughly investigate the cheating case."

"Your Majesty, this is absolutely unacceptable."

When Ge Lao first proposed the separation of civil and military power, he wanted to seize Cui Zemin's military power. Now, instead of getting military power, Cui Zemin has used the opportunity to investigate the civil officials.

Moreover, the head of the Right Prison Administration was from the Tiger Wing Army, and was definitely one of Cui Zemin's men. How could this be allowed to continue?

"Since ancient times, cases of cheating in the imperial examinations have always been handled by the Censorate. How could it be the Right Judicial Officer's turn to thoroughly investigate this matter?"

"The Right Judicial Officer of the Dali Temple investigates the crimes of all officials, handling special cases with special measures. How could he not investigate the corruption case appointed by the Emperor?"

The two openly clashed in the imperial court, forcing Emperor Chenghe to step in and make a decision.

"The Palace Guards shall be dispatched to detain all officials who have committed offenses. This case of cheating in the imperial examinations shall be presided over by the Right Wing of the Court of Judicial Review, with the Censorate overseeing the investigation. They must thoroughly investigate this matter for me."

Upon hearing the news, the Palace Attendant was swiftly dispatched. He led his guards, armed with swords, across the Vermilion Bird Avenue and arrived at Qingyun Street, where they quickly surrounded the entire examination hall.

The iron chain that locked the door was cut with a single stroke.

Imperial guards burst through the door and quickly occupied the entire examination hall. All the candidates were escorted out by the guards, and they looked at the armed guards in front of them, bewildered and not knowing what had happened.

Gu Jinyu stood among the examinees, his hands bound behind his back by the guards, rendering him unable to move.

He could tell that the guards before him were no ordinary men; they were sword-wielding guards belonging to the Imperial Guards' Palace Guard Division, who were specifically tasked with obeying the Emperor's orders. Seeing that all the officials from the Ministry of Rites present had been apprehended by the guards, and even the Minister of Rites was not spared, he knew that this time something truly serious had happened.

The Palace Attendant immediately ordered, "Issue the Emperor's decree: detain the examinees, imprison the Ministry of Rites examiners, seal all exam papers, and remove them!"

Gu Jinyu was escorted out of the examination hall. He saw the steward looking around from afar. His neck hurt, and the guards forced him to lower his head and put him into the carriage.

Women came in an endless stream to Lingshan Temple to worship Buddha and pray for blessings.

Yunji offered three sticks of incense to Guanyin Bodhisattva, sat cross-legged on the futon, and silently recited a passage from the Lotus Sutra while fiddling with the prayer beads in his hand.

Amidst the constant flow of worshippers around her, she slowly and deliberately recited the scriptures, enduring this period of vegetarianism and chanting before the Buddha.

Only when the hurried footsteps stopped behind her did Hua Chao call out to her in a panic:

"Madam, something terrible has happened! The Gu family's steward has come to report that the young master has been taken away by the guards of the Palace Guard!"

Yunji paused, looking at her blankly, completely unable to understand what she meant.

Why was Gu Jinyu taken away?

"Not only the young master, but all the candidates in the examination hall, along with the examiners from the Ministry of Rites, were taken away."

Hua Chao's words broke the silence of the incense burning before the Buddha, startling Yun Ji into a state of utter confusion.

Why is that?

"It is said that shortly after the imperial examination began, a secret examination paper was leaked in the streets. Everyone said it was the essay question for the spring examination. This matter alarmed the court, and the emperor sent the Palace Guard to seal off the examination hall."

Yunji accidentally dropped her prayer beads on the ground.

She reached out her hand, and Chunxuan quickly helped her up from the prayer mat. Just as they were about to return to the mansion, they heard a shrill shout coming from outside the Guanyin Hall. A group of people hurried out to the door.

Looking at the billowing black smoke rising ten feet away, Shi Ling said directly, "Madam, the Arhat Hall is on fire. We must evacuate this place immediately."

Yunji looked at the panicked pilgrims fleeing in front of her and asked in a tight voice, "Where are Aunt Du and the Second Miss?"

Xi Kui quickly replied, "They are in the main hall of the temple offering incense and paying respects to Buddha with the abbot."

Upon hearing that she was with the abbot, Yunji knew something was wrong. She quickly gathered her skirts and hurried toward the main hall. Before she had taken two steps, she was blocked by a swarm of worshippers fleeing back.

"Help! Murder!"

Screams erupted throughout Lingshan Temple, followed by a sudden burst of flames that engulfed the entire Mahavira Hall.

Yunji stared in horror at the raging fire, realizing that after the truth came out, the forces behind the scenes had sent assassins to silence her.