CH 14

The voice of Ren Anle was accompanied by the steep change in Gu Qishan's face, and there was silence inside and outside the hall as everyone looked at the young marquis, who had suddenly fallen silent, and understood the intention of Ren Anle's move.

The youngest marquis of the Marquis of Zhongyi has been ignorant and incompetent since childhood, and if he had truly asked someone to write a good answer to the exam question for him in advance, he would naturally not remember the vast thousand character answer in the imperial examination.

The left minister looked at Ren Anle with solemn brows and was silent, while the right minister gave a secret praise and said in a deep voice, "Young marquis, Lord Ren is right. If you are truly wronged, just recite the answer to the exam question, and this minister will guarantee that justice will be done to you."

A thin, cold sweat broke out from Gu Qishan's forehead as he said in a stiff voice, "Right Minister, I was so nervous during the imperial examination that I could not remember what I had written. I was just answering the exam question absent-mindedly."

There was an uproar as the exam candidates in the hall scoffed at Gu Qishan's excuses. The imperial examination was so important that even if one's literary skills were lacking, one would not forget what they had answered.

Ren Anle waved her hand to silence the crowd, ignoring Gu Qishan's sophistry and trailing off, "It doesn't matter if the Young marquis can't remember the content of the examination paper. The questions in this examination are too obscure, and the question of 'the way of the common people' is indeed difficult to answer..."

"Exactly, such an obscure question. I naturally just wrote answers randomly, and I didn't expect to get a good result!" Gu Qi Shan nodded his head contentedly, as if he had found an excuse for himself.

The entire hall, inside and out, suddenly fell silent for some reason. He felt vaguely that something was wrong and raised his head towards Ren Anle.

At the left side of Ren Anle, the left minister's face was cold and sullen. If he hadn't been so well-cultivated, he would have wanted to kick this swine in the face.

"Young Marquis, this official has said that you are the proof." Ren Anle's voice suddenly dropped coldly, "The question of the examination is not 'the way of the common people' at all, the two great masters have written 'the way of keeping one's job'. It's understandable that you can't remember the content of the examination paper, but you don't even know the topic of the examination, and you still say that you wrote the examination paper yourself!"

Ren Anle looked straight at Gu Qishan and scolded him angrily.

Gu Qishan's face changed drastically and he shouted in a hoarse voice, "Ren Anle, you dare to mislead me!"

"This official is the one in charge of this case, so it is not your turn to dictate how the case should be examined. Gu Qishan, this official ask you, do you admit to the crime of cheating in the imperial examination or not?"

"So what if I admit it? I am the noble dí[1] son of the marquis, what if you punish me for a mere case of cheating!"

[1]嫡 dí - son of first wife

The evidence was irrefutable, but Gu Qishan still refused to admit his fault. The candidates outside the hall were filled with righteous indignation and their faces were full of anger.

Ren Anle did not reply, but waved her hand for the magistrate to escort Gu Qishan to the side, and looked towards Du Ting Song, who had his head down.

As if sensing Ren Anle's gaze, he raised his head. His face calm and steady, with a clear and frank look in his eyes that he was ready to die.

Ren Anle was slightly stunned, and then understood ...... that this man had entered the Da Lisi with the intention of certain death.

"Is the man in the hall Du Tingsong?"

"Back to Your Excellency, the student is."

"Wu Yue said he got the exam questions from you. Did he tell a lie?"

Du Tingsong did not answer, but asked, "Do you have any proof, Your Excellency?"

Ren Anle raised an eyebrow and opened the evidence presented by the magistrate from the side. She then took another examination paper from the tray and unfolded it.

"He did not throw away the exam questions you gave Wu Yue that day. When the magistrates searched him, they found two copies on his body. At first I thought he had prepared an extra copy for fear of missing it, but later I realized that the two papers had different handwriting. Du Tingsong, this is your examination paper from the imperial examination. Just compare the two handwritings to see whether you are the one who provided the paper or not."

The hall was silent. Almost no one knew that two papers with different handwriting had been found from Wu Yue's body, and that the full officials of the Da Lisi had really had something to fall back on when they gambled their future by ringing the Qinglong Bell.

Huang Pu breathed a long sigh of relief. Only now was the case really presented to the public.

Du Tingsong glanced towards Wu Yue and was silent for half a second before saying, "There's no need to compare the handwriting. The exam questions were given to Wu Yue by me."

Unlike the overbearing Gu Qishan, Du Tingsong, the son of the Minister of Household Affairs, has a good reputation in general. The exam candidates in the hall were somewhat incredulous to hear Du Tingsong admit it himself.

"Why did you give the exam question to Wu Yue?"

"Your Excellency also knows that if you get to the top three, you will bring honor to your ancestors and become a man of honor. I have always been good friends with Wu Yue, so I told him about the test questions, but I didn't expect him to pass them on to someone else."

Hearing Du Tingsong's calm and dull reply, Wu Yue, who was kneeling at one side, buried his head even lower and unconsciously moved his body towards the side.

Ren Anle looked down the hall and asked again, "Where did your exam question come from?"

The hall suddenly became quiet. This was the answer that almost everyone wanted to know. If Du Tingsong's exam question was also obtained from other candidates, this case would be considered a shocking one.

The left minister's face sank like water, with a hint of unusual tightness. The right minister glanced suspiciously to his left.

"Lord Ren, I begged for the exam question from Lord Li." Du Tingsong lowered his eyes and slowly replied, "Lord Li is my teacher. I was so distressed about the imperial examination that I went into the Li residence late at night and begged so hard that my teacher could not bear it and told me the exam question.

"Oh? Then why did Lord Li's apology letter not mention you at all, but instead said that the person he gave the exam question to was Wu Yue?"

"The teacher knew that the test questions he had given me had been exposed, so he wrote a letter of guilt and killed himself to protect me." Du Tingsong knelt on the ground and pleaded, "Lord Ren, I am responsible for all the crimes of the imperial examination cheating. I am ashamed of His Majesty, my teachers, and my parents. I wish to die as a token of my guilt!"

When Du Tingsong admitted to all his sins in the courtroom, the Left Minister exhaled lightly and his stiff body relaxed.

This Du Ting Song is not too stupid. Fortunately, the Du family has more than one son, and Du Shang Shu knows how to make the choice.

There were sighs of relief from both inside and outside the hall, the outcome of the case was now known, but it wasn't too bad after all.

At this point, all that was left was for Ren Anle to pronounce her sentence.

"Du Tingsong, you claim to be ashamed of the Emperor's grace, your teacher, and your parents ......then what about your comrade and the common people of the Great Jing?"

"This  official ask you, if this matter had not been uncovered and you had won the top three in the imperial examination, who would the exam candidates who were defeated because of your cheating have turned to for justice when they have had a difficult life? If the heart is not right, the person is not right. How can you serve as an official and benefit the people?"

Du Tingsong looked dazed, with ashamed expression on his face. Before he could answer, Ren Anle already looked at Gu Qishan who was at the side.

"Gu Qishan, you just questioned me about the cheating in the imperial examination, which is a mere mistake. How can this official punish you, the di son of the marquis?"

Ren Anle rose and looked at the two people in the hall who were waiting to be convicted, her gaze burning, "The imperial examination is a fundamental part of the selection of talent in Great Jing. If the imperial examination is in disarray, the country's foundation will also be in disarray. It is absurd for you to say that this is a mere trivial matter. Do you think this court is the back garden of the Marquis of Zhongyi?"

"Our students have studied hard for ten years to get the opportunity to sit for the imperial examination, why do you treat it as if it is nothing? I'll tell you what the Imperial Examination of Dajing is!"

Ren Anle's eyes darted across the hall, from the right minister to the officials of the Da Lisi, with a solemn expression.

"Twenty years ago, when the Dajing dynasty was established, the country selected talents. Although Wei Jian, the Right minister, was a great scholar, he still took the examination at the age of thirty in order to appease the people's heart, and was the first top scorer in the imperial examination of the Dajing dynasty."

"Song Jingzhao, a cabinet scholar, went through three examinations, tasted the hardships of poverty, and spent ten years of hardwork before he reached the third rank in the imperial examination. His strength of character was respected by the world."

"The late Crown Prince tutor Ning Chuyu filled the world with peach and plum[2], and was the top of the list in the four years of Taizu."

[2] outstanding students

"Without the imperial examination system to select the best candidates, how could we have had decades of peace in Great Jing?Gu Qishan, the imperial examination is more important to the people of Dajing than the sky. So what if you are the di son of the marquis? Are you more important than the sky!"

"How do you know that the students entering the imperial examination are not full of ambition, that they may have aspirations for the world, or that they may have a heart of gold. You have disrupted our Great Jing's laws and discipline of imperial court, let alone being innocent!"

Gu Qishan was so shocked by Ren Anle's loftiness that he fell to the ground, his face pale beyond words.

"Even for the officials of the Da Lisi, who have painstakingly studied hard for several years before they were given their official robes. If they had not been deeply affected by it, why would they have risked their careers for the truth of a case to give justice to the exam candidates!"

Ren Anle breathed a long sigh of relief and clapped the wood of the hall.

"Wu Yue, you have committed cheating in the imperial examination. The evidence of your guilt is conclusive. This official will give you the same punishment as Song Xian and Liu Jiang."

"Thank you, Your Excellency, for your kindness."

"Du Ting Song, you leaked the examination questions, disrupted the examination, and caused Li Chong En to kill himself. This official will strip you of your title as a scholar and sentence you to be executed after the autumn."

"Your Excellency, this student accept his punishment." Du Tingsong's face was ashamed and indignant. He kowtowed his head to the ground.

"Gu Qishan, although you only cheated in the examination and are not the main culprit, you have a nasty attitude, roaring in the law court and looking down on the law. This official sentence you to 30 planks, a fine of 1,000 taels of silver to help the poor candidates, and three years of hard labor."

Gu Qishan's face was blue and white, and his expression was indignant.

At this moment, the exam candidates in the hall were in high spirits, and there was a hidden excitement in their eyes as they looked at Ren Anle.

Inside the back hall, Han Ye didn't know when he had gotten up. He looked quietly at the vivid red figure standing proudly beyond a curtain. The admiration in his eyes was almost overflowing.

Ren Anle, far more magnificent than he could have imagined. No other woman in the world could be as unyielding as her in this high hall.

Wen Shuo stood behind Han Ye, his shocked expression unmistakable.

"Go back." Seeing that the trial was nearly over, Han Ye turned to leave towards the back door. "When you return, you will personally select a congratulatory gift to send to the Ren fu[3]."

[3] residence

Wen Shuo raised his eyebrow.

"I'm afraid the capital is about to get a new Da Lisi Minister." Han Ye's hearty laughter came from afar.

Inside the hall, Ren Anle raised her head and looked towards the crowd of candidates on top of the stone steps, her voice was loud and clear.

"We are all born into different status, but life is unpredictable. Who knows what will happen to you in a few decades? You are the future pillars of our country, so this official hope that you will all do your best in the Imperial examination. On the day that you are successful in the imperial examination, Ren Anle will drink and celebrate with you all! Retreat the hall!"

The wood of the hall was struck again, Ren Anle walked into the back hall. The stone drums were beaten and the thunderous applause shook the sky and lasted for a long time.

Both the exam candidates standing on the stone staircase and the people watching from outside the prefecture had a sense of well-being that they had never felt before.

In the aisle of the back hall, the left minister, with an ugly look on his face, turned and brushed his sleeves away, while the right minister, listening to the scene outside, nodded secretly, scratched his beard and walked away shaking his head.

He was sure that after this incident, all the scholars in this examination would have a desire to return the favour to Ren Anle. It is true what she said ...... that even a woman may not be unable to have a place in the court of Dajing, and now it seems that there is more than just a place.

The scholars, the common people, plus the courtiers whom Ren Anle praised in the hall today, have all imperceptibly become Ren Anle's support and protection.

For the first time, the Right minister felt that if Ren Anle was a mere prince consort of the Eastern Palace, she was really wronged!

It's nighttime in the study of Ren fu.

Ren Anle has changed into an ink black long dress, her long hair dripping with water is scattered. Her eyebrows are slightly furrowed as she leans back on the couch.

Yuan Qin was carefully wiping her hair with a cloth towel when Yuan Shu came in from outside and reported in a low voice:l, "Miss, the bookcase where the examination papers were kept in the tribute courtyard caught fire just now. The examination papers of all the exam candidates were burned."

Ren Anle opened her eyes, looking clear and bright, "I see."

"Yuan Qin, of the exam candidates standing in the hall today, can you tell me how many exam candidates did not show up?"

Yuan Qin recalled for a moment, and then replied, "Apart from Wen Shuo gongzi and the son of the Marquis of Qi Nan's family, only Jiang Hao, the di son of the Left Minister, did not show up."

The corner of her lips slightly hooked as Ren Anle sat cross-legged, resting her chin, "I'm afraid it's a guilty conscience. Li Chong'en has been an official for more than ten years and was very experienced. If the imperial court official hadn't been so powerful that he couldn't refuse, he wouldn't have drawn misfortune and ended up killing himself. It's just that I didn't expect Jiang Yuzhe to be so ruthless, and that Du Shang Shu, who has been his obedient servant for more than ten years, would still end up being treated as an abandoned pawn." 

"If not, how could he have become the minister and ranked above the tens of thousands of people." Yuan Qin smiled, dried Ren Anle's wet hair and asked, "Miss, shall we leave this matter as it is?"

Ren Anle nodded, "With Emperor Jia Ning's holy favor and no evidence, this matter cannot touch him."

Ren Anle stretched out and instructed, "Yuan Qin, go to Feng Ji tomorrow and make some presentable looking clothes, I'm afraid your lady will be summoned by the Emperor ......."

Before the words left her mouth, Changqing's low voice had already sounded outside the study. "Miss, His Highness the Crown Prince has sent a congratulatory gift."

"Oh? What gift? Why don't you present it in quickly!" Ren Anle instantly came to spirit, her eyes wide as she looked towards the dark corridor.

Dozens of palace servants walk in in a line, all with gorgeous faces, but none of them attracted as much attention as what they were holding.

A set of gorgeous dresses in glorious colours were quietly placed in the hands of the palace servants, so luxurious and graceful that one could tell they were tributes from the forbidden palace.

The wood boxes were filled with ceramic glaze, gold and silver hairpins, and there was a pleasant clinking sound as the maids walked slowly.

Although these are valuable, but far from shocking. The three people froze like this only because ...... there are too many. For a little more than half an hour, the stream of gifts sent into the Ren fu did not stop.

Looking at the gifts that were gradually filling up the study, Yuan Shu turned her head and gave a thumbs up to Ren Anle who looked equally bewildered.

"As expected of His Royal Highness, really generous. Miss, I will go and prepare ink and pencil, we must write this down. In the future, it will be a clear evidence of your victory in the long history of marriage!"

In the back hall of the Eastern Palace, His Highness was about to go to bed when he heard the news from the head chamberlain and dropped the celadon pillow in his hand to the ground.

"Bring that kid Wen Shuo in for Gu. What kind of nonsense has he sent to the Ren residence!"

"Your Highness, the young master said that the imperial examination will be repeated in a few days, and that he will do his best to prepare for the exam as he is deeply affected today. He has now moved into the western suburbs villa to prepare for the exam at ease, and said ......"

Han Ye raised his eyebrows, "What else did he say?"

"He also said that you shouldn't be reluctant to let go of the money you have saved to marry your wife. Other people are using 30,000 sailors to ask for a marriage, so we at the Eastern Palace can't fall short!"

The chief chamberlain fully lived up to the tone of the words left by Young master Wen when he was leaving, and then silently retreated.

"That kid. Send a word to the village, tell him to do well in the examination, if he fails, just roll back to Gu!"

The gnashing of teeth[4] rang out in the bedchamber for half the night, causing panic at the slightest movement throughout the Eastern Palace.

[4]　切齿 [yǎo yá qiè chǐ ] - gnashing one's teeth (idiom); displaying extreme anger; fuming with rage between gritted teeth

Oh, dear His Highness the Crown Prince, are you sure you're not angry because you're embarrassed?