Chapter 35

Chapter 35

The private room had been silent for a long time, so long that the tea before Ying Fusheng had gone cold.

He stood up, opened the window, and gazed into the distance. All the common folk were gathered to watch the spectacle of the corrupt officials being investigated, yet a few scholars sat outside the teahouse, their brows furrowed with concealed worry despite the bustling streets nearby—a restless undercurrent beneath the clamor.

The spring examination was approaching.

"Adjutant Ye." Ying Fusheng suddenly spoke.

From above, Ye Xuanjiu froze, startled as he looked into the private room. How had this sickly prince noticed his presence? And how did he even know his surname!?

"Qi Hanzhou left you here—what did he instruct you to do?" Ying Fusheng looked up, his gaze fixed on Ye Xuanjiu, who was clad in plain clothes, perched on the beam with a small booklet in hand, his posture far from refined.

Ye Xuanjiu said nothing. He swung down from the beam, landing softly on the ground: "Greetings, Your Highness the Sixth Prince. The Junior General ordered me to stay by your side."

"Perfect timing, then," Ying Fusheng said. "I have a task for you."

...

As the anti-corruption campaign raged on, the tides in the court began to shift.

With the investigation of corrupt officials, the Eldest Prince sacrificed a few pawns, at least avoiding the same fate as the Shuntian Prefect, but the losses were still heavy. Two officials from the Ministry of Revenue who had been appointed as examiners for the spring examination were dismissed by the Ministry of Personnel for their involvement, forcing last-minute replacements to step in, throwing the examination arrangements into chaos.

For a time, the most prominent factions in the court all regarded Chen Yuanli as a thorn in their side.

The Dayuan Dynasty had been at war for many years, and the imperial examinations had been postponed time and again. With the Ministry of War and Ministry of Rites both suffering setbacks, and now the purge of corrupt officials, the number of vacant posts in the court after this affair would only grow. Ever since the emperor returned from his campaigns, the cleansing of the court had been swift, uprooting one covert agent after another.

And this spring examination—a golden opportunity for them to cultivate their power—had been thwarted by Chen Yuanli.

The usually ostentatious Eldest Prince's faction fell silent over this matter, quietly plotting in the shadows.

When news reached the Eastern Palace, several advisors looked at the Crown Prince and said succinctly, "The Eldest Prince has been unusually restrained lately. Our intelligence indicates they are treading carefully regarding the upcoming spring examination, with several key ministers meeting frequently."

"Treading carefully" was an understatement. No sooner had the examiners been replaced than the nobles backing the Eldest Prince were already pulling strings with money and influence. In previous years, when had they ever seen corrupt officials purged just before the spring examination and examiners swapped? All because of that Chen Yuanli.

And now, Chen Yuanli had become the chief examiner.

As the Crown Prince listened to his advisors, Chen Yuanli's influence grew ever stronger. Ying Fusheng had spoken boldly before the court and the great Confucian scholars, and when the emperor learned of it, he did not reprimand him.

Every official in the court knew that the Sixth Prince was still young and had no backing. Many were watching the emperor and the empress dowager to gauge their stance. It was said that Chen Yuanli had guided the Sixth Prince to say those things, and that it was the emperor's will—but among the many civil officials, why had the emperor chosen him?

"Has Granduncle said how to handle this?" the Crown Prince asked.

"Due to the corruption case, the examiners replaced at the Ministry of Rites happen to include our people," the messenger said. "His Excellency will handle this matter with caution. Your Highness need not worry."

Hearing that the spring examination affairs were stable, the Crown Prince's heart eased slightly, trusting that his maternal grandfather would manage things properly.

After the advisors left, a eunuch stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, the Empress Consort asks if you would join her for lunch."

"Tell Her Highness that I will not be coming for the time being."

The Crown Prince frowned at the interruption. When had he time for such matters? The pressing concern now was ensuring the spring examination went smoothly!

...

The factions in the court moved in secret, their actions spreading silently across the capital. While the official anti-corruption campaign raged on, unseen blades fell among the common folk. Weng Yanqing led a few scholars, hiding in the shadows as hurried footsteps passed on the street.

"Where are they!" "Lost them!" "Find them—don't let them submit another petition!"

Weng Yanqing waited cautiously until the footsteps faded away, then stayed hidden with his friends. Beside him were two scholars who had testified against the Shuntian Prefect at the assembly. They had gathered petitions from the common folk against other officials and intended to submit them to the Court of Judicial Review, but their lodgings had been burned to ashes overnight.

The corrupt officials were desperate—they wanted to stop the petitions from reaching the authorities.

"You fools! Raising such a ruckus at the assembly got the Shuntian Prefect dismissed, but have you thought about the consequences? With so many officials present, including the spring examination examiners, do you think the other civil officials will let you off after writing those petitions!"

Weng Yanqing learned that at the Imperial Academy assembly, his friends had spoken up for him, and even more students had jointly submitted petitions on behalf of the common people. "The spring examination is imminent. Let me deliver the remaining petitions—don't take any more risks!"

Those officials would never tolerate such thorns entering their ranks.

With so many factions in the court, what they were doing was akin to ruining their own futures.

"What does it matter!" one scholar said. "We'd rather give up our prospects!"

"No!" Weng Yanqing immediately countered. "You've studied hard for years, endured countless hardships to get this chance..."

"Brother Weng, don't say more. You earned your juren degree at sixteen, yet you gave up your future for Brother Liu. We couldn't help you then. When it comes to prospects, yours are far broader than ours. But even so, you've been running around for Brother Liu." The scholar speaking was emotional. "Yes, we brought down the Shuntian Prefect, but what about the rest of the common folk?"

Winning a degree and entering officialdom—wasn't that all for the sake of doing something for the people?

"Listen to me!" Weng Yanqing said calmly. "They don't yet know the petitions are yours. Go now. Leave the rest to me—I'll lure them away."

"Brother Weng!"

"Don't argue. Go! If we hesitate any longer, none of us will escape!"

The scholars hesitated, but met Weng Yanqing's determined gaze, so they turned and left.

Seeing them take a detour, Weng Yanqing resolutely ran toward the Court of Judicial Review.

For repeatedly disrupting government offices in his efforts to overturn Liu Zixuan's case, Weng Yanqing had long been disqualified from the metropolitan examination. His one chance at entering officialdom was gone. But these friends of his were innocent. He could sacrifice his own life, but they deserved a future.

Did the Dayuan Dynasty's court and countryside truly belong solely to these civil officials?

If they were remembered with enmity by the officials for the Imperial Academy assembly and their prospects ruined...

Thinking this, he ran faster.

But a scholar's pace could hardly match that of martial men. Before Weng Yanqing could react, a blade was already upon him. He clutched the petitions to his chest, stumbling and falling to the ground. The wind of the knife swept toward him. He closed his eyes in panic, and blood splattered before him.

Weng Yanqing trembled all over, but the expected pain never came. He opened his eyes in shock; a pool of blood had already spread on the ground beside him. The head of the thug who had been chasing him rolled to a stop at his feet.

On the street, several Imperial Guards quickly cleared the remains. Ye Xuanjiu ordered his men to protect the other scholars, then turned to see a carriage approach, carrying the scholar named Weng away.

When Weng Yanqing came to his senses, he found himself in a private room.

Someone took the petitions he had been clutching. Weng Yanqing tried to stop them, but they were already passed through to someone behind a screen in the inner room.

He could only vaguely make out a figure, obscured by gauze curtains, his face unseen.

"Master."

Ying Fusheng took the petitions handed to him by Song An. Looking at the list of charges written out, he saw the handwriting of several scholars, but the one at the very bottom was in a single hand—the characters were elegant and firm like a pine. The signature read "Weng Yanqing."

Ying Fusheng's fingers paused slightly. He raised his eyes toward the other side of the screen where Weng Yanqing stood, then gave a few instructions. Song An relayed, "The master asks you: knowing that submitting a petition means death, why did you not use another's name?"

Weng Yanqing choked up for a moment, but he straightened his back and said, word by word, "The petition is real. How could the name attached to it be false? If I dare not even leave my name, how can I claim to speak for the people!"

"If your life is gone, how can you plead for the people?" came the voice from behind the screen again.

Weng Yanqing fell silent, then suddenly knelt and bowed solemnly: "Thank you, benefactor, for saving my life. My life is worthless, but these petitions must be delivered to the Grand Court of Justice."

Ying Fusheng paused for a moment, opened a page of the petition, and brushed his fingers over the name on the paper. "I will give you a chance—to act for the scholars of the realm. Will you do it?"

A voice came from behind the screen, and Weng Yanqing's expression shifted. "I will do it!"

"Even if it means bearing infamy?" Ying Fusheng asked, intrigued.

Weng Yanqing had never feared such things: "What's a little infamy to me?"

As his words fell, the room fell silent.

Before long, brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were placed before Weng Yanqing. On the central sheet of rice paper, several policy essay topics were clearly laid out before him—unfamiliar prompts that nonetheless aligned with the current state of Dayuan. With just one glance, he recognized what was before him: these were policy topics that had never appeared before…

"This is…?" Weng Yanqing looked at the person beside him, doubt in his eyes.

Song An said, "This is the test my master has set for you."

In another part of the room, Ying Fusheng sat quietly.

Shen Yunfei looked at the man beside him, who sat still, eyes slightly closed as if resting.

"His Majesty has already ordered an investigation into corrupt officials, yet those officials still dare to act against the law and send men to harm these scholars!" Shen Yunfei gritted his teeth. If the prince hadn't had people watching for days, these scholars might already have lost their heads.

"Because the Spring Examination is approaching. Compared to rooting out corruption, they have more important things to do," said Ying Fusheng.

The factions were sacrificing their pawns to sue for peace. The web of influence in the court was already a vast net, with some lurking deep within, hard to trace.

"Even though corrupt officials have been raided, corruption in the court remains deeply rooted." Ying Fusheng, on a whim, asked Shen Yunfei, "Why?"

Hearing this question, Shen Yunfei blurted out, "Because the raids weren't thorough enough."

"Because it's an unending stream," Ying Fusheng said slowly, as if drowsy. "When positions are left empty, new people must fill them. Who those people are is decided by those in the court. My father the emperor may be shrewd, but the court and the country are vast beyond his reach in every detail."

Killing corrupt officials cannot eradicate them all, because the court and the realm must still function—it's about balance.

Factions are like this: exploiting each other and tangled up, each with their own interests. Chen Yuanli worked hard to build connections within the Crown Prince Faction, the eldest prince maneuvered for wealth and power, while the so-called "pure stream" faction rallied scholars at the Imperial Academy gathering, all for the sake of this Spring Examination.

"Adjutant Ye, please see to it that these are delivered to the Grand Court of Justice," Ying Fusheng said after reviewing the petitions, handing them to the Imperial Guard standing by.

Ye Xuanjiu looked at the thick stack: "…It's my duty."

Ye Xuanjiu didn't know why he was still there listening to the conversation between these two, who didn't hold back in front of him, as if he were one of them. When the Junior General assigned him to protect the Sixth Prince, Ye Xuanjiu had merely regarded him as a sickly prince. But now he'd been roped into cleaning up the mess and was presented with a pile of petitions.

Did their general know all this…?

On the other side of the room, Song An came to report that Weng Yanqing had begun writing.

"Your Highness, why did you go out of your way to keep Weng Yanqing?" asked Shen Yunfei.

After handing over the petitions, Ying Fusheng said softly, "This man is cunning. He escaped the Prefect of Shuntian, stirred trouble multiple times in front of the Ministry of Rites, and under such circumstances, still managed to speak up for other scholars… He's just a scholar."

In his past life, many important court officials entered office through this post-war Spring Examination. Compared to that life, the situation before this Spring Examination was better—so many official positions were vacant. If he were the one pulling the strings, he wouldn't let this opportunity slip.

Thus, Chen Yuanli, as the mole he had planted among the factions, had made a splash during the Ning family affair to secure a spot as an examiner for the Spring Examination. The court factions wanted to cultivate their own people, and naturally, the mastermind did too.

"If these scholars truly want to rid the people of harm, without power, they can achieve nothing," Ying Fusheng said, listening to Song An's report, with a smile. "The Spring Examination is especially a playground for schemers. That Lord Chen is in the spotlight now. The examiners have been changed repeatedly. What are my elder brothers going to do?"

Ye Xuanjiu couldn't miss the implication behind Ying Fusheng's words. The Imperial Guard knows plenty of secrets; every exam period sees all kinds of cheating: bribing examiners to buy or sell test questions, smuggling cheat sheets in… and even tampering with name seals to collude with graders.

These cheating methods are endless and impossible to fully prevent. Even if the Grand Court investigated, they couldn't catch it all, because the factions were embedded, using unscrupulous means to install their own people.

During the anti-corruption drive, two of the originally appointed examiners were suspended for suspected corruption. The Grand Council, on the emperor's orders, appointed two new examiners. This shift threw the factions' plans into chaos, as last-minute replacements would mess up the pre-established connections.

But even so, it was difficult to stop the factions' maneuvering, because they'd just be more careful, and their cheating would become even more covert.

At that realization, Ye Xuanjiu turned sharply to look at Weng Yanqing across the room.

Then that paper he was working on…

Cold sweat ran down his back. He turned back to see Ying Fusheng sitting there calmly, sipping his tea, and then heard him say—

"Everyone's scared stiff, afraid their schemes might fall through."

Ying Fusheng set down the teacup. "What if this Spring Examination turns into a joke?"