Princess Jiaojiao arrives, teasing the prince to blush and heartbeat

June 17

Leng Ming came to report,

"Your Majesty, my brother has arrested all the people in Desheng Tea House. The man surnamed Jiang refuses to tell the truth about the people behind him. What should I do?"

"First put him in the Criminal Department and continue the trial. His immediate boss must be from the Ministry of Rites. You are the head of the Ministry of Rites. It is up to you to investigate this matter yourself. I only want the result."

"Yes, I will go check it out now. By the way, there are a lot of scholars going to Desheng Tea House today. I have already informed them that tomorrow's exam will be invigilated by the emperor himself. The prince only takes the exam anonymously. Everyone can do it according to their ability. There will never be an iota of fraud.”

Leng Yu nodded with satisfaction,

"This is the best. Our Daning Kingdom officialdom should attract some fresh blood. This time, the top three will be directly arranged to be promoted to officials, officials, and household officials. The rest of the Jinshi will be hired as candidates. Those who are old will be appointed as candidates. Our veterans, let them retire and return to their hometowns of their own free will!"

"Your Majesty, they...will they be willing?"

Leng Yu snorted coldly,

"Now they are eager for me to issue this decree. I have also thought about it. After all, they are veterans of the former dynasty and are willing to lay down their armor and return to their fields. I will not hold them accountable for the money they corrupted when they were in office. I will only treat them as old ministers when they return to their hometowns. , money to support the family.”

Hearing this, Leng Ming nodded immediately,

"The emperor said this, my brother understands. Now that you are reorganizing the court, it is a time when everyone is in danger. If you open this hole, they will definitely agree to retreat without any complaints."

Leng Yu breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, "The late emperor left too many hidden dangers. These old ministers are occupying official positions and doing nothing. It is better to let capable people take over their official positions."

"Your Majesty is wise."

"You don't have to wear a high hat on me. By the way, have you ever visited King Xi's Mansion from time to time?"

"After Xiao Cui died, Luo Xue and I went to see her once. Concubine Li's mood was quite stable."

"That's good. I don't know what's going on over there in Lengxi. I've been gone for so long and there's still no letter."

"Your Majesty, they have only been away for less than three months, and they will be on the road for more than two months. It is estimated that they will be very busy soon after arriving. If they have time, Fifth Brother will write a letter."

Leng Yu breathed a sigh of relief, Leng Xi's trip this time was to share his worries, and he thanked him from the bottom of his heart.

However, during this period, both Xiaocui and the child died, and he always felt a little sorry.

……

June 26

The imperial examination ended successfully. In order not to keep the candidates waiting too long, Leng Yu and Luo Lan worked day and night to review it in person. Finally, the list of the top three and the list of Jinshi were compiled.

If Lele and Yicheng were ordinary candidates, it would not be a problem to get into the top three. For this, Luo Lan and Leng Yu were very happy, which also proved that they had not learned in vain for so many years.

On the day when the results were released, some of the candidates were jubilant while others were dejected.

Hong Hai, who met Leng Yu and others at the Qing Yuyuan Tea House, got the second place in the exam. Zhao Zhen, a scholar from Yilan County, got into the top three. Although Dong Jin only got into the Jinshi, he was very happy about it.

However, the person who won the first prize in the exam never showed up, which was very puzzling.

Leng Yu sat in the Yangxin Hall and asked puzzledly,

"You just said that the address of the person who won the top prize was a fake? How is this possible? How did the people in your etiquette department do this? Can't you even figure out this little thing?"

Leng Ming stood there with his hands down, blushing and shaking his head.

"I didn't expect it to be like this. The address this person left was in Beijing, but we searched according to the address. There was no such place at all, and there was no one named Ling in that area. This is also due to the negligence of these people under me. , I didn’t expect it to be a fake address, and I didn’t think to verify it, and no one could have imagined that the person who left the fake address won the first prize, so... what should I do about this?”

A look of indifference flashed through Leng Yu's eyes, and then he looked at Leng Ming,

"Now that the imperial list has been released, you have to dig deep to find this person. I personally reviewed this person's test paper. He is a talent, his articles are very insightful, and his knowledge is also very good. Yuan Bo, I just saw a trace of restraint in his handwriting, probably the reason why he didn't let go. When you find this person, I will meet with the top three. Remember, this matter must be done secretly. If the number one scholar is lost, let's talk about it. It’s my people who are lost.”

Leng Ming hurriedly cupped his fists and saluted.

"I understand, I will go find him now."

Although Leng Ming's words were true, he knew in his heart, where could he find this person? He knew the name, but he didn't even know what the person looked like.

But this was an oversight on his part, and he must be held responsible for his negligence.

Thinking of this, he quickly rushed back to the Ministry of Rites and arranged for all officials to inquire privately.

Lost the top pick?

This was no small matter, and word of it quickly spread to Fengyi Palace.

Luo Lan was a little confused and muttered to A Cai and A Hong:

"After studying hard for ten years and winning the first prize, how could he not come to see the imperial examination? This is really strange."

Ah Hong also nodded strangely,

"Yes, I heard Ayu say that this person named Ling's article is very well written and his views are very different. Why did he just leave a fake address? Does he have something to hide?"

Ah Cai glanced at her lips and shook her head.

"Even if there are any unspeakable secrets, winning the top prize is a huge happy event. This kind of happy event that others cannot ask for, will he not take it seriously?"

Luo Lan gently brushed his headgear, frowned and analyzed:

"His test paper was shown to me by the Emperor. It is indeed different. It's just that his writing power is a little weaker. His writing is weak, just like someone pinching his throat when talking. If his address is fake, then his name must be It’s also fake. Did he also deliberately change the original font on his test paper?”

At this point, she frowned, recalled the test paper carefully, and said to herself:

"At that time, I felt that the font looked familiar, and I didn't realize it for a moment. Could it be that I have seen this font somewhere?"

Hearing what she said, A Cai couldn't wait to say:

"My dear, please go get the test papers and compare them carefully."

Luo Lan immediately shook his head,

"The test paper will be sealed after being reviewed by the emperor. No one is allowed to open it unless there are special circumstances. Alas! I didn't think much about it at the time. If I had known this, I should have looked at it more."

Ah Hong frowned in embarrassment,

"I heard that the emperor gave Prince Ming an order to dig three feet into the ground to find this person. But if this person is really as the empress said, even his name is fake, then how can we find him?"

A Cai also pursed her lips and echoed,

"That's right, who did this? Who would do such a thing?"

Just when a few of them were discussing the matter, the girl outside came in to report,

"Mother, Princess Ming is here."

Luo Xue is here?

She hurriedly greeted:

"Invite her in quickly."

"I'm already in."

Luo Xue came to her as she spoke,

"Sister, the person you were waiting for is here."