Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 605 Winner
Pei Yuan instructed Yun Buxian, "After what happened today, Tang Gao and the others will probably not be able to stay at Longhua Temple anymore."

“Those unsuccessful candidates will surely try to ambush them. The Buddhist gates of Longhua Temple are wide open, and they cannot be stopped.”

"Later, you will secretly bring them out and then bring them to see me."

Yun Buxian nodded and said, "I will take care of it right away."

After Yun Buxian left, Pei Yuanli assessed the current situation.

The inclusion of Tang Gao and the other two on the list was like a flare being fired in the Ming Dynasty's officialdom, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

Even Zhu Houzhao could use these three people to attract the attention of the candidates and take the opportunity to divert the conflict over demolishing Mingyufang and Jiqingfang.

So, things like the extra few Jinshi graduates from Shandong this year would naturally become insignificant.

Other things might also experience a chain reaction of changes.

Pei Yuan had a table of food and wine prepared in a private room, and then said to Lu Yong, who was guarding nearby, "Go and call Chen Xinjian over, and tell him that I'm inviting him to dinner."

Chen Xinjian is about to leave Beijing.

Pei Yuan, mindful of the young man's recent marriage, considerately let him go back and take care of his own family affairs.

After this separation, I wonder if he will be able to make a name for himself in the North.

……

The situation in Tanggao seemed rather complicated. Even as Chen Xinjian arrived excitedly, the capable Yun Buxian had not yet brought anyone with him.

After learning the situation, Chen Xinjian didn't mince words and speculated, "Those three guys might have some other ideas, right?"

Pei Yuan thought for a moment and said, "It's not that bad. Even if they have some ideas, they should come to me first to find out what's going on."

Betrayal also has sunk costs.

Given their current circumstances, what benefits could they possibly gain from rashly turning against their former allies, other than facing public condemnation alone?

Tang Gao, Huang Chu, and Cai Ang wouldn't go and report how Pei Yuan helped them get the top rank, would they?
If these three guys are really so stupid as to reveal to the public how Pei Yuan manipulated Yang Tinghe's mentality, and how he calculated the direction of the questions and the angles of the answers.

Whether the world will believe it or not is another matter, but Yang Tinghe will likely regard this as a great disgrace.

At that point, it's uncertain whether they'll even be able to save their lives, let alone their official titles.

Moreover, if these three people betray even Pei Yuan, who helped them achieve the highest rank, then what power would accept and trust them?

Chen Xinjian clearly understood this principle as well.

The Chen brothers were in a similar situation. Their relationship with Pei Yuan was too close; not only was it difficult to sever ties, but they also had no other options.

So Chen Xinjian naturally skipped over that topic and instead sighed for them.

"I always thought those three were bookworms. After what happened today, I don't know how they'll handle things in the future."

Pei Yuan had already anticipated this, saying, "There won't be any problems."

"According to convention, the top three are personally selected by the Grand Secretary. In other words, these three were able to be on the list entirely because of Yang Tinghe's will. Yang Tinghe has just formed such a powerful cabinet, how could he back down at such a time?"

"Furthermore, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, Yang Dan, is indeed a remarkable figure. You may not know, but that old fellow must have seen through the identities of those troublemakers at the scene. He even made sure they signed their names on the petition. As long as Yang Dan keeps pressing on the flaws in their identities, this matter will most likely turn into a farce."

Chen Xinjian's expression shifted, and he asked Pei Yuan, "The Emperor's man?"

Pei Yuan said, "There are two groups, one from the Eastern Depot and the other from the Northern Garrison."

Chen Xinjian roughly knew Pei Yuan's plan to lure the emperor into a trap, but after thinking about it, he couldn't quite understand why the emperor was making things so complicated and risking making a mess of things.
Chen Xinjian asked, "Is there something else going on?"

Pei Yuan shook his head, "I don't know, I'll ask the Emperor next time I see him."

As a party involved in the widely publicized imperial examination fraud case and also a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard responsible for intelligence gathering, it would be incompetent of Pei Yuan to say that he would have no reaction to what was happening outside the Left Gate of Chang'an.

It is quite necessary to intervene appropriately in this matter and communicate with the emperor in a timely manner.

Chen Xinjian asked, puzzled, "Since the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture discovered the problem, why didn't he arrest and interrogate those who incited the disturbance on the spot? Perhaps he could have silenced them in front of everyone."

Pei Yuan said, "What's the benefit of exposing something like this on the spot?"

"The anger of the candidates and the common people is directed at Tang Gao and his two accomplices who committed fraud. Even if their identities as candidates are exposed, as long as they say they acted out of righteous indignation, who will investigate further?"

"When people get emotional, they can't reason with each other."

"In this way, not only will it not have any effect, but it will also waste the most important card in your hand in advance."

After thinking about it, Chen Xinjian also felt that Pei Qianhu's hypothesis was very likely to become a reality.

He then asked, puzzled, "If that's the case, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture could simply conduct a secret investigation and arrest those people afterwards, which would be the same. But judging from what the Commander said, it seems that the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture is completely ignoring this matter."

Pei Yuan said indifferently, "It's good if the score determines the winner in this kind of thing, even if there's no result."

Chen Xinjian chuckled, "Indeed."

After all, it was the candidates who wanted to overturn the results of the imperial examinations; it was not the imperial court that needed to investigate the truth and find evidence.

The fact that the candidates collectively besieged and questioned the court was never a good thing. Rather than ending up with a conclusion that no one was satisfied with, it was better to turn it into a farce that could not be proven.

Chen Xinjian sighed, "These three guys are quite pitiful. I never expected that after finally passing the exam, they would run into something like this."

"Pitiful?" Pei Yuan scoffed.

He then said, "The three of them have come to this point. The emperor feels indebted to them, I, the commander, feel indebted to them, and Yang Tinghe also feels indebted to them."

"They also won the top three places in the imperial examinations."

"To avoid the upcoming turmoil and to prevent them from saying anything they shouldn't, Grand Secretary Yang might arrange for them to compile history, giving them a period of peace and quiet."

"The poor fellow you speak of is doing the easiest job to get promoted in, compiling history, lying low in the prestigious Hanlin Academy, waiting for his chance to soar to the top."

How could you feel sorry for them?

Hearing Pei Qianhu say this, Chen Xinjian himself felt that these three people had really hit the jackpot.

Chen Xinjian thought for a moment, then said somewhat dejectedly, "So, Commander Qian, did we not get any benefits?"

Pei Yuan rolled his eyes.

"how could be?"

"Right now, rumors are flying around about the imperial examination scandal involving me and these three people, but there are two people who know that I am innocent."

“One is His Majesty, because I was the one who revealed this to him. The other is Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe, because he personally selected every first-class scholar.” “From His Majesty’s perspective, this matter is suspected of betraying me. Even if he is heartless, he wouldn’t lie through his teeth and actually pin the blame on me. Moreover, Yang Tinghe is taking the blame for this matter.”

"From Yang Tinghe's perspective, this so-called imperial examination corruption case is purely coincidental. If someone really wanted to make this imperial examination corruption case a fact, what would that mean?"

"This means that logically, Yang Tinghe and I are accomplices! That's why what I said in advance was ultimately carried out by Yang Tinghe."

"So if someone attacks me, it's because they want to attack Yang Tinghe."

"Moreover, those top-ranking officials were indeed personally selected by Yang Tinghe. Admitting that I am the mastermind behind the manipulation of the imperial examinations is undoubtedly an insult to Yang Tinghe."

"Under these circumstances, no matter how rampant the scandals of corruption in the imperial examinations become, who can touch me in the slightest?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Xinjian felt that his family was still destined to bear the infamy for nothing.

He said somewhat dejectedly, "It's a pity, I'm going to get another lot of nasty comments from those pedants."

Pei Yuan chuckled lightly, but did not deny it.

"Perhaps at the beginning."

"But when they realize that no matter how hard they try, how much they incite, or how conclusive the evidence is, I, the commander, am still sitting firmly in Zhihua Temple, the people of the world will change their minds and think I am very powerful."

"When the ministers discussed state affairs with the emperor, even the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard could only stand and serve to the side."

"What I want is to completely expose their class discrimination and allow those people to speak to me with respect."

"Don't be fooled by how big a fuss the green slip case is now. When the autumn examinations come next year and the spring examinations the year after, some local scholars might come to me, the commander, to ask for a green slip."

Chen Xinjian was stunned for a moment, realizing that what Commander Pei was planning was far beyond what he could see.

The two chatted for a while longer when there was a knock at the door. "Commander, your subordinate has brought the man."

Pei Yuan recognized Yun Buxian's voice and said directly, "Come in, everyone. There are no outsiders here."

The door opened, and Yun Buxian glanced into the room. Seeing that it was Chen Xinjian who had been talking to Pei Yuan, she quickly smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.

Then he stepped aside to let Tang Gao and the other two enter.

Pei Yuan glanced around and saw that Tang Gao and the other two had changed into ordinary blue robes. All three of them looked somewhat flustered, and even after entering the door, they subconsciously looked outside.

Upon meeting Pei Yuan, the three of them seemed somewhat at a loss as to how to interact with each other.

They stood there silently, one by one.

Pei Yuan smiled and gestured for the three of them to sit down. Then, before they could ask anything, he took the initiative to ask, "I'm afraid you all have some questions and want to ask about those three blue tokens, right?"

The expressions on the three people's faces became increasingly unnatural.

The matter of the green bamboo slips was kept very secret; it was a bet they made in private, so how could anyone else possibly know about it?
This matter had been on their minds ever since it was exposed outside the Left Gate of Chang'an.

They risked becoming pariahs by coming here mainly to ask what exactly happened.

Tang Gao took a deep breath, bowed deeply, and said, "Please enlighten me, Commander."

Their achievements were indeed not exactly honorable, but compared to that, whether their patrons had betrayed them was clearly more important to them.

Pei Yuan sighed and reassured them, "This matter is a long story, but I, the commander, am very clear about the whole ins and outs. The court will not believe those nonsense words, and you don't need to worry about your future."

Tang Gao was the most disheveled one today, and he was also the most affected.

He was a very stubborn person who liked to get stuck on details, and he still pressed on, "Since you know, then please enlighten us."

Pei Yuan's gaze fell on Tang Gao.

Tang Gao instinctively flinched.

Pei Yuan then looked at the other two.

Huang Chu and Cai Ang clearly didn't know how to face Pei Yuan, so they both lowered their heads.

Pei Yuan sighed and said sincerely, "This matter is indeed my fault, and I am partly to blame."

Upon hearing this, all three were startled and a thought arose in their minds.

Could it really be that Commander Pei deliberately leaked it?

But Pei Yuan continued, "After I left the post station, I realized that those petty people who didn't get my help might spread rumors and slander me."

"Since I, the commander, am going to protect you from the wind and rain, how could I not help you and make arrangements in advance?"

"To avoid causing you any trouble, I have already reported to the Emperor in advance everything concerning you, whether it was our meeting at Chongwu Water Station, or the escort we took to the capital, oh, and the matter of the green bamboo slips."

The three were somewhat surprised. "Commander, are you saying that... His Majesty knows about our affairs?"

Tang Gao and the others understood Pei Yuan's implication.

In other words, the secret about the green bamboo skewer wasn't limited to just the four of them.

This matter... could actually have been leaked by the current emperor.

Thinking about this, the three of them became even more confused.

They simply couldn't understand why the emperor, with his supreme status, would do such a thing.

Pei Yuan said, "That's right. I was afraid that others would slander you because of my identity, so I informed the Emperor about the matter through Chu Jie, a junior officer of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a long time ago. Chu Jie was even promoted to captain because of this merit."

"In other words, His Majesty already knew all the causes and consequences before the palace examination."

Pei Yuan then said meaningfully, "His Majesty knows about our affairs."

"But His Majesty still appointed the three of you as the top scholar, the second-place scholar, and the third-place scholar."

"With this arrangement, what else do you have to worry about?"

Tang Gao still held a sliver of hope and cautiously asked, "Could this be the work of that Chu Jie?"

Pei Yuan didn't respond to that. After a while, he looked at the three of them and said, "The three of you are fortunate to have met at this time and to be able to share the burden of the emperor."

Pei Yuan was the one who first released the news, but after things escalated, the old fox Pei Yuan made the news public and passed it on to Zhu Houzhao.

When Zhu Houzhao sought advice on how to resolve the issues in Mingyufang and Jiqingfang, he first received a suggestion from Pei Yuan that he should try to redirect the attention of the failed candidates back to the imperial examinations. Then he heard the sensational rumor about the candidates joining the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Zhu Houzhao immediately realized that this was the perfect opportunity he had been waiting for.
What could attract the attention of those who failed the imperial examinations more than a scandal involving cheating in the civil service exams?

(End of this chapter)