Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 281 Yan Shifan commits murder?
"Father, please do justice for your child!"

Looking at Yan Shifan kneeling before him, Yan Song slowly said, "Get up first!"

"I……"

"stand up!"

Amidst the scolding, Yan Shifan reluctantly stood up, and then heard his father say, "Raise your head and look at me!"

Yan Shifan looked up.

The father and son looked at each other in silence.

The anger in Yan Shifan's eyes gradually subsided, replaced by a sense of bewilderment.

I didn't notice it because I saw him every day, but this time I suddenly realized that in just over a year, my father's beard had turned noticeably whiter, his forehead was deeply furrowed, and even his once sharp eyes were now clouded with gray.

Being the Grand Secretary is no easy task!

In particular, there was a chief minister who worked diligently and was truly dedicated to the country's new policies and reforms!
Seeing the heartache in his son's eyes, Yan Song felt a warmth in his heart and sighed softly, "Qing'er, I won't hide it from you, this matter is very difficult to investigate!"

The grading of examination papers in the imperial examinations was a highly subjective matter; sometimes, whether a candidate was rejected or not depended entirely on the examiner's decision.

Unless your talent reaches the level of the top scholar in this imperial examination, and you are able to surpass all the scholars in the world and be recognized as extraordinary at a glance, there are many scholars who consider themselves to be highly talented, and many scholars who are indignant and accuse others of cheating after failing the exam. Why should Yan Shifan be an exception?

Is it simply because her father is the Grand Secretary of the current dynasty?
It is precisely because of this background that we cannot doubt the results.

After all, who knows if this suspicion stems from the fact that the son failed the exam, prompting the examination hall to "correct" itself and allow the son to pass again?
Political enemies are just looking for an opportunity to accuse someone of favoritism and corruption. Isn't this just handing them ammunition for attack?

"Father, I'm not convinced!"

On his way back, Yan Shifan had thought about this problem, but he was really unwilling to accept it. His knuckles were white from clenching his fists, and his voice was trembling with sobs: "I neglected my studies back then, and failing the exam was my own fault, but this exam... I studied until the wee hours of the morning and wrote every single essay with my blood and sweat. Now I've failed along with those mediocre students. How can I accept this?"

This is indeed the case.

Yan Shifan accepted his failure to pass the exam because he hadn't worked hard enough; it was his own fault for being so useless and missing such a good opportunity.

He thought all hope was lost, but it was precisely the tutoring help arranged by Haiyue that allowed him to get back into exam preparation mode over the past six months.

Moreover, one point should not be forgotten: Yan Shifan, through his upbringing, possessed a level of knowledge far exceeding that of those local scholars who merely studied books.

With a foundation in classical studies, coupled with the strategic insights gained from his life experiences, Yan Shifan believed he was qualified to be on the list of successful candidates.

If a scholar with his qualifications still couldn't pass the exam, then there would truly be no justice in the world.

"Ugh!"

Yan Song sighed again.

No one knows a son better than his father; my son has indeed become much more settled these days.

After all, his former companions were gradually drifting away, and he had a vast amount of political resources from his parents to inherit, all of which spurred him to strive for advancement.

But this is how it ended up.

Despite his regret, Yan Song weighed the pros and cons and said in a low voice, "Qing'er, for the sake of the country, I am sorry for what I have done to you..."

"Father! I know your difficulties, there's no need to say anything more!"

Yan Shifan could not hide his dissatisfaction, but he did not continue to pressure his father. He took a deep breath, bowed, and went out.

The moment he turned around, a hint of ruthlessness appeared between his brows.

I absolutely cannot swallow this insult!

"Go find Mingwei?"

Yan Shifan's first thought was to find Haiyue.

But after a moment's hesitation, he silently shook his head.

It was Haiyue who resolved the suspicion of cheating in the last Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination.

The two were taking the exam in the same year, and if there was any cheating, they would both suffer.

Now I only take the imperial examinations myself, and if you really want to investigate, it's entirely out of friendship.

Constantly seeking out the other person would only make one appear useless.

The key point is that Yan Shifan already had a general direction in mind.

I didn't sleep a wink that night.

Early the next morning, Yan Shifan, with his eyes clearly bloodshot, hurriedly entered the Imperial College.

After quickly searching around the school, he went to the dormitory and found a man fast asleep in one of the rooms.

"come out!"

The man was dragged up in a daze. After rubbing his eyes and recognizing the person in front of him, he was puzzled: "Yan Donglou... Brother Donglou?"

Yan Shifan stared at him coldly: "Hong Chang, you were involved in the cheating scandal in the imperial examinations, weren't you?"

"Ouch!"

The man jolted awake and exclaimed, "Brother Donglou, you can't say things like that! How could I dare to do such a thing?"

"You do not dare?"

Yan Shifan sneered: "Who was it that sneaked over here before, implying that they had a way to leak the exam questions?"

As the imperial examination system was standardized throughout the dynasties, the opportunities for cheating became smaller and smaller, but that did not mean that cheating was impossible.

In fact, cheating cases happen frequently, especially in local exams, where similar cases are often uncovered.

How could a crucial exam that determines one's future possibly be absolutely fair and just? Moreover, the Imperial Academy was home to many children of powerful and wealthy families who entered through patronage.

Some of these people just drifted along, hoping to get the title of Imperial Academy Student, which meant they had some education and weren't completely uncultured.

Some people still hope to strive for progress, but they can't endure real hardship, so they come up with some crooked ways.

The student in front of him was named Hong Chang, who was someone who specialized in these kinds of connections. He had previously given Yan Shifan a hint, but Yan Shifan refused without hesitation.

Firstly, he really disdained to commit such a crime; secondly, who knew that this wasn't a trap set for the Grand Secretary's son to fall into?

"My goodness! Keep your voice down!"

Hong Chang was shocked and wanted to cover Yan Shifan's mouth, but he didn't dare. He said awkwardly, "Didn't you say you didn't want it? Now that the imperial examination is over, why are you bringing this up again?"

Yan Shifan said in a deep voice, "I need to know the details of the grading process for this year's imperial examination!"

Those who have connections to cheat are also the people who know the inside story of the imperial examination best. Yan Shifan emphasized, "Don't tell me you don't know!"

Hong Chang's eyes darted around: "Brother Donglou, about this matter..."

"If this matter is resolved, I will owe you a great favor, and I will repay you handsomely in the future!"

Yan Shifan said coldly, "If you can't get it done, I'll expose your dirty secrets, and none of you will get away with it!"

"Ouch! Ouch!"

Hong Chang looked miserable, but seeing Yan Shifan's ferocious expression, he knew things couldn't end well, so he could only agree: "Fine! Alright! I'll go check it out!"

……

Inside the Hanlin Academy.

Hu Zongxian sat upright, adopting a posture of listening attentively to instruction.

Haiyue returned from the outer room carrying a book, and smiled when she saw this: "Ruzhen, relax, there's no need to be like this."

Hu Zongxian chuckled and said, "I always get nervous whenever I see the head of the association. I'm used to it! I'm used to it!"

Haiyue smiled.

The young Zhao Zhenji was straightforward, while Hu Zongxian was precocious and shrewd.

Compared to the general impression left on the audience by the TV series, the personalities of the two were actually opposite in history. Hu Zongxian was ruthless in achieving his goals, while Zhao Zhenji was more like Xu Jie before he fell into depravity. He was a firecracker that would explode at the slightest provocation and dared to speak out for justice.

However, Zhao Zhenji did indeed become Xu Jie's student later. Because of Xu Jie's kindness, when Hai Rui wanted to investigate Xu Jie, Zhao Zhenji also tried his best to attack Hai Rui in the cabinet. The relationship between the two in this respect is somewhat restored.

The two were now both assigned to the Imperial College and quickly became core members of the new batch of Yixin Society members.

Zhao Zhenji only knew how to study, while Hu Zongxian was very perceptive and often went to the Hanlin Academy to report his thoughts and experiences.

This time was no different, and Hu Zongxian quickly mentioned the results of the provincial examination, recounting with regret Yan Shifan's failure and reaction.

"Oh?"

Haiyue's current focus is on Yan Song's first five-year plan, and she hasn't really paid much attention to the imperial examination.

In his view, with Yan Shifan's intelligence, as long as he was willing to study diligently, it shouldn't be difficult for him to pass the exam.

Failing the exam again—was it because I didn't study as hard as I actually did? Was it due to excessive nervousness in the exam room that caused my poor performance? Or is there some other suspicious reason?
After confirming that the exam was over, the three of them reviewed the questions and learned about each other's essays. Haiyue then asked directly, "In your and Zhao Mengjing's opinion, how would you rate Donglou's essay in this exam?"

Hu Zongxian cautiously said, "In our humble opinion, the article is exquisite and the insights are unique, truly a masterpiece. It is quite unexpected that it failed to pass the imperial examination, and it is no wonder that Brother Donglou finds it hard to accept..."

"That's possible; someone might actually be behind this!"

Despite being in the Hanlin Academy, Haiyue had a clear understanding of the political situation in the imperial court.

As Yan Song inherited the new policies, he put forward his own views on Zhang Cong's foundation, and now there are more and more people who are hostile to this chief minister.

This is not surprising.

Officials who get things done inevitably make enemies.

If reforms and restructuring offend the old interest groups, they will be condemned by everyone.

Yan Song's advantage was that he had accumulated a great deal of prestige among the literati, and unlike Wang Anshi, he did not take drastic measures, so he was able to maintain his reputation.

At the same time, he also had a group of capable ministers supporting him. His methods were both firm and flexible. He seemed less ruthless than Zhang Cong in dealing with political enemies, but he was more effective, which made it difficult for his political enemies to do anything about him.

Therefore, as a second-best option, targeting Yan Shifan would have a motive.

Thinking of this, Haiyue couldn't help but frown: "It's not difficult to find out the truth about this matter, but the difficulty lies in how to get justice..."

He shared the same view as Yan Song: even if there were injustices in the imperial examination, it would be very difficult to correct them due to Yan Shifan's sensitive status.

After all, outsiders have no idea of ​​the intricacies involved. If the Grand Secretary's son fails the exam and then succeeds again, it will inevitably raise suspicions that Grand Secretary Yan is abusing his power for personal gain.

At that time, public opinion among scholars will be in an uproar, and it may lead to a major upheaval of "using power to disrupt the examination hall".

The most disgusting aspect of this method lies precisely in this.

Even if you fail, you can't complain and can only swallow your pride.

Therefore, Yan Song proposed the idea of ​​forbearance for the sake of the country, and at this critical juncture, forbearance was the only option.

Haiyue disagreed, saying, "No matter what, we must find out the truth. Simply suffering in silence without retaliating will only embolden the thieves! Go back to the Imperial Academy and keep an eye on the situation. Report to me immediately if anything happens!"

"Yes!"

Hu Zongxian cupped his hands in greeting, accepted the order, and left.

However, before a day had passed, he rushed to the door, panting, and cried out urgently, "Leader! Something terrible has happened! Brother Donglou... Brother Donglou has killed someone!"

(End of this chapter)