After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

……

Datong Street.

The elegant room in the Moon-Holding Pavilion.

The sun had just set behind the mountains, and the sky was a dark blue.

"Heh heh, from today onwards, Magistrate Lou's injustice will be completely cleared..."

Dressed in simple brocade robes, disguised as an ordinary wealthy man, Prince Anfeng gently patted Lou Jizuo's hand, his face creased with wrinkles, and calmly smiled:

"Once Ning Baixuan fails the provincial examination, the rumors will be confirmed. At that time, we will submit a memorial on the grounds of protecting the reputation of Marquis Jingbei and appeasing the rumors in the capital... I suppose... I suppose that person will take the opportunity to back down and transfer both Magistrate Lou and Prefect Liu back to the capital..."

He paused, but still didn't say "Empress," only "that one."

Rumors circulated in the capital that the Marquis of Jingbei, feeling indignant on behalf of his grand-nephew, went to the palace to debate with the Empress and the Emperor Emeritus about his supposedly "great talent" grand-nephew's failure to rank last in the county examination.

To appease Xun Gui, the Empress demoted Magistrate Lou and Prefect Liu.

Once the results of the provincial examination are announced today, and Ning Baixuan fails, the fact that he is "lacking talent"... or at least lacking talent in "classical studies" will be confirmed, and the Marquis of Jingbei will have no choice but to vent his anger.

Lou and Liu could naturally return to the capital.

Lou Jizuo's face was thin and sallow. He gave a bitter smile and clasped his hands in greeting:

"Thank you, thank you, Prince Anfeng."

Sitting next to Lou Jizuo, Liu Pu, an official in his fifties, also smiled wryly and clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you, Prince Anfeng."

Qin Zhongxi's two tufts of mustache twitched slightly. He sat to the right of the Prince of Anfeng, quickly raised his glass, and smiled.

"Don't worry, don't worry, Lord Lou and Lord Liu, it's all in the past."

The seven or eight royal relatives whom the Prince of Anfeng had summoned to sit with him all raised their glasses and laughed, saying, "Indeed, Magistrate Lou and Prefect Liu have suffered hardship this time."

Lou and Liu also raised their glasses, and with wry smiles, drank a toast with everyone.

The mellow, slightly warm Shaoxing wine went down my throat.

Lou Jizuo's mood finally improved a little.

This unexpected disaster has lasted for two months.

He was supposed to go to Dazhou to serve as a registrar half a month ago, but he had no choice but to ask the Ministry of Personnel for permission to postpone it for half a month. Now he could not postpone it any longer and had to set off tomorrow.

The dishes on the table were all famous dishes from Xianyue Pavilion, exquisitely carved, and their appearance alone made them among the best in the world.

Qin Zhongxi introduced the dishes in a gentle voice, feeling somewhat emotional.

In fact, King Anfeng did not intend to meet Lou and Liu. He felt that if these two had not been so indecisive and had not dismissed Ning Baixuan early, how could that person have been able to pass the provincial examination?

However, Qin Zhongxi had no choice, because Lou and Liu were full of resentment towards him.

Especially Lou Jizuo... Prefect Liu was demoted to a county magistrate in central Hunan, but Lou Jizuo was demoted to a registrar in Dazhou. He was demoted to the lowest level with almost no chance of recovery, which is enough to show how angry the Empress was with him.

If he didn't invite Prince Anfeng, these two would probably hate him.

When the Prince of Anfeng arrived, he first gave Lou Jizuo a letter from the Prince of Shu. With this letter, no one would dare to make things difficult for him when he arrived in Dazhou, which made Lou Jizuo feel a little better.

However, this was of no use whatsoever. He lost his appetite, his resentment remained, and he was filled with regret... Had he known that Qin Zhongxi was backed by a member of the imperial family, and not just the chief minister Qin, he would have preferred to resign temporarily rather than get involved in this mess...

The Ministry of Rites openly and covertly wanted him to appoint that Tartar as the top scholar, while Qin Zhongxi and his group wanted him to dismiss Ning Baixuan, a member of the imperial clan. The two groups were not related.

In the former case, there is no first place in literature, and the Tartar's exam paper was indeed well written. In the entire Jiangning County, only this person and Li Yanting, along with a handful of others, had the talent to be selected for the imperial examinations. If the Tartar was not selected, then Li Yanting would be selected.

Choosing the Tartars as the first priority isn't anything to be ashamed of... it's just unexpected that this matter would offend the Empress, who refused the marriage alliance...

The latter, Ning Baixuan, was indeed talented. He glanced at Ning Baixuan's paper, which was written in a standard and unremarkable manner. He could pass the county examination and should have no difficulty becoming a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examination).

But in Jiangning's examination, he would only barely make the top ten, so passing the provincial examination was naturally out of the question. Only one hundred candidates were selected from the entire Southern Zhili region; how could a paper like Ning Baixuan's possibly be chosen?

When he was ranking the students, he thought for a moment that if he directly dismissed Ning Baixuan, he would offend the Marquis of Jingbei to the point of no return, and even Grand Scholar Liu would come looking for trouble with him... So he placed Ning Baixuan last... Later, when the scholars asked about it, they said it was "to select talents for the country and to suppress the arrogance of this great talent," and it is possible that this became a well-known story...

...That was what he thought at the time; he always believed that he was demoted because he had offended the Empress.

Seeing that Prefect Liu had also been demoted during the prefectural examination, he became even more determined in his mind to continue this idea.

It wasn't until later, when the Tartars still topped the list in the provincial examination, Ning Baixuan came in ninth, but Dong Xuezheng wasn't demoted... that he belatedly realized...

It turned out that he had offended someone else... The only thing he couldn't understand was... how could the Marquis of Jingbei have such excellent information? The county examination results had just been released when he was summoned by the Empress and immediately demoted... When he left the palace, he was drenched in cold sweat...

After several rounds of drinks...

Prince Anfeng frowned. Although he had heard Qin Zhongxi mention it, he still asked softly:

"Magistrate Lou, I have a question I'd like to ask... May I ask, Magistrate Lou... how did you determine that Ning Baixuan... would definitely fail the provincial examination?"

Lou Jizuo's expression froze for a moment, then after a few breaths, he couldn't help but chuckle and said:

"Your Highness, you may not know this, but this imperial examination..."

Lou Jizuo paused, carefully considering his words to avoid being misunderstood as a member of the imperial family who was ignorant of the imperial examinations. He then mentioned Ning Baixuan's essay and said with a smile:

"Ning Baixuan is still young, and his poetic talent is unparalleled. But at such a young age, if he spends so much time learning poetry, how can he have such a thorough understanding of the classics?"

"Judging from his writing, although Ning Baixuan may not be among the top ten in the county, he should be able to pass the county-level examination without any problem. However, as for passing the provincial-level examination..."

Lou Jizuo, a scholar who had passed the imperial examination, chuckled.

"...I'm afraid we'll have to wait a few more sessions."

talking.

Lou Jizuo then smiled and asked Liu Pu, who had also seen Ning Baixuan's exam paper, for advice. Anfeng Wang and the others immediately turned their attention to Liu Pu.

Liu Pu's face stiffened.

Ning Baixuan couldn't even make it into the top ten in Jiangning County? ... Liu Pu wondered. As the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, he had been quite troubled when he was reviewing the papers.

Ning Baixuan's exam paper... was fairly average, without anything particularly outstanding, but it was enough to pass the provincial examination.

Furthermore, Ning Baixuan's use of allusions is quite good, especially in his policy essays, which demonstrate the talent of a successful candidate in the imperial examinations... However, in his understanding of the classics... indeed, as Lou Jizuo said, he currently lacks the talent to become a successful candidate in the imperial examinations...

However, if we're really going to rank them, getting into the top ten, or at least the top fifteen, in the academy exam shouldn't be a problem...

However... Liu Pu sighed inwardly. He had only gotten to where he was today because of the Grand Secretary's promotion in his early years. Since Qin Zhongxi had come to invite him, he had to do something to show his appreciation... so he ranked him below the middle class.

Little did I expect that this would cause such a big disaster.

Liu Pu also sighed, "Brother Lou is right. Ning Baixuan is qualified to be a Xiucai, but he doesn't have the talent to be a Juren. However..." He frowned, "I'm afraid it's uncertain whether he will pass the next exam."

Upon hearing that both of the Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) had said the same thing.

Prince Anfeng and several other members of the royal family exchanged glances, then relaxed. Their expressions darkened... It would be best if Ning Baixuan failed the exam, becoming infamous, utterly disgraced, his talent completely destroyed, and burdened with the stigma of "suspectedly using his noble status to pass the exam"... Only then... would many things be easier to discuss...

At this moment, a sound of gongs, drums, and suonas suddenly came from Datong Street, where Xianyue Pavilion is located.