freenovelworld Chapter 107 Their Conspiracy
Chapter 107 Their Conspiracy
Chen Jiang was incorruptible and impartial, and his men followed him with unwavering courage.
Upon hearing his order, he immediately stepped forward and took Wei Hongjin into custody.
"Father, save me!" Wei Hongjin cried out, his eyes filled with terror, his face contorted with fear.
This was the first time she had been punished.
It was also the first time she had been hit.
"Stop!" Wei Chuanbai's heart broke when he heard Wei Hongjin's cry for help. This was his and his beloved mother's only child.
He had promised *** that he would do everything in his power to protect her and her daughter for the rest of his life.
But now *** is being escorted into the palace, and Wei Hongjin is being beaten with sticks.
He broke his promise as a husband and a father.
"Chen Jiang!"
Veins bulged on Wei Chuanbai's forehead, his eyes filled with rage.
However, the more he acted this way, the more resolute Chen Jiang became, asking, "Is the Prince Consort trying to obstruct official business?"
Wei Chuanbai stared intently at Chen Jiang, "Today you have harmed my daughter, and thus angered the Princess's residence!"
Chen Jiang smiled slightly, "Your Highness, please go ahead and do as you please. I have never been afraid."
His face darkened, and he shouted, "Take him away! Carry out orders, and I'll take responsibility for any consequences!"
"Father! Father..."
Wei Hongjin screamed desperately, but she was still dragged away by the yamen runners.
Soon, after the twenty strokes of the rod were finished, the constables carried Wei Hongjin back.
"Sir, the punishment has been carried out," the constable reported.
“Your Highness, you can take Princess Hongjin back now,” Chen Jiang said.
"Guards, take the princess back to the manor!" Wei Chuanbai ordered.
Wei Hongjin lay on the stretcher, crying out for her parents, her face turning blue with pain.
As she passed by Song Siyao, she glared at her, her teeth clenched with hatred, "Song Siyao, one day I will kill you!"
"I'm available anytime." Song Si smiled, his expression disdainful.
Wei Chuanbai's eyes swept over Chen Jiang like a blizzard, finally settling on Song Siyao.
After a moment, he withdrew his gaze, lifted his leg, and stepped out of the courtroom.
From then on, the gentle and refined prince consort disappeared.
Shen Pei looked at Guo Shouyi and said, "Lord Guo, you were the chief examiner for this assessment. Such a serious mistake as cheating has occurred. What punishment should you receive?"
"Your Highness, I..." Guo Shouyi was terrified; he knew he couldn't escape punishment this time.
Shen Pei interrupted him, "Lord Guo, we will now re-examine the exam papers. We hope you can atone for your sins through meritorious service."
"Yes, Your Highness, I will do my utmost," Guo Shouyi replied, bowing with his hands clasped in assurance.
The news that Emperor Changlong had ordered a re-examination of the examination papers spread like wildfire.
Before long, the whole city knew about it.
For this recruitment exam at Qingyun Academy, each of the six ministers set a question, while the Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy, Grand Tutor Su, and Prime Minister Jiang set the remaining questions. In the second half of the exam, Emperor Changlong personally set a question.
Upon hearing that the exam papers needed to be reviewed, everyone except Emperor Changlong—those who set the questions and those responsible for invigilating—rushed to the academy.
“Your Highness, the matter of Princess Hongjin cheating has been investigated and confirmed. The rankings can be moved up accordingly. Why restart the exam?” Grand Tutor Su asked.
"Lord Guo, please tell the Grand Tutor."
Upon hearing Shen Pei's words, Guo Shouyi quickly replied, "Your Excellency, during the examination, Mr. Yan passed by Miss Song and saw that her paper was full of writing, but when the papers were being graded, they turned white. There is something fishy about this. We must investigate thoroughly and give the examinee justice."
"You called all of us here just for her?"
Su Taifu's face lost its usual gentleness and took on a cold and stern look.
"Do you know how much time it would take to review these exam papers? We all have our own official duties to attend to, and we don't even know which is more important or which is less important?"
Grand Tutor Su dared not reprimand Shen Pei, but only dared to roar at Guo Shouyi.
Guo Shouyi dared not offend Grand Tutor Su, much less Shen Pei.
He was caught in the middle, torn between two options, glancing at Grand Tutor Su and then at Shen Pei.
He remembered Shen Pei's words about redeeming oneself through meritorious service, and so he answered Su Taifu.
“Grand Tutor, now that the problem has been discovered, I think we should solve it instead of using weighing the pros and cons as an excuse to shirk responsibility.”
Su Taifu looked at Guo Shouyi. As shrewd as he was, he knew that Guo Shouyi had already chosen sides.
He turned his gaze to the others, "What about you? Do you think so too?"
Minister of Revenue Yan Bo'an stepped forward. "Grand Tutor, His Majesty once said that wherever there is injustice, we should go there. The academy is recruiting teachers, and teachers bear the responsibility of educating and nurturing people. Talented people are the future of the Great Zhou, and we cannot be careless. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to select a good teacher. Everyone's time is precious, but compared with the future of the Great Zhou, it is insignificant."
Grand Tutor Su narrowed his eyes. He knew about the friendship between Yan Bo'an and the Marquis of Zhenbei, so it was reasonable for Yan Bo'an to help Song Siyao.
“Your Highness, I think the Grand Tutor is right. We should promote the second-place student to first place. The second-place student’s performance is also quite outstanding, and he is fully capable of being a teacher at the academy. We don’t need to waste our time.” The speaker was the Minister of Justice.
The Ministry of Justice was under Shen Xuan's jurisdiction, and Su Taifu was Shen Xuan's maternal grandfather.
The Minister of Justice would naturally help Grand Tutor Su.
"Grand Tutor Su has considered everyone's needs very carefully. Your Highness, please give this matter of reviewing the exam papers a serious consideration," the Minister of Works added.
……
Immediately, more than a dozen people stood up to object.
Not all those who voiced objections were Su Taifu's people; some were afraid of further investigations.
The fact that Wei Hongjin cheated is enough to give them a hard time.
If they discover anything else, they'll be in deep trouble.
Shen Pei's cold gaze swept over each of those who had just voiced their objections.
"Gentlemen, reviewing the exam papers is an imperial decree. Are you defying it?"
His expression was dignified, and his aura was so powerful that it seemed as if a huge disc was looming over the sky, making it hard for people to breathe.
No one spoke.
Shen Pei continued, "I have just sent *** to the palace to meet the Emperor. Which of you wants to go? I can send you anytime."
Those who had raised objections earlier fell silent and all looked at Grand Tutor Su.
Grand Tutor Su and Shen Pei exchanged glances. If he continued to insist, it would be disobeying the imperial decree. Shen Pei even dared to send prostitutes into the palace, let alone him.
Although he held absolute power, he was still merely a subject.
He can't leave here; he has to keep watch.
Although Shen Pei is in a wheelchair and is currently only a prince, the aura he exudes is in no way inferior to that of Emperor Changlong.
If he were to become emperor one day, he would surely sweep across the world and dominate the nine provinces.
However, with him around, he would absolutely not give Shen Pei a chance to do anything.
"Since no one has any objections, I hereby order that the examination papers be restarted!" Shen Pei commanded.
Those who had raised objections looked at each other, wondering why they had no objections. They had already raised them.
But, is it useful?
Shen Pei assigned tasks to everyone, and soon, the others' exam papers were rechecked.
In the end, only Song Siyao's exam paper remained.
"Your Highness, we have carefully checked Miss Song's exam paper several times, and we really haven't found any problems," Guo Shouyi said.
"Hmph, what problem could there be? He's just not strong enough and he's wasting everyone's time!" said the Minister of Justice.
"Let me be fair. Miss Song was once my daughter-in-law in the General's Mansion. At that time, she was a fool and didn't understand anything. Only a few months have passed. It's impossible for her to have become a know-it-all. So, I think it's normal for her to submit a blank paper. We really don't need to waste any more time."
Editor Meng kept looking for an opportunity to speak, but he never got a chance to interject.
He wanted to showcase himself, and also wanted to put Song Siyao down.
"Miss Song, I advise you not to make a futile struggle. Even your former father-in-law has said this about you. Aren't you ashamed enough?" the Minister of Works mocked.
"Miss Song, the Marquis of Zhenbei has little face left. Cherish it, or you'll be despised by everyone!"
Su Taifu's cold, sharp gaze seemed intent on crushing Song Siyao.
Seeing that the time was right, Song Siyao glanced at Yan Wei, who stepped forward and loudly proclaimed, "This blank exam paper is not Miss Song's exam paper at all!"