Shi Chongjie left, and there was a dead silence in the Hanyuan Palace. Shi Chongwei sat back on the throne heavily, panting, and the roll call ceremony could not go on.

Xue Zhiren, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, was the host, and he couldn't help but say if others didn't speak, and he played hard: "Your Highness, this roll call ceremony ......" Kong Sheng interrupted him and said: "The ceremony is suspended, King Chu'an goes to Yanshan Villa, and His Royal Highness also needs to leave as soon as possible." ”

Shi Chongwei came to his senses, got up and said, "Prepare the carriage and horses, Kong Xiang, Ma Xiang, you two will also go with Gu." Xue Shangshu, you also go with you, bring the top ten examination papers of this imperial examination, and let your father see it. ”

The Golden Palace was in a hurry, and Deng Huaisu, the waiter of the Ministry of Rites, commanded this group of new scholars to go out of the palace to the Yamen of the Ministry of Rites and other news, and Zhou Chongrui was also taken along, but he was confined alone in an official house. The imperial examination in the seventh year of the founding of the military army was heavily overshadowed from the beginning.

At the second moment, Shi Chongjie came to Yanshan Pavilion to invite the Son of Heaven. During this period of time, the queen of the king of heaven needed to recuperate on the grounds that the Son of Heaven needed to recuperate, and ordered that except for those summoned by the Son of Heaven, the other pilgrims should report to her first, and then decide whether to let the pilgrimage be made after asking the reason.

King Chu'an is a prince, and the rules that should be observed must not be less, Queen Wang frowned when she heard the three words of King Chu'an, and asked, "What is he doing here?" ”

"King Chu An said to come and say hello." Liu Weiguo said respectfully. He knew that the crown prince and the king of Chu'an were fighting, and as a eunuch beside the Son of Heaven, Liu Weiguo was impartial and kept his duty.

Queen Wang thought for a while and said, "Banzai take medicine and sleep, let King Chu'an wait for a while, and wait for Banzai to wake up." Liu Weiguo knew that Queen Wang intended to delay, so he responded "yes" respectfully, and came out to invite King Chu'an to drink tea and wait in the side hall.

Two quarters of an hour later, the crown prince arrived with a large group of ministers such as Kong Province, Ma Suizhen, and Xue Zhiren. Queen Wang heard that her son was coming, so she hurriedly called him in first, and the mother and son discussed for a while, this matter was a big trouble, and they couldn't hide it, but fortunately, Shi Chongwei's selection of Xiang Kaijie as the champion was to take a fancy to his article, but he was not afraid of Shi Chongjie's attack.

Liu Weiguo didn't dare to delay such a big event, and after waiting a little, he went into the palace to report, Shi Fangzhen actually didn't sleep, and listened to the palace eunuch Lu Mingli read to him on the bed.

This father-in-law Lu lived in a simple place, the most low-key of the four eunuchs, and there were not many courtiers who had seen him. When Shi Fangzhen was in the East Palace, Lu Mingli waited for him to study, and Shi Fangzhen knew before he understood that this Lu Gonggong knew in advance that Chen Pinxi, a scholar of Jixian Palace, who taught the prince to read, liked this smart and clever little eunuch very much, although he did not explicitly accept him as an apprentice, but intended to cultivate him. Lu Mingli is self-motivated, and he spends his spare time reading books, and even Shi Fangzhen sighed that Lu Mingli's knowledge is above him. After Shi Fangzhen ascended the throne, he made Lu Mingli a palace eunuch, and handed over the matter of the announcement and filing of the will in the palace to him, and sometimes asked him secretly when he had questions. In the other garden, there was little entertainment, so Shi Fangzhen asked Lu Mingli to read every day and tell some interesting stories in the book to pass the time.

Liu Weiguo Qizhuo, the prince of Chu'an, and the ministers of the court came to meet him, and Shi Fang really knew that something big had happened, otherwise a group of people would not have flocked to the other garden. Lu Mingli put away the books and bowed down to retreat, Shi Fangzhen stopped him and said, "Liu Weiguo, change my clothes and carry me to the main hall, Lu Mingli, you stand aside and listen." Announce their audience. ”

A rush of stones

Fang Zhen was carried to the outer hall and sat in the center, Shi Chongwei and others entered the hall to bow, and the mountain shouted long live. Liu Weiguo and Lu Mingli stood behind the Son of Heaven on the left and right, while the Queen Wang hid in the door of the palace and listened quietly.

Waiting for everyone to get up, Shi Fangzhen's gaze swept majestically over the faces of the ministers, although he was skinny, his cheekbones were protruding and his eye sockets were deep, but his gaze was as sharp as a knife, and Shi Chongwei felt that his face was painful.

Shi Chongjie preemptively played the fraud in the imperial examination and the prince's favoritism, and Shi Chongwei shouted that he was wronged, and presented the examination papers of Xiang Kaijie and others to the Son of Heaven for the Son of Heaven to see. Shi Fangzhen unfolded Xiang Kaijie's exam paper and looked at it twice, only to feel dizzy, and the black letters on the paper flew in front of his eyes. He closed his eyes and gasped for a moment, and ordered, "Lu Mingli, you come and read it to me." ”

“…… The generals are handsome and majestic, the people are single-minded, the soldiers are ...... with their lives, and the soldiers will win", Lu Mingli's voice echoed in the hall, Shi Fangzhen closed his eyes and nodded frequently, Shi Chongjie did not read Xiang Kaijie's strategy, listening to Lu Mingli read it, it was indeed a needle and a disadvantage, and there was something to say, not under Zhou Chongrui's article.

Shi Chongwei saw that the Son of Heaven nodded frequently, and his heart was settled, and when Lu Mingli finished reading, he preemptively said: "Father, the son's favorite opening sentence, 'The important weapon of the monarchy, is not more important than the order.'" If the order is heavy, the monarch will be respected, and the monarch will be safe; If you are light, you will be humble, and if you are humble, you will be in danger', this sentence is deafening and alarming, so Capgemini was chosen as the champion. The sons of the ministers took the scholars out of public intentions, but they didn't know whose rumors the second brother had listened to, thinking that the sons were playing favoritism and committing fraud, and reprimanded the sons in front of the Golden Palace, saying that they were going to come to Yanshan Villa to complain, and the sons were afraid of shocking their fathers, but the second brother did not listen to the persuasion of Kong Xiang and Ma Xiang, and insisted on going his own way, and asked his father to investigate. ”

This complaint is so ruthless and ruthless, Shi Chongjie has been forced to the edge of the cliff, and if he takes a step back, he will fall into the abyss and it will be difficult to get out of the day. Immediately knelt down and snorted and said: "Father, Xiang Kaijie's strategy is indeed exquisitely written, but it is also a fact that he bribed the eunuch Tang Wenzhong. ”

Shi Fangzhen was stunned, he had seen the list of examinations, and knew that favoritism was more serious today, and he had also warned the prince not to be too indulgent to offend the world's scholars, but he didn't expect that there was a siege of the Ministry of Rites and a stuffed copper box in Beijing. Shi Fang was really panicked, it seemed that he was recuperating in Yanshan Villa, and the news was blocked, could it be that the prince was doing something.

Shi Fang was really suspicious, and the two sons in front of him seemed to have become strangers, and shouted: "Feng Zhong, let him come to see me." ”

Feng Zhong was in the Yanshan Villa, and hurried over when he heard the news. Shi Fangzhen said coldly: "Feng Zhong, I let you take charge of the spy report in Beijing, why didn't you see the report of the Ministry of Rites, and can the fraud in the imperial examination be found out, but Tang Wenzhong accepted bribes but the truth?" ”

After a series of drinking and questioning, Feng Zhong saw sweat on his head, these reports were available, and Huang Xi sent someone to send them every day, but the queen asked him to choose before the report, so as not to affect the recovery of the Son of Heaven, so the queen of the report presented to the Son of Heaven had read it in advance, and the news that was unfavorable to the prince was ordered by her to be put away first. The Son of Heaven is seriously ill, the crown prince is in charge of the country, if he does not obey his orders, when the prince ascends the throne, it will be his own death, thinking about it again and again, Feng Zhong decided to obey orders for his future.

At this moment, the Son of Heaven asked, Feng

Zhong knelt on the ground speechless, and the sweat of the beans rolled to the ground, and soon became wet. A chill arose from his heart, Shi Fangzhen didn't expect that his most trusted eunuch was actually deceiving himself, it seems that he became deaf and blind in Yanshan Villa.

His eyes swept over everyone, Shi Fangzhen felt more and more uneasy, stood up suddenly, and ordered: "Pass the decree and return to Beijing." ”

…………

The Son of Heaven also drove the capital, and the people took it along the way, elated. The Son of Heaven returned from the Northern Expedition and lived in the Yanshan Garden, and the rumors in Beijing continued, some people said that the Son of Heaven was seriously ill, and this time he returned to Beijing and must have recovered from his illness. Since Shi Fangzhen ascended the throne, he has lived with the people, lightly dismissed the thin labor, changed the luxury of the previous dynasty, the people naturally supported it, the Son of Heaven also drove, and the people who came to take over the news lined up from the Jinguang Gate to the Suzaku Gate.

Sitting in the chariot, listening to the cheers of "long live" like a tide outside, Shi Fangzhen is both happy and sad, he has worked hard, diligent and diligent to hold the government to get the support of the people, although the Northern Expedition failed, but the history books are not bad for the Zhongxing Mingjun, sadly I can't wait, only fifty-three years old and seriously ill, I don't know how long I can live, Wei'er and Jie'er are in the same situation, the government is unstable, and there are many hidden dangers. Shi Fang really leaned on the soft pillow dejectedly, if God gave me another ten years of life, I would definitely be able to eliminate hidden dangers and pass on a country strong and rich people to future generations.

The guard of honor entered the Suzaku Gate, and the hundred officials who had been notified in advance waited in the square in front of the Hanyuan Palace, but Shi Fangzhen did not go to the Hanyuan Hall to accept the pilgrimage, and went straight back to the study. It was only fifteen miles from Yanshan Villa to the capital, but Shi Fangzhen felt exhausted, and the imperial doctor nervously applied needles to his pulse, and after nearly half an hour, Shi Fangzhen felt that he had regained his strength.

It was the hottest time of the day, and the sun was shining directly on the square, and some of the elderly officials were already shaky and dizzy. At this time, Liu Weiguo came out to pass the decree, long live let the officials go back, and Xuan Liubu Shangshu and Jiuqingqing were going to the imperial study to see the driver.

The hundred officials are all figures in the sea for many years, well-informed, and naturally know that the Son of Heaven's return to Beijing this time is not to recover from illness, I am afraid that it is related to the difficulty of King Chu'an at the roll call ceremony of Hanyuan Palace.

In the imperial study, Shi Fangzhen had already transferred the archive of the secret guard, and the more he looked at it, the more his face turned blue, he didn't expect so many things to be hidden. Although Feng Zhong only pleaded guilty and did not say who instructed him, Shi Fang sincerely understood that it was Queen Wang who was hiding from him, and the purpose of Queen Wang's actions was not only to let herself recuperate in peace but also to help the crown prince.

Originally, after listening to Xiang Kaijie's strategy, Shi Fangzhen was ready to scold King Chu An for a few words, and deal with this matter with thin mud. But now his mind has changed, the spy report of the secret guard listed dozens of bribes one by one, involving as many as one million taels of silver, Tang Wenzhong got 42,000 taels of silver from Xiang Kaijie, and Ai Xin ranked second this time, and also gave him 22,000 taels.

Tang Wenzhong was greedy for money, Shi Fang had really heard of it, including Feng Zhong's gambling house, he also knew that these people were his close people, and being greedy for some money was just a trivial matter for him.

But Shi Fang was really suspicious, suspecting that the people around him were deceiving him, the prince had been in prison for a year, and he was deliberately or unintentionally set aside, even if it was his own son, he would never tolerate it. Shi Fangzhen made up his mind to use the imperial examination fraud case to clean up the government and regain the power in his hands.