The more Ye Zi spoke, the more excited he became, Ma Suizhen and He Yingjie's faces were as pale and frightened, as the principal and deputy examiners of this examination, no matter whether they were involved in fraud or not, first of all, the crime of negligence was inevitable. Ma Suizhen was full of bitterness, he knew that Chen Chengji was about to become a master in his old age, and the Son of Heaven intended to let people take over as the right minister, and this time he would try to be the chief examiner with the intention of enhancing his reputation, not to mention the right minister, it would be lucky not to be deposed.

Speaking of which, Ma Sui is really aggrieved, he originally intended to be impartial, and the Son of Heaven reused him to be promoted, so why bother to have more rights and wrongs. However, the powerful people of the family came to greet him one after another, begging him to take care of one or two when he was chosen, thinking of the power of the prince of the family in the court, and these people would be indispensable when he became the right minister in the future, so Ma Suizhen acquiesced to the test papers selected by the same examiner, which was convenient for others and himself. Ma Sui's heart was full of remorse, the only thing that could be glad was that he did not bring any candidates, I hope that the Son of Heaven can read the past merits to deal with himself lightly, as for the right phase, I am afraid it is just a sweet dream.

He Yingjie had already been screened, he and Ma Suizhen each reviewed the test papers selected by the ten same examiners, and the seven same examiners under his jurisdiction secretly passed with him, promising a benefit fee of 3,000 tael. After returning home, He Yingjie calculated the benefits he could share, and forty-six people counted 138,000 taels. With this money, you can buy hundreds of hectares of fertile land in your hometown, you can take a few concubines, you can buy a manor house on the edge of the capital, and you can buy your favorite celebrity calligraphy and paintings......

These forty-six people are only the number on the surface, He Yingjie thought angrily, I am afraid that there are still dozens of people who have not greeted him, and he has suffered a loss of at least fifty or sixty thousand taels. It's just that He Yingjie forgot that silver can buy everything he wants, and he can also be sent to prison, and He Yingjie, who is shaking, is now afraid that there is too much silver, and his head will fall to the ground.

After Ye Zi finished speaking, Shi Fangzhen said coldly: "Ma Suizhen, He Yingjie, what do you have to say?" ”

Hearing the call of the Son of Heaven, Ma Suizhen and He Yingjie led twenty fellow examiners to meet the driver, and Hulala knelt down in front of the steps. There is no need to look at it, Ma Suizhen also knows that the Son of Heaven is furious at the moment, and his life and death are on the line.

As a Zhongshu Ling, Ma Suizhen often dealt with the Son of Heaven, and knew Shi Fangzhen's temperament very well, so he quickly formulated words in his mind, and kowtowed heavily: "The crime of capital punishment is a heavy trust." The minister was selfish, did not want to offend his colleagues, and did not strictly control some of the examination papers, which led to incidents, which brought shame to Banzai and more than death. The minister asked for a canonical punishment to set an example. Only please long live the minister's sake, let my son take the minister's body back to his hometown for burial, and the minister will be grateful for the holy grace of long live even under the nine springs. ”

After that, Ma Suizhen kowtowed heavily and couldn't cry. Sitting on the imperial steps, Shi Fang could really clearly hear the sound of the gold bricks, and in a moment Ma Suizhen's forehead was bloody.

Shi Fangzhen felt a little better in his heart, if the chief and deputy examiners he appointed were all as Ye Zi said, if they failed the holy grace and cheated for personal gain, wouldn't it be a traitor in the Manchu Dynasty, and the slap of unknown people slapped heavily on his face, leaving him with no face, and he could only be cleaned with blood. Ma Suizhen admitted that he was not strict in his control, but he affirmed that he did not entrain, and Shi Fangzhen did not save face for personal gain, and his anger also decreased a little, so he ignored Ma Suizhen, and asked He Yingjie instead: "He Yingjie, what do you have to say?" ”

He Yingjie is a scholar of Jixian Palace, and he once served as a secretary of the Guozi Prison, and he is a noble official, but there are very few opportunities to deal with the Son of Heaven. The appointment of the deputy chief examiner will select a well-known person in the forest, and He Yingjie meets the requirements. Qinggui has a lifetime of getting a chance to inevitably stretch out his hand, and He Yingjie is also unlucky, those people were fine before, why was he arrested.

He Yingjie lowered his head and felt sorry for himself, sighed that his fate was not good, and suddenly heard the Son of Heaven ask him, first opened his mouth and stammered for a long time, and then said: "Minister...... The minister was wronged, but the minister did not ...... Fraud, these people falsely accuse the ministers, please long live the master. ”

Zhou Chucun knelt not far behind him, secretly thinking that this Bachelor He was still delusional to survive the test, I am afraid that the word death is really not far away.

Sure enough, Shi Fangzhen sneered: "He Yingjie, don't be in a hurry to argue, I have taken all the test papers of the three hundred and eighty-eight people admitted to this department, and I will send people to check them one by one later, and I will know if I have wronged you then." ”

He Yingjie collapsed on the ground and fainted. Shi Fangzhen glanced at him in disgust, and his eyes fell on Wei in the crowd? Cheng was angry: "Wei? Cheng, how many people did you entrain? ”

Wei? Cheng responded loudly: "Long live Qi Song, the minister has not brought a person, the recommended test paper has the minister's signature behind it, long live if the minister is found to have favoritism, the minister should apologize with death." ”

The son-in-law's categorical answer made Shi Fangzhen feel a little more comfortable, and he still said with a stiff face: "I hope your words are true, otherwise I will not spare you if you find out." If anyone else asks about their innocence, you might as well stand up and show me. ”

Wei? Cheng took the lead in standing up, and twelve people, including Dr. Pang Bin of Guozijian Guozi, Zhang Hongxin, and Jia Nan, Shaoqing of Guanglu Temple, stood up one after another. Most of these twelve people were more or less entrained, but compared with others, the test papers they recommended could stand the inspection, and some of them received the papers in advance, and were impressed by the literary talents of the people who carried the papers, and recommended them for the purpose of promoting talents for the country. Shi Fang really felt better, the people who dared to stand up at this moment probably really did not show favoritism, it seems that most people are still incorruptible.

Zhou Chucun knew the mystery, and wanted to stand up several times, thinking that Tang Yuxuan and Cui Zhengquan, who were entrained, couldn't hide it, so he had to still kneel on the ground in frustration, and most of the other kneeling people were like him, and the people who were entrained were too bad to pass.

"Which is Huazhou Ma Yuanxiang?" Shi Fangzhen asked.

Ma Yuanxiang heard the Son of Heaven shouting his name, and he didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse, so he quickly kowtowed and said, "Long live the little people Ma Yuanxiang has seen." ”

"Look up."

Ma Yuanxiang raised his head as he said, and quickly glanced at the high-level Son of Heaven, thinking that it would be in vain to see the face of the Son of Heaven in this life. Shi Fangzhen saw that Ma Yuanxiang was very young, with a white face and a slight beard, he was a young talent, and he did not have the rumored madness, and he had a good impression in his heart.

"Ma Yuanxiang, I heard Jiang Anyi say that your writing is a momentary choice."

Ma Yuanxiang was ecstatic in his heart, originally Jiang Tingshi had recommended himself in front of the Son of Heaven, and his reputation was known to the Son of Heaven, which was a great honor. Ye Zi and the others beside him all looked at him with envy, it was really good luck that this Huazhou madman could get the help of Lord Jiang, a nobleman.

I only heard Shi Fangzhen continue: "I remember that the first exam question was "Lan Fu", how did you write it, you might as well recite it for me to listen to." ”

Ma Yuanxiang's spirits were greatly lifted, the words of the Son of Heaven were scratching his itch, and the most brilliant thing he asked himself in this exam was the "Lan Fu". Clearing his throat, Ma Yuanxiang chanted in a long tone: "

…… People hold the beauty, not by the grace of the Lord of the time, Nape is China, empty of the sassy people, the time is late, the years will end, the fragrance is within ten steps, the prosperity of the nine wan, the chaos of the peaks up and down, the miscellaneous flowers and flowers, the situation flies in time, will decay in the autumn wind......"

After chanting, the whole hall praised, and Ma Yuanxiang was secretly complacent.

Shi Fangzhen said: "Wei? Cheng, you wrote "Kyoto Fu" at the age of sixteen, Yongchang is expensive for it, how well is this "Lan Fu" written? Can it be hit? ”

"This Fu is symmetrical, the rhyme is harmonious, the words are clear and beautiful, the natural and precise, the portrayal is vivid and expressive, it is a rare masterpiece, if it is seen by Weichen, it will be taken." Wei? Enlightenment.

"It's so good, I don't know which Aiqing rejected it for me, I want to hear his high opinions, and by the way, I ask this Aiqing to also make a "Lan Fu" for me to hear." Shi Fangzhen sneered sarcastically.

Zhou Chucun's head was "buzzing", and Ma Yuanxiang's exam paper was exactly what he was reading. Ma Yuanxiang participated in the literary meeting and elegant gathering in Beijing, and there were many excellent works coming out, and when he saw this "Lan Fu" at that time, he felt that the style of writing was similar to Ma Yuanxiang, and he didn't want to add a point to it, take it in the third class, and put it in the volume.

After the list of 388 tributes was drawn up, Zhou Chucun also deliberately found this test paper from the falling paper, and after tearing open the seal, he found that it was indeed Huazhou Ma Yuanxiang, and he was secretly proud, he eliminated the harm for the "public", and severely punished this madman, and slapped Jiang Anyi by the way, who knew that the slap turned into a chopping knife and slashed at himself.

"Who is it? Do you want me to let people see it? Shi Fangzhen saw that there was silence at the bottom of the stairs, and no one admitted it, so he said angrily.

Hiding couldn't hide, Zhou Chucun stiffened his head and said: "Weichen was clumsy for a while, thinking that although this Fu was gorgeous, he secretly harbored a grudge. Long live, there are 'no one to see the reward', 'not to receive the grace of the Lord of the time', are all rebellious words, please long live the observance. ”

Shi Fangzhen has a good impression of Zhou Chucun, this person is Fengle's five-year leader, and he can be called a talented person, so he put him next to the prince and served as a direct bachelor of Chongwen Pavilion, which is actually selecting and approving available ministers for the prince. Fengle 12 years of Shangyuan Lantern Festival, Zhou Chucun with two pomelo lanterns respectively to please the prince and the Son of Heaven, his mother was crowned as a Liupin'an person, Zhou Chucun also embarked on the promotion of the green clouds, quickly promoted to the East Palace Washing Horse, become the prince around the red man.

In Shi Fangzhen's heart, although Zhou Chucun is not as good as Jiang Anyi and Zhang Zhicheng, he is also a capable minister, and most of the prince's side are children of the family, and there are old people like Zhou Chucun and He Ziying to balance it without losing bias. How do you know that in the restaurant, I heard that the prince is good at Youye, and the surname Tang intersected with the prince through Zhou Chucun, and Feng Zhong found out that the person surnamed Tang was Tang Yu, a merchant in Zhenbaozhai in Dongshi, and the name of his son Tang Kexuan appeared in the list of today's Kegongshi.

No wonder there are rumors among the people that the prince is good at Youye, it is all a minister like Zhou Chucun who lures the prince, Shi Fang really thought, and his perception of Zhou Chucun plummeted. Hearing Zhou Chucun's self-quibbling, Shi Fangzhen laughed angrily and said: "Zhou Aiqing is really able to speak, I always thought you were a loyal person, it seems that I don't know anyone." I want to ask you how the Tang Yuxuan you picked up is better than Ma Yuanxiang? ”

It was as if he had been struck by thunder, and his body was crooked and fell to the ground.

Shi Fangzhen said coldly: "Put these officials who are engaged in personal fraud aside, I have ordered the Ministry of Rites to bring all the test papers that have been taken, and all the secretaries will help me see how many people are not worthy of their names." ”