Zhao Yingluo nodded and continued: "The palace has a mansion outside the palace, the environment is quiet, if you want, you can move there to live, away from the place of right and wrong in the Zhang Mansion." ”

Hearing this, Li Qingzhao pondered for a moment and politely declined, "Thank you for the kindness of Her Royal Highness the Princess, but the courtiers still want to stay here and are used to life here." ”

Zhao Yingluo did not force it after hearing this, she respected Li Qingzhao's decision, "Since this is the case, this palace will not persuade more." It's just that if you have any needs, or if you encounter any difficulties, be sure to tell Hongu, and Hongu will do its best to help you. ”

Li Qingzhao was grateful, "Her Royal Highness the princess's kindness is remembered by the courtiers. ”

Zhao Yingluo gently patted Li Qingzhao's hand to show comfort, "Okay, don't be too sad." The palace still has official business to deal with, so I'll go back to the palace first. ”

After speaking, she stood up and prepared to leave Zhang's mansion. Li Qingzhao also hurriedly got up to send him off, "Her Royal Highness the princess walks slowly, and the courtiers send her highness the princess." ”

After returning to the palace, Zhao Yingluo immediately summoned her henchman Xiaolian, "Xiaolian, you sent someone to secretly protect Li Qingzhao and ensure her safety." Also, if there's anything going on, report it to me right away. ”

Xiaolian bowed and responded, "Yes, Your Highness Princess." ”

Zhao Yingluo added: "Also, if Li Qingzhao needs help with anything, you can also help, remember?" ”

"Remember, Your Highness Princess." Xiaolian replied respectfully.

The next day, in the court, the official secretary held a wat board and solemnly proposed to Zhao Yingluo the disposal of those suspected of buying officials.

On the third day, Zuo Xiang Lu Yihao's face was serious, and he said in a deep voice: "These people are not right-hearted, trying to seek fame through improper means, and this trend cannot last. In the opinion of the ministers, they should be deprived of their meritorious service and forbidden to participate in future imperial examinations in order to set an example. ”

Zhu Shengfei, a member of the Privy Council, nodded in agreement: "What Lu Xiang said is extremely true, for such acts, severe punishment must be given to maintain the fairness of the imperial examination. ”

However, there were also different voices in the court.

Some courtiers thought that such a punishment was too severe, and almost ruined the careers of these men.

One of the ministers admonished: "Your Royal Highness, the ministers think that although these sons have misbehaved, depriving them of their fame and permanently banning them from scientific research is tantamount to ruining their careers." Is it possible to consider a lighter punishment to give them a chance to turn over a new leaf? ”

Zhao Yingluo heard the opinions of all parties, frowned, and weighed it again and again in her heart.

She understands that the imperial examination is an important way for the state to select talents, and its impartiality must be maintained; But at the same time, she doesn't want to completely bury their future because of these momentary mistakes.

After some careful consideration, Zhao Yingluo finally made a decision.

"The palace has decided to deprive these suspected officials of their existing meritorious service as a punishment." Zhao Yingluo's voice echoed in the court, "However, they still have a chance to mend their ways." In the future, if they are able to regain their fame through legitimate means, the palace will allow them to take the imperial examination again. ”

As soon as this decision came out, the courtiers shouted: "Her Royal Highness the princess is wise!" ”

Subsequently, Wen Boyuan came to the prison with the will of Her Royal Highness the Princess.

He read the decision to the scholars who were still in prison. When the scholars heard the results, they had mixed reactions.

Some were overshadowed, but others were grateful, thanking Her Royal Highness the Princess for her leniency and giving them a chance to start over.

Wen Boyuan looked at the group of young scholars in front of him and said coldly, "This is the last chance for Her Royal Highness the Princess to give you, I hope you can cherish it." There is still a long way to go, so don't go astray again. ”

After saying these words, Wen Boyuan ordered the jailer to open the cell door and let the scholars regain their freedom.

The three days after the announcement of the list of Jinshi were fleeting, followed by the much-anticipated palace examination.

Compared with the previous imperial examinations, the content of this imperial examination has been innovative, in addition to the traditional poetry and policy theory, the subject of agriculture has also been added, aiming to select talents who are both literate and practical.

Outside the palace hall, the candidates on the list arrived one after another with excitement and curiosity, and their faces were filled with longing and expectation for the future.

Wang Shouen repeatedly told them the precautions after entering the palace: "Ladies and gentlemen, after entering the palace hall, remember to keep quiet, do not make noise, and pay more attention to etiquette. You represent the image of my Great Song Dynasty scholars, so you must be cautious. ”

The candidates nodded yes one after another, and then rushed in under the leadership of Wang Shouen.

Zhao Yingluo sat next to the dragon chair, her eyes wandering over the candidates.

She noticed that among these new jinshi, some of them had gray hair.

This scene made her sigh secretly: "It is said that ten years of hard study in the cold window, it seems that some people are in the cold window for ten years for the imperial examination." Thirty old Ming Jing, fifty young jinshi, the imperial examination is really a life for many people. ”

The imperial examination should focus more on practicality and efficiency, cutting down on the content of those that are inconsequential, so that the truly talented can stand out faster.

This can not only reduce the burden on candidates, but also allow Dasong to select outstanding talents faster.

With her thoughts turning, Zhao Yingluo took a deep breath and stabilized her emotions.

She stood up and announced in a loud voice, "The palace examination has officially begun!" Following her order, the new jinshi began to write hard, and the entire hall was filled with the rustle of brushstrokes across the paper.

Zhao Yingluo did not immediately return to the dragon chair, but chose to go down to the hall to check the candidates' answers.

She walked slowly among the candidates, her eyes lingering on each candidate's test paper.

She found that most of the Jinshi answered quickly in the poetry and strategy sections, and they were obviously familiar with these traditional subjects.

However, when Zhao Yingluo saw the exam paper in the agronomy section, the situation was a little different.

I saw that many Jinshi were obviously slow to write when facing agricultural topics, and some even some were thinking and meditating, scratching their ears from time to time, and they seemed a little helpless.

Zhao Yingluo frowned slightly, and couldn't help but feel a little emotion in her heart.

She added the subject of agriculture with the intention of selecting well-rounded talents who were both literate and practical, but now it seems that these scholars still have a very limited understanding of agriculture.

She walked up to a jinshi who was worried about the topic of agriculture and asked softly, "What do you think about agriculture?" ”

The jinshi raised his head and replied with some trepidation: "Back to Her Royal Highness the Princess, students mainly study poetry and books on weekdays, and they really don't know much about agriculture. However, students believe that agriculture is the foundation of the country, and the people regard food as the sky, so if they do not understand the art of farming, how can they govern the country and the country? ”

After hearing this, Zhao Yingluo nodded slightly in approval: "You are right, agriculture is indeed the foundation of the country. ”

After speaking, she continued to inspect the answers of other candidates. Throughout the examination process, Zhao Yingluo was silently observing the performance of each jinshi, and she was constantly weighing and considering it in her heart.