Denghuaxiao

Chapter 75: Forces from all sides

 In the palace of the Minister of Taifu Temple, Mrs. Dong was dressing up in front of the mirror.

Today at noon, the last scene of Qiu Wei ended, and Mrs. Dong planned to pick up Dong Lin at the gate of Gongyuan.

She only has one son, Dong Lin. In recent years, due to Dong Lin's poor health, he has never been out of trouble. She doesn't even know which way the gate of Gongyuan opens. This is the first time Dong Lin has been in the audience this year. Regardless of whether he wins or not, Mrs. Dong wants to show off in front of others. Naturally, I have to dress up nicely to make my son look good.

Behind her, the maid inserted a pearl and jasper jade stick into her bun. The movement was a little too heavy and pulled her hair. Mrs. Dong said "ouch" and the maid hurriedly knelt down to apologize.

Mrs. Dong glared at her: "You are clumsy." She inserted the walking stick and looked in the mirror. When she was satisfied, she asked the servant next to her: "When is it? Is the carriage ready? Victory, victory right-"

I called twice, but the guard did not come in. Instead, a young boy came in with a panic-stricken look. As soon as he entered the door, he knelt down in front of Mrs. Dong: "Madam, Madam is not good!"

Mrs. Dong glanced at him and asked angrily: "What's wrong?"

 “Something happened in Gongyuan, something happened in Gongyuan—”

"What?"

The boy buried his head and his body was shaking like a sieve. He didn't dare to look at Mrs. Dong's expression.

“It’s said... it’s said that a scholar died in the dormitory.”

　　A scholar died in the house.

Mrs. Dong listened indifferently at first, but after a moment, she seemed to understand the meaning of the words, and her expression suddenly changed.

She stood up with a bang and stared at the people on the ground: "Who is dead?"

"I, I don't know. People passing by outside Gongyuan said that there was a lot of noise inside at that time. I could only vaguely see a man in red clothes, and the shouting was very loud. They said that someone poisoned the dry food in the examination basket of Gongyuan. .”

 Mrs. Dong swayed when she heard the word "Zhu Yi" and almost fainted.

 Zhu Yi!

The new clothes Dong Lin wore at the end of the show were the new robes she specially asked the tailor to make for him out of vermilion satin, hoping to get some luck from attending the show for the first time.

 This person may be her Lin'er!

Mrs. Dong called "my son" and staggered a few steps. The maid beside her hurriedly supported her on the chair and sat down.

“Have you told the master about this?”

“The master is still in the palace and has been sent away.”

Mrs. Dong gritted her teeth: "When will he come back...?" She stood up suddenly, "Quick, prepare the carriage, I'm going to Gongyuan now!"

After receiving the news, Mrs. Dong had no time to wait any longer, so she immediately ordered a car to be prepared and headed to Gongyuan. Along the way, guard Sheng Quan rode in front, comforting Madam Dong: "Madam, don't worry, the news from the other side of Gongyuan is unclear. The young master is auspicious and everything will be fine."

Mrs. Dong's eyes were red and she held the silk handkerchief tightly in her hand: "What do you know! How could someone come to my door for no reason and spread rumors about Lin'er? There must be some rumor." She sobbed softly again as she spoke. , "I promised to pick him up early today, but he refused. He would not let him go to Gongyuan until the last game was over. My son -"

At the end of the words, his tone was sharp and sharp: "If my son really has his shortcomings, none of the people in the Gongyuan today can even think of running away!"

Dong Lin is Mrs. Dong's eyeball. Whenever something related to her son comes up, Mrs. Dong loses her usual sense of proportion and becomes hysterical. Sheng Quan does not dare to say anything.

When the carriage arrived at the gate of Gongyuan, from a distance, I saw a lot of people gathered around the gate of Gongyuan. Several inspection and promotion officers were pushing the ordinary people who were watching the excitement at the entrance of the courtyard to go out and scolded: "Go, go, go, what are you doing at the door? The autumn examination is not over yet, stay away from the courtyard gate-"

As soon as Mrs. Dong saw it, she immediately got out of the carriage with her skirt in hand, approached the door of the courtyard menacingly, grabbed an inspector and asked, "Where is my son?"

The inspector did not recognize Mrs. Dong. He only saw her in gorgeous clothes and did not dare to look down upon her. His tone was not as ferocious as before: "The autumn exam is not over yet -"

"Where is my son?" Mrs. Dong interrupted him, her voice high and harsh, "Where is my Lin'er?"

Upon seeing this, several fellow students came to inquire. Mrs. Dong maintained her status as an official and it was about her son, so she was not afraid of them. She demanded to see the body immediately or let Dong Lin come out of the dormitory. She wanted to see the body. To the son of all must and all tails.

The fellow examiner's face was covered with sweat and he smiled apologetically: "Madam, the door of this dormitory is locked. If you come out now, your results this autumn will be invalid. As for the corpse..." He glanced behind him and said awkwardly: "It's so like this outside. With so many people watching, I'm afraid it will cause panic inside and outside the dormitory."

Mrs. Dong sneered: "You won't let my son out? It's okay. Then I'll go in and take a look at him. It'll be the same."

 “That’s even worse! Unrelated persons are not allowed to enter the Gongyuan.”

 The more he refused, the more suspicious Mrs. Dong became. Why didn't these people let her in to see Dong Lin or the body? For no apparent reason, someone said at the door of Dong's house that a scholar had died. Was there an insider in the Gongyuan who came here to report the news? These people look timid and hesitant, which inevitably makes people think too much...

 There was shock and doubt at the beginning, and anger at the end. Mrs. Dong became angry but calmed down. She looked at her classmates in front of her and said, "You won't be allowed in or out until the end of Qiu Wei. The scholar you said died is not my son, but it's always true that someone died here, right?"

"There is a food problem in your Gongyuan. Everyone in this examination room may be the murderer. In this case, don't leave! Even if the autumn is over, no one is allowed to come out! Sheng Quan—" She called the guard's name , his eyes suddenly became fierce, "I asked someone to go to the Military and Horse Department and tell me that there was a case at Gongyuan, and someone wanted to poison the students in the examination room!"

Hearing this, Tongkao's face suddenly changed.

Mrs. Dong sneered again and again.

Her brother-in-law is the governor of the Military and Horse Division, and the security affairs in the capital should be handled by the Military and Horse Division. Now that these examiners from the Ministry of Rites won't let her in, then she won't let these people out. Things are getting serious, let's see who can get the better of it!

She was thinking about something, and the two classmates looked at each other, and each saw the uneasiness in the other's eyes.

 The death of a scholar from a poor family in the Gongyuan is actually not a big deal. Even if there are rumors outside now, as long as there is no evidence, they will subside after a while.

But it would be bad if the Military and Horse Division intervened. The students in the dormitory cannot get out. Once carefully checked, the list of people taking the exam there...

“Oops,” a fellow examiner turned sideways and whispered to his companion, “Tell the adults quickly and think of a solution!”

 …

  This major event that happened at the gate of Gongyuan spread throughout the streets and alleys of Shengjing in an instant.

In the right Yeting gate, Pei Yunying just came out of Zichen Hall.

The personal guards in front of the palace are on duty at the moment, and there are only a few sporadic guards left on duty in the camp.

 He entered the Palace Commander's Mansion, and just as he took off the sword from his waist, Xiao Zhufeng walked in from the door.

 He was usually like a piece of wood, with a handsome face without any expression, but today he rarely showed a smile. Pei Yunying couldn't help but look at him a few more times and asked, "So happy? Did you pick up the money?"

 Xiao Zhufeng walked to the table and sat down, saying, "Something happened in Gongyuan."

Pei Yun paused.

“A scholar died, and there are rumors that someone poisoned the dry food distributed by Gongyuan.”

Pei Yunying raised his eyebrows slightly and leaned back in his chair, "It's impossible. I'm not a fool. Who would deal with a scholar in such a big way?"

Every autumn, various matters are handed over to the Ministry of Rites to prepare, and dry food is the top priority. If nothing else, at least it is impossible to poison it. Furthermore, during the nine-day and seven-night autumn examination, the candidates are all in their dormitories. If they really want to take action, why bother to make such a big fuss.

Pei Yunying pondered for a moment: "How did the rumors spread?"

"I heard that the deceased examinee smashed the window of the dormitory and ran out of the dormitory. When the poison was released, everyone inside and outside the Gongyuan saw it." After a pause, Xiao Zhufeng continued: "The people from the Military and Horse Department are also here now. At the entrance of Gongyuan."

 “Bingma Division?”

“The wife of the Minister of Taifu Temple is making trouble at the gate of Gongyuan. Her son will be killed this year. The Ministry of Rites will not let him go, so he called the Soldiers and Horses Division to help.”

Hearing this, Pei Yunying seemed to think of someone. He frowned slightly and said, "Dong Lin."

He had seen the young master from the Qing Palace of Taifu Temple who suffered from lung disease in Wan'en Temple. Unexpectedly, he also died this year. It seemed that his health was completely recovered.

He sat on a chair, lowered his eyes and thought for a while, then chuckled: "It seems that the Ministry of Rites has offended someone."

An examinee died in the Gongyuan, and rumors were spreading everywhere. But at this time, the wife of Taifu Temple Minister came to make trouble again, and she also brought the military commander with her. It was not a coincidence.

"In that case," Pei Yunying smiled suddenly, "let's add some fire."

Xiao Zhufeng looked at him and immediately understood his intention, "You want to intervene?"

"Our people have been in the Ministry of Etiquette for so long. If the upper positions are not cleared, how can the lower ones go up?" He smiled, with a dimple looming on his lips. "Such a good opportunity cannot be wasted."

 “It’s not easy for the Palace Secretary to show up at the moment.”

“Who said the minister?” He said calmly, “Of course I’m looking for someone to send the news to the Privy Council.”

The Privy Council is the arch-enemy of the Palace Secretary, so it would be better if the Privy Council comes forward, and the Palace Secretary can watch the fire from across the bank without even a single spark touching him.

 Xiao Zhufeng was silent for a moment: "That's fine."

Pei Yunying raised his eyes, and the sunlight fell on his face through the gap in the window, casting a layer of warm velvet light on his handsome features. He tilted his head and stared at the shadow of the trees in the distance outside the window, his tone inexplicable.

“This Shengjing is getting more and more lively.”

 …

 The entrance to Gongyuan was very lively.

In addition to the ordinary people watching from the outside, people from the Military and Horse Department, Prison Department, and Academy of Academic Affairs all arrived in a short while. Even the people from the Privy Council heard the news from somewhere and came to the gate of Gongyuan to pick up people.

 The emperor was furious when he learned that something happened in Gongju, and ordered his ministers to investigate the matter thoroughly. Hanlin Medical Academy sent medical officers to test the dead candidates for poison.

The examiners from the Ministry of Rites were worried, but it was difficult to get off the tiger at this time. With so many pairs of eyes staring at them, it was difficult even if they tried to find a solution. There was no news from the Minister of Rites either, because they were still in the Gongyuan, so they had no way of knowing what was going on in the palace at the moment. Their Minister of Rites was already in trouble.

The medical officer who went to do the autopsy came forward and said to Master Zheng from the Academy: "My lord, it is true that he died of poisoning. The poison occurred about two hours ago."

 Two hours ago, autumn was not over yet.

Scholar Zheng stroked his long beard: "It seems that the murderer is still hiding in this dormitory."

The last session of Qiu Wei has ended, but at this moment, all the candidates are staying in the dormitories and dare not go out. A murder occurred in the Gongyuan, and the candidates present including the examiner may be the murderers. Even if the people from the Ministry of Rites wanted to hide it, they couldn't do anything at this moment in full view of the public.

After Mrs. Dong's brother-in-law from the Army and Horses Division arrived, she finally figured out that the person who was poisoned was not Dong Lin, and took a carriage back home. Now that so many people are gathered here, she can no longer control the development of the matter, so it is best to stay safe.

 Once she learns that her son's life is in danger, a mother always wakes up quickly.

 Several examiners still wanted to cover it up, but the people from the Military and Prison Departments had already started to check the names of the candidates in the dormitory one by one. This was a routine calculation, after all, they wanted to count the suspicious people present. However, there was no need to check. Once checked, there were actually twelve candidates in the entire Gongyuan, and their names did not match their names at all.

In order to prevent someone from sneaking into the examination room and cheating, in addition to the names and surnames of the candidates, there are also portraits on the roster. These twelve are slightly different from the portraits on the roster. The people in the Privy Council glanced at the examiners and sneered: "This is strange. , the adults’ eyes looked fine, how could they not notice such a huge difference in appearance?”

The rest of the candidates have come out of the dormitory and looked at the twelve people at the front uneasily.

The governor of the Bingma Division held down the long knife on his waist, stared at the twelve people and said coldly: "It seems that there is no need to investigate. These twelve people who do not match the facts are the poisoners. The poisoning in Gongyuan was the same year as the murder. According to the law, you should be killed—"

"No!" A young man at the front among the twelve people shouted subconsciously: "Sir, sir, this is unfair. Even if you have the courage of a villain, you wouldn't dare to kill someone. This matter was not done by a villain!"

When he shouted, the rest of the people around him also reacted and knelt on the ground to complain.

The governor was unmoved and looked at the group of them condescendingly: "You are full of sophistry and lies! If you were not the one who poisoned me, why did you sneak into the examination room? Wherever you took the original candidates, you just killed them together. In The emperor's feet are murdering people, and his heart is worthy of death—"

His pretentious bluff really frightened the group of people. You should know that cheating on behalf of Qiu Wei in the examination room is just a matter of going to jail, but it will not cost his life. However, if a life is involved, it will be a lawsuit that will lose his head.

They are just taking the exam for someone else. They want to make some money to spend, but they have to risk their lives for a little money. Only fools do this kind of thing!

The man at the front made a quick decision, kowtowed heavily to the governor, and said angrily: "Sir, sir, this is really not a small poison. The small tribute to the courtyard is just to take the place of someone else. The small person is taking the autumn exam, that's all." , I would never dare to take lives!"

He shouted these words very loudly, without avoiding the others. I don't know whether he shouted it to the fierce-looking old men in front of him or to someone else, but it was heard clearly both inside and outside the Gongyuan.

The autumn test of another generation will end for others?

As soon as these words came out, the crowd was in an uproar.

The officers and soldiers surrounding the Gongyuan showed tacit smiles, and the examiners in front of the dormitory suddenly turned pale.

 (End of this chapter)