It All Came Down to Who Could Satisfy the Emperor

The system agreed: [Exactly. When the wealthy landowner and his wife discovered their daughter had starved to death, they were overwhelmed with grief. She was their only daughter.]

[They hated Lu Song to death. If he hadn't refused to marry their daughter, none of this would have happened.]

The corner of Shen Yuxi's mouth twitched. [No wonder they say that if a child is sick, he's bound to be the least sick person in the family. Their daughter brought this on herself, yet they still blamed someone else.]

A whole family of real talents.

[After losing his daughter, the wealthy landowner remembered how much she'd liked Lu Song while she was alive and decided to fulfill her unfinished wish after her death.]

[So he asked around through every channel he could and paid an assassin to find an opportunity to kill Lu Song, whatever it took, then bring his corpse over for a ghost marriage with his daughter.]

"Lord Lu, you really have it rough. Even in death, someone has designs on your corpse." The deputy chief of the Court of Judicial Review looked at him with sympathy.

That wealthy landowner was willing to throw his life away, daring to attempt the assassination of the chief of the Court of Judicial Review.

Did he really think Lord Lu was some harmless vegetarian?

Lu Song's expression darkened slightly. He hadn't taken that landowner seriously, but the mere thought that the man wanted to arrange a ghost marriage between him and his daughter sent a sickening chill through him.

In that case, he had no need to show mercy either.

The grading of the examination papers drew to a close.

Early the next morning.

Outside the examination compound, a sea of people had already gathered. The scholars waiting for the results stood packed together, every face taut with nerves.

The results would remain posted for three days, allowing the scholars to check them repeatedly.

Some checked several times, and only after confirming there was no mistake did they finally let out a long breath, smiles of relief spreading across their faces.

Others read from beginning to end without finding their names anywhere. Their faces dimmed little by little, the light in their eyes going out completely. They lowered their heads in dejection, silently turned, and left.

Lin Shubai and Yan Qinghe stood at the very front of the crowd, scanning the names on the list word by word, afraid of missing anything.

The next instant, his gaze abruptly stopped at the top of the list. Three characters stood out clearly-Lin Shubai.

Yan Qinghe's eyes immediately lit up. Unable to hide his excitement, he grabbed the person beside him, his voice brimming with irrepressible joy. "Brother Lin, you... you're first!"

He was overjoyed, his tone firm, delighted for his closest friend and even more excited than if he himself had passed with high honors.

Lin Shubai froze. Following the direction of his pointing finger, he saw his own name at the very top. His heart pounded wildly, almost leaping out of his chest.

He'd succeeded. He'd really succeeded.

Lin Shubai stood rooted to the spot until Yan Qinghe's ecstatic voice rang in his ears. "I passed! I passed too!"

"This is wonderful! We can take the palace examination together."

Yan Qinghe slung an arm around his shoulders like the close friends they were. "Come on, let's have a feast tonight. My treat. What do you say?"

"Brother Yan, the palace examination hasn't begun yet. Let's prepare properly first. There'll still be time to celebrate once it's over."

"As the saying goes, overwhelming joy can breed disaster. We mustn't get careless."

Yan Qinghe seemed to finally come to his senses and gave his own head a hard smack.

Pulling Lin Shubai along, he said as they walked, "Right, right, right. You're absolutely right, Brother Lin."

"Come on, let's hurry back and memorize more books to prepare for the palace selection in seven days."

Seven days passed in a flash.

The final palace selection was held in the Hall of Supreme Polarity, with the emperor himself setting the questions.

When the auspicious hour arrived, bells and drums sounded together, their thunder shaking the hall.

Inside, the solemn silence was so profound that a falling pin could have been heard.

Dressed in blue robes, the scholars filed in. Though they stood straight, they could not conceal their nerves. Heads bowed and breaths held, they performed the ritual of three kneelings and nine kowtows in turn.

The solemnity and tension pervading the air pressed down so heavily that they scarcely dared breathe.

Entering the palace and beholding the imperial countenance for the first time, not one of them was free of fear and anxiety.

On the dragon throne, Emperor Xuanzhao's bright yellow dragon robes made his face appear all the colder and more unfathomable.

His imperial gaze swept lightly over those below the steps. Commanding without anger, his imposing presence spread in silence.

After a moment, the emperor slowly spoke. His voice was low and rich, carrying the authority and composure of one long accustomed to ruling, and reached every corner of the hall clearly.

"After ten years studying by cold windows, you have ascended to this hall today. You are all a reserve of talent for the nation. Today's palace examination will address current affairs. Express your own views and answer according to the facts. There is no need for fear."

[System, look at the scholar standing at the very back of the first column on the left. He looks like he's about to faint.]

With just one brief remark, Shen Yuxi forcibly poked a subtle, comical crack in the solemn dignity filling the hall.

Emperor Xuanzhao helplessly pressed a hand to his forehead.

He should have taken Minister Shen's advice. On such a solemn occasion, he shouldn't have required Shen Yuxi to attend.

As a mere junior historian, she served little purpose here.

Yet for some reason, Emperor Xuanzhao had grown accustomed to having Shen Yuxi under his eye. When she wasn't beside him, he always felt uncertain.

The system scanned the surroundings and said with certainty: [He's so nervous that his breathing is obstructed and his blood and qi are surging. He'll most likely faint.]

No sooner had it spoken than the scholar collapsed.

With a thud, he hit the floor hard.

The other officials no longer knew what to say, their expressions complicated.

Imperial Physician Han hurried forward and called for people to carry the unconscious scholar away at once.

Every year, someone fainted during the palace examination, so imperial physicians remained present throughout to deal with unexpected situations.

Shen Yuxi's eyes widened. [System, you're a prophet!]

Perhaps Shen Yuxi and the system's comical exchange had broken the heavy, solemn atmosphere, for the scholars suddenly felt less oppressed.

Lin Shubai didn't dare raise his head, but he caught a glimpse of Shen Yuxi out of the corner of his eye, and a faint smile touched his lips.

The scholars took their seats in order before the low desks, where brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones had already been laid out.

Emperor Xuanzhao composed his expression and announced the questions in a deep voice. "I have received Heaven's mandate to rule over all lands. I dress before dawn and eat only after nightfall, seeking nothing but good governance. Since ancient times, in the rule of sage kings, nothing has preceded nourishing the people, nothing has been more urgent than administering officials, nothing has carried greater weight than selecting the worthy, nothing has been more essential than moral instruction, nothing has provided greater stability than the foundations of the state, and nothing has conferred greater strength than military preparedness.

"Today, all within the seas is largely at peace. Yet uncultivated land remains in the countryside, and some households still lack prosperity. Among officials there may be corruption and indolence; among scholars, habits of superficiality and ostentation. Frontier defenses must not slacken in the slightest, state expenditure must be restrained, criminal judgments must be clear and just, and public morals must be sound."

"I ask you: to bring peace to the people and secure the foundations, what should take precedence? To cleanse the administration, what methods are essential? To select worthy talent, what approach is most discerning? To encourage agriculture and sericulture and prepare reserves against famine, how can these measures be sustained without falling into neglect? To put the armies in order, strengthen military affairs, secure the frontiers, and repel aggression, how can these efforts endure without exhaustion?

"To rectify the heart and cultivate the self, to order the family and govern the state-how should their sequence and essentials be put into practice? Scholars, speak your minds freely."

Unable to sit idle, Shen Yuxi raised her hand and popped a mulberry into her mouth, grumbling: [His Majesty's questions are a bit difficult. There are so many words I couldn't even remember them all, never mind answer them.]

[Host, don't underestimate them. For these scholars who've made it to the palace examination, answering isn't difficult. It all comes down to... whose answer can satisfy the old emperor.]

The system's casually delivered reminder stirred the scholars' thoughts.

That's right!

They were steeped in poetry and the classics, with the structures of policy essays learned by heart. They could polish their diction and literary flair ever further.

Yet the reader of the palace examination papers was the Son of Heaven, and the judge was the imperial heart. Their writing not only had to be exquisite-it had to make His Majesty's eyes light up.