Investigate This for Me
On Xiao Ge's side, Eunuch Xie watched as Kang Shilin stormed off, and no one could stop him. As he walked further and further away, and the Emperor remained silent, he couldn't help but call out, "Your Majesty..."
The Emperor loves painting and hopes that the Great Jin will produce more outstanding young painters, so he attaches great importance to this year-end painting competition. In the past, in order to get Kang Shilin to serve as a judge, the Emperor even gave Kang Shilin two ancient paintings. Today, he is taking the risk to come to watch the competition, not only because he likes Zhao Ruxi's paintings and wants to see how she performs in the competition, but also because he values this competition.
But seeing that Mister Kumu was about to quit and leave, why was the Emperor so unmoved and didn't offer any response?
Xiao Ge remained silent. He waved his hand, turned, and left the arena.
Over the years, Kang Shilin had often complained to him about how much he disliked this job.
Besides, don't be fooled by Kang Shilin's agile movements and seemingly youthful steps; he doesn't look like a man in his sixties or seventies at all. Xiao Ge knows that elderly people have osteoporosis, and a fall could be fatal.
That's how the late emperor passed away.
Even with imperial Imperial Guards and eunuchs by his side, the late emperor still encountered an accident.
Today, Xiao Ge arrived here and saw how noisy and crowded it was.
Even though Kang Shilin was the judge, and the Imperial Academy would call for people to make way for him when he came and went, with Kang An accompanying him, crowded places were prone to accidents and were not suitable for the elderly to go out.
Since Kang Shilin doesn't want to do this job, then he should resign.
Given Zhao Ruxi's painting skills, she doesn't need such competition honors to embellish her achievements.
If they were going to withdraw, this incident would be the perfect opportunity. It would silence public opinion, garner sympathy for the master and apprentice, and make Mei Zhongjun and his apprentice reap the consequences of their actions.
but...
Xiao Ge turned his head and glanced around.
Because of the old grudge between Kang Shilin and Mei Zhongjun, he also knew Mei Zhongjun well.
This person is somewhat unscrupulous, but he only dares to engage in underhanded tactics. He absolutely doesn't have the audacity to disrupt a painting competition held by the imperial court in front of so many officials.
Unless someone instigated him and promised him enormous benefits.
Recently, the only ones who have a grudge against Kang Shilin and Zhao Ruxi are Consort Jin and Xiao Yuyue.
Walking up to the carriages, Xiao Ge watched as the Imperial Guards inspected all three carriages twice to make sure no one had tampered with them before choosing one to sit in.
He turned to Eunuch Xie and instructed, "Have someone interrogate Mei Zhongjun to find out who ordered him. Then investigate further and find the mastermind behind it all."
He favored Consort Jin, but he was not without principles.
He is the emperor. He has already warned her. If Consort Jin still disobeys him and doesn't listen to his words as the emperor, Xiao Ge wouldn't mind finding another woman to favor.
"Yes." Eunuch Xie agreed, helped the Emperor into the carriage, but did not leave himself. He watched the carriage disappear into the distance, then turned and waved his hand, ordering someone to investigate the matter.
Even though Kang Shilin announced he would no longer be a judge, the judging for this competition had already been completed, and the results should have been in effect.
Since Zhao Ruxi has withdrawn from the competition, the first place should be passed on to Zhang Xiuyan.
However, Peng Guoan loathed Mei Zhongjun and Zhang Xiuyan so much that he was unwilling to let Zhang Xiuyan win first place.
If Zhang Xiuyan wins first place, will everyone in the future competitions complain about the unfairness, eliminate the first-place winner, and take the lead themselves? In that case, the talent competition will inevitably become corrupt and chaotic.
Furthermore, the fact that the Emperor was willing to buy Zhao Ruxi's painting for 25,000 taels of silver shows that he recognized and appreciated her painting skills.
If Peng Guoan had given first place to Zhang Xiuyan, the emperor might have stripped him of his Peng Guoan position once he found out.
Therefore, as soon as Kang Shilin and his apprentice left, Peng Guoan announced loudly, "I will report today's matter to the Emperor, and the outcome will be decided by him. The painting competition is now over; everyone may leave."
As he spoke, he ordered the teachers and students of the Imperial Academy to carefully roll up each painting, place it in a scroll, and tidy up the tables and chairs.
These paintings will be returned to the participants.
The onlookers dispersed, and people began discussing the matter in small groups.
"His Majesty has always been protective and close to Mister Kumu. You should know that Mister Kumu has suffered a great injustice today, Mei Zhongjun disciples will likely face severe punishment."
"That's for sure. Master Mei Zhongjun and his disciples did more than just provoke Mister Kumu; they clearly challenged the imperial court's authority. They disrupted a competition organized by the court without warning, forcing Mister Kumu and his disciples to withdraw. The nature of their actions is far too serious. If they aren't severely punished, what if others follow suit?"
As they talked, the crowd slowly moved outwards.
Suddenly, a loud shout rang out from the crowd, "What happened today has nothing to do with me, Zhang Xiuyan. I wholeheartedly accept Lord Peng and the others' judgment. My master's words and actions only represent his own thoughts; they have nothing to do with me."
Everyone turned to look and saw Zhang Xiuyan standing about half a zhang away from Mei Zhongjun, bowing to the surroundings.
Judging from the way things are, if it weren't for the crowd, he wouldn't have gone far, and might even have gotten further away from Mei Zhongjun.
Whether it was the serious consequences of this matter or the anger caused by Zhang Xiuyan, Mei Zhongjun was trembling all over. If it weren't for the servants protecting him, he might have collapsed to the ground.
Seeing this, everyone looked at Zhang Xiuyan with contempt.
No one knew the real story. They only felt that although Mei Zhongjun had a past grudge against Kang Shilin and wanted to use this opportunity to embarrass Kang Shilin, which was one of the reasons for his outburst, it was undeniable that standing up for his apprentice and getting him first place was the main reason for his outburst.
As soon as the situation turned unfavorable, Zhang Xiuyan completely disregarded his master's kindness and immediately severed ties. Such a person is ungrateful, morally corrupt, and a typical ingrate. Whoever helps him will suffer the consequences.
At this moment, everyone couldn't help but feel sympathy for Mei Zhongjun.
The reason why Eunuch Xie was able to gain the Emperor's trust was because he was an extremely capable person.
He didn't follow the Emperor's instructions to arrest and interrogate Mei Zhongjun. He knew that if someone had truly instigated Mei Zhongjun, they wouldn't have acted personally. They would have gone through several roundabout ways to conceal themselves.
He sent people to follow Mei Zhongjun, and also sent others to guard both ends of the painting competition venue, recording the names of everyone who came in and out.
Then he noticed that after everyone else had left, Princess Pingyang came down from the teahouse next door. He sent someone to inquire at the teahouse and found out that the private room where Princess Pingyang had been was the best place to observe the painting competition.
Now, Eunuch Xie understood.
He had been serving the Emperor all along, and he was fully aware of the conflict between Consort Jin, Princess Pingyang, and Kang Shilin and his apprentice some time ago.