A student carrying a cheat sheet was caught in front of the Gongyuan gate. The punishment of being cut off and demoted to a commoner was very common. Previously, several students who were not afraid of death and wanted to get away with it had been arrested. Now another one appeared. Everyone except the usual All I could do was look at this scene with sighs and sighs.
The invigilator had already thrown the box Meng Xinghe used for the exam on the ground in front of everyone to show that the imperial examination was fair and strict and absolutely did not allow any fraud. Two armored guards with swords on their waists came over and set up on the left and right sides. Meng Xinghe grabbed his shoulders and cuffed him on the spot so as not to affect the subsequent students taking the Tributary Academy exams.
"Take him down." The invigilator said without mercy, and was ready to let the students behind him start to come up for inspection.
Meng Xinghe was a little dizzy from this series of sudden attacks. Scientific examination fraud. How could such a thing happen to him? Before he had time to explain, he was dragged down by two guards. What if? Being taken away like this, even if there is a chance to stand out, there is absolutely no chance of taking the scientific examination again.
Could it be that the road to the imperial examination died here?
"Let go." Meng Xinghe shouted loudly. His whole body shook. It was as if an endless force burst out from his body. The two guards were caught off guard and were forcefully shaken away by him.
"What are you going to do? It's because you want to rebel." Before the student who was found to have cheated could still act arrogantly, the invigilator said angrily: "Drag this madman down. I will give you a thirty-year cane punishment. After listening, Disappointed."
Several guards rushed out at once. They rushed forward and tried to hold Meng Xinghe down and hit him with a board.
Meng Xinghe didn't use force. He didn't know why he was tricked inexplicably. But the key to the problem must be the invigilator. Therefore, he didn't use force. In this way, he fell into a carefully planned trap.
"Sir, how do you know that this cheat sheet is carried by students?" Meng Xinghe asked a very funny question. The cheat sheet was found by the guards from his body. Is this true? Unless everyone is blind and cannot see. Just facts.
The invigilator slapped the table angrily and said with a smile: "Are you laughing at my short-sightedness? Everyone has seen it with your own eyes. The cheat sheet was found on your body. You did not carry it. Could it be that someone else is framed against you?"
Meng Xinghe reasoned: "Since adults always think about students being framed, why did they decide to prosecute the case? This cheat sheet was carried by the students. Moreover, the students also saw the cheat sheet in the adults' hands. The students are good at cursive writing. And the cheat sheets in the adults' hands are indeed It's not written in running script. Moreover, no matter how poor a student's knowledge is, he can't even memorize the Analects of Confucius and the Ming Jing. Do you have to copy it on a cheat sheet and let the adults search it out? It will ruin your future and fame."
In one breath, Meng Xinghe mentioned two doubtful points, but it was funny in his heart. Even someone who framed someone would make such a common-sense question. It seemed that the two guards in charge of the body search did not have the IQ to commit crimes at a high level.
The invigilator saw that Meng Xinghe was still a difficult person to deal with. He didn't expect that the tasks assigned by his superiors would be so difficult to complete. He suddenly showed his official power and said angrily: "You are using strong words to make excuses. Hold on."
Give a direct order and announce Meng Xinghe's guilt immediately. There should be no delay.
"Wait a minute."
Just when the invigilator was about to take down Meng Xinghe, three people strolled outside the Gongyuan. The leader was Du Ruhui, whom he had not seen for many days. He was also accompanied by two old men, both of whom Meng Xinghe had met. .One is the one who had a chance encounter in Prince Xian’s Mansion. The other is the old prince who was recruited into the prison.
The three of them were all wearing python robes with jade belts, official hats inlaid with pearls, and a pair of climbing shoes. They were full of aura when walking together. And the students below were already whispering. Everyone who recognized them knew that they were from this year. The three examiners arrived at the examination room.
"What's the matter?" The person who spoke was none other than Hou Junji's Laozi. Hou Wenhai, the Minister of Rites, was one of the examiners of the imperial examination.
"Your Majesty, this student brought cheat sheets into the examination room. This is already a fraud in the examination." The invigilator was pragmatic. There are three adults here. What else does he have to fear? Fraud in the examination. In serious cases, it is a serious crime that can lead to beheading. The court responded to this Things are handled extremely strictly. As long as you are caught in front of Gongyuan, you will be severely punished.
"Delay it. Don't affect the exams of the students who follow." Mr. Hou is decisive in his decision. On the surface, he is fair and strict. But psychologically, he wants to chop Meng Xinghe on the spot without regretting it. As for the imperial examination, of course he is in Gongyuan. The purpose of being a stumbling block for Meng Xinghe in front of the door was to vent the evil anger on his son. Although Hou Junji's body was no longer seriously injured, even though the imperial doctors used all the precious medicinal materials, they could not cure his inhumane condition. This is the only seedling in the family, and I am afraid that it will die. Every time I think of this, I wish that Meng Xinghe would die.
Meng Xinghe smiled contemptuously. He knew what happened today. Even if someone tripped him up, explanations were of no use. He said in a somewhat self-deprecating tone: "Master Hou, I don't know. Is this considered avenging private revenge?"
Mr. Hou didn't care about him. He smiled secretly in his heart. How about avenging private revenge? What can you do to me? As long as you want to take the exam, you have to pass it through the hands of my Minister of Rites. Hou Wenhai waved his hand and said: "Pull it down. Drag it down."
"Sir, why should you be angry?"
At this time, Du Ruhui, who had been reading the cheat sheet, said something. He came from a distance and didn't say a word until now. Instead, he looked at the cheat sheet carefully. Then he said something interesting: "This was not written by Meng Xinghe."
"Mr. Du, it was not written by him. He would not ask someone to write one for him without a watch." Mr. Hou retorted: "This matter is related to the reputation of the Imperial Examination of the Tang Dynasty. Mr. Du, please think twice."
Du Ruhui smiled and said: "Meng Xinghe, let me ask you, can you recite the entire text of The Analects of Confucius and the Ming Jing?"
Obviously, a smart person like Du Ruhui knew that the cheat sheet was just a selection of some classic sentences based on the Analects of Confucius and the Ming Jing. With Meng Xinghe's knowledge, it is impossible that he could not remember such simple sentences. Come down and copy it on paper and bring it into the examination room.
This is obviously a false accusation.
Meng Xinghe followed Du Ruhui's prompts and recited the more classic sentences from the two books verbatim. After hearing this, Du Ruhui smiled at everyone and said: "Ask someone who can memorize books. It's no use carrying these. The cheat sheets entered the examination room. Isn’t this superfluous and laughable?”
Du Ruhui hit the nail on the head. The discussion among the people below suddenly became louder. Anyone who can take the college examination can recite these sentences completely. There is no need to bring cheat sheets. There are inevitably doubts in this. So everyone He immediately turned his attention to the invigilator and the guard responsible for the body search. He was thinking about who might have received money from someone to frame innocent students. They were all students who had been in poverty for ten years. Before they entered the court, they all He is a person with a strong sense of justice. Naturally, he would not tolerate such dirty deeds. Therefore, it is inevitable that there will be more voices supporting Meng Xinghe.
Mr. Hou is not a fool. Even if he knew that Du Ruhui had seen the clues, he was still cursing these losers in his heart. They would mess up anything they did. It was really useless. Hehehe. Mr. Hou said without changing his expression: "Master Du, you We are both taking the exam, but no one can tell whether this kid brought cheat sheets into the exam room. Furthermore, even if he can recite it now, no one can guarantee that he will not be able to recite it during the exam because of worries in his heart. So it’s not unreasonable to bring cheat sheets. But for the sake of fairness, I decided not to allow this candidate to enter the examination room. I don’t know what you two adults think.”
Directly stating that Meng Xinghe will not be allowed in will fundamentally end Meng Xinghe's career. Find a time later to find a crime to pin on Meng Xinghe and directly make him irrecoverable. This is Hou Wenhai's plan.
Du Ruhui walked up to Hou Wenhai and asked in a very stern voice: "Then if this son is wronged, how will Mr. Hou explain it? Is Mr. Hou also responsible for the consequences of delaying the imperial examination?"
After two attempts, Du Ruhui suddenly slapped the sacred table in front of the Gongyuan (a table used to hold the three animals and nine gifts before the imperial examination). He slowly took off the black gauze on his head with both hands. He was angry. He said: "I will use the black gauze as a guarantee. Let this son take the imperial examination first. After waiting for the imperial examination, I will report it to the emperor and hold a trial. If Meng Xinghe really cheated on the imperial examination, I am willing to throw away this official hat on my head." Be punished with him. If he is framed, the Holy Spirit will make the decision and give him justice."
Thousands of candidates this year were dumbfounded by Mr. Du's move. The dignified minister of the country, the prime minister of the dynasty who was slightly older than Hou Wenhai in terms of official title, actually vouched for a student who did not know whether he had cheated. .Who said that there is no Qingtian to protect the imperial examination? Mr. Du is the living Qingtian Grand Master. And the Minister of Rites naturally fell into the ranks of villains, which made this class of students smile with disdain.
"Master Hou and Master Du are right. Since we can't be sure whether this boy has cheated, why not let him take the exam first. If he is found out later, his crime will naturally be increased. I think the exam will start soon. Don't waste time. Your Majesty. The three of us can't bear the blame." At this time, the old prince also said a good word for Meng Xinghe. Although it was not as drastic as Du Ruhui's use of Wusha as a guarantee, two of the three examiners spoke up for Meng Xinghe. Go in. He waited for Wenhai, even if he wanted to cover the sky with one hand, it would be impossible.
"Let it go." Hou Wenhai said reluctantly. He turned around and glared at the invigilator who had no future and even messed up some trivial matters. He walked into Gongyuan angrily.
"Go and get the top score in the exam."
Standing next to Meng Xinghe, Du Ruhui said in a low voice. He had already placed the Wusha on the sacred table in front of the Gongyuan. But he was smiling extremely happily. He finally saw this student who had come all the way from Taoyuan step in. He entered the examination room of the college examination and began his official career. Although Du Ruhui knew that he must be on the top of the gold list, he still hoped that he would write unparalleled articles with a writing style that would astound others. He would be able to see such a student in his lifetime. .It’s also a kind of relief.