When he saw the two people standing in front of him, Jiang Huaiqing's current mood could be described with the words' heaven and earth turned upside down '.
A man in a black imperial robe and a young man in blue stood side by side. He wasn't completely familiar with their faces, but their aura couldn't lie.
Even though their faces had changed a bit, Jiang Huaiqing still recognized them.
— — Brother Lin, Brother Yu.
Jiang Huaiqing's mind was numb. If it weren't for the person next to him quietly pulling on his clothes, he probably would have lost his composure in front of the Emperor.
With difficulty, Jiang Huaiqing followed the students and bowed. When the rankings were announced, his thoughts once again drifted away.
It turned out that Brother Lin and Brother Yu were the current Emperor and Shen Guijun. For some unknown reason, the two of them concealed their identities and left the palace, and just happened to meet them at Yingxing Tower. Jiang Huaiqing recalled his actions these past few days and just wanted to facepalm.
He was worried about Brother Yu, oh no, worried about Guijun's situation in her husband's family, interrupting His Majesty and Guijun's intimacy, and frequently writing letters to Guijun …
Look at what he had done, he actually wrote in the letter that someone had asked him to cheat, and the matter of him cheating was smoothly resolved. He had thought that the two of them were at most officials, but never would he have thought that these two people were the pinnacle of power in Da Huan.
There were also some other things. For example, in Guijun's letters to him, she jokingly said that because he frequently wrote letters, her husband was jealous. What did he do at that time? He spent most of the letters ridiculing Brother Lin, no, His Majesty's behavior.
Because he was more and more familiar with them, the tone of his letters became more and more casual. If he knew that these letters would eventually be sent to the Imperial Palace, he wouldn't have written those things! No, he wouldn't have written letters so frequently!
After all the rankings were announced, Shang Junlin opened his mouth to say some words of encouragement and warning. Shen Yu stood above and watched Jiang Huaiqing's expression change again and again.
It seemed that he had recognized their identities.
Shen Yu was amused. This time, Jiang Huaiqing must have received quite a shock.
Jiang Huaiqing was absent-minded throughout the whole process, until Shang Junlin mentioned Fang Jiayi's name.
"Among the candidates this time, there is one with a rather special identity. She is our newly crowned Bannerman, Fang Jiayi, the daughter of Lord Fang Jun. This is the first time in the history of the Great Huan Dynasty that a woman has achieved such outstanding results."
What???
The second place was a woman???
As soon as Shang Junlin finished speaking, there was a commotion below. Shang Junlin did not pay attention to these people. He left behind the top three of the first rank and sent the others out of the palace.
The officials wanted to say something but stopped themselves. Due to Shang Junlin's attitude, they couldn't say anything and followed the examinees out of the hall.
Several people gathered together and discussed in low voices.
"This, since ancient times, there has never been a precedent of a woman becoming an official. Are we going to let His Majesty do as he pleases?"
"The results were chosen by everyone. What's the point of saying this now? Are we going to strike off her rightful ranking because of her identity as a woman? "
"But Fang Jiayi disguised herself as a man and entered the examination hall. This is against the rules."
"Rules? Do you really think that a woman like her has the ability to hide from everyone who is searching her body? So what if she is Lord Fang's beloved daughter? "
"Prime Minister, you mean … from the beginning, His Majesty has tacitly approved of this?"
"What else? Look at His Majesty today. Did he even show a trace of surprise?"
"Then, are we going to let a woman become an official in the court?"
"This matter will take a long time. Only a few of us know about it now. When the results are announced, all the officials will know about it. Not only that, all the scholars in the world will know. His Majesty will have to deal with these officials who oppose him."
The Prime Minister smoothed out the creases on his sleeves and said lightly, "Do you think His Majesty will care about what those people think? Since His Majesty has made a decision, how many times has he changed it because of the opposition of others? "
"Prime Minister, are you going to let His Majesty do as he pleases?" Some of the officials were dissatisfied.
"Sir, don't flatter me. I don't have that much ability. I just want to remind you that instead of thinking of ways to oppose His Majesty, it is better to convince yourselves to accept the established facts."
As long as it was someone who could truly work for the Great Huan Dynasty, the Prime Minister didn't care about the other party's background, gender, and other external conditions. He was really fed up with people who occupied positions but didn't do anything. This greatly increased his workload.
In the hall, other than Jiang Huaiqing, who was still out of sorts, the other two people had complicated feelings.
Guessing the identities of the two people was one thing, but facing the truth was another. He Chengyu was a bit absent-minded. He and Shen Yu, Shang Junlin didn't interact as much as Jiang Huaiqing, but in these few interactions, Shang Junlin's image was far too different from the rumored image of the Great Huan Dynasty's emperor.
Everyone knew that the current emperor of the Great Huan Dynasty fought his way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. He used ruthless methods to force his way to the throne. Although his methods were criticized by many aristocratic families, because of his contributions to the Great Huan Dynasty, he still had a good reputation in the hearts of ordinary people.
He Chengyu understood that Shang Junlin was ruthless, decisive, and would never go back on his word. The Young Master Lin he knew listened to almost everything his wife said. Other than not liking to talk, he didn't have a temper. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn't connect the two together.
However, such two distinct personalities appeared in the same person.
Fang Jiayi's mood was also very complicated at the moment. Among the complicated feelings, there was also a trace of confusion. She knew that the path she had chosen would be difficult to walk. She had also prepared herself for a difficult struggle, but she didn't expect that the first step would be completed so easily.
After a moment of silence, Shen Yu said, "Eunuch Meng, bring a seat for our freshly selected top three."
Eunuch Meng accepted the order and left. After a while, there were three more chairs in the main hall.
Shen Yu pulled Shang Junlin to sit down. "I don't need to say anything. Presumably, you have already guessed my and His Majesty's identities. It is indeed as you have guessed. When I left the palace, I didn't expect to meet the future top scorer and third place."
This sentence confirmed Jiang Huaiqing's conjecture in He Chengyu's heart.
"I hope you don't blame us for hiding it."
Under Shen Yu's mediation, the atmosphere was finally not as stiff as it was at the beginning. He Chengyu had already expected this and quickly adjusted his state of mind. Jiang Huaiqing spent some time digesting the information and forced himself to calm down.
Shen Yu knew that with his and Shang Junlin's current identities, it would be difficult for Jiang Huaiqing and He Chengyu to return to the way they used to be. He didn't force them to stay because of this matter.
"A lot of things happened during this imperial examination. Now that the results are out, I'm afraid it won't be peaceful. I just want to tell you that the results you obtained now are what you deserve. No matter what happens in the future, I hope you can maintain your original intentions."
Shang Junlin didn't say it clearly, but everyone present knew what he was talking about. First, there was the matter of cheating. Jiang Huaiqing was involved. Then, Fang Jiayi, a woman, got second place in the imperial examination. In the future, there would be trouble in the imperial court.
"We will remember your teachings!" The three stood up and bowed respectfully.
This was Shang Junlin's home ground. Shen Yu didn't say much. Shang Junlin said a few words and let them leave.
After leaving the imperial palace, Jiang Huaiqing let out a long sigh of relief.
Fang Jiayi wanted to return home. After leaving the palace, she said goodbye to the two. Jiang Huaiqing and He Chengyu went back to Yingxing Tower.
In the carriage, Jiang Huaiqing felt that something was wrong. He elbowed He Chengyu and asked, "Brother Chengyu, did you already know?"
"Know what?" He Chengyu, who was resting with his eyes closed, opened his eyes.
"You knew about Brother Lin and Brother Yu's true identities. I was shocked at the time, but you seemed to have expected it." Jiang Huaiqing lowered his voice.
"I guessed a little, but I only confirmed it today." He Chengyu didn't hide it.
"You should have warned me." Jiang Huaiqing wailed and collapsed on the carriage. "Look at what I've done these days? And those letters … God, I must have eaten a bear's heart and a leopard's guts to write such things in the letters. "
He Chengyu helped him up. "His Majesty and Guijun didn't say anything. Besides, you didn't know their true identities at the time. After you wrote the letters, Guijun replied to you. It's okay."
"Did you know?" Jiang Huaiqing's eyes were dull. "At the time, I only thought that Guijun had married into an aristocratic family. I even wrote a lot of ways to deal with the relationship between clansmen in the letter. I also wrote some ways to make Brother Lin and him stand on the same side …"
Thinking of that scene, He Chengyu couldn't help but laugh. He patted Jiang Huaiqing's shoulder. "Just be careful in the future. His Majesty and Guijun are magnanimous and won't make a fuss."
It wasn't a matter of whether His Majesty and Guijun would make a fuss or not. As long as he thought of what he had done these days, Jiang Huaiqing felt like he had nothing left to live for.
They rode in a carriage sent by the palace. As soon as they arrived at the entrance of Yingxing Tower, the shopkeeper of Yingxing Tower led people to greet them. They were the new top scorer and third runner-up. They were both guests of Yingxing Tower. How glorious it would be if word got out.
Amidst the crowd's congratulations, the two got off the carriage. Yingxing Tower set up a small banquet for the two of them and waited for the two hosts to arrive.
Fang Jiayi was also sent back to the Fang family by the palace's carriage. Master Fang and Madam Fang went out to welcome her. Looking at his daughter in her school uniform, Master Fang felt a faint sense of pride.
Even if he only had one daughter, so what? She wasn't inferior to any man in the world.
"Father."
"Good child." Master Fang rubbed his daughter's head. "The family is ready. Since you've achieved such good results, don't worry about anything else. Father will take care of it."
His daughter had achieved such excellent results. It was easy to imagine what kind of shock it would cause when those old-fashioned aristocratic officials found out.
"His Majesty will have a headache at court tomorrow." Under the pavilion, Shen Yu poured a cup of tea for the man sitting opposite him.
Shang Junlin took the cup and drank it. "The day I agreed to Fang Jiayi's daughter, I knew what the consequences would be. It's a foregone conclusion. No matter how much they make a fuss, it won't change anything."
"His Majesty deliberately announced the results earlier this year because he knew they would make a fuss?" In Shen Yu's impression, the results of the court examinations were usually announced within one to three days. This year, Shang Junlin directly announced the results on the same day. Presumably, he wanted to announce the results to the world before anyone could react.
"A Yu is right. You don't have to worry about the Prime Minister. Those aristocratic officials probably won't accept the results easily." Shang Junlin grasped Shen Yu's wrist. "Their people didn't get a single first place this time."
"He Chengyu comes from an aristocratic family, but the He family doesn't have much interaction with the aristocratic families in the capital." Shen Yu smiled. "They probably didn't expect the results to be like this."
Shang Junlin rubbed Shen Yu's wrist. His eyes darkened. "A Yu, I've won again."
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