Chapter 17: The Powerful Minister Has Just Hit the Road

No scholar would notice Yang Wanli’s maniacal behavior, even the Kyoto citizens passing by on the other side of the river did not cast a curious glance. Because in Kyoto, this kind of scene is really too common, especially every year when the spring exams release the list, the examination center of the vermilion wall to the left of the wall, always out of nowhere many crazy people to.

At this time, the bridge at the end of the list of scholars look at the face of some different, some exuberant, some disheveled, in the long call to the sky, not in the head to grab the ground, all kinds of appearance, really can not say the funny and ridiculous. There are even more miserable howling more than, holding the big acacia tree next to the wall with his face rubbing, let the partners how to pull also refused to let go, until their cheeks rubbed out the blood, looking miserable.

The Qing Dynasty to the imperial examination to get a scholar, non-high-ranking children shall not be awarded Enke, so for the average commoner students, the spring exam release, is the only way they can change their lives, this pressure and motivation, enough to be gentle and elegant scholar, turned into a crazy madman. Compared with those who are in the riverside broken head kowtow and worship the sky, thank God for letting themselves win the scholars, Yang Wanli only shouted two voices, it does seem a little bland.

Of course, this also emphasized the calmness of Hou Jichang’s three men.

Waiting for Yang Wanli to return to the calm, cheerfully walked back to the wall, the three friends have been the entire royal list carefully read a clear, unexpected is Shi Yanli actually did not get on the list, and let everyone in the disappointment of some of the happy is that ChengJiaLin’s name is clearly appeared in the last row.

Cheng Jialin face can not hide the excitement, but looked at the side of the Shi Yanli slightly disappointed face, also not good to show how excessive, comfort: “this time do not win, next year again.”

This is a very old-fashioned words of comfort, but in this situation, it seems that there is only this old-fashioned. Shi Yanli let out a bitter smile, looked at those lost souls around him who had failed to pass the exam, barely lifted his spirits and smiled, “This time the four of us won three, it is already considered a great joy. Compared to the previous years of the Chun Exam, this year this list is too fair, as for me, to reconsider or not.”

Hou Jichang nodded at the side, gently patted Shi Yanli’s shoulder, knowing that although he is the most free character in the four, but today’s blow is still not small, turned the topic away and said with a smile: “I don’t know how Lord Fan, how to do, but also to protect so many people, I see the list than in previous years, those who have a real talent in the name of the name of the more up, stupid and incompetent single by The generation of family history is quite a bit less.”

“It should be the relationship between the Supervisory Yuan’s investigation of the Imperial Court’s malpractice this time.” A few of them had already walked to a quiet place on the riverbank and sat down, their voices were still very low for fear of causing any trouble for Fan Xian.

Hou Jichang shook his head and said, “Although there are quite a number of officials arrested this time, apart from those few Jiangnan scholars, no other scholars have been brought to light, thus it can be seen that it was before the Supervisory Yuan made its move that Lord Fan Xian had already made his arrangements.” He shook his head and sighed bitterly, thinking to himself that that young Lord Fan really did have a strong background, and was able to make such a maneuver in the Great Ceremony of the State. However, it seemed that he really hadn’t misjudged Fan Xian, and this time the list was going to seem much fairer.

A few people gossiped about the situation in the capital, these two days there are quite a lot of officials who have fallen from the horse, and everyone in the officialdom is in danger, but Fan Xian looks like he is very confident. At this time, Shi Yanli, who had been somewhat silent, suddenly opened his mouth and said softly, “I think, this time, the fraud case was revealed, I’m afraid that it also has nothing to do with Lord Fan.”

The rest of the three were shocked and murmured, “If this is really the case, Lord Fan …… is going to be even more remarkable than we thought.”

Of course, Fan Xian can’t get out of the case, but the Supervisory Yuan is very measured, although Guo Youzhi, the Minister of Ceremony, fell, but the East Palace did not suffer too much damage, so for a time, the Crown Prince side of the Fan Xian is just suspicious. And this list, the East Palace needs a few people, is still in the three, compared to the Grand Prince and the Privy Council side, has been a very good result.

Fan Xian sat in his study, looking at the imperial list copied by Wang Qinian, frowning slightly. These two days in the capital is too unsettled, the president of the official Guo Youzhi, a seat teacher, a transfer have been invited to tea by the Supervisory Board, and as the Chunxun exam in the center of the Lang, in charge of the paste name of this key step, but nothing at all, inevitably will let the people start to speculate.

However, he was also a little happy, he looked forward to the students, in addition to the most pleasing to their own temperament Shi Yanli, most of the smooth into the list, as for the results of the temple test how, that purely depends on the personalization, they really can not help too much help.

Out of the study, face to face saw a green figure walked over, Fan Xian ouch, ready to hide back to the room, the heart is straight to cry bitter, who thought that the father of the adults will actually come to their own courtyard today.

Sinan Bo Fan Jian was now the titular Minister of the Household, but that stern face hadn’t changed much, coldly pushing open the door to his son’s room that he hadn’t had the time to close, and lifting his steps, he walked in, and sternly snapped, “Did you go out again yesterday?”

Fan Xian smiled bitterly and saluted, responding, “Father, there was rain in Kyoto last night, so I wanted to go out for a stroll.”

“You thought you could hide your visit to the Tongfu Inn from a few people!”

Fan Jian sat down, Lin Wan’er who was in the side room heard the sound and rushed over, hurriedly shouting for the maid to serve tea to his lordship. Fan Jian mildly looked at his daughter-in-law smiled, waved his hand to indicate that she went back to her room to rest, a turn of the face on the cold as frost, said: “The matter of the field, which is associated with its complexity, you presumptuous to make that matter is not so bad, I let you stay in the house, is to avoid the storm, you went to the same inn yesterday to see those students, today the royal list, the people can see it clearly, those students are on the list. How will the world look at you?”

Fan Xian smiled and responded, “Although the child is young, but false is also a door division identity, to see the candidates is unusual, as for this list well …… who all know what is going on, why care.”

“But recently the Supervisory Yuan is investigating the case of cheating, and the cause of this matter, is the note that you handed over.” Fan Jian coldly said, “Anzhi, if you are really bent on planning for the state dynasty, then you shouldn’t have planted your own manpower into the three ace, and if you just want to cultivate your own power by means of the chunin exams, then you shouldn’t have backtracked on the water and pulled Guo Youzhi down.”

Sinan Bo looked at the young son in front of him, and sighed after a long time, “No matter what place, it has its own set of rules. The officialdom in Kyoto is even more so, among the officials, there are clean officials and corrupt officials, among the ministers, there are slanderous ministers and frank ministers, these are two distinct paths, if you want to be frank ministers, don’t take the slanderous path.”

Hearing his father call himself by his own word, Fan Xian knew that the old man did have some anger in his heart, and mildly responded, “My child doesn’t want to be an admonishing minister, nor does he want to be a slandering minister, he wants to be a …… powerful minister.”

The air in the study was so cold that it seemed to freeze, and only after a long time did Fan Jian say softly and quietly, “A minister of power? What kind of minister can be called a power minister?” He shook his head, a somewhat bizarre smile appearing on his face, “The prime minister has the right, my father has the right, and Chen Pingping has the right, but could it be that you think that being such a subject would qualify you as a power subject?”

Fan Xian calmly responded, “I can’t, because the power is all in His Majesty’s hands.”

“Then what kind of powerful minister do you want to be?”

“If you have power in your hands, you can’t worry about anything.” Fan Xian sincerely responded, “I want to be a powerful official who cannot even determine my life or death in the family of the Son of Heaven, because I have the ability to protect myself, but not the ability to protect others, so I need power.”

Fan Jian looked at his son with a hint of worry in his gaze. Fan Xian smiled helplessly, the reason why he would choose this exceptionally arduous and uninteresting path to follow was naturally because of that extremely thick black color deep within his heart.

After a long time, a hint of cold light came through Fan Jian’s eyes, “Don’t fool around like this in the future, Chen Pingping can protect you for a while, but not for a lifetime, so I’m warning you, don’t get too close to the Supervisory Yuan side.”

Fan Xian bowed his head to be taught, “Child knows, so I need father to mention it from time to time.” He knew that his father had always been scornful of taking over the matter of the Supervisory Yuan, only that Fan Xian himself refused to give it up.

Fan Jian slowly closed his eyes and said, “You handled this incident very poorly. Even if Guo Baokun’s words from the temple made you guess that the Guo family was actually the Elder Princess’s people, you shouldn’t have taken the matter into your own hands, and if you had spoken to me beforehand, with the power of the Chancellor and I, you could have seamlessly taken advantage of the imperial court’s ills to get rid of him, and not end up in the current dilemma.”

Fan Xian knew that what his father had said was right, taking the risk of joining forces with the Supervisory Yuan to deal with Guo Shangshu on his own would only result in a kind of open-ended ending, where no one knew what would happen behind the scenes, and the initiative lay with the Yuan. After thinking about it, he said, “Actually, this time around, my child just wants to do something he wants to do.”

This might just be a cheap sense of justice that many people disdained, but Fan Xian still retained a little bit of it, and he was currently just worried about how Chen Pingping’s backhandedness was actually arranged.

Seemingly guessing what his son was thinking, Fan Jian opened his eyes, a hint of comfort and a hint of sadness in his gaze, “You can give up your illusions, Chen Pingping will definitely let everyone know that this uncovering of the cheating case is a good cause that the Fan family’s eldest son has made single-handedly.”

Fan Xian smiled bitterly, knowing that his father was right, Chen Pingping wasn’t afraid of any Eastern Palace Prince, as long as he could build up his reputation, as long as he could get himself closer to grasping the Supervisory Yuan, he dared to do any action.

Before leaving his son’s study, Sinan Bo Fan Jian said faintly, “In the future, you should do things in a mature manner, like the childish proclamations of a power minister, you just put it aside in your heart to be bored, there is no need to say it to me.”