After the meal, Jiang Changning personally escorted the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law out.
On the way, Jiang Changning smiled and said, "Old lady, you can see that the princess is the only child in the mansion now. She is quite lonely. When you are free, ask your sister-in-law to bring Nianyun over to play."
When Mrs. Zhuang heard this, she knew that Jiang Changning was intentionally trying to promote Liao. She glanced at Wu and said, "Forget it, forget it. Although Liao is a widow, her mind is clearer than this."
"Okay, when you're free, let Brother Wen's daughter-in-law bring Nian Yun over. However, Princess, you also have to take care of yourself and give birth to a boy or girl for the prince as soon as possible." Old Lady Zhuang said with a smile.
Wu interrupted and said, "Princess, I have a secret recipe for having a child. I will send it to you tomorrow."
"The first wife is thoughtful, but this is not necessary." Jiang Changning said calmly.
If there really was a secret recipe for having a child, Wu should have given it to Liao first, otherwise Zhuang Jiwen would not have died of illness for several years and Wu would not still be hating Liao for not giving Zhuang Jiwen a son.
When they arrived at the ceremonial gate, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law got on the carriage.
After leaving the palace, Mrs. Zhuang said with a stern face: "If you can't speak in the future, just shut up."
"I didn't say anything." Mrs. Wu looked confused.
"You are so stupid that you don't even know it." Old Mrs. Zhuang scolded.
Mrs. Wu did not argue but lowered her head and twisted the handkerchief in her hand vigorously. It was obvious that she was not convinced.
Old Mrs. Zhuang leaned back on the brocade cushion and closed her eyes to rest. She had been teaching for so many years but still hadn't been able to learn. She had long given up expecting her eldest daughter-in-law to be smart and capable.
After returning home, Mrs. Zhuang called someone to investigate the matter.
Jiang Changning also asked someone to investigate. If you didn't investigate, you wouldn't know the truth. Once you did, you would be shocked.
The bet between the two would be publicized, and the Zou family was involved.
When Mrs. Wu found out, she was so angry that she had a quarrel with Mrs. Zou.
Knowing that her mother was injured, Zhuang Qingru came back to visit her, "Could it be a mistake? Second Aunt is doing this for her, which is not good for her at all."
"You fool, Zou can't bear to see our eldest wife doing well. Your brother made mistakes in the autumn exam and made it to the blue list, but as long as he does well in the spring exam, he can still enter the court as an official. But Ji Deng has already failed the exam, and he may not be able to pass it in three years. He has no hope of passing the imperial examination, and she certainly doesn't want to see Ji Ke succeed."
When Zhuang Qingru heard this, she thought it made sense, "I didn't expect Second Aunt to be this kind of person."
"She is just that kind of person. She doesn't even think about the fact that a talented person in the palace needs to rely on his brothers to support him outside."
The mother and daughter criticized Zou, and Zou looked at the wound on her face in the mirror and scolded Wu, "Tigress, you are so cruel. Ouch, it hurts so much."
The maid came in and said, "Second Madam, the old lady wants you to come over."
"What's the matter? They ask me to come over all day long." Zou complained, but she didn't dare not go.
Mrs. Zhuang looked at her daughter-in-law with a bruised face and frowned, "Did the door get you stuck in the head? You don't do serious things, but do all kinds of nonsense."
"Mother, this matter has nothing to do with my daughter-in-law. I didn't tell anyone about Ke Ge'er's gambling with others." Zou defended.
"Yes, you didn't tell anyone else. You went back to your parents' home and told your two sisters-in-law. You knew they were not very careful with their words, but you still told them about it. Zico has no future, do you think you can get away with it? You can't write two characters for Zhuang with one stroke."
"My daughter-in-law knows her mistake and she won't dare to do it again."
Old Madam Zhuang snorted coldly, "You say you dare not, but you are so bold when it comes to doing things. If you have the time, you might as well think about how to get news about the talented people in the palace."
"Mother went to the palace yesterday. Why didn't you ask the princess?"
"The princess said she hasn't been to the palace for some time and is not clear about the talent's situation."
"The princess has her own considerations when doing things, so don't talk about it here." Old Madam Zhuang became even more unhappy, "Get out."
Neither of her two daughters-in-law gives her peace of mind, and neither of them can support the family business. Oh, her life is really a hard one.
Zou curled her lips, bowed, and walked out, looking indifferent.
Time passed quickly, and after more than ten days, the matter of the Sichuan Province Autumn Examination had been concluded.
Several officials who were sent to Chengdu rushed back to the capital at full speed.
In the morning court of that day, Zuodu Yushi Ben reported: "After comparing more than a thousand examination papers one by one, we found that the beginnings of seven examination papers showed signs of being replaced."
"Who did it?" the emperor asked in a deep voice.
"The person who changed the top scorer in the Chengdu Autumn Examination was a student from Chengdu named Feng Jin. He came from a wealthy family, but he was not very talented or well-educated."
The case was not complicated. It involved a few wealthy men with no talent but money who used money to bribe the education officials and successfully passed the county examinations, the academy examinations, and even the provincial examinations.
They were also so bold as to touch the test paper of the top candidate.
If they move those who are ranked lower, they may not be discovered and they may successfully seize their status as scholars.
The property of all the academic officials involved in the incident was confiscated by the government, and those wealthy men did not have a good ending either, as they were sentenced to execution in the autumn.
Tan Shidu was also implicated for poor supervision and was demoted three levels.
The several students whose test papers were replaced had their rightful rankings restored, but this sensational case of cheating in the provincial examination has not yet been settled.
"According to Feng Jin's confession, the reason why the Feng family was able to establish a relationship with Chen Xuezheng was entirely due to Doctor Jiao of the Ministry of Personnel's Office of Selection and Purification of Personnel. Doctor Jiao also accepted a generous gift from the Feng family."
The rank of Langzhong of the Ministry of Personnel was not high, only a fifth-rank official.
However, Doctor Jiao had a noble relative. His daughter married the prince of Changyu Earl, who was the brother of the prince's wife of Prince De.
To be honest, if we insist on linking the Jiao family with the Prince De's Mansion, it does make sense.
In-laws of relatives are also relatives.
The emperor is not very clear about this kind of relationship.
But Prince Ding knew that he felt this might be an opportunity to strike at Prince De's Mansion. Prince De's Mansion and Prince Jin's Mansion were on good terms, and it would be great if Prince Jin's Mansion could also be involved!
"Your Majesty, the imperial examination is the most important thing for the court to select talents. How can we let the scoundrels take advantage of this loophole? Doctor Jiao is just a small fifth-rank official. How can he have the ability to make the local education officials obey him? I think that the Sichuan Province Autumn Examination is probably just the tip of the iceberg. I implore Your Majesty to thoroughly investigate this matter and restore justice to the students all over the world."
This speech is full of righteousness.
The emperor knew very well that Prince Ding was not the kind of person who would work for the public good, so his sudden words were thought-provoking.
"Uncle Wang, what you said makes sense. I will leave this matter to you." The emperor took the opportunity to entrust the important task to Prince Ding.
After the court session was adjourned, Prince Ding was summoned to inquire about the reason.
"Your Majesty, I think this matter should not be handed over to Prince Ding." An official stepped out and said.
This official's surname was Chen Hui, and he worked in the Ministry of Justice. He was always upright and fair in his work, and he was not a member of the Jin King's faction. The emperor was still willing to listen to his opinions, "Why not?"
(End of this chapter)