Late at night, the whole world is sleeping peacefully.
There was a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds coming from the southeast direction of the capital. Men in uniform were riding their horses and whizzing past. Under the cold moonlight, the cold light reflected from the weapons on the waists of this group of men could be vaguely seen.
It was already midnight and the entire capital was under curfew. The garrison guards of the South City Military Division set up fences at the intersections of the streets and patrolled the streets with weapons and sticks, and no one was allowed to pass.
Just as the night patrol guards of the South City Military Department were preparing to find a sheltered place to drink some wine and warm themselves up, they heard a hurried sound of horse hooves getting closer and closer. Soon they saw a group of people riding horses. One of them sped up his horse and galloped over, with an embroidered spring sword on his waist and a token with a tassel in his hand.
"The Jinyiwei are on mission according to the emperor's order. Please clear the way immediately!" The Jinyiwei who came on horseback, holding the token, shouted loudly to the night patrol guards of the Nancheng Bingmasi.
The South City Bingmasi was responsible for patrolling tonight with a small flag, which consisted of more than ten people. When the leading small flag officer saw the token with tassel in the hand of the Jinyiwei, his face turned pale and his whole body trembled. This token was not an ordinary Jinyiwei token. He glanced at the team of Jinyiwei from a distance and vaguely saw that the Jinyiwei were surrounding a big man in a bullfighting costume. How could he dare to neglect it? He immediately ordered his men to move away the fences and other roadblocks.
According to the old Ming system, the first rank is a bullfight, the second rank is a flying fish, the third rank is a python, the fourth and fifth rank are a unicorn, and the sixth and seventh rank are a tiger and a leopard. Doesn't this bullfighting uniform mean that the master is here in person? !
The small flag officer did not dare to delay for a moment and ordered his soldiers to clear the way. However, the more anxious he was, the more chaos there was. Also, because the fence was too heavy, the people from the South City Bingmasi were in a panic and failed to move the fence properly.
"Ahem..."
The Jinyiwei behind were gradually approaching. The man in his forties wearing a bullfighting suit who was surrounded by them coughed lightly, and seemed to be very dissatisfied with the situation.
Hearing the cough, the Jinyiwei holding the token was shocked. Without thinking, he put the token in his arms and flew off the horse like a big bird, with his toes not even touching the ground. He jumped up again and in a flash, he was among the people carrying the fence of the South City Bingmasi.
"rise!"
The Jinyiwei growled, veins flashing on his forehead, and in the surprised eyes of the soldiers of the South City Military Division, he grabbed the fence and pushed it to the side of the road along with several soldiers.
The team of Jinyiwei behind didn't even look at it, and rode their horses through the gap and passed through the intersection.
Immediately afterwards, the Jinyiwei who led the way also jumped on his horse and chased after him.
In fact, it only took one or two minutes from the time the Jinyiwei showed the token to the time he rushed away.
The men from the Nancheng Bingmasi who were patrolling at the street corner stared blankly at the pair of Jinyiwei whizzing past, and did not react for a moment, until two unlucky guys who were pushed to the side of the road along with the fence touched their feet and screamed twice, then they finally reacted.
"Boss, what mission are the Jinyiwei on in the middle of the night?" Someone asked, watching the Jinyiwei rushing by.
"If you don't want to die, don't ask!"
The small flag officer glared at the man vigorously, and then directed his men to clear the road thoroughly. Those masters might have to return. In this dynasty, the Jinyiwei was extremely powerful, much more powerful than the Dongchang. He dared not offend these people.
Not long after, Shuntian Examination Hall in the south of the capital city welcomed a group of uninvited guests, who were none other than the Jinyiwei who rode their horses down the street.
Gongyuan rules. In order to ensure the fairness of the imperial examination and prevent examiners from cheating, examiners who enter the Gongyuan cannot leave until the examination is over and the rankings are determined. This can take as little as three to five days or as much as dozens of days. Before the examination rankings are determined, the Gongyuan locks cannot be opened.
However, after the Embroidered Uniform Guard presented a handwritten order, the Imperial Examination Hall opened its doors.
"Guard the door. Don't let even an ant crawl out without my order!"
The middle-aged man in the bullfighting suit, accompanied by several other Jinyiwei, entered the Shuntian Imperial Examination Hall and gave instructions to several of his subordinates. The middle-aged man in the bullfighting suit was over 40 years old, tall, and gave people a strong and brave feeling. His skin color was different from that of ordinary people, as if there was a ball of fire in his body. His skin color was faintly fiery red, and he walked like a crane.
Therefore, several of the accompanying Jinyiwei were sent to guard the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall with embroidered spring swords in their hands, fulfilling their duties loyally.
"Lord Lu came in person so late at night. I am sorry for not welcoming you in person. I am sorry for not welcoming you in person."
When examiners Xu Jie, Yan Maoqing and others in the Zhigong Hall saw the person coming, they quickly stood up from their seats and went to greet him.
This person is not simple. He is the most powerful and powerful leader of the Jinyiwei. The commander of the Jinyiwei is Shi Lubing. He is not only extremely smart, but also good at political schemes. In the past, the Dongchang always suppressed the Jinyiwei, but in Lu Bing's hands, the Jinyiwei suppressed the Dongchang to the point of being breathless. Under his wise leadership, the Jinyiwei has become the most terrifying intelligence machine. Whenever there is any disturbance in the capital, he is always the first to know. Not only that, Lu Bing has a special relationship with the current emperor. Lu Bing is the son of the Jiajing Emperor's wet nurse. The two grew up with the same milk. Lu Bing grew up with the Jiajing Emperor and was deeply trusted by the Jiajing Emperor.
In addition, Lu Bing was the lifesaver of Emperor Jiajing. In the 18th year of Jiajing, the emperor went on a tour, and Lu Bing led the Jinyiwei officers and soldiers to escort him. In Weihui, Henan, at four o'clock in the middle of the night, the palace suddenly caught fire, and the officials who accompanied him fled in a hurry. No one cared about the whereabouts of the emperor. It was Lu Bing who rushed into the fire without hesitation and escaped from the fire with the emperor on his back. This act of sacrificing himself to save the master made Emperor Jiajing see his loyalty, and from then on he became more and more favored and trusted him, and he was promoted to the highest officer of Jinyiwei.
How could the officials in the court not be afraid of such a person
Therefore, whether it was Xu Jie or Yan Maoqing and others, they all stood up to greet him, saying all kinds of polite words.
"Master Xu, Master Yan, you have all worked hard in reviewing the papers. The emperor has ordered me to come and express my condolences to you..."
Lu Bing, however, was not at all arrogant. He was very polite and greeted Xu Jie and the others with a smile and a bow.
"No, no, Lord Lu has to attend to official business late at night, so he has worked hard and made great contributions..." Xu Jie and others said politely.
After a few simple polite remarks, Lu Bing got back to the point and asked Xu Jie and others, "I wonder how the examination went for you gentlemen. The emperor has been reading it for several days."
"What a coincidence! The marking of the papers has just ended and the draft list has just been filled in." Xu Jie replied with a laugh.
The examiner behind him placed the completed draft list and the red papers of the top ten candidates in a paper bag with various seals on it, and at Xu Jie's signal, handed it to Lu Bing with both hands.
"Then I won't bother you any more. The emperor is still waiting for your report. I believe that you all can go home and have a comfortable rest tomorrow." After Lu Bing took the paper bag, he bowed and said goodbye to Xu Jie and others.
After Lu Bing left Shuntian Imperial Examination Hall, he rode his horse non-stop to the West Garden where Emperor Jiajing practiced alchemy. Shuntian Imperial Examination Hall once again locked its doors and waited for Emperor Jiajing to review the results the next day before opening the hall to announce the results. The examiners would then have completed their mission of taking the examination and could return home to their respective families. (To be continued.)