"Your Majesty…"
At this moment, Nalan Mingzhu finally spoke. He raised his right foot and was about to step out of the formation.
The other officials could back down at a critical moment, but he couldn't. As the leader of this interest group, he had to stand up at this time. Otherwise, who would dare to work for him in the future?
"Minister Nalan, is there anything else?”
Qian Long looked at Nalan Mingzhu coldly.
Nalan Mingzhu saw the meaning in Qianlong's eyes. This matter started because of you. If I don't find trouble with you, don't come and plead for Li Hanhai. Even if you plead for mercy, you can't change this ending.
Finally, after hesitating for a while, Nalan Mingzhu withdrew her right foot.
He could tell that the Emperor had made up his mind today.
Regardless of whether he persuaded him or not, Qianlong would not change his decision today.
Since that was the case, why did he still stand out?
Ignoring Li Hanhai, who was kneeling on the ground and peeing in fear when he heard that his family was going to be exiled to the frontier, Qianlong turned to ask Wu Shulai,"Who are the other two vice presidents who are in charge of this exam with Li Hanhai?”
Wu Shulai walked out and knelt on the ground.""Your Majesty, they are the Supreme Court's Minister Liu Zhengcheng and Taichang Temple's Minister Xu Yuan.”
Hearing Wu Shulai say his name, the two vice presidents of this year's exam, Liu Zhengcheng and Xu Yuan, who were third-grade officials of the imperial court, immediately turned pale, just like Li Hanhai.
Thud!
He knelt on the ground and kowtowed, crying bitterly. He pleaded with Qianlong,"Your Majesty, please spare my life. I know my sins.”
Qianlong said,"Since you know your crimes, why do you still break the law?" You two are deputy officials, but you didn't assist your main posts and complete the mission given to you by the Imperial Court. You also neglected your duties. Pass on my orders, immediately capture them and send them to the imperial prison. Together with Li Hanhai, they will be beheaded outside the Wu Gate and their families will be exiled to the border.”
Upon hearing Emperor Qianlong's order, Liu Zhengcheng, Xu Yuan, and Li Hanhai instantly collapsed to the ground, their faces lifeless. They didn't even know that their official hats had fallen off because they had kowtowed to plead for mercy.
"What about the examiners?" Wu Shulai asked.”
Qianlong sat back on the dragon throne and thought for a moment."The words of those examiners carry little weight, and they don't have any authority. They have also completed their duty of assisting in the orderly conduct of this exam, so they can be exempted from this responsibility.”
Wu Shulai thought for a moment and nodded. He understood what Emperor Qianlong meant.
Forget about the examiners, but as the chief and vice presidents of the imperial court's general exams, they had to be severely punished.
Not long after, a team of about ten guards with sabers walked into the Palace of Heavenly Purity. They stripped off Li Hanhai's official uniform, who was lying on the ground like a dead dog with lifeless eyes. They took off his pipe cap and dragged him out.
The Supreme Court Official Liu Zhengcheng and Taichang Temple Official Xu Yuan were not spared from this misfortune. They were also stripped of their official robes and hats, and were temporarily imprisoned by guards with swords.
"Your Majesty, Li Hanhai, Liu Zhengcheng, and Xu Yuan have been arrested for bending the law for personal gain. How should we deal with He Shen, who was implicated in this matter and failed the roll?”
Wu Shulai, who had long known that the Emperor admired He Shen's literary talent, immediately took the initiative to help Emperor Qianlong and raised this question.
"Since Heshen has the qualifications to be a Huiyuan, then abolish the previous exam list and grant Heshen the title of Huiyuan for this year's exam. When executing Li Hanhai, Liu Zhengcheng, and Xu Yuan, I will personally announce it. Do you have any objections?"
Qian Long sat on the dragon throne, his cold gaze sweeping back and forth.
All the officials stood there like statues, not moving an inch. No one dared to stand out and oppose Qianlong's decision.
What a joke. Since Qianlong had already expressed his support for Heshen, they would only be reprimanded for nothing.
"Since there are no objections, then this matter is decided.”
After saying this, Qianlong turned around and left the Palace of Heavenly Purity with the eunuchs and palace maids.
Nalan Mingzhu stood in the middle of Qianqing Palace, looking at Qianlong's back with a gloomy expression.
Seeing the other four powerful ministers, including Oboi, Longkeduo, Sushun, and Soertu, walking to his side, he said in a low voice,"
"I was careless this time. I didn't expect this little Emperor to be so sinister. He would suddenly use this matter to make trouble, causing us to lose one Secondary Level Two and two Secondary Level Three officials.”
Before Qianlong ascended the throne last year, the Qing Dynasty officials, Oboi, Longkeduo, Sushun, E'ertu, and Nalanmingzhu, had been fighting for power in the court. Everyone wanted to get rid of the others so that they could listen to the government behind the curtain and assist the young emperor, making themselves a hero like Cao Cao.
However, after Qianlong ascended the throne, they realized that they had underestimated this young emperor.
In the previous few silent battles, Qianlong had always been the one to win.
This time, under Qianlong's unexpected attack, they were careless and lost three high-ranking officials to the Emperor.
Although Qianlong was still weak and their forces were slightly stronger than Qianlong's, they were afraid that Qianlong would kill them one by one as if he was pulling out nails, so they had secretly formed an alliance.
As Nian Gengyao spent most of his time in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, he was excluded from this circle because his influence in the imperial court was limited.
"Minister Nalan, you really weren't careful enough. You've lost three officials of the third rank and above.”
"The little Emperor always likes to play tricks. If I don't like anyone, I'll use this big hand to tear them apart.”
"Minister Nalan, be careful!"
"If this continues, I'm afraid that it won't be long before Minister Nalan doesn't have anyone under him.”
Soetu, Oboi, Longkeduo, and Sushun walked past Nalan Mingzhu one after another. They gloated and left without looking back.
Nalan Mingzhu's face turned even darker when she heard their words.
Although they were forced to unite because of the little Emperor, their alliance was extremely loose due to conflicts of interest. Other than dealing with Qianlong, their goal was the same.
At other times, they wished that the other party would die and they would be the only ones left.
……
At noon.
The scorching sun of spring felt warm on the passers-by. It was far from the scorching heat of summer.
He Shen, who didn't look like he was feeling very frustrated, was taking an afternoon nap in his room.
"Brother He! Brother He! Get up! Get up!"
"Good news! Good news! Great news!"
Bang bang bang!
At this moment, there was another annoying knock on the door, as well as Cao Rui's familiar voice.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。