Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 649: Chapter 319 Dragon Guards_2

"The Emperor is truly formidable, coming up with the imperial examinations as a way to deal with the noble families." Anyone with a bit of wit knows how powerful and remarkable the imperial examinations are. "Now, whether from noble families or poor households, as long as one studies, they can partake in the imperial examinations. If they are talented, they can stand out in the exams and become officials. This is a brilliant strategy that kills two birds with one stone."

"The real strength of the imperial examinations lies in breaking the monopoly of the noble families on officialdom, thus influencing the court," Prince Wei said with a smile. "Of course, it also affects the status of the noble families. As long as the examinations continue, the position and influence of the noble families will weaken, and scholars from humble beginnings will change their destinies through the exams, becoming a new force, a force capable of opposing the noble families."

"Noble family offspring no longer have the privilege of directly becoming officials; they must compete in the imperial examinations alongside scholars from humble backgrounds, relying entirely on their own abilities," Yu Hai said, continually growing more impressed with the Emperor. "This provides a fair and just opportunity for all scholars in the realm."

Prince Wei said pensively, "It depends on whether favoritism and fraud appear in the examinations. If someone cheats, the outcome is still unfair."

"Prince, didn’t the Emperor issue a decree? If examinees cheat in the imperial examinations, they will be disqualified and banned for life from participating, and they cannot become officials either." Recently, the Emperor issued many decrees related to the examinations. "If an official is found guilty of favoritism and fraud, they will be beheaded immediately in public, and their family will be exiled. Their descendants will be barred for life from participating in the examinations and becoming officials. I believe those ministers wouldn’t dare to cheat."

"Those people are capable of anything." Prince Wei thought of the Crown Prince’s ministers with palpable disdain in his eyes. "For power and wealth, they are willing to take risks."

"Don’t they want to live?" Yu Hai exclaimed in shock. "The Emperor is not a soft-hearted person. If they truly dare to engage in favoritism and fraud, the Emperor will indeed kill them."

"Of course, this year’s imperial examinations, they wouldn’t dare to make any moves." Prince Wei, recalling recent events, found the noble families to be utterly laughable.

Since the Emperor announced the imperial examinations on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, the noble families certainly couldn’t remain idle. Although the Emperor stated no one could obstruct or oppose the exams and that doing so would be treated as treason, the noble families still dared to test the Emperor by sending people to probe him.

These individuals were not the direct line of the noble families but rather collateral or several generations removed. They led a group of scholars to oppose and obstruct the examinations. These scholars came from noble families, officialdom, and impoverished backgrounds.

The scholars from impoverished families participated in the opposition because they were either bribed or threatened.

The Capital Governor immediately apprehended these people and strictly interrogated them about who was directing them. These individuals were very stubborn, refusing to confess their backers no matter the methods used.

Those scholars who had been threatened or bribed, however, confessed obediently.

The Emperor had previously issued a decree, stating that if anyone dared to obstruct or oppose the examinations, they must have the courage to face the consequences.

Among the scholars causing trouble, those who were threatened were spared the death penalty, but all others were beheaded, very ceremoniously, in the marketplace as a public spectacle.

The noble families and the troublemaking scholars didn’t expect the Emperor to be serious, beheading them as he had said. The scholars regretted their actions before their execution and wanted to confess, but it was too late.

Even if they confessed, they would still be beheaded. Moreover, whether they confessed or not was not that important. The Emperor was well aware of who was behind them.

The ministers who originally intended to pressure the Emperor using this incident saw the Emperor behead the scholars without batting an eye and realized the Emperor’s stance was very firm.

In the morning court, the Emperor once again warned the ministers that if any of them dared to obstruct the implementation of the examinations, it wouldn’t be as simple as beheading.

Since then, no one in the capital dared to lead trouble against the imperial examinations anymore.

The noble families, seeing this tactic fail, hatched another plan. They decided to tamper with the process of implementing the examinations to prevent their smooth execution.