EMHTC -Chapter 40 Ah! It’s so hot!

The Crown Grandson thought that exposing the scandal of examination fraud would shock everyone. However…

Xu Yanmiao was panicking, flipping through the emperor’s romantic history in his mind, worried he’d stumble upon scandalous stories about the emperor and other men. The ministers were half-awestruck, half-terrified, fearing they might not live through the night. The emperor, meanwhile, was in pain, desperate for a way to silence the voice in his head.

The Crown Grandson? What did he say again?

The Crown Grandson himself: What is wrong with all of you! This is about examination fraud! Can’t you show some respect for the gravity of such a crime? Throughout history, cases of examination fraud have always led to numerous deaths, with even chief examiners being imprisoned!

“Grandfather!” The Crown Grandson raised his voice. “Your Majesty! Your Majesty!!!”

The emperor barely managed to return to his senses. “Huh? What’s the matter?”

Flushing with frustration, the Crown Grandson shouted even louder, “Xu Yanmiao! Examination fraud!”

Xu Yanmiao’s internal voice suddenly came to a screeching halt. He had just been digging into records from Tian Tong Year 12…

The ministers, some of whom were secretly enjoying the gossip, exchanged subtle glances. The Crown Prince, for instance, was oddly disappointed, as though something interesting had been interrupted.

The emperor regained his composure and ordered the chief eunuch to fetch a cup of tea to calm his nerves. “Gao Qisheng, if you’re going to slander someone, at least make it believable. How could Xu Yanmiao…” He paused to sip his tea. “…possibly commit examination fraud?”

At that moment, the emperor suddenly heard: 【Ah, has it been discovered?】

“Pfft—”

The emperor spat his tea everywhere, coughing uncontrollably while the chief eunuch rushed forward with a handkerchief. The emperor’s mind reeled with shock. Wait… did you really commit examination fraud? Xu Yanmiao, you were capable of something like this?

Simultaneously, the Crown Grandson triumphantly pulled a scroll from his sleeve and held it aloft. “Your Majesty! Here is the evidence!”

A young eunuch scurried over, carefully took the scroll, and hurriedly presented it to the emperor. The emperor stared at the scroll, pondering whether he could “accidentally” spill tea on it to blur the ink.

Meanwhile, the ministers exchanged odd, knowing looks. Theoretically, examination fraud was a capital offense. However… But… was always the key word. Given Xiao Baize’s importance, a little examination fraud was nothing!

Still, they couldn’t let the issue slide too blatantly—it would undermine the state’s credibility. Quietly, the ministers began brainstorming ways to absolve Xu Yanmiao.

The Crown Grandson, oblivious to their scheming, added, “Your Majesty, I found this scroll outside the former Left Censor-in-Chief’s residence. Upon investigation, I discovered it was written by Xu Yanmiao of the Ministry of Personnel. However, the handwriting is vastly different from his usual documents!”

Before he could finish, a minister couldn’t help but interject, “Your Highness, that argument is flawed. Officials often delegate their writing to subordinates. It’s quite common.”

This was true—emperors had Hanlin scholars draft edicts, and officials had clerks write their documents. It was an unwritten rule of officialdom.

The Crown Grandson retorted confidently, “I’m aware of that.” He lifted his chin proudly. “But what if his handwriting on the examination papers is entirely different from his usual style?”

He emphasized, “From the imperial examination through the local, provincial, and metropolitan levels, his handwriting remained consistent. Why would it suddenly change after the exams?”

Normally, the final steps after the metropolitan examination were the palace examination and selection of imperial scholars. However, in that particular year, the process was unusual due to imperial decree. Even those who failed the metropolitan exam could enter the Imperial Academy. At only seventeen, Xu Yanmiao (or his predecessor) wasn’t a prodigy, and failing the metropolitan exam was normal. He merely rode the wave into the Hanlin Academy without needing the palace examination or further evaluation.

Thus, the argument “his handwriting matched during the palace examination” couldn’t be used to refute the fraud claim.

Another minister jumped in, “It’s common for candidates to alter their handwriting during exams to impress the examiners. That’s hardly suspicious.”

Then, yet another minister chimed in, “What if Xu Yanmiao can write with his left hand?”

The Crown Grandson had anticipated resistance. After all, no one would willingly admit to examination fraud. He lacked irrefutable evidence and was relying on the emperor’s disposition and circumstantial reasoning to ruin Xu Yanmiao.

The Crown Grandson’s plan was to first provoke the emperor’s disgust by insinuating Xu Yanmiao had caused chaos in the inner court. Then, he would bring up the examination fraud to reinforce the emperor’s negative perception of Xu Yanmiao. Even with weak evidence, this bias would make it difficult for Xu Yanmiao to escape unscathed.

But!!!

The Crown Grandson hadn’t expected so much resistance!

Xu Yanmiao was just a lowly ninth-rank official! Why were officials stepping up one after another to defend him?

Xu Yanmiao himself hadn’t even responded yet!

【Ah, this is…】

Xu Yanmiao felt a headache coming on.

He had ended up in the original host’s body because of a deal with a system—which, according to the system, was a legitimate company that didn’t engage in coercion.

The original host had first been recommended for the scholar degree, then failed the provincial exam but benefited from policy changes that allowed him to enter the Imperial Academy. From there, he had incredible luck, landing a vacancy in the Ministry of Personnel as a junior official in the capital.

Staying in the capital was much better than the typical fates of failed candidates, who often ended up as assistants, county magistrates, or schoolteachers.

All this happened within six months, each stroke of luck more exciting than the last—so much so that the original host literally died of overexcitement.

Overwhelmed by resentment, he had attracted the system, which then struck a deal: “I worked hard for years to pass the imperial exams and finally got a central government post. Then I died?! It’s not fair!!!”

Though reviving him wasn’t an option, the original host had begged Xu Yanmiao to at least keep the position for a while—otherwise, his death would feel meaningless.

【How should I explain this? Say I was previously in a dazed state, acting unconsciously, but suddenly had a moment of clarity that changed my handwriting, habits, and even speech patterns? Would anyone even believe such an absurd story?】

The ministers of Da Xia: “!!!”

We’d believe it! Please, just say it! Give us a chance to believe you! We’re already prepared to believe it!

The Crown Grandson had been passionately shouting, “Then have Xu Yanmiao write something right now! We’ll know immediately! If he can replicate the same handwriting, then it’s clear I made a false accusation! I’ve also collected samples of his recent handwriting with his right hand, and it matches the writing on the note!”

“And!” the Crown Grandson’s voice grew even more impassioned. “He can’t even recite ‘When friends come from afar, is it not a joy?’ correctly! He recited it as ‘When friends come from afar, they must be annihilated!’ How could someone like that pass the imperial exams, the provincial exams, or the metropolitan exams? He must have used a substitute to take the exams!”

—This information had been inadvertently discovered by the Crown Grandson through a conversation between Quan Yizhang and another person about Xu Yanmiao. After all, there were no cameras in the imperial examination halls, so as far as he was concerned, claiming it was a case of substitution was as good as fact.

【I’m done for.】

Xu Yanmiao thought bleakly.

The Four Books and Five Classics? He genuinely couldn’t recite them. And ever since becoming a clerk, his work didn’t require such knowledge. Otherwise, he would have already tackled it with the same determination he once had for his university entrance exams.

【There’s no way to explain this; looks like I’m dead meat.】

No!!!

The old emperor and the court officials collectively gasped in shock.

If you die, how will we survive?!

The Minister of Works, on the verge of a heart attack, immediately stood up. “Your Highness, the Crown Grandson, do you have evidence of this alleged substitution? Please do not falsely accuse a good man.”

The Crown Grandson’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head.

What kind of connections does this Xu Yanmiao have?! He wasn’t surprised that officials involved in the examination process would defend him—they had a vested interest. But you, a Minister of Works, a second-rank official, stepping up for a ninth-rank petty clerk?!

Quan Yizhang seemed to notice the Crown Grandson’s bewildered expression. With a measured movement, he slowly rose from his seat—a privilege granted by the emperor due to his age and status. He typically didn’t involve himself in governmental affairs, serving instead as a figurehead, symbolizing the court’s respect for talent, even those loyal to the previous dynasty.

The Crown Grandson had no choice but to bow respectfully to the elder statesman.

Quan Yizhang ignored him entirely, turning instead to the emperor and bowing lightly. “Your Majesty, I have spent some time with Xu Yanmiao, and he is not the kind of person who would engage in examination fraud.”

Strictly speaking, even if he hadn’t heard Xu Yanmiao’s thoughts, Quan Yizhang didn’t believe that someone as pure-hearted as Xu Yanmiao could commit examination fraud.

The man didn’t even know how to exploit his position for personal gain!

Xu Yanmiao was stunned.

Then, suddenly…

【Sniff sniff sniff, there really are good people in this world! It turns out all that talk about political faction struggles and court intrigue recorded in history books is exaggerated. Most officials are willing to stand up for what’s right!】

Indeed, court officials involved in endless political struggles and factional infighting exchanged guilty, shifty glances.

For a moment, the court was enveloped in an awkward silence.

But the Crown Grandson pulled them back to the topic at hand. “Of course I have evidence!”

He didn’t. But as he had said before, there were no cameras in the imperial examination halls.

The Crown Grandson declared resolutely, “Three days before the imperial examination, Xu Yanmiao secretly met with the chief examiner, Assistant Minister He Bi of the Ministry of Rites! Because of this, the Assistant Minister turned a blind eye to the substitution!”

Assistant Minister He Bi nearly fainted on the spot.

He had never even met Xu Yanmiao! Before hearing his thoughts today, he didn’t even know who Xu Yanmiao was! He only ever had secret meetings with high-ranking officials! The Crown Grandson… was trying to ruin him! An accusation like turning a blind eye to fraud could easily lead to demotion or even execution!

Unfazed, the Crown Grandson continued, “And furthermore…”

The Crown Grandson proceeded to implicate a slew of other officials in the supposed conspiracy, showing no regard for the consequences to their lives.

Xu Yanmiao gazed at them with sympathy.

【Sorry, but I can’t even save myself right now…】

Flipping through his gossip system, Xu Yanmiao sighed deeply.

He had the dirt to refute the Crown Grandson’s claims, but he couldn’t explain how he got the information.

【Three days before the examination, I secretly met with the chief examiner? Impossible. That night, Assistant Minister He Bi dressed as a woman and stayed overnight at the General’s residence, and the two of them…】

The two of them what?!

The officials collectively lost their composure, their eyes lighting up with the spark of juicy gossip.

And! Assistant Minister He Bi cross-dressing? So scandalous! Could it be that the two were having an affair?!

The General stiffened, desperately trying to interrupt Xu Yanmiao’s thoughts. “Your Majesty!!!!”

“While it’s true that the evidence of examination fraud is damning, I believe there is more to this matter and that it should be thoroughly re-investigated! Especially since Xu… Xu… Xu Yanmiao’s attire is impeccable! How could someone so meticulous about their appearance tarnish their own reputation?!”

The Crown Grandson’s face turned a shade greener than the emperor’s had when his bed habits were exposed earlier.

Such an absurd excuse—how could you say it with a straight face?!

Xu Yanmiao’s inner voice finally stilled.

He changed his tune. 【Thank you! Thank you, General! You’re a good person!】

The General nodded vigorously.

Yes, yes, I’m a good person. As for my affairs with Assistant Minister He Bi, let’s let them remain buried forev—

【I swear on my life! I would never reveal that you secretly met with Assistant Minister He Bi late at night, suspected the emperor of mistrusting his sworn brothers, and had the Assistant Minister dress as a woman for a ruse!】