My Wife Is The Female Lead In A Scum Alpha Novel - Chapter 52

52

When Ruan Zhi returned, Gu Qingci was still deep in thought, pondering how to investigate the matter and clear her name.

Her abilities had been witnessed by many.

Cao Hang, Wen Renyi, and others were all supporting her.

However, Gu Qingci was worried—talent was one thing, but performance during the exam was another.

There were plenty of examples of people underperforming when it mattered.

The martial exam had taken place on the spot, leaving no tangible evidence like written test papers.

Though there were examiners and fellow candidates who could testify, if those people had been bribed, it would be difficult to determine what truly happened during the martial exam.

As for the literary exam, it was even harder to judge.

From Ruan Zhi’s perspective, Gu Qingci sat with her back to the door, head bowed, looking utterly dejected and pitiful.

Ruan Zhi knew how hard Gu Qingci had worked and how skilled she truly was. To have given so much effort and still not see her name on the list must have been a devastating blow.

She walked over and, without a word, wrapped her arms around Gu Qingci.

Gu Qingci snapped out of her thoughts, sensing the comforting intent in Ruan Zhi’s embrace—and the slight quickness of her breath, a sign that she had hurried back.

Gu Qingci nuzzled against her in return.

“Madam, I’m sorry… I won’t be able to expedite your status transfer now.” Gu Qingci murmured before Ruan Zhi could speak.

That was the most infuriating part.

For Gu Qingci, attaining an official position quickly meant ranking in the top tier of the imperial examination.

She didn’t want to resort to pulling strings through connections or accumulating battlefield achievements—neither option appealed to her.

Of course, she could always ask Ye Youli to help change Ruan Zhi’s status, but… Ruan Zhi was her wife now!

Hearing Gu Qingci’s words, Ruan Zhi hadn’t expected that to be the first thing on her mind—that failing the exam primarily meant she couldn’t expedite Ruan Zhi’s status transfer.

Gu Qingci had mentioned it before, but Ruan Zhi had taken it lightly at the time.

Now, hearing it again, Ruan Zhi felt as though something had twisted in her chest—first a pang, then a spreading warmth.

Looking at Gu Qingci’s downcast lips and sorrowful expression, Ruan Zhi felt that empty reassurances like It’s fine or It doesn’t matter would ring hollow.

She didn’t want Gu Qingci to be unhappy.

“Madam—” Gu Qingci started to speak again, but suddenly, her lips met something soft and warm.

A tender, fleeting press, carrying a faint bitterness that soon melted into mellow sweetness.

Gu Qingci froze.

Her mind went blank.

All her focus narrowed to that single point of contact—her lips.

Ruan Zhi’s kiss was extremely light, just a mere brush of their lips before she pulled away.

Gu Qingci came back to her senses and wanted to chase after her to continue, but a force pressed against her shoulder—it was Ruan Zhi’s hand resting there.

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you seek justice!” Ruan Zhi said to Gu Qingci, her ears still tinged with a faint blush.

She wasn’t sure why she had kissed her just then. Perhaps it was because Gu Qingci had been wanting to kiss her these past few days.

Now that she was in low spirits, Ruan Zhi thought she might as well indulge her to lift her mood.

Gu Qingci was momentarily stunned by Ruan Zhi’s words. She noticed a shift in Ruan Zhi’s demeanor—her usual gentleness had turned sharp, her gaze piercing and stern!

“Madam, Lady Wenren and Brother Cao, whom we met before, have already sent people to speak up. What do you plan to do?” Gu Qingci asked.

“Spread the matter far and wide.” Ruan Zhi replied.

Ruan Zhi quickly summoned Min Guiyi, Madam Zhao, and others, assigning them a series of tasks. She even called over the elderly storyteller she had previously hired to polish the tales she told Gu Qingci.

Ruan Zhi intended to hire a few other candidates who had also failed the exams to publicly protest the fraud in the military examinations. Meanwhile, the storyteller would craft Gu Qingci’s experience into a sensational, legendary tale to spread far and wide, embellishing how Gu Qingci had been injured. Dou Qiang’s abilities were too conspicuous, hinting to those in the know that this was the work of the Third Prince.

Of course, Gu Qingci was just one example. There were also Cao Hang, Wen Renyi, and other exceptional cases—individuals who had not passed despite their outstanding martial prowess.

These stories would be disseminated in bustling markets and lively streets, combining multiple angles to stir public outrage and escalate the military examination fraud scandal to a level of public indignation that the authorities could no longer ignore.

By this point, no matter what the examiners of this year’s session said or how they manipulated the situation, they had already been branded with the mark of fraud. Nothing they said would matter now.

After Ruan Zhi cast her net, the entire city of Yanjing became like a blank sheet of paper slowly soaked by droplets of water, gradually staining it with the hue Ruan Zhi desired.

Gu Qingci wasn’t sure how effective Ruan Zhi’s methods would be, but simply watching her orchestrate everything made her realize just how formidable Ruan Zhi was.

She had almost forgotten—Ruan Zhi was the Great Evil King!

In the afternoon, Wen Renyi and Cao Hang came to see Gu Qingci.

“I sought out my adoptive father’s old friend, General Fang, and told him about the matter. He said he would submit a memorial. However… our military examinations have never been taken seriously. General Fang submits memorials every year urging the court to value the military exams, but every year, the official ranks granted to military graduates remain lower than those of the civil service graduates. During the palace examination, we don’t even get to see His Majesty’s face—we just follow the civil service candidates in a perfunctory manner. We aren’t even qualified to attend the Qionglin Banquet. Military graduates are looked down upon in official circles by the literati, and in the army, they’re despised by generals who rose through battlefield merits. Whether this matter gains attention depends entirely on the will of those above.”

Cao Hang spoke with resignation.

The emphasis on civil over military affairs made it difficult for the military examinations to thrive.

At one point, there had even been discussions about abolishing them altogether.

It was precisely for this reason that Gu Qingci had been allowed to take the child-level exams under relaxed conditions back then.

“The military examinations are primarily overseen by the Ministry of War. I asked around and found out that your written exam score wasn’t recorded, and your martial exam score was suppressed below the passing line. This is… utterly shameless!” Even the usually mild-mannered Wen Renyi wore an expression of anger.

“Ever since the peace treaty with the Hu people and the cessation of major wars at the border, military officers have been treated as if they’re useless, and the army has been continuously downsized. But this year is different—the Northern Hu have repeatedly violated the border. If the court continues like this, the Daheng is in grave danger!” Cao Hang said.

Gu Qingci poured tea for the two indignant men.

What they said aligned closely with her earlier concerns.

As expected, the other side had covered their tracks, making it impossible to prove anything.

“Thank you both for your efforts on my behalf. My wife has made some arrangements. Let’s wait a few more days and see how things unfold.” Gu Qingci said to the two, briefly explaining Ruan Zhi’s plans.

“This method is brilliant! I’ll go too.” Cao Hang’s mood shifted from anger to excitement as he listened.

“Scholar Gu is no ordinary woman. This is excellent. I’ll go find the Imperial Censor and have them take a look.” said Wen Renyi.

These two didn’t stay long at Gu Qingci’s place before hurrying off.

Originally, Gu Qingci had planned to track the Third Prince, hoping to trap him or find evidence of his misdeeds, but this approach wasn’t very efficient.

It would be better to follow Ruan Zhi, protect her, and take orders by her side.

The military examinations had long been neglected, and past sessions had seen some injustices. After Ruan Zhi “fanned the flames” nearly half of the military examinees participating in the metropolitan exams joined the protests.

In just a few days, the matter had spread throughout the city.

When Third Prince Ye Lingchen, who was currently competing with Ye Youli for an official assignment, learned of the situation, his expression darkened.

It was just a military exam—none of them had even become imperial scholars yet—how could it cause such an uproar?!

This was something the Third Prince had never anticipated.

“These military examinees are lawless! Arrest anyone who continues to protest and throw them in prison!” the Third Prince fumed, wanting his faction to suppress them.

“Your Highness, I’m afraid suppressing this won’t be possible. Besides the protesting examinees, nearly everyone in the capital—commoners and officials alike—knows about it. Now we must think of how to mitigate the damage.” a Third Prince advisor hurriedly interjected.

“How? If the Emperor remains unaware, we can suppress it and let it fade away.” the Third Prince said with a frown.

Given Emperor Changping’s attitude toward the military exams, even if there were grading errors, he wouldn’t care.

Similar incidents had happened in previous years, but they had never escalated like this.

The Third Prince still thought it could be easily resolved, but before he could act, he received an oral decree from Emperor Changping summoning him to the palace.

Anxious, the Third Prince hurried to the palace, where he encountered Ye Youli and Crown Prince Ye Lingfeng along the way.

Ye Youli was as carefree as ever, lounging in a palanquin as if half-asleep.

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Ye Lingfeng maintained the demeanor of a refined and upright gentleman, always wearing a faint smile.

The sight of these two immediately irritated the Third Prince.

On the road, they exchanged only the most perfunctory greetings, each harboring their own thoughts as they made their way to Emperor Changping’s Hall of Mental Cultivation.

In the hall, the forty-something Emperor Changping, his face unnaturally pale and his spirits low, sat on the throne reviewing memorials. He coughed lightly, and a eunuch quickly brought him tea.

After taking a sip, the Emperor seemed slightly more composed.

When his three adult children arrived to pay their respects, Emperor Changping perked up a little.

“The protesting examinees are saying the military exams were unfair, that there was corruption among the examiners. Do you know about this?” Emperor Changping asked.

The three of them immediately responded.

“Recently, General Cao has sent several urgent military reports. The Hu people are restless; after recuperating and rebuilding their strength, they have begun to violate the treaty. Now is a critical time for Daheng, and the martial examinations have had a very negative impact. This must be thoroughly investigated. What do you think should be done?” Emperor Changping asked, his gaze sweeping over the three kneeling before him.

The Third Prince’s expression darkened even further.

General Cao’s military reports—why did they have to arrive now, of all times?!

“Father, all the examiners involved in the previous round must be thoroughly investigated to give the people an explanation. Then, new examiners should be appointed to conduct a re-examination and reselection. Your son proposes that the martial and civil examinations be treated with equal importance. I request that Your Majesty personally attend the palace examination for the martial candidates to select the top three scholars, determine their rankings, and then hold a grand banquet to bestow favor and reassurance.”

The others remained silent as the Crown Prince spoke first.

The Third Prince’s maternal family was from the military. Aside from the neutral faction led by General Cao, in terms of military power, the Third Prince’s faction was the strongest.

The Crown Prince only held an advantage among the civil officials.

Thus, this was an excellent opportunity for the Crown Prince to build a favorable impression among the military officials and expand his own faction.

Hearing the Crown Prince’s words, the Third Prince gritted his teeth in frustration.

“Elder Brother speaks wisely.” the Third Prince could only reply.

Emperor Changping glanced at the Third Prince but neither agreed nor disagreed, then fixed his gaze on Ye Youli.

“A Li, what do you think?” Emperor Changping asked Ye Youli.

“Father, I heard there was one candidate in the martial examinations who could shoot arrows with her feet and never miss. I’d like to see how she does it.” Ye Youli said slowly.

“Good, I’m curious too. Then summon her to the palace and let her demonstrate her archery.” Emperor Changping said, a hint of a smile actually appearing on his face.

“Thank you, Father, for granting my wish!” Ye Youli bowed deeply.