activa-t Chapter 40: Rising to Fame
Chapter 40: Rising to Fame
Dai Quan unfolded the imperial edict and began to read it aloud:
By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees:
Having inherited this great mandate and ruling over all lands, I have devoted myself day and night to promoting education and cultivating the integrity of scholars.
It is said that the students of the Imperial Academy, misled by rumors and presumptuously speculating about the imperial family, even gathered at the Confucian Temple, thus violating the law.
This should have been handed over to the relevant authorities for thorough investigation and punishment, to serve as a warning to others!
However, the grandson of the emperor, Xia Chengzong, was gentle and kind by nature, and revered the Way of the Sages. Although he suffered an unjust accusation, he still pitied the folly of scholars.
The courtier tearfully reported: "These students are hot-blooded and easily aroused by righteous indignation. Their gathering at the Confucian temple is indeed outrageous; however, their true intention is to uphold the teachings of their teachers, not to defy the authority of Heaven."
Moreover, these are all pillars of the nation; this not only disheartens the scholars but also undermines the court's virtue in nurturing talent. We beg that only the ringleader be executed, and the rest pardoned, so that they may know their mistake and repent.
I, in recognition of my grandson's benevolent and forgiving nature, hereby issue this imperial decree:
The ringleader, Lu Ren, was stripped of his academic honors, flogged thirty times, stripped of his official rank, and sent back to his hometown, never to be allowed to take the imperial examinations again.
Second, all students who were coerced into following him will have their stipends suspended for three months, and each of them will kneel in the Confucian Temple and recite the "Admonition to Scholars" one hundred times to reflect on their own faults;
Third, the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor of the Imperial Academy will have their salaries reduced by half a year to rectify the school's regulations;
Alas! Thunder and rain are both blessings from Heaven, but surely there is a deeper meaning behind torture and punishment?
You students should reflect on the Emperor's magnanimity and leniency, cleanse your minds and thoughts, and devote yourselves to the study of the classics. If you again act impulsively and violate propriety, then the law will be in full force, and I will not pardon you!
The proclamation was made known both domestically and internationally.
After hearing the imperial edict, apart from Lu Ren, the other students were both surprised and delighted, as well as ashamed and embarrassed!
They forced the emperor to abdicate and falsely accused the emperor's grandson. Even if they weren't beheaded, they would at least be stripped of their official titles and exiled three thousand miles away.
The emperor was also planning to do this, but the grandson who had been falsely accused pleaded for them and ultimately saved them.
The punishment they are being given now is merely the suspension of their benefits for three months and making them kneel in the Confucian Temple and read "Admonitions to Scholars" a hundred times. This is already a lenient sentence.
The imperial grandson repaid evil with kindness—what magnanimity! How could they not feel ashamed?
They knelt down, accepted the imperial decree and expressed their gratitude, praising it repeatedly.
The surrounding crowd also praised the emperor's grandson's benevolence.
Only Lu Ren looked pale and ashen.
Although the emperor did not kill him, he was stripped of his academic titles, given thirty strokes of the cane, stripped of his official rank, and sent back to his hometown, never to be allowed to take the imperial examinations again!
Such punishment has condemned him to the dust, never to rise again.
If only I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have done it in the first place!
Lu Ren now truly regrets it, but it's too late.
Two eunuchs approached with a sinister look, lifted Lu Ren up, and removed his outer garment, revealing his pale underpants.
Two more eunuchs, each holding a black and red jujube-shaped wooden board, stepped forward, raised the board, and struck down.
The plank wasn't raised very high, and they didn't seem to be using much force.
The wooden board hit Lu Ren's buttocks with a dull thud.
Lu Ren then let out a loud scream.
Snapped!Snapped!
Before long, after the thirty strokes of the cane were finished, Lu Ren's voice was hoarse from shouting.
However, there wasn't much blood on his buttocks.
The onlookers all felt the beating was too light and didn't find it satisfying.
Little did they know that beating with a board was a remarkable skill, requiring years of practice from a young age and passing through layers of competition before one could become a master.
The wooden planks that are raised high and then fall heavily, causing cuts and bruises, are actually not considered to be hitting very hard.
They're all just superficial injuries. They look scary, but after a few days of rest, they'll be able to walk again.
However, this seemingly effortless fighting style leaves behind internal injuries.
After thirty strokes, Lu Ren's leg bone was fractured.
Even if he doesn't end up bedridden, he'll at least have to walk with crutches for the rest of his life.
Leading the way in falsely accusing the imperial grandson, how could they be let off so easily?
After being beaten, Lu Ren was unable to walk.
Finally, two guards carried him away, and after his injuries were healed, he was sent back to his hometown.
The next day, the Ministry of Works sent officials to erect a stone tablet in front of the Confucian Temple.
The ten difficult questions posed by Xia Chengzong were engraved on a stone tablet for everyone to see.
Whoever can solve one of these problems will surely become famous far and wide.
After all, this is a problem that hundreds of students, and even several PhDs, have been unable to solve.
Upon learning of this, Xia Chengzong felt a great deal of mixed emotions.
He had little genuine affection for Emperor Yonglong; it was all scheming.
Emperor Yonglong treated him extremely well.
Take this incident for example, Emperor Yonglong played the bad cop, while he played the good cop.
Those students of the Imperial Academy all knew that they had escaped disaster because of his pleading, so how could they not be grateful to him?
Later, a stone tablet was erected outside the Confucian Temple, inscribed with difficult questions, and they even took the initiative to help him become famous.
All of this is for his sake.
This made him truly feel Emperor Yonglong's paternal love, and it also made him feel guilty.
Hmm, I'll be nicer to the old man in the future!
He checked his emotional state value, which had now reached over 60,000.
And it's still skyrocketing.
He was very satisfied with this increase.
He glanced at the emotional value entry record and made an unexpected discovery.
Among the account entry records, there were two records pinned to the top.
This was the first time he had ever heard that this record even had a pinning function.
He looked at the two records.
Crown Prince's negative emotion value +10 +10 +10
Jia Jing's negative emotion value +10 +10 +10
Upon seeing these two records, his pupils contracted slightly.
Firstly, he didn't expect that the emotion value could break through the limit of 1 and increase by 10 points at a time.
However, this only happens under special circumstances.
Secondly, it turns out that the masterminds behind this were actually the Crown Prince and Jia Jing!
This prince is truly narrow-minded and intolerant of others.
His own father had been a member of his faction and had even taken the blame for him.
After the Prince's mansion was reopened, his father was delayed in receiving his official duties.
The Crown Prince then completely ignored their royal residence, offering neither material assistance nor helping his father find a job.
Now that he has gained attention, he has become a behind-the-scenes manipulator, trying to destroy himself.
Xia Chengzong's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and for a moment, he wanted to take revenge.
But he soon realized that even with a crown prince, his father still eventually ascended the throne.
In other words, the crown prince had to be deposed before his father ascended the throne, otherwise how could his father possibly take the throne?
Based on the timeline, the crown prince will definitely be deposed within three or four years.
It's simply not worth taking the risk for a useless person who's destined to be crippled.
Thinking of this, Xia Chengzong reluctantly gave up his plan to retaliate.
But this Jia Jing, hmph!
Just you wait, I'll make you pay sooner or later!
……
This matter gradually cooled down after it went viral.
Xia Chengzong's emotional value gain is decreasing every day.
After a month, the hype finally died down.
His total emotional value reached as high as 90,000.
That's enough for him to advance all four of his other supernatural abilities by one level.
However, he didn't rush to upgrade other things. Instead, he planned to save up 100,000 to upgrade his second supernatural power to copper skin and iron bones.
At this time, the day of the palace examination was fast approaching.