odessanovel Chapter 412
Chapter 412
The poisonous tobacco was later secretly ordered by Gan Sheng to be brought into the capital by Li Qun, in cooperation with South Yue spies, who added extra ingredients and mixed it into normal tobacco.Because there have been many literary gatherings lately, scholars like to puff away when they get together, which is how they got addicted. Fortunately, it hasn't been long, and they can still be saved.]
Upon hearing the names one by one, the Crown Prince quickly memorized them. He summoned his personal hidden guards and ordered them to send the information directly to Emperor Mingxi through a special channel.
This special channel was specifically added to handle any unusual situations because Yue Fuguang was participating in the spring examinations this time. He hadn't expected it to come in handy so soon.
By the time they finished their tasks and returned, Yue Fuguang had already eaten and drunk her fill, and started observing the candidates writing furiously below.
Three days passed quickly amidst brilliant essays born of hard thought and the ever-thickening scent of ink.
Yue Fuguang had shut off her sense of smell since the afternoon of the first day, so she hadn't gone down to patrol during the subsequent exams.
However, when the second round of exams just started, standing in Wenxin Hall and seeing the distorted faces of the students in the distant cells near the latrines, her sympathy was inevitably touched a little.
Having taken the college entrance examination herself, she couldn't help but sympathize with those unlucky people. If they failed not because of a lack of talent, but because the stench ruined their train of thought, they would truly regret it to death.
With her narrow-mindedness, she would definitely curse the heavens, the earth, and her fellow candidates whenever she thought of it.
Little Zhu, the smell in this examination hall is really not pleasant. Help me find the Qingming incense.
[Master, you want to burn incense? These students are in luck. This Qingming incense not only clears away foul and murky air but also refreshes the mind. It is a great thing for those who are using their brains intensely.]
After Yue Fuguang took the Qingming incense from her sleeve and lit it, the entire examination hall was soon filled with an indescribable, ethereal aura. The candidates, who had been taking exams for three consecutive days and were physically exhausted and mentally sluggish, gradually regained their spirits as they smelled the faint fragrance wafting into their noses.
Thinking that this second round of exams included math questions she had set herself, Yue Fuguang couldn't help but be curious about how the candidates were answering. Unable to hold back any longer, she finally stepped out of Wenxin Hall for the first time and began her first patrol.
As Yue Fuguang, who was less than one and a half meters tall, walked through the crisscrossing corridors, she attracted immense attention wherever she passed.
As she walked, Yue Fuguang paid attention to the favorability column on her system panel. System, I have done meritorious service for the Great Yan Dynasty after all. Look, how are there still negative numbers in the favorability ratings?
Remember to mark them. No matter the reason, such people can never be allowed to step into the imperial court.
Yue Fuguang wouldn't let off those who harbored malicious intentions towards her just out of pity for their years of hard study.
Those with a negative favorability toward her were the ones who wanted her dead. Do not blame her for being ruthless; naturally, she had to clear out such people one by one as she found them. If she didn't get rid of them, was she supposed to save them for the New Year?
Did they think they were Xie Zhiyao or Bei Ye, people who were actually still useful!
[Master, Xue Baoshan, Cao Wei... these people bear malice toward you. They are either sponsored by aristocratic families or are the brats of major landlords themselves.
[Your high-yield seeds are life-saving rations for the common folk, but it is a different story for the wealthy. Between your seeds and the new land distribution policies, the commoners who originally had no fields and were forced to work as tenant farmers—enduring the exploitation of giving up fifty to sixty percent of their harvest to landlords—can now directly rent land from the imperial court for a mere thirty-five percent tax. They even have the opportunity to own their own land.
Because they planted high-yield crops in their fields, they do not have to sell their sons, daughters, or themselves when faced with a natural disaster like the current one.
You must understand that if it were not for those three types of high-yield seeds providing a safety net for ordinary households, the usual outcome would be the poor selling their land if they had any, or selling their children and borrowing from loan sharks if they did not.
It would never be like it is now, where almost the entirety of the Great Yan Empire has planted one to two seasons of these crops, leaving nearly every household with some surplus grain.
Even if a few specific prefectures failed to plant them in time, the imperial court now has the capacity to provide relief, ensuring that the people do not starve to the point of selling their lands and children.
It is safe to say that you have completely severed the methods by which these wealthy individuals enriched themselves off the backs of the poor. Tell me, do you think they hate you?]
Yue Fuguang walked at a leisurely pace, observing the conditions of the examination candidates as she replied in her mind, "So, in previous years, this would be the exact time they bought up people and land, issued usurious loans, and made a fortune off the blood and sweat of the impoverished masses?
"And unfortunately for them, this cycle was broken by the appearance of the high-yield grain. Therefore, they have developed a murderous intent toward me, the one who brought out these seeds?"
[Correct. Most people are wary of your status and position, only daring to hide their hatred in their hearts. However, there are some who are used to acting like local tyrants. Arrogant and conceited, they want to use the imperial examinations as a stepping stone for the younger generation of their clans to rise in power.
Once they reach the royal court and gain a voice, no matter how good your relationship with the Emperor is, they will find ways to drive a wedge between you and the imperial family.
This is especially true for the candidates sponsored by the noble and aristocratic families. They inherently share countless ties with the nobility. Before being purged by the Emperor, these aristocratic families also sensed the impending crisis for their clans.
Thus, they promised massive benefits to certain individuals with two main goals: first, to help the surviving descendants of their families stage a comeback; and second, to take revenge on you by any means necessary.]
"Strike back and take revenge on me? Just them?" Yue Fuguang sneered inwardly. If she had just arrived in this world, she might have been afraid. But now, her only fear was that they wouldn't come at all.
However, knowing that they hated her actually made Yue Fuguang breathe a sigh of relief. She couldn't bear to lay a hand on those who loved her, but she felt absolutely zero psychological burden when dealing with those who hated her.
Pulling them up by the roots and completely destroying them would no longer cause her any hesitation.
[Master, have you forgotten that there are still people who want to stand in the royal court one day and drive a wedge between you and the Emperor!]
The Crown Prince, Ji Hongming, and a host of other ministers couldn't help but frown. Alienating the Grand Tutor from His Majesty? Weren't they trying to dig up the very roots of their Great Yan Empire?
Setting aside the fact that, for certain unspeakable reasons, neither they nor His Majesty could ever develop a rift with the Grand Tutor, they would never even give these individuals with ulterior motives a single chance to step into the royal court.
As for the saying that cutting off a person's future is like killing their parents and forging a blood feud... if it weren't for the current lack of hard evidence preventing them from immediately arresting and punishing these people, the schemers would be losing their lives, not just their futures.
Ji Hongming memorized all of their names. Once he returned, he would absolutely have the Court of Judicature and Revision and the Secret Spy Agency investigate the backgrounds of these people thoroughly. If they were involved in any illegal or undisciplined activities, they would absolutely not be spared.
Yue Fuguang clasped her small hands behind her back. "What is there to worry about? If the Emperor truly listens to slander and grows suspicious of me, I will simply leave."
[Master, you just want to go out and have fun. Are you tempted by the invitations from those other countries?]
Neither the system nor the Crown Prince and his companions received an answer from Yue Fuguang. However, the more she kept silent, the more convinced they became that the Divine Artifact had hit the nail on the head!
Over on the other side, the Crown Prince and Ji Hongming, who were patrolling the examination grounds, could not help but quicken their pace toward Yue Fuguang. Seeing the sweat on the Crown Prince's forehead, the guards beside him assumed he was simply tired and hot from walking, and hastily offered him a handkerchief with deep respect.