Repudiating a Good Wife Is Out of the Question

151. Shameless Prince Ning

Translator: Sissy That Walk

“Cheating is so much worse than getting disqualified!” Xiao Yi grabbed the candle guy’s wrist harder and said, “We won’t let it go unless the Chief Examiner investigates it thoroughly!”

Yao Wenyuan rejoined, “Prince Xing is just outside the gate, soldiers, do you want to be an accomplice or flee from darkness into the light? People who help to cheat in Imperial Examination will be tattooed on the face and sent into exile.”

More and more candidates left their cubicles and swarmed into Xiao Yi’s cubicle, the soldiers looked perplexed.

Xiao Yi said in earnest, “We demand a new chief examiner and a new paper!”

… …

Prince Xing who had been waiting outside the gate got impatient, he asked his guards to bang on the gate.

A gatekeeper craned his head from behind the wall and said, “Your Highness, Officer Liang now is in a coma due to a heart attack, I don’t have the key!”

Hearing that, Prince Xing squinted his eyes, he knew something must have had happened inside the compound! and then he heard Yao Wenyuan’s voice, “Someone is selling the answers! Resit the exam! Resit the exam!”

And soon other candidates joined Yao Wenyuan, their voice echoed through the compound. With that Yao Wenyuan ordered his guards force open the door.

Cao Mo who was sitting across the tea house across the compound heaved a sigh when he saw Prince Xing and his guards, but soon he was attracted by the ‘resit the exam’ voices rang inside the compound.

Cao Mo walked to the gate and flashed his passing token to the guards who tried to stop him, and soon he saw Prince Xing.

“Your Highness, is there a cheating scandal going on?”

Prince Xing nodded with a solemn face.

Cao Mo knew how emperors in successive reigns and dynasties detested cheating in exams, he muttered, “No leniency shall be shown when it comes to punishment in cheating scandals in Imperial Examinations, no one can be spared, how dare they!”

Prince Xing’s face darkened, “The Deputy Chief Examiner is Prince Ning.”

“What? It’s him!” Cao Mo was taken aback it wasn’t until now did he realize why Prince Xing couldn’t enter the gate, Prince Ning meant to buy more time, all the evidence would be invalid as long as the candidates submit their papers! Prince Ning was counting on this now, he had no other retreat! No one can do anything to him as long as he could collect the papers successfully.

Prince Xing rebuked the gatekeeper, “I have the imperial edict in hand, open the gate now if you don’t want to die!”

The gatekeeper felt so wronged, “Your Highness, the key is in Officer Liang’s hand, but Officer Liang is in a coma now. Plus there are the deceased emperors’ inscriptions the gate, no one dare to force open it!”

Cao Mo gnashed his teeth, “Such a great excuse! Officer Liang is in a coma, but the key isn’t in a coma, is it that hard to get the key and open the gate?”

Prince Xing was well aware that forcing open the gate and asking the gatekeeper to open the gate from inside was completely different. Forcing open the gate bordered on being disrespectful to the deceased emperors even though he had the imperial edict in hand, scholars would hold him to ridicule too.

Cao Mo was worried about Xiao Yi, he could almost see how others were bullying Xiao Yi, so he suggest why not climb over the walls and have a look inside.

Prince Xing cast him a glimpse as a reply.

“I’m not worried, I know my Yi is the most reliable one, who I’m worried about is Yao Wenyuan, he is aloof from politics and righteous, I’m afraid he will be the first one to sing a different tune! You and Prince Ning are not on good terms, what if… what if Prince Ning uses Yao Wenyuan to… ….”

Prince Xing panicked, “How can we enter the compound given we can’t force open the gate!

Cao Mo found that question rather odd, “Can’t we use ladders?”

Prince Xing’s lips twitched, “Go to the North military camp and bring me the aerial ladder carts.”

Aerial ladder carts were equipped with six wheels, pulley blocks, and grapnels, only used in battles.

Cao Mo took a look at the walls surrounded the compound, they were about six meters tall, of course only aerial ladder carts would be helpful.

After the time it took to burn an incense, eight horses galloped towards the compound with four aerial ladder carts.

… …

The gatekeepers soon reported this to Prince Ning.

Prince Ning changed countenance when he heard that, little did he expect Prince Xing would be so resourceful.

Indignation ran high among the candidates, the candidates were glad to request a through investigation about the scandal, thus the candidates would be disqualified and they would have less competitors. Therefore, they were all supporting Xiao Yi and Yao Wenyuan.

Yao Wenyuan had already blocked the gate with several candidates.

“We don’t tolerate any form of unfairness, we demand a new chief examine and a new exam!”

Prince Ning found that rather disturbing to the ear, he sneered when he alighted on Xiao Yi and the candle guy, “Arrest the Shizi from Marquis Valour’s Manor, he causes trouble and disturbs other candidates! Anyone who follows him will be disqualified from entering imperial exam ever again!”

The soldiers dared not to disobey Prince Ning, they tried to arrest Xiao Yi.

Xiao Yi shouted, “Your Highness Prince Ning, are you someone who ignores us poor students? Are you someone who dares not to investigate the cheating scandal?”

Prince Ning gritted his teeth, “Don’t listen to him, he is no poor student, he is the Shizi from Marquis Valour’s Manor, he is here to cause trouble.”

Xiao Yi raised the basket from the candle guy’s hand, “I am Shizi, but I’m also a student who has worked his heart out for the exam just like you! I won’t just sit back and watch people like this guy to ruin the fairness in the exam!”

“My ancestors worked hard to win the title as well! I loathe people who try to take the shortcut and ruin the fairness for us! Who wants to associate with shameless people like this candle guy in the future!” Xiao Yi shouted with a strong sense of righteousness.