Lin Wan'er gasped, realizing that it was indeed the case. She listened as Fan Xian continued with a smile, "So, His Majesty can endure for a while, but not forever. He can tolerate the officials, but not his own son. If His Majesty never considered it, then fine. But once he starts thinking about the first question, he cannot help but suspect many things. Therefore, rectifying the corruption in the imperial examinations becomes a natural course."

Lin Wan'er leaned her head against his chest and softly said, "Actually, these things are simple. If I were willing to think, I could understand them. Why can't Crown Prince and the others understand?"

"It's not that they can't understand, but the Crown Prince himself has already started to feel insecure." Fan Xian thought of the rewards His Majesty gave to the three adult princes at the beginning of the year. The profound meaning contained within was something even Fan Xian couldn't fully grasp. It seemed that both the Crown Prince and the First Prince were somewhat alarmed and uneasy. That's why they reached out so far during this imperial examination.

Lin Wan'er sighed and said, "I don't ask that my husband be granted a kingdom and land. I only wish to be a carefree marquis. These matters are always so troublesome."

"A wealthy idler, that is indeed my wish." Fan Xian replied with a smile, thinking of Jia Baoyu's nickname. Then he continued, "It's just that some things are unbearable, and I'll always overstep. Who told my father and me to have such unfortunate names?"

Seeing him tease his father-in-law, Lin Wan'er couldn't help but chuckle. After a pause, she asked, "There shouldn't be any problems on Father's side, right?"

"Don't worry, Father went to the Prime Minister's residence that very night." Fan Xian returned to the words from the beginning, shaking his head in admiration. "That's why I said earlier that the Overwatch Council handled this matter beautifully. Look at all the officials who have been caught recently. Besides Minister Guo, there are even people from the Eastern Palace and the樞密院 (Shu Mi Yuan - Privy Council) who have fallen. Although your father also lost a Vice Minister, it wasn't a crippling blow. Such a sense of proportion can only be achieved by someone who has been immersed in officialdom for decades and has mastered it with such perfection."

"Is it difficult?" Lin Wan'er asked with a smile.

Fan Xian gently combed his fingers through his wife's dark hair and softly replied, "Very difficult. You have to let those forces feel pain, but not so much that it kills them, lest His Majesty have trouble dealing with it."

After saying this, a faint worry appeared between his brows.

"What's wrong?" Wan'er, with her keen perception, hugged her husband's arm tightly and asked with concern.

Fan Xian shook his head, trying to dispel the hidden worry in his heart. "I originally thought that this exposure of corruption would be impossible to hide from the world, so I was prepared for a hard battle. I didn't expect the Overwatch Council to shield me so well. But you're right, there are no concrete walls in this world. The Eastern Palace will eventually find out about my relationship with the Overwatch Council. And… there are too many lunatics in Qing Kingdom. Right now, I'm worried about that crippled lunatic."

"Chen Pingping?" Lin Wan'er immediately knew who he was talking about. However, she wasn't clear about what other connections her husband had with that terrifying intelligence agency besides exposing the corruption. So she was somewhat puzzled. This confusion was so strong that it even obscured the three unfamiliar words "concrete walls."

Fan Xian smiled, not fully explaining the matter. He simply said softly, "I'm worried that Chen Pingping never intended to hide this matter from the beginning."

"He wouldn't dare!"

Every young woman likes her husband to be a hero full of justice. So although Lin Wan'er was a little worried about Fan Xian's secret exposure of corruption, she was filled with satisfaction and pride in her heart. Hearing that Chen Pingping wanted to push her husband into the public eye, and thinking of the danger involved, her delicate body trembled. The aura of a princess flared up, and she snorted, "I'll go to the palace to find the Empress Dowager tomorrow!"

Fan Xian laughed heartily, comforting her, "Even if Chen Pingping exposes me, I'm afraid he doesn't have any bad intentions."

Lin Wan'er couldn't understand, but Fan Xian was clear that this was a good opportunity. After the Night Banquet Poetry Society, if he wanted to firmly establish his position and reputation among the people of Qing Kingdom, this exposure of corruption was undoubtedly the best opportunity. According to what Teacher Fei Jie had once said, since Chen Pingping, his mother's close comrade-in-arms, was unwilling to let him be a wealthy inner treasury owner and insisted on letting him take charge of the Overwatch Council, then according to Chen Pingping's legendary personality, it was not impossible for him to use the Spring Examination corruption case to make him suddenly leap out of the crowd.

—The question was, what was the proportion of gain to loss? Fan Xian wasn't quite sure about this point.

He got out of bed and looked at the drizzle outside the window, only to realize that it was nearly noon. He had been entangled with his wife in bed for most of the day. He couldn't help but smile sweetly, but the smile was somewhat tired. This exposure of corruption was partly because he truly pitied those scholars who were truly talented, partly because he was indignant that those princes were using him as a rope to pull on, but the most important reason was because he wanted to test Chen Pingping one last time.

Fan Xian was going to 北齊 (Bei Qi - Northern Qi), so he had to be clear about what attitude that terrifying old man of the Overwatch Council had towards him. At the same time, he wanted to see clearly what attitude the supreme ruler hidden behind the old man had towards him.

Attitude determines everything, attitude determines relationships, attitude can reveal history, and can reveal… one's background. Fan Xian narrowed his eyes slightly, looking through the glass window imprinted with his mother's aura, watching the dark clouds in the sky. He felt that everything in Qing Kingdom was like an interesting riddle, and he seemed to be walking on a path that was infinitely close to the truth.

Perhaps the goal was very close.

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On the slightly wet Chang Street outside the Fan residence, an unmarked carriage was quietly parked. Suddenly, a figure floated out of it like a falling leaf. Just as it was about to land on the ground, its right palm rested on the edge of the carriage, and the whole person had already drilled into the carriage.

"Go." Fan Xian spoke as soon as his butt hit the seat.

Teng Zijing turned his head from the driver's position and looked at his young master, smiling wryly, "Young Master, if Master knows that you're going out at this time, he will punish this servant."

Fan Xian smiled even more bitterly, "If we don't leave quickly, not only will Master take a stick to beat this unfilial son, but even your gentle young mistress will use a rope to tie me up."

At this time, the capital was truly in a state of panic. The news of the arrest of Minister Guo Youzhi of the Ministry of Rites spread throughout the entire Kyoto in just an hour. All the officials related to the Spring Examination were sitting at home anxiously, fearing that the secret agents of the Overwatch Council would come knocking on the door in a while and politely invite them to have tea.

And Fan Xian, as the key figure in the corruption case, the Earl of Sinan Fan Jian, who knew the inside story, and Princess Chen didn't dare to let him take action. So he had to sneak out, sighing and saying, "Teng Da, luckily, this young master still has you as a confidant in Kyoto, otherwise it wouldn't be easy to even go out."

Wang Qinian, who had been sitting quietly beside him, clearly had the bitterest smile, looking worried, "My lord, this subordinate has always wanted to work hard to become your confidant."

Fan Xian laughed and teased, "Wang Qinian, you should go and perform Xiangsheng (Chinese comedic talk show)."

With a crack of the whip, the black carriage slowly moved forward. The wheels rolled over the puddles on the street, and the surrounding green trees were washed by the rain, appearing even fresher. Behind the carriage, several secret agents of the Overwatch Council, wearing various rain gear, followed the carriage from a distance. They were all members of the Qinian Group, specifically responsible for the safety of Director Fan.

"What if some officials in the court retaliate? I don't have enough manpower here." Wang Qinian knew what Director Fan and the Council had done and was a little worried.

Fan Xian smiled slightly, a coldness flashing in his eyes. "Now is not the past, and the place we are going is not Niu Lan Street. This official would like to see, besides that mad woman, who else dares to assassinate me in Kyoto, under the eyes of His Majesty."

"Where are we going?" Teng Zijing didn't turn his head, asking in a low voice.

Fan Xian looked at Wang Qinian. Wang Qinian softly said a place name, and then explained, "Coincidentally, the few students that you fancy, sir, all live in the same inn."

——————————————————————————

The carriage stopped outside Dieyi Alley. It was still drizzling in the air. After Fan Xian got out of the carriage, he and Teng Zijing walked into the alley with paper umbrellas. Wang Qinian had already disappeared into the crowd.

Dieyi Alley was where the examinees from other counties gathered in Kyoto. Today, the corruption case of the imperial examinations broke out again in Kyoto, so it was still very crowded and noisy. Fan Xian held up his umbrella, walking carefully along the street, tilting the umbrella surface slightly outwards to prevent the rainwater on the umbrella from falling into the pots of the vendors who were sheltering from the rain under the eaves of the street.

"Excuse me, excuse me." A thin scholar shouted anxiously, carrying two pots of wine in his hand. He brushed past Fan Xian and the others, rushing forward, not afraid of the rain falling from the sky. However, this person glanced back at Fan Xian as he passed.

Fan Xian held up his umbrella, watching the man disappear into the rain. He shook his head and smiled, "How similar is this to that group of lunatics when we graduated? As long as the exam is over, they have to get drunk." He smacked his lips, regretting that he couldn't attend the school's graduation banquet due to his health at the time.

Teng Zijing didn't quite understand, but still respectfully explained, "It is estimated that Minister Guo Youzhi's downfall has made these students so excited."

"Is Minister Guo's reputation that bad?" Fan Xian walked forward casually, looking like a young master who liked to take a walk in the rain.

Teng Zijing smiled, "Few officials in Kyoto have a good reputation. There's a saying in the countryside, 'If the officials of the six ministries are lined up and beheaded, it is estimated that there will be one who is wrongly accused.'"

Fan Xian laughed and thought that there were also such jokes in his previous life. He joked, "Then do you think my father is the one who is wrongly accused?"

Everyone knew that the Earl of Sinan Fan Jian was first a Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue and then a Minister. He didn't know how much silver he had scraped from the national treasury. If we talk about big corrupt officials, Fan Xian's father and father-in-law are probably among the top three. But Teng Zijing didn't dare to say this. Hearing the young master's question, cold sweat began to seep down his back. He smiled bitterly, "Young Master, this servant has spoken out of turn. Please don't mind."

"What are corrupt officials afraid of? The people don't suffer from officials being corrupt, but from officials being corrupt and incompetent."

"Young master's words are not appropriate."

Suddenly, someone rudely squeezed into Fan Xian's umbrella to avoid the rain, holding a paper-wrapped roast chicken in his hand. The slightly charred aroma of the roast chicken could not be concealed even by the rain.