Chapter 313: There Is Only One Truth

In the study, Duan Xiu and his uncle were waiting.

Seeing the servant return, Duan's second uncle stood up immediately and asked eagerly, "How is it?"

The servant's face turned pale, and he glanced at Duan Xiu with fear, saying stutteringly, "Young Master... passed."

"Nonsense, can I not know A-Xiu passed?" Duan's second uncle was a bit impatient, "What place!"

"Thi, third..."

Duan's second uncle hissed, as if he had been scalded by this ranking, "Are you sure you didn't see it wrong? Even if it's not first, it should be second, right? How could it be third?"

The servant's head almost hung to the ground, not daring to make a sound.

Duan Xiu was calm, seemingly not surprised, "Who is second?"

The reason he didn't ask who was first was because he had a number in his heart.

It must be Jiang Zhan, without a doubt.

The servant hurriedly said, "I've inquired; the second place is named Jiang Yan."

Jiang Yan... Jiang Zhan's third uncle?

Thinking of the abnormality of the two handing in their papers early in the exam hall, Duan Xiu seemed to smell the scent of a conspiracy, "There is something strange about this. How could it be such a coincidence that the first is a Jiang family member, and the second is also a Jiang family member."

"You mean..." Duan's second uncle hurriedly asked.

Duan Xiu sent the servant out, closed the door cautiously, and then turned to look at Duan's second uncle, lowering his voice, "I suspect someone leaked the questions."

Duan's second uncle was shocked, "You mean Su Qingyao?"

"I don't rule out this possibility." Duan Xiu nodded, his expression solemn, "I took those last two arithmetic problems to Headmaster Gu yesterday. Headmaster Gu manages the prefectural school and is a famous arithmetic master, and even he couldn't solve them, let alone Jiang Zhan and the others?"

"So there is only one truth: Su Qingyao played a trick and told Jiang Zhan and Jiang Yan the answers in advance."

Hearing this, Duan's second uncle suddenly realized.

"I said so! With your ability, A-Xiu, how could you lose to a county top scholar from a tiny, broken county? It doesn't make sense at all. It turns out someone had already hooked up and was colluding!"

He was so angry his eyes were on fire, "What a big dog's courage! Favoritism and fraud in the imperial examination is a heaven-defying crime. Isn't he afraid of being beheaded?"

Duan Xiu smiled, "Probably he thinks it won't be discovered."

Duan's second uncle thought about it carefully, and his reason recovered slightly, "That's not right. Su Qingyao has no family or relatives with the Jiang family; why would he take such a risk for them?"

Duan Xiu was silent for a moment.

"I don't know the specific reason. Perhaps they have some relationship we don't know about, or... it's just simple appreciation of talent, wanting to take the opportunity to win them over and plan for the Su family's future. Who knows?"

Duan's second uncle sat on the official hat chair, grunting, "A perfectly good Prefectural Top Scholar position was stirred up by Su Qingyao. This matter can't just be let go."

Duan Xiu's eyes flickered, "I remember, the Education Commissioner, Master Bi, is about to inspect Fengyang Prefecture, right?"

"That's right! Why didn't I think of that!" Duan's second uncle was overjoyed and clapped his hands, "When the time comes, I'll mention this to Master Bi and let him investigate it well. I'll make sure Su Qingyao and that Jiang Zhan suffer!"

Then he frowned again, "But what should we do now? Do we really have to watch the Prefectural Top Scholar position be snatched away by someone else?"

Duan Xiu curled his lips, as if he had it all under control, "Second Uncle, don't be anxious. There is still room for maneuver in this matter."

Duan's second uncle had always been very convinced by this nephew.

Duan Xiu was not only smart but also had extraordinary strategy since he was a child; otherwise, the old master wouldn't have chosen him to be the future head of the family.

It was just that in this predicament, Duan's second uncle really couldn't see where there was any room for maneuver.

"The red list is posted, and everyone knows Jiang Zhan has won first place twice in a row. As long as there are no accidents in the third round, the Prefectural Top Scholar position will inevitably be his. Even if Master Bi comes, he doesn't have the power to remove him. How can there be room for maneuver?"

Duan Xiu laughed, "As you said, Second Uncle, if there are no accidents, it will be his. But what if there is an accident?"

Seeing Duan's second uncle looking blank, he continued to point out.

"Second Uncle should know that according to our Da Zhao law, there are four types of people who cannot participate in the imperial examination."

Duan's second uncle hurriedly took over the conversation, "I know. One is the son of a prostitute; two is an unfilial descendant; three is someone who frequents brothels..."

Duan Xiu said "Hmm," "And the last one is those with disabilities, who cannot take the exam."

As for the previous ones, since Jiang Zhan could reach this step, it was clear that he met the conditions.

But this last one...

Duan's second uncle understood.

"Still your brain turns fast, A-Xiu." He laughed loudly, "Fine, I'll go arrange manpower and find a way to cut off that Jiang Zhan's hands and feet, and we'll see how he goes to take the exam tomorrow!"

According to the ranking, without Jiang Zhan, the first place would naturally be Duan Xiu.

That Jiang Yan, although he got second place in the second round, only got 16th place in the most important first round. Overall, he was ranked okay, but he posed no threat.

The only threat was Jiang Zhan.

"How about we just get rid of him? He's just a farmer's son; if he dies, he dies. It's no big deal, and it won't be traced back to us anyway." Like their big family, there were plenty of scapegoats.

Duan Xiu shook his head, "No, this matter shouldn't be made big. Su Qingyao is old and cunning; he's not easy to deal with. If we reveal any flaws, the Duan family will also be hurt, which is not worth it."

After a pause, he gave instructions, "Just cut Jiang Zhan's hand tendons. Don't do anything extra."

Duan's second uncle naturally listened to Duan Xiu.

"Fine, you have the final say."

After saying this, he stood up, opened the door, and went to make arrangements excitedly.

Duan Xiu sat in the study for a long time.

He thought of the young man who was like broken jade.

The first time he saw Jiang Zhan, his heart moved. In nearly twenty years of living, he had never seen such a beautiful person, beautiful to the point... he wanted to break him, reassemble him, break him again, over and over!

Let him cry and beg beneath him, yet have to submit.

*Heh*, he didn't want to treat Jiang Zhan like that, but if his tendons were cut, he would be a cripple.

Not only could he not participate in the imperial examination, but he wouldn't even be able to write in the future. For a scholar, this was even harder to accept than death.

But what could he do?

To get someone, you have to take everything from them, force them into a desperate situation. Only when they are at their most miserable and helpless, and you pull them out of the mud, will they treat you as their only savior.

Willing to sacrifice their whole body and mind to you.

Du Ruo, Jiang Zhan, and the others knew nothing about this. After returning to the county hostel, a few people had a happy dinner. Jiang Zhan read for a while and then went to bed to rest.

He had to take the third exam tomorrow, so he had to recharge his energy.

Du Ruo had also been one of the "staying up late" army in her previous life, but since coming to this era, she had developed the habit of going to bed early and getting up late.

Without mobile phones or computers, there was really nothing to do.

Fengyang Prefecture's nightlife was quite rich, but she wasn't in the mood to stroll around for now, thinking about finishing the imperial examination first.

Since they arrived in Fengyang Prefecture, it had been sunny and breezy.

But tonight, a strong wind blew, and even the temperature dropped, with a hint of coolness in the air.

In the middle of the night.

A black shadow darted onto the big tree next to the county hostel like a ghost, then stepped on it with one foot and flew onto the roof quickly.

Soon the man in black appeared in the third-floor corridor.

For the convenience of guests getting up at night, there were wall lamps in the corridor. Although they weren't very bright, they were enough to see the road under their feet.

The man in black looked room by room, finally stopped at the door of the Grade A room, then tiptoed to the window, reached out to poke a hole in the window paper, and squinted inside.

Immediately after, he took out a small bamboo tube, aimed it at the hole, opened his mouth...

"Hey, brother, what are you doing? Take an old man with you." Suddenly, a thin, dry palm patted his shoulder without warning. ===== CHAPTER 314 =====