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"Sister disagrees?" Concubine Fang Pin said, getting into her stride but then noticing that Lian Hua didn’t agree with her. It was as if she felt betrayed, deeply hurt.

Lian Hua "Err..." dragged the sound long, pondering over Huang Zude’s medical skills while elongating the sound. The more she thought about it, the less she could come up with any proof in his favor.

Huang Zude’s medical expertise had been praised by His Majesty, and she believed in His Majesty. However, when Concubine Fang Pin asked if she agreed, it was about her own judgment. On her own, she seemed to have no idea...

As Lian Hua’s "Err..." became longer and longer, Concubine Fang Pin watched her with a tense face, clutching her handkerchief, tears already welling up in her eyes. She was ready; if Lian Hua disagreed, she would burst into tears and weep grievously.

Lian Hua thought for a long while and couldn’t come up with any argument in favor of Huang Zude’s medical abilities. Forget it, she couldn’t be bothered to think about this. It was rare for her to be in such good spirits, so she just went along with it.

She looked at Concubine Fang Pin again, her shiny apricot eyes seeming to communicate a message, and she spoke out firmly, "Agree! Consort, nobody’s perfect, and Charcoal Head must certainly be lacking in some aspect of his medical skills!"

People have so many ailments; perhaps Concubine Fang Pin’s illness was something Huang Zude was not skilled in treating. Otherwise, why would Consort Fang Pin cry so often? Perhaps there was a condition called "cry syndrome," and that was what afflicted her, but Hei Tan could not see it.

Concubine Fang Pin breathed a huge sigh of relief, gently patted her chest, and said softly and frailly, "Sister knew you would agree with me."

The tears in her eyes quickly retracted, and with high spirits, she resumed her cheerful conversation with Lian Hua.

Xiao Jizi, standing by like an old monk in meditation, was internally beyond the ability to comment.

Alas, his master and Concubine Fang Pin were not even talking about the same thing.

One complained that she couldn’t get enough medicine, thus criticizing Huang Zude, while the other didn’t want medicine but was forced to take double the dose and consequently badmouthed Huang Zude.

Completely opposite reasons, yet they ended up agreeing with each other. ..

Heavens, what a sin! Consort Fang Pin clearly had no illness, yet she blamed Master Huang whose mouth had no whiskers, claiming his medical skills were poor. Alas, even his master was led into the pit...

Never had seen such eccentric characters; others refuse medicine respectfully, but Concubine Fang Pin, who wanted to take medicine without even being ill, was simply too affected!

Nanny Qi, come back soon, please chase away Concubine Fang Pin quickly, don’t let her corrupt the master...

...

Inside the Administration Palace.

The Emperor fumbled with the Jade Pendant of Little Lotus while listening to his ministers speak about the Autumn Exam.

The results from the closer provincial capitals had arrived swiftly and without issues. However, there was an issue from Taiyuan Prefecture that needed to be reported for a decision.

Previously, during an imperial court meeting, it was discussed that there was a Scholar from Taiyuan Prefecture with a congenital slight limp in his left foot, who wasn’t eligible to participate in the exam.

But the Grand Tutor, valuing his talent, allowed him to take part in the Autumn Exam at the township level, and now the results showed him ranking first in Taiyuan Prefecture.

This caused quite the uproar in Taiyuan Prefecture.

Proud Scholars felt insulted to be outranked by someone with a physical deformity and were utterly dissatisfied.

Under the influence of alcohol, they joined hands with others who had failed and were gloomy, eager to see for themselves the capabilities of this Scholar.

But they couldn’t find this person no matter how hard they looked.

According to the people at the inn, this person left as soon as the results were posted, and he didn’t even attend the Luming Banquet, his whereabouts unknown.

The scholars, unable to find the person, felt unsettled, and began to make cutting remarks out of spite.

No one knows who started it, but someone suggested that the limping jieyuan might be feeling guilty, fearing that his undeserved reputation would be uncovered, and that he was in a hurry to flee.

As soon as this was said, it exploded like a bomb among the already jealous crowd.

The conversation escalated, getting bigger and bigger, until someone suddenly slapped their forehead, saying that the imperial examinations have always valued appearance, and how could a person with a crippled left foot take part in the examinations?

These people seemed to have stumbled upon something outrageous, and began to speculate about cheating. Someone claimed that during the physical search before the exam, they saw that the limper seemed unusually familiar with the Chief Examiner, who allowed him in.

This statement instantly caused an uproar among the people, and they became increasingly convinced of the presence of favoritism and fraud.

Filled with righteous indignation and fueled by alcohol, they wrote an extensive article, jointly submitted, accusing the Chief Examiner of leading the cheating, and demanding a re-examination.

After all, if the Chief Examiner himself was involved in wrongdoing, who knows what other cheating might have occurred in this examination? Perhaps there was even a leakage of questions.

The scholars who failed were particularly active, as they still held hopes of passing a re-examination and succeeding the next time.

This matter began to ferment, and rumors started to spread.

The successful candidates, except for a few proud ones who joined the failed scholars in their complaints, mostly did not wish to retake the exam.

Especially the scholars with lower rankings were strongly opposed to a re-examination, fearing that if they were to be tested again, the topics and essays might not appeal to the examiners, and they might fail.

They felt that if there was an issue with the limping jieyuan and the Chief Examiner, it should be sufficient to deal with these two individuals without the need for a re-examination.

For a time, Taiyuan Prefecture was divided into two factions, those who supported a re-examination and those who did not, creating a great commotion.

Regardless of the intentions of the two factions, their accusations ultimately converged on the limping jieyuan and the Chief Examiner—the Grand Tutor!

Cheating in the imperial examination has always been a serious matter.

If discovered, the offenders would face severe punishment: the most serious might be executed or exiled, while the less serious could be flogged or imprisoned.

Even the least involved scholars would have their titles revoked and would be barred from examinations for three generations.

Therefore, the matter was taken very seriously by the Imperial Court, and the Administration Palace was in an uproar over the issue.

The opposition faction, which had initially opposed the limping scholar’s participation in the exam, now jumped out.

Though they dared not accuse the Emperor, they had no qualms in pointing fingers at the ministers who supported the limping scholar’s examination, accusing them of being the cause of the current debacle and questioning where the Imperial Court’s dignity stood.

With so many scholars from Taiyuan Prefecture jointly petitioning for a re-examination, if the matter was not handled properly, it could lead to serious trouble.

As the Chief Examiner, the Grand Tutor was seen to have acted partially and against the people’s interests, breaking the law despite knowing it, and it was urged that His Majesty send someone to investigate the matter thoroughly, to give the examinees of Taiyuan Prefecture an explanation, to give everyone an explanation and, should the allegations prove true, the Grand Tutor should rightfully be imprisoned and face questioning, and Taiyuan Prefecture should hold a re-examination to demonstrate fairness.

The ministers accused of supporting such practices, naturally unwilling to show weakness, countered that whether there was cheating was yet to be determined, and it was hasty to pin any labels.

The Grand Tutor was known for his integrity and cherished talents, having reported this matter previously.

This did not dispose of the Imperial Court’s dignity; instead, it showcased that the Imperial Court values talent and virtue. What was wrong with that?

They argued that this incident was merely the result of the failed scholars’ unwillingness to accept their fate, causing trouble.

If their demands for re-examination were met, it would set a bad precedent.

In the future, anyone who failed an exam could cause a disturbance—wouldn’t that throw the entire examination system into chaos?

The opposition faction countered by asking if there really was no issue, why could neither the officials from the provincial capital nor the group of scholars find the limping scholar anywhere in Taiyuan?

The fact that the person had vanished without a trace, wasn’t that a sign of a guilty conscience?