A League of Nobleman Episode 18 Recap
> A League of Nobleman Recap
Since Mr. Lan had resigned from his post and handed over the chief examiner's seal, an official from the Ministry of Rites announced he would draw the topic for the imperial examination. However, the examinees objected, expressing concern that officials from the Ministry of Rites, being subordinate to Mr. Lan, might still facilitate cheating under his instruction, particularly during the crucial topic drawing process. They demanded absolute impartiality with no possibility of interference.
To appease them, the officials proposed that the examinees elect someone to draw the question. After deliberation, the examinees decided to choose an impartial person who held no official position and had no vested interest in the outcome. They selected the elderly man, Yang Bo, who swept the courtyard, to draw the topic while blindfolded. Yang Bo drew the question posed by Grand Tutor Liu: "Rule the Country by Virtue." With the topic set, the three-day examination officially commenced.
Zhang Ping finished his essay and handed in his paper after only one day, noting that an examinee named Ma Lian had submitted his even earlier. Zhang Ping was preoccupied with Mr. Jinghu's two prophecies, which seemed to point directly to the imperial examination and had also implicated Mr. Lan, including a prophecy hinting at a "ghost" related to a specific lot drawing ("癸酉有鬼").
Believing he needed to find Mr. Jinghu quickly, Zhang Ping decided to start his investigation with Chen Zishang, especially since Chen Zishang had not appeared for the exam, which Zhang Ping found very strange. He went to Chen Zishang's residence. Zhang Ping found himself imprisoned in the Judicial Prison, unexpectedly sharing a cell with Lan Jue, who initially seemed unwilling to engage with him. When a jailer brought food, Zhang Ping offered some to Lan Jue.
He explained that he knew the jailer from his previous work at the case archive, which was how he managed to be placed in the same cell as Lan Jue. Lan Jue accepted the food and stated he had requested imprisonment himself to help stabilize the situation surrounding the examination. He then asked why Zhang Ping was also imprisoned. Zhang Ping revealed that Chen Zishang was dead.
He explained that after finishing his exam early due to his suspicions about Chen Zishang's absence, he went to his house and found him dead by the well, having seemingly died some time ago. While it appeared Chen Zishang might have fallen while bathing, Zhang Ping noted the absence of defensive injuries on his waist, back, and hips.
This suggested Chen Zishang had already lost the ability to react when he fell, leading Zhang Ping to believe someone had killed him first and then staged the scene to look like an accidental fall while bathing. Unfortunately, rain had washed away most of the crucial traces at the scene. Continuing his account to Lan Jue, Zhang Ping mentioned finding other clues in Chen Zishang's room.
He noticed all of Chen Zishang's luggage was packed, suggesting he was preparing for a distant journey rather than going to the Exam Hall. Searching his book box, Zhang Ping found drafts that were identical to Ma Lian's answer sheet for the examination. Zhang Ping confirmed the exam topic was "Rule the Country by Virtue."
Lan Jue confirmed this was the correct topic, explaining that he had also deduced it by carefully studying Mr. Jinghu's prophetic poem during his time in prison. He broke down the characters hidden within the verse, explaining how they formed "Rule the Country by Virtue", commenting on how cleverly Mr. Jinghu had concealed the message. Zhang Ping further explained that he had heard from Chen Chou that Chen Zishang often worked as a ghostwriter for money.
Based on this and the identical drafts, Zhang Ping suspected Ma Lian had somehow obtained the exam question in advance and paid Chen Zishang to write his answer, making the draft evidence of Ma Lian's cheating. Zhang Ping stated that because this matter involved both the imperial examination and Mr. Jinghu, he felt it was best to bring the evidence to Lan Jue, both for the sake of justice and considering the history between their families' involvement in past cases.
He admitted this was why he had argued with the officers and been imprisoned for "lawlessness." Lan Jue thanked Zhang Ping for coming to prison and sharing the truth. However, he stated that despite his gratitude, their positions were fundamentally different. Zhang Ping asked if it was about past events.
Lan Jue clarified that what happened to his father was not Zhang Ping's fault and he did not blame him, but since the matter was ultimately connected to Zhang Ping's mother, it made it difficult for them to maintain a friendship. Zhang Ping understood and declared he would continue to investigate the case on his own. Soon after, a jailer informed Lan Jue that the Empress Dowager had summoned him.
In court, Lan Jue accepted responsibility as the chief examiner for the issues with the imperial examination. He reported that Chen Zishang's unexpected absence had caused him concern, prompting him to send someone to investigate, who discovered Chen Zishang had been killed the night before the exam. Lan Jue presented the draft found at Chen Zishang's residence, which he noted corresponded to the exam question "Rule the Country by Virtue."
An official confirmed that Ma Lian's answer sheet, retrieved from the Exam Hall, was indeed identical to Chen Zishang's essay. Lan Jue added that his own analysis of Mr. Jinghu's prophetic poem also contained the exam topic, further proving that cheating had certainly occurred. He requested that the Emperor and Empress Dowager thoroughly investigate the matter. The Empress Dowager declared Lan Jue innocent and released him from custody by the Court of Judicial Review.
Lan Jue inquired who would be responsible for handling the fraud case. The Empress Dowager suggested it should be discussed further. The Emperor insisted that finding those responsible for manipulating the examination and committing murder was an urgent priority. However, the Empress Dowager argued against a public admission of fraud, fearing it would severely damage the court's credibility and prestige.
Grand Tutor Liu pointed out that the prophetic poem implicated his question and declared he was not afraid of investigation, suggesting they wait for the public outcry to subside before quietly investigating.
The Emperor countered that Ma Lian was related to powerful families connected to the Empress Dowager (being the future nephew-in-law of the Empress Dowager's brother), and if he were found guilty of cheating and murder, it would tarnish the royal family's reputation and create the perception of a cover-up, thus undermining the Empress Dowager's authority. Seeing the Emperor's firm stance, the Empress Dowager agreed to a thorough investigation.
She ordered all officials involved in the examination process, including question writers (like Wang Taiwei and Dou Shangshu), chief examiners, and invigilators, to be confined to their homes without permission, as they were all considered suspects. The Emperor proposed that the Court of Judicial Review handle the case to avoid suspicion, given that two of the question writers were powerful ministers.
Minister Tao Zhoufeng, head of the Court of Judicial Review, expressed reluctance, citing ill health, but ultimately agreed to take on the investigation under pressure from the Empress Dowager. Zhang Ping was released from prison after two days. He learned that Minister Tao Zhoufeng had indeed taken Ma Lian into custody but was treating him leniently, providing comfortable accommodations, and had not yet interrogated him, likely due to Ma Lian's influential background.
Lan Jue realized that relying on Tao Zhoufeng to uncover the truth would be difficult. Despite being confined to his residence by the Empress Dowager's order, he decided to secretly investigate the Exam Hall, believing it held crucial clues and that adhering strictly to the rules would prevent him from uncovering the truth.
He also suspected that cheating involved manipulating both the drawing of Chen Zishang's lot and the drawing of the exam question, identifying Shao Zhi and Ji Wen, who were responsible for drawing lots and keeping the exam papers, as key suspects. Zhang Ping also sought to return to Chen Zishang's residence to search for more clues.
He found the entrance guarded by officers from the Court of Judicial Review who were reluctant to let him in, stating they were only tasked with guarding the property, not solving cases. Zhang Ping offered to help them in any way if they would grant him entry. The guards complained about their long shift and lack of refreshment.
Zhang Ping offered to take over guarding duties so they could eat and drink, recalling that Lan Jue would likely have handled such a situation with tact. Realizing they wanted money, Zhang Ping directly offered them the small amount he had, only five pennies. The guards accepted the meager sum but warned him he had very limited time.
While investigating Chen Zishang's residence under time constraints, Zhang Ping noticed that some rocks at the base of the well seemed unusually clean compared to others, suggesting they had been deliberately washed and replaced. He identified this area as a potential primary crime scene and discovered a small dropped gold piece nearby. He recognized the gold piece as similar to those decorating Ma Lian's gold lock, suggesting Ma Lian might have been present at the scene.
Meanwhile, Lan Jue and Xu Dong had managed to sneak into the Exam Hall to look for physical evidence. Inspecting the exam scroll, Lan Jue found a stain on the seal. Xu Dong identified it as mold. Lan Jue was puzzled, wondering how the ink could have become moldy. He suspected the mold might be connected to the cheating method, reasoning it couldn't have been present when Yang Bo drew the scroll blindfolded, or it would have been immediately obvious.
He noted the mold resembled the type that grows on rice or flour, speculating that Yang Bo might have had such residue on his hands. Lan Jue concluded the mold was the key to the puzzle of how the correct scroll was selected, but he still needed to understand the method used.
As he pondered how Zhang Ping might approach the problem, the guards outside Chen Zishang's house reminded Zhang Ping that their shift was ending and urged him to hurry, reminding him of the short time he had bought with the five pennies.
