latelenovela Chapter 94 I mean, my husband's reprimand is correct, and I will obediently listen to the chapt
Chapter 94 I mean, my husband's reprimand is correct, and I will obediently listen to the chapt
With the strong support of Emperor Longyun, Lin Shiming's proposal was ultimately passed overwhelmingly with two votes to one.
The main reason is that the palace examination only determines the final ranking, and generally no one fails. That's why Lin Shiming, who was considerate and thorough in the provincial examination, suddenly started causing trouble in the palace examination.
After all, he has principles and wouldn't let his own quirky tastes affect someone's chances of failing the exam. Besides, even if he was stirring up trouble, the question wasn't entirely unreasonable; it was just unusual.
It was for this reason, and since the first two questions had indeed fully met the requirements of the palace examination and were not considered a violation of the rules, that Lu Yuxi finally backed down.
But in his mind, he had already added a new account to the list of troublemakers Lin Shiming, and he would settle the score slowly when the man fell into his hands that night.
In any case, this unprecedented and unparalleled set of examination papers was decided by the two "father-in-law and daughter-in-law" who were "scheming" and waiting to see the show, and they were just waiting for the big surprise to fall on the candidates' heads when April 15th arrived.
Emperor Longyun was very pleased and even invited the couple to stay for dinner. As dusk approached, Lin Shiming, full of food and drink, was led back to the Eastern Palace by Lu Yuxi with a sense of satisfaction.
In his smugness, he completely failed to notice the meaningful look in Lu Yuxi's eyes.
So, after returning to the East Palace, the unsuspecting Lin Shiming had no chance to communicate with his eldest son Lu Tingsong before Lu Yuxi forcibly dragged him into the inner room for another profound lecture that lasted for most of the night.
While the fox borrowing the tiger's power might temporarily make Lu Yuxi back down, once Lin Shiming escapes the protection of Emperor Longyun, the "tiger" who gave him power, and falls into Lu Yuxi's hands, his fate becomes obvious.
Extreme joy begets sorrow; this is a perfect example.
Before the old wounds had healed, new ones were added, and the next day, Lin Shiming was truly unable to get out of bed.
He clutched the blankets and wailed, "Me, a dignified young general! Waaaaah, I've never suffered like this in my martial arts training or in battle... Waaaaah..."
Lu Yuxi came over with a smile and brushed aside Lin Shiming's messy hair that was spread out on the bright red mattress.
"Don't feel wronged. Didn't you promise Eunuch Li yesterday to arrange things for Consort Wu? Eunuch Li just sent Ke Ren to ask. You haven't made any plans yet, have you?"
"Waaaah, don't touch me! You're being unreasonable! I want to go home! I'm going to tell my brother!"
Lu Yuxi stopped tidying his hair. He slowly raised his head, his eyes meeting Lin Shiming's accusing gaze with an ambiguous expression, but his hand gently rested on Lin Shiming's waist.
Lu Yuxi's hand was clearly not using any force, yet it made Lin Shiming's hair stand on end instantly.
"What did you say?" You want to go home?
Lin Shiming swallowed hard, wisely changing his tune, "...No, I meant that my husband is right. I've had enough of being disciplined and will behave myself." Just you wait! Once this general can get out of bed, I'll definitely beat you until you kneel on a washboard and apologize to this general!
Lu Yuxi could roughly tell that this person was probably just verbally admitting fault and saying nice things to coax her, but in reality, she wondered what he was really thinking about and how he would lord it over her.
But he had no other choice. He could only pat Lin Shiming's waist gently, hoping to intimidate him for as long as possible.
"Really? I think I heard you say you were going home?"
On the bed, Lin Shiming, unaware that he had been completely seen through, forced a smile to ease the tension, "How could that be? My home is right here!"
This person is truly adept at changing their tune depending on the situation. When threatened, they'll say anything—whether it's crude or obsequious—but as soon as the matter is over, they immediately become assertive again. It's clear they're the type who never learns from their mistakes.
Lu Yuxi really had no way to deal with this stubborn person. He was very reluctant to hit him hard, not to mention that he would almost certainly be seduced by this person and then fooled.
Sigh, I still need to learn from my brother-in-law. At least he can subdue someone with just a look. Unlike me, no matter how many warnings or lectures I give, they're completely useless.
"I also heard you telling me not to touch you..."
"What nonsense!" Lin Shiming seized the opportunity to grab Lu Yuxi's hand, which was still resting on his waist, and pressed it directly to his face. "I was telling you not to touch my hair, it tickles!"
Lu Yuxi rubbed her subordinate's handsome face, deciding to let him go for now.
"Fine, just pretend I misheard."
"Hmm! You must have misheard." Lin Shiming breathed a sigh of relief, having narrowly escaped death, and hurriedly pushed the dangerous man away. "Go and call Yuanye over quickly, I need to arrange things regarding that beauty!"
"it is good."
Lu Yuxi shook her head helplessly and stepped out of the inner room.
*
Li An sent people not to resolve the matter of Consort Wu, but to remind Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi that Consort Wu had other plans and was ambitious, probably wanting to gain the Emperor's favor and plotting something else.
But Lin Shiming didn't care.
He wasn't the kind of woman in the imperial harem who followed the palace intrigue script, having to consider this and that, her mind constantly preoccupied with scheming and defense. To him, she was ultimately just a low-ranking concubine who could be sent to the cold palace at any time; if she did anything wrong, he could deal with her directly without any hesitation.
Lin Shiming casually arranged for the people to stay in the side hall of Fuyu Palace, which was closest to Shouan Palace. Then he pointed out a few palace maids and eunuchs to serve them according to their rank and then paid no more attention to them.
He was so tired that he really didn't have the energy to deal with these trivial matters anymore.
These lessons learned over the past two days truly made Lin Shiming suffer, and he couldn't even leave the main hall for an entire day. Ultimately, this also kept the young general, who had been devising one wicked idea after another, well-behaved in the East Palace for several days.
The palace examination began on April 15th.
*
Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), the candidates lined up outside the palace according to their ranking in the imperial examination. Then, led by eunuchs, they were searched at the entrance as per custom before entering the Zhonghe Hall in an orderly manner.
The palace examination, including the time for audiences and the collection of papers, lasted a full five hours. During these five hours, unless there was a fire or earthquake, no one was allowed to enter or leave the Hall of Supreme Harmony, including the chief examiner and Emperor Longyun.
Even lunch would be prepared in advance by the imperial kitchen and placed in a side hall, to be distributed uniformly at noon. Each person would receive two steamed buns, a bowl of water, and two small dishes of side dishes, enough to fill their stomachs.
When Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi arrived, they happened to see eunuchs carrying food to the side hall of Zhonghe Hall.
"Are we going to have this for lunch too?" Lin Shiming rubbed his stomach, which he had just finished breakfast, and looked distressed. "I'm not full from this!"
Lu Yuxi chuckled, "Of course not. There's a stove in the side hall of Zhonghe Hall, so we can cook some simple hot food. Father and we will naturally have fresh meals to eat. It's just that the food might not be as good as usual."
"That's good!" Lin Shiming felt relieved and began to carefully observe the rows of students below. Two hundred and eighty-seven people, twenty people in each row, fifteen rows in total, not even enough to fill the Zhonghe Hall.
Lin Shiming nudged Lu Yuxi, "Is that the top scholar?"
"The one in the middle right of the first row. His name is Yang Wenshuo."
He looks like he's almost an old man! He probably doesn't have much of a vigor left.
"Can he become this year's top scorer?"
Without hesitation, Lu Yuxi said, "If it weren't for your last question, he probably could have gotten into the junior college. He..."
"The Emperor has arrived——"
"This humble subject pays his respects to Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor!"
Emperor Longyun strode in from the side and sat down on the dragon throne in the middle of the high platform.
"Get up and sit down."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The candidates below, following the etiquette taught to them beforehand, rose and sat down to express their gratitude, each with their heads bowed, not daring to look directly at the Emperor's face.
Emperor Longyun glanced around casually, then exchanged a meaningful look with Lin Shiming to his side before raising his hand to signal to Li An.
"It's time for the third quarter of the hour of Chen (7:45 AM). Seal the palace!"
A flurry of footsteps sounded outside, and a troop of imperial guards firmly surrounded the Hall of Central Harmony. The main gate of the Hall of Central Harmony was also slowly closed by several eunuchs.