The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

Shen Yu looked at Shang JunLin, utterly speechless.

“Why is Ah Yu staring at this emperor?” Shang JunLin’s hand continued moving at the same pace. “Did this emperor say something wrong?”

“… No.” When he thought of their only two encounters so far, Shen Yu’s head began to ache. He didn’t dislike being intimate with Shang JunLin. It was just that Shang JunLin… took too long.

Shen Yu didn’t think he could bear it.

Anyway, forget it.

The carriage rattled into the palace. As soon as they got out, Meng Gonggong, who’d been waiting there a long time, greeted them. “Your Majesty, Minister Fang requests an audience.”

“Have him wait for this emperor in the imperial study.” Shang JunLin walked Shen Yu back to Yuzhang Palace before heading over.

The reason Minister Fang entered the palace this time was because of his impetuous daughter.

Minister Fang knelt on the ground, his face full of remorse. “Your Majesty, this servant is ashamed. This servant had no idea that my daughter disguised herself as a man to take part in the imperial examination.” 

He knew how determined his daughter was, but he never thought she’d do something like this.

If he’d known this would happen, he never would have educated her so thoroughly since childhood. It made her overly ambitious!

Shang JunLin had an impression of the woman. He tossed away the memorial he was holding. “Tell this emperor what happened.”

“This servant’s daughter did everything with the utmost secrecy. But when the results were announced, she knew she couldn’t hide it anymore. That’s when she told this servant what she did.”

Minister Fang was astounded. Setting aside the surprising news that his daughter had passed the exam with excellent results, he made her explain the entire story in detail.

“It turns out that a few years ago, she went to visit the scholar who taught her when she was a child. During this time, she somehow obtained a man’s identity and took part in the provincial exam. After passing the exam, she didn’t tell anyone about it. This time, she did the same thing and used that false identity to enter the examination hall.”

The last examination was held in the palace, facing the emperor himself. Fang JiaYi had already spoken to Shang JunLin about her goal. Since she had some confidence, she dared to tell her father after the metropolitan exam results were announced.

Minister Fang talked endlessly and related everything he knew. When he finished, he kowtowed solemnly. “It’s this servant’s fault for not teaching my daughter properly. This servant will accept punishment.”

“Does Da Huan have a law that women cannot participate in the imperial examinations?” Shang JunLin asked.

“… No.” Minister Fang didn’t understand why Shang JunLin suddenly asked this. He mentally reviewed the laws of Da Huan and found there really was no rule that women weren’t allowed to take part. 

It was just that over the years, everyone implicitly believed that only men could participate.

As he realized the meaning of Shang JunLin’s words, Minister Fang’s eyes slowly widened. “But… There’s no precedent….”

Did His Majesty actually want to allow female officials? Minister Fang couldn’t believe it.

“There’s no hurry. Let’s wait for the results of the palace exam.”

When Minister Fang returned home in a daze, Madam Fang greeted him anxiously. “How did it go?”

She too was shocked by her daughter’s actions. The entire time Minister Fang was in the palace, Madam Fang was on edge. After all, deceiving the emperor was a major crime which could be punished with nine familial exterminations.

Not to mention the fact Fang JiaYi took part in the imperial examination as a woman. If she hadn’t passed the exam, the matter would have ended there, but not only did she pass, she got a good score, too.

Minister Fang patted Madam Fang’s hand. “Let’s go inside and talk.”

In the study, Minister Fang dismissed everyone except Madam Fang and Fang JiaYi. “His Majesty doesn’t intend to investigate JiaYi’s actions,” he said slowly.

Madam Fang stood up from her seat in shock. “How is that possible?”

“Why isn’t it possible?” Compared with her anxious parents, Fang JiaYi had a calm attitude. “I told you before not to worry. His Majesty is different from other emperors.”

“How can we not worry?” Minister Fang asked angrily. “Look at what you’ve done. You almost, almost destroyed our entire family!”

“Does Father really think your daughter would be so reckless?” Fang JiaYi sighed. Now that His Majesty and Minister Fang knew the truth, there was no reason to hide it anymore. She told her parents what happened after her confrontation with the King of Yue.

“This daughter told you there was no need to worry, but the two of you refused to believe me.”

Minister Fang let out a long sigh. “You mean you approached His Majesty about this ahead of time?!” His voice rose towards the end.

Fang JiaYi nodded. “Back then I met His Majesty and the noble monarch. They’re exactly as Father said, the perfect couple.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Minister Fang was almost out of breath. “Why didn’t you discuss any of this with your father before you decided to act? Where would you be now if His Majesty assumed you weren’t serious that day?”

“There are no ‘ifs’,” Fang JiaYi retorted. If they hadn’t taken her seriously, she never would have had the chance to speak to His Majesty and the noble monarch in the first place.

“Well, you’ve had your own ideas ever since you were young. Now that you’ve made your choice, do everything properly. Don’t let down His Majesty’s careful efforts.” Minister Fang waved his hand. What else could he say?

“Father, please rest assured—this daughter will never abandon her dream!”

Madam Fang wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. “Why did you have to choose such a path?”

When she thought about it, Madam Fang ached inside. Just imagine how much a woman working as an official would be questioned by the outside world! Her daughter, who’d lived as a pampered child all her life, had finally grown up. Before Madam Fang even had time to choose a husband for her and see her marry and have children, she would have to watch her daughter run headlong into the dangerous field of politics.

Fang JiaYi walked over and held her mother in her arms. “Mother, you don’t have to worry. With the backing of His Majesty and the noble monarch, your daughter will be fine.”

“You’re just saying that to comfort me. Like your father, I can’t help but worry.”

Back when Minister Fang decided to join Shang JunLin’s faction, he was a humble seventh-ranked official who was just starting out. The other princes were much more powerful, but Minister Fang still chose to side with Shang JunLin, the least favored, because Shang JunLin had expelled the foreign invaders and recovered the nation’s lost territory.

“At the time, Fang Jun knelt down before this emperor and said only one thing—This servant is loyal to Da Huan and to those who can save Da Huan.” While Shang JunLin approved the revisions to a memorial, he casually spoke about the events of that year.

“At the time, this emperor was in a difficult position in the imperial court. Several of the princes were at each other’s throats, and practically every faction in the capital was involved. This emperor was constantly away with the army and had no allies in the court at all. It was Fang Jun who gathered a few supporters together. Otherwise, this emperor would have had no reputation in the eyes of anyone at court.”

“Then the reason Your Majesty is willing to give Young Lady Fang a chance is partly because of Minister Fang.” Shen Yu poured a cup of tea and put it in Shang JunLin’s hand.

Shang JunLin picked up the cup and took a sip. “That’s part of the reason. There’s another point. Although she’s a woman, this emperor sees the shadow of Fang Jun in Fang JiaYi. He taught his daughter well. This emperor really wants to see how far she can go.”

“Your Majesty is good at reading people.” Shen Yu had seen the conviction in Fang JiaYi’s eyes. In the short time he spoke to her, Shen Yu sensed that Fang JiaYi was a strong-willed person. She had the softness of a woman and a heart that wasn’t inferior to any man.

The more time Shen Yu spent with Shang JunLin, the less Shen Yu was able to understand how the King of Yue defeated Shang JunLin in his previous life. Whether it was in terms of his mind or ability or anything else, the King of Yue simply couldn’t compare.

What was the origin of the book he read after he died? Who was manipulating them?

This life was drastically different from his previous life. Shen Yu didn’t know if that meant they were no longer under control, but he would never allow the events of his previous life to happen again!

In the book, the King of Yue ultimately became the emperor, and Shen QingRan became the empress of the realm. But before Shen Yu died, he destroyed the King of Yue’s dream of ascending the throne. Shen Yu had managed to rewrite the ending of the book before. Clearly, it wasn’t impossible to change things that happened in the book.

After the metropolitan exam, the palace exam would take place. It was held inside the imperial palace and supervised by the emperor himself.

The students who failed to pass left the capital one by one, while those who were eligible for the palace exam entered a new round of study and review.

The results of the fraud case were also announced during this time.

As for the Grand Commandant, the verdict in his case hadn’t come out yet, but everyone else’s sentence was announced. Those who committed a serious crime were sentenced to death. Those with lesser crimes would receive punishments according to their severity.

Every candidate who intended to cheat was disqualified from the imperial examination for life. They and their family members were banned from becoming officials for three generations. This was a serious punishment. If no one in the family could become an official for three generations, even the strongest clan would fall.

“That Sun XingZhao is from my hometown. He always seemed honest. I had no idea he would do such a thing in private.”

“I met that person before, and Sun JianMu as well. I know several people on this list. Shame.”

“Why would they do something that would hurt themselves and their families?”

“They really deserve it. If they hadn’t tried to take a shortcut, this wouldn’t have happened to them.”

“To tell you the truth, I got a similar letter back then. It said all kinds of things, but I didn’t believe it.”

“I got one too.”

“Me too.”

Several people looked at each other and realized how many people had been approached. Now that the exam was over and the results were out, they weren’t as apprehensive as before. After asking each other a few questions, they confirmed that quite a few people had received overtures. The only thing they had in common was that they were all from poor families.

It wasn’t a secret that the present administration liked to use officials from humble backgrounds. People who were able to participate in the spring exams had some awareness of the situation at court. Once they reached this conclusion, the purpose behind it was clear.

“Fortunately, I’ve always believed in my own abilities and wasn’t tempted.”

“Same here.”

The people who’d gathered together exchanged nervous glances. After a moment of silence, Jiang HuaiQing said, “We’ve all learned a lesson from this. If we’re lucky enough to join the court as officials in the future, we should focus on serving Da Huan, and avoid thinking too much about other things.”

“That’s true. The reason we studied so hard was to serve the country one day. Soon, some of us will be able to realize our dreams. That makes it even more important to act with restraint in the future.”

This statement was echoed by many people.

The discussions happening among the students were observed by the Hidden Dragon Guard.

It was a special situation, and Shang JunLin had sent a team of Hidden Dragon Guards to collect information outside the palace. If anything shady was going on, it was important to intervene in time.

“This might be a blessing in disguise. It’s a lesson for scholars who haven’t entered officialdom yet,” Shen Yu said after reading Jiang HuaiQing’s letter.

In his letter, Jiang HuaiQing shared the discussion the scholars had about the exam fraud. He happened to be present and wrote about it to Shen Yu.

“Thanks to Jiang HuaiQing news from outside, Ah Yu’s information is even better than this emperor’s.” Shang JunLin took the letter from Shen Yu. After reading it, he set it beside the confidential message presented by the Hidden Dragon Guard.

Jiang HuaiQing’s letter and the Hidden Dragon Guard’s message arrived at almost the same time.

“He’s so devoted to writing letters to Ah Yu. Before the exam results were released, he wrote to Ah Yu quite a few times, and now the letters are coming one after the other. Did Ah Yu write back to him?”

Of course he did. Otherwise Jiang HuaiQing wouldn’t have sent so many letters to the palace.

“It seems so.” Shang JunLin rubbed the soft skin of the young man’s neck. “What exactly did Ah Yu say to him?”

TL Notes:

Stuff about a woman sneaking into the exams – Based on other things I’ve read, it would have been hard for a woman to get away with this because the candidates had to strip naked to prove they weren’t smuggling in contraband. I guess that wasn’t a thing in this dynasty (*◔ヮ◔ *)

provincial examination – 乡试 – This exam was held every three years in the provincial capitals. Scholars who passed were known as Juren (举人) and were eligible for the metropolitan exam which took place in the capital (see note in Ch 39)

had some confidence – 心里有底 – “had a bottom line in mind” – had some knowledge of the true situation, had confidence

nine familial exterminations – 灭九族 – Refer to the note in Ch 16

empress of the realm – 母仪天下 – be a motherly model of the nation

Transliterated names, places, and titles—new in this chapter:

Sun XingZhao – 孙兴朝

Sun JianMu – 孙坚木