After several days of fermenting, the rumors in the capital not only failed to die down but grew wilder by the hour, becoming more outrageous with every retelling.
At first, they had been nothing more than idle chatter over tea and wine. Now more than a dozen versions had emerged, each one told with such convincing detail that anyone who pricked up his ears in a teahouse or tavern could find a version he liked best.
“I heard this from someone who knows for certain! That lady’s cousin was seen in a private room at the Cloud Banquet Pavilion a few days ago, meeting with no fewer than seven or eight candidates from the south!”
“That’s nothing. I heard there’s a secret passage beneath the Cloud Banquet Pavilion that leads straight into the palace…”
“You’re all behind the times. Do you know why the examination results still haven’t been posted? A distant relative of mine who works inside the palace told me that someone was dissatisfied with that woman’s stranglehold on power and started an argument at court. That’s why the results are being held back!”
“The kitchen at the Cloud Banquet Pavilion has a secret dish called First Place Soup. Only candidates carrying a particular jade token can order it. After drinking it, inspiration pours forth and writing comes as naturally as the gods themselves! It’s terribly expensive—a single bowl costs a thousand strings of cash…”
“I heard a Daoist say that the light of the Star of Literature has dimmed over the capital in recent days. An evil star has invaded the sovereign’s domain and is hiding in the direction of the palace. It means demons and monsters are at work in the examination halls…”
The candidates waiting for the results grew more and more unsettled, just like the rumors themselves. Hundreds of young talents from every corner of the realm were now cooped up in inns and humble lodgings throughout the capital. Their scholarly honors were still undecided and their futures uncertain. With nothing better to do, they spent their days imagining things, exchanging tidbits of information, suspecting one another, and seeing anyone who had used connections as a likely culprit.
At that very moment, the noise in an old-established teahouse in the western part of the city was loud enough to bring down the roof. Two groups of candidates were facing each other across a small wooden table, tension crackling between them.
“Heh. So it’s the esteemed scholars of Jingling Academy. My apologies for not recognizing you sooner. I hear that you gentlemen visited the Cloud Banquet Pavilion a few days ago to exchange literary compositions. Your essays must have been blessed by some palace dignitary, then. Surely you’re guaranteed top honors in this year’s examination? How delightful!”
“Stop slandering us! The Cloud Banquet Pavilion is open for business. We simply gathered there with fellow townsmen. What’s wrong with that?”
“A simple gathering? One meal there costs as much as half a year of tuition for us poor scholars. What an elegant little gathering indeed! If you wanted to curry favor, why dress it up in such lofty words?”
“You! We’ve studied diligently all our lives and rely on genuine ability! Does visiting a tavern make us courtiers? I say you’re simply too poor to afford a place like that, so you’re nursing a grudge and defaming our good names!”
“Nursing a grudge? I resent you for squandering the people’s hard-earned wealth, plundered by your fathers and brothers! I resent the possibility that you may have exchanged favors with some noble personage! We may come from poor families, but we know only how to bury our heads in the Classics. We would never engage in such shameless scheming! Your conduct is improper, yet you blame others for criticizing it?”
“Well said!” someone shouted, slapping the table in approval. A few even began to applaud. “What sort of place is the Cloud Banquet Pavilion? Everyone knows perfectly well! Don’t you people understand the meaning of avoiding suspicion?”
“Absurd! Utterly absurd! Everyone under heaven may go there, but scholars like us alone may not? And going there automatically means harboring ulterior motives? This is clearly a case of inventing a crime first and then looking for evidence!”
The candidates who had visited the Cloud Banquet Pavilion were both anxious and furious. They had been placed on the defensive and could hardly clear their names no matter what they said.
“You people hear one rumor and treat it as fact. That only proves your minds are impure! The examination halls will determine superiority through our essays. Why resort to such filthy insults against your fellow candidates?”
“Bah! Who would call schemers like you fellow candidates?”
The quarrel quickly spread from the two tables to the rest of the teahouse.
The capital was already crowded with candidates from every region. Some came from different provinces, some belonged to different schools and scholarly lineages, and some came from vastly different family backgrounds. At that moment, every distinction became a sharp point of conflict. Old grudges and new resentments seized upon the Cloud Banquet Pavilion as an excuse and erupted all at once.
Some quoted the Classics from the disasters of imperial harems to the fall of former dynasties, as though the realm would collapse the very next day. Others pounded their chests and denounced privilege and corruption for destroying the hopes of poor scholars. Those being accused fired back, cursing their opponents as sour-faced paupers consumed by envy and plotting deliberate frame-ups.
The more they argued, the more confused the reasoning became. The more they shouted, the hotter their tempers burned. Cups and bowls clattered throughout the teahouse, while voices rose in a deafening uproar.
No one knew who knocked over the first teacup.
Crash!
The crisp sound of shattering porcelain rang out, and the entire main hall fell silent for an instant.
Then came a muffled thud. No one knew who had shoved whom first, but the candidate who was pushed slammed hard into the table behind him.
“How dare you bully me!”
The candidate straightened and shoved back with all his strength.
“A fight! They’re fighting!” cried the idle onlookers in delight as more people crowded around.
The candidates, who had initially been arguing only with their tongues, now began using their fists. The scene descended into complete chaos. Some kicked stools, others grabbed hair, and teacups, fruit plates, and broken chair legs flew through the air. Tables were overturned, leaving a wreckage of cups and dishes scattered across the floor.
Similar scenes had been playing out in teahouses and taverns throughout the capital over the past few days. The three words Cloud Banquet Pavilion seemed to have become a judge, tearing the candidates apart according to region, wealth, and scholarly affiliation. They pointed fingers, cursed one another, and came to blows.
The local offices sent runners rushing from one trouble spot to another until they were utterly exhausted. Eventually, they simply turned a blind eye. As long as no one died, they treated it as scholars debating matters of learning—although the method was somewhat lacking in refinement.
The tavern and teahouse proprietors were the ones who suffered. Their hearts pounded with anxiety, but after taking out their abacuses and doing the sums, they discovered that the losses were not as bad as they had feared. Most of these candidate gentlemen cared deeply about their reputations. Having already lost face in front of a crowd, they would only disgrace themselves further by refusing to pay for the damage. Thus, they were generally quite willing to compensate the owners afterward—sometimes even paying extra.
Besides, whenever a fight broke out, onlookers crowded around in layer upon layer, and business soared several times over. Sales of tea snacks and fruit increased dramatically…
When they thought about it that way, perhaps it wasn’t entirely a bad thing. The proprietors even began joining the idle spectators in watching the excitement. They merely made sure to put away the shop’s valuable antiques and famous paintings well in advance.
The uproar outside the palace walls grew louder and louder. The candidates’ arguments and even their brawls became a springtime spectacle in the capital. Any teahouse or tavern that failed to host a scene seemed positively unprosperous by comparison.
Whenever Shen Guanting had some free time, he would wander around outside, heading toward any place where he heard shouting. He watched the literary battles, then the physical ones, and returned home with shining eyes to report every detail to his young master.
Shen Guanting listened with reasonable patience at first. But when he saw how enthusiastic Shen Qi had become, he offered him a suggestion.
“Isn’t watching spectacles all day a waste of time? Why not put your medical skills to use?”
Shen Qi was in the middle of an animated description. He froze at that and blinked.
“Huh?”
Shen Guanting rarely explained himself so patiently. “Think about it. When these candidates fight, they’re bound to suffer bumps and bruises. Since you know a little about medicine, prepare some wound salve and ointment for bruises, then carry an eye-catching medicine chest and head straight to the scenes of trouble to sell them. As for the price, set it according to the severity of the injury and the candidate’s family wealth. It’s bound to sell well. If you’re quick with your hands, you can even apply the medicine and bandage people on the spot. Naturally, the bandaging fee would be charged separately. Making money right where you stand is far better than merely watching the excitement.”
Shen Qi slapped his thigh.
“Brilliant, Young Master!”
There were hundreds of candidates in the capital, and more than ten clashes every day. This business had enormous potential!
Once he had decided, Shen Qi set to work. He really did carry his medicine chest out of the house and plunge straight into the crowds, making a point of heading wherever trouble was brewing. After two days, he had actually earned a modest pile of copper coins and loose silver.
Unfortunately, Physician Shen’s exclusive business lasted only a few days before he found himself caught in fierce competition. Not only did every pharmacy and clinic in the capital send people to solicit customers, but some even offered an all-in-one service, including “writing injury reports on a client’s behalf” and “negotiating compensation claims.”
After hearing this, Shen Guanting offered another idea with great interest. “Since the Shen and Fang families are both in the cloth trade, why not have the Jincheng Trading House’s garment shops prepare some scholar’s robes and long gowns, and sell them alongside your medicine stall? When examination candidates get into fights, their clothes are bound to be torn more often than not. They still need to preserve their dignity; they can’t walk through the streets in tattered robes. We could also sell some gauze veils and hats. If a wound is on the face and won’t heal for a while, they can wear one to hide their embarrassment.”
Shen Qi’s eyes lit up. “Young Master, you keep coming up with one rotten—I mean, brilliant idea after another.”
Shen Qi turned around and eagerly went to discuss it with Fang Qian, earning a round of laughter and curses from the other man. Even so, the mobile stall selling ready-made clothes, veils, and hats really did join in the commotion.
The Shen family was more than happy to watch the spectacle grow.
Within the imperial city, however, a deliberate and taut calm prevailed.
This was the first Spring Examination since the new emperor ascended the throne, and its significance was extraordinary. At such a delicate juncture, no senior minister was willing to casually touch either of the two most sensitive strings—“the harem meddling in government” and “unfairness in the imperial examinations”—for fear of bringing disaster upon himself.
The high-ranking officials all understood the situation perfectly. They gauged the young emperor’s favor toward the Noble Consort, weighed the potential gains and losses, and chose to remain silent and watch.
But as the storm outside the palace grew wilder, the crest of the tide finally surged over the towering palace walls and crashed before the Golden Hall.
“I have heard that the winds of moral instruction must begin within the inner palace, while right and wrong must be judged openly in the imperial court. Now the Noble Consort, favored above all others in the harem, has failed to cultivate the virtue of restraint and has instead used a luxurious establishment to compete with the people for profit. It has further been reported that the place has become a gathering ground for examination candidates. The examination halls are where the state selects its talents; above all else, they must be governed with impartiality…”
A memorial from a remonstrating official was submitted.
Such officials were often not of high rank, yet they possessed a special authority. They did not command real power, but they had the right to submit memorials directly to the emperor. As the saying went, “Scholars die for remonstrance, warriors die in battle.” For many young remonstrators, the chance to risk their lives for an honest word and win a place in the annals of history held tremendous allure.
The stirrings of “the harem meddling in government” and “unfairness in the imperial examinations” were practically gifts from Heaven—a perfect stepping-stone to advancement and an ideal opportunity to make their names.
They naturally heard the rumors spreading beyond the palace. Among their fellow townsmen, fellow graduates, and old friends were many examination candidates anxiously awaiting the results. Their complaints and indignation flowed steadily into the officials’ ears through private letters and drunken grievances.
The first memorial was like a stone tossed into a still pond.
Then came the second, the third, and more in quick succession.
“The Noble Consort relies on imperial favor and has become arrogant, competing with the people for profit.”
“The Cloud Feast Tower is wasteful and extravagant in its expenditure. Surely such a place is inappropriate for imperial use.”
“Small problems must be prevented from becoming great ones. The rites and institutions of the state must not be lightly discarded…”
“We respectfully implore Your Majesty to strictly command the Noble Consort to cease her commercial activities and distance herself from all suspicion and controversy. We further ask that an explicit decree be issued throughout the realm forbidding members of the imperial family and the maternal clans from privately associating with examination candidates. In this way, rumors may be halted, discipline restored, and the hearts of scholars throughout the empire reassured.”
The chaos and clamor outside the palace, together with the ringing remonstrances of the officials, were finally placed before the new emperor.
An eunuch stood with his eyes lowered beside a pillar, scarcely daring to breathe. The emperor and Noble Consort had been arguing for days, and the atmosphere within the hall was taut and oppressive.
The emperor had naturally known about the uproar outside the palace long before today. Reports from the Imperial City Security Office were delivered to him each day, every word adding fuel to the fire.
This was the first Spring Examination since the new emperor’s accession. He had intended to use it to recruit several “disciples of the Son of Heaven” from respectable families, men who could help him counterbalance the entrenched old powers at court and cultivate a foundation of authority entirely his own.
The whole realm had been watching this examination. Who could have imagined that it would turn into such an embarrassing farce? Where was his dignity? Where was his authority?
At the thought, it was difficult for him not to feel resentful. Besides, if not for the people on the Noble Consort’s side who had sworn that the Shen family was connected to the condemned criminals of Nanya, he had originally held Shen Guanting in very high regard.
Shen Zhongming had retired from military service and returned home many years ago. None of his descendants had entered officialdom. Though the family was immensely wealthy, it had no ties to the court. Shen Guanting himself possessed talent, ability, and an excellent reputation—in every way, he was an ideal candidate for becoming a capable minister.
Even after Commandant Zhao investigated the matter and reported that “there is nothing suspicious about the Shen family,” the doubt, once planted, had lodged in the emperor’s throat like a fishbone, making it difficult for him to employ the man again. It was only natural, then, that he should resent the Noble Consort for stirring up trouble where none was needed. He even began to wonder faintly whether there had been some ulterior motive behind dragging the Shen family into the matter in the first place.
His lingering displeasure over the old affair, combined with the anger brought in from outside the palace, had been building for days. When the Noble Consort confronted him and demanded that justice be done and the rumor-mongers severely punished, all his pent-up fury and disappointment finally erupted.
The warmth and tenderness of the past shattered across the floor.
The decree was swiftly issued from the palace.
“The Noble Consort has failed to cultivate the virtue of restraint and has indulged her maternal family, causing public opinion to boil and damaging her reputation. She is hereby confined to the palace to reflect upon her errors and may not leave without an imperial summons.”
“The Cloud Feast Tower shall immediately change ownership and must no longer maintain any connection, in name or in fact, with the imperial household.”
Another decree was issued as well:
“Members of the harem and the maternal clans are forbidden from privately associating with court officials or examination candidates or from interfering in state affairs. Violators shall be dealt with according to the laws of the realm, without mercy.”
Once the decrees were issued, the tumult that had turned the capital upside down was finally suppressed. Moreover, the provincial examination results arrived late, and the candidates’ attention was soon drawn toward the names on the ranking list.
Before the Palace Examination began, the Zhiyun Trading House’s vessel slowly departed from the capital’s wharf.
Shen Qi gazed at the palace walls receding into the distance and let out a breath of relief. “At last we can leave. If we had waited a few more days, the canal would have been choked with the unsuccessful candidates returning south. By then, getting through would have been nearly impossible.”
Shen Guanting sat in his chair, watching the water split apart beneath the bow. “By that reasoning, those of us leaving the capital at this moment are rather like the candidates who failed the examinations. We are all people who have withdrawn from the capital’s arena of fame and fortune.”
Shen Qi shook his head repeatedly. “Young Master, please don’t put it that way. We accomplished everything we set out to do in the capital.”
Shen Guanting did not reply. He merely gazed in silence at the broad river flowing on and on.
The uproar in the capital had temporarily subsided, but some things were like stones cast into the water. Once the ripples spread, the stone sank beneath the surface and could never be retrieved. It simply and silently altered the landscape of the riverbed below, even as the surface appeared to return to calm.
The first imperial examination of the new emperor’s reign—the grand ceremony by which the state selected its talents—had ended in such a disorderly and disgraceful fashion. However one looked at it, it could hardly be called an auspicious sign.
Talent was the foundation of the realm, and the imperial examination was the grand ceremony for selecting the nation’s future officials. It should have been solemn and dignified, a display of the new dynasty’s vigor and a means of gathering the finest minds from across the empire. Instead, it had become entangled with harem interference and street rumors, erupting into an uproar that filled the entire capital and could be quelled only by an imperial decree.
Was this not a sign that the court’s authority had yet to be established, and that its laws and discipline had already begun to fail?
Shen Qi sighed softly. “What will the disappointed scholars from humble families—and all those in the realm who still care about the state—think?”
Would they doubt whether the new emperor could truly stabilize the situation? Or would they begin to suspect that this court could never become genuinely clean and upright?
The cargo vessel drifted downstream, leaving the distant city far behind.
Shen Guanting’s voice was nearly swallowed by the rushing water.
“In any case, this turmoil has nothing to do with our Shen family, a mere family of merchants. We simply happened to pass through and witness the spectacle.”
“Hey, that doesn’t mean we had nothing to do with it,” Shen Qi suddenly said with a grin. He pulled a money pouch from inside his robe and tossed it lightly from hand to hand. “We made a tidy sum in quick money by taking advantage of all this commotion.”
He cast a meaningful look at his young master. “We really do have to thank you for the idea, Young Master.”
