Chapter 272: Princess Xiangyang – Instead of Reflecting on Yourself, Question Others! (1 / 2)
A few days later, the verdict on Liang Youwu’s imperial examination fraud case was announced.
- “Chief examiner Xu Yanmiao and deputy examiner Li Qian—due to negligence in supervision—are fined six months’ salary.”
- “All other examiners are fined one year’s salary.”
- “Curtain official Wu Songnian, for accepting bribes and engaging in favoritism, is stripped of his position as the Minister of the Imperial Academy! He is to be executed after the autumn. His parents, siblings, wife, and children are all exiled to Shangyang Fort in Liaoning!”
- “Examinee Liang Youwu, for bribing officials, is stripped of his imperial examination qualifications and sentenced to execution after the autumn! His father, Liang Rui, is fined a year’s salary for failing to discipline his son. His brother, Liang Youwen, who took the same examination, is suspected of involvement in the fraud. He must retake the exam to prove his innocence.”
Upon receiving the verdict, Liang Rui knelt and bowed deeply toward the imperial palace, tears brimming in his eyes.
“The Emperor’s grace is boundless! Rui—”
“Thanks to His Majesty’s great mercy!”
Liang Youwen also bowed, but then, anxious and distressed, he asked, “Father! How could my younger brother cheat? He has always been so proud! Could this be a wrongful conviction?”
“It is not,” Liang Rui replied, the corners of his mouth pulling into a stiff, sorrowful expression. “How could it be… a wrongful conviction?”
After all, Bai Ze himself testified. The Jinyiwei (Embroidered Uniform Guard) witnessed it firsthand. That ledger still lay open on the Emperor’s desk.
Liang Youwen nearly fainted on the spot. He pinched his own arm to steady himself and barely managed to stay upright. “Father, then… then what will happen to my brother? Does he really have to be… executed after the autumn?”