Dressed as a beauty to be selected, the game starts in hell mode!

Jixian Hall.

"Your Majesty, these are the top ten candidates for the palace examination and their test papers jointly drawn up by the chief examiner, Grand Secretary Lin, Minister of Personnel, Lord Chen, and Minister of Rites, Lord Qin. Please tick the top ranking and their official positions." The eunuch Qin Zhong came to Emperor Jinghong Xiao Lin holding the list and said.

Xiao Lin did not look at the test paper first. Instead, he picked up the list and looked down from the first name, intending to get a preliminary impression.

In the past palace selections, the list submitted by the chief examiner was the ranking after discussion and consultation among several examiners. Generally, unless the emperor had any special preference, the top three in the first class and the top seven in the second class would not be moved.

Xiao Lin was still confident in the abilities of Academician Lin, the Minister of Personnel, and the Minister of Rites.

They have always been dedicated in collecting talents for the country.

Normally, he would not change the rankings they had discussed and agreed upon, and he wanted to do so this time. However, when Xiao Lin saw the name of the third person on the list, his gaze paused slightly - Hua Jibai, a person from the capital.

Seeing this, the chief eunuch Qin Zhong whispered, "Your Majesty, Hua Jibai was once the son of the Marquis of Jing'an. His father was Hua Lian, his mother was Zheng Ru, and his sister was... Hua Zhaorong!"

Ah Wu's brother?!

He said why did the name look familiar to him?!

Thinking of that harsh, threatening letter, Xiao Lin's face darkened immediately. Was that the letter he wrote? !

Ha ha……

The third place winner? !

He deserves it too!

Xiao Lin immediately picked up the red pen and crossed out Hua Jibai's name from the top ten.

"Your Majesty?!" Qin Zhong was shocked.

Over the past few hundred years, there has been no precedent in the Great Yan Dynasty of any candidate failing the palace examination.

"The Hua family has a bad tradition. Hua Jibai, as the eldest son, cannot advise his parents, nor can he be friendly to his younger sister. How can such a foolish and immoral person be an official in Dayan?!"

"Even if he is an official, he is still a corrupt official!"

"Tell the examiners to remove him from the list and never hire him again!"

Thinking of Hua Wu's frail body and the pain she had endured during treatment during this period, Xiao Lin raised his eyelids slightly and said lightly.

"Yes!"

Qin Zhong quickly shut up, but in his heart he raised Ling Zhaorong's status a little bit.

……

The ceremony of announcing the names of successful candidates officially began. Three hundred candidates dressed in Confucian robes stood in front of the Jixian Hall. Each of them had a nervous and excited look on their face. They looked at the announcing officer with great eagerness, hoping to hear their names.

Hua Jibai was equally excited, and his excitement was mixed with a hint of complacency.

He was already well-educated, and after designing a plan to hook up with Censor Du, he worked hard to perform well, and finally won the favor of Censor Du, who gave him a lot of guidance.

Therefore, he performed extremely well in this palace examination and was very confident of winning the top spot.

As for the marriage proposed by the Du family after he won the top prize... a hint of displeasure flashed across Hua Jibai's eyes, but it eventually disappeared without a trace.

He doesn't like Du Qingxuan!

In other words, no one will like him in this life.

But Linlang is right!

Since they were not destined to be together in this life, at least he would send her to a high position with glory and honor.

He also wants to take back the title that their Hua family lost.

Since he can't marry Linlang, he'll marry anyone.

Du Qingxuan is also a good choice.

Although Censor Du's official position is not high, he has the responsibility to supervise all officials, royal relatives, and even concubines in the harem. He will be the most useful weapon for him and Linlang to deal with Hua Wu!

Huawu!

I told you I would make sure you die!

Hua Jibai felt extremely happy.

The herald officer in front of the palace held the imperial edict in his hand, opened his thin lips slightly, and spoke in a resounding voice. After reading out the imperial will, he announced the results of the palace selection, "The number one scholar in this palace selection is..."

Hua Jibai held his head high and chest puffed out, looking very high-spirited, but what he heard was not his name.

"Number one scholar Luo Jue!"

Luo Jue, who was called by name, was a middle-aged man in his forties with ordinary looks. He had a look of joy on his face and knelt down loudly to express his gratitude.

Why am I not the top scholar?!

How could it be Luo Jue? !

There must be something wrong!

Hua Jibai looked at Luo Jue in disbelief. Before he could react, the name of the runner-up was announced. It was still not him, but an old student named Yang Chu who was about fifty years old.

Could it be that because both the top and second place are ugly, they forced me, the top place, to be ranked third? !

That must be the case!

definitely is!

The second place has always been the most handsome of the three in the first place. It is not uncommon for the emperor to replace the first place with the third place just because the first place is handsome.

Hua Jibai comforted himself with an uneasy heart. He stared at the official, hoping to hear his name from his mouth.

Although the runner-up is not as dazzling as the top scorer, he is also very eye-catching.

If it was really as he guessed, then his marriage with the Du family might still be able to go ahead.

It has to be me!

It has to be me!

Hua Jibai kept praying in his heart, but the third name that came out of the official's mouth was still not his. Hua Jibai couldn't help but feel his eyes go dark, and then his face turned ferocious.

How can this be? !

Something must have gone wrong!

I can't possibly fall out of the armor...

But then, Hua Jibai discovered in despair that not only had he fallen out of the first class, his name was not even in the second class... until all three hundred names were read out, his name was still not on the list.

Hua Jibai suddenly thought of what Hua Linlang said that night, "...will she whisper something in the emperor's ear, making him unhappy and taking away your rank?!"

Linlang really got it right!

"Hua...Wu!"

Hua Jibai clenched his hands tightly, his eyes were bloodshot, and his teeth were bleeding.

"The candidate Hua Jibai is from a family with bad family traditions, improper behavior, disordered social relations, and poor internal relations. As the eldest son, Hua Jibai is unable to advise his parents and is unable to be friendly to his younger sister. He is extremely confused and lacks moral integrity. He is to be expelled from the list and will never be recruited again!"

The official who announced the fate of the emperor finally mentioned Hua Jibai's name, but the words he said made Hua Jibai feel as if he had fallen into an icy cave!

Deprive him of his position?! Never employ him again?!

Isn't this removing the ladder for him to ascend to heaven? !

He doesn't agree!

He doesn't agree!

He is well-known for his talent, outstanding ability, and extraordinary writing skills. He is a future pillar of the country. How can the emperor treat such a talented person like this because of Hua Zhaorong? !

The flesh on Hua Jibai's face twisted hideously. He wanted to roar loudly that the emperor was unfair, but in the end he forced himself to hold it back.

He can't roar at Jixian Hall!

Otherwise even gods cannot save you!

Hua Jibai didn't dare to look at the eyes of the people around him. He could only cover his face with his sleeves and walk out in a daze with the crowd... When he walked out of the palace gate, he was suddenly grabbed by someone.

"My dear nephew, how could this happen?!"

"Your essay was clearly chosen as the top scorer by the examiners, so why was it removed from the list when it reached the Emperor?!"

The person who grabbed him was Du Xun'an, the Imperial Censorate's Left Doctor. At this moment, his face was full of anxiety and confusion.

Number one?!

Sure enough, his article won the top prize!

Hua Jibai was filled with mixed feelings, and could only endure it. He looked at Censor Du and smiled miserably, "I never thought that my sister Hua Zhaorong...she would hate me so much...she actually made the emperor tired of me, so the emperor removed me from the throne."

"what?!"

"How dare a woman from the harem interfere in the important matter of selecting talents for the imperial examination?!"

"Isn't this the same person as Yelu Nanxian or Gao Jinxiu?!"

"I want to punish her!"

Censor Du was furious.

……