Princess Promotion

The moonlight was hazy, and Lord Wu hurried to Liu Shu's yard in the night.

He pushed open the door and walked straight to Liu Shu's study.

In the study, Liu Shu was buried in his work. When he heard the noise, he looked up and saw Lord Wu standing at the door with a serious expression.

Without exchanging pleasantries, Lord Wu directly took out a list from his sleeve and handed it to Liu Shu: "This is the list of examiners for this imperial examination. Please arrange it as soon as possible."

Liu Shu looked up at Master Wu and said firmly, "Master Wu, I can't do this. It's unfair to those students."

Lord Wu took a deep breath and tried to calm his anger.

He understood that Liu Shu was no longer the retainer who obeyed his orders.

Lord Wu walked up to Liu Shu and said in a gentle tone: "You have sacrificed so much for the Wu family. We will definitely not harm you. You can't be blinded by the immediate benefits."

"Yao Chuguang promoted you not because she truly values your abilities, but because she wants to use you to attack our Wu family. If you really follow her instructions, you will only become her victim in the end."

After hearing this, Liu Shu frowned, as if thinking about what Lord Wu said.

After a long moment, Liu Shu raised his head and asked, "If I follow your list, the Empress will not let me go."

Lord Wu patted his chest and assured: "We have been master and servant for more than ten years. My Wu family will definitely keep you safe."

Liu Shu suddenly found it funny. He had worked for the Wu family for so many years, but in the end, he was just a servant in their eyes.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with it before, but he didn't want to do it anymore.

Liu Shu tore up the list and said to Lord Wu, "Given my over ten years of friendship with the Wu family, I will pretend I haven't seen it. If there's a next time, I will definitely report it to Your Majesty."

Their eyes met in the air, as if sparks could fly.

Lord Wu did not expect Liu Shu to reject him so resolutely, and a surge of anger surged in his heart.

He snorted coldly and said, "Liu Shu, you've really grown wings. You dare to disobey my orders! You forced me to do this!"

Seeing that Liu Shu refused to yield to any persuasion or persuasion, Lord Wu began to harbor murderous intent.

He knew that Liu Shu could not be kept, otherwise he would become a big trouble in the future.

He secretly winked at the killers beside him, signaling them to prepare to take action.

However, at this tense moment, the sound of a door being pushed open suddenly came from outside the yard.

Lord Wu and Liu Shu both looked towards the door involuntarily, only to see a young man walk in.

He was dressed in gorgeous clothes and had a jade pendant hanging around his waist, looking very noble.

When the man walked in, he noticed that the atmosphere in the yard was not right, so he asked nonchalantly, "Hey, what's going on? What's forcing you?"

Lord Wu didn't expect someone to suddenly break in, and he was a little panicked for a moment.

He stammered, "Nothing... nothing, Liu Shu forced me to drink tea."

Li Yinhan's appearance eased the originally tense atmosphere a lot.

Although Lord Wu was dissatisfied, he did not dare to lose his temper at this time.

He could only force a smile, chat with Li Yinhan for a few words, and then leave with the excuse of having something to do.

As the night deepened, Liu Shu followed Li Yinhan's footsteps and came to a guest room in the Duke's Mansion.

The room was decorated simply and elegantly, obviously specially prepared for him.

After Li Yinhan settled Liu Shu, he was about to leave, but was stopped by Liu Shu.

Liu Shu couldn't help but ask, "Why did you come to save me tonight?"

Li Yinhan turned around and glanced at Liu Shu: "I don't know either. His Majesty ordered me to do it."

His answer was simple and straightforward, without any unnecessary embellishment.

Liu Shu choked. She didn't expect Li Yinhan to be so direct.

He was stunned for a moment, then continued to ask: "Did His Majesty say what to do next?"

Li Yinhan frowned, seemingly puzzled by the question: "How should I know?"

Liu Shu was left in a state of confusion by Li Yinhan's answer. He shook his head and said with a wry smile, "Thank you for saving me tonight."

Li Yinhan nodded, said nothing more, turned and left the guest room.

Liu Shu sat in front of the window of the guest room, looking at the stars outside, but his heart was surging.

He always thought that he was just a pawn in the hands of the empress, used to sow discord between the Wu family and the other three families, and then discarded.

But at this moment, he was in the Duke's Mansion and was protected by Yao Chuguang.

Liu Shu couldn't help but have a little hope. Could he really be the chief examiner?

Everyone thought that Yao Chuguang was just using Liu Shu to check and balance the aristocratic families, and would not really let a commoner who was once a guest of the Wu family be the chief examiner.

From the moment Li Yinhan brought Liu Shu to the Duke's Mansion, everyone knew that Yao Chuguang was serious.

When the news reached the Wu family, the head of the Wu family was furious.

He originally thought that Yao Chuguang was just using Liu Shu to check and balance the aristocratic families and would not really let him hold such an important position.

He paced around the room angrily, smashing the vases in his hands one by one to the ground, making a harsh sound.

"Since you won't let me live easily, then let's all just quit!" The head of the Wu family shouted with gritted teeth.

He couldn't just sit there and wait for death. He had to take action and ruin Liu Shu's reputation so that he couldn't be the examiner.

So he called his servants and asked them to spread rumors in the streets, saying that Liu Shu was a treacherous and shameless person and was not worthy of being the chief examiner.

However, what Mr. Wu didn't expect was that the servant told him hesitantly that there were similar rumors in the community.

Moreover, these rumors were not only directed at Liu Shu, but also involved Yao Chuguang.

Some people say that she is worthy of being an empress who usurped the throne, and the examiners she found are all treacherous people.

After hearing this, the head of the Wu family was full of questions. He didn't expect that there was someone more ruthless than him, and he directly pointed the finger at Yao Chuguang.

This rumor came at a perfect time, and I didn't even have to do anything about it.

The brows of the head of the Wu family gradually furrowed. He realized that the rapid spread of rumors was not a good thing.

Now, whether in the court or in the streets, everyone knows that the relationship between the Wu family and Liu Shu is tense, and naturally blames the Wu family for the source of this rumor.

"This is definitely not a coincidence." The head of the Wu family said to himself, with a hint of vigilance in his eyes.

He began to suspect that someone was behind this and fanning the flames, deliberately pointing the finger at the Wu family.

A thought flashed through the head of the Wu family's mind: "Could it be the other three families? Are they trying to use this opportunity to weaken our Wu family and sow discord between the Wu family and the Empress?"

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it was very likely. After all, in the power field of the court, there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests.

It is entirely possible that the other three companies would do such a thing for their own interests.

So who did this and put the blame on the Wu family?

In the study, candlelight flickered, and Lord Xiao and Lord Xiao sat opposite each other.

Master Xiao frowned and asked in a low voice, "Father, are these rumors spread by the Wu family?"

Elder Xiao shook his head slightly, his eyes penetrating as he slowly said, "Not necessarily. While the Wu family may have motives, the rumors are too extreme and directly touch upon the Empress's sensitive spot. With the courage of the Wu family head, he wouldn't dare to confront Yao Chuguang so blatantly."

As the saying goes, the person who knows you best is often your enemy.

This is also why Xiao Ge Laojue felt that after the collapse of the alliance of the four major families, the Wu family would most likely turn to Yao Chuguang.

It’s not that Lord Xiao has not thought about maintaining the alliance of the four major families, but the heads of the families all have their own ulterior motives and there is not even the most basic trust between them.

The relationship between them is complicated, with both cooperation and confrontation.

This alliance was extremely fragile from the beginning, otherwise it would have collapsed so easily.

Elder Xiao speculated that it was the Wu family who spread the rumors that were unfavorable to Liu Shu, but it was taken advantage of by someone with ulterior motives, who probably wanted to make the Wu family go against Yao Chuguang.

In the tea room, the heads of the Liu and Qing families sat upright, with two cups of tea placed on the tea table in front of them. The lingering aroma of tea formed a sharp contrast with the tense atmosphere between them.

"I'm afraid the Wu family was too clever this time and ended up being taken advantage of." Patriarch Liu picked up the teacup, took a sip, and glanced at Patriarch Qing's face.

Patriarch Qing nodded. "Perhaps the Wu family just wanted to teach Liu Shu a lesson, but they didn't expect to be exploited and the matter was brought to the attention of the Empress."

The two exchanged meaningful glances.

Patriarch Liu continued, "Old Man Xiao is the most suspicious. He has always been very calculating. This move is probably intended to block the potential alliance between the Empress and the Wu family."

Patriarch Qing paused for a moment, then slowly said, "The Empress clearly intends to win over the Wu family to strengthen her own power. But Elder Xiao's actions are undoubtedly a message to everyone that any alliance with the Empress is likely to be attacked."

The head of the Liu family sighed, "This move by Elder Xiao not only put an end to the Empress's plans, but also put the Wu family in an awkward position. Now, the Wu family is either isolated and helpless, or they must reconsider their position."

Both of them understood that this storm caused by rumors was actually the prelude to a power game.

Every family is planning for its own future, and this move by Elder Xiao has undoubtedly dropped a bombshell in this game.

Just when the four family heads thought that Yao Chuguang would intervene in the rumors, they unexpectedly let Yao Chuguang do nothing.

The rumors were allowed to spread more and more. Some students even started to gather at the palace gate to protest.

In the elegant private room of the restaurant, Lord Xiao and Xiao Ge's gaze passed through the half-closed bamboo curtain and fell on the excited students downstairs.

The waves of protest came one after another, as if they were going to overturn the entire imperial city.

Lord Xiao frowned slightly and asked in confusion, "Why doesn't Yao Chuguang come forward to stop this? If we let things develop like this, wouldn't that be destroying our own great wall?"

Elder Xiao did not answer immediately, a hint of deep thought flashed in his eyes.

Suddenly, he turned around and looked directly at Master Xiao: "Why did Yao Chuguang send Yu Zhijian away at this time?"

Lord Xiao was stunned. He noticed the word "send away" used by Lord Xiao. This word seemed to imply some unusual intention.

But for a moment he couldn't connect Yu Zhijian's departure with the chaos before him.

Elder Xiao continued, "I've never understood why Yao Chuguang would leave Yu Zhijian alone and instead appoint the most controversial Liu Shu as the chief examiner. If Yu Zhijian had been the examiner, the current dilemma would no longer exist."

Lord Xiao frowned even more tightly, trying to catch a clue from what Elder Xiao said: "You mean, Yao Chuguang did it on purpose? Is she doing this to achieve some purpose?"

Elder Xiao nodded, his tone firm, "Indeed, we must have overlooked some crucial information. Yao Chuguang's choice of Liu Shu must have deeper considerations."

The two fell into silence, thinking about the recent events in their minds, trying to find out Yao Chuguang's true intentions.

The rumors about the chief examiner Liu Shu had not yet dissipated when the imperial examination encountered an unprecedented disaster - the news of the leak of the exam questions was like a bolt from the blue, shocking the entire court.

The four family heads originally thought that the spread of rumors would continue for some time.

Unexpectedly, the rumors about the examiner's selection were just the beginning. Problems with the imperial examinations continued to arise, as if an invisible hand was constantly stirring up the muddy water, making the situation even more confusing.

Patriarch Liu paced around his study, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips. He thought to himself, "The Qing, Wu, and Xiao families are all incredibly cunning. It seems they must have contributed to the mess in this imperial examination."

Patriarch Qing was leisurely sipping tea in the garden. Gazing at his reflection in the pond, he speculated to himself, "The Liu, Wu, and Xiao families all have motives. I wonder whose scheme was more sophisticated in this imperial examination incident."

Patriarch Wu was in his own secret room, pondering over the pieces of intelligence slips. He sneered and thought, "The Liu family, the Qing family, the Xiao family, they all want to take advantage of this opportunity to suppress me. I want to see who will have the last laugh."

Elder Xiao was in the quiet study, holding a pen in his hand, and the tip of the pen gently moved across the paper. The chaotic strokes showed that he was in a restless mood.

The four family heads tried to guess who was responsible for the accidents in the imperial examinations from the very beginning, but they did not expect that accidents would happen one after another.

Later on, every time I opened my eyes, I would hear about some troubles in the imperial examination.

Now I am too lazy to even guess, thinking that this group of people are really troublesome.