Chapter 352 Haozi Falls into the Rice Jar

Only one month had passed, and because of their involvement in the rebellion of the two kings, a large number of officials in the court had been demoted, resulting in one-third of the court positions being vacant again!

After these vacant positions were divided up by several forces, the originally turbulent court finally became stable!

On this day, Lin Hao stood up during the court meeting, picked up the tablet and said:

"Now that your majesty has ascended the throne, I request the court to hold an imperial examination to select talents for the Song Dynasty, and congratulate your majesty..."

Before Lin Hao finished speaking, a buzzing sound came from the court. None of the ministers expected Lin Hao to make such a proposal.

Many court officials were confused and didn't know why Lin Hao, a military hero, would make such a proposal that would benefit the civil officials!

However, this was a proposal that was beneficial to the civil servants after all, so no one raised any objections. But at this time, Han Zhang, who had half-closed his eyes, suddenly opened his eyes!
He instinctively felt that something was wrong and always felt that Lin Hao had some ulterior motive.

It was just that they didn't understand it for a while, but Han Zhang took the attitude that as long as Wu Xun supported it, they would oppose it. Han Zhang immediately picked up the tablet and stood up and said:
"According to the special nomination system, the Ministry of Rites has already asked the Ministry of Rites to formulate a corresponding plan. The Prince of Yan does not need to worry about this matter!"

The so-called "special nomination" system is an imperial examination system in which those who have passed the pre-examination but failed the provincial or palace examinations, when their number and age have accumulated to a certain level, are specially nominated by the Ministry of Rites to directly participate in the palace examination without taking the provincial examination, and are ranked and granted status or official titles.

Because it was a special favor from the emperor, it was also called "Enke"!
At this time Lin Hao said again:

"What I am requesting is not the special examination of the past, but a special examination that is equal to the regular examination, starting from the state examination, provincial examination and palace examination all over again, and it is for all scholars, not just those who failed the exam!"

Then there was another round of discussion in the court, and everyone thought this was a good suggestion. After all, the last imperial examination had been over a year ago, and the next one would be nearly two years away.

It would be a good idea to hold an encyclopedia similar to the regular one during this period!
"All scholars!"

A light bulb suddenly lit up Han Zhang's mind, and he suddenly thought of a possibility, that is, Lin Hao was trying to win the hearts of the scholars!
So Han Zhang didn't care about much else and said directly:
"Your Majesty, the Queen Mother, the Concubine Dowager, the special examination that the Prince of Yan mentioned is similar to the regular examination. It is really ridiculous~!"

He suddenly stopped here. Han Zhang originally wanted to object, but he suddenly thought of a problem. If he spoke out against it, wouldn't he offend all the scholars in the world?

So Han Zhang immediately stopped talking, but he was not willing to accept Lin Hao's invitation to win people's hearts, so he changed the topic and continued:

"Enlightenment exams fall under the jurisdiction of the Shangshu Province. If an enlightenment exam is held, it should be done by the Ministry of Rites. The Prince of Yan is the Minister of the Three Departments, but he shouldn't be in charge of the Shangshu Province's affairs!"

At this point, Han Zhang decided to find something for Lin Hao to do, so that Lin Hao wouldn't do anything weird again. After thinking about it in his mind, he continued to say to Lin Hao:

"Since the King of Yan is so concerned about state affairs, why not do your job well and find out why this year's salt tax is so much less than last year's!"

"Please understand the Queen Mother, the Concubine Dowager, and Your Majesty!"

Lin Hao smiled. Although he was unhappy about Han Zhang's rebuttal, Lin Hao's goal had been achieved and there was no need to steal other people's jobs, so he said:
"There is no need to be angry, Lord Han. I just want to give scholars all over the world more opportunities to stand out. Since the Ministry of Rites has already made rules, it is unnecessary for me to do this!"

At this time, Empress Cao looked at the situation in the court and said:

"I think this is feasible. Starting the exam from the beginning will not only give scholars a fair chance, but also help select better talents for the Song Dynasty!"

Having said this, the Queen Mother turned to Concubine Yi beside her and said:
"What does Concubine Yi think?"

Concubine Yi said with a confused expression:

"I don't really understand this either. Since all the ministers and the Queen Mother have said it's a good idea, it should be good for the Song Dynasty as well. Of course I have to support it!"

Lin Hao looked at Concubine Yi in surprise. He did not expect that Concubine Yi had such a high emotional intelligence. Her words not only made her humble herself in front of the Queen Mother and reduced her hostility, but also won the favor of the court officials.

Compared to the more powerful Empress Dowager, the ministers in the court suddenly felt that Concubine Yi was easier to fool. No, it was to be controlled. But that was not right either. She should be a person of both talent and virtue, gentle and virtuous!
Lin Hao suddenly became interested in her~!

At this time, the Queen Mother continued to say:
"What Grand Minister Han said just now makes sense. The Prince of Yan has overstepped his authority in the special examination!"

Lin Hao saluted expressionlessly and said, "I acknowledge my guilt~!"

The Queen Mother nodded with satisfaction, feeling very proud that her majesty could intimidate the King of Yan, so she continued:

"Nowadays, the court's salt tax is decreasing year by year, especially compared with previous years. This year, there is already millions less money."

"The amount of tax revenue does not match the amount of payment, which has caused the court's treasury to be empty. It has reached the point where income is not enough to cover expenses. The King of Yan should pay more attention to thoroughly investigating the salt business and make up for the deficit of the court as soon as possible!"

Lin Hao tried his best to keep a straight face when the Queen Mother asked him to sort out the salt business, then bowed respectfully and said:
"I obey the decree~ I will live up to the Queen Mother's trust and do my best to complete the salt tax payment!"

The salt administration issue has always been a big problem in all dynasties, and it is exactly the same as the issue that concerns the food and clothing of millions of canal workers.

The old emperor had taken action against the salt industry several times before, but most of the time the results were minimal, and he only managed to make the salt smugglers more restrained.

Sometimes, even the imperial envoys sent by the old emperor to rectify the salt affairs would be dealt with by the salt officials and salt smugglers.

The so-called "getting it done" meant being lured and corrupted by the salt smugglers, but those were corrupt and stubborn officials, so they were naturally killed by the bandits!

Obviously, Han Zhang dug a big pit for Lin Hao, which not only could support Lin Hao's energy and reduce his influence in the court, but also could make Lin Hao deeply trapped in the quagmire of salt affairs.

And once it involves salt affairs, naturally some salt smugglers will deal with him. At that time, he can easily get evidence of Lin Hao's corruption, bribery, and oppression of innocent people from them!
However, this kind of thing may indeed be a bottomless abyss for people of this era, but for someone like Lin Hao, it is simply like throwing a rat into a rice jar!

A grand court meeting ended in such a turbulent situation, and the court officials left the palace one after another.

Sheng Hong and Sheng Changbai were in the carriage, discussing today's events, and constantly reviewing the disputes in the court today!

If Changbai had not married the daughter of the Zhang family, the current situation in the court would have nothing to do with the Sheng family. After all, Sheng Hong was only a fifth-rank official before!

But since he was married into the Zhang family, Changbai also benefited in the court, and was promoted from an eighth-rank librarian to an eighth-rank secretary!
Even Sheng Hong benefited from it. During this court reorganization, he was promoted from a fifth-rank civil official, Chaoqing Daifu, to a fifth-rank Zhongshi Daifu.

If it weren't for Sheng Hong's age and qualifications, he could even be promoted to a powerful position of the fourth rank!

Therefore, after the Sheng family married into the Zhang family, they were already labeled as members of the Zhang family. After relying on the Zhang family for promotion, the Sheng family naturally had to consider the gains and losses for Lin Hao. Of course, they also had to weigh the gains and losses for their Sheng family.

······
At this time, Lin Hao finally had some free time. As for the issue of salt tax, Lin Hao naturally had other arrangements!
Besides, the constant urging from his mother, the Duchess of England, also made Lin Hao start to get busy with his own marriage!
After all, Minglan is already sixteen years old, and it is time to marry her into the family. According to Lin Hao's idea, he should wait another two years.

But! This is the ancient world. Women who are not married by the age of 16 are considered to be left alone. If it were the rules of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the girl’s parents would be finished!
"If a girl doesn't get married at the age of 15, her family will be imprisoned!" This means that if a girl doesn't get married at the age of 15, her family will be imprisoned!
However, the Song Dynasty did not have any mandatory regulations in this regard. It only stipulated the minimum age for marriage. As long as a man was 16 years old and a woman was 14 years old, they could get married.

But a girl who is still unmarried at the age of sixteen is still considered an older leftover woman, and she is mainly concentrated in the families of officials!
But, sixteen years old! Tsk tsk!

On the other hand, Zhang Cuifen and Changbai had already revealed to Sheng Hong and the old lady that Prince Yan wanted to marry a girl from the Sheng family as his princess.

This made Sheng Hong extremely happy, but Old Lady Sheng still had some doubts in her heart, so she asked her granddaughter-in-law Zhang Cuifen!

However, Zhang Cuifen said that her mother and elder brother were going to be guests today, and they could talk about any concerns then!
Therefore, Sheng Hong was in a particularly good mood today, so he arranged for all the servants and maids in the family to clean the Sheng Mansion from top to bottom.

But Sheng Hong’s good mood didn’t last long, as he was dragged into Linqi Pavilion by Lin Qinshuang to have breakfast!
Lin Qinshuang sat beside Sheng Hong with her plump body. She used her fat hands to pick up food for Sheng Hong attentively while saying in a coquettish manner:

"Honglang, just tell Shuang'er what your plans are for Mo'er's marriage, so that she can have a clear idea in her mind!"

However, Sheng Hong looked at Lin Xiaoniang, who was as fat as a pig and weighed nearly 300 kilograms. Sheng Hong's heart was not moved at all. He just said in a light tone:

"I have my own arrangements for Mo'er's marriage, so you don't have to worry about it!"

However, Lin Qinshuang shook Sheng Hong's arm and cried out tenderly:
"Hirou~!"

"Hiss~!" Sheng Hong shuddered, feeling that he was not worthy of it, so he said:

"Okay, if there's nothing else, I'll leave first. We have to welcome Prince Yan in the mansion today!"

Lin Xiaoniang extinguished the fire, oh no, it should be a charming voice shouting:

"Hirou~!"

In order to get Sheng Hong to choose a good husband for Molan, Lin Qinshuang tried her best to persuade him.

Sheng Hong felt that if he continued to stay in Linqi Pavilion, he would be frozen to death, so he stood up and prepared to leave!

Seeing Sheng Hong preparing to leave, Lin Qinshuang grabbed Sheng Hong's sleeve and continued to speak coquettishly in a charming voice:

"Hong Lang~, I heard that the Lady of the Duke of Ying and the Prince of Yan will come to our house today. I guess they are here to marry our daughter from the Sheng family as their princess~!"

"So what?" Sheng Hong frowned impatiently.

Lin Qinshuang already had her own plans in mind. If her Mo'er could become the Princess of Yan, she would be blessed in this life!
That’s the King of Yan!

In fact, Lin Qinshuang herself knew that if Prince Yan wanted to marry a girl from the Sheng family as his princess, then she must be the legitimate daughter of the Sheng family. The Sheng family had two legitimate daughters. Sheng Hualan was already married, and the only legitimate daughter at present was Ruolan.

Therefore, their Molan's chance of becoming a princess is really slim!
However, in addition to the Prince of Yan's wife, there is also the Prince of Yan's concubine who can be planned against.

If you marry into an ordinary official's family as a concubine, even if you become a noble concubine, it is not worth it.

But you have to know one thing, first of all, Lin Hao is a prince. If you become a prince's concubine, it is definitely not shameful, and there is no need to worry about reputation issues!
What's more, the Zhang family has a prince and a duke.

If my daughter had been more assertive, based on the skills I had taught her, she would definitely give birth to a illegitimate son, and a duke would be inevitable.

If you're a little more ruthless, even if the princess doesn't even have children, she might be able to become a prince. It's a wonderful thought!
So Lin Qinshuang looked expectantly and said earnestly:
"It would be great if Prince Yan could marry Mo'er as his princess!"

Seeing Sheng Hong's gloomy face, Lin Qinshuang knew there was no hope, so she continued:
"But I also know that Mo'er may not be worthy of King Yan!"

Sheng Hong saw that Lin Qinshuang was self-aware, so he said:

"It's good for you to know. The Zhang family is a wealthy family, and our Sheng family is a small family. It's a blessing for Changbai to marry the daughter of the Zhang family. Don't have those unreasonable expectations!"

However, the cold water poured by Sheng Hong did not extinguish Lin Qinshuang's desire. Then Lin Qinshuang grabbed Sheng Hong's hand again and said excitedly:

"What if Mo'er becomes the concubine of King Yan?"

Sheng Hong, who had been dismissive at first, paused when he heard the words and muttered to himself:
"What if Mo'er becomes the concubine of King Yan?"

Sheng Hong also thought of the situation of the Zhang family, a prince and a duke. Although the prince title is not hereditary, it can only be passed on to Lin Hao's generation.

But the two duke titles are backed by royal certificates, and they are hereditary titles. If the three daughters of the Sheng family marry into them...!

Thinking of this, Sheng Hong's breathing became rapid, and he left Linqi Pavilion as if he was possessed by a demon!

"Honglang~, Honglang~, Honglang~!" No matter how Lin Qinshuang shouted, Sheng Hong did not stop!

On the other side, Mrs. Sheng found Minglan:

"Girl, the mother and son of King Yan will come to our Sheng family as guests later. Don't you have anything to say to me?"

"Grandma, what should I say? Let him come if he wants!" Minglan said without any guard.

Thinking about what Lin Hao said to her in her dream last night, she suddenly felt extremely embarrassed!

However, when Minglan saw her grandmother's teasing eyes, she seemed to react. She looked at her grandmother shyly and immediately said coquettishly:
"Grandma, I have nothing to do with him~!"

"I asked you if you had anything to do with him?" Old Madam Sheng smiled kindly and said, "You confessed it yourself!"

(End of this chapter)