Chapter 66 Fame
The news that Jiang Li had won the first place in the Mingyi Hall examination spread quickly throughout the entire Yanjing City, and naturally reached Meng Hongjin's ears.

At this moment, the Chengxuan Envoy's house was completely silent. In the room, Meng Hongjin lay on the bedside, sobbing softly. Meng's mother hugged her distressedly and said, "My son, don't cry. This is just the first three gates. There are still three gates to go. How can you say that you have reached the end of your rope?"

"Shame on you!" Meng Youde, Meng Hongjin's father, looked very unhappy at the moment. He said, "You made a bet with confidence, but now you have lost miserably. It's embarrassing for me and your father too. You are such a useless person!"

Meng Hongjin was deeply saddened when she heard this, and cried even more uncontrollably.

Seeing her daughter crying so sadly, Mother Meng was filled with resentment and immediately said, "How can you blame Hong Jin for this? Jiang Li just returned to Yanjing City and stayed in the nunnery for eight years. Everyone thought she was pregnant. How could they have expected that she would suddenly win the championship? Could you have expected it?"

Meng Youde was speechless. He really couldn't have expected such a consequence. That was why, when he learned that his daughter had made a bet with Jiang Li, Meng Youde only lightly reprimanded her for being impulsive and said nothing more. It was because Meng Youde was sure that Jiang Li would lose.

As a result, reality slapped him hard in the face. Thinking of the mocking looks of his colleagues when he went to court today, Meng Youde felt very upset.

Mother Meng spoke again: "I've been thinking about this and it doesn't seem right. Could it be that Jiang Li used some tricks? You know, Jiang Yuanbo's position in the court is very important. Could it be that he bribed the examiner? Otherwise, how could my Li'er lose to her?"

"That's right." Meng Hongjin sobbed and said, "My sisters and I from Mingyi Hall have been studying here for five or six years, and Jiang Li has only been here for less than ten days. Could it be that she also has a school in the nunnery like Mingyi Hall, so that she can study there?"

Hearing his wife and daughter say this, Meng Youde began to think. He has secretly joined the Right Prime Minister, so he is the Right Prime Minister's man. Jiang Yuanbai and the Right Prime Minister have never gotten along. He is also an enemy of the Jiang family. It is not natural that Jiang Li is doing well in the school exam. It would be great if he could catch Jiang Yuanbai and the examiner of Mingyi Hall colluding with each other. The most hated thing by the current emperor is someone who tampers with the literary officials. If he can use this to severely attack Jiang Yuanbai, he will have made a great contribution.

A blessing in disguise, Meng Youde suddenly felt a little excited. He put on his outer robe and said, "I'm going out for a while," and left in a hurry.

Meng Hongjin felt even more aggrieved when she saw her father leave. Her mother comforted her, "What are you afraid of? There are still three lower subjects. Tomorrow we will start the examination of the lower three subjects: zither, imperial carriage, and archery. You are already the best in imperial carriage and archery. Even if there are teachers in the nunnery, there is definitely no one who teaches imperial carriage and archery. Jiang Li will definitely be defeated by you."

Meng Hongjin was one of the few women in Mingyi Hall who was very interested in the art of archery. She was originally violent, but she was just the right person for the art of archery. She was stunning at the time with her horse riding skills, and her archery was as accurate as that of a good man. In Mingyi Hall, or even in the entire Yanjing City, no one dared to compete with her in archery.

If Meng Hongjin was considered excellent in the previous three subjects of literature, mathematics and etiquette, then she was good at music, chariot driving and archery. Not to mention music, chariot driving and archery were her forte.

Thinking of this, Meng Hongjin felt a little relieved, but even so, the sense of shame caused by Jiang Li did not disappear. Because of Jiang Li, her previous bold words seemed to have become a joke. She couldn't even compare to a fool who had just entered Mingyi Hall. She didn't know how many people would talk about her behind her back.

Whenever Meng Hongjin thought of the sneering eyes of others, his hatred for Jiang Li increased. He wished that he could trample Jiang Li under the horseshoes in the next inspection field...

Suddenly, an idea popped into her mind.

If Jiang Li was stepped on by the horse's hooves... On the inspection field, swords and knives have no eyes... Her heart seemed to have rolled in cold water, and then poured with hot soup, cool and hot, and slowly boiled.

……

On the other hand, Meng Youde, who went out to find out whether Jiang Yuanbo and the examiner were "colluding", was destined to return empty-handed.

In order to prove the fairness of the Mingyi Hall examination, the first three copied examination papers were specially posted next to the door of the hall, and countless people watched at one time.

Meng Youde was almost pushed out. He heard many people around him talking: "If anyone says that Miss Jiang Er can't read a single word again, I will smash his head with a pole. I think Miss Jiang Er's handwriting is much better than the scholar in the village school. Even though I can't read a single word, I know it's beautiful!"

This person is probably a layman.

There were also scholars who looked gentle, whose voices reached Meng Youde's ears through the crowd: "The best thing is the article, with quotations from classics and unique insights. Miss Jiang must be a well-read person. I have studied hard for fifteen years, but I am not as good as a little girl. I am ashamed! Ashamed!" He then covered his face and sighed.

"It is said that one can tell a lot about a person by his handwriting. Second Miss Jiang's handwriting is more like a man's. She is broad-minded, open-minded, and like a heroic and good young man." A man with a thick beard who looked like a soldier said in a muffled voice.

"This accounting skill is not bad, and there is a new method. This method is good. I will copy it down and use it to manage the accounts in the shop. It is much easier than the old calculation." There was also a businessman who wore a golden abacus around his neck with a gleam in his eyes.

In short, once the copy of Miss Jiang's test paper came out, all the rumors were refuted. It is impossible for the Mingyi Hall school exam to miss questions, and Miss Jiang must have done it on the spot. Compared with the answers of the other three, Miss Jiang's test paper is obviously much better.

This first place is truly well-deserved.

Meng Youde walked out of the crowd in despair. He no longer had to spend all his energy looking for evidence that Jiang Yuanbo had colluded with the examiner. Jiang Li's test paper would not only make Jiang Li stand out, but also make the Jiang family proud. The more praise Jiang Li received, the more Meng Hongjin would appear inferior in comparison.

It is not uncommon for one person to rise to a higher position by stepping on the talent and reputation of another person in the officialdom. Meng Hongjin also represents the Meng family. In this round of betting, at least in the first half, the Meng family lost.

Meng Youde walked towards his house with a shaky step. The excited discussions of the people around him gradually became blurred in his ears. At this moment, Meng Youde had only one thought in his mind. This bet was no longer a joke between children. Its impact was too great. Perhaps the palace also knew about it. If Meng Hongjin could not win a game in the lower three gates, the Meng family would have no chance of winning.

That would be troublesome.

(End of this chapter)