Chapter 221: Slaughter Is the Only Means to Inspire Awe

Xiao Li swept her gaze over the guards. "Why is she here?"

A guard captain approached. "Your Majesty, Princess Wen Shan has been lingering around here for the past few days. This isn’t a restricted area, and my subordinates and I confirmed she wasn’t carrying any weapons, so we didn’t force her to leave."

Xiao Li raised a hand. "Take her back and summon the Imperial Physician. Don’t let her die."

’Assassination attempts were something Xiao Li had long expected. After all, she was widely hated, and plenty of people wanted her dead.’

’But with so many people around her, and being a skilled martial artist herself, it was difficult enough for anyone to even wound her, let alone kill her.’

’So the assassination attempt didn’t anger her. What did disgust her was Princess Wen Shan taking the blow for her.’

’It was one thing for Wen Shan to be cunning and calculating in the name of survival. Considering her youth, Xiao Li had tolerated it. She may not have liked it, but she had still left the girl a way out.’

’But she could not accept Wen Shan repeatedly targeting her with these schemes.’

"Investigate those assassins."

’They had better pray those three had nothing to do with Princess Wen Shan. Otherwise, while she might not kill the young girl, she had plenty of other ways to deal with her.’

Lou Yan was clearly furious as well. He personally interrogated the surviving assassin. It was unclear what methods he used, but he had an answer in no time.

When he reappeared before Xiao Li, she could still smell the faint scent of blood on him, even though he had clearly bathed.

"Your Majesty, these men are from the Qin Family."

’The Qin Family... Consort Qin’s maternal relatives. The Nanqi King’s people?’

"Give the man to Consort Qin. Then seize the Qin Family’s assets."

’There was no need for further interrogation, only to assign blame. The Qin Family was already on her Book of Life and Death.’

’The Nanqi King might make it back from the border alive, but she would make absolutely sure he never had the chance to rise again.’

Following the assassination attempt on the Empress, the already teetering Qin Family was utterly destroyed.

The slaughter never ceased, adding yet another mark to the Empress’s ruthless reputation.

’But what did it matter?’

’Her regime would only grow more stable, while the aristocratic families, one after another, would fall into the cycle of history.’

’The old aristocratic families would hate her, and the new ones would support her. Such was the law of power.’

----

After a month of preparations, the imperial examinations finally began.

These imperial examinations were similar to the ones previously held at the Princess Mansion.

Examination desks were set up in front of Jinluan Hall, stretching all the way to the grand avenue at the palace gates.

Though there were many desks, not every candidate was given a seat.

For the past month, all registered candidates had been subjected to several rounds of screening.

The first round screened for age and background. Candidates had to be within the specified age range; anyone older or younger was immediately disqualified. Nobility was not a factor, but they had to come from a family with a clean record.

The second round judged appearance. They didn’t need to be handsome, but their features had to be regular and proper. Their clothes could be simple, but had to be clean and tidy.

The third round tested penmanship. Candidates had to publicly transcribe a sample text. Only those with neat and clear handwriting would pass.

The fourth round was a recitation test. Candidates were given a random essay and two hours to memorize it. Those who could recite it passed.

Only the candidates who passed these four rounds of assessment were qualified to enter the final examination.

On the day the examinations began, there were nine hundred seventy names on the final list.

This number might seem large, but a full thirteen thousand people—all of them literate—had originally come to take the exam. Over ninety percent had been eliminated.

Being literate and being well-read are two entirely different things.

Nine hundred seventy desks were arranged, each monitored by one of the nine hundred seventy Silver Armor Guards. The entire area was cordoned off by men from the Military Department and the Patrol Camp.

With the exam held in public, cheating was an absolute impossibility.

Candidates were required to relieve themselves before the exam began. Once the papers were distributed, everyone started writing. Anyone who left their seat was not permitted to return.

Once finished, all exam papers were sealed with a paper strip. A broken seal would invalidate the test.

These candidates had long heard about the examination style from the Princess Mansion: strict, but fair.

The only thing that rankled them was the presence of a single woman among the nine hundred seventy candidates.

Wang Yizhu.

She was dressed in men’s-style clothing and wasn’t conspicuous at first glance, but a closer look immediately revealed she was a woman.

She had made no effort to conceal her feminine features.

When Wang Yizhu first appeared, it caused a considerable shock. How could a woman participate in the imperial examinations?

However, the Silver Armor Guard overseeing the four rounds of screening had a simple response: "Which law states that a woman cannot take the examination? Her Majesty is also a woman. Do you have a problem with Her Majesty?"

Some people had accepted a woman as Empress, so it wasn’t that strange for a woman to take the exams to become an official.

But there was never a shortage of self-righteous, conceited fools among the men who felt the need to argue just to flaunt their sense of male superiority.

"A woman as an official? What a joke! What can they do? Teach the common folk how to have babies? Or put on a skirt and dance for everyone?"

"The court is a man’s world. What business do women like her have here? They should just get married and go home to have babies."

"Exactly! Men and women serving as officials in the same court? What would that look like? It’s a complete disgrace! The world’s been turned upside down! It’s the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard!"

"..."

One man spoke, and a crowd instantly chimed in. It quickly escalated into a public denunciation of women.

The crowd was in a heated uproar.

The next moment, a cold light flashed, and a man’s head went flying. In that instant, it was as if every man’s throat had been seized. Not a single word could be spoken.

The tip of a Silver Armor Guard’s blade dripped with blood as his piercing gaze swept over the crowd.

"Her Majesty is a woman. For you to humiliate women is to disrespect Her Majesty."

The next moment, three more of the loudest agitators were cut down.

’Kindness and tolerance only encourage people to take advantage. Slaughter was the only way to command fear and respect.’

A wave of rustling fabric swept through the crowd as they all fell to their knees. Faced with the threat of death, their opinions and thoughts suddenly seemed unimportant.

The Silver Armor Guard’s voice boomed. "The core principles of these examinations are fairness, impartiality, and transparency! We are here to select the virtuous and the capable! We are selecting for your talent, your character, and your skill—not your gender!"

"If you refuse to accept others, then prove your own ability! Defeat your rivals on the examination field—that is true honor! Verbally attacking and humiliating someone simply because she is a woman only reveals your own narrow-mindedness and inferior character."

"So what if one is a woman? Her Majesty is a woman, yet she is powerful and fearless, wise and mighty, magnanimous and far-sighted! Who dares say a woman is your inferior?"

"These examinations care not for your status, nor whether you are a man or a woman. There is only one creed: the most capable will prevail! If you have what it takes, prove it on the examination field. Once you’ve taken the top honor, then you can earn the right to criticize others."

Though the words were a clear challenge to male authority, their logic was irrefutable.

Listening to these words, Wang Yizhu felt her conviction strengthen. She had been right to come here.

’The greatest tragedy for a person of talent is not to be mistreated, but to live a life of obscurity, never to be discovered by one who can recognize their worth.’

’She was a woman, but she understood the sentiment: a true scholar will die for one who recognizes their worth!’

’The Empress was truly changing the world, changing the very meaning of what it was to be a woman.’