After the emperor summoned Zhang Fang, the Third Prince and the Crown Prince received news—Zhang Fang requested a thorough investigation of Xu Chang!
“How dare he!” The Third Prince was furious, never expecting Zhang Fang to attack them today! He even suspected that Zhang Fang’s boldness implied he had secretly allied with the Crown Prince!
On the Crown Prince’s side, he was extremely pleased! It had been a long time since he felt this comfortable. He immediately gathered his trusted confidants for a late-night meeting to discuss how to exploit this incident to strike a heavy blow against the Third Prince, hoping to trample him beneath his feet!
The Third Prince wanted to take action against Zhang Fang, but any move now would alert the emperor and hand over evidence to the Crown Prince. No matter how angry he was, he had to swallow his rage!
However, Zhang Fang was relentless! On the third day after entering the capital, he rented the execution ground in the East Market to hold a book club! At this gathering, in front of thousands of people, he publicly accused Xu Chang of impropriety before the emperor! This revelation sent shockwaves throughout the city!
Many literati were filled with righteous indignation. In a spontaneous rush, they gathered outside government offices and beneath the royal city, demanding the emperor conduct a thorough investigation into the examination malpractice in Jiangzhou! They requested the emperor to grant the Jiangzhou students a chance for recompense and allow them to participate in a fair examination again!
The Crown Prince had long anticipated that the Third Prince would abandon Xu Chang, preemptively ensuring his protection and capturing local officials involved in the examination corruption in Jiangzhou. Lin Zheng, as the Crown Prince’s intermediary to Zhang Fang earlier, managed to avoid the fallout.
Upon hearing the news in Jiangzhou, Lin Zheng immediately purchased a portrait of Zhang Fang, placing it in his home for veneration. Zhang Fang had truly achieved greatness, managing to stir up a significant event upon arriving in the capital! This would surely see Xu Chang brought down! The position of governor in Jiangzhou was bound to be his!
Lin Zheng sent several gifts of wealth to Zhang Fang’s family, which were politely declined. Zhang Fang’s family received the news and nearly fainted from shock. Particularly, Granny Zhang was extremely worried for Zhang Fang’s safety, wishing she could bring him back to protect him.
“How can Fourth Brother be so foolish! Xu Chang is his teacher, and yet he dares to accuse him of examination fraud before the emperor! Isn’t this self-destructive?” Granny Zhang exclaimed, her anxiety causing her mouth to break out in sores.
Old Zhang was unusually silent, feeling as if his youngest son had become a different person. Perhaps he had never truly understood this son. Upon learning about Zhang Si’s true nature, Old Zhang’s illusions shattered. Yet, after Zhang Fang’s rise to success in the exams, Old Zhang began to dream again.
Now, with Zhang Fang stirring up such a significant issue in the capital, Old Zhang could not help but feel a sense of panic. Along with that panic, he experienced remorse. Maybe he should have sent Zhang Si to study from the very beginning. If he hadn’t studied, he wouldn’t have sought the examinations, and if he hadn’t pursued this path, he wouldn’t have come to the capital and caused such a considerable upheaval, attracting so much trouble!
Remembering what Zhang Fang said before he left—to stay in the village and not venture out—could it be that Zhang Fang had already planned to deal with Xu Chang before setting off?
The more he thought about it, the colder Old Zhang felt down his back. Even wrapped in thick winter blankets, he could not shake the chill.
The Third Prince despised both the Crown Prince and Zhang Fang; the Crown Prince was relentlessly pressuring him in the court, while Zhang Fang manipulated public opinion from outside.
Recently, the Third Prince had become a bit reckless, and the emperor happened to want to suppress him. One could say that Zhang Fang’s actions pleased both the emperor and the Crown Prince, with the only ones suffering being Xu Chang and the Third Prince.
The Crown Prince uncovered many of Xu Chang’s crimes, including finding a ledger that documented instances of embezzlement and bribery. However, Xu Chang refused to reveal the names associated with the encoded entries.
One day, Zhang Fang unexpectedly visited the East Palace to see the Crown Prince.
Upon receiving this news, a sinister plan emerged in the Third Prince’s mind. He had previously refrained from directly attacking Zhang Fang, but now it was feasible! As long as something happened to Zhang Fang in the East Palace, the Crown Prince’s reputation would plummet!
Thus, the Third Prince ordered his men to ensure that Zhang Fang would die in the East Palace.
The Crown Prince and Zhang Fang were having an enjoyable conversation when the meal arrived. After tasting a few bites, Zhang Fang suddenly fainted.
This startled the Crown Prince, who immediately summoned the imperial physicians to assist Zhang Fang.
Zhang Fang must not come to harm in the East Palace! Otherwise, the readers and supporters out there would surely blame the Crown Prince! This had to be the Third Prince’s scheme to harm him! How despicable!
Fuming, the Crown Prince cursed and wished he could drag the Third Prince over and beat him up.
At that moment, the most critical task was to preserve Zhang Fang’s life! The entire imperial hospital rushed to the East Palace to treat Zhang Fang.
When the emperor learned of the situation, he set down his brush and remarked blandly, “The Third Prince is like me.”
In terms of cruelty, the Third Prince indeed took after the emperor.
The emperor had never been satisfied with the Crown Prince, feeling he could not distinguish right from wrong, nor could he discern when to be ruthless or compassionate. The Third Prince, however, handled such matters astutely. He seized every opportunity to protect his own interests and drove knives into his political adversaries whenever possible.
In the emperor’s view, if the Crown Prince could not manage this matter well, he would be deemed unworthy of promotion. The position of heir apparent would have to be filled by someone capable.
The Crown Prince remained oblivious that he was on the edge of losing his position as heir, facing the risk of being toppled at any moment. He was currently pressing numerous imperial physicians for answers.
“I don’t care what methods you use, just save Zhang Fang’s life!”
The physicians only knew that Zhang Fang had been poisoned, but they could not determine the type of poison. They could only use precious medicinal materials to keep him alive temporarily, preventing him from dying, while they scoured the East Palace to source the poison and analyze it.
After searching nearly the entire East Palace, they still could not find out how Zhang Fang had been poisoned. The Crown Prince was on the brink of madness as he paced back and forth, interrogating everyone in the East Palace.
The Second Prince, unable to contain himself, rushed to the East Palace to find out about Zhang Fang’s condition.
Seeing Zhang Fang lying there with feeble breaths—more exhaling than inhaling—the Second Prince was genuinely afraid he would die. He bolted straight to the Third Prince and pleaded for him to save Zhang Fang.
The Third Prince looked at the Second Prince with amusement and countered, “What do you mean by this, Second Brother? Zhang Fang is poisoned in the East Palace, and you come to me asking for help. Are you implying that the Crown Prince cannot save him and is borrowing a few doctors from me?”
The Second Prince clenched his fists, his eyes filled with suppressed anger as he glared at the Third Prince. He suppressed his rage and spoke calmly, “Third Brother, why ask me what you already know? Zhang Fang is the object of admiration for countless people, and he is someone I respect as well. He cannot die!”
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