Chapter 198: The Error of Empiricism
Pingyang Houfu.

Zi Ze lives in the study.

Yang Wenyuan was studying at the desk.

The imperial examination will be held in two days.

Although the Sheng Family Academy had suspended classes, Yang Wenyuan did not waste these last few days and continued to work as diligently as usual.

Anyway, we have been working hard for such a long time, and these two days won't make a difference.
Moreover, Yang Wenyuan is full of energy and has not yet reached the point of exhausting himself.

Chang Feng has the energy to go to Guangyuntai, so what's wrong with me, Yang Wenyuan?

At this time, Hualan walked in wearing a blue jacket.

While walking quickly inside, he said quickly:

"My husband, I heard some news about Gu's second son today!"

"Oh?"

Yang Wenyuan paused for a moment after hearing this, thinking to himself:
"What is supposed to come has finally come..."

Although Yang Wenyuan knew that Gu Tingye's dismissal from the imperial examination was inevitable, based on their relationship, he still asked Hualan to help gather some information from the circle of high-ranking officials' wives.

The result is inevitable, but the effort is necessary.

"What news?" Yang Wenyuan pretended not to know.

After so many days, Hualan more or less understood Gu Tingye's temper. In addition, Gu Tingye's attitude of not going to Qinlou and Chuguan as long as he said he would not go, Hualan now has a much better impression of him and treats him as a normal friend of Yang Wenyuan.

Add the long cypress...

Therefore, Hualan said with a worried look:

"My husband, didn't you ask me to communicate more with the ladies of other families? I just got some news and rushed back. It said that Gu Erlang had complained privately about the government's harsh treatment of Yang Wuduan. Now that the imperial examination is approaching..."

This is the difference between having a wife or not in the family.

At this time, a lot of news was passed on among the ladies, and Gu Tingye could only suffer in silence in this regard.

As a man, he naturally had no channels to contact the ladies, so no matter how he behaved, in the circle of ladies, he would always be the only spokesperson, Xiao Qinshi, the lady of the Gu family.

As for Xiao Qin, there is naturally no need to say much.

She says nice things for free, but most of them are to highlight her own virtuous character and Gu Tingye's image of constantly persuading her.

Yang Wenyuan, who had similar behavior before, was different.

There was Aunt Chen, a spokesperson with a high status in the circle of middle-aged women. Naturally, as soon as Yang Wenyuan showed signs of improvement, the original slander and anger at him disappeared without a trace in an instant, and she turned around and became a well-known example of a prodigal son who turned over a new leaf.

Yang Wenyuan nodded slowly.

At this point in time, this is indeed the case.

"Then let Zhong Huai know."

Yang Wenyuan called Chang Qing, who was guarding outside the door, in and immediately ordered:
"Go to Gu's house and call Gu Tingye over. Tell him I have something important to discuss with him."

Although the probability of persuading Gu Tingye to give up the exam is low, Yang Wenyuan still wants to notify him before he can feel at ease.

Changqing took the order and left.

Yang Wenyuan turned around and asked Hua Lan:
"Didn't you go to Yuqing Temple with your mother-in-law to burn incense today? Where did you get this information?"

"I heard it from Madam Zheng of the Zhongjing Marquis family."

Hua Lan drank the tea that Yang Wenyuan handed over to quench her thirst and said:
"Didn't General Zheng go to Lingzhou to join the army? After all, swords and knives have no eyes on the battlefield, so since then, Madam Zheng has been going to temples and Taoist temples outside the city to pray for blessings. She doesn't ask for fame or fortune, but only hopes that General Zheng will return safely."

"Today, my mother and I met her at Yuqing Temple. Madam Zheng was born in the Yan family, and she has always been able to hear all the rumors in the madam circle. She knows that you and Gu Tingye have a good relationship, and you are studying in the Sheng family academy together, so she told me this."

Only then did Yang Wenyuan nod.

He said that although he asked Hua Lan to communicate with the ladies, Hua Lan was young after all and came from a humble family, so how could she easily hear such "gossip" that spoke ill of others.

Most of these bad words about others are gossiped by ladies in their thirties or forties. Maybe they should avoid Hualan on purpose.

But if it was Madam Zheng, Yang Wenyuan would not be surprised.

The Yan family's reputation might be more effective among the ladies than the queen's words on a normal day, so it's not surprising that this matter reached Madam Zheng's ears.

Hua Lan's face looked a little unhappy, and she continued:

"And I heard from Madam Zheng that this news seems to have reached the palace, and now it happens to be the time for the imperial examination. If the emperor really knows about it, I'm afraid there will be twists and turns."

Hualan also knew the pros and cons of the matter, so she hurried home.

Although Gu Tingye said this in the past, it happened to be before the imperial examination that it reached the ears of the emperor...

Anyway, you have already said it, the government doesn’t care when you do it.

If he hears it, he will probably think that you complain one moment and then run over to take part in the scientific examination the next.

If you feel unhappy, the result of taking the exam will be almost the same as not taking the exam.

After all, the final list of Jinshi still needs the final approval from the government...

"Since you ran back halfway, you should go back first. Mother-in-law and Madam Chen may still be waiting for you in Yuqing Temple." Yang Wenyuan said after thinking for a moment.

Hua Lan nodded.

She understood that Yang Wenyuan was waiting for Gu Tingye to speak. If she were present, Gu Tingye might not be able to say some of his words. So she immediately took Cuichan and Mother Li back to Yuqing Temple.

Gu Tingye no longer went to brothels and other brothels, and without Man Niang who needed him in the outer house, he had nowhere to go and could only stay in Ningyuan Marquis' Mansion.

Therefore, when Changqing arrived at Ningyuan Marquis' Mansion, he found him immediately.

Both marquisates were located not far from the imperial city, so Gu Tingye arrived there in no time.

"Donghuan, why did you call me here in such a hurry? What's the matter?" Gu Tingye walked into the room with an anxious look on his face and asked Yang Wenyuan directly.

"I heard that you once said that the government treated Yang Wuduan harshly?" Yang Wenyuan leisurely put down the pen in his hand.

"How did you know?"

Gu Tingye was studying just now, so when he entered the room, he naturally walked to the desk to see what Yang Wenyuan had written so that he could compare it with others. However, he didn't even see the words clearly when he heard Yang Wenyuan suddenly ask this question.

He immediately looked up at Yang Wenyuan and said with a strange expression:

"I said this many years ago in my own study. How did it get to you?"

Yang Wenyuan did not hesitate and immediately replied:

"My wife went to Yuqing Temple to burn incense, and she met Madam Zheng from the Zhongjing Marquis's family. She told me that this rumor was only recently spread, and it was even spread to the palace, so I called you here."

"Is it because of this?"

Gu Tingye smiled and joked:

"Donghuan, you two really have the same temper. You called me here in a hurry just for this matter."

But Gu Tingye was stunned immediately, and then said:

"But I only mentioned this to my elder brother in my own study when I was a teenager..."

Gu Tingye also roughly figured out the plot:
"Could it be that he himself is in poor health and cannot pass the imperial examination, so he doesn't want me to be happy?"

Gu Tingyu's health is very poor.

Although he was a good student, he was physically weak and could not endure hardship. If he really took the imperial examination like a normal candidate, he might not know whether he would pass or not, but he would have to sacrifice half his life in advance to pave the way.

In addition, Gu Tingye had only said this to Gu Tingyu, so he naturally thought that Gu Tingyu could not accomplish anything on his own and was blocking his own way.

But Gu Tingye didn't care. After all, it was just a joke made by a teenager many years ago.

Moreover, even if this word reached the emperor's ears, considering the emperor's previous generosity and benevolence, it would not be a big deal.

"The most he can do is just a reprimand?" Gu Tingye thought to himself.

"We don't need to find out who it is."

Yang Wenyuan slowly said:

"What do you think of this matter being heard by the officials at this critical juncture?"

"how?"

Gu Tingye didn't care and said:

"The government has always been lenient, it's not a big deal."

Yang Wenyuan did not comment.

If this happened at any other time, not before the imperial examination, or when the official was young and strong, given the official's temperament, this would not be considered a big deal.

But Gu Tingye did not take the current situation into consideration.

The emperor is now old and in poor health. In addition, the imperial examination is approaching and the two princes are competing for the throne. The court is always arguing about this every day.

It can be said that the official is now completely "sensitive" and suffers from paranoia.

The government would take any slight movement to heart and carefully consider its significance and the deeper meaning behind it.

"But His Majesty is no longer the same as he was before."

Yang Wenyuan knew that Gu Tingye was not a quiet person, so he did not speak to him as tactfully as he did to Chang Baiqian. He immediately said:
"His Majesty is now old and in poor health, and he is also upset every day by the quarrels among the ministers over the succession. Now that your matter has been brought to his attention, he may vent his anger on you."

If Gu Tingye was the legitimate son of the Gu family, this would not have happened.

But Gu Tingye is the second legitimate son.

He has an older brother who is married and can have children, and he may give birth to a grandson at any time.

Therefore, in the eyes of today's officials, the possibility of Gu Tingye inheriting the title is not great, and naturally he will not be the future Marquis of Ningyuan.

And Gu Tingye’s status is not low.

It's just enough to relieve the irritability in my heart and to make an example of others...

Gu Tingye still looked nonchalant and shook his head:
"Dong Huan, you worry too much. Have you forgotten what position my father holds now?"

"Ningyuan Marquis Gu Yankai?" Yang Wenyuan was stunned when he heard this.

Yes!

And there is Gu Yankai!
Although Gu Yankai is still at home, his military position as the commander-in-chief is still in Lingzhou, and he has an army of soldiers under his command waiting for him to return to Lingzhou.

It was simply because Gu Tingye was about to take the imperial examination, and the war in Lingzhou had not yet expanded in scale. He was not needed for the time being because of the transportation of troops, reclamation of land, waiting for the military scholars to "enter the battlefield", and the fact that Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu was in charge of the overall situation. That was why he was specially allowed by the emperor to return to Beijing for rest.

But the above are just side quests.

After all, Gu Tingye is not bold enough to make Gu Yankai and the emperor turn around for him.

According to the information Yang Wenyuan learned from Yang Yuqing.

Gu Yankai’s main task was actually to wait for the military scholars to finish their imperial examinations, and then he would lead the team to Lingzhou.

Taking a break at home is just a side job.

Thinking of this, Yang Wenyuan realized that he had made the mistake of empiricism.

When reading about Gu Tingye's scientific expedition, all the previous events developed according to the story line, and I instinctively thought that the rest would be the same, but I ignored this layer of Gu Yankai.

Yang Wenyuan didn't know why Gu Yankai was at home in the original story line, but he guessed that Gu Yankai must have lost his military power, or there was no war going on outside, so the emperor could easily and arbitrarily cross out Gu Tingye's name.

But now the situation is different!

Lingzhou is preparing to start a war, and is waiting for Gu Yankai to lead this group of military scholars to the battlefield.

As the saying goes, when soldiers devote themselves to serving their country, the king must comfort their hearts.

That is to say, while others are working hard and shedding blood and sweat outside, you, as the emperor, have to take care of his family, reassure him, let him have no worries, and be able to devote yourself wholeheartedly and sacrifice your blood.

This is also the reason why Gu Tingye doesn’t care too much.

I am the legitimate son of the Gu family, and I may be the only one in this generation of the Gu family who can pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi.

I'm about to lead my troops into battle. Are you deliberately making things difficult for me at this time?

It's hard to justify it emotionally or logically!
Although the emperor is old, he is not yet crazy.

"You... you have a point..."

Now it was Yang Wenyuan who didn't know what to say.

After some analysis, Yang Wenyuan was no longer as pessimistic about Gu Tingye's path to the imperial examination as before.

"Unless the emperor is crazy, he will dismiss Gu Yankai from his military post because of this matter and replace him with someone else..."

But this is almost impossible.

The government has not yet reached the point of being old and senile.

Because of this little thing, the military power of a general was shelved.

And even if he made a decision on impulse, no one else would take it up...

Not to mention status and strength.

If he really accepted it, even the Gu family would be at odds with him from now on.

Don't think that the general who leads the troops is not smart.

A foolish person would have been exiled to the poor and remote areas of southern Xinjiang to hunt savages, let alone lead troops to fight.

No one wants to do a thankless job.

"But I still want to thank you for this."

Although Gu Tingye felt that this matter was not a big deal, he felt that Yang Wenyuan and his wife's attitude of caring about him was genuine. Even though there was a hint of "concern and confusion" in it, Gu Tingye still felt warm in his heart.

What kind of family are they? They share the same blood, but they can only stab each other in the back and are not even as good as outsiders.

Gu Tingye had already determined in his heart that it was his older brother Gu Tingyu who was behind all this.

If the imperial examination wasn't in two days, according to Gu Tingye's temper, he would go back and confront him now.

It didn’t matter whether his father believed it or stood on his side. Gu Tingye was already used to it, but he just wanted to vent his anger.

"I will go home and discuss this when my name is on the list after the exam."

Gu Tingye didn't want to have a big quarrel at home at this time, which would disturb his concentration on the imperial examination and make his relatives sad and his enemies happy.

Moreover, if an argument breaks out at this time and you give up your lofty words in advance, it will be embarrassing if you really fail.

Gu Tingye’s considerations were very thorough.

Gu Tingye felt secretly happy when he thought about how his elder brother would be so angry that he would be out of breath if his evil plan failed.

But at the same time, a trace of doubt flashed through my mind:
'Brother, before you did this, didn't you think about your father? Or have you been staying in your room for so long that you have only learned some womanly tricks?'

'Did I read all those books in the past in vain?'

(End of this chapter)