Chang'an Palace Examination Record

On the eve of the Chang'an Palace Examination in the spring of the 21st year of Kaiyuan, Shen Yan, the judge of Dali Temple, reported that Li Changfeng, a candidate for the examination, had "self-immolated" and died in his Tongxunfang house. There were fragments of the examination paper with the word "Tianshu" and a strange smell left at the scene. Later, Wang Zhihuan and Zhao Keji, both popular candidates for the palace examination, also died in the same strange way. Shen Yan conducted an in-depth investigation and discovered that the deceased was actually strangled and then set on fire in disguise. The white phosphorus at the scene came from the weapons workshop of the Ministry of Industry. The fragments of the "Tian Shu" implicated the secret of the copper pillar of the "Great Zhou Dynasty and the All-Country Praise of Virtue Tianshu" during the Wu Zetian period and the old case of the deposed prince Li Chongjun's palace twenty years ago. As the investigation progresses, he uncovers the core clues: Pei Xuandu, the orphan of the deposed prince (the favorite for this year's number one scholar), with the assistance of Zheng Zhijie (minister of the Ministry of Rites, the former minister of the deposed prince) and An Lushan (Hu Shang), used the imperial examination transcript system to forge examination papers, and use the diamond ink biography He handed over secret orders and used Zuixian Powder to create chaos, intending to seize the secret edict under Tianshu's pedestal that recorded the grievances of the deposed prince and the list of his old subordinates, and summoned the old subordinates to rebel and take revenge. During this period, Pei Xuandu killed the orphans of his clan in order to clear the way, and Zheng Zhijie and An Lushan also had their own ambitions. With careful reasoning and the assistance of the Jinwu Guards, Shen Yan gradually cracked the secret tunnel, intercepted rebel materials, and uncovered the traitor. Finally, he foiled the conspiracy on the eve of the Chuanlu Ceremony. An Lushan committed suicide, and Pei Xuandu was exiled to Anxi for his crime. Shen Yan protected the tranquility of Chang'an and the dignity of the Tang Dynasty's law, and also revealed the power entanglement and human struggle hidden under the prosperous appearance of Chang'an.