Two days later.
Xia Jingfeng, having packed all his belongings, bid farewell to the Hou Mansion and departed from the Capital City.
Riding in an extremely simple horse-drawn carriage, accompanied by only his two personal servant boys, he set off for Jiangnan.
...
As April arrived, the court became increasingly busy with the additional imperial examinations.
The matter of the selection process was gradually put aside.
No matter how much the people in the city gossiped about it, the civil and military officials did not dare to openly defy the Emperor's decree.
After all, they were there to assist the Emperor, not the Empress Dowager.
In the end, the selection process was merely the Emperor's domestic affair and not a matter concerning the survival of the state.
Moreover…
At this point, they gradually understood the true nature of the situation.
The Emperor was not rejecting the selection process itself, but rather the Empress Dowager's coercive attitude.
