Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Chapter 964: The Left and Right Guards Dance in Disarray
The day of the imperial examination gradually passed, and those who had worked hard for days and nights walked out of the examination room with tired faces and smelly bodies. Some could not help but start asking others how they did on the exam, while others said nothing and went straight back to their own residences, where they washed up and breathed a sigh of relief.

In the following days, drunken scholars could be seen everywhere in Linhuang Prefecture. These people who came to take the exam were under a lot of pressure, and now they felt relaxed after the exam. Some of them simply lingered in brothels and behaved wildly, while others called their friends and came home drunk every day.

The ease and comfort of the examinees did not affect the feelings of the examiners from Qi State. They all looked at the papers they were marking with frowns on their faces. Occasionally, they would share and appreciate good articles with each other, which would draw praises.

In the palace, eunuchs and palace maids were walking hurriedly. A figure carrying pastries hurriedly walked down the corridor, carefully opened the door, put down the plates on the tray in his hand, then lowered his head and quietly retreated. In the room, Qiao Lie's voice continued to ring.

"This case has been closed. It was because Yelu Tabuye was dissatisfied with the rewards of his official position and title. He had earlier sent people to the south to contact Liao officials. It happened that Your Majesty wanted to hold an imperial examination, so he passed the news out. The Liao side was planning to turn the entire examination hall into a sea of ​​fire. Fortunately, Wei Weiqing recognized Xiao Zhonggong, otherwise even if it failed, it would cause chaos.

As for the surrendered ministers and generals who participated in this matter, most of them had complaints or were Khitan nobles who had to surrender to save their lives. Now they all hope that the Liao emperor can fight back, so they are all actively active. "

Lu Bu stood up with a calm expression, walked to the side and opened the window, the breeze blew in, moving the hair beside his cheeks: "Hand the prisoner over to the Dali Temple, and let Pei Xuan decide the sentence.

Also, keep an eye on Xiao Zhonggong. If he really wants to join our Qi State as he said, it may not be a bad thing. But if he has evil intentions..." He turned his head and looked at Qiao Lie.

"I understand. I will make him regret coming to this world." Qiao Lie bowed slightly.

Lu Bu nodded in satisfaction and said, "Go and fetch his wife and children, and spread the news of his surrender. He is a descendant of the Khitan nobility and a well-known figure in the army. He can further weaken the morale of the Liao army."

"I'll do it now."

Qiao Lie said this and said goodbye, and walked out. He saw Li Zhu walking over. The two of them nodded and greeted each other, then hurriedly passed each other.

"Your Majesty, I, Li Zhu, pay my respects to you."

"I was just about to bring you into the palace. You came just in time."

Li Zhu smiled and stood up and walked over, but Lu Bu grabbed him and said, "Stop talking here. Come with me for a walk. We have been dealing with government affairs here this morning and we are tired of sitting here."

"It is your pleasure."

Li Zu would not object and followed Lu Bu out of the room. Yu Cheng and Wei He followed from a distance with their guards, watching the two men walking in front without disturbing them.

Lu Bu fiddled with the branches beside him and said jokingly, "It's time for you, the Minister of Imperial Household, to fulfill your duties. The palace guards and attendants have been waiting for you for a long time."

"I am ashamed." Li Zhu lowered his eyes and looked at the scattered leaves at his feet, saying, "I will not go out easily this time when I come back."

"That's great. Yu Cheng and Wei He have done a great job with the Wuwei. But there can't be only one guard in the palace. I think the left and right Wujuns in the Tang Dynasty were pretty good. You can make some arrangements later. The current Wuwei will be the Left Wuwei, which is mainly composed of cavalry, and the Right Wuwei, which is mainly composed of infantry."

"I will take care of this matter when I return." Li Zhu nodded and accepted the order: "These military guards will mainly guard the central army. I think it would be better to use the old men from the mountain as the main force."

"You go and coordinate this matter." Lu Bu said without turning his head: "As long as the commanders of each army are willing to release the people, it will be fine."

"Then, Your Majesty, has the appointment of the commander of the Right Guard been finalized?"

"Xu Wen was promoted to General of the Right Guard, and Su Yi was promoted to General of the Right Guard. The number of people is the same as that of the Left Guard."

Li Zhu nodded in response. The figure in the black robe turned the corner in front of him. The palace guards and eunuchs who were passing by quickly stepped aside, saluted and waited, while the voices continued.

"The last time you came back, I didn't tell you in detail because you were tired from the journey. You said you found a doctor who could help you make the insecticide. Have you made any progress?"

"He is already being cultivated." Assistant Li took slow steps and said, "An Daoquan is quite capable. I have confidence in his ability."

"I just want the results." Lu Bu shook his head: "It has been cold since last year, with a lot of snow. I don't know if the insects can survive."

"The seedlings I have found are all cold-resistant, so they should be able to survive." Li Zhu thought for a moment and nodded affirmatively: "We planted a batch of seedlings last year, and another batch this year. A disaster will definitely happen. The grassland will be in danger as early as this year or at the latest next year."

"It's good that you have a plan in mind." Lu Bu turned around and smiled, "The equipment in the southeast has been prepared again. Jiang Jing has calculated that as long as we get this batch of food this time, plus this year's production and trade, it will be enough for the army next year."

"So, Your Majesty is going to stop the deal with Fang La?" Li Zhu immediately understood the meaning of the words. He twirled his beard and looked at the treetops full of new branches. "I don't object. The deal with Fang La is just to hope that they can delay the Song army for two more years. It won't be a pity to stop it now."

"No." Lu Bu waved his hand in front. In the sunlight, his tall figure cast a long shadow on the ground. "I don't mind continuing to support them. It's just some weapons. At the end of the Han Dynasty, there were still princes who borrowed soldiers from others. It's not much different from what you and I are doing now."

After a pause, the voice that came out was full of gloating: "It's just that most of the soldiers were loaned out and no one returned them. Someone's soldiers helped to build a large base, but he ended up making stupid decisions and died. The territory and soldiers were taken advantage of by outsiders. I don't know what he was thinking."

Li Zhu looked up at Lu Bu and wanted to say his name, but then he thought it was pointless and just listened calmly.

"I didn't send troops out because we don't have enough on our own. Your method of using others to disrupt the Song State is good, but I don't think highly of Fang La."

Lu Bu stopped, stretched out his hand to pick a long crooked flower, and turned it in his hand: "It's not that we haven't had conflicts with them in Song before, but unfortunately, they are not as good as the Song soldiers.

It is true that our Qi State needs food, tea, and medicinal materials, but when we throw things out, we should at least make a sound. I am afraid that they won’t even make a splash.”

The spinning flowers stopped, and he turned to look at the middle-aged man behind him: "You have been to Jiangnan, and you know them very well. Can you tell me if they have made any progress?"

"...No." Li Zhu closed his eyes, thought about what he saw in Xiuzhou, and then thought about the appearance of the soldiers in Hangzhou City, and sighed: "They are much stronger than ordinary imperial guards, and are far inferior to the Western Army, which has been fighting against the Xixia people on the border for many years."

Lu Bu nodded and turned around. Before he took a step, he heard Li Zhu's voice coming from behind him: "They themselves know about this situation. When I was in Hangzhou, Lou Minzhong, the left prime minister in Fang La's army, asked our dynasty to send one or two good generals to help them train soldiers to deal with the Western Army.

Also, they want to buy ships to form a navy.”

"Oh?" The figure turned around again, and Lu Bu raised his eyebrows: "Training troops? Navy?"

After thinking for a moment, he said, "This is the only thing they can do now, but I don't know if it's too late." Then he smiled and said, "Very good, it seems that they are not all reckless men who only know how to kill."

"So your majesty means..."

"Send someone over." Lu Bu waved his hand, his smile still on his face. "That Zhao guy is too inconsistent. I have long wanted to teach him a lesson. Since I cannot personally lead the troops to let him know that orders cannot be changed overnight, the best way now is to support a rebel to give him a headache."

"Your Majesty is wise." Li Zhu bowed with a smile on his face, thinking that he was worthy of the friendship with Lou Minzhong.

"Go down and ask the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel to come up with a list. Don't send too many people. Only three or five is best. If everything goes well next year, we will go south again. Don't let my generals complain that I didn't call them when I had a war to fight."

Lu Bu made a joke, which made Li Zhu laugh as well. Then he remembered something: "Oh, General Li Bao said during the grain handover that General Xiao Qi became sworn brothers with two men from Fang La's army in the southeast."

"Then we have to let Xiao Qi go next time." Lu Bu turned and walked forward: "We can't let the three of us, who are brothers, be separated for a long time..."

Then he smacked his lips, and a hesitant voice spread to the back: "Why are there still three people sworn brothers? Why not five or six? What is the meaning of three people when swearing brotherhood?"

"Maybe they were the only ones who drank too much?" Li Zhu twisted his beard, tilted his head in confusion, and then laughed cheerfully: "I didn't see it either, but Li Bao said that the three of them were drunk and unconscious. Maybe that's why they got along so well and became brothers of different surnames?"

Lu Bu waved his hand in front and said: "Forget it, just come as many as you want. It's not like you are sworn brothers with me, so why bother about it." The person behind him laughed and said a few more words, explaining the recent events clearly. Then Li Zu took his leave and left. He had been away for several months and there were many things to do when he came back, not to mention the matter of building a new palace guard, which would be enough to keep him busy for a while.

Soon, a drizzle began to fall. The cool rain made the farmers very happy, but it failed to extinguish the candidates' enthusiasm for the results.

Test papers filled with words were placed on the dragon desk, with comments in small characters placed on separate papers for Lu Bu to read and examine.

Yang Pu, the host of the imperial examination, stood calmly in the hall and spoke clearly: "Your Majesty, these twenty-one examination papers are the best candidates selected by us. We will rank them according to the quality of their essays. The top one is the best candidate, and the rest are from this level, but..."

"Twenty-one? So few?" Lu Bu raised his eyebrows, seeming a little dissatisfied.

Yang Pu shook his head: "I also know that we are short of manpower now, but letting some unknown people in will only make it more difficult to implement government orders."

"That makes sense." Lu Bu thought about it and nodded. Then he lowered his head and picked up the test paper on the table with interest. He heard Yang Pu's voice in his ears: "I haven't finished speaking just now. The two people at the top are both talented. We are not sure who is better and who is worse. Please judge, Your Majesty."

"You can't wait either?" Lu Bu didn't look up at him, but looked at the test paper in his hand. The densely packed words on the paper were neatly written, which was pleasing to the eye. "Who is better at the policy discussion between the two?"

"They are evenly matched." Yang Pu paused, then explained: "This year's exam has one question on the Analects, three questions on the Four Books, two questions on the Five Classics, one question each on the Great Learning and the Doctrine of the Mean, one question each on the Book of Filial Piety, one question each on Imperial Edicts, Edicts, and Memorials, and five questions on Policy Essays.

These two people have done very well in all kinds of test questions, and the latter policy essays are also novel in perspective. The six examiners and I have also discussed the two questions together, and the conclusion is that they are half and half, and no one can convince the other, so we ask Your Majesty to make a decision. "

He clasped his hands and bowed: "I am incompetent, please punish me, Your Majesty."

"Since ancient times, there has been no first in literature and no second in martial arts." Lu Bu shook his head and patted the thick stack of test papers. "In a martial arts competition, if you can't win, you can't win. There is no such thing as being unjudgeable. However, it is not possible to make a conclusion about the quality of this essay, unless one is much better than others."

He reached out and picked up the two test papers and raised them at the same time.

slam-la-

The papers fluttered in the air, making a sound.

Snapped--

It fell to the ground under the gaze of everyone in the hall.

Lu Bu pointed at the one that landed first and said, "This one will be the top scorer, and the other one will be the second. It's settled."

Yang Pu's eyes moved, then he nodded and bowed: "Yes."

Of course, nothing in the palace could be spread outside, and the waiting candidates became nervous again after experiencing the indulgence in the first few days.

Those who have faith can still sit still and be contented in their own homes; those who have no talent walk around temples and Taoist temples every day, burning incense, worshiping Buddha, seeking truth, and donating money, which has caused a lot of inexplicable incense money to be added to the Taoist temples and Buddhist temples in Beijing in recent days.

In just a few days, white clouds in the sky passed in front of the bright light, and the shadows of the clouds were projected on the ground from time to time.

The place where the results were announced was crowded with people who had gotten up early. They were all staring eagerly at the red-painted notice board over there. The admission list for this subject would be posted on it later. Amid the noisy noise, they would occasionally bump into familiar faces.

"Oh, Brother Wang, you are here too? Didn't you say you would not come to participate in the anti-thief exam?"

"Nonsense! Qi has been established in Liaodong for several years, and its political affairs are prosperous and its national strength is growing. How can we talk about rebellion? This is an act of establishing a country!"

"Hey, you didn't say that before."

"You are a brat! Your ancestors..."

The sound of cursing gradually rose amid the gathering of scholars. A few people with calm faces stood at the back, glancing at the two people who were cursing at each other from time to time, shaking their heads, and some simply closed their eyes, trying not to see anything.

Soon, there was a roar of footsteps. The noisy crowd gradually stopped talking and looked in the direction of the sound. They saw a group of black-armored soldiers holding iron shields and spears following an official on horseback and walking towards this side.

The group of scholars immediately shut up and stepped back. Some of them looked at the first official holding a roll of paper and shouted, "Here he comes, here comes the announcement of the results!"

“Is this the result list?”

"He is indeed a founder of a nation, and his actions are different from those of Liao."

Pairs of expectant eyes were fixed on the front. The official approached and the soldiers behind him were divided into two teams and stood on both sides of the notice board. Then he got off his horse swiftly and walked over with the list in his hand. Someone came with paste and pasted the long list.

Then he turned around and said: "Here is the list of candidates admitted this year. Someone will deliver the golden book name cards to each of you later..."

"The results are released!"

"Let me see!"

"Get out of the way!"

Suddenly, one of the examinees came forward shouting. The official's face changed, he cursed inwardly, and quickly stepped aside. A huge crowd of people suddenly surged over, and the official who announced the results could not help but raise his hand to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.

I was nearly trampled to death by these excited candidates.

In the crowd, some people were trampled and started shouting and swearing. Those who didn't win were screaming frantically, "Why did we fail again!" and crying. Some people clapped their hands when they saw their names.

“Hey—I got it!”

"Mr. Wang! You must be cheating!"

Then two people started fighting under the board. The soldier in black armor took a look and concluded that their fists could not kill them, so he looked away and pretended not to see it.

"Stop arguing! Who is Li Baoxin? Why is he the runner-up and better than me?"

"Li Qiu is the top scorer! Brother Li, Brother Li, you are the top scorer!"

The white clouds were pushed away by the wind, and under the sunshine, those who usually claim to be elegant looked like a group of demons dancing wildly.

Li Baoxin, a historical figure, won the first place in the imperial examination in the first year of Jianfu (the reign title of Yelu Chun) during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Liao. The rest of his life is unknown.

Li Qiu, a historical figure, was the top scholar in the Renyin imperial examination in the first year of Liao Dexing (the reign title of Xiao Defei, the daughter of Puxian, the daughter of Northern Liao). One hundred and eight people passed the examination. The rest of his story is unknown.

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(End of this chapter)