Jia Yujing of Red Mansion

Chapter 121 A piece of seed

On the second day after the imperial examination, new scholars will go to the Imperial Academy to receive their imperial uniforms, which they will wear when they pass the imperial examination in the Golden Palace.

The Imperial College is the highest institution of learning in Da Chu. It is located to the west of Daming Palace and covers a large area.

Last time Jia Qiong and the others came to collect tribute uniforms, they were familiar with the journey.

The sun was shining brightly and the breeze was gentle. The new scholars were very proud to receive their uniforms under the envious gazes of the supervisors.

Jinshi uniforms are all uniform Qingluo brocade robes, plain white belts, and a black gauze hat that can only be worn by officials.

Once they become Jinshi, they are no longer scholars, but officials of the imperial court.

Being a farmer in the morning and ascending to the emperor's hall in the evening are the ultimate dreams of most scholars in the world.

On March 19, the [-]th year of Longqing's reign, the eyes of hundreds of millions of people from the two capitals and thirteen provinces of Dachu were gathered together.

Five thousand students will take the exam every three years, and the final results will be announced today.

There is only one person who can lead the world, and there are only three people who can win the imperial examination. Who will be the winner? Everyone is waiting eagerly.

The night was still dark, but the royal road outside the imperial city had begun to become noisy.

Today is the time to announce the results of the palace examination, and it is also the day of the great dynasty.

All officials of seventh grade and above in Beijing will attend this court meeting, and they will wait outside Chengtian Gate before dawn.

Senior officials rode in various official sedans and carriages, and their entourages held official badges and lanterns to lead the way.

If two groups of people meet at an intersection, they will decide who goes first and who comes last based on their official rank.

Of course, there were also some low-level officials with low official positions and no money to support bearers or carriages, so they came by themselves on animals or on foot.

Jia Qiong rode his horse and arrived outside Zhengyang Gate early. At this time, the moon was still bright and the sky was full of stars.

The Zhengyangmen Gate Tower is brightly lit and resplendent. From a distance, it looks like a fairy palace standing in the sky.

At this time, many new scholars had gathered in front of Zhengyang Gate, and some court officials were lining up to enter Zhengyang Gate.

Zhengyang Gate is the south gate of Daming Palace and also the main gate. It has a main gate, two Ye gates and two auxiliary gates.

Only the emperor and empress could walk through the main entrance, and other people could only walk through it under certain special circumstances.

If you go through the main gate of Zhengyang Gate without the emperor's permission, it will be disrespectful and a crime that will punish the nine tribes.

Only high-ranking officials of the third rank and above can go to the Yemen, and those below the third rank can only go to the auxiliary gate.

The new scholars had been led to the area near Zuoye Gate by Honglu Temple officials to wait. Today, they could make an exception and go through Yemen.

Today will be the most glorious moment in the lives of many scholars, so everyone came very early.

Jia Qiong dismounted and asked Ping An to lead the horse to a special area where the servants were waiting. He walked slowly to the queue of Jinshi.

All the new scholars knew Jia Qiong, and they all bent down to greet him.

His movements were neat and uniform, attracting side glances from other officials passing by.

"That's Jia Qiong, he has such a high prestige among this group of Jinshi."

"No, looking at that posture, those who didn't know might have thought it was some pavilion elder who came."

"I don't know if he can win the first prize. If he does, it will be even more incredible."

"It's really hard to say. Some people don't want to."

"Whether others are willing to be useless or not depends on the emperor's wishes."

"That's right. Even if his article gets ten marks, the emperor will have to read it and read it."

"If the number one pick is really chosen, it must be Jian who is in the emperor's heart. It is estimated that within a few years, the official position will be higher than that of you and me."

The officials were whispering, but the new scholars were in high spirits, discussing excitedly about the announcement of the Golden Palace and the subsequent parade of officials.

Time passed quickly amidst everyone's discussion, the moon slowly set and the stars disappeared, and the east became dim.

The Zhengyang bell on the tower rang leisurely, and the new scholars quickly lined up in formation.

An eunuch then walked out and shouted in a sharp voice: "The auspicious time has come, and the new Jinshi will come to the palace to see you."

Jia Qiong and the others entered the palace city again. This time it was different from the last time. No one restrained them from talking or looking around.

The new scholars looked at everything around them curiously, feeling excited and excited.

The wide area from Zhengyangmen to Chengtianmen is the office location of many government agencies.

This area is dotted with buildings, so it is commonly known as Qipan Street.

After passing Qipan Street is Yuqiao, followed by Chengtianmen and Fengtianmen.

After passing through the Fengtian Gate and arriving at the square in front of the Fengtian Hall, the new scholars knelt under the orders of the Honglu Temple officials.

Other senior officials had entered Fengtian Hall in advance, while low-level officials stood on both sides watching these new scholars.

In front of the Fengtian Hall today, there are more honor guards than at the last palace examination. They are holding golden melons, treasure tops, flags and other decorative props.There are also some palace bands with various musical instruments in front of them, which are obviously specially designed for the Jindian Chuanlu. These people are all affiliated with the Jinyi Weiyiluan Division.

Jia Qiong was kneeling outside. He didn't know what was said in the palace, but he felt a little regretful that he forgot to get a knee pad to wear.

Kneeling on the cold, hard stone slab, it felt really uncomfortable to kneel for a long time.

After waiting for a long time, solemn ritual music suddenly sounded.

Dai Quan then came to the outside of the palace holding a memorial with a bright yellow cover, stood on Danbi, cleared his throat, and read with enough energy.

“The imperial examination is a great ceremony for selecting talents, and the emperor’s favor is great, regardless of one’s origin.

Today, the emperor is planning to test the talents of the world, and he has selected three people who were first-class Jinshi, 56 people who were second-class Jinshi, and 220 people who were third-class Jinshi. "

After reading this, Dai Quan paused deliberately and glanced at the Jinshi who were kneeling below. Many Jinshi felt their hearts suddenly beating wildly.

A faint proud smile appeared on Dai Quan's lips, and then he continued to read: "In the 19th year of Longqing, the No. 1 scholar in the Renwu Academy Examination, Jia Qiong, came into the palace to thank you..."

Dai Quan read it three times in a row, which is the privilege of the number one scholar.

He kept his eyes fixed on Jia Qiong, who was kneeling in front of Zhusheng. He had seen many new scholars in such excited and helpless scenes before, and he was very curious about how Jia Qiong would behave.

But Jia Qiong stood up calmly, flicked the hem of his clothes, and straightened his black gauze hat with both hands.

He held his head high and his chest high amidst the sound of ritual music, without squinting his eyes. He walked up to Danbi without haste or speed, and when he passed by Dai Quan, he nodded slightly and smiled at him.

The golden list is passed down in the Jade Palace, and you are gifted with a head.

Three hundred generations of heroes follow me throughout Yingzhou.

Behind him, more than 200 new scholars looked at his back with burning eyes.

In the 110 years since the founding of Da Chu, the first number one scholar who passed three yuan was born.

"The new champion enters the palace to express his gratitude..."

Amidst the solemn singing of the etiquette officer, Jia Qiong stepped into the Fengtian Hall.

Under the watchful eyes of the civil and military officials on both sides, he took a few steps forward, took up his hem with both hands and knelt down on his knees. He knelt three times and kowtowed nine times, shouting "Long Live the Mountain".

"Pingsheng, enter the court class."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Jia Qiong then stood at the last position as a civil servant, and Dai Quan's voice came from outside the hall again: "No. 2, second place in the first class, Han Wei, come into the hall to thank you..."

Only then did Jia Qiong have the opportunity to secretly take a look at the situation in the Jinluan Palace.

In the huge hall, except for the imperial steps and the dragon chair imperial table on the northernmost side, there were only some simple lamp stands and other decorations beside the imperial steps.

Elsewhere there are only dozens of huge pillars, most of them vermilion.

Only the pillars closest to the royal steps have huge golden dragons in relief.

The dragon heads all face the opposite direction of the dragon chair, as if they are guards guarding the emperor, setting off the emperor's majesty.

There are many huge lanterns hanging on the beams in the temple, which can illuminate the huge space in the temple at night.

The structure of Fengtian Temple must have been carefully designed. Even standing at the door, he could clearly hear the voice of Emperor Longqing dozens of meters away.

Jia Qiong glanced around for a while and then looked away. After Han Wei thanked him, he stood next to him.

Then I heard Dai Quan shout again: "No. 3 Tanhua, Song Mian, come into the palace to thank you..."

Only the top ten people ranked by the emperor himself can enter the Jinluan Hall to express gratitude and stay in the hall.

The Jinshi who are ranked seven or below can only come in and thank them and then continue to stand outside the hall.

The top three Jinshi could only kneel down and thank them outside the palace, and were not even qualified to enter the palace.

From this moment on, these students who had gone to the examination room together had already distinguished themselves in terms of superiority and inferiority.

After No. 10 Li Chong Xie En finished entering the class, Jia Qiong couldn't help but smile on her face.

Five of the top ten candidates were his classmates, and at least eight were members of the Xia Club.

He himself didn't know how many Jinshi there were among the nearly three hundred Jinshi.

But one thing is for sure, the reputation he has accumulated over the years is gradually starting to take effect.

Even though he had just entered the court, he already had a certain degree of appeal.

Even if you don't consider the Wang family and the Jia family, just look at these new scholars plus his senior brothers.

Although they are still in a small and humble position now, they have great potential.

They are like seeds. The seeds have been planted, and one day they will grow into a forest that covers the sky and the sun.

　Adding an extra chapter for Mao Chirping and Junbao. I have to stay up late again today.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)