I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 823: A Big Change in the Pattern (Combined Chapter 4K6)

"Have you heard about it? Have you heard about it?"

"The imperial examination cheating incident was exposed, and the three officials were executed. The Hongnong Yang family had a good reputation for generations, but I didn't expect that it would be ruined by Yang Biao in one day!"

"Yes, yes. On weekdays, they seem to be so righteous and talk about morality. I never thought they would be so despicable."

"You deserve it, you deserve it!"

On the streets and alleys of Luoyang, people were talking about the matter and were extremely shocked by the great changes in the court in recent days.

On the one hand, the Yang family of Hongnong, as the leaders of the Qingliu, ended up abusing their power for personal gain and committing favoritism and fraud in the imperial examinations, which greatly subverted their image among the people and the literati.

On the other hand, Yang Biao, as one of the Three Dukes of the Imperial Court, was directly executed for cheating in the imperial examination. This was an extremely rare event in the history of the Han Dynasty and caused an uproar in the court and the country.

After all, the three highest officials held high status, and there had never been a precedent of sentencing them to death unless the case involved treason.

Today, Yang Biao's death due to cheating in the imperial examination can be said to be a precedent in history, and Su Yao also announced to the world through this incident that the imperial examination is the foundation of the country and cannot tolerate any blasphemy.

After this incident, the aristocratic families who were originally dissatisfied with Su Yao's implementation of the imperial examination system and secretly resisted it, also restrained their thoughts.

They had witnessed Su Yao's iron-fisted approach and understood that there was no room for compromise in this matter. The poor students applauded and told others about it, expressing their admiration and gratitude for Su Yao.

"Great, great!"

A young student said excitedly with tears in his eyes:
"The general is truly wise and brave. He has sought justice for poor students like me!"

"Yes, if it weren't for the general's drastic measures, we, the children from poor families, would probably never have the chance to succeed." Another student also felt deeply moved.

"The general is a man of both civil and military talents. He not only put down the rebellion, but also opened up a bright future for children from poor families like me. I will never forget this great kindness!"

"If I am lucky enough to serve as an official in the court in the future, I will swear to be loyal to the general until death, even if it means death!"

In the school dormitory in Luoyang City, the poor students were excited and expressed their gratitude and respect to Su Yao.

With the execution of Yang Biao and others, the results of the first imperial examination were invalidated. The court has issued a notice that the imperial examination will be held again in the capital in one month.

This time, the imperial examination will be presided over by Lu Zhi and Wang Yun, while Su Yao will personally supervise it and be responsible for the subsequent palace examination policy questioning session.

And this time, there is one thing that is very different from before.

That is, Su Yao made adjustments to the situation where most of the candidates were from Kanto families in the last announcement.

He divided the admission quotas into different categories based on the population ratio and education level of each state to ensure that each region could have an appropriate number of talents standing out and avoid regional imbalance in talent selection.

At this point, although Central Plains and Shandong and other places still have great advantages and admission quotas, students from border counties in remote areas also see greater hope.

"Oh my God!"

"General, this is truly an unprecedented feat!"

A poor student from Liangzhou had trembling hands and a trembling voice:

"Our border counties have always been regarded as wild and barbaric, and it is difficult for talented people to come to the fore. Now the general's move is truly our savior!"

"Yes, I originally thought that in this examination, people from border counties like us were just runners-up and just for fun, but I didn't expect the general to be so thoughtful and treat us fairly."

Another student from Youzhou clenched his fists, his eyes full of fighting spirit.

"That's right, I didn't expect that there would be these places in Jiaozhou."

The students from Jiaozhou had tears in their eyes and said excitedly:

"With this quota allocation, we have the opportunity to serve in the government. We must seize it well to live up to the general's painstaking efforts."

The students from the border counties were overjoyed, with tears in their eyes.

However, joy naturally brings sorrow. All the students from Kanto who had won great success in the last imperial examination now had gloomy faces, looking as if they had lost hope for the exam.

"How could this be possible? How could this be possible?!"

Yuan Shao's nephew Yuan Hao was furious when he heard the bad news. He threw the teacup in his hand hard, causing it to crackle.

As a member of the Yuan family, although Yuan Hao is not well behaved all day long, he has enjoyed the protection of his family and superior educational resources since he was young.

In the first imperial examination, even after several examinations, it was finally confirmed that he had indeed made it to the list based on his own talent.

I thought he could do the same in this imperial examination and continue the glory of his family.

However, Su Yao's new policy made him feel anxious.

"Why do those barbarians from the border counties, who are not even familiar with the Four Books and Five Classics, enjoy preferential treatment and snatch so many places from us?!"

Yuan Hao's face flushed red and his eyes were wide open with anger.

He has to be anxious!

His score last time was just below average. If the national allocation of admission places is taken into consideration this time, he is afraid that he will really fail.

He is a descendant of the Yuan family, with three generations of officials being officials!

You told him that he couldn’t become an official?

"What a ridiculous joke!"

Yuan Hao was so angry that he kicked over the stool next to him:
"My Yuan family has been a family of nobles for generations. How can we allow these border county ruffians to be on equal footing with us?"

The guests standing by were silent as a cicada, not daring to make a sound.

They knew very well that Master Yuan was in a rage at the moment, and anyone who dared to say anything more would probably bring disaster upon themselves.

Only Yang Xiu sighed and advised him to calm down:

"Cousin, getting angry now won't help."

"Although Su Yao claims to be fair, it seems that he is just using the imperial examination policy to suppress our Central Plains clans."

"Instead of being angry here, it is better to think about how to solve it."

"Solved? You say that calmly."

Yuan Hao clenched his fists and said:
"My uncle was beheaded yesterday. Su Yao is now all-powerful in the capital. What solution can we have? Can we ask him to change his mind?"

"Maybe, we can also go and protest and cause trouble?"

At this time, another young man from the Fan family next to him suddenly had an idea and said:
"Why can only the poor families protest? Our noble families should make trouble and protest!"

When he said this, Yuan Hao and Yang Xiu were both dumbfounded.

How can there be such a fool?
"Brother Fan, do you know what you are talking about?"

Yang Xiu rolled his eyes, shook his head and sighed:
"Su Yao just dealt with the imperial examination cheating case with an iron fist. The court is in a state of panic. If we go to protest at this time, wouldn't we be running into his trap? He is worried that he can't find an excuse to further suppress our family, but you take the initiative to deliver yourself to him!"

At this time, Yuan Hao also came back to his senses and spat with disgust on his face: "With your brain, are you worthy of being a guest in my Yuan Mansion? You went to cause trouble, do you think my Yuan family is not eye-catching enough, or do you think Su Yao didn't punish us harshly enough?"

The Fan family member's face turned red after being scolded by the two men. He stammered for a long time before he spoke:

"Well, what do you two think? Are we just going to accept this and swallow this anger?" "No, of course we can't swallow it!"

Yuan Hao slammed his fist on the table, making the tea set clink, but he was at a loss as to what to do. He looked at Yang Xiu, trying to find a solution.

Although this little cousin is only fifteen years old, he is really smart and talented.

Therefore, when the Yang family suffered this time, after Yang Biao was executed and their property was confiscated, Yuan Hao immediately helped this little cousin to come to the Yuan Mansion.

One is to fulfill the friendship of in-laws, and the other is naturally to have more helpers to give advice and suggestions.

But this time, he was obviously going to be disappointed.

Yang Xiu is not Doraemon. Although he is talented, he is helpless in the face of such an absolute disparity in power.

"The only solution now is to catch up on the tutoring."

Yang Xiu sighed again:
"In the last month, cousin should put aside his pride and find the most prestigious scholar in the capital to teach you day and night, focusing on policy essays and classics, and strive to achieve better results in the imperial examination."

"Although the number of places is limited, as long as we can stand out in our respective regions, we still have a chance to enter the government."

"Is there no other way? Our Yuan family has been officials for generations. Are we really going to be reduced to competing for positions with those poor families in border counties?"

Yuan Hao frowned, looking reluctant:

"Besides, what can we do with just one month? Those great scholars always give long lectures, which are boring and tedious. I feel sleepy just by listening to them."

Yang Xiu shook his head, with a bit of helplessness in his tone:

"Cousin, the situation is stronger than the people. Su Yao now holds great power, and no one in the court dares to challenge him. If we confront him head-on, we will only bring shame upon ourselves."

"The most important thing right now is to preserve the foundation of our family and wait for the right opportunity. As long as we don't give up, there will always be a chance to revive our family."

Yuan Hao was silent for a moment, and finally could only sigh helplessly:
"Forget it, this is all we can do for now."

Then he turned to look at Yang Xiu, a complicated look flashing in his eyes:

"Brother Xiu, although you are young, you are more thoughtful than me. It's a pity that you can't take the exam, otherwise you will definitely pass the exam."

Yang Xiu's expression darkened when he heard this.

Originally, this first imperial examination was only an exam for students from the Imperial Academy. However, due to the cheating in the imperial examination, a large number of officials were implicated and dismissed, leaving many positions vacant and in need of being filled. Therefore, Su Yao deliberately increased the number of candidates and the scope of examination.

Anyone who can arrive in Beijing to register ten days before the exam can take part in this exam.

At the same time, it doesn't matter if you miss the exam. There will be another special exam next year to admit people in Beijing without a registered permanent residence to participate in the local provincial examinations. Together with those who have officially passed the provincial examinations from all over the country the following year, they will compete for the qualification for the metropolitan examination next year.

Furthermore, since the age limit for the imperial examination was only fifteen years old, although Yang Xiu was unable to take the exam last time because he was not a student of the Imperial Academy, he had a good chance this time.
If he is not the son of a criminal official:
"The son of the Xing family is not allowed to take the imperial examination. That thief Su is really kind-hearted!" Master Fan said indignantly.

However, Yang Xiu shook his head, as if he had let it go:

"Brother Fan, you don't have to do this."

"Even during the period of the imperial examination system, unless there was a special amnesty, one had to have a clean family (no criminal record within three generations) to be accepted."

"And I've seen Su Yao's imperial examination law. Although there is a requirement that the sons of the Xing family cannot participate in the imperial examination, there is also an exception for guaranteeing the examination."

"As long as he is guaranteed by a high-ranking official of the third rank or above or three successful candidates from this county, even the son of the Xing family will have the opportunity to take the imperial examination."

Yang Xiu obviously did not give up, and there was a gleam of hope in his eyes.

His father Yang Biao was executed for cheating in the imperial examination. The Hongnong Yang family fell from grace overnight, from an envied and respected noble family to a rat crossing the street, a target of public outcry.

Therefore, Yang Xiu wanted to take part in the imperial examination more than anyone else, in order to respond to the doubts with his own strength and revive his family.

"This is easy to handle!"

Yuan Hao slapped his thigh:
"My Yuan family has students and former officials all over the world. That candidate has not yet officially taken the imperial examination, so we can't find him, but isn't it easy to capture a high-ranking official above the third rank?"

"Just wait, I will contact all the people and find a guarantor for you!"

They acted immediately, with clear division of labor between them.

Yuan Hao used the resources of the Yuan family to run around and hold banquets, inviting high-ranking officials and dignitaries to gather at the Yuan Mansion and ask them to act as guarantors for Yang Xiu.

Yang Xiu visited famous teachers and invited them to teach in Yuan Mansion, seizing the last month to give extra lessons to the children of aristocratic families.

It must be said that the two of them definitely tried their best in this matter, but the results they obtained were not optimistic.

Let’s talk about Yang Xiu first. With the Yang family’s former connections and his own focus on academics, he could easily find out which great scholars might be involved in setting questions for the new round of imperial examinations, and use the resources of the Yuan family to extend a large invitation to them.

However, most of these great scholars politely declined Yang Xiu's invitation.

They were fully aware of how much Su Yao valued the imperial examinations and the impact of this imperial examination fraud case, and they did not dare to get involved easily, fearing that they would get into trouble because of being associated with the son of a convicted official. Even though the Yuan family offered extremely generous rewards, they were not impressed.

What's more, just as he was taking action, news soon spread that the great scholars who set the questions would be put under closed management. Almost overnight, before anyone could react, those famous teachers and scholars disappeared without a trace.

Yang Xiu had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and look for some less famous scholars to teach. Although these scholars tried their best, they were still far behind those great scholars, and the teaching effect was greatly reduced.

The situation on Yuan Hao's side was equally grim. Most of the high-ranking officials he had invited with great effort were embarrassed when they heard that they had to guarantee Yang Xiu. Some made excuses that they were busy, while others directly stated that they were unwilling to wade into this muddy water.

They all knew that under Su Yao's iron-fisted rule, any carelessness could bring them into trouble.

This made Yuan Hao so angry that he gritted his teeth, but he had to admit that this was obviously a wise choice.

Because, in an unknown place, Wang Ling's Jinyiwei had already seen everything:
"General, the Yuan and Yang families have been active recently. Do we need to warn them?"

After hearing this, Su Yao waved his hand and chuckled, "No need, let them do whatever they want. As long as they don't violate the rules, there's no need to intervene."

"The imperial examination is the foundation of the country and cannot tolerate any mistakes. Their efforts can be regarded as a way for us to find out what else needs to be improved."

No policy is perfect once it is established, and Su Yao is naturally well aware of this.

Therefore, he secretly instructed Wang Ling to pay close attention to the actions of the various families, and at the same time pay attention to the various reactions to the imperial examination reform inside and outside the court, so as to discover problems and make timely adjustments and improvements to the imperial examination system.

As the exam date approaches, the atmosphere in Luoyang City becomes increasingly tense.

No matter whether they are students from wealthy families or poor families, they are all undergoing intensive sprint review in the final stage.

In the end, Yang Xiu still failed to find anyone willing to guarantee him, and could only helplessly watch other candidates enter the examination room and leave hope for the future.

Although Yuan Hao made a last-ditch effort, it would be difficult to achieve a qualitative leap by cramming at the last minute.

In the examination room, although he felt that he had performed far better than before, when the day of announcing the results came, he still did not see his name on the list.

Accompanied by Yang Xiu, Yuan Hao stood in front of the list, breathing rapidly. The cheers of the students around him had nothing to do with him.

The descendant of the Yuan family, whose family had three officials in four generations, unexpectedly failed in the imperial examination and became the first loser in the family who had no chance to become an official.

Two of the top three candidates in the imperial examination were from poor families, and even the name of the top scorer, Yuan Hao, had never been heard of!
The three people were: Xi Zhicai from Yingchuan, Yuzhou, Fa Zheng from Fufeng, Guanzhong, and Zhou Yu from Taishan, Yanzhou.

Once the results of the imperial examination were announced, they quickly caused a sensation in the court and the country.

Whether it was the court officials or the villagers in the countryside, they all had a premonition that the world's situation was about to change.

(End of this chapter)