Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

The palace of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Huangji Hall.

Led by Cabinet Grand Secretary Wang Shilun, dozens of palace examination officials stood at the foot of the steps of the emperor's throne.

In the hall behind the officials, the Guanglu Temple had already laid out hundreds of examination papers. More than 300 candidates were standing solemnly across their papers. At first glance, they were all wearing black Confucian robes and square scarves, which was a spectacular sight.

Emperor Jiazhao glanced at the officials and candidates in the hall, and finally his eyes involuntarily fixed on the first examination paper on the left for a moment.

All the candidates who entered the palace took their seats for examination according to their ranking on the imperial examination list. The left was always the most respected. As Jia Cong was the champion of this year's examination, he was naturally ranked first on the left.

In such an almost dazzling position, it was hard not to attract the attention of Emperor Jia Zhao, especially since Jia Cong was a minister he valued.

But at this moment, Jia Cong became the first among the 300 tribute scholars, which made Emperor Jia Zhao feel quite complicated...

……

Jia Cong now holds two titles and is already a fifth-rank official. According to old ladies like Grandmother Jia, there is really no need for him to take the imperial examination again.

However, Emperor Jia Zhao supported Jia Cong's ambition to take the imperial examinations, because Jia Cong was a man of both civil and military talents, and would be of great use to any monarch.

If Jia Cong stopped at the level of Juren and did not pass the imperial examination to become a Jinshi, according to the official position conventions of the Great Zhou Dynasty, it would be extremely difficult for him to break through to the fifth rank or above.

At that time, Emperor Jiazhao promoted his trusted henchman Zhou Junxing, the director of the Court of Judges, to the rank of fourth grade official.

Officials from various departments of the imperial court and censors from various regions of the Censorate came pouring in with impeachment memorials expressing dissent.

Officials from various departments tried their best to dissuade Emperor Jiazhao from violating the ancestral rules of officialdom and pleaded with him in a earnest manner.

If it were not for the consideration of the dignity of the monarch and his subjects, and the fear that the emperor would repeat his old tricks and ruin his own reputation by investigating illegal officials,

Some radical censors might have pointed at Emperor Jiazhao and called him a tyrant.

The reason why the promotion of Zhou Junxing made Emperor Jiazhao so passive and embarrassed was, in the final analysis, that Zhou Junxing was not a successful Jinshi.

The Court of Advisers was part of the civil service system, and according to the official regulations of the Zhou Dynasty, officials were not allowed to be promoted above the fifth rank.

In addition, Zhou Junxing had a reputation as a cruel official, so all the civil servants in the court, regardless of their public or private interests, naturally spoke out in unison and opposed him with all their might.

Although Emperor Jia Zhao finally overruled the opposition and promoted Zhou Junxing to the fourth rank of the Court of Judges, this incident should not happen again.

Zhou Junxing will only be a fourth-rank official for the rest of his life. Although the emperor values ​​him highly, he will not make an exception for him again, and he will not go against the ancestral family rules and the civil and military officials in the court.

However, compared with Zhou Junxing, Jia Cong's weight in Emperor Jia Zhao's heart is much more important.

Jia Cong not only possesses amazing literary talent, but also seems to have inherited the bravery of Duke Rong. He fought fiercely in Liaodong and pacified the Jurchens. He is not only a natural-born general, but also a master of firearms.

How could the emperor use such an outstanding person, if he only held the fifth rank in his official career and had limited power, and let him serve as a whip and stirrup for him to develop his career?

Therefore, Emperor Jia Zhao was still happy to see Jia Cong pass the imperial examination. Moreover, Jia Cong was not like Zhou Junxing, who had limited talent. With his talent, it was easy for him to get the title of Jinshi.

This is also the reason why, when Zhen Fangqing begged the retired emperor for grace to allow Jia Cong to take the spring examination after his father's death, Emperor Jia Zhao was happy to go along with it.

However, for Emperor Jia Zhao, it would be enough for Jia Cong to pass the imperial examination. This would provide him with a stepping stone to a successful official career, and he would not need to be as strapped for cash as Zhou Junxing.

Out of the emperor's mindset and political strategy, whether for the purpose of checks and balances or for the long term, he only needed Jia Cong to be on the list, and did not need him to win the honor of being the first place.

Moreover, according to common sense, the imperial examination faced students from thousands of territories of the Great Zhou, and it was a competition among candidates from all over the world.

There are many people like Jia Cong who are the top scorers in a state in the world. It is unlikely that he can win the first place in the list. This is something that Emperor Jia Zhao never expected.

But Jia Cong surprised him again, which made Emperor Jia Zhao somewhat helpless.

As the supreme emperor, he had the right to select and rank the candidates in the spring palace examination. Since the emperor was the actual chief examiner of the palace examination, those who passed the palace examination were called the emperor's disciples.

However, even though the emperor himself had supreme power, he did not have the power to arbitrarily control the selection of candidates for the imperial examinations.

Because the selection rules for the joint examination were much more standardized and strict than those for the palace examination, the candidates' names had to be transcribed and changed before their examination papers were reviewed, with the participation of many government officials in supervision.

If it weren't for the clever cheating, the emperor and the three examiners would not be able to predict who would be the top scorer in the end.

Therefore, when Emperor Jia Zhao saw the list of names submitted by the Ministry of Rites and saw that Jia Cong was the top name, he was quite shocked.

However, he did not raise any objections. Instead, he approved it with his imperial seal as usual and asked the Ministry of Rites to announce the list as scheduled.

The imperial examination was a national ceremony for selecting talents. Even if he was the emperor, he would never manipulate or falsify the results.

Otherwise, the civil servants in the court would become enemies with the scholars all over the world, and he would be badly marked in history as a tyrant. He might even lose his seat on the throne.

……

Emperor Jia Zhao withdrew his gaze from Jia Cong and looked at the hundreds of officials and palace servants under the jade steps of the throne, feeling a little hesitant.

He said: "In this spring examination, you have worked hard and devoted your hearts to the country. I am very pleased.

All the tribute scholars who entered the palace had gone through arduous preparations and were able to pass the imperial examination and have their names listed on the imperial list. They were all people of profound learning, the country's reserve ministers, and the pillars of the world.

All the tribute scholars have entered the palace for the test. I cherish them with great care and think carefully. I hope you can show your talents and knowledge to the fullest, make suggestions for the country, and live up to my expectations! "

Most of the more than 300 tribute candidates in the hall were common students. Among the 300 people, there was probably no other tribute candidate like Jia Cong who had met the emperor many times.

Therefore, when the tribute candidates entered the palace to meet the emperor for the first time, they were encouraged by the emperor in the palace. Naturally, they were all grateful and bowed to express their gratitude.

After Emperor Jiazhao ordered everyone to stand, Wang Shilun, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, read out the imperial edict for the palace examination.

The imperial edict explained that the palace examination was a grand ceremony for the court to select talents, which was of great importance to the country and attracted the attention of all people.

The Holy Emperor is here to attend this palace examination. Who are the paper reading officials, paper receiving officials, paper sealing officials, paper holding officials, paper sealing officials, and supervisory officials, and what important duties do they have?

It explains the etiquette and laws of the palace examination, the various rules and taboos that candidates must abide by, the start and end times for the palace examination, the time required for marking the papers after the examination, the date for announcing the results and conferring the title, etc.

As a cabinet minister and concurrently the head of six ministries, Wang Shilun was naturally familiar with reading out imperial edicts. His voice was clear and rhythmic, and shook the hall.

The candidates in the hall listened to Wang Shilun reading the imperial edict, and everyone felt solemn. Especially when they heard about the list of candidates to be selected and conferred titles, their blood boiled and they all had the hope of winning the first prize.

At the end of Wang Shilun's reading of the imperial edict was the essay topic for this palace examination. In principle, the essay topics for the palace examination were written by the emperor himself.

But in practice, the three major examiners were the ones who wrote the essays, but the meaning of the questions in the palace examination must have been the emperor's intention, and it was only the ministers who drafted the final draft according to the emperor's will.

……

In the main hall, after Wang Shilun finished reading the imperial edict, he began to read the emperor's policy essays for the palace examination in the 15th year of Jiazhao. His voice echoed back and forth in the Huangji Hall.

The essays in the palace examination had a bearing on the final ranking of the 300 candidates, and everyone listened attentively.

The decree said: I have been blessed by Heaven, serving the country and ruling the nation. I have worked hard day and night and have never dared to slack off. I feel ashamed of the heavy responsibility of my country and my family. This has been going on for more than fifteen years.

When he first came to power, he selected only the most virtuous people, clarified administration, and implemented policies that were lenient to the people, hoping that the country would be prosperous and the people would benefit. Only then would the imperial government be complete, all peoples would be well off, and the country would be well governed.

Since the first year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, the national economy has been improving day by day, and various policies have been implemented. Compared with the previous generations, there has been a slight improvement.

However, the administration of officials is complicated, and there are worries at the elbows and sides, and the disaster of corruption and malpractice. Major disasters have not yet occurred, and minor troubles have not yet been eliminated. In the past few years, efforts to govern the country have been intense, but no results have been seen. What is the reason?
Since the twelfth year of Jiazhao, it has extended its influence to nine border towns in the north and six prosperous states in the south.

Civil officials perform their duties in a manner that strictly adheres to the teachings of sages. Some are loyal and courageous and serve the country, while others break the law and pursue personal gain.

Military generals protect the country with loyalty and bravery. Some have the honor of guarding the border and pacifying the barbarians, while others have committed crimes by using military force to bring disaster to the people.

There are corrupt and treacherous officials, and their greed never stops. They punish and extort money from lower-ranking officials to please their superiors, and corruption ensues. This leads to unworthy officials, who bring disaster to the people and make their lives miserable. How can we put an end to these evils?
I have appointed virtuous and capable people to help govern the country. How should I use their talents, how should they perform their duties, and what should they do?
Mr. Erdo has explained it in detail, and I will read it personally.

……

After Wang Shilun finished reading the essay questions for the palace examination, the entire Huangji Hall fell into silence.

Although there were more than 300 tribute scholars entering the palace, they were under the emperor's control, so they dared not even breathe, let alone make noise. All of them just lowered their heads and thought hard.

Among the dozens of officials in charge of the palace examination present, except for the three chief examiners who participated in the formulation of the examination questions and knew the content of the examination questions in detail, the other officials knew the questions for the first time.

Everyone had a different expression on their face, but they all had the same idea that the current emperor was indeed an extremely pragmatic monarch, so much so that some old officials in the literati circle secretly criticized him for having some literary flaws.

Just by looking at the questions for the palace examination selected by His Majesty and their meaning, one can see how pertinent they are to current affairs. They fully incorporate the political affairs of recent years and directly ask about the strategies for the administration of officials.

The title mentions various events involving official administration that have occurred since the 12th year of Jiazhao, from the nine borders in the north to the south of the Yangtze River, but it is only brief and does not fully explain.

Because these events involved different government offices, the causes of the events were different and not well known in the officialdom. Many officials knew only a few things but not the whole story. However, the three chief examiners who participated in the formulation of the questions for the palace examination knew the whole story in great detail.

The questions in the palace examination involved political affairs, including last year's major case of fraud in the Ministry of Personnel, which involved more than a dozen officials who were convicted and dismissed, and the major case of the Jinling Guards that caused a sensation last year.

There is also a major case in the Jiangnan region, which can be traced back to the 12th year of Jiazhao, when a major case of the Water Supervision Bureau broke out in Nanjing.

In the Beizhen area, we can infer the cases of salt and iron reselling by the military nobles of the current dynasty, as well as the disaster of hereditary military officers in the border town surrendering to the enemy, and there are also vague references to Jia Cong's pacification of the Jurchens.

The reason why Emperor Jiazhao personally selected such a policy topic was that in recent years, he had vaguely realized that ten years after he came to power, the government administration in the imperial court had shown signs of corruption.

It seemed as if there was a huge hand that he could not see, stirring up the situation in a mysterious way...

Of course, the hidden meaning behind this imperial examination question was not known to everyone, even the three chief examiners...

Even the other palace examination deacons present had all served as officials for many years and had certain political experience.

However, such difficult questions on current affairs are not easy for them.

Not to mention that the vast majority of the 300 candidates who took the exam were commoners. They were inevitably at a loss and had difficulty grasping the key points when faced with such difficult and practical questions.

However, as the pinnacle of the imperial examination system, the palace examination was designed to select the most outstanding scholars in the world. No matter how difficult the questions were, it was understandable.

Such essay questions not only test the candidates' knowledge of classics. If they can only read poetry and prose without knowing what is happening outside the window, they may not even understand the meaning of the questions.

Only those who are well versed in the ethics of sages and have lofty ambitions and broad minds will pay attention to the changes in the world around them and think deeply about everything.

Only then can one face the grand strategic questions posed from the emperor's perspective, give practical answers, and stand out among hundreds of tribute candidates.

……

The officials in charge of the palace examination who were present had similar thoughts in their minds. They were afraid that among the 300 candidates present, more than half of them had no idea how to answer the questions and were at a loss for words.

But it doesn't matter. No matter how the candidates answer the questions in today's palace examination, they will not fail. Even if they fall into the top three, they can still be considered as Jinshi.

At this time, many people, including the three chief examiners and dozens of palace examination stewards, involuntarily looked towards the first examination paper on the left.

Because they all knew that Jia Cong was one of the few people among the three hundred tribute scholars who held the fifth rank and had been in politics for several years, and his talent and literary thinking were second to none among the tribute scholars entering the palace.

They almost all thought of the same question, how would Jia Cong answer the questions in this palace examination?

……

Wait until Wang Shilun read out the questions for this palace examination.

The examiner, led by dozens of eunuchs, began distributing printed examination questions, answer sheets, draft answers and other examination supplies to hundreds of candidates.

At this time, Emperor Jiazhao stood up from the dragon throne and left the Huangji Hall with Guo Lin and other eunuchs.

The emperor is the supreme ruler and has a lot of things to do every day. Many important court affairs need to be dealt with.

This palace examination would last from morning till sunset, so there was naturally no reason for the emperor to stay there all the time. He just showed up at the beginning of the examination as a formality.

Before the candidates officially took the exam, the three chief examiners and other deacons began to patrol the examination cases and strictly enforce the examination rules.

Sun Shouzheng, the co-examiner of the Sixth Room of the Joint Examination and also one of the deacons of the Palace Examination, wandered between the various examination cases, seeming a little uneasy.

When he walked to the row of examination cases in the center of the hall, he accidentally saw a slightly plump candidate and his eyes lit up slightly.

In his mind, a question about policy essays for the imperial examination came to mind:
Our ancestors said: Use the heart of one person to integrate the hearts of heaven and earth, and use the heart of heaven and earth to integrate the hearts of the world.

This is a truth that has been understood throughout the ages, and is found in all kinds of things in the world. Ordinary people know it, but some do not.

The Dao has endless merits, and only those with lofty aspirations can achieve the highest merits; the Dao is not of small use, and only those with concentrated strength can achieve the greatest use...

When he saw the essay for the imperial examination, he couldn't help but applaud.

Even until now, this policy essay is the best one he has ever come across while grading the papers in the six examination rooms.

But after reading the answer sheet carefully, he also noticed some clues.

This candidate must be very familiar with Liu Jichuan's "Retreat from Thoughts" to be able to give such an apt and outstanding response.

Sun Shouzheng knew clearly that the examination questions set by the chief examiner Xu Liangxiong were based on the main ideas of Liu Jichuan's "Tuisi Ji".

However, due to Liu Jichuan's dispute with Emperor Taizu of the Great Zhou Dynasty, his articles have never been praised, and have been circulated in a narrow and obscure manner, with very few scholars studying them.

However, this candidate was so unconventional that he had an inexplicable fit with Xu Liangxiong's hobby.

Sun Shouzheng finally selected this candidate for selection into his room because of his excellent answer, but he still had doubts in his heart.

Until the candidates who passed the imperial examination were decided, he, as an official selected from the Eighteenth Office, followed the three chief examiners into the Imperial Examination Hall to draw the official papers of the candidates.

In the Imperial Examination Hall's archives, when the officials of the Imperial Examination Hall removed the seal on the original volume, they would read out the numbers of the candidates on the list and also sing out the corresponding names, courtesy names, and places of origin.

Sun Shouzheng finally found out the name of the candidate who wrote the policy essay that he admired the most.

His name was Wu Liang, courtesy name Xiwen, and he was a juren from Hangzhou Prefecture.

Sun Shouzheng had heard of Wu Liang's courtesy name in Xiao Jiashu's book at Wenhan's house.

The old man in the bookstore told him that a few days before the imperial examination, a candidate named Xiwen specially bought a copy of "Liu Jichuan's Writings" from the bookstore, which included the "Retreat from Reflection".

When the official from the Imperial Examination Hall read out Wu Liang's courtesy name Xiwen, it seemed to stir up waves in Sun Shouzheng's heart. The seeds of doubt instantly sprouted and turned into a sharp thorn in his heart!
……

After the results of the imperial examination were announced, Wu Liang, like other candidates, paid a visit to the chief examiner and his fellow examiners according to convention. That's how Sun Shouzheng got to know Wu Liang.

The growing suspicion in his heart made him, a serious person by nature, restless for several days. Finally, he could no longer control his temper and went to Wenhan and Xiao's bookstore again.

Things went surprisingly smoothly. He only spent three taels of silver and learned the shocking inside information from the old man.

He was almost certain that his original speculations and suspicions were most likely the truth.

Sun Shouzheng has been in anxiety these days. As an imperial censor, it was common for him to report to the emperor whenever he heard something.

However, the Spring Examination is a national talent selection ceremony that attracts worldwide attention. Once cheating is exposed, it will definitely shake the government and the country, and the consequences will be unpredictable.

As a seventh-rank imperial censor, he not only had to confront a third-rank official, but also had to face a different inside story that he was not aware of yet...

He might suffer backlash because of this incident, or even be ruined and his career ruined, which made him feel uneasy and hesitant.

……

Just when Sun Shou was a little distracted, he saw Wu Liang smiling and bowing to someone, being very polite.

Sun Shouzheng looked in the direction of his sight and saw Xu Liangxiong, who was inspecting the examination room. He also smiled and nodded at Wu Liang, with a look that seemed to contain an expression of support.

After the results of the joint examination were posted, all the successful candidates paid a visit to the chief examiner, so it was common for the candidates to know the chief examiner during the palace examination.

Before the palace examination officially began, candidates would occasionally salute the chief examiner, but it was just a common courtesy.

However, Sun Shouzheng could clearly sense that there was a strange tacit understanding between Wu Liang and Xu Liangxiong, and their relationship was not like that of an ordinary examiner and candidate.

He could almost conclude that there had been an unusual entanglement between the two before the examination. This sensitive intuitive feeling was like a poisonous fire, burning in his heart.

Although he passed the imperial examination, he came from a poor family and had no family connections to support him. After passing the examination, he was demoted to a lowly official and could only serve as an inconspicuous seventh-rank censor.

However, he relied on his upright heart, courage to speak out, and sense of justice to impeach Jia Zheng for violating the rules of propriety, and thus emerged in the court.

Moreover, he was fortunate enough to become one of the six examiners in the Spring Examination. It was because of his practice and adherence to the principles that he was able to achieve the honor he has today.

Now, the six examination rooms under his charge were harboring corruption and cheating right under his nose because of his marking and selection.

This was a disgrace for him as a fellow examiner. His former reputation as an incorruptible censor was now tarnished by himself. He felt guilty!
At this moment, Xu Liangxiong and Wu Liangsi's greetings seemed to be a tacit understanding, which was like a wanton mockery of him, making him feel aggrieved, and his original concerns disappeared in an instant.

He looked towards the Imperial Dragon Throne. The current emperor had already left the hall and returned to the palace. He then looked at the hundreds of candidates taking their seats. The palace examination was about to begin.

He thought for a moment, and finally suppressed his boiling passion... (End of this chapter)