Ming Dynasty: My Father Zhang Juzheng

Chapter 218 Exam
The disturbance caused by the petty officials was quickly resolved under the swift suppression of the Jinyiwei.

The riot involving thousands of people was not a big deal, but it was not a small deal either. Fortunately, it did not lead to any major disaster, and the county magistrate did not investigate further.

However, this also sounded a wake-up call to all the petty officials. This new big shot was extremely concerned about disciplining the petty officials.

He would rather replace all the petty officials than compromise with the local tyrants.

These petty clerks knew that they were no match for their elders, so they could only hold on to their books and become bookworms.

Early the next morning, Zhang Yunxiu came to the duty room of the county magistrate's office yawning.

Wei Ming came forward with a smile. Before he could say anything, Zhang Yunxiu sat down on the main seat and said in dismay, "You sly fellow. Such a big thing happened yesterday, but you were nowhere to be seen."

"Oh, you're wrongly accusing me." Wei Ming looked aggrieved and waved his hands to defend himself. "When I heard about this yesterday, I immediately ordered Wang Zhubu to dispatch troops to appease these petty officials."

However, before Wang Yongcheng arrived, the matter was settled personally by Zhang Yunxiu.

Zhang Yunxiu was speechless. He admired the old bureaucrat's methods very much.

If Wang Yongcheng is sent, if things get out of control, it will be the fault of his subordinates. If things are solved well, he will also be credited with his ability to command people and his ability to judge people.

In short, he did the job and he will not take responsibility for the mistakes.

"Okay, now that the matter has been resolved, I am too lazy to argue with you about wild cotton." Waving his hand, Zhang Yunxiu motioned Wei Ming to sit down, and then went straight to the point, "You also saw how arrogant those petty officials were yesterday. The next petty official selection exam is the top priority."

"Yes, for this matter, I have even specially built a few more examination rooms to ensure that this matter will be foolproof." Wei Ming said with a flattering look on his face.

"That's good."

Zhang Yunxiu nodded and explained the specific precautions, which mainly included two aspects: the first was about the students' life and exams, and the second was to prevent cheating.

Songjiang Prefecture was wealthy and had ample finances, so when Zhang Yunxiu encountered candidates who had difficulties in life, he specifically instructed Wei Ming to take care of them.

On the one hand, it can demonstrate the great grace of heaven, and on the other hand, it can let these students see how magnificent Songjiang Prefecture is.

The second thing is cheating.

Of course, most of the questions in this subject were not from the Four Books and Five Classics, but from geography and humanities, which were what the petty officials were exposed to on a daily basis.

This check for smuggling is probably just a formality.

After talking about the two important things, more than an hour had passed without realizing it.

The sunlight through the window formed dazzling beams of light in the room. Zhang Yunxiu yawned, rubbed his eyes and said, "As for these two things, in a month, it will all depend on your ability, County Magistrate Wei."

Wei Ming patted his chest and took on the task with great confidence.

"County Magistrate Wei has always been prudent in his work." Zhang Yunxiu smiled at him, then turned and disappeared into the scorching sun.

January flies by quickly.

The first examination for selecting minor officials also kicked off under the attention of various forces in the Ming Dynasty.

Many officials in the capital city were waiting to see what trouble this young tutor could come up with, as if they were watching a boat capsize from the Yellow Crane Tower.

When you are famous, you are prone to gossip. Zhang Yunxiu jumped so high that there were as many people who liked him as there were people who were jealous of him.

Zhang Yunxiu didn't care about it. He was not worried about having too many debts, and he was not afraid of being bitten by too many lice.

It’s not that he can’t live without the emperor, but that the emperor needs him to make money and needs him to compete with these ministers.

As long as he understood this, Zhang Yunxiu would be as steady as a rock.

Early in the morning of that day, Zhang Yunxiu got up early, washed up, and under the protection of Han San, went straight to a test site close to Xu's mansion.

When we arrived, the gate was already closed.

There were few people outside the door, and it was deserted and lonely.

Compared with the bustling and lively imperial examination, this examination for recruiting minor officials was truly gloomy and bleak.

Seeing this scene, Zhang Yunxiu laughed at himself and led Han San to a teahouse on the street.

After finding a seat near the window on the second floor, the waiter brewed a pot of tea, put down a few plates of cakes, and then hurriedly left. Zhang Yunxiu looked relaxed and comfortable, picked up a piece of cake and put it into his mouth, then turned sideways to appreciate the scenery of the exam.

Seeing others struggling in the examination room while I was looking relaxed outside, that feeling seemed pretty good.

Han San on the opposite side had no idea of ​​his own young master's abnormal thoughts. He just thought that he was a hands-on person, so he admired him even more.

The two of them had their own thoughts and watched the students taking the exam from outside.

In the examination room.

Zhou Jin sat in a relatively spacious small pavilion, writing furiously.

The content is not difficult. To be precise, you can answer it with any random answer.

For example: Where is the geographical location of Songjiang Prefecture?

What are the surrounding state capitals and their specialties?

For the candidates from Songjiang Prefecture, this was a simple matter, but for the students from Shandong Prefecture, it was like scratching their heads and trying to squeeze out juice from them.

Zhou Jin liked to read "leisure books" and had read "Notes on the Classic of Waterways" several times.

Moreover, when he came to Songjiang Prefecture, he heard from his good friend Wang Neng who was on the same ship that most of the candidates in this examination would not be required to have knowledge of sages.

He pondered and thought about Zhang Yunxiu's deeds.

It is known that this great man must be a person who "reads thousands of books and travels thousands of miles."

So he paid close attention to the affairs around Songjiang Prefecture.

When I saw the test questions today, I was overjoyed and secretly sighed that God has eyes!

With a plan in mind, Zhou Jin wielded his pen vigorously and vigorously. In more than two hours, he had finished answering the test paper completely.

Because the exam lasted two days, he lay on the table to rest.

Waiting for the exam on the second day.

When the test questions for the second day were released, Zhou Jin almost popped his eyes out.

Because, it is filled with a lot of arithmetic problems.

There are fifteen in total.

With just a quick glance, he knew he had passed the exam.

That evening.

The bell rang to signal the end of the exam, and Zhou Jin walked out of the examination hall with the other students.

Along the way, he heard many students complain: "What kind of test questions are these? They are simply insulting to scholars like us. It's better not to take the test for this petty official!!"

"That's right. If you don't know, you might think we are recruiting accountants."

"Well, I think I'd better be honest and take the imperial examination."

"."

Hearing everyone's discussions, Zhou Jin shook his head and walked forward.

Suddenly, he felt someone patting his shoulder and said, "Brother Zhou, you look so radiant, I'm afraid you have already mastered this subject."

Zhou Jin looked back and saw that it was Wang Neng who brought him here.

"Brother Wang, please stop teasing me!" Although he was delighted, Zhou Jin still looked modest. "There are so many talented people this time. How can I say that I will definitely win?"

"Alright, alright. Anyway, we'll have the result in half a month at the latest. Let's not go home until we're drunk today!" Wang Neng laughed and pulled Zhou Jin away.

(End of this chapter)