Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 79: Before the Holy Statue, the Candidates Worry about the People

After Wang Zhizhen gave them another round of instructions, he returned to the palace and came before Zhu Changluo.

"Over at the Southern Pacification Office, has Luo Sigong chosen the Commercial Supervisory Officer?"

"Yes."

"One person from each family will serve as a guard. Tell each family that this is the right thing to do. Have Luo Sigong tell them to just watch and listen, and not interfere with their actions. Remember where the roots are."

"I understand."

"I haven't slept all night. I have read the reports of officials and gentry in the capital yesterday." Zhu Changluo looked at him and said, "Go back and have a rest. Today is almost over. After the civil officials go back tomorrow, you can rest for a while. I am afraid that the court meeting the day after tomorrow will be lively."

"I'm not tired."

"Retreat, and take a good rest today."

"Yes, I obey your order."

In the future, the Jinyiwei may transform into a special combat-capable force based on the Southern Zhenfu Division to supervise the huge Changminghao internally and the Northern Zhenfu Division externally.

What lies before Wang Zhizhen is a completely unpredictable but potentially extremely brilliant future.

For this reason, his clan and the entire Shang Dynasty in Jin were kidnapped.

Wang Zhizhen did not dare to slack off, as the purge of the Jinyiwei was not yet complete. His list was almost ready, but the next step might be to offend many people according to the emperor's order.

The report on the situation in the capital, which was compiled in the late night, also frightened Wang Zhizhen.

The royal family, nobles and merchants are easy to deal with, but tomorrow and the day after tomorrow will be tough battles for the emperor.

Zhu Changluo was also very clear about this. He was now looking at the secret revelations that Shen Shixing had sent into the palace today.

Of course, we still need to make some preparations for tomorrow.

Zou Yi and Liu Ruoyu were busy all night last night, and they only woke up after Zhu Changluo returned from the Palace of Tranquil Longevity.

"Let's continue today. I'll talk and you write."

The two young eunuchs sat down in the East Warm Pavilion, which was similar in layout to the study in Ciqing Palace, and picked up their pens.

"First of all, the origin of gold, flower and silver..."

……

Inside Anding Gate in Beijing City, not far away is the Imperial College on the north side of Chengxian Street and the Confucius Temple next door.

Facing south, with the temple on the left and the school on the right, this is the rule.

The Imperial College in Beijing has three sections, with the Biyong Hall as its core.

From Jixian Gate, you can enter the front yard of the Imperial College. To the east of the courtyard, there is a Chijing Gate, which leads to the front yard of the Confucius Temple.

Nowadays, many students enter the Confucius Temple from the Chijing Gate, and many candidates who come to the capital to take the imperial examinations enter from the Xianshi Gate, the southernmost gate of the Confucius Temple.

Between the Xianshi Gate and the Dacheng Gate in the south of the core area of ​​the Confucius Temple, the front yard of the Confucius Temple is mainly filled with steles with the names of Jinshi scholars.

Today, there are three steles with the names of Jinshi candidates from the Yuan Dynasty and 61 steles with the names of Jinshi candidates from the Ming Dynasty. Each stele is inscribed with the name, place of origin and ranking of the Jinshi candidate.

Before entering the Dacheng Gate, the scholars here naturally looked at the glory of their predecessors with strange feelings, and looked forward to having their names engraved here after they were listed in the imperial examinations next year, and to last forever together with the Confucius Temple, whose status would never be shaken.

Wei Yunzhong, Cheng Qinan and Meng Xikong did not come to join in the fun today, but Xu Guangqi did.

Was brought here by fellow villagers.

"Brother Zixian, there is no curfew. Candidates from all provinces gather at the Temple of the Great Sage and Teacher to discuss literature and knowledge. This kind of event is rare. Moreover, Duke Yansheng is here, so we may see him! Why are you so absent-minded?"

"Jun Yi, I'd like to have some peace and quiet. I'm far behind you in terms of knowledge..."

"I think brother Zixian has seen too much from seeing Matteo Ricci." Zhang Yicheng, who was younger than Xu Guangqi, shook his head repeatedly, "Don't let those miscellaneous studies mess up your mind. Since you didn't pass the last exam, it's only right for us to be on the list together this time!" "With your talent, you will naturally pass the exam together." Xu Guangqi smiled, "Forget it, don't think about those things for now, go find the inscription stele for the Dingwei exam and take a look."

"The Wuchen exam was no less successful the year I was born!"

The two of them went to look for the stele with the names of the successful candidates in the imperial examination in the 26th year of Jiajing.

Although that year was not as good as the list of the second year of Jiayou in the Song Dynasty, those who made it to the gold list included Zhang Juzheng, Li Chunfang, Yang Jisheng, Wang Shizhen, Wang Daokun, Yin Zhengmao... Although some of them are still alive, most of them are no longer alive. Their life achievements, character, morality and talent are worthy of comment by future generations.

The Wuchen examination that Zhang Yicheng mentioned was the second year of the Longqing reign. This examination was even more recent and produced many high-ranking officials: Shen Yikuan, Zhao Zhigao, Zhang Wei, Wang Jiaping, and Chen Yubei, five of whom have already served as cabinet ministers or are currently in the cabinet; Zhu Geng, Yu Shenxing... and many more are now among the Nine Ministers or are already of the third or fourth rank.

The candidates who were not yet qualified to have their names engraved here were discussing and commenting on their predecessors and contemporary figures.

Some people praise the Wuchen category as being stronger, as they judge heroes by their official career achievements; some people praise the Dingwei category as being better, as many of the people born in the same year were very principled.

Amid the chaos ahead, someone from the Dacheng Gate came out and said solemnly, "Who is making a fuss in front of the temple of the Great Saint Master Dacheng? If you are here to pay your respects, you should observe the etiquette and offer your sacrifice!"

Where is the time for worship?

At this time, one of them stepped forward and bowed, "Excuse me, I am the disciple of Yin Gongnai. Today, candidates from various provinces have met here by chance to meet friends in literature, and it is right to pay homage to the great sage teacher. However, it is not the day of sacrifice, so the ceremony is not complete. I wonder if Lord Yansheng could take the time to guide the students to pay homage, to show their respect and desire to learn, and to encourage the younger generation to make progress?"

"Nephew of the Duke of Mengyin?" The man looked at Gong Nai and said, "Please wait for a moment, candidates. Remember not to make any noise."

Many people had excited expressions on their faces, and it seemed that there might be hope.

If Duke Yansheng could personally arrange for one to pay temporary respect to the Great Sage and Teacher before the imperial examination, regardless of whether it would work or not, perhaps there would be some good fortune.

What kind of person is Yanshenggong?
If there was a grand court meeting, he would be the head of all the civil officials, and the chief minister of the cabinet would be second.

It seemed that because of the exemption of curfew, candidates from various provinces happened to gather in the Confucius Temple to inscribe their names on the Jinshi stele. Then, Duke Yansheng Kong Shangxian personally came forward and led all the candidates to pay homage to the Master, and then encouraged them to prepare well for the exam. If they could pass, they should not forget the teachings of the sages, cultivate themselves, manage their families, govern the country and ensure the people's well-being.

As soon as Kong Shangxian showed up, some people immediately wanted to ask him for advice.

"I will have to go to the palace to see His Majesty tomorrow, so there is no rush today. My son has reached the age to go to school. After I go to the capital to pay my respects, I will stay in the capital to study and ponder knowledge to clarify the truth."

"That is truly a blessing for the culture and education of the capital!" Gong Nai praised repeatedly, bowing and saying respectfully, "Duke Yansheng will come to the palace to see the emperor tomorrow, so the students will not disturb him. I have heard that when the Duke inherited the title, he swore: to live up to the teachings of his ancestors, to live up to the grace of the country, and to live up to his studies. It is truly an honor for the students to have the opportunity to meet him today, and we will swear by the Duke's oath."

"Duke Yansheng! Years of war have brought great suffering to the people. Could you please ask for God's grace to be bestowed upon the people and give them rest tomorrow before the Emperor?" Suddenly someone spoke again.

"Yes, the students saw that the edict of enthronement did not mention any exemptions, and there was a severe drought this year..."

"Additional broadcasting assistance..."

There was a commotion in the front yard just now, and now it was boiling again in front of the Dacheng Hall.

In front of the statue of the Great Sage Teacher, many candidates suddenly became concerned about the country and the people.

Zhang Yicheng in the crowd's expression changed slightly, and he felt something was wrong.

"...Silence!" Kong Shangxian finally spoke softly, and when everyone in front of him quieted down, he said, "Since you understand the teachings of the saints, it is natural for you to worry about the country and the people. Your Majesty has been governing the country well since he was appointed as the successor, so why worry so much? There is no need to make noise in front of the master. The imperial examination is approaching, so you should go back and study harder. If you can pass the imperial examination, it will not be too late to live up to the country's grace and what you have learned."

Among the crowd that was leaving one after another, Zhang Yicheng and Xu Guangqi looked at each other in bewilderment as they listened to them talking about Duke Yansheng saying that Your Majesty would surely have more good policies to bestow upon the world.

They didn't discuss anything.

However, the two of them, who were both born in Songjiang Prefecture and grew up in the prosperous area of ​​Jiangnan, were not unaware of some of the real situations.

One is thirty-three years old, the other thirty-nine, so they have quite a bit of experience.

Things are a little strange today.

The Duke of Yansheng, who came from Shandong to the capital to congratulate the new emperor on his ascension to the throne, actually did not need to show up to meet these scholars who happened to gather in the Confucius Temple.

If one just wanted to make friends through literature and pay homage to Confucius, one should not go to the solemn Confucius Temple to beg for favor from the Duke of Yansheng, who had no actual official position.

"...I shouldn't have come today." Zhang Yicheng looked at the crowd that had already dispersed, "Didn't we say that after paying respects to the Master, we would meet friends and discuss knowledge in the teahouses and restaurants on Chengxian Street? Why did everyone disperse?"

(End of this chapter)