A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 210: I want to gain more experience, not for the young lady
Because Zhang Kang knew it clearly.

Song Xuan was not that good when he wrote poems in response.

According to past habits, if Song Xuan had answered the questions smoothly, he would have left long ago.

Zhang Kang just rushed back from the riverbank when the results were announced yesterday.

Now the construction of water conservancy has reached the final stage, as the saying goes, a journey of a hundred miles begins with a single step.

Zhang Kang must keep an eye on the final stage before he can get this matter done.

After all, the court still demands officials to perform based on their results.

Therefore, Zhang Kang did not know about the marking of Song Xuan's poems and essays, and the examiners were not allowed to disclose such matters.

Zhang Kang was also worried that Song Xuan was lucky to make the list. After all, at his age, it was very normal for him to fail.

Generally speaking, few people can pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi before the age of 20.
Most of them are in their twenties or even approaching thirty.

At thirty, you are a Mingjing, and at fifty, you are a Jinshi.

Facing Zhang Kang's concerns, Song Xuan also lowered his voice:

"Don't worry, Magistrate Zhang. I have a plan for this matter. Winning the title of First Prize in Yingtian Prefecture will not be a problem."

"what?"

Zhang Kang subconsciously stared at Song Xuan.

It’s not that he doesn’t believe in Song Xuan’s strength.

In fact, the imperial examination was not based mainly on policy essays, but on poetry and prose.

As long as there are no major problems with the other three subjects, there will not be much impact, at most it will affect the ranking.

He had also seen Song Xuan's poems last time, and they were not so perfect.

Will I definitely be able to win the championship this time?
Seeing Zhang Kang's expression, Song Xuan whispered:

"Your odds on me winning the lottery are three to one, and you can even make some pocket money."

Zhang Kang regained his composure and sighed:
"Shi Erlang, don't be so careless. There will always be unexpected talents emerging in the imperial examinations. You have to be careful in the exam."

Zhang Kang never won first place.

But he also had his own experience in the imperial examinations, so he naturally understood the excellence of those who performed better than him.

Originally, Song Xuan wrote excellent poems, but he did not pay too much attention to this aspect.

But this Xikun style is quite disgusting.

Many students are scratching their heads about this.

But there is no other way. If you want to become a superior person, you have to follow the rules of the imperial examination.

Unless one day you climb to a high position and have the power to reform the imperial examination to benefit future students.

After all, although Zhang Kang agreed that Song Xuan was a genius in studying, he was not optimistic that he would be able to win the title of Jieyuan.

Just by chance making the list has already surpassed many of my peers.

In addition, Mr. Yan was extremely strict in judging the papers, and this time a large number of people who had passed the Fajie test had to retake the test.

The competition is not a little bit big!
If Song Xuan could pass the imperial examination and become the top scorer, he must be incredibly strong, so strong that Zhang Kang couldn't believe it.

Song Xuan nodded, then smiled and said:
"Zhang Tuiguan, why think so much? The exam is already over, nothing can be changed."

"But it just so happens that tomorrow, August 15th, you're coming to my house for dinner. After all the hard work on the water conservancy project, it would be nice to relax for a while."

"Ok."

Zhang Kang did not refuse.

Anyway, the exam has been completed, we will talk about it later when the results are released.

I hope Song Xuan does really well in the exam, otherwise it will be embarrassing in the future.

Song Xuan stood at the door and talked to Zhang Kang.

When Yan Shu was patrolling the exam room, he saw that Song Xuan answered the questions very smoothly, and for a moment he thought that the questions he asked were simple.

He patrolled the area for a long time before calming down his inner thoughts.

The questions are still quite difficult.

Even though these people answered the questions relatively well in poetry and prose.

But whether it is the sutra, the ink meaning or the policy essay, the writing is not very good.

These people usually focus all their attention on poetry and prose.

But poetry and prose are of no use in governing a country!
The debate on reforming the imperial examination system had been going on for a long time in the court, and this time the power of the test was revealed.

Yan Shu believed that he would be able to push the court to carry out imperial examination reform.

As Song Xuan went out, in addition to the crowd of people watching the fun, the spies in the gambling house were all staring at who would be the first to go out.

"Song Xuan?"

"It's Song Xuan."

"How could he be the first one out?"

After all, everyone was used to it, and he had never left the examination room early.

Moreover, Song Xuan walked out among the crowd and no one cared.

However, when those competing in the same examination room noticed that Song Xuan had finished writing early but did not leave, everyone felt nervous.

Fortunately, none of the other students mentioned this.

Should he publicly admit that he is a rookie and flatter Song Xuan?

The fact that Song Xuan was able to successfully enter the second round made several gambling house owners feel a little strange.

Last time, Song Xuan made them make a lot of money.

After all, he didn't win.

This time, the price will continue to be raised to attract more people to Song Xuan.

However, after some people really bought in on a large scale, the gambling house felt guilty and lowered the payout ratio.

Now that Song Xuan was the first to go out, it gave everyone a great shock.

This shows that this test was extremely simple for him.

He must not actually pass the exam!
Otherwise, the gambling house would have to pay back all of last year’s profits and even use the silver in the cellar as compensation.

Of course, this is if they are willing to compensate in full.

"Shi Er Lang, how did you do on the test this time?"

"generally."

Song Xuan still gave this safe answer.

This made everyone feel confused and for a moment they didn't know whether Song Xuan could make the list.

"You said Song Twelve said he did average in the exam, can he really pass the exam and become the top scorer?"

"I think based on Song Twelve's personality, if he had done well in the exam, he would have publicized it a long time ago."

"Right."

Especially since so many failed students have spoken out, the questions asked by Mr. Yan are extremely difficult, even more difficult than the last time.

Song Xuan didn't pay too much attention to the voices of others. Seeing Wang Gui waving there, he walked over.

After leaving the crowd, Wang Gui spoke:

"Brother, I went to see the gambling house today and the payout ratio for you winning the first prize is now 2 to 1."

"I do have some experience."

Song Xuan was too lazy to care about that anymore:
"There's plenty of time. I'll go home and make some mooncakes."

"okay."

Wang Gui took Song Xuan's examination basket and headed straight for the Twelve Bookstores.

Because the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, businesses on the streets have naturally displayed many lanterns.

Because "Rabbit God" is loved by children.

In addition to lanterns, there are also many vendors selling this.

Before the Mid-Autumn Festival, all the shops sell new wine...and people in the market compete to drink it.

The price is extremely high.

Song Xuan watched the drinks ordered by Tao Hong and others being delivered to the backyard without saying much.

Now that I have finally passed the imperial examination, it is understandable that I can drink to my heart's content.

Since the Fifth Dynasty, anyone who produced even five kilograms of alcohol illegally would be punished with death.

By the time of the Song Dynasty, only those who secretly brewed Wu Shi would die.

The profit margin of alcohol is extremely high, otherwise private brewing and smuggling would not occur.

Yan Shu actually wrote a letter specifically requesting that taxes on those wineries with meager profits be prohibited to avoid putting too much pressure on people's lives.

Song Xuan looked at the mooncakes made from the molds and actually began to like this slow-paced life.

When the mooncakes were freshly baked, Song Xuan picked up a mooncake that was still steaming, looked at the pattern on it, and smiled.

"Tao Hong, send a few to the people setting up stalls outside. After all, we've been neighbors for so long."

"okay."

As the owner of the bookstore, Tao Hong naturally carried the wooden tray out with a smile on his face.

The people from the Imperial City Bureau were truly flattered and quickly expressed their gratitude.

Even if you can make money by being assigned abroad, you will miss your hometown very much if you don’t go home for a long time.

I never thought that Shi Erlang would remember them.

Regardless of whether it was because Song Xuan was a generous person, this alone made them keep it in mind.

In fact, only a few people came to Song Xuan's house as invited.

After all, I'm at Songcheng's house, so how can I go out during the Mid-Autumn Festival?
Zhang Kang sat down on the chair and shouted, "Bring me some new wine." I could smell it as soon as I entered the door.

What kind of cold drink should I have on such a festive occasion?

"Yeah."

Wang Tai also shouted. His hometown was in Shandong, but his father Wang Dan had settled his family in Tokyo.

"Pour, pour, pour. Drink from a big bowl. Why drink from a small cup? It's boring."

Zhang Kang naturally shouted loudly.

I have to drink today.

Han Qi sat aside in silence. He didn't know whether anyone could make the list.

But looking at their appearance, I'm afraid there's nothing wrong.

Bao Zheng looked at the full bowl of sake. He rarely drank since his wife passed away.

"Hey, this is my first time drinking new wine."

Fan Xiang laughed and took a sip, then closed his eyes with a look of enjoyment on his face.

With Song Xuan, he can finally be said to be doing his best for his own internal organs.

"Drink a full bowl first." Zhang Kang picked up the wine bowl and said loudly. Everyone present knew that the man who had taken off his official uniform was the magistrate of Yingtian Prefecture.

"Okay, I'm not afraid of you?"

"Hahaha."

Song Xuan also raised his wine bowl:

"I'm just saying this. Everyone is hungry. After drinking a bowl of wine, maybe a few people will get drunk. It's a waste of the food on the table."

When Fan Xiang heard this, he quickly slapped his forehead:

"I almost forgot. We can't spoil the food on the table. Let's eat our fill."

"Hahaha." Zhang Fangping couldn't help laughing:
"Even if you eat a belly full of delicious food, you will end up vomiting it out with the good wine. It's all in vain!"

“That’s a shame!”

Fan Xiang was torn between two options; he didn't want to do this.

I can’t bear to give up both good wine and good food!
"Then take a sip first."

Zhang Kang mentioned it, and everyone drank with a smile.

"Twelfth brother, are you sure you can make the list this time?"

Fan Xiang wiped his mouth and said, "I know you must be very happy after entering the second round."

"Alas, I'm afraid Song Twelve's position as the top scholar is in jeopardy."

Wang Tai quickly took over the topic:

"In this test, I also performed very well in all four subjects!"

"Hahaha." Fan Xiang immediately burst into laughter:
"Wang Sanlang, even though your father deserves to be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, you may not necessarily pass the imperial examination."

Everyone burst into laughter. They really couldn't believe that Wang Tai could pass the imperial examination.

At least there is still a glimmer of hope for Song Xuan!

"Hey, how come you, the last one on this list, don't look down on me?"

Wang Tai felt guilty when he said this.

After all, everyone had competed in the same examination room, and most people were defeated by Fan Xiang.

Even though Fan Xian was the last one on the red list, there were thousands of people below him.

"How could I not like you?" Fan Xiang quickly put some food into his bowl.
"I don't think you have the strength to compete with Twelve Brother for the title of Jieyuan!"

"Hahaha, that makes sense, that makes sense."

Lu Lejian also put some food into his own bowl:

"I thought I did well in the exam. Zhu Yu and Zhao Gai also did well in the exam. They have the ability to compete with the twelfth brother."

"Ah."

Everyone looked at Zhu Yu who was trying hard to pick up the food but couldn't lift it.

Song Xuan helped him pick up some food, and Zhu Yu quickly buried his face in the bowl and ignored everyone.

"After such a long time, Brother Zhu's temper is still like that of a little girl."

"Hahaha."

Hearing what Lu Lejian said, everyone burst into laughter.

Zhu Yu ignored their teasing.

"With so many, are you all confident that you can get on the high school list?"

Zhang Kang, the magistrate of Yingtian Prefecture, took a sip of wine and asked everyone.

"generally."

Zhang Fangping was the first to reply. Anyway, he learned this from his twelfth brother.

"Me too!"

"Not bad at all."

"good."

"improvise."

"It's a pity that we don't have Jiang Chao here. I was lucky enough to see it once."

Zhang Kang put down the wine bowl in his hand:
"I heard that many young people go chasing the river tide during the Mid-Autumn Festival. It's so exciting!"

Tide-watching is very popular during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The activities of watching and playing with the tides in the Northern Song Dynasty were banned during the reign of Emperor Yingzong because many of the people who played with the tides drowned in the river.

however.

"Since then, the government has banned it, but it has been unable to stop it."

"What do you mean?"

Song Xuan had only seen the Qiantang River tide in videos.

I have never seen anyone dare to be a trendsetter.

Tide-watching activities usually begin on August 11th, and "by the 16th and 18th, the whole city is out, with a bustling flow of carriages and horses. The 18th is the busiest day, and the 20th is less crowded."

"For more than ten miles up and down the riverbank, pearls, jade, silk and brocade abounded, the roads were clogged with carriages and horses, and food and drink were twice as expensive as usual."

It is not easy for people to rent stands, even for a small space.

As for the young men from Wu who are good at swimming, they would let their hair down, paint patterns on their bodies, and hold large colorful flags.

These men bravely went against the tide, leaping and tumbling through the huge waves to demonstrate their skills, while their flags remained dry, showing off their abilities.

Su Shi also wrote a poem to describe it.

Everyone was very envious after listening to Zhang Kang's description, and said that they would go out for a walk and guess riddles.

"Hey, Twelve Lang has always been very good at poetry. During this Mid-Autumn Festival, you should also write one for us to listen to."

Zhang Kang felt that he had tried his best. How could he not write a poem on such a beautiful day?

"That's right, that's right. Brother Twelve still needs to write some poems. Otherwise, if they get spread out, we'll just be drinking and have no fun at all, right?"

"Why don't you write one?"

Song Xuan didn't feel anything after drinking the rice wine, at least he didn't get drunk.

"I'd like to write, but what's the point of Xikun style?"

Wang Tai sighed:

"You think I don't want to write?"

"The most famous courtesan in Song City is eagerly awaiting your visit day and night. She's eager to clear her bed for you and won't charge you any money, but you won't go!"

"That's right." Lu Lejian also said with great yearning:

"She's the most beautiful woman in the world. Even if you, Song Twelve, just walk away, her value will still go up."

"However, since there are so many people here today, why not go to the brothel?"

Wang Tai has been holding it in for a long time.

It just so happened that the imperial examination was over, and everyone habitually went to the brothel to relax.

"Yes, I still remember that when Twelve Brother was in the prison in Song City, he talked about the four irons of life. But the idea of ​​going to a brothel together never came true."

"I'm not going." Bao Zheng waved his hand quickly: "There's nothing interesting about a brothel."

"Hey, Brother Bao, you're the only one among all the classmates who's married. You know about love affairs. We're all real virgins."

"Yes."

Wang Tai immediately accused Bao Zheng of being the leader who retreated at the critical moment.

This kind of thing can be done by everyone together.

But once someone backs down, others will follow.

Then how can we go to the brothel together?
Song Xuan glanced at Wang Tai and Lu Lejian and saw that they were virgins, and they really came from an official family.

He speaks such shameless nonsense, even more shameless than me!
In the future, when Lao Bao is in the court, he will definitely impeach you severely.

Bao Zheng was not stopping others from going, but in fact he was still unable to get over the hurdle in his heart.

After all, my first wife passed away and my family introduced me to a girl.

It is never appropriate to go to a brothel without telling her!
"You can go if you want. My family has introduced another girl to me, and it will have a bad influence."

After listening to Bao Zheng's explanation, everyone nodded. It is indeed necessary to be careful when having an engagement.

"Actually, my family has arranged a marriage for me."

Fan Xiang wrote a letter to tell his family that he had passed the preliminary examination and was working hard for the provincial examination.

It was the villagers in the family who took the initiative to act as a matchmaker with his parents, but Fan Xian still did not agree.

"I heard about it." Wang Tai immediately pointed at Song Xuan and said:
"The madam said that as long as Song Twelve brings people to her place, his friends can also enter for free."

Upon hearing this, Fan Xiang quickly revealed the truth: "Actually, my partner hasn't agreed to this marriage yet!"

Song Xuan looked at Fan Xiang. This guy was so extraordinary that he changed his face on the spot when he encountered something that didn't cost any money.

"Hahaha."

Lu Lejian laughed and patted Fan Xiang's shoulder.

"Or go and see for yourself?"

As soon as Zhang Kang opened his mouth, he attracted everyone's attention again.

"Ahem." Zhang Kang put down the wine bowl in his hand.

"The main thing is that I've never visited a brothel without spending money. I mainly want to broaden my horizons, not for the sake of a young lady!"

"Hahaha."

……

Inside the Gongyuan.

Yan Shu organized a party. After all, no one was going home, but had to mark the papers in the Imperial Examination Hall.

The meaning of the sutra and the ink is very simple and can be judged.

However, the 300 or so policy essays still need to be carefully scored, and this is tomorrow's work.

"Everyone, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and you happen to be confined here. I can only trouble you colleagues. Each of you should have a pot of wine. Don't drink too much. We still have to continue reviewing the test papers tomorrow."

"Only in this way can we be worthy of the emperor and the trust of the court!"

Following Yan Shu's opening remarks and a few glasses of wine.

Everyone naturally became active.

It is very tiring to always be tense and review test papers.

They didn't even take off their official uniforms, and everyone had a pot of wine, so it wouldn't knock everyone down.

Instead, when he got drunk, he played some small games played by scholars.

Guess riddles.

Finally, he started to write poetry.

(End of this chapter)