The rise of the late Song Dynasty reigns supreme

Chapter 353 The First Exam
Zhao Gou roasted the leg of lamb and ate it with relish, ignoring the feelings of others. He was still not full after eating, so he roasted some more food and ate.Finally he was full, Zhao Gou blew out the candles, and practiced his internal strength directly in meditation, and only lay down to rest after running a big week.

The next day, Zhao Gou woke up early.

There is no place to wash up, so I have to wash up. Fortunately, it is winter. If summer is expected to be full of sweaty smell all night, it will be really uncomfortable.Although Zhao Gou also tried not to take a bath for a few days, he had to wipe it off, otherwise the smell of sweat on his body would be really uncomfortable.

After a while, Zhao Gou heard the sound of gongs and drums, which was the time to call everyone to get up.Today is the time for everyone's first exam, so some candidates stayed up all night nervously, while others fell asleep heartlessly.

After about half an hour, many examiners took the test papers and stuffed them into the numbered room through the window, and the candidates took the test papers and began to answer.

The first exam consists of an article on "The Analects of Confucius", an article on "The Doctrine of the Mean" or an article on "Great Learning", an article on "Mencius", one five-character eight-rhyme poem, four classics and meanings, and three questions and four books in the first round. Write more than 4 words, and [-] scripture questions need to write more than [-] words.

This time the chief examiner was Hu Anguo. In order to prevent others from answering the questions on his behalf, the test questions were all thought up last night and then rubbed out.The content of everyone's examination is the same, so only rubbing is required.Therefore, Hu Anguo decided to test "The Analects" and "Mencius" in the first exam.

Scholars have learned the ways of Confucius and Mencius since childhood. No matter how advanced their knowledge is, they must not forget their roots. This is why Hu Anguo chose these two subjects from the Four Books.In addition, "The Analects of Confucius" chooses "xueerpian", that is, the opening article, which is also the most familiar and profound way; Articles are connected end to end.

Next, a five-character and eight-rhyme poem, which praises the scenery; finally, the four scriptures are "Book of Changes", "Shangshu", "Book of Songs", and "Spring and Autumn". That is the whole essay, all of which are answered by candidates themselves, not less than [-] words and explain the reasoning.

Zhao Gou was holding a thick paper, and his scalp was numb. It was only now that Zhao Gou knew the difficulties of scholars.Even taking the exam in later generations is not so troublesome.However, the arrow was on the string and had to be fired, so I had to bite the bullet and start answering the questions.

"The Master said: "Study and learn from time to time, isn't it also said?Have friends come from afar?People don't know but don't feel stunned, isn't it a gentleman? "..."

Zhao Gou could memorize this article even with his eyes closed.No matter in the previous life or in this life, you need to study this article. After going through the whole article, Zhao Gou still can't be careless.Because he knew that if it was so simple, it might not be necessary to become the content of the exam.

If there is no word count requirement, Zhao Gou can use it freely, because he has learned all this article, and it depends on each other's comprehension and the quality of the argument. Wait for the literal meaning of the article, and then do the next article:
"Mencius said: "From Yao and Shun to Tang, there are more than five hundred years old. If Yu and Gao Tao, they will know it by seeing it; if it is Tang, they will know it by hearing it.From Tang to King Wen, they were more than five hundred years old. If Yi Yin and Lai Zhu saw it, they would know it; if they were King Wen, they would hear it and know it.From King Wen to Confucius, there are more than five hundred years old. If Tai Gong Wang and San Yisheng are born, they will know it by seeing it; if it is Confucius, they will know it by hearing it.From Confucius to the present, it is more than a hundred years old. If you go to the world of saints, if this is not far away; ""

This is the last chapter of the whole book of Mencius. The person who compiled Mencius compiled this chapter here, not just to put it here, but because it has other meanings.On the one hand, it emphasizes the "orthodoxy" passed down from generation to generation formed by the sages of the past era.

On the other hand, Mencius lamented that since Confucius, there was no expected successor, and he was worried that the career and orthodoxy of the sage would be interrupted.It mainly refers to the truth that people die, but spiritual culture is handed down forever. Zhao Gou read it carefully, and then quickly wrote down his point of view.

Really, he wrote like a god, and he finished it in less than half an hour. Then, he began to think about what poems to rewrite.According to the regulations of the imperial examination, the word "Fude" must be added to all the specified test questions.

So, Zhao Gou thought for a moment, and then wrote: "In long summer, there are thousands of Zhang trees, and there are hundreds of singing orioles in the thick shade; the double breasts are yellow like embroidery, and the green is like a curtain; the leaves are dark for a long time, and the branches are high and the sound is late; the tip of the tongue is scissors. , the rain outside the body; Sitting like a cover of mica, singing can fight Xueer; Good voice is hard to sing, I don’t know the scorching scenery; Yangliu Sanyi Road, Cherry in April; Plagued with sentimentality, write poems in paintings.”

Since the five-character and eight-rhyme poems are test post poems, the form of eight-rhyme arrangement is adopted.The poems written by Zhao Gou are based on the pattern of stereotyped prose. The original examination of stereotyped prose was limited to the Qing Dynasty. The previous five-character and eight-rhyme poems were not so complicated. However, Zhao Gou directly used the stereotyped prose to answer, which is also the first time. precedent.

"Zhouyi" excerpts "Gen Gua", "Shangshu" excerpts "Salty One Virtue", "Book of Songs" excerpts "Guofeng·Qinfeng·Weiyang", "Spring and Autumn" excerpts "Zhuanggong·Zhuanggong 13 Years".Among them, "Book of Changes" and "Spring and Autumn" have only a few words, and others need to be understood and written by themselves; "Book of Songs" and "Shangshu" still have some words, and even the meaning is clearly expressed, so it is easier to express.

After Zhao Gou read it carefully, he chose to write "The Book of Songs" without hesitation first, because "The Book of Songs" had been read carefully when he was in school, and he had also studied it by himself, so it was easier to answer; Those who study on their own in the later period, even if they study in this life, are not as familiar with the "Book of Songs".

Since the scriptures need to be written with more than [-] characters, not only must the words be understood smoothly, but also the words must be used accurately. The most terrible thing is to write in classical Chinese, which is not half classical Chinese and half vernacular, nor is it the complete vernacular of later generations, so it takes a long time.

If Zhao Gou hadn't learned a little since he was a child, I'm afraid he would have been killed.After all, there are many differences between making a fuss and speaking, and there is no need to be polite.Even the number one scholar in the liberal arts of later generations, with full marks in the exam, would probably be helpless and helpless when encountering such stereotyped essays.

Most of the first exams were about Confucian literature, because literati had a high status in society, and the Song Dynasty was a country that emphasized literature and restrained martial arts.The learning that has been handed down since ancient times is the classic Confucian classics, so it is natural to shoot the first exam, which is also a crucial exam.

There were at least a thousand people participating in the exam this time, so it might not be so easy to really stand out.If it is the first place in the competition, it will be the name of the candidate, and it is called "Jie Yuan". Only the top six are eligible to enter the examination, and everyone else will be eliminated. It can be said that it is one in a thousand.Even for Zhao Gou, it might be difficult for him to stand out.

(End of this chapter)