Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

Chief examiner Wang Yaochen and deputy chief examiner Hai Chengyan quickly bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

The remaining seventeen examiners, one by one, bowed in unison.

The reward was neither too much nor too little.

However, the brocade would certainly not be given to the seventeen ordinary examiners.

The rewards given by ordinary examiners were mainly in the form of gold coins.

The exact amount will need to be discussed and redistributed by the chief and deputy examiners.

"You may all leave," Zhao Zhen said, gesturing for them to leave.

The main purpose of summoning the examiners was to offer them appropriate praise.

Having received a few words of praise, the examiners were qualified to promote him.

The gold and silk bestowed as rewards were the icing on the cake.

This is all standard practice.

Since the Tang Dynasty, presiding over the imperial examinations was considered a great achievement, and officials would often be rewarded with gifts.

During the Zhou Dynasty, Emperor Taizong established a system where ancestral rules governed what rewards should be given.

The dozen or so examiners walked out one by one.

Just as Jiang Zhao was about to leave, Zhao Zhen spoke again.

"Jiang Qing, please stay."

Upon hearing this, the dozen or so examiners were somewhat surprised, and Jiang Zhao was also taken aback, so he quickly stopped.

"Your Majesty." Jiang Zhao stepped forward and bowed.

The matter of establishing an heir has been resolved, so why does the Emperor need to find him?

"sit."

As he spoke, Zhao Zhen picked up a few books and began to read them gently.

Jiang Zhao sat down properly.

"I've been reading history books lately," Zhao Zhen said, making a strange statement.

Jiang Zhao was puzzled, and pondered, "Studying history can enlighten one's mind; Your Majesty is wise."

In any case, it's never wrong to say something complimentary.

"I have read the Book of Han."

Zhao Zhen stroked a few deliberately creased pages of the book: "I read about Emperor Cheng of Han, and Emperor Zhao of Han."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhao's expression changed slightly.

During the Han Dynasty, Emperor Cheng (Liu Ao) had no sons, so Emperor Ai (Liu Xin) was the son of Liu Kang, the Prince of Dingtao, and was made crown prince.

Upon ascending the throne, Liu Xin attempted to elevate the status of his biological parents, posthumously honoring his father Liu Kang as Emperor Gong of Dingtao, his mother as Empress Gong of Dingtao, and his grandmother as Empress Dowager Gong of Dingtao.

Of course, it's nothing.

Liu Xin was not adopted by Emperor Cheng as his son; he was merely made crown prince.

Legally speaking, Emperor Cheng was only his uncle.

However, this practice of elevating the status of the biological father as soon as one takes over is undoubtedly not a good thing.

Emperor Zhao of Han, Liu Fuling, had no sons, so the powerful minister Huo Guang installed Liu Xun as emperor.

After Liu Xun ascended the throne, he honored his father Liu Jin as emperor.

He also elevated his father's status and suppressed the deceased emperor as soon as he came to power.

Clearly, Emperor Zhao Zhen was also worried about this situation.

Emperor Cheng and Emperor Zhao were actually alright; they did not adopt members of the imperial clan.

While it may be somewhat immoral for the new emperor to revere his biological father, it is not entirely wrong.

Zhao Zhen was different; he was adopted by a member of the imperial clan.

just in case

If the new emperor does the same thing, the late emperor will be in a bad mood.

Zhao Zhen had some concerns.

An emperor without children naturally demands perfection.

Jiang Zhao's brow furrowed slightly.

Difficult to handle!

Fortunately, we can learn from history.

In just a moment, he had a preliminary idea.

"No rush." ​​Zhao Zhen saw Jiang Zhao frowning and knew that things were not going to be easy.

Of course, if it were easy, he wouldn't have sought out Jiang Zhao.

"Before leaving the capital, come to the Imperial Study and tell me if you have a solution."

After speaking, Zhao Zhen waved his hand.

Such matters, which involve the thoughts of a monarch, are not suitable for widespread dissemination.

He had no choice but to find a trustworthy and capable minister.

"Wei Chen retire."

Jiang Zhao bowed and slowly withdrew.

Jiang Mansion.

"Officer."

Sheng Hualan took her husband's arm with her fair, jade-like hand and smiled faintly.

She beckoned, and a maidservant brought out hot food, honey water, and fruit.

"Huaijin." Jiang Zhao stroked his wife's hair, took a step forward, and took a child from the maid's arms.

The child was ten months old and couldn't walk yet; he could only crawl by pulling on some brocade.

When Jiang Zhao hugged him, the child giggled, which was very endearing.

This was Jiang Zhao's eldest son, Jiang Huaijin.

After taking a few steps with the child in his arms, Jiang Zhao returned the child to his mother.

He wasn't familiar with the process of taking care of a ten-month-old baby, and if he accidentally got hurt, he would be devastated.

"Lord."

A young woman with fair skin, rosy lips, and a delicate, refined demeanor stepped forward, bowed, and served soup.

Jiang Zhao smiled gently: "Please sit down."

To date, this is his only concubine, named Shulan.

Sheng Shulan gave a curtsy and obediently took her seat.

Holding a glass of chilled honey water, Jiang Zhao gazed at the two beauties, feeling quite content.

After giving birth, Sheng Hualan exuded the charm of a young married woman, possessing both gentleness and allure.

Sheng Shulan, on the other hand, has a delicate and refined demeanor that makes people want to bully her.

What is the purpose of serving in an official position?

Power, money, and sex!

Besides this, it is the best way to benefit the common people.

With such a beautiful woman by my side, all the hard work of being an official has not been in vain.

They drank honey water, ate rice and vegetables, and drank soup.

After a month apart, we inevitably indulged in fun and games again.

Fortunately, Jiang Zhao was in good health and managed to control the situation steadily.

I've been thinking about the political struggles after being transferred to a post outside the capital these past few days, so I apologize for the shorter update today (few updates).

Chapter 74 A good grandson brings prosperity to three generations!

After the imperial examinations concluded, the seven members of the Jiayou family gathered to celebrate Zhang Dun's achievement of being ranked among the top three.

After the brief gathering, all seven of them got busy with their own things.

Jiang Zhao, Zhang Heng, and Zeng Gong were relatively more relaxed.

In a few days, Jiang Zhao and Zhang Heng will be sent to serve as officials in other regions.

For the foreseeable future, the two of them need to work diligently to ensure no mistakes are made and to hand over their work in May or June.

Zeng Gong, a mere ninth-rank official, was recommended to the capital by Ouyang Xiu; it was a waste of his talents.

No one would deliberately orchestrate a scenario to cause his failure to enter the capital!

Su Shi, Su Zhe, and Zeng Bu had to prepare for the final exams, which kept them quite busy.

The final examination was a competition among the junior scholars.

Of the thirty-odd probationary scholars, only about ten could pass the final examination and thus be considered as having entered the Hanlin Academy, and were granted official positions and assigned to compile books for three years.

If one fails the examination for probationary scholars, the treatment of being assigned to a post outside the capital will certainly be better than that of a second- or third-class scholar who is assigned to a post outside the capital, but the difference will be limited.

They were either from the Hanlin Academy or were assigned to a county; the difference in treatment between the two was enormous, a matter of heaven or hell.

Su Shi, Su Zhe, and Zeng Bu were so afraid of stumbling that they dared not relax their guard even for a moment.

As for Zhang Dun, he had already returned to his hometown by boat.

He was one of the top three scholars in the imperial examinations and was granted an official position by the government, a time when he was at the peak of his life.

As a scholar who has passed the imperial examination, one should naturally return home in glory.

Time passed little by little.

June 2nd.

Royal study room.

In the main seat, Emperor Zhao Zhen holds the Book of Han, looking vigorous and spirited.

He had been reading this book for quite some time, and the spine was already worn.

As he moved down a bit, Grand Secretary Pang Ji looked somewhat embarrassed.

"His Majesty?"

Pang Ji looked surprised and somewhat astonished: "Why can't Sima Guang be appointed as the editor in the Imperial Academy?"

Last time, the Emperor tacitly approved the appointment of the person he recommended to the Imperial Academy as a collator, but it didn't happen in the end?

The old emperor waved his hand and put down the book in his hand: "Originally, if nothing unexpected had happened, the position of collator in the Imperial Academy should have been held by Sima Guang."

"Then why?" Pang Ji asked doubtfully.

It is truly suspicious that a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet could recommend a fifth-rank official twice without success.

"Wang Anshi!"

Zhao Zhen said in a deep voice, "I have quite an impression of this person. Wen Yanbo recommended him three times for the position of collator in the Imperial Academy. The first two times, I issued an edict to accept his request, but Wang Anshi firmly declined. This is the third time, and he has chosen to accept."

Upon hearing this, Pang Ji's expression changed slightly.

Wang Anshi was quite like Fan Zhongyan, and had long been a figure in the eyes of the emperor.

In comparison, the people he recommended were indeed slightly less prestigious.

The emperor's favor towards Wang Anshi as a collator in the imperial library was not a recent development.

However, Wang Anshi refused every time.