On the ninth day of February in the twenty-ninth year of Yuan Zhang, the provincial examination began.
Tens of thousands of students poured into the grand and majestic Gongyuan, shrank their heads and bare their feet in the densely packed halls, and wrote their answers in the cold wind, hoping to strive for a future in this one-in-a-thousand spring.
On the first day of March, Chunwei released the results.
In this spring, a total of 298 scholars were selected. Wang Jinghua was not listed, Qi Chang was ranked third and 76th, and Wu Jin was ranked first and Huiyuan.
On the ninth day of March, the palace examination.
The emperor came to the imperial examination in person, sat inside the curtain, and wrote "Ode to the Civil Guards" and "On the Difficulties of Heaven's Steps" as titles. Wu Jin's good words were like pearls, and he asked the emperor to open the curtain and look at him. He saw him among a group of scholars. In the middle, his appearance was dazzling, his behavior was neither arrogant nor impetuous, he was confident and calm, and he nodded immediately.
On March 15th, the emperor summoned the Jinshi of this list to gather outside the Wenzheng Hall to listen to the biography.
Except for the ninety-eight fellow Jinshi, the other two hundred people entered the palace, wearing white colorful shirts, and stood outside the Wenzheng Hall.
The spring day is getting warmer, and the clouds are wide and the sky is high outside the palace, without any obstruction. The sun shines directly down, falling on the yellow glazed tiles, falling on the green paintings, falling on the red walls, red doors, red columns, and red windows. On the white stone platform, several colors emerge with light and shadow, complementing each other and making it dazzling.
Near the high-rise building, the spring breeze occasionally lifts the gauze curtains, and the bright light from pearls, agate, glass, coral and other colored jewelry sways on the high buns of the female family members in the palace, turning into peeping eyes, staring at the grand roll call. .
Such brilliance made the scholars stay silent. Honglu Temple officials led the scholars to listen to the announcement on both sides, waiting for the first announcement from the temple.
Outside the hall was empty, and the emperor's roll call came out through the chamberlain: "The first-class Jinshi and the first-class Jinshi, Kuanzhou Wu Jin."
Immediately afterwards, the two and three first-class people stood up and left the class. They were led by the officials of Honglu Temple and knelt down to thank the emperor. The remaining Jinshi were called by the ministers and did not have to leave the class. They only kowtowed in place. After getting up, they all Change the green robe.
As the number one scholar, Wu Jin was always at the forefront of the other scholars. After changing his clothes, he knelt down and bowed to receive the food and wine given by the emperor. The joy of others was beyond words. After saluting, he straightened his posture and looked towards the main hall from a distance. Inside, his expression was calm and calm.
During the palace examination, he concentrated on answering the paper. The emperor was sitting inside the curtain again. He didn't see it clearly. At this time, he looked at it from a distance and was not afraid of offending Long Wei, but he could watch it calmly.
There is no wind in the hall, and beams of skylight shine in. It can be seen that in the Suan Ni incense burner, the smoke is sinking, and the handrails, cabinets and columns on both sides of the palace are collapsed, with dragon patterns painted in gold, and the emperor is sitting on them. The eyes are solemn and powerful, and the sight is intimidating.
With the emperor's body collapsed, the ministers stood on both sides, their eyes full of reds and purples. One of them was wearing a purple official uniform, standing at the front, holding an ivory fluorene board. He should be the young Donggong.
Behind the prince, holding the golden scroll as usual, there is also a man in purple official uniform. He is old and should be in charge.
He calmly blinked these faces into his eyes. Since he had never seen Wei Fan, he speculated in his mind that there might have been a dispute in the DPRK during this spring period, such as recommending the chief examiner.
Although the imperial court explicitly prohibits Jinshi from worshiping imperial officials as their mentors, and Jinshi are called "disciples of the emperor," students will still regard the examiner as their "mentor" and write letters of thanks to express their gratitude for their kindness. Therefore, the master The selection of examiners is very important to both the Eastern Palace and the feudal lord.
Under the surging undercurrent, King Wei lost the game.
In this short period of time, he thought about the situation of the court. After a moment of ceremony, the emperor gave the number one scholar a white horse with a golden saddle and a horse with a red mane that ranked second. He ordered ten people from the imperial army to cheer for the number one scholar and escorted the number one scholar to watch the announcement and return home. .
A chamberlain sent out the golden list, and the officials of Honglu Temple took it in their hands, led all the Jinshi out of the palace, and displayed the list on the Dragon Pavilion.
In the palace, the Jinshi were overjoyed, but the majesty of the Forbidden Palace restricted their every move. When they left the East Palace Gate, they immediately smiled, joked with each other, and rushed to call Wu Jin by name.
Outside the city gate, there were a large number of spectators, excited and excited, vying to see the top three.
This dynasty has also selected young champions, but there has never been one as handsome as Wu Jin. Moreover, he is clear and square, as bright as the morning glow, and has outstanding grace. Countless people are following him at once, and there are also women rising from high-rise buildings. On top, he threw begonias, peonies, roses and other flowers in his bun at Wu Jin, which caused a sensation.
The imperial guards shouted in front that they finally reached the Longting wall where the list was released. Countless people came upon hearing the news and broke into the Imperial Academy next to Longting. They broke through the thorn fence and rushed forward like a tide. As a result, the list was released. The wall collapsed.
The imperial guards had to clear the way with difficulty and immediately sent the champion home. When Wu Jin was sent outside the Taoist temple in Yuntai County, the feet of the imperial guards were swollen from being stepped on.
When Wu Jin entered the Taoist temple, the onlookers saw that the Taoist temple was in ruins and the sky was dark, so they had to return in anger, only to return to this place of innocence and peace.
Wu Jin tied up his horse, put on the whip, and breathed a sigh of relief. When he walked in, he saw the oldest Taoist priest standing among the wild flowers and weeds. He quickly handed over his hands and apologized for disturbing the peace of the Taoist temple.
The Taoist priest waved his hand and didn't take it seriously. He just smiled and said, "The Number One Scholar is so charming."
Wu Jin also smiled, took off the futou, reached out and touched a bruise on his forehead: "The number one scholar needs to be in good health."
Some girl, with her strong hands, threw an embroidered ball over from a distance. He was dazzled by the flowers and couldn't avoid it, and a lump formed on his head.
When the Taoist priest saw him picking out many flowers from his arms and lapels, he immediately laughed and said, "Not bad, not bad."
He pointed to the kitchen: "The fire hasn't been extinguished. There are food and hot water left. Go and use them."
Wu Jin quickly cupped his hands and thanked him.
The Taoist priest patted him on the shoulder: "I enter the palace with a full heart of learning and literature. I am proud of my victory in Sanyuan. From now on, my worries and boredom are gone. I am happy and happy."
Wu Jin was stunned after hearing this: "Taoist Master..."
The old man had already left with a smile.
Wu Jin went to the kitchen to have dinner, brewed a pot of hot tea, returned to the guest room, took off his green robe, put on a long gown, stood in front of the table, lit the oil lamp, reached out to pick up the pen, and wrote the remaining ink , write down the four words "No Ji Tai Lai".
What Taoist Master just said is the image of the Tai hexagram in the "Book of Changes".
The hexagram says: If the small one goes to the big one, it will be auspicious and prosperous.
Those who get this hexagram will have everything smooth, the gentleman will have a long way, and the villain will have a way.
He finally smiled happily and looked out the window.
The sky is already dark, but there is a moon and it is spring. The sky is as warm and moist as the spring breeze.
He ground the ink again, spread out a piece of bamboo paper, and considered sending a message to his parents.
"My son, Wu Jin, respectfully bows down to his parents.
My son has been elected as the first Jinshi on March 15th. Everything in Beijing is not complete, so I can't bring my parents here to fulfill my filial piety. I hope my parents will eat more frequently, sit and lie more often, don't work too hard, and take care of themselves.
There is no need to reply. It is not easy to live in Kyoto. I am looking for a place to rent in the city. My son will write again later. "
When the ink dries, he sets the paper aside and covers it with another piece of paper.
Before he could finish writing, there was a sudden knock on the door outside the Taoist temple, and he knocked three times in a row, and shouted "Master Wu" loudly.
(End of chapter)
