In the first month of the sixth year of Jiayou's reign, it snowed in Bianjing, but it still couldn't solve the spring drought.
After returning to Taixue from Panlou Street, there were only a few days left before the provincial examination, so Zhang Yue went to the bookstore to submit his family status early.
Because the previous interpretation test was done at this bookstore, so I was familiar with the place, so the bookstore didn’t need to check my identity and submit it directly to the Ministry of Etiquette.
Because of the "Group Price" bookstore, the bookstore naturally gave me a discount. Last time, I gave you a copy of "Instructions for Examination", but this time I gave you a copy of "Instructions for Royal Examination".
From December to the fifth day of the first lunar month, the candidates attending the exams from the Imperial College met several times in Chonghua Hall to exchange their experiences.
Apart from being able to speak, Zhang Yue did not go out and also declined all social interactions.
He wrote a poem and a fu in his studio every day, and he wrote Ce and Lun every two days. Articles just need to be written more and practiced more. As long as you are careful, it will be like the water rising and the boat will naturally become higher.
During this period, it is necessary to eliminate interference from foreign objects and concentrate on learning.
The heart is precious and cannot be divided.
Many scholars no longer study hard and are keen on fame and socializing. No matter how successful they are in the future, it will be difficult to improve their knowledge. Not only will they be unable to write better articles than before, they will even regress.
Therefore, Zhang Yue never stops writing a poem every day, even on New Year's Eve.
On the sixth day of the lunar month, Zhang Yue and Huang Lu went to the bookstore to ask for a number. The number "Jia Shen Bing Yin" was written on it according to the heavenly stems and earthly branches.
This is Zhang Yue's examination room seat number. The seating chart is not announced before the provincial examination. Candidates have to wait until they arrive at Gongyuan and look at the seat number on the seating chart before they can find their own seat.
Although the candidates don't know it, the bookstores know that the bookstores often leak the sitting pictures to the candidates first, so that the candidates can cheat in private. Therefore, the imperial court issued repeated orders, requiring examiners to supervise the examination, and bookstores were strictly prohibited from intervening.
Although the imperial court guarded the bookstore like a thief, it still had to use them.
In the seventh chapter of the seventh day of the lunar month, Yue Huanglu rested for a day at Taixue, and went to Gongyuan early in the morning of the eighth day of the lunar month.
In the Song Dynasty, the examination was conducted over several consecutive days, but the provincial examination was conducted four times, one test a day, and then the next test was taken one day apart. But in the Ming Dynasty, the situation was reversed. The provincial examination was not taken consecutively, but the general examination was held for three consecutive days.
On the seventh day of the lunar month, countless Jiezi from all walks of life came to visit Gongyuan.
Although Gongyuan was tightly guarded by officers and soldiers, it was still good for Juzi to know the way. There were even Juzi who burned incense and kowtowed at the gate of Gongyuan.
Because Gongyuan was right next door to Taixue, Zhang Yue did not join in the fun.
But being treated like this by Sifang Juzi, I still had some ups and downs in my mentality.
At this time, there were rumors that half of the candidates would be admitted this year, following the example of Jiayou’s fourth year.
This news was not a rumor, but rather it was very accurate. When several Tai students asked Lu Zhi about this matter, the other party actually nodded in semi-acquiescence.
To be precise, the number of people who passed the Jinshi examination and had the same background was reduced to less than 200 people. In contrast, in the second year of Jiayou, there were 389 people who passed the Jinshi.
After that, one subject had more students and one less, with an average number of 300 students per subject.
But now, half of the Jinshi subjects have been reduced.
I heard it was because there were too many redundant officials.
The weather was cold and gloomy on the seventh day of the lunar month, and it seemed like there was going to be a heavy snowfall soon. At this time, the scene was like thick dark clouds, making all the disciples breathless.
The mentality of many people who came all the way to Beijing suddenly collapsed.
Before the exam, I suddenly learned that the number of admissions was reduced by half. How did you feel?
Taixue originally had a quota of 100 Jinshi, but now it has been reduced to 50.
"What's the harm? As long as you get the provincial title and the number one scholar, what if the imperial court only appoints one person?"
Wang Kui of the carriage said to the few people who were sending him home.
These scholars also participated in this provincial championship. Unlike Wang Kui, who was born in poverty, these scholars were either rich or noble.
One of the candidates laughed and said: "Brother Junmin has the word Kui in his name, so he is destined to win the first prize and become famous all over the world."
Another person boasted: "Of course, of course. This is fate. There is no scholar in Beijing today who doesn't know Brother Junmin's literary talents. Even Liu Zhidao two years ago would have been beyond his reach."
Wang Kui smiled and immediately got out of the carriage and bowed to the noble gentlemen.
After the car drove away, Wang Kui crossed the street and walked into a narrow alley.
The reason why he wanted to wait for the noble son to drive away was because he didn't want them to know that he was still living in this alley with a group of business people.
He walked up the small building but heard the creaking sound and the dust kept falling.
Wang Kui was afraid that his brocade clothes would get dirty, so he immediately raised his sleeves to dust them and said, "In a few days, I won't be living here anymore."
Wang Kui pushed the door open and called Guiying inside. In the past, the other party would definitely have come forward to bring him tea and water.
But today Wang Kui didn't see the other party getting up.
He didn't care when he picked up the tea cup on the table and poured a bowl of tea, only to find that it was empty.
Wang Kui immediately frowned and looked up at the bed tent, only to see Jiao Guiying lying on the bed fully clothed.
"Guiying?" Wang Kui stepped forward and asked.
Jiao Guiying slowly opened her eyes, and when she saw Wang Kui, she said in surprise: "Kui Lang, I waited for you for three days before you came back."
Wang Kui couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt when he thought of the debauchery he had enjoyed outside.
Wang Kui said softly: "I have not made an agreement with you. I have been traveling abroad these past few days, visiting court officials, and sometimes just staying in other people's houses for one night. I have been sore and achy in the past few days, and it is difficult to take care of you. You are still in good health. All right?"
Jiao Guiying said: "Kui Lang, I have no intention of doubting you, but I haven't come back since I saw you in the past few days, so I waited at home. My money was also used up, and I didn't dare to go out to get work, so I was hungry for two days. , that’s why I have no energy.”
Wang Kui said in a loud voice: "Guiying, you haven't eaten for several days, why didn't you tell me?"
Jiao Guiying smiled and said: "But what's the big deal after being hungry for two days? Kui Lang, you asked me to lend you three guan of money to buy pen and ink for the provincial examination. I had no money that day, but now I have saved enough money to buy it for you. I Let me show it to you."
Wang Kui didn't believe that Jiao Guiying would buy pen and ink for him even if he was hungry. But when he saw Jiao Guiying handing it to him with a blue cloth package, Wang Kui saw the pen and ink with his own eyes - they were all of the best quality.
Wang Kui was so moved in his heart that he hugged Jiao Guiying and cried: "Guiying, Guiying, I can never repay this kindness in three lifetimes."
Jiao Guiying hugged Wang Kui and said happily: "Kui Lang, your words are enough for my life."
Wang Kui hugged the woman in his arms and said to himself, Guiying does have a deep affection for me, but the rich family will never allow me to take Guiying, who was born as a prostitute, as a concubine. Even my parents would find it difficult to say so.
Wang Kui couldn't help but feel cold when he thought of this, he put down his pen and ink and said, "I'll calculate how much these pens and inks from Gui Ying cost."
Jiao Guiying looked at Wang Kui with wide eyes and asked: "Kui Lang, this is a gift to you, how do you calculate the money for me?"
Wang Kui was afraid that Jiao Guiying would be suspicious, so he forced a smile and said: "You see, I have been busy with provincial examinations these past few days, and I was temporarily confused."
Having said this, Wang Kui wiped the tears from his eyes and said, "Guiying, let's go eat something first."
"Okay." Jiao Guiying stood up and then said, "I must have looked so haggard and difficult to see people these days. Kui Lang, please let me dress up."
“It’s just that you don’t have to go to alley restaurants so much.”
"No, the slave family cannot let Kui Lang lose face."
"My eyebrows are always bad." Jiao Guiying was dressed up and turned around to look back, only to see Wang Kui quietly wiping away tears.
Jiao Guiying asked: "What's wrong with Kui Lang?"
Wang Kui smiled and said: "It doesn't matter. In the Han Dynasty, there was a man named Zhang Chang who was best at painting his wife's eyebrows. From now on, I will learn from Zhang Chang and paint your eyebrows every day."
Jiao Guiying smiled and said, "You have to remember."
The two of them went to a restaurant to eat, and saw Wang Kui ordering a table full of dishes. However, no matter how expensive the restaurant was, they could still order a few dollars to make up for their guilt.
Wang Kui was not in the mood to cut chopsticks, but he saw a 12-13-year-old singing girl in the distance coming to the next table to drink and sit down.
But the guest at the table next to him was in no mood and cursed: "Why are you crying so hard for your father and mother? You disturbed me and let me drink."
After saying this, the guest pushed the woman to the ground.
Jiao Guiying hurriedly helped the singer up, and then let her eat at the same table as him.
The singer refused to leave with her pipa in her arms.
Wang Kui saw it and smiled and said: "Guiying, you pity her and just give her some money. Why let her eat at the same table with us."
Jiao Guiying said: "When I was in Laizhou, I also worked as a singer and became the first-class courtesan in Bei City. What kind of background I am, I dare not forget it for a day. Kui Lang, I hope you will not forget it."
Jiao Guiying's words seemed to have some meaning, which made Wang Kui break into a cold sweat. Wang Kui looked carefully and saw that Jiao Guiying's words of sadness did not seem to mean anything, and then he felt relieved.
On the afternoon of the seventh day of the lunar month, Zhang Yue simply took a deep nap until he slept on the treetops above the moon. He went to the dining hall to eat.
That day, Taixue Cuisine Hall made steamed buns (meat buns), but every student took three, and there was no limit to the number of buns that people like Zhang Yue would try tomorrow.
Taixue's steamed buns were thick and juicy, so Zhang Yue simply ate them happily.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, Yue Fei's grandson ate Taixue steamed buns and wrote a poem praising them.
In the past few years, I have learned a lot from all the Confucian scholars, and my skills are still passed down to Bamboo Fern Cook. The young master has red flesh, and the general's iron staff has white lotus skin. Fragrant and fragrant government can be endowed with solid pepper, but its roughness can be better than that of a gourd pot. As we grow older, our teeth are exhausted and we chew, and our salivation makes us chat and comfort our greedy slaves.
The phrase "salivating and chatting together to comfort the greedy slave" is in line with Zhang Yue's temperament.
Seeing Zhang Yue eating ten steamed buns in one breath, the classmates on the side all said, "The imperial court intends to reduce the number of Jinshi scholars. None of the candidates are looking sad today, but Zhang Duzhi seems to be fine."
Another person said: "You don't know, Du Zhi writes an article, which is a good article per pound of steamed buns. You can see that Du Zhi will be able to write a magnificent article in the examination room tomorrow."
Zhang Yue couldn't help laughing after hearing this, but in the Qing Dynasty, there was an examinee named Li Pan who brought thirty-six steamed buns to the examination room. After eating them all, he started writing an article, and finally won the first prize.
Zhang Yue finished ten steamed buns, then patted his belly and left the restaurant.
When leaving, all the classmates cupped their hands and said: "Thank you, I will be famous on the gold list!"
"Okay, gold medal!" Zhang Yue returned the greeting.
After that, Zhang Yue returned from the dining hall to his apartment in the presence of dozens of classmates.
This section of road is very familiar to Zhang Yue on weekdays, but now it has a different meaning.
Zhang Yue saw that the sky was full of bright clouds, but they did not cover up the brilliance of the moon. A few clusters of winter plum blossoms quietly bloomed in a corner not far away. The refreshing plum fragrance drifted in the night wind, and the whole courtyard was suddenly filled with fragrance!
