"I heard that in the Gongsheng Palace Examination, more than ten people turned in blank papers?"
"It is indeed true. Gongsheng students have spread rumors that this year's policy topic is too difficult, and many scholars have nothing to write about."
Qiao Yiqi patted Qian Qianyi's shoulder and encouraged:
"Kaiyuan's most in need of money, such a literary figure as the minister, assisted the protector of the country to identify talents, recommend talents, and select talents for the court."
Liu Zhaosun looked at Qiao Yiqi and Qian Qianyi and said solemnly:
"What Qiao Jianjun said makes sense. What is most important in today's Ming Dynasty? Talent! Kaiyuan is booming and needs a large number of young talents to join, so Mr. Mu Zhai should work harder..."
In the first year of Tianqi, Qian Qianyi followed Jingnan, Marquis of Ping Liao, to the capital. He showed great success in the scolding war with the Donglin Party members and was soon promoted to Minister of Rites. This year, he was appointed as the chief examiner of the imperial examination.
Historically, Qian Qianyi was a complex person.
"The water is too cold" is just a joke. Regarding Qian Qianyi's evaluation, the historians have not yet reached a conclusion.
He does not lack the extravagant habits of late Ming literati, but he also shows a serious look of upholding traditional morality;
He regarded himself as a "clean figure", but he was passionate about fame and fell into political whirlpool many times, leaving behind the stigma of flattering the party and eunuchs;
He was not obsessed with the concept of loyalty to the emperor (the poem "Tao Xing at Lu Xuan Cemetery" said: "Loyalty and sycophancy in life have come to an end, but where is the extension of life?"), but after the surrender to the Qing Dynasty, he secretly engaged in anti-Qing activities and funded Zheng Chenggong and others. People should abide by traditional moral values.
However, from the perspective of cultural influence alone, Qian Qianyi can be described as a leading figure in the literary world of the late Ming Dynasty.
Sun Chuanting and Yuan Chonghuan, who were both Jinshi scholars, highly praised this senior:
He is an erudite scholar and poet, and is a supporter of literary studies. He is familiar with the imperial code and is especially good at poetry.
Since the last "water is too hot" incident, Liu Zhaosun has not alienated Qian Qianyi, but instead intends to promote him to his core team.
If the water is clear, there will be no fish.
After entering Guanqin, Liu Zhaosun had given up his pursuit of becoming a sage.
Nor will I criticize others to be perfect like before.
~~~~~~~
On the evening of May 15th in the second year of Tianqi, the Wenhua Hall was brightly lit.
Three hundred and forty-one test papers for tribute students were handed over to Mi Fengguan, who stamped the Mi Fengguan seal and sent the test papers to the examiner.
Due to the rush of time, the imperial examination ink papers did not need to be transcribed into red papers and were sent directly to the Dong Pavilion Reading Officer to wait for the paper to be read on the morning of the 16th.
At 9 o'clock on May 16th, seventeen examiners headed by Qian Qianyi entered the East Pavilion and began to review the examination papers.
Qian Qianyi walked on thin ice and read every test paper carefully.
The Lord Protector told him repeatedly last night that he wanted Qian Shilang to be the wise man to select talents for the country.
Qian Qianyi was not a fool, so he naturally knew the profound meaning contained in these words.
Anyone with a discerning eye knows that the palace examination in the second year of Tianqi is of great significance to the Lord Protector.
Therefore, Liu Zhaosuncai personally presided over, personally set the questions, and personally invigilated the exams.
I worry a lot about these Gongsheng students, for fear that they will easily pass the exam and get a spot on the gold list.
Qian Qianyi deduced that the Protector's purpose in talking to him was at least twofold:
First, it sends a signal to the scholars that the Protector of the Country has the right to decide the life, death, honor and disgrace of the scholars in the world.
2. If you want to be a high-ranking official and have a bright future, you must agree with the line established by the Protector.
What is the route of Protector of the Country?
Qian Qianyi said he didn't know either.
Never mind that.
As long as you don't slander Taishi Liu in your policy discussions, that's fine.
Anyone who does not respect Kaiyuan's system will be directly dismissed.
In fact, Qian Qianyi has an inexplicable fear of scientific examinations.
In the first year of Chongzhen, Qian Qianyi served as the chief examiner of the Zhejiang Provincial Examination. That year, an examination fraud case occurred in Zhejiang. Under the attack of the Donglin Party, he was inexplicably implicated. In the end, he was fined half a year's salary and was also punished by court battles.
This incident left a deep impression on Qian Muzhai who was entering his official career.
From this point on, he became distant from the court.
Until finally the water was too cold and it happened to him.
~~~~
As usual, there is only one day for marking the examination papers.
It is almost impossible to read more than 300 articles carefully and rank them in such a short period of time.
However, at the request of the Lord Protector, starting from this year, the time for marking the palace examination will be increased from one day to three days.
In this way, the marking officers can mark the papers more calmly, thereby avoiding the unspoken rule of the previous palace examinations - the top three in the first class are directly determined by the top ten in the general examination.
On the 17th day of the fifth lunar month, Lord Protector came to the Wenhua Hall to preside over the reading of the scrolls on behalf of the emperor.
Qian Qianyi led several reviewers to Liu Zhaosun and met him with the courtesy of a monarch and his ministers.
Then start reading the test paper aloud.
After Qian Qianyi finished reading, the ceremonial supervisor, Bingbi eunuch Wang Chengen, took the paper and put it to the imperial case, and then the next paper reader read aloud the next paper.
According to the order, the first three papers to be read were the papers that Qian Qianyi had pre-judged as Grade A.
After reading the three volumes, the Protector of the State appointed the first, first, second, and third places in the imperial examination in the second year of Tianqi as follows:
Yu Huang, Hua Qifang, Wu Kongjia
After the official appointment was completed, Qian Qianyi led the examiners to receive the test papers, and the Protector returned to his residence.
Then, Qian Qianyi immediately rushed back to Dongge, filled out the yellow list before evening, and then handed it over to Shang Baosi to seal the list with the emperor's seal.
The official in charge of the imperial office wrote a biography letter, and the yellow list was awarded to the Minister of Rites. The biography letter was given to the minister of Honglu Temple to prepare for the biography ceremony early tomorrow morning.
May 18th.
At Chenshi, all the civil and military officials of the capital attended the triennial passing ceremony in Huangji Palace.
Needless to say, Emperor Zhu Youjian of the Apocalypse was once again absent from all activities today due to an occasional cold and bad health.
The emperor presided over the passing ceremony and was replaced by the Protector.
At that time, in front of the Huangji Palace Square, hundreds of civil and military officials stood on both sides of Danqi according to their civil and military positions, and the new scholars stood in two rows behind them.
After everyone had settled down, the Jiaofang Secretary played ceremonial music, and Qiao Yiqi, the cabinet scholar, held the yellow list and placed it on the yellow list case.
The Lord Protector's car arrived at Jinshui Bridge. Surrounded by a group of guards, Liu Zhaosun, fully armored, appeared in front of all the civil and military officials.
Pei Dahu, Lin Yu, and Wu Xiao each held sharp blades in their hands, standing around.
After the Lord Protector ascended to his throne, everyone bowed five times and kowtowed three times. Senti, the official of Honglu Temple, began to read out the imperial edict:
"On May 18th of the second year of Tianqi, we will test the tributes from all over the world. The first one will be awarded the title of Jinshi, the second one will be awarded the Jinshi background, and the third one will be awarded the same Jinshi background."
Later, Qian Qianyi opened the scroll in public and sang:
"Yu Huang, the first in the first class!"
Under the red osmanthus, Yu Huang, the number one scholar, immediately came out of the class and was led into the palace by the instructor under Sen Ti to thank the Lord Protector.
Then, the names of the first and second place students were sung, and the instructor Kaiyuan continued to lead the second place out of the class. Then sing the first, third, and third names.
Sanding Jia used this in front of the palace to thank the emperor for his kindness. Since the emperor was not here today, everyone had no choice but to kowtow to the Lord Protector.
The Protector of the State waved his hand towards Wang Chengen, and the chief eunuch, the Superintendent of Ceremonies, immediately stepped forward. Liu Zhaosun whispered to him, and Wang Chengen immediately asked the two eunuchs on duty to ask Yu Huang, the number one scholar, to come forward and obey.
Yu Huang, courtesy name Wu Zhen, was born in Kuaiji, Zhejiang Province. In the original history, he was the first Jinshi in the fifth year of Tianqi's reign and was awarded the title of Editor of the Hanlin Academy. Because of his talent and arrogance, he was bullied by Dong Lin and was included in the eunuch faction.
When Wei Zhongxian was in power, this man disobeyed Wei Yi many times and almost lost his life.
After Chongzhen ascended the throne, he resigned and returned home.
Later, like Qian Qianyi, he was appointed Zuo Zhongyun and the official right concubine. However, he had a wild nature and was not tolerated by his colleagues.
After the Jiashen Revolution, Yu Huang persisted in resisting the Qing Dynasty and later died in Shaoxing.
Liu Zhaosun didn't know much about this man. He only knew that he had a very bad temper and was the same type as Shi Kefa.
If you have high integrity, it is okay to be a Qingliu, but if you are entrusted with state affairs, it will not be okay.
"I have read Mr. Wu Zhen's talk on trade, and it is very thought-provoking. My lord, please give me some wine!"
Liu Zhaosun was full of nonsense. He had never read the examination papers of this champion. Wang Chengen immediately handed three glasses of royal wine to Yu Huang.
Yu Huang was originally a good friend of Yuan Yingtai's hometown, and he had already heard about Liu Zhaosun's whereabouts.
Yu Huang was also aware of the "seventeen crimes punishable by execution" that Yuan Yingtai had assigned to Liu Thief back then.
If it weren't for the purpose of transferring his talents to the emperor's family, he would never have entrusted him with a false snake to entertain this illiterate warrior.
Yu Huang drank three glasses in a row, feeling dizzy.
"The reputation of the Protector of the Country is not due to drunken ravings of late students. In terms of excerpts from chapters and sentences, late students may not be as good as No. 2 in the rankings. However, this is the art of applying the latest trends in the world. If you are late, you will not be born. If you are born, the sea will be clear... ·”
Liu Zhaosun laughed.
"Okay, it is indeed Kuangsheng. He is drunk. Prince, help him down."
Then, the officials of the Hall of Rites held the list on a cloud plate, and under the guidance of drums and umbrellas, they went out of Fengtianmen and Meridian Gate. All the Jinshi, princes and officials followed the list and hung it outside the left gate of Chang'an.
On the 19th, the Ministry of Rites gave a banquet.
On the 20th, the new Jinshi will enter the palace again to express their gratitude and receive the imperial uniform, crown and belt and Jinshi treasure notes awarded by the court.
On the 21st, I went to the Imperial Academy to pay homage to the Confucius Temple and erected a monument in his name.
At this point, the three-year palace examination finally came to an end.
Liu Zhaosun presided over the palace examination for the first time and successfully obtained a group of civil servant elites he wanted and included them as "grand master's disciples".
It can be said that the world is at home.
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