In the blink of an eye, March is here, and the weather in Chang'an City is getting warmer.
At the fourth watch, Xue Bai pushed Du Fu, who was still sleeping soundly.
"Brother Zimei, it's spring today and it's time for you to take the exam."
Du Fu turned over and murmured: "To the kings Yao and Shun, and then to make customs pure."
Before going to bed last night, we all talked about writing a narrative poem when the results were released in spring, but he actually composed a few sentences in his sleep.
Yuan Jie woke up early and was still arranging her clothes.
This is a young man with outstanding temperament, outstanding talent and strong character. He also has a wide circle of friends. After arriving in Chang'an, he went out to meet friends every day.
He smiled at Xue Bai and said, "I think you are more serious about this Spring Festival than Brother Zimei."
"It's a big deal to become an official through the imperial examination."
After a while, Du Fu woke up and went out with Yuan Jie without changing his clothes.
Du Wulang quickly handed over a new set of Four Treasures of the Study and said: "This is a gift from Xue Bai and I to Duke Du. I wish Duke Du a great success in his writing career and be named on the gold list."
"Haha." Du Fu accepted it freely, put his arm around Du Wulang's shoulders, and said with a smile: "I'll treat you to a drink then. Drink good wine."
"Hey, okay."
The four of them left the dormitory and left the Taixue Hall.
There is no need to wait for the morning drum today. Jinwu guards and neighborhood envoys opened the gate of Wubenfang in advance, and the long street was full of people. It was "linen clothes like snow, filling the nine thoroughfares."
The light of dawn seemed to cast a gauze over the imperial city in the distance.
The disciples were obviously divided into two types, one was in coarse linen clothes and dusty; the other was in brocade and rust clothes, with light fur and fat horses. At this moment, they gathered together for a rare moment, waiting in front of the Anshang gate of the imperial city.
Three to four thousand people gathered together, and it was extremely lively.
Chunwei not only has Jinshi subjects, but also Mingjing, Lv, and arithmetic subjects. These are regular subjects, that is, regular subjects are held every year.
Tianbao Sixth Year is different from previous years in that there is an additional system department. It was a whim of the saint, and he issued an edict to recruit scholars from all over the world who had a certain skill. Anyone with a certain skill could come to the capital and be selected as the "Fengya Ancient Tune".
This spring, there were many commoners from poor families, and those who participated in the Fengya Ancient Diao subjects did not need to pass the state and county tribute examinations.
Xue Bai passed by those groups of commoners several times and vaguely heard some similar words.
"I will admonish the saints with poems and prose, and denounce the evil of treacherous ministers!"
"I don't seek to be ranked in this subject, I just want to let the saint know that because of the Wei Jian case, how many watermen and boatmen died along the Yellow River!"
"..."
Xue Bai sniffed and smelled the restlessness in this cold spring weather.
The atmosphere is not right.
Since the beginning of spring, people from all over the world have gathered in Chang'an to criticize current affairs in cultural meetings day after day. There is a kind of anger that has been spreading.
It's like small flames gathered together today, with the potential to start a prairie fire.
"Brother Cishan."
"Um?"
"Did you hear it too?"
"Don't make any noise." Yuan Jie pulled Xue Bai to the side of the street and whispered: "There are resentments among people everywhere."
"You can't get anything done if you're angry as a scholar."
"I understand, we have been trying to appease them these days." Yuan Jie said: "Before today, you didn't hear the news, right?"
Xue Bai nodded, and his evaluation of Yuan Jie became even higher.
This is a good candidate for friendship.
"Let's go."
The two followed their companions.
I could hear a few brocade-robed men in front discussing something.
"Have you heard? Jinke has canceled the palace examination. After the provincial examination, the saints will not take the examination in person. Instead, they will still appoint the Minister of Provincial Affairs and the left and right ministers, and the imperial censor and the Zhongcheng will do the examination."
"Impossible. Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, there has never been a time when a saint did not attend the examination in person!"
"What my grandpa told me cannot be false."
"Censor Zhongcheng? Wang Xian?"
"Yes, the last scene will be reviewed by Wang Zhongcheng."
Like a stone thrown into water causing ripples, the news about the saint's absence from the palace examination is not limited to this.
Some of them heard Xue Bai's name.
"Xue Bai, the face of Mrs. Guo, offered dominoes to the saint, causing the saint to indulge in fun and have no interest in national affairs. He even ignored important matters such as the imperial examination to select talents."
"Nepotism brings disaster to the country!"
Du Wulang was stunned when he heard this. He pulled Xue Bai and comforted him: "Don't listen to them. Cockfighting is much more fun than dominoes. Why didn't they say that the saint didn't come because of the chicken prodigy?"
Not far away, a disciple wearing light fur must have heard the discussion, laughed loudly, and shouted: "I told you before, dominoes are the most fun!"
The men in brocade robes in front turned to look at this man and began to discuss.
"Who is that idiot?"
"Yang Hu, a side branch of the Second King and Sanke, got a huge advantage from the Hongnong County Duke's line."
"Hush, his cousin Yang Qixuan is the eleventh son-in-law of the right prime minister..."
Suddenly, the drums of the imperial city sounded.
"The time has come!"
"According to the regulations, install the door and let it go!"
The heavy door opened slowly.
Xue Bai bowed his hands to Du Fu and Yuan Jie and said, "I wish my two brothers to win the title of Chan Palace."
"Let's go to the Wild Goose Pagoda to write our names together someday and have a drink."
Du Fu and Yuan Jie responded cheerfully, straightened their clothes and robes, and walked towards the imperial city along with the torrent of candidates.
~~
There are no classes in the Imperial College today. Du Wulang is in a hurry to go to Fengwei Building, while Xue Bai plans to go home.
After waving goodbye, Xue Bai turned around and saw Zheng Qian standing not far away with his hands behind his back.
"teacher."
Zheng Qian was looking at the eaves of the imperial city with worried eyes. When he heard this, he turned around and saw Xue Bai. He nodded and said, "Now that we have met, let's have a cup of tea together."
The Imperial College was quiet and deserted, and the two returned to the Taixue Hall and sat down.
"In the spring of this year, there is a crouching tiger, hidden dragon. There is a scholar in Songshan Academy named Liu Changqing, whose courtesy name is Wenfang. He writes extremely well in five characters. He submitted the scroll to me and returned it with your poetry allusion: "Melancholy Wang Suncao, Qingqing" Another year'."
Zheng Qian was playing with the tea set and talking casually.
"There is also Huangfu Ran, whose name is Maozheng. He is smart and studious, and can write at the age of ten. He is a student of Duke Zhang Qujiang. I was delayed on the way to Beijing, otherwise I will introduce him to you. Don't worry, I will see you after the Spring Festival."
Xue Bai listened silently, knowing that there was no shortage of talents in the Tang Dynasty, and these were the best candidates to become friends.
But the premise is that you are strong enough, otherwise you will have to be a guest for these people in the future in order to be protected by them.
Zheng Qian sighed slightly and asked: "Zimei, Cishan, Wenfang, and Maozheng are all talented candidates. How many of them do you think can make the list?"
"The student doesn't understand the imperial examination and wants to ask the teacher for advice."
"Before the exam started, the rankings were almost decided." Zheng Qian said, "The examiner for this subject is Li Yan, the Minister of Rites. This person is quite fair."
This kind of imperial examination is very unfair.
The Datang Science Examination does not obscure names. If the examiner wants to point out who is successful, he can directly find his paper.
But relatively speaking, it is not as unfair as it sounds. Before the examination, the candidates put in the bank papers and the public and the examiners had a rough idea of their talent, knowledge and reputation, and based on this, they listed the rankings.
In other words, the Imperial Examination of the Tang Dynasty will not only test a few questions in the examination room, but everything that the candidates can show before and after the examination. People who are from poor backgrounds, study hard, and are arrogant will not have a way out. He is of noble birth, has wide acquaintances, has a wide reputation, is talented and knowledgeable, and is good at dancing.
"On the list drawn up by Minister Li, are all these talents on the list?" Xue Bai asked.
He was a little surprised because he vaguely remembered that Du Fu had not passed the Jinshi examination.
"Talent is obvious to all. If today's examiners dare not to select these talented people, they will be scolded by the world." Zheng Qian said: "Li Shaobao has already said hello to this matter."
Only then did Xue Bai think of what changes had taken place in this Spring Festival compared to the original - Li Shizhi was still there, and although he had no actual duties as prime minister, the influence of Prince Shaobao on the court was still there.
"I dare to ask teacher, does Li Shaobao still have such prestige now?"
"Du Zimei's poem said, 'The left prime minister spends tens of thousands of money every day.' Li Shaobao has a loose temperament and is not suitable for the prime minister. But do you know why the saint asked him to worship him as the prime minister?"
"Please teach me, teacher."
Zheng Qian said: "During the Wuzhou Dynasty, the clan members were brutally persecuted, and even the Hedong clan dared to despise the Tian family. For this reason, the saint must favor the clan members. Only if the clan members are talented can the Tang Dynasty be stable..."
Xue Bai didn't understand this aspect of current affairs at first, but he understood it after thinking about it carefully.
He heard Lu Fengniang say that the children with the fifth surname were unwilling to marry the princess of the Li family, not only because the princess often had bad conduct, but also because they did not like the Li family at all. For this reason, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty prohibited intermarriage between the five surnames and seven families to prevent them from becoming more powerful through marriage... This is a woman's opinion, I don't know whether it is true or not, but since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the Li family's influence on the county of Hedong should still not be enough. of.
This may be evident from Li Zhi and Wu Zetian's frequent visits to Luoyang.
When Li Longji arrived, he seemed to feel that the emperor of the Li family for more than a hundred years had been stable enough. Not only did he not leave Chang'an for ten years, he also trapped all his descendants in the Ten Princes' Residence and the Baisun Courtyard.
So, Li Shizhi's role in the Tang Dynasty was not to hold power and govern from the beginning, but to enhance the clan's influence with his literary reputation.
Letting a clan member who was very influential in the literary world ensure the fairness of the imperial selection and improve the clan's prestige was the most basic thing Li Longji should do to safeguard the country.
After Zheng Qian pointed out this truth, he slowly said: "Therefore, since Li Shaobao has come forward, Tianbao's six-year imperial examination should have a result that can convince the public."
Xue Bai smiled in cooperation.
For a moment, he also thought about what if it was because of himself that Li Linfu didn't have time to get rid of Li Shizhi and let Du Fu enter high school. That really made him, a butterfly, stir up the great changes in the Tang Dynasty.
However, he pondered and asked: "Today, students heard that many village tributes wanted to admonish the saint with poems..."
"Don't mention this matter." Zheng Qian waved his hand, "Ge Nu has been in power for more than ten years, and there are always angry people. However, it will not help, it will only ruin the future, so just appease him."
"I heard that the saint will not try it himself this time. Is it true that Brother..."
Zheng Qian waved his hand, indicating that Xue Bai didn't need to say anything.
There was worry in his eyes, but he said: "This matter is just a rumor. The saint has not called to cancel the palace examination. Do you have any objections?"
"yes."
Zheng Qian sighed unnoticeably and said: "Let's get down to business. In this spring semester, you should learn more and watch more. I just want to teach you some rules in the examination room..."
~~
What happened in the examination room had nothing to do with Xue Bai. After receiving Zheng Qian's advice, he returned to his home in Changshoufang and devoted himself to studying and practicing calligraphy.
In the evening, Qinglan and the three daughters of the Xue family came back from Yanzhai.
Seeing that Xue Bai was at home, Qing Lan was quite upset that she had not come back to accompany him earlier, and then she talked about interesting things while studying in Yanzhai.
"Yan Sanniang learned piano, chess, calligraphy and painting to a very advanced level, and the ladies couldn't keep up. Mrs. Yan asked the female teacher to teach her from the beginning every time. We felt bad about it. Yan Sanniang would only be happy if she said that she had more playmates. However, she I've been feeling a little uncomfortable these past two days, and I look so wilted, so pitiful..."
Xue Bai listened silently, turned his wrist, and wrote the word "forever" smoothly. He had already felt a little bit of the feeling of freedom that the teacher said.
"What do you think of my word?"
"Wow." Qinglan praised, "Langjun, your handwriting is so beautiful."
It had been ten days since he last consulted Yan Zhenqing, so Xue Bai wrote a copybook seriously and went to the teacher for advice before the curfew.
He brought two more boxes of the palace snacks sent by Yang Yuyao's messenger yesterday.
~~
Yanzhai.
Wei Yun is putting some pastries into the food box.
Suddenly there was the sound of a dusk drum, and she became a little flustered. She quickly closed the food box and handed it to the maid next to her.
"Hurry to the backyard and ask the butler to deliver it to Mr. Lang."
"yes."
"Wait a minute, you need to bring a thick blanket."
With that said, Wei Yun quickly walked to the main room.
Today, Yan Zhenqing has gone to the Yamen, and he is suddenly summoned, saying that the Gongyuan Academy needs manpower, and the chiefs of the Ministry of Secretariat and the Ministry of Rites have ordered him to come over.
This was a temporary assignment, and she had to stay in the Gongyuan for at least a whole night. There were too many things to prepare, and she was inevitably a little panicked.
"Auntie."
Yan Yan didn't play much today and stayed with Wei Yun all the time. Her face turned pale and she looked a little uncomfortable.
She saw her mother running away, chased her a few steps, and stopped in the corridor holding on to a pillar.
"Sanniang, what's wrong?"
"Yong'er, I feel so uncomfortable."
Yan Yan held the hand of the maid next to her and looked helplessly into the distance. She felt the rumble of the dusk drum coming from the square tower, which made her panic.
…
Wei Yun dug out the blankets and clothes and quickly ordered her servants to send them to Yan Zhenqing.
What she dislikes most about Chang'an City is the six hundred evening drums played every day, which always make people busy.
After the arrangements were made, I heard that Xue Bai was visiting.
The two families have been having frequent exchanges recently. Although Wei Yun doesn't see Xue Bai often, Yan Zhenqing often talks about him in private, saying, "The handwriting is too ugly, and I have a bad reputation." She knows that her husband is obsessed with this child. Yes, I went to see him in person.
When they arrived at the lobby, they saw Xue Bai standing there with a serious expression on his childish face. Wei Yun sighed slightly and said in a teasing tone to Yan Zhenqing: "Your teacher has gone to Gongyuan and can't be seen today."
As soon as she said this, Xue Bai immediately saluted and said, "Student, please send greetings to Master Madam."
"Since I've accepted your call of 'Master's Wife', I'll bring you the copybook and look at it. There's no need for a gift."
"Don't worry, Mistress, the pastries this time are not valuable."
Xue Bai knew that even the little girl Yan Sanniang couldn't tell the price of these two boxes of pastries.
Suddenly, a maid came.
"Madam, it's not good, Sanniang is heartbroken again."
Wei Yun's expression suddenly changed, and she hurried to the backyard without caring about anything else.
The drums rumbled in the evening, and Xue Bai walked to the door of the lobby and saw a commotion in Yan's house.
Not long after, Wei Yun rushed to the front yard with Yan Yan in her arms and shouted: "Get the car ready and go to the hospital!"
…
The dusk drum finally stopped.
A carriage arrived at the gate of Changshoufang under the cover of night.
"The family members of the Chang'an County Lieutenant are seriously ill. Please let them go."
"She's the wife of the Wei family in Yan County? She's under curfew, and even a court official needs paperwork."
"It's too late, please..."
"There is paperwork."
Xue Bai rushed over on horseback and handed over the talisman. He secretly hid this when working for Li Linfu, intending to save it for use in emergencies.
Soon, the square door slowly opened.
"Master Wife will go first."
Xue Bai and other Jinwu guards recorded that they drove their horses to keep up with the Yan family's carriage and horses.
The wheels were making a sound as they headed north, and finally arrived at Fuxingfang in the north of the city. The Yan family's master and servant hurriedly knocked on the door of the medical center and almost fell on the steps.
"Is Doctor Zhen here? Our Sanniang is sick! Please help..."
The museum was dark, and Wei Yun was waiting anxiously outside with Yan Yan in her arms.
Everyone became more and more panicked, and the maidservant was already crying out of anxiety, and Yan Yan's breathing became more and more rapid.
Xue Bai looked over and saw the little lady lying weakly on Wei Yun's shoulder, her eyes closed tightly, her little fists clenched tightly, and her expression was uncomfortable.
"Doctor Zhen?"
"Doctor Zhen?!"
Finally, a boy opened the door.
"Is the doctor here? Come on, my third wife..."
"It turns out she is the Yan family's wife. Alang is not here today and was invited to Gongyuan."
"Is there a doctor nearby?"
"There are only villains in the museum, but villains don't know medical skills."
Just when she was anxious, Yan Yan's body suddenly went limp and she almost fell from Wei Yun's arms.
Wei Yun hurriedly supported her, but she already noticed that something was wrong with her daughter's appearance. She stretched out her hand to check her breathing, and was shocked to death.
"Sanniang? Sanniang..."
"Get out of the way, don't crowd around."
In the chaos, a steady voice sounded. Xue Bai stepped forward and pushed away the helpless people around him.
"Put her down on her back, loosen her collar so she won't be suffocated."
Xue Bai had no medical skills, but had learned simple first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation while working next to an old officer.
When he first arrived in Datang, he encountered Du Youlin fainting, and this skill had some effect, but at this time, he didn't know what Yan Yan's condition was, and he was not sure.
Reaching out to feel Yan Yan's breath, Xue Bai looked at that pitiful little face, hesitated for a moment, and pressed on the center of her sternum.
"..."
There was a lot of noise in his ears, but Xue Bai didn't listen.
At first he thought that it would be very troublesome if he couldn't save her, but later he didn't think about it anymore.
Performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation was very labor-intensive, and he didn't know how long it took before he felt exhausted. He turned around and wanted to call someone to take over, but there were already people around him pointing their fingers in his face and saying he was rude.
"Huh...huh..."
Xue Bai gasped and suddenly felt something. When he turned around, Yan Yan, who was lying on her back, opened her eyes, which made him feel an inexplicable joy.
There was an innocent, dazed, and somewhat painful look in her eyes. Although her breathing and heartbeat resumed, they did not regain their luster.
"There needs to be a doctor." Xue Bai forgot about his fatigue and pulled the boy over at the medical center and said, "Where is the doctor?"
"There is no other medical clinic nearby...if you must look for it..."
"where?"
"The masters at the Jade Truth Temple in the southwest corner of the square do know some medical skills."
~~
"Seeking medical attention?"
A young girl opened the door that was knocked in the dark. After hearing Wei Yun's explanation of the situation, she hesitated for a moment and replied: "There are indeed a few senior sisters who are proficient in medical science. I'm afraid they have stopped at this time."
"Please also ask the refiner to come to the rescue, and there will be a generous reward."
Facing Wei Yun's pleading eyes, the little girl was finally moved and responded: "Wait a moment, let Xiaodao ask."
"..."
Everyone had to wait outside the door, anxious.
Xue Bai comforted them in as calm a tone as possible to prevent them from being too anxious and making Yan Yan even more flustered.
While speaking, Yan Yan turned her eyes and glanced at him.
Xue Bai comforted: "You will be fine."
Yan Yan pursed her lips and said nothing.
There was finally movement in Yuzhen Temple.
"Who is sick?"
Following the clear female voice asking, Xue Bai turned around and looked.
In the moonlight, a slender female crown came forward, wearing a lotus crown on her head and a feathery dress, but she was someone he knew.
"It's you."
Li Tengkong stopped and looked at Xue Bai, feeling dazed for a moment.
She originally thought that by practicing spiritual practice in this world, her mind would be as still as water. I never thought that I would meet him again so soon. It was like a catastrophe that I could not avoid...
The next chapter of today will be later again, so don’t wait, let me write it slowly~~ Because after the foreshadowing, the next plot has just begun to unfold~~
(End of chapter)
