Referring to the official examination, it is called "one-day disciple" because the results can be obtained on the same day.
After filling out the papers, Xue Bai was arranged to rest in a side room, covered with a clean and soft quilt, and fell asleep soon after.
Until a clerk came over quietly and carefully woke him up.
"Master No. 1, we're going to sing the official song later. Would you like to move over and listen to what Otsuka Zai has arranged?"
"okay."
Xue Bai rubbed his eyes and stood up in a daze, knowing that it was not that the officials in the Ministry of Personnel had a better attitude than those in the Ministry of Punishment and the Ministry of Rites, but that his holy family and reputation were different now.
After leaving the verandah, bypassing the long corridor, and returning to the central hall of Nan Cao, the official department, there were less than a quarter of the number of people still waiting to be conferred. Overall, they seemed to be mostly dressed in luxurious clothes and with splendid equipment.
Because those lifeless people have been eliminated, those who had not come from a wealthy family would not be able to stand here at this time.
It was a little slower than in previous years. After waiting for another half an hour, an official came back from Zhongshu Province and handed the note to Du Youlin. "Ahem." Da Xixun coughed twice, not to let Du Youlin secretly make trouble. Chance.
Du Youlin had no choice but to hand the note to the minister.
Da Xixun was also diligent today, unrolling a letter of annotation and doing a roll call in person.
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"The son of Jingzhao Prefecture was promoted to Jinshi in the fourth year of Tianbao. Cui Youfu was awarded the title of Lieutenant of Shou'an County."
Immediately after receiving the coins for free, a handsome young man in his twenties or seventies stood up and said with a salute: "You have to work hard for me, the road to Shou'an County is long and difficult, and I am weak. Can I be appointed another official in the capital?" "
Da Xixun rolled his eyes and was too lazy to show up now. He turned to Du Youlin and motioned for the doctor to speak.
"Hey, Shou'an County is located in Henan Prefecture, west of Luoyang. It is closer to Chang'an than Luoyang. How can it be said that it is a long way?" Du Youlin did not speak Mandarin, and said in a good voice: "There is no other better guard. Ah, Cui Sanqilang."
Cui Youfu was very polite, looked at Da Xixun again, saw him nodding, and said: "In this case, I will accept it."
He was born in the second eldest son of the Cui family in Boling, and he was the highest among the gentry in the world today. His father, Cui Mianguan, was the minister of the middle school and gave him Zuopushe as a gift.
It's a pity that his father died early, so he can only get a starting official of the ninth rank today.
Da Xixun, who received free coins, gave Cui Youfu a happy smile, thinking that even the number one scholar, who was in the holy family, could only get Daowang County in the south of the Yangtze River, and gave Mr. Cui a Shangji County near Luoyang. It was not unkind.
After a brief interlude, he continued to roll call, turning over the annotations one by one, and was suddenly stunned for a moment.
"Born from the Imperial College, Dabao became the number one scholar in seven years, and was awarded...
Da Xixun took a closer look and was quite surprised. He turned to look at the officials who had returned from Zhongshu Province, only to find that their eyes were evasive.
He hurriedly left the central hall to call for people to scold him and asked, "What's going on?"
"Yes...it's an ordinary matter under Tong Zhongshu's family, Mr. Yang...
I know who it is! "Da Xixun became angry when he heard that they reported all their official names. He felt like they were pressuring him.
He took two steps and asked: "Have you reported it to the right prime minister? What did the right prime minister say?"
"The right minister is resting, and the officials in the palace dare not disturb him.
Da Xixun rolled his eyes, thinking that if the Right Prime Minister got into an argument with Yang Wei, the matter would alarm the saint, and the result would be the same.
At this time, he was attacked by Yang Hao. He lost a small face, but then he lost a big face. Why bother?
But he didn't want to take the matter and quickly went to find Chen Xilie.
Chen Xilie had fallen asleep. After being woken up, he was relieved to hear that Yang Hao had also come forward.
"Prime Minister Zuo." Da Xixun said: "Xue Bai is so arrogant. If the Ministry of Civil Affairs still awarded him the title of Secretary Provincial Secretary, I'm afraid he would be criticized by the world!
"yes.
Chen Xilie murmured with emotion and sighed: "But what can I do? I tried to persuade that guy, but he didn't listen. Because of this, She Heda and Xi Xun were stagnant again, thinking that he had also lost his mind, and actually wanted to let this Gai Zi Prime Minister Zhang Zuo stepped forward to take charge.
Feeling depressed, he called Du Youlin and said, "I'm not feeling well, so you can do the roll call."
"Here.
Du Youlin took the notes and turned back to the central hall, facing the crowd of well-dressed people. The figure in a red robe finally showed his official power.
"Xue Bai, who was born in the Imperial Academy and was the number one scholar in Tianbao for seven years, was awarded the title of Secretary Provincial Secretary!"
On that day, the Ministry of Civil Affairs examined 276 people, and only fifteen were selected, including five from the erudite Hongci Department and ten from the Diocesan Department of Calligraphy.
Xue Bai was a little confused, because he clearly saw from the note given by Du Youlin that there were forty or fifty Que members in total.
If you think about it carefully, of course not all of these employees can be given out through this method. In addition to being selected, there are also qualifications and various secret transactions.
Dozens of people tried their best to stay until the final roll call, but when the short list was finished, they still left disappointed.
It should be noted that there is no salary to be received after dismissal.
Even if you are a descendant of an aristocratic family, if you are not a direct descendant of the main branch, you cannot afford to have only expenses but no income for many years.
"When a scholar loses his position, it is like a prince losing his country!"
In the Hall of Officials, the scribe responsible for copying the petitions was writing furiously and sending the draft notes to Jiaku for filing.
"A certain official, Cui Youfu, Xiao Yue, Xue Bai... and other five people, are full of economic knowledge and have been selected from the erudite and Hongci subjects. Yilin is an official and is assigned to each of them!
Once the filing files have been copied, it is time to copy them.
With a few "snaps", a few more seals were stamped on the letter of appointment, and it was put into a black wooden box. The clerks took it and trotted away.
Come to Xue Bai.
"It's great to congratulate you, Number One Scholar. I have become an official, secretary, and secretary of the provincial school. Please continue."
Xue Bai took Gao Shen with one hand and handed over a bunch of copper coins with the other hand, saying, "Thank you for your hard work."
"No, no, I don't dare to ask for the No. 1 Scholar's money."
"This is money for pens, ink, and letters. You must give what is due."
Xue Bai smiled, put down his coins, and left the official department with his suitcase in hand.
One year and five months after his rebirth, he finally got an official position from an unknown official slave.
This journey was not easy, but he still got it; at the same time, countless people couldn't get it, and because they couldn't display their talents, they went to the border town shogunate, brewing a huge change.
"You did it again?
"if not?"
Xue Bai put away his confession, his expression still very calm.
Although Du Wulang didn't want to be an official as much as he did, he was more excited. He praised him and said, "You have become an official at the age of seventeen. You are awesome."
"Yes, and this is the most upright starting officer." Xue Bai said: "It is not comparable to those of Wei Wei Shaoqing like Wang Zhun and Jia Chang."
He has understood what Du Niang said about the eight steps, which means which official positions are the best in the eight stages of the official career.
For example, if you are a county lieutenant and go to a remote place in a poor country, you may not be promoted in your lifetime; but with the qualifications to serve as a central government official, you may choose a county in Gyeonggi and let the court see your merits in a year or two.
The so-called most correct thing is to correct the writing and correct the characters. After leaving Chang'an, when others hear that this is the Number One Scholar or the School Secretary, they will immediately look at them with admiration; when they hear that it is a Weiwei, they will be conferred or appointed to official positions. This is very important in this era when the circulation of information is extremely slow.
Xue Bai didn't care about other things, but his official career had to be solidified step by step.
"Look at you, you are so proud. When will you go to the Secretary's Office to look after things? From now on, you will not be free."
"We still have to wait three days."
"So fast?" Du Wulang admired him in admiration. In fact, he was not interested in these things, so he turned around and asked: "But seriously, don't you plan to get married?
"with who?
"Look for it." Du Wulang said, "You don't want to get married, it makes people panic."
"Who is panicking?
"Just...many people are panicking."
Xue Bai said: "I've been busy lately, so I don't care about this. Let's ask later.
"What are you asking?" Du Wulang said: "I mean, many people have found my mother-in-law and my... mother-in-law-to-be.
"Let them all refuse."
"Are you sure? You don't have a candidate, right?
Xue Bai thought Du Wulang was noisy and waved him away.
Since he is no longer the son of Xue Ling, he moved to Xue's house in Xuanyangfang. Recently, I have been busy with the imperial examination and conferment of officials.
He had to avoid suspicion with the actors and even the Xue family's mother and daughter. He didn't even take a good tour of the house, and almost only went back and forth in the lobby and main room.
In the main room, Qinglan was packing her things. She was in a good mood and seemed to enjoy working, like a hard-working little bee.
Normally I don't think that until it's time to move, Xue Bai will realize that he has so many belongings.
"Mr. Lang!
Ever since she received the peony, Qinglan's excitement has not calmed down. As soon as she saw Xue Bai, she ran forward and looked at him with watery eyes. The blush on her cheeks seemed to be from the Qujiang Banquet.
This is by no means just Xue Bai's charm, in front of the gazes of so many young ladies in Chang'an City... In short, it was too exciting for her.
"Mr. Lang, you finally got an official position. Are you happy?"
"how do you know?
"I'm sure, Mr. Lang likes being an official the most, so I have to celebrate you properly.
Sometimes there are strange things between men and women. For example, Li Shiniang tried her best to seduce, and Xue Bai felt disturbed. At this time, Qing Lan could feel a strong sense of admiration just by looking at her.
The girl was so full of love, just like a hard-working bee collecting honey, and one drop fell on Xue Bai's heart.
Xue Bai originally didn't plan to celebrate with Qing Lan. Firstly, she was young and delicate, and secondly, she was stupid. If she gave birth to a child, but when the love got stronger, she hugged his neck and whispered.
"Mr. Lang... today is a day to celebrate...
The next day, the warm morning light poured into the new house.
The bees, which were dying of being beaten by wind and rain, finally regained their strength in the bright spring light and flapped their wings.
Qing Lan opened her eyes and looked deeply at Xue Bai.
"Mr. Lang, who do you want to marry?"
Xue Bai did not open his eyes, and he was thinking about whether to marry Qing Lan as his wife.
He is an unscrupulous person, whether he likes him or not is not the main factor. The thing to consider is that living in the Tang Dynasty, in order to win over and balance the forces of all parties in the future, he will inevitably have many concubines... Qinglan's temper cannot be suppressed.
This would be very troublesome for him, for her, and for many things.
But what Qing Lan wanted to say at this time was something else.
"On the day of the Qujiang Banquet, didn't I go there with the carriage of the young lady of the Yan family? Recently, some people have been saying... Well, Lang Jun, I think the young lady of the Yan family is good, just very good, very good, Bilu Siniang is so, so, so special...
Xue Bai seemed to be very sleepy, so he put Qing Lan into his arms and fell asleep again.
When he woke up, he hesitated and decided to go to Yan's house. He had to tell his wife about the appointment.
"School Secretary? Okay, that's great. It's the same as your teacher's starting official."
Wei Yun looked at Xue Bai again, her eyes became more and more different, and she nodded continuously.
Being an official from the same family as Yan Zhenqing, I felt inexplicably close to him, and felt like he was a match made in heaven... Master and disciple.
"Like a teacher, there must be a disciple. This official position is good, and with two more promotions, you can also serve as a Chang'an captain. The road ahead will be wider, and you will definitely be better than your teacher.
"It's all well taught by the teacher." Xue Bai replied seriously.
"Pfft."
Yan Yan, who was pretending to be a lady from a well-known family, laughed as soon as she heard this. She glared at Xue Bai in a demonstrative manner, reminding him who taught him how to read and write and deceived him into becoming the number one scholar.
Poor Yan, the second son of the Yan family, has always been studying and practicing calligraphy. He sighed helplessly, thinking that brother Xue Bai had never tasted the feeling of being taught by his grandfather.
Wei Yun has been a little worried recently. She opened her mouth several times to say something, but in the end she didn't know how to say it.
"I'm also worried that you are going to be sent abroad. You are no longer in Chang'an and I don't know when you will come back. It would be good to get a capital official. I guess... the next time you move to an official position, can you wait until your teacher comes back?
Xue Bai pondered: "The school secretary is an official after all, and students still hope to have more experience as soon as possible."
"Look at you, you are just anxious." Wei Yun whispered: "What should be urgent is not urgent."
Xue Bai wanted to answer, but turned to look at Yan Yan.
Yan Yan was pretending to be a good teacher and was checking Yan's calligraphy, but she actually looked a bit childish.
"Yes." Xue Bai said, "Students should always write letters to their teachers."
"That's right." Wei Yun said: "This Changshou House was rented by your teacher when he was the captain of Chang'an County. Now it's time for us to move back to the main house in Dunhuafang. Then you can come see Master Niang and introduce it to you. An elder of the Yan family.”
“Students can come and help with the move.”
"You are a busy man, do you have time?
"Kong, the teacher's family's business is the student's business." Xue Bai said: "I often live in Du's house in Shengpingfang, which is also close to Dunhuafang. I should come to visit often...
The conversation was about insignificant topics. After all, the Yan family is a Confucian family. Many matters such as the marriage of children and so on must pay attention to etiquette and should not be too presumptuous.
In such small talk, you can somewhat determine the other party's attitude.
When Xue Bai left, Wei Yundang stood up, walked a few steps, and murmured to himself in a low voice: "It must be intentional, this child is so smart, how can he not notice it?
After thinking for a while, Yan Yan happened to turn her head and looked at her.
"Sanniang, come here, I have something to ask you.
Yan Yan pursed her lips slightly, narrowed her eyes and avoided Wei Yun's gaze. After a moment, she said with a naive smile: "No, I'm not practicing calligraphy. My body is weak, so I'm going to rest."
Saying that, he ran away in a hurry.
"Sanniang, wait for me."
"Yong'er, come here."
Yong'er just wanted to catch up with Yan Yan, but was summoned to his side by Wei Yun, so he had no choice but to say, "Madam."
"There are rumors circulating, have you heard of them?
Which rumor is the lady asking about?
I've heard it before, why are you blushing?
"Well, yes... after the carriage came back that day, someone in Changshou Square said that Xue Lang's peonies were given to the young lady of the Yan family, and he wanted to marry her...
"Who did you listen to? Did Sanniang hear it?
"My slave heard what the cook said when she was serving food, but Sanniang didn't hear it."
"Sure?
"This servant follows Sanniang all the time, making sure she never hears her."
Mrs. Guo's Mansion.
Yang Yuyao specially asked Nian Nu over today and vowed to protect her from now on.
Her majestic fox posture made Nian Nu inexplicably shy, her head lowered lower and lower, so Yang Yuyao could only comfort her softly.
"Don't be afraid. It's the same as in Xue's house. It's close. When the time comes, let him come over and learn the music from you?"
"Really?
"It's true.
At this time, Mingzhu came over. Yang Yuyao called Mingzhu and told her to get close to Niannu, but she heard a market rumor.
"How could it be spread like this? He gave that peony to his concubine.
"Even so, others couldn't recognize Qing Lan. They only knew that the carriage belonged to Yan Zhai." Mingzhu said: "Nowadays, it is said that the number one scholar wants to marry the teacher's daughter."
"No, no, no." Yang Yuyao shook her head repeatedly and said, "The Yan family is a Confucian family, and a young lady from that family cannot be his first wife.
Mingzhu hesitated for a moment and reminded: "Ms. Yao, my uncle just said yesterday that Xue Lang's marriage must be settled as soon as possible.
This matter happened when Chen Xilie went to visit Yang Wei once after he returned from Zhongshu Province.
——"In what capacity was Xue Bai appointed as an official? For example, Cui Youfu, the son of Cui Mian, the left servant; for example, although Yuan Zai was poor, he was the son-in-law of Wang Zhongsi; Xue Bai had no father or mother, and only served Yang as a merchant and a dignified official. Family, this is nothing, but he advocates justice for the poor family, alas, after all, it is the Cui family and the Li family who can convince the public."
The Yang brothers and sisters didn't have very firm political opinions, they were just annoyed.
At the beginning, they asked, "I am the sworn brother of the imperial concubine and the saint's favorite. Can't you convince everyone?" The other party did not argue and just kept persuading.
Now they think very simply, let Xue Bai marry whoever he wants, so that those flies will stop flying around his ears.
It was difficult to choose this candidate. The family background should not be too high, as if the Yang family was afraid of someone; and the family background should not be too low, as it would be too provocative to choose a commoner. In addition, what Yang Yuyao likes most is the atmosphere.
She even considered Nian Nu, but in the end she shook her head, thinking that her family background was too low.
"My heart is really broken for this foster brother."
