Eight days later, on April 13th, the Taoist examination began. Three days before that, Superintendent Li Yuantai had visited Kaifeng Mansion. The so-called "Jianlin" means that in accordance with the regulations of the imperial court, the academic officials must pass the annual examination and the scientific examination to examine the school's students. This will avoid the hardship of many scholars and the huge cost. , one place can only serve once), he went to various prefectures across the province and Zhili Prefecture twice to hold examinations, which was called "Jian Lin". The "Jian" here means test.
However, the annual examination and the scientific examination are not different from the Dao examination. They are examinations for students who have become students. They are similar to the final examinations for students in later generations. The difference is that this is a qualification examination to ensure that students will not be left in ruins. Academically - If you fail the exam, you will be demoted.
Before or after the examination of the students, the last examination is held for the children who have passed the county examination and the prefectural examination in each county to take the Taoist examination, which is called the Taoist examination.
Gao Pragmatic has passed the Xinzheng County Examination and the Kaifeng Prefectural Examination, and now he finally has the most junior scholar status: Tong Sheng.
Now he is going to take the final exam of this year. After passing the Taoist exam, he will have a serious title: a student member, which is commonly known as a scholar.
The superintendent will take the exam in stages, which is called leaving the shed. At the level of Dao examination, it is much stricter and more formal than county examination and prefecture examination. During the examination, strict security measures will be taken. According to the local prefectures and counties passing through temporarily, the imperial seal and accompanying documents and documents are allowed to be escorted, and the use of postmen, horses, and boats is allowed. All official equipment used in the examination shed and the work and food of the clerks set up in accordance with regulations are allowed to be reimbursed at public expense.
After the superintendent was appointed, he lived in the examination shed and used it as a temporary official residence. Therefore, the examination shed was sometimes called the Xuedao Yamen. The clerks and clerks brought by the superintendent in accordance with the regulations must also live in the examination room and are not allowed to go out to avoid cheating, asking for bribes and red envelopes, and buying and selling student admission quotas.
There are even more severe regulations. For example, after the examination, the inspector is not allowed to visit relatives and friends, visit local gentry, etc. in the place where he is appointed.
Of course, the situation in Kaifeng Prefecture is different. This is governed by Henan Province, and the inspector usually stays in Kaifeng, so the situation is reversed: the Kaifeng Taoist Examination candidates are Kaifeng Prefecture and Guide Prefecture. Candidates from these two prefectures After the examination in Kaifeng Prefecture, the inspector will immediately leave for Weihui Prefecture, where another batch of Taoist examinations will be held. The candidates will come from Weihui Prefecture, Zhangde Prefecture, and Huaiqing Prefecture; and then go to Henan Prefecture ( The prefecture governs Luoyang County), and the candidates are from Henan Prefecture and Ruzhou; the last one is Nanyang Prefecture, and the candidates are from Nanyang Prefecture and Runing Prefecture.
In a word: strict rules.
The date for the Taoist examination had arrived, and Gao Pragmatic and Lin Bao, escorted by their accompanying servants, rushed to the examination shed at the fifth watch of the day at the entrance of the examination shed - commonly known as the dragon gate.
This place is really crowded right now, with people rushing to take exams, people taking exams, people selling all kinds of food, and even people watching the fun, everything is there. If there are candidates who haven't had time to have breakfast, they have to seize the time to have breakfast at the food stall.
Gao Jingshi didn't have time to eat breakfast, but after all, he was different from ordinary candidates because he was rich, and very rich, so he had already had the exquisite food brought by Gao Jue and others from the inn, and he could eat whatever he wanted, no matter the portion or variety. He eats.
However, Gao Pragmatic always eats on time, and it's not actually breakfast time yet. His appetite is relatively average, so he just eats something casually and forgets it.
Not long after, the first announcement was made in the examination room, and everyone went to the roll call at the gate to wait for the roll call to enter. When a candidate from a certain county is called, a large paper sign will be erected in the courtyard. The sign is rectangular with nothing around it, and a candle is lit in the middle. It says "Code a certain county" and the candidate's name is written in ink on one side. Each plaque has the names of ten people written on it and is held up by someone. In the dark night, it can be seen clearly from a distance. Candidates follow the sign with their name and the person holding the sign out of the examination room.
It is dozens of feet away from the dragon gate to the roll call place at the gate. A bamboo shed has been erected here, with railings on both sides. The middle can accommodate two or three people walking side by side, similar to the entrance of a train station during the peak period of Spring Festival travel in later generations.
The difference is that the shed road in the examination room has nine twists and turns, which is called "Kowloon Factory". Candidates carried long-eared bamboo baskets and walked slowly on the winding passage. The roll call was at the end of the factory, which was much more orderly than during the Spring Festival.
The Taoist examination was called by the inspector himself. Li Yuantai, the admiral of Henan Academic Affairs, sat in the west room of the north hall. As soon as the door opened, as usual, the promotion officer served by the prefect, the head county, the instructors of each school, and the Linbao all came in to see.
The master of ceremonies shouts "improve the transfer of officials, come in", the prefect bows without ceremony, and the superintendent stands to respond, and then calls the head county and school instructors to come in. The etiquette is the same as that of the prefect. Finally, Lin Baojin was sent to the school. This time, the inspector sat still and allowed him to see him.
At this time, the candidates' names began to be called. Xinzheng County ranked relatively low. Gao was pragmatic and was not in a hurry. He waited with peace of mind. It took a long time before he heard his name being called. Gao Qingshi quickly replied loudly: "Yes!"
On the superintendent's case, there is a list of names reported by the instructors of each school. Each person's name on the list is detailed with their place of origin, age, face, beard or not, black and white face, whether there are pits and scars, and the resume of three generations. Hand drawn and stamped.
These practices are much stricter than county and government examinations, and their purpose is to prevent impostors from taking the exams. The purpose of summoning Linbao to the inspector is the same. If the candidates who come forward have the above-mentioned shortcomings, they will point them out immediately.
If it is indeed the person he/she is, sing: "So-and-so guarantees", Lin Bao responds: "So-and-so guarantees", then the candidate hands in the "Tao test paper check" for verification, and goes to the paper issuance office to collect the test paper and scratch paper.
If it is an imposter and Lin Bao is not aware of it or deliberately conceals it, once discovered, Lin Bao will be deposed and punished.
Gao pragmatically went through this process, and after receiving the papers, he went to the inspection office to wait for inspection. As a rule, candidates are only allowed to bring long-eared bamboo baskets, also known as examination baskets, into which they can put pens, ink and food. Even inkstones are not allowed in some places in the south of the Yangtze River. As for pieces of paper, no one is allowed to bring them in to prevent cheating.
As a result, the inspection is strict and relatively slow. Even if multiple inspection openings are arranged, the speed cannot be faster - not only the items in the test basket must be inspected one by one, but also food such as steamed buns and steamed buns. Open it and take a look to prevent the copied eight-part article from being included.
This is not the end of the matter. After checking the property, the person will also be checked. The examinee has to undress, take off his shoes and socks, and be naked wearing only a pair of shorts for inspection. The clothes that were taken off were also checked by someone to make sure there were no writings on them, and a lantern was even held through the ear holes to see if there were any inclusions. It was really more stringent than searching for thieves, and it was so polite.
When Gao Pragmatic saw this formation, he couldn't help but murmur in his heart: How did the fairies in some novels who disguised themselves as men to take the imperial examinations in the Ming Dynasty pass this inspection? You're already naked like this, you're just an airport and you can't hide it, right?
