The Imperial Examination was the highest level of the three-level imperial examinations in the Ming Dynasty. It was also called the Imperial Examination by the people at that time. It was an examination in which the emperor personally administered the exams to the candidates in the Imperial Palace. Generally speaking, this examination will not depose the Chinese-style Gongsheng students in the examination, but the emperor will probably adjust the rankings in the examination as appropriate.
Depending on the circumstances, this is a nice way of saying it. If I want to put it more bluntly, it is actually adjusting according to the emperor's wishes. After the adjustment, the ranking will be the legendary palace examination gold list.
The results of the palace examination are divided into three grades, namely first, second and third.
Yijia is also called Dingjia. There are only three people in total. According to ranking, they are number one, second place, and third overall. Those who win the first grade are called "jinshi". These three have their own speciality, that is, once they are decided, they can directly enter the Hanlin Academy without being selected by the Shujishi Hall. Generally speaking, the number one scholar in the first class will be directly assigned to the Hanlin Academy for editing and writing, and the second and third best will be directly assigned to the Imperial Academy for editing and editing. They are the most prominent - they start higher in the officialdom than others.
The number of people in the second class is generally around fifty to eighty, and occasionally there are fewer or more people. Those who are in the second class are called "Jinshi origins." The number of top three is usually 200 or more, and is not fixed. Those who are in top three are said to be "from the same Jinshi family". The second and third graders are required to participate in the election of Shujishi as a rule. Those who succeed in the election will be Hanlin officials, which is extremely noble.
Others who have not passed the imperial examination do not have to worry. They may be awarded to officials such as Shi, Yushi, Zhushi, Zhongshu, Xingren, Pingshi, Taichang, Guozi, etc., and their future is promising; Waiting for foreign officials is also a position of real power.
However, there are differences between these three grades after all, especially because of the old system of "non-Hanlin will not join the cabinet", so the three Dingjia were called "celestial gods" by people at the time, while the second and third graders who were selected as Shujishi were called The "half-way cultivators" are all masters of immortality after all, and they are much better than other people who are basically unlikely to "be among the immortal classes".
The palace examination is held on March 15th, about half a month after the results of the examination are announced. Before it can be held, the imperial court must first determine the next large number of document readers.
This matter has something to do with Emperor Shizong Jiajing. Let me explain. Before Jiajing, the emperor personally presided over the palace examinations. However, Emperor Jiajing was a shameless emperor who wanted power. His characteristic was that he often tampered with the ancestral system. For example, in the palace examinations, He has changed his temper here. He often does not conduct the exams in person, but only in name. The actual exams are still handled by ministers.
Then the ministers who read the examination papers were needed, but since the emperor was officially the examiner, the other ministers could only condescend to be called "the examiners", which meant that they were just helping the emperor read the examination papers and had no intention of infringing on the imperial power.
Zhu Yijun had taken two official palace examinations before, namely, the Jiaxu Section Examination in the second year of Wanli and the Dingchou Section Examination in the fifth year of Wanli Year. Due to the young age of the emperor, he only presented his name and did not even show up. Both times, it was Gu Ming's first assistant, Gao Gong. Act as the file reader.
But this time, Zhu Yijun asked for the imperial examination in person, and the ministers - especially the cabinet - did not refuse.
The day before the palace examination, the officials of Honglu Temple began to set up the throne and yellow tables, while the officials of Guanglu Temple were responsible for setting up the examination table and arranging the seats of the candidates, not to mention the etiquette department who was responsible for printing examination papers and preparing answer sheets. This symbolizes the highest-level talent promotion ceremony in the Ming Dynasty. Everything must be done by the civil servants themselves, and eunuchs and maidens are not allowed to interfere.
Early the next morning, before the Yin hour passed, under the darkness, the Gongshi who were taking the exam - also called "Chinese-style Jinshi" - were waiting in front of the Forbidden City Palace, with their eyes open brighter than the lanterns next to them. , so excited that I couldn’t help myself.
What is the reading test for? Isn't it just for the sake of "Being a farmer in the morning and ascending to the emperor's hall in the evening"? Now after so many waves and so many inhuman examinations, the four hundred elites of the Ming Dynasty finally stood in front of the emperor's home, about to complete the final jump of the carp leaping over the dragon's gate. Thinking about it makes me tremble with excitement all over. Similar.
Moreover, unlike the nervousness and fear of the previous exams, the atmosphere before the palace examination was more of excitement and eagerness to try, because everyone knows that as long as they don't make any mistakes, the palace examination will not expel the candidates, but they will take the test. Ranking rearrangement is a process of "selecting the best among the best."
In other words, no matter how badly you do in the exam, you can still become a Tongjinshi who can be used immediately after the ranking, and you can be a seventh-grade county magistrate. In fact, for many Jinshi, this is much more comfortable than sitting on the bench in Beijing, especially for those in the same year whose rankings are relatively low in the examination - after all, the selection is difficult, and even if Shujishi is selected, It's just the so-called storage phase.
Well, saving... Saving for ten years is saving, and saving for a lifetime is also saving. Do you think the cabinet is a Nancheng market, and anyone can get in there and mingle?
Recall that since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, how many noble Jinshi masters have been at the forefront of the palace examinations, selected commoners in the palace, and have stayed in the Hanlin Academy drinking tea for decades without achieving anything?
To be honest, there are many officials in the capital like this. Many of them have been waiting to die like this for most of their lives, and finally become officials with honor. If you are unlucky and fail to find the correct position in a certain fight between big bosses and become the leader or the one who is affected by the disaster, you can simply go home.
This is generally what the saying goes: a blessing in disguise is not a blessing, and a blessing in disguise is not a disaster.
And for the vast majority of candidates, who have ups and downs in officialdom and dangerous careers, the most reliable ones in the future are actually those who are in the same year. Therefore, we, the newbies in the officialdom, have to communicate with each other and support each other in order to stand firm in the officialdom where the jungle is full of predators and ghosts.
In fact, after the joint examination, this group of people got together in the same year, and now they are very familiar with each other, but Gao Pragmatic is obviously an exception. He has a mansion in Beijing and doesn't move around much. Now when he looks up, everyone he knows is... I don’t know if there are ten.
However, he was not in a hurry, because his name was now famous enough that people in the same year came to visit him. Gao Pragmatic did not rely on others, and used his skills as a secretary to face every newcomer enthusiastically and thoughtfully. We met in the same year, no matter whether they were from the south or the north, they could make people feel like a spring breeze and their goodwill would rise sharply.
Originally, they were a little worried. The famous Gao Longwen not only had a distinguished family background and a prosperous literary reputation, but also did well in the exams. Now he always doesn't show up. Could it be that he is too arrogant and difficult to contact? Now that I saw him, I could say that all my worries were gone. He turned out to be a master of all things, and everyone of his age was convinced by him.
Just as everyone's feelings were heating up rapidly, Mao hour arrived, the bell rang and the door opened. There was silence in front of the palace gate. The tense atmosphere suddenly emerged from the corner, occupying almost everyone's heart - everyone said they didn't care. But who doesn’t want to get a good rank in the exam? If you choose a Shujishi and you are lucky, you might be able to become a cabinet minister in the future? So when things come to a close, everyone is full of energy and wants to make the final push.
Even Xiao Liangyou, Zhang Taizheng and others looked serious, even a little nervous.
The only person with a calm expression may be Gao Pragmatic - there is nothing he can do, he has been in and out of the Forbidden City for more than ten years, and he is as familiar with it as his own home. He can't get nervous even if he wants to!
He just stood there so relaxed and comfortable, neither nervous nor frivolous. The Chinese scholars behind him who were so nervous that they were shaking constantly when they saw him, were filled with admiration in their hearts - he is worthy of being a famous minister. The emperor's ministers, looking at her appearance, might Gao Huiyuan be here for a spring outing?
At this time, the sky broke, and officials of all kinds began to enter the palace. The candidates stood aside and looked at the bachelors wearing python robes and jade belts with reverence; they looked at those wearing red official robes and jade belts with envy. The minister's minister with gold and silver belts looked expectantly at the chief minister and doctor in green robes, and his heart was extremely eager - Han Chuang had studied hard for so many years, and finally reached the step of being a "dressed beast"!
After the officials had finished entering, the Gongsheng students finally looked away, and immediately a salute officer from the Ministry of Etiquette loudly shouted: "By the Holy Order: Wanli Gengchen Ke Gongsheng is here to attend!"
