The huge examination room was quiet, and the sound of footsteps in the distance could be vaguely heard. The smell of ink filling the air was not pleasant, but instead added to the urgent mood.
The sound of brushes rubbing against paper could be heard in the examination rooms on the left and right, while Yun Jing looked at the examination paper in front of him in a daze.
The eye-catching poetry test questions were right in front of him. There were no requirements, as long as they were original, but he didn't know how to write them.
He is really not good at writing poetry.
When it comes to the characters of the Dali Dynasty, Yunjing can’t say that there are none if he doesn’t know or write them, but there are definitely not many. But why is it so difficult to compose each character into a poem?
The so-called difficulty is relative. It is no problem for him to write some flowing words, but it is really difficult for him to write a poem that is barely understandable.
Time passed little by little, the sun gradually rose higher, breakfast and lunch were served, Yunjing also ate, but he did not write a word about writing poems.
Under such circumstances, he couldn't help but scratch his head. How long has it been since he felt a sense of urgency? Hey, he felt it today.
He knew in his heart that although poetry was indispensable for this exam, it would still affect part of the results. Even if it only affected a small amount, it was still an important matter with more than 100,000 candidates.
This is already the last day of the exam, and it will end in less than half a day, but as soon as I plan to write a poem about the clouds and scenery, I feel a little confused...
Gradually, the sky became cloudy and it looked like it was going to rain.
Under such circumstances, many people in various places in the capital looked up at the sky with astonishment on their faces. Why is it that it is going to rain?
Xia Ziyang was drinking tea with Old Master Huang, and the eldest princess Xia Ziyue was accompanying her.
Xia Ziyue, who kept pouring tea, looked up at the sky with a smile on her lips, then lowered her head and continued pouring tea.
Xia Ziyang heard Old Master Huang hesitantly and said with some confusion: "Old Master Huang, why did the sky suddenly change?"
"It's not what you think. It has nothing to do with Xiaojing. It's just an imperial examination. His mood swings will not affect the changes in the celestial phenomena." Huang Changyang shook his head and smiled.
Xia Ziyue and her brother looked at each other. Since Mr. Huang said so, it seems that it really has nothing to do with the cloud scenery, but just natural weather changes.
"Sister Huang, is it a bit too much to add poetry questions to this imperial examination? After all, many people know that Yun Qing is not good at this. If he misunderstood and was deliberately targeting him..." Xia Ziyue hesitated for a moment.
Tangled.
Yes, it was Xia Ziyue who proposed the topic of poetry in the imperial examination this time. Of course, she was just making a suggestion. Whether or not to adopt it depends on the ministers. Even if she is classified as the eldest princess, she cannot directly intervene in the imperial examination.
Such a big thing.
In the end, Huang Changyang nodded and carried it out. He had no other intention. The main reason was that there had been no poetry examination questions for many years. It was just to stimulate the poetry culture of Dali, in case a few famous poems were published in this imperial examination.
I really wasn’t targeting Yunjing on purpose...
Xia Ziyue sat down gracefully and said with a smile: "Xiao Jing is not as narrow-minded as the emperor thinks, so the candidates are all given the same test questions, how can it be said that it is targeting him?"
Xia Ziyang thought so too.
If Huang Changyang didn't dare, he didn't have so many worries. He joked: "Xiaoyue suggested poetry test questions. I think Xiaojing is obviously implicated. After many years of waiting, the clay figurine still has a lot of resentment. You can't bear to trouble Li Qiu.
He just took it out on his apprentice, it’s great to be young.”
"I'm not, I didn't, Mr. Huang, don't say that," Xia Ziyue said quickly.
Huang Changyang smiled and asked, "Why are you so anxious?" He changed the subject and said, "In this case, other candidates should have a more balanced mind. After all, it is well known that Xiao Jing is not good at poetry."
"That's right, you have to consider the emotions of other candidates," Xia Ziyang said with deep understanding.
From their point of view, we need to consider the overall situation. After all, Yunjing is so famous that it puts too much pressure on others. If the candidates can be given the opportunity to surpass Yunjing in other aspects, the candidates' mentality will be balanced.
Some.
"I don't know if Xiaojing will bite the bullet and deal with it, or just give up on this question," Xia Ziyue looked in the direction of the examination room and said.
"Let's wait and see..."
In the examination room, Yun Jing held his chin in his hand and looked at the test questions in a daze, racking his brains and not knowing what to write. It seemed that the end of the exam was not far away.
The sky was cloudy for a while but it didn't rain. Gradually the clouds cleared and the fog dispersed, and the last meal of the imperial examination was delivered.
A plate of side dishes, a bowl of soup and two pancakes are not rich or delicious, but they can make people full. Yunjing is also a human being, and he also needs to eat. Of course, this amount of food is not enough to sustain his daily consumption, it is just a habit.
It’s just a feeling of fullness that is developed through sex.
When he couldn't think of anything to write, he just ate. If he didn't eat, it would be free.
He eats very carefully and does not waste food.
As he ate, he felt so happy that he wanted to write something, and for a moment he stopped eating.
Subconsciously, I put down the pancake in my hand, dipped my pen in ink, and wrote a poem on the blank paper.
‘catkins flying on the wall in the wind’
After writing this sentence, he paused, and for a moment he didn't know how to continue. The reason why he wrote this poem was that when he was eating, he suddenly remembered that when he was a child, his family was bare, and when the wind blew, grass clippings flew from the thatched roof of his home.
.
At that time, his family was really poor, and they had to plan carefully if they wanted to have a full meal. After her mother gave birth to herself, she could only eat the rice at the bottom of the porridge she cooked, while her father and grandfather, who were engaged in heavy manual labor, could only drink rice soup to soothe their throats.
Fast forward so many years, the original poverty has long ceased to exist, and now everything is lacking.
Recalling his childhood, Yunjing looked at the simple food at hand, and perhaps he was inspired by it, and wrote the next few lines of poetry in one breath.
‘The stars make cakes for the lamp and the moon’
‘Without horns, plowing and hatred are powerless’
‘One porridge, one meal, a feast for peace’
After writing a four-sentence seven-character poem in one breath, Yunjing looked at each word on the paper and was in a daze. These four lines of poetry could be said to be the most realistic portrayal of his childhood life, and each line carried the most real experience he had ever had.
Catkins are flying on the walls in the wind, and the stars are making cakes for the lamp and moon. Without horns, the plowing is powerless, and a porridge and a meal are a peaceful feast.
In the past, the Yunjing family had only four walls. When the wind blew, grass clippings flew from the roof. They were reluctant to light the lamp at night, so they used the stars and the moon for illumination. The days were so miserable that the moon in the sky looked like fragrant pancakes. There were no cattle at home, only
There may be manpower to plow the land, but my father and grandfather hated themselves for not having enough strength to plow too much land. Yunjing looked at the field and hated himself for not having the strength to help. However, no matter how difficult the days were, they survived. Looking back at the beginning, it was just a porridge.
Looking at the world, if everyone can have enough food to eat, then the world will be peaceful.
Looking at the poem he wrote, Yunjing didn't know if it was good or not, and he didn't worry about whether it rhymed or not, and he didn't care whether it was neat or not, but it definitely came from the heart.
After pondering for a moment, he wrote the title of the poem at the top: "Reminiscing about the Poverty of the Family in Childhood" - Shouxin
After writing the pen, Yunjing no longer bothered about the imperial examination or not. After all, he had been studying for many years. A short poem or an article that was inspired by his feelings was an explanation of his study for so many years. He didn't care about the final results.
If there are too many, even if he fails, there is a high probability that he will not take the imperial examination again.
"I have been writing and writing for many years, but when I finally put down the last stroke, my heart feels a little empty," Yun Jing couldn't help but sigh.
He immediately considered that this was an imperial examination after all. The little poem in front of him was written by him after he had felt it before. Every stroke and every word in the line was filled with the spiritual will of the mythical realm. Not everyone can read it. The mythical realm
The following, just the fluctuations of spirit and will contained above, cannot be tolerated, and even this seemingly light paper cannot be picked up.
So Yunjing erased the spiritual will from the poem, and it was just a short poem written with ordinary ink. Apart from the neat and beautiful handwriting, the content was probably completely lost.
Well, maybe because of my celebrity effect, this poem will be widely circulated, and maybe countless people will give rise to various high-minded interpretations. Tsk, this kind of thing is not impossible to happen.
‘Celebrity’ has its own aura, who knows what kind of thoughts and feelings Yun Jing had when he wrote this poem...
After putting away the answer sheet, Yunjing no longer worried about the imperial examination, but carefully finished the remaining cold food, and finally sat down, waiting for the imperial examination to end.
The closer the imperial examination is to the end, the atmosphere in the examination room becomes tense invisibly. I don’t know how other people are feeling, but Yunjing is unmoved. After years of hard work, he has put his heart into this imperial examination, and no matter what the result is, he will
No regrets.
Dangdangdang~!
As the sun set, the bell rang, which meant that the imperial examination was officially over. The examiner immediately announced that all the candidates should stop writing and could not leave until the papers were collected. At the same time, the soldiers in the examination room also had cold expressions.
Anyone who dares to make any changes will be treated harshly. They are soldiers and obey orders. They don't care whether candidates like you will be officials in the future.
There is already a lot of time for the three-day exam, but there are still many candidates who have not been able to hand in complete answer sheets. They do not dare to show how they feel at this time, so they have to endure it.
Ox carts shuttled through the examination room one after another. Illiterate people covered the names of the examination papers before putting them away. Even the manuscripts in the examination room were taken away.
After all the examination papers were collected and escorted away, the examiner announced the candidates to leave. Prince Xia Taohe finally congratulated all the candidates on their success.
When the candidates were announced to leave, the examination room suddenly became noisy. Some people were wailing, some were stamping their feet and beating their chests, some were shaking their heads and sighing, and some were beaming with joy. There were various expressions...
After putting away the Four Treasures of the Study arranged by the imperial examination, Yunjing decided to take them away as a souvenir. He began to read and write at the age of six. After more than ten years and thousands of days and nights, he finally passed the stage of being a "student".
time.
Yun Jing does not intend to be an official. Even if he cannot pass the Jinshi examination, he is still qualified to be an official based on his reputation as a civil servant. But wouldn't it be better to be an idle cloud and a crane? Of course, if something threatens the people or even the country, he will not sit idly by and do nothing.
of.
"In terms of studying alone, now that the imperial examination is over, I suddenly find myself a little confused." Yunjing thought to himself on the way out of the examination room.
The so-called password is just a student career. Putting this aside, there are more important things for him to do.
Many candidates who had finished the exam were discussing the exam. Yunjing did not participate. He was like a passerby, and no one bothered him, but he heard many people saying that they didn't know how 'that one' did in the exam...
When I left the examination room, the sunset was like a fiery sky.
There were too many people gathered outside the examination room. They asked them to find their target students. Some candidates hugged their families and cried to comfort them, while some were happy and smiling.
After half of the candidates left the examination room, almost all of them went to brothels together, some to celebrate, and some to drink away their sorrows.
When I was young and carefree, the whole building was full of red sleeves...
"Master, this way." Song Yan had been waiting outside the examination room early, waving to Yun Jing from a distance, but there were too many people, and even with his martial arts skills, he couldn't squeeze through.
After the 'It's not easy' round, Song Yan took over what Yun Jing had brought out of the examination room. The results were unknown until the results were released. He never mentioned anything about the examination. Instead, he said: "Master, the results will be released in five days."
Well, can I arrange some time for you to relax?"
"Xiao Song, you've learned too much," Yun Jing shook his head and said, naturally understanding what he meant.
Smiling, Song Yan said: "I see that other people who participated in the imperial examination went to relax after the examination."
"I'm not in the mood. None of my former classmates and friends are here. Otherwise, I could go have a drink with them and have a good time." Yun Jing shook his head and said.
He grew up too fast. Most of his classmates at the Niujiao Town School now don't even have the honor of being a child student. Some of the few children who were admitted to the school are working hard to become scholars, and a very few who have been admitted to the academy are also working in the government.
Yunjing worked hard to win the imperial examination, so much so that Yunjing didn't even have a single classmate during the imperial examination.
Of course, this is also the reason why he did not continue his 'further studies' after graduating from Niujiao Town. Otherwise, why would he not even have a single classmate to take the Jinshi Examination?
The classmates are classmates, but not in the same year. The difference is still very big. When the Jiangzhou imperial examination was held, there must have been people who participated in the imperial examination in the same year. However, the relationship was estranged due to well-known reasons. Even though Yunjing did not forget his original intention,
But would people feel comfortable staying with him?
Sometimes Yunjing can really feel the feeling of being cold at a high place. The problem is that he is still young.
In terms of friends, those who are truly unaffected by his changes are probably Wang Bolin and the others. Unfortunately, they are no longer in the capital.
Song Yan stopped paying attention and accompanied Yunjing back. In the next few days, Yunjing didn't go anywhere. He quietly waited for the day when the results would be released. The habit he had developed over the years could be regarded as the end of his student career.
, he is still reading and practicing calligraphy, it seems that nothing has changed...
The students who participated in this imperial examination have finished the exam, and next is the intense grading process. There are more than 100,000 candidates' test papers, and it takes five days to select 300 Jinshi places and outstanding talents. That is a heavy job.
, Fortunately, the imperial court sent a large group of capable ministers.
The closed marking area was in full swing, with all kinds of voices heard.
"This article is good. It takes the gap between rich and poor as its theme. It profoundly shows various contradictions and disadvantages, and also proposes solutions. It has great merits. It's not too much to give it a B, right? What do you think?
?”
"Everyone, let's take a look at this poem. It's really wonderful. It's a pity that the name of the lake is not only written by that great talent. It's just this article that is a bit unsatisfactory. It has talent but no skill. I hope I can wake up to it."
"What the hell is this? It doesn't make sense, it's just dirty."
"Look at this word, it is really pleasing to the eye. Just based on this handwriting, I will give him a B. Let me look at the content before making a judgment..."
There are more than 100,000 examination papers. Even if there are many people marking the papers, it is impossible for people to carefully observe each one. At a quick glance, you can first see the good and bad. The good ones are put aside, and the ones that are not eye-catching are thrown directly into the basket.
On such a huge base, I have to say that a good call is really a stepping stone.
After layers of screening, most of the marking staff selected 5,000 excellent answers from more than 100,000 examination papers. This workload alone took two days, and then a group of marking staff began to select from the 5,000 excellent answer papers.
Carefully select the best among the best and select the 500 best ones.
The final 300 Jinshi will be born from the 500 excellent answer sheets, and the remaining 200 people will have the opportunity to become the same Jinshi from the 4,500 that have been brushed off.
It can be said that if you can't even get into the five thousand mark, you will just have to run away from the imperial examination this time.
It is not up to the examiners to determine the 300 Jinshi among the 500 best answer sheets. These answer sheets will be sent to the emperor for review, and the emperor will discuss with the ministers to determine where the emperor will be the first.
One level of worry.
On the fourth day after the end of the imperial examination, the 500% excellent answer sheet was escorted to the palace. Xia Ziyang led the ministers to participate in the evaluation and finally determined the three rankings. Among them, Prince Xia Tao was also there. It seemed that Xia Ziyang was
We are really training a team for him.
However, at this time, Old Master Huang Changyang came in person. Logically speaking, it was just a Jinshi imperial examination. How could he be qualified to alarm this old man? It should be noted that in his hundreds of years of life, he had gone through the Jinshi imperial examination countless times.
Then the old man came in person. If nothing else, he definitely came because of Yunjing. Maybe he wanted to take a sneak peek. If he could endure it until this time, instead of taking away the Yunjing exam papers after the exam, he could be considered
Restrained.
"You don't need to worry about me. Just make your own decisions after discussion, and don't let me influence your judgment. Select talents for the country, promote the capable and the mediocre, and remember not to be careless." After arriving here, Huang Changyang took the lead in setting the tone, and then
It serves as a backdrop.
After a tense and heated discussion, the ministers finally selected the best 300 answer sheets from the 500 and presented them to Xia Ziyang for review.
Not surprisingly, the 300 Jinshi in this imperial examination were the candidates who answered the papers. The final decision on the 100 Jinshi in the first list had to be made by Xia Ziyang in person. The remaining 200 people, although divided into two lists, were actually divided into two lists: B and C.
In no particular order, the real value is in the top 100.
Next, after several hours of careful comparison and selection, Xia Ziyang selected one hundred top candidates from three hundred answer sheets.
Until this time, for the sake of fairness, all the answer sheets are still in the state of lake name. With Huang Changyang watching from the side, no one dares to mess around. As for analyzing the owner of the answer sheet from the handwriting, whether you can prefer one among them depends on personal taste.
Inside.
After Xia Ziyang identified the top 100 Jinshi candidates, the next thing became easier.
The rest is easy to say. What people are paying attention to is which outstanding talents are ranked in the top list?
At the same time, everyone present was a little uneasy. Before this, they were all famous in the lake. What would happen if that person was removed? Is it possible to go back and search through more than 100,000 answer sheets?
It's about that person. I'm confused when I think about it. What would he think if he was really dismissed? But now that it's like this, could it be that he just wants someone to replace him?
Fortunately, this did not happen. As the name of the lake was revealed, the names of the top 100 Jinshi came into people's sight.
When they saw Yun Jing's name among them, everyone present was inexplicably relieved, but they also felt that it was natural. After all, it was that person. It would be weird if he couldn't enter the top list.
Seeing Yunjing's name, Xia Ziyang actually ignored the others and subconsciously reached for Yunjing's answer sheet. As a result, the answer sheet flew into Huang Changyang's hands before he could touch it.
What could he do? He could only smile and retract his hand.
"Haha, I'm waiting for a sneak peek. I want to see what amazing articles Xiao Jing can write. Hey, this is the first time for me to participate in Jinshi in the mythical realm."
Huang Changyang smiled and immediately answered the question of Yunjing word for word but very quickly. The first thing was the poem. He said while reading: "I thought he would just give up, but I didn't expect that he actually wrote a poem... Tsk, the rumors are very good.
Oh my god, Xiao Jing really has no poetic talent, so this poem is just barely pleasing to the eye, but there is sincerity between the lines, and it is rare to recall hardships and think about sweetness. It is a pity that the spiritual will above has been erased, otherwise I would see this poem.
People who write poems will probably fall into fantasy and experience the underlying sadness and bitterness. When I read this article again, eh...?"
While browsing Yunjing's article, Huang Changyang fell silent. Everyone's hearts froze. What do you mean by this? Is it good or bad? Can you give me a hint?
After a while, Huang Changyang put down Yun Jing's answer sheet with a calm expression, and muttered: "The wording of his article is not gorgeous, but the content is deafening. This is the talent for governing the country, but because it is him, it is not
It’s not surprising, it’s just the Jinshi imperial examination, Xiao Jingyou used too much force, it can be said that he killed a chicken with a bull’s knife..."
At this point, he paused again: "Moreover, the content in this article may be a bit extreme in some aspects and does not agree with many people's ideas. However, I was deeply shocked when I dismissed it. In short, the article is good.
Article, there is no doubt about this, but if it is to be implemented, it needs to be treated with caution. Well, I have said this, it is a worthwhile trip, go and rest."
After saying that, Huang Changyang nodded to everyone and left, and he would not participate in the next thing.
After he left, everyone present looked at each other and then swarmed towards Yun Jing's answer sheet. Even Xia Ziyang didn't care about the image of the emperor at this moment. Xia Tao saw this and smiled helplessly in return. It was really crowded.
Don't go in.
Looking at Yunjing's answer sheet, everyone put his poem aside after reading it. Mr. Huang had commented on it before, and they really didn't dare to say anything more. The praise was too false, and they really didn't have the guts to belittle it.
And when they saw Yun Jing's article, some people actually made a sound of air-conditioning, especially the content about the popularization of education. Although Yun Jing used his words as euphemistically as possible, it still impacted the current education system. The relationship is too big.
However, Mr. Huang had already set the tone before, and people did not dare to express their opinions rashly. At the same time, they also understood that only Yunjing dared to make such remarks in the imperial examination. Let's try someone else!
The atmosphere was a little weird for a while.
Not long after, I don’t know who broke the silence. He never mentioned the question of Yunjing’s examination paper, but said: "Your Majesty, since the first-ranked scholars have come out, let your majesty decide the top three."
It stands to reason that the first rank Jinshi will be confirmed after meeting the emperor during the palace examination, but the fact is that it has been decided before then, and the palace examination is just a process.
Now everyone is paying attention to whether Xia Ziyang will determine who is in the top three. After all, Yun Jing's name is too eye-catching among these 100 people. How will His Majesty decide?
