The public examination on the 13th and 18th is crucial for Taixue students, but it is especially critical for Zhang Yue, because the result of the public examination determines whether Zhang Yue can continue to study at Taixue.
Therefore, Zhang Yue worked hard to prepare for this public examination. If he failed in the examination and had to ask Yang Zhongnan to plead in front of Li Gou, not only would he be embarrassed, but his teacher Zhang Youzhi would also be embarrassed.
On the day of the exam, it snowed heavily.
Zhang Yue, Huang Haoyi, Liu Zuo, Xiang Qi and others were covered with a layer of white frost on their brows even though they held umbrellas when they walked from the studio.
Zhang Yue couldn't help but his legs were shaking with the cold. He waited until he arrived in front of Chonghua Hall and shook off all the falling snow on his shirt.
After arriving at Chonghua Hall, Zhang Yue sat down on the table with his knees bent, and everyone whispered to each other for a while. Only after other imperial students arrived one after another did they become quiet.
Everyone was very cold, so the lecturer asked his servants to bring braziers from all over and put them on the Chonghua Hall, and things got much better.
Zhang Yue held the hand stove in his hands.
The brazier next to him made the room gradually heat up, and a little bit of snow on the clothes between his eyebrows began to melt, and a little sweat broke out on Zhang Yue's face.
After the exam started, the hall was silent except for the sound of the pen tip licking the paper.
The exam on the first day consisted of two five-character and six-rhyme poems and three policy essays.
Zhang Yue answered with concentration, and soon finished the first poem. As for the second poem, he had no clue about it at the moment, so he left it blank and wrote three policy essays first. When the policy essays were all written, Zhang Yue had a rough idea in his mind before he went back to writing. The last test poem.
Just as he was writing the last poem, Zhang Yue saw that many Tai students had already gotten up early, bundled their papers and walked out of the hall.
There are hidden dragons and crouching dragons in Taixue. For many people, the test poem that took Zhang Yue to ponder for half a day can be understood in just half a moment.
However, in the last private examination, Zhang Yue's poem was unprecedented. For the first time, he got "low" instead of "no".
It's a pity that in the past, I always had a strong grasp of the meaning of the scriptures, but I got a "middle", because one article in the policy theory did not perform well.
Now Zhang Yue only hopes that the test poems can "enter his eyes", so that he can get another "low", but he doesn't dare to ask for "mid".
After Zhang Yue finished writing, he walked out of Chonghua Hall and handed the paper to Li Gou.
Li Gou glanced at Zhang Yue, and first read his two test poems. This time, Li Gou's face was no longer as ugly as before, but he said: "Go down!"
Finally, I didn’t show any shame to myself.
Zhang Yue was secretly glad that he was much more stable this way. However, the public examination was not as good as the private examination. In the end, Hu Su, the Gongju candidate, had to approve it.
On the 18th, I examined the scriptures, and there were still three policy essays.
In the second year of Jiayou's reign, Ouyang Xiu took the exam to test the weight of policy theory, which was increased by the tribute examination. Therefore, the Jinshi Department in Taixue all took the policy theory test in the private examination on March 82, which can be regarded as keeping up with current events.
When it came time for the public examination of Tie Jing, Zhang Yue did not pay attention to Tie Jing at all, but focused most of his energy on the three policy essays.
After finishing writing, Zhang Yue almost felt exhausted, but overall he was quite satisfied.
After the exam, the Taipei students also had expressions of relief on their faces, just like the relief they felt after finishing the last subject in the 'final exam'.
At this moment, Li Gou walked into Chonghua Hall, and the students in charge said: "Quiet!"
All the students stopped talking.
It was dark outside the window and snow was flying heavily. There was no snow when everyone came for this exam, but during the exam, it was covered with snow.
It was windy and snowy, and even though everyone was inside the house, they all felt the chill of the Northland.
It was dark outside, so candles were lit in the examination room.
Li Gou, who was always serious, stood in the lecture hall and looked at everyone. College students knew that Li Gou was strictly prohibited from studying, so many people were a little afraid of him. After the last subject exam today, everyone was worried about being reprimanded by him again.
Unexpectedly, Li Gou said, "It's very cold today, so we've prepared mutton soup and steamed buns for you in the dining hall."
After hearing what Li Gou said, all the students cheered.
Li Gou had a slight smile on his face: "There will be wontons tomorrow!"
The cheers were even louder.
"It's the Chinese New Year, so you should also tidy up your apartment, put your clothes in order, and comb your hair on weekdays. Even if you don't have a teacher to supervise you on weekdays, you should be careful to be alone. When it comes to the Lantern Festival, I will not supervise your studies.
, but you should also cultivate yourself in the fasting room.”
This is equivalent to saying that before the Lantern Festival, everyone can have as much fun as they want.
The cheers of the crowd almost overturned Chonghua Hall.
Zhang Yue looked at this scene, and it seemed to all the students of the past and present.
Li Gou looked at the cheering students and felt a little emotional.
These students gave him the biggest headaches on weekdays, but in the end they were the ones he worried about the most.
"What are you going to read at the end?"
In the past, after every private and public examination of Taixue, Hu Yuan would call all the Taixue students to gather in Chonghua Hall, then order people to play elegant music, and finally everyone would sing in unison.
Or teachers and students can throw pots or shoot arrows together.
For many college students, these are the bright spots in their hard study life.
After Li Gou Guan Gou Taixue, of course he also inherited this traditional art.
"Everyone, let's chant together, Li Taibai will enter the bar!"
All the students cheered loudly and immediately chanted in unison: "
I don’t see you, the water of the Yellow River comes up from the sky and rushes to the sea never to return.
Don't you see, the bright mirror in the high hall has sad white hair, and it looks like blue silk in the morning and turns to snow in the evening.
If you are happy in life, you must have all the joy, and don't let the golden cup stand empty against the moon.
It is my nature that my talents will be useful, and I will come back to you after all my wealth has been spent.
…
Zhang Yue was among the crowd. Although it was not the first time or the last time, his mood was different when he recited the song "About to Enter the Wine" among so many people.
It was snowing outside the hall, the candlelight inside was dim, and the young people's spirits were all mixed up in the wine, as if they were going back to Li Taibai a hundred years ago to raise their glasses and sing together.
Li Gou in the hall was also moved and recited "Journey into the Wine" together with the students.
…
"The five-flowered horse and the golden fur will be exchanged for fine wine, and I will sell the eternal sorrow with you."
After hundreds of Tai students recited "This Will Be Drinking" three times, everyone laughed, and many even slapped the table, just like the wild mood in the poem.
Li Gou looked at the students and said, "How difficult is it to recite another poem about the Road to Shu!"
"yes."
"Ahem, how dangerous it is! The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky!"
Silkworms and yufu, how confused the founding of the country is!
You are forty-eight thousand years old, and you are not in the vicinity of Qin Sai.
There is a bird path in Taibai, Xidang, which can cross the top of Mount Emei.
…
Zhang Yue saw many old students raising their sleeves and crying. For these people, graduation may be around the corner. Zhang Yue thought of his past school days, but what impressed him the most were sports games, recitation competitions, social practice, etc., often
It was just a small thing that seemed meaningless at the time.
As for girls? That is out of reach...
Youth is like a flowing river. Once it goes, it never comes back and there is no time to say goodbye...
Under the chanting of everyone, Zhang Yue felt that he had ended his first year of study at Taixue in such a muddle-headed way and passed through his rookie period.
After the public examination, at the end of the new year, there is one more thing for Zhang Yue and other imperial students, and that is to offer sacrifices to the stove.
On the morning of the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, Imperial College students worshiped the stove.
Each room must offer sacrifices to the stove.
The chief of the restaurant, Liu Ji, and everyone laid out stove sugar and sweet wine, which are necessary. In addition, there were three fruit plates, jujubes, lychees, and polygonum sugar candies.
Jujube, lychee, and polygonum flower sugar are the top priorities. Why?
In order to get good luck.
Because Zao Li Liao is divorced early.
If you fail to pass the Jinshi exam, you will have to die of old age in Imperial College, so everyone hopes to "leave early."
Jujubes are easy to get, but as for lychees, candied fruit or dried lychees can be used instead.
Polygonum flower sugar is made by grinding glutinous rice into powder, scalding it with hot water until soft, adding sugar and oil, kneading it into dough, cutting it into long strips, slurrying it with maltose, sprinkling it with sesame seeds, sticking it with green and red silk, and finally frying it in oil.
.When taken out, it is crispy and crispy, just like the flower spikes of Polygonum flower, so it is called Polygonum flower candy.
After the sacrifice to the stove, the first school year is really over.
Of course, the most important thing is the public examination results. Zhang Yue's poems were "average", and his classics and meanings were "excellent". Finally, they were combined with his craft and current status.
Zhang Yue got a 'middle'.
Not only did he keep his status as a Taipei student, but he also had further possibilities...
In a mansion in the capital.
"The author of the three-character poem is only a thirteen-year-old boy. Even if he is now a student, there is no such thing. No wonder Mr. Chen has not told his father who wrote this poem. He must have stolen his name."
But I saw a young man speaking angrily.
A dark and fat man on the side smiled slightly and did not answer the conversation.
The young man said to the fat black man: "Uncle, what do you say?"
The fat black man smiled and said: "When you see a virtuous person, you can think of them together, and when you see an unworthy person, you can also think of them together. The person beside the deer may not be a deer."
The young man heard this and said, "My uncle is teasing me about my nephew's youth again."
The fat black man smiled and said: "You are allowed to write ten thousand words of policy words when you are thirteen years old, but you are not allowed to write this three-character poem as a twelve-year-old boy?"
The young man thought for a while and said, "My uncle is right, but in all fairness, does he really believe that this poem was written by a thirteen-year-old boy? When my father praised this poem in Shuzhou as a saint's teaching, everyone thought it was done by an old Confucian."
But now it is rumored that it was done by a thirteen-year-old boy. If this is not done carefully, it will make people think that someone is trying to deceive the world and steal his reputation, and it will also bring shame to my father."
The fat, dark man nodded and said, "That's true."
"As a son of man, I cannot bring shame to my father. I should refute this son. If not, I would like to apologize face to face."
The fat black man said: "You have such a temper, you will definitely get into arguments when we meet, and it will only ruin your reputation. You have not yet taken the imperial examination, and your excuse for not being ignored will spread to the ears of the examiner in the future. It is better to let your uncle go there."
Bar!"
"But my uncle's provincial examination is about to happen?"
The fat dark man smiled and said, "I have my own sense of proportion."
On this day, Zhang Yue was preparing to celebrate the New Year in Taixue, but Cai Que made him drink.
Zhang Yue agreed immediately after hearing this.
The two of them immediately came to Qingfeng Tower outside Taixue.
Zhang Yue came to see Cai Que and said, "Brother Chizheng, why did you invite me here?"
Cai Que smiled and said: "Don't worry, Sanlang, I will come to pay you this time."
The two came to a private room in Qingfeng Building, but saw that a table of dishes had been served in the private room, and the dishes were very rich.
Seeing this, Zhang Yue said suspiciously: "Brother Zhizheng, tell me what you have to say."
Cai Que said with a guilty look on his face: "To be honest, my teacher has a good friend who has heard of Sanlang for a long time, so he asked Sanlang to meet here. Don't worry, Sanlang will never embarrass you."
Zhang Yue looked at Cai Que and thought, what is this man's reputation?
Soon I saw a fat, dark man entering. When he saw Zhang Yue, he smiled and saluted, "This must be Zhang Xiucai!"
"I don't dare to take it. What's the next step?"
The other party smiled and said: "I am Wang Anguo of Linchuan."
Wang Anguo?
He is Wang Anshi's younger brother? Zeng Gong's brother-in-law?
"Sanlang, does he know if my brother is good enough?"
Zhang Yue said: "I have admired your name for a long time."
Immediately, Zhang Yue saw that Cai Que had closed the door and left.
Wang Anguo is about thirty years old, about the same age as Zhang Heng, and indeed dark and fat.
Historically, Wu Chuhou and Wang Anguo had good relations.
Once Wang Anguo asked Wu Chuhou to write a poem for him, and Wu Chuhou wrote it immediately.
Feiqing's former name was Wen Zhongkui, and he was still fat in his thinking. Jiang Yan was good at using five-color pens, and Yu Xin was good at writing about the waist and ten circumferences.
I only know that my appearance is not pink, but I don't expect that I am full of pearls. When we meet at the Luoyang Club, we drink wine and don't care if our clothes are wet.
Wang Anguo was furious when he saw this, and the two broke off relations from then on.
It can be seen from this that you must not ridicule others casually, as even the best friends will fall out.
Zhang Yue saw Wang Anguo sit down with a slight smile, raised his tea cup and sipped the tea: "I expected you to see me in person, but I never expected you to come here."
Seeing Zhang Yue being so calm, Wang Anguo asked: "You said you wrote this poem to meet my brother Jiefu?"
Zhang Yue said: "A three-character poem is not worth mentioning. My brother has always had political achievements in his previous posts, but then he returned to Beijing and wrote a letter of ten thousand words to express his sincere opinions on state affairs. I can't help but sigh with regret. My brother's talents are not at the right time."
Seeing Zhang Yue pretending to be an adult, Wang Anguo smiled and said: "You are an ordinary boy, what insights can you teach my brother?"
Zhang Yue said: "I think that my brother Wanyan Shugu, the ancient people wanted to do something, so they would not fail to conquer and punish them first, and then get their meaning."
"Another poem said: The attack was severe and sudden, and there was no blow from all directions. In other words, 'King Wen first conquered and executed, and then he became proud of the world."
"May I ask Brother Wang, what is conquest and execution?"
Wang Anguo laughed and said: "I heard that Sanlang was a Jing student before. I am not as good as Sanlang when it comes to expounding and interpreting Chinese characters. However, according to Xunzi's words, 'Those who are happy will be punished when they go out, and they will bow and yield when they enter.'"
Zhang Yue said: "Brother Wang, why should you care about the left and right? If you only talk about conquest and execution, Xia Jie and Shang Zhou will not lose the world, but Shang Tang and Zhou Wu will not win the world."
Wang Anguo nodded and said: "Shang Tang fought with Ming Tiao, and Zhou Wu conquered Muye to conquer the world. As for Shang Tang and Zhou Wu, besides talking about 'conquest and execution', please tell me what else he said."
Zhang Yue said: "There are still benefits."
"Profit?" Wang Anguo thought Zhang Yue knew the word "benevolence and righteousness".
"Why not 'benevolence and righteousness'?" Wang Anguo said seriously, "Don't you hear that 'if benevolence and righteousness are not applied, the offensive and defensive momentum will be different'. How can scholars talk about interests and talk about 'benevolence and righteousness'?"
Zhang Yue thought to himself that your political views are really completely different from your brother's, otherwise he would not use "benevolence and righteousness" to refute himself.
Zhang Yue said: "If benevolence and righteousness are not applied, the offensive and defensive momentum will be different. This phrase comes from Jia Sheng's "Guo Qin Lun". However, I have seen that the literary language of Qin Lun is fat and thin (Qian Zhongshu said), but it is nothing more than Er'er."
Seeing that Zhang Yue dared to criticize Qin Lun, Wang Anguo was also shocked. This young man became more and more outrageous.
"If your remarks were somewhat novel before, but now it seems that you are simply ignorant. Jia Sheng's article is also something you can criticize? If you don't tell me why, you will blame me for being ruthless."
Zhang Yue said: "Brother Wang is angry. Although Jia Sheng's article is good, as far as the theory of Guo Qin is concerned, the meaning of the article is not high!"
Wang Anguo sneered and said: "Why not? Then I will listen attentively."
Zhang Yue said: "Don't take it seriously. It is said in the Book of Changes that one yin and one yang are called the Tao. Therefore, the Qian hexagram and the Kun hexagram in the Yi Jing, one yin and one yang, are the Tao. It covers everything in the world. Just what Brother Wang said, so I am happy,
When you go out, you conquer and punish them; when you enter, you bow to them."
"Therefore, since ancient times, the ancestors have governed the world in this way, benefiting with the left hand and conquering with the right hand."
"It's not about profit, but about benevolence and righteousness!" Wang Anguo emphasized again.
Zhang Yue said with a smile: "Brother Wang, what is benevolence and righteousness? Qin lost the world because of killing the clan, trapping Confucian scholars, belittling the people of Qin, and serving the world."
"The clan is the family. How can you control the people without blood relatives? The King of Qin unified the world and regarded the people as the clan and the clan as the scholars. Therefore, when the King of Qin killed the clan, he regarded the clan and the scholars as the same."
"Confucian scholars are the leaders of the four peoples. Without Confucian scholars, how can we control the people of the country? The King of Qin unified the world, treating scholars as citizens of the country, and treating the people of the country as scholars. Therefore, the King of Qin pitted Confucian scholars and regarded scholars as no different from the people of the country."
"The people of Qin are the people of the country. How can we destroy the six kingdoms without the people of Qin? The king of Qin unified the world and regarded the people as the six countries and the six countries as the people of the country. Therefore, the king of Qin treated the people of Qin poorly and regarded the people of the country as the same as the people of the six countries."
"Serving the world and treating the people like oxen and horses, Qin lost the world because of its loss of benevolence and righteousness. What is benevolence and righteousness? It lies in interests first, before relatives, secondly after scholars, secondly after countrymen, and thirdly before the world! In Jia Sheng's words, 'Qin
The root and the bottom are lost, so it cannot grow."
Wang Anguo didn't say a word after hearing this. He was so shocked that he couldn't be more shocked. Except for his brother, no other person in the world could shock him to this extent.
For this reason, I saw that not a single chopstick was touched on the food on the table.
Zhang Yue immediately said: "Therefore, when Taizu founded the country, he taught, 'Southerners cannot be prime ministers.' This is also true."
Wang Anguo nodded after listening. According to Zhang Yue's words, Taizu relied on the civil servants and generals to conquer the world. As for the southerners, they were all citizens of the Southern Tang Dynasty who were destroyed by the Song Dynasty. Therefore, the northerners were used as prime ministers, that is, '
"Benevolence and righteousness" is consistent with governing the country with Confucianism.
"The so-called benevolence and righteousness are used in governing the country, which is in line with vested interests. After Taizu brought peace to the world, he treated his meritorious officials favorably, did not kill scholars, and did not even treat southerners as prime ministers. This was all in line with vested interests and in line with benevolence and righteousness. In line with benevolence and righteousness, this principle
Over the past hundred years since the dynasty, it can be said to be a peaceful and prosperous era, all due to the word 'benevolence and righteousness'. However, because of this, the Liao and Xia are now looking at the borders, and the country is in ruins and the people are in poverty, and it is all due to the word 'benevolence and righteousness'."
"Then why did Saburo say that governing the country is based on interests rather than benevolence and righteousness?"
Zhang Yue said: "My brother mentioned in the book of speeches that 'the changes in the world are in line with the wishes of the former king'. Talents should be selected from schools, promoted and appointed in the future, and then punished. In view of this
Fan Xianggong’s new policy must not allow the loss of talents.”
"However, the reform lies in enriching the country. If you want to enrich the country, if you don't take something from the top, you will take it from the bottom. If you take it from the bottom, the country will perish. The fall of Qin lies in the loss of the people, not the loss of benevolence and righteousness. Therefore, this is why I said, Jia Sheng passed the Qin
The reason is that the intention is not high. However, taking it from the top, is this consistent with benevolence and righteousness? The method of conquest and punishment can suppress it for a while, but it cannot last long. The long-term governance of the country depends on the word profit. Reform cannot be based on benevolence and righteousness, so what can you do?
How can profit make up for the loss of benevolence and righteousness?"
Hearing this, Wang Anguo couldn't help but slap the table and said: "I admire it, I really admire it! So with Sanlang's talent, a three-character poem is really not worth mentioning!"
