Chapter 627: Gan Yang Points to the Three Tiers

The fifteenth year of Jia Zhao, the eleventh day of the fifth month, Great Zhou Palace City, Wen Hua Hall.

In the morning, the rising sun was like brocade, the Great Zhou palace city was vast, reflected by ten thousand rays of morning glow, the palace halls were stacked, magnificent and rich, like a heavenly palace.

Wang Shilun, Chen Mo, and Xu Liangxiong, the three chief examiners, led more than ten assistant examiners into the East Pavilion of the Wen Hua Hall.

The scroll-managing officials who had guarded the Palace Examination ink scrolls overnight handed over the more than three hundred Palace Examination answer sheets to the reading officials, counting them without error.

Before handing over the Palace Examination ink scrolls, the scroll-managing officials would extract the ink scrolls of the top eighteen candidates of the Metropolitan Examination from the ink scrolls under the premise of sealing the official seal, and hand them over to the chief examiners for priority reading.

The final game of the spring Metropolitan Examination thus began with the reading of the Palace Examination ink scrolls.

The remaining three hundred Palace Examination ink scrolls were read by eighteen assistant examiners, who had to complete the reading within two days and determine the ranking of the three hundred successful candidates, so the time was very tight.

The three chief examiners took the Palace Examination ink scrolls of the top eighteen candidates, carefully read them, determined whether the level of the answers matched the Metropolitan Examination ranking, and then presented them to the Emperor for his review.

But sometimes the Palace Examination answers of the top eighteen candidates of the Metropolitan Examination might also have flaws, or their level might be mediocre, or their words might contain taboos.

As long as such situations occurred, the unqualified Palace Examination answers would be extracted from the top eighteen, and other excellent Palace Examination answers would be used as replacements.

Such unlucky situations were not very common; students who could rank in the top eighteen of the Metropolitan Examination were themselves extraordinary in talent and rarely failed in the Palace Examination.

In the room on the east side of the East Pavilion, the three chief examiners read the eighteen Palace Examination ink scrolls separately, and when they discovered the subtlety of the articles, they often discussed them with each other.

At this moment, Chen Mo took one of the ink scrolls, and after reading only a few lines of the article, he couldn't help but sigh, "Good calligraphy, truly good calligraphy, pure, elegant, and concise, handsome and flying, the bearing of a master."

Wang Shilun walked behind Chen Mo with great interest, examined the ink scroll for a few moments, and laughed, "It is indeed good calligraphy; compared to the first meeting at Chong Hua, it is even more old-fashioned and beautiful, having entered the realm of a master artisan."

Chen Mo laughed, "So Minister Wang is also good at the way of calligraphy, with a sharp gaze; just looking at it for a few moments, you can distinguish the level of its fire."

Xu Liangxiong, who was reading the papers to the side, heard the words of the two and felt somewhat confused.

Because although the Palace Examination ink scrolls were also sealed with names and stamped with official seals, they were not transcribed or changed, so every Palace Examination ink scroll was the candidate's own handwriting.

All students who could enter the Palace Examination were the result of more than ten years of bitter study with brush and ink; finding outstanding calligraphy in the Palace Examination ink scrolls was a very normal thing.

But Wang Shilun and Chen Mo were both masters of the present day, with profound learning and extensive knowledge; how could the calligraphy of that candidate's ink scroll be so extraordinary that it could be rated as the realm of a master artisan by these two?

Xu Liangxiong was also curious and came over to watch; he just took one look at that Palace Examination ink scroll and couldn't help but praise it.

He asked, "Minister Wang and Minister Chen are happy to see the calligraphy; could it be that you recognize which candidate's calligraphy this is?"

Chen Mo smiled indifferently, "The papers are all sealed with names; how could I know which candidate it is? I must read this answer carefully.

After the list is released, I will follow the map to find the candidate's name; for such outstanding calligraphy, I will sell this old face and ask for a piece of calligraphy to appreciate."

Xu Liangxiong heard these words and was slightly stunned; clearly, he had just heard the words of the two, which included the first meeting at Chong Hua, and the words of being even more beautiful and old-fashioned.

It sounded like they recognized the calligraphy and the person, but this Minister Chen denied it flatly; however, Xu Liangxiong was also a glutton in the officialdom and didn't feel strange in his heart.

The Palace Examination reading was a matter of great importance; whether it was Wang Shilun or Chen Mo, they were both old gluttons in the officialdom; at such a critical moment, they were unwilling to leave any handle, which was reasonable.

What Wang Shilun said about the first meeting at Chong Hua was an anecdote that occurred when the Retired Emperor Yong An celebrated his sixty-fifth birthday, and the main officials of various departments entered the Chong Hua Palace to celebrate his birthday.

At that time, the Retired Emperor Yong An set up a birthday banquet in the palace, drinking and talking with the ministers who came to celebrate his birthday.

During this period, the Retired Emperor Yong An showed the "Heart Sutra of Prajna" calligraphy scroll he cherished to several heavy ministers who loved calligraphy, to appreciate and exchange with each other.

Among these heavy ministers were Wang Shilun and Chen Mo.

In that year, Xu Liangxiong was only a Lang Zhong of the Ministry of Revenue and had not yet been promoted to Vice Minister, far from being a main official of the official department, so he naturally did not have the glory of entering the Chong Hua Palace to celebrate the birthday.

Therefore, when Wang Shilun and Chen Mo laughed and talked about the first meeting at Chong Hua, he was naturally ignorant...

However, Xu Liangxiong didn't care about this matter and focused on reading the six ink scrolls in his hand, deliberating on the words and writing comments.

Only the Palace Examination ink scrolls of the top eighteen candidates of the Metropolitan Examination would cross the assistant examiners and be read directly by the chief examiners.

After the chief examiners read them, they would present them to the Emperor for his review, and select the top three of the first tier, as well as the top fifteen of the second tier.

These proud sons who ranked at the top were all the most brilliant light of the scholars of the world in this spring Metropolitan Examination.

From this, it can be seen that these eighteen Palace Examination ink scrolls possessed a different weight.

Each chief examiner was assigned six of them, and the number was truly not many; if these six ink scrolls were commented on by the chief examiner and finally selected by the Emperor into the first tier, or even selected as the Zhuang Yuan.

For the chief examiner who read the papers, it was a great glory and opportunity.

Those who made the first tier in the imperial examinations, as long as there were no accidents in the officialdom, after accumulating decades of merit, could basically reach the position of a minister; for the chief examiner, this was an excellent foundation for connections.

Wang Shilun and Chen Mo were already the heads of the six ministries, refined and old-fashioned people; perhaps they didn't care much about this kind of chief examiner reputation.

But Xu Liangxiong was in the prime of his life, having just been promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue last year, and was at the time when his official career was booming; he attached great importance to this kind of chief examiner reputation.

Therefore, he naturally had no intention to pay attention to the subtle small matters of Wang Shilun and Chen Mo, but focused all his attention on reading the six ink scrolls in his hand.

Chen Mo appreciated the calligraphy of the ink scroll in his hand for a few moments, then began to browse the content of the ink scroll with a concentrated mind.

But after reading only the first two paragraphs, his seemingly dim old eyes gradually lit up, and even revealed a sharp edge hidden deep inside.

He tapped the table lightly with two fingers, which was his habitual action when his mood was agitated, but he didn't make a sound of exclamation like before.

He just browsed that ink scroll carefully twice, picked up his brush to deliberate for a moment, and then wrote down more than ten words of comments.

Wang Shilun, sitting not far away, saw Chen Mo's expression when reading the ink scroll, and a smile appeared on his face, appearing somewhat meaningful.

The three chief examiners only read eighteen Palace Examination ink scrolls, and they were all strategy essays, chanting excellent articles, quite somewhat free and easy to discuss.

But the eighteen assistant examiners were not so comfortable; they had to complete the reading and ranking of more than three hundred Palace Examination strategy essays within two days, with tight time and heavy affairs.

Therefore, in the East Pavilion of the Wen Hua Hall, the assistant examiners were all reading the papers seriously, not daring to have the slightest slack.

Only Sun Shouzheng, as one of the assistant examiners, was reading the papers, but he was somewhat restless, his eyes wandering left and right.

At this moment, his heart was like a fire lit, his mind was not on reading the papers, but on planning to do another major event.

It was just that as an assistant examiner of the Metropolitan Examination, the affairs after the Palace Examination were tight, which made him unable to spare any time.

He was just a Grade 7 censor, with narrow power, and many things could not be exceeded or decided by himself, and he was not the master of his own body.

Yesterday he didn't sleep all night, his hot blood burning, his heart restless and unable to be calm.

But as soon as it was dawn, there was a Ministry of Rites official who came to pass a message, and there were carriages and horses escorting him into the palace to read the papers; could he say he wouldn't go?

And the Palace Examination ink scroll reading required two full days; the eighteen assistant reading officials had to eat and live in the East Pavilion of the Wen Hua Hall, with the Forbidden Army guarding outside the gate, and they were not allowed to leave for half a step.

After two days of reading, the ranking of the three hundred successful candidates was basically determined; this was truly a great torment and irony for Sun Shouzheng.

However, the palace was strictly guarded, and facing other assistant examiners and three chief examiners, he didn't dare to act rashly.

The matter was of great importance; if a chief examiner was suspected, whether the other two chief examiners were involved, no one could say for sure.

Sun Shouzheng was upright and stubborn by nature, but he was not a dull person; he knew that such things, if they couldn't be hit with one blow, he would be doomed...

The first day of the Palace Examination reading in the Wen Hua Hall seemed calm.

The chief examiners carefully commented on the eighteen first-tier scrolls, deliberating on excellence and weighing superiority.

The assistant examiners raced against time to evaluate the three hundred ink scrolls, and there was no lack of arguing a few words about the superiority of the ink scrolls.

As the sun rose and set, the heavy night curtain once again shrouded the imperial city.

The three chief examiners completed the comments on the eighteen first-tier scrolls, determined the approximate ranking, and waited for the Emperor's final selection, and they also began to patrol the assistant examiners' paper reading affairs.

The eighteen assistant examiners still had heavy affairs, reading the papers was easy, but ranking them consumed mental effort; they had to fight overnight, and they would still be unable to relax tomorrow morning.

The fifteenth year of Jia Zhao, the twelfth day of the fifth month, Gan Yang Hall. Emperor Jia Zhao finished the morning court and returned to the Gan Yang Hall, and saw that the three chief examiners, Wang Shilun, Chen Mo, and Xu Liangxiong, were all waiting in the hall.

Entering the hall together were two scroll-managing officials and two sealing officials of the Palace Examination.

In addition, three eunuchs each held several examination papers, standing behind the executive officials of the Palace Examination; the eighteen first-tier scrolls had been evaluated and divided into three grades.

The approximate ranking of the eighteen people, compared to the Metropolitan Examination ranking, although there were small differences, there were also large differences; in short, there was a certain deviation, which was also in the normal situation.

Once Emperor Jia Zhao sat at the imperial desk, Wang Shilun stepped forward and said, "Reporting to the Sage Monarch, the Palace Examination ink scrolls of the top eighteen candidates of this spring Metropolitan Examination have all been evaluated.

Two of them, because their strategy essay answers were poor, have been replaced by people from the back, temporarily ranking seventeenth and eighteenth; please review and select them, Sage Monarch."

As soon as Wang Shilun finished speaking, the three eunuchs stepped forward separately and presented the ink scrolls divided into three grades to the imperial desk.

Emperor Jia Zhao's gaze stayed on the ink scroll on the far left; that was the six ink scrolls ranked as first-tier by the three chief examiners.

As long as there were no accidents, the top three of the first tier would be produced from these six ink scrolls.

The Emperor flipped through them, and when he saw one of the ink scrolls, the calligraphy was refined, handsome, and flowing, extraordinary and extraordinary, looking very familiar, and the corners of the Emperor's mouth twitched slightly.

!

He said in a concentrated voice, "Grant seats, remove the sealing official seal!"

The Supreme Ruler points to the Palace Examination ink scrolls, naturally there is no reason to seal the names; the imperial power is supreme, the universe is clear, and it does not allow for any shadow.

Guo Lin ordered the eunuchs in the hall to set up tables and grant seats to the three chief examiners.

The scroll-managing officials and sealing officials in the hall stepped forward, jointly checked whether the sealing official seal of the ink scrolls was intact, and after determining there were no issues, the sealing officials removed the sealing official seal in front of the monarch and ministers in the hall.

Emperor Jia Zhao looked at the ink scroll with extraordinary calligraphy, and the candidate's name written on it was indeed Jia Cong, and a smile that was not easily detected appeared at the corners of his mouth.

He took the ink scroll with some interest and began to browse it carefully...

The sealing officials handed the eighteen sealing strips, totaling eighteen, to the three chief examiners, which contained the ink scroll numbers and the corresponding candidate names and native places.

Because the Emperor browsed the top eighteen ink scrolls and selected the ranking, he needed the three chief examiners to participate in the consultation, so naturally, he had to let them know the candidates' names and identities.

The three chief examiners were all people of high talent, although they might not be able to remember everything, their memory was very good.

As long as they saw the sealing number and name, they could recall the corresponding article they read.

Once they saw the names on the sealing, the expressions on their faces were different, or surprised, or confused, or even contained hidden joy...

On the throne, Emperor Jia Zhao carefully read the ink scroll in his hand.

When he read: What is benevolence? It is the spirit of tracing the truth, the feeling of loyalty and uprightness, the action of strict caution, the courage to abandon fame and desire, the heart to support the world, not to be the kindness of a woman, not to be the tolerance of a mediocre person.

His heart was slightly shocked, and he felt that every word and sentence seemed to be reflected in the bottom of his heart.

A look of yearning and contemplation appeared in his eyes, and he silently recited in his mouth: The courage to abandon fame and desire, the heart to support the world, not to be the kindness of a woman, not to be the tolerance of a mediocre person...

He remembered the time when he ascended to the position of the Supreme Ruler with a strange opportunity, the court was surging with adverse currents, ready to move, slanderous words were used to the extreme, and after the bloody violence, it was finally pacified in one fell swoop.

To want to support the heart of the world, one must have the courage to abandon fame and desire; the benevolence of a woman and the feelings of waste will only become obstacles to the great cause!

Jia Cong is only twenty years old, his experience is limited, but his wisdom is deep and clear; it seems he has been deeply pointed out, realized the world's situation, and is already quite old-fashioned. A famous teacher produces a high disciple; Liu Jing An is truly extraordinary!

Emperor Jia Zhao suppressed the shock in his heart and continued to read the following text.

He could feel that as the literary intent deepened, the calligraphy of Jia Cong's transcription, the silver hooks and iron strokes, became more and more imposing, like the melodious sound of a bell, like the thunder of the sky.

"Therefore, those who are good at governing the world do not rely on having the art of manipulating the world, but rely on having the way of governing one's own heart. They do not just have the virtue of diligence and government, but value having the heart of forgetting oneself for the benefit of the world."

Emperor Jia Zhao felt like hearing the sound of bells and drums in his heart, and couldn't help but feel slightly awed...

When he read: From this, the great achievements of the three generations of Yao, Shun, and Yu are not difficult to see in the years of Your Majesty's governance...

The heart that had just been stirred up slowly fell back; it is not difficult to see in the years of Your Majesty's governance; he recalled the literary intent, and a little yearning arose in his heart...

At this moment, the three chief examiners were granted seats, all waiting for Emperor Jia Zhao to review the ink scrolls, so that they could discuss the selection.

The three of them saw that the Emperor only took the first ink scroll and read it so intently that he couldn't put it down, his expression changing, obviously moved by the literary intent.

The three of them were shocked; among them, Wang Shilun, as a cabinet minister and concurrently the head of the six ministries, was not the first time he had served as the chief examiner of the Metropolitan Examination.

In the past, when Emperor Jia Zhao reviewed the ink scrolls, he read ten lines at a glance, and after reading the papers, he knew their superiority and inferiority, and that was it.

It was the first time he saw the Emperor browse the ink scrolls and read them so intently; whose article was so extraordinary?

The three of them couldn't help but silently recall the brilliant articles of the candidates they had read...

Emperor Jia Zhao didn't seem to realize that it was the first time he had read the Palace Examination ink scrolls, and he had read them so intently, spending so much time...

At this moment, he read the strategy words of the article:

The evil of great officials, the more noble their position, the greater their harm; the greater their harm, the more people dare not speak. Or avoid them and run away, or are coerced by private desires, which is the beginning of the corruption of the administration.

Only by appointing ministers who do not fear the strong, establishing refined and specialized departments, exerting effort to exclude them, and implementing the Han dynasty's method of punishing greed and the Song people's system of banning corrupt officials, what else can they do?

Removing the worms of the officials and removing the harm of the people, killing one or two people, and the world will live; this is the greatest benevolence of the world.

Emperor Jia Zhao felt a sense of killing in his heart; in the past, he had often felt jealous about the disorder of military power and the corruption of the military, and he had long had a plan in his heart.

Jia Cong's method of clarifying the administration made him feel a sense of sudden movement, vaguely interlocking, and a sense of tacit understanding...

Emperor Jia Zhao finished reading Jia Cong's ink scroll, his thoughts disturbed, and for a while, it was difficult to calm down.

He put down Jia Cong's ink scroll and began to browse other ink scrolls.

This time the browsing speed was much faster; except for a few that were slightly more careful, most of the ink scrolls were like looking at flowers on horseback, and the reading was very rapid.

By the time Emperor Jia Zhao put down the last ink scroll, he said, "This time, you ministers have evaluated the papers and selected talent, which has been quite effective.

The strategy essays of the top eighteen candidates in this spring Metropolitan Examination have quite a bit of rules and bearing, and the people who answered and wrote them are all people of extraordinary talent.

Among them, Jia Cong's strategy essay has a high and distant intent, the literary spirit is vertical and horizontal, moving people's hearts, and the method of practical strategy is deep and penetrating; it can be called a word of deep awakening, which makes me feel quite touched when reading it."

As soon as Emperor Jia Zhao said this, Chen Mo, the Minister of Personnel, had joy on his face and said, "Reporting to the Sage Monarch, only after breaking the seal did I know that Jia Cong's ink scroll was evaluated by me.

I read his ink scroll and felt the same as the Sage Monarch; among the six ink scrolls I evaluated, Jia Cong's strategy essay should be the first!

Jia Cong was selected as the top Hui Yuan of this year's examination under the name of transcription, his literary talent is extraordinary, his strategy essay is arbitrary and vertical, which is refreshing and can make the Sage Monarch nod.

I think Jia Cong's talent already has the capital to seize the world; I ask the Sage Monarch to deliberate and decide, and personally point Jia Cong as the top Zhuang Yuan of this year."

As soon as Chen Mo said this, everyone in the Gan Yang Hall felt their hearts fluctuate; seizing the world, the top Zhuang Yuan, for anyone, was a shocking reputation, which had to make people moved.

Wang Shilun heard Chen Mo's words, his gaze fluctuated slightly, but he remained calm.

Xu Liangxiong heard Chen Mo's words, but his heart was anxious; he didn't expect that Chen Mo would have such luck, just happening to evaluate the ink scroll of the Hui Yuan Jia Cong.

If the Sage Monarch listened to Chen Mo's memorial and pointed Jia Cong as the Zhuang Yuan, then the top three of the first tier would lose one person.

Wang Shilun was a cabinet minister and concurrently the head of the six ministries, and had always been esteemed by the Sage Monarch; the six ink scrolls he commented on must be highly valued by the Sage Monarch.

Among the three chief examiners, his official rank and reputation were the lowest, and he was temporarily pulled in to fill the number.

If the Sage Monarch selected the other two of the first tier from Wang Shilun's evaluated ink scrolls, the possibility was extremely high.

By then, he would have evaluated the ink scrolls without anyone entering the first tier, and he would have gained nothing; this would be a great loss of face...

At this moment, Emperor Jia Zhao looked at Xu Liangxiong, his gaze turned to the indifferent Wang Shilun.

He asked, "Minister Wang, Minister Chen suggested pointing Jia Cong as the Zhuang Yuan; what do you think?"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 628 =====