Before the examination began, Bai Hanlin read out Emperor Xuanwu's message to the scholars. The scholars were so excited by the emperor's hope that they shouted "Long Live the Mountain" irregularly. The momentum was so high that even the harsh spring cold seemed to have dispersed.
A lot.
Then, the gate of the Gongyuan was opened, and the scholars lined up consciously. The clerks checked the inside and outside of the Gongyuan, and only after confirming that it was correct could they enter and take their numbers, and then enter the corresponding room according to the number plate to wait for the exam.
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It was also at this time that Ye Zhenzhen sent the food box to Cui Weizhen.
The examiner's family and servants all came to deliver things. Ye Zhenzhen's appearance was not noticeable. She handed the food box to Cui Weizhen and said: "There are oden ingredients in it, including all kinds of meatballs, fruits and vegetables, and soup bases."
Put it in a kettle, and it’s time for lunch. You pour various soup bases into the iron grid, boil the soup, then put the meatballs in and cook... There are also Zhuangyuan noodles. You can put the noodles in at the end of the meal.
Add it to the soup base and cook it..."
Ye Zhenzhen had already told him these words yesterday. Ye Zhenzhen was worried that Cui Weizhen's poor cooking skills would not be able to handle these things, so she kept telling him again and again, fearing that he would starve.
Cui Weizhen listened with a smile. He didn't urge her to go back until the time was almost up: "Don't worry, I've remembered it. It's very cold outside. You should go back quickly."
Ye Zhenzhen had no choice but to ask Mo Yan to hand over the coal stove and iron grate to the servant next to her, and then went back in three steps.
When the carriage holding Jingning's residence gradually moved away, Cui Weizhen took the food box and turned around and entered the Gongyuan. As a fellow examiner, his things naturally did not need to be checked, and he went directly to the Hengjian Hall where the examiner's office was located.
The officer carefully put down Cui Shilang's things, bowed and said: "Cui Shilang, if you don't have any further instructions, I will leave first."
"Thanks for your hard work."
Cui Weizhen took out a dime of silver and rewarded him, put down the food box in his hand, and then went to the mission room to gather.
The examination papers for the general examination have been sent over, all in sealed bags. When everyone was almost here, Bai Hanlin explained the rules of this year's general examination to his colleagues.
Hearing that the "name-blinding system" and "copying system" will be used in this interview, everyone had different expressions. Zhao Hongrui, the Minister of Punishment, frowned and asked: "Why did the rules suddenly change this time? Since the name-blinding system is used,'
Isn't the "Tongbang Post" useless? This matter is very involved, and the scholars are afraid that they will make trouble if they find out."
The imperial examination system of the Great Zhou Dynasty was not very complete. The success was not only determined by the score on the examination paper, but also "helping notes", also known as "Tongbang Tie", were made based on the exam's reputation in society for the examiner.
refer to.
Sometimes candidates are pre-determined before the exam. This is why candidates who go to Beijing to take the exam are so eager to submit papers to celebrities, dignitaries and literary giants, because the names on the general list are based on the evaluations of these people.
formulated.
Now that the "name-blinding system" has been adopted, the lists on the "Tongbang Post" are of no use. This affects the interests of the powerful and powerful in the court. After all, many of the scholars on the list are talents they secretly attracted.
This "name-blinding" trick caught a group of people off guard.
Bai Hanlin looked calm: "His Majesty has set the golden rule, who dares to make trouble?"
Zhao Hongrui pursed his lips and said no more.
Bai Hanlin ignored what they were thinking. He took out the sealed bag of today's test papers and passed them on one by one. After they checked that the seal was intact, he took the lead in signing and stamping on the sealed bag.
After Cui Weizhen and others signed and stamped the documents, Bai Hanlin opened the papers and distributed the test papers in groups of two.
There are a total of eight examination areas in Gongyuan, which are divided into "the sky and the earth are black and yellow, and the universe is primitive and wild". There are not many candidates this year, only six examination areas are occupied, and each group of examiners is responsible for the two adjacent examination areas.
Cui Weizhen and Zhao Hongrui, the minister of punishment.
Zhao Hongrui had a fake smile on his face: "Uncle Jing Ning, please."
Cui Weizhen didn't care about his attitude. Zhao Hongrui was the brother-in-law of Feng Jinqing, the Minister of Rites, and he had always been on the same page as Feng Jinqing. This kind of strange attitude was normal.
For such people, ignoring them is the greatest humiliation.
Zhao Hongrui was arrogant and arrogant. His beard bulged with anger when he saw that this junior was so arrogant. However, he was too proud of his status to say anything more.
After counting the number of people and examination papers in the examination area, Cui Weizhen asked the guards to distribute the examination papers while he patrolled back and forth. After a while, the examination papers were distributed and the scholars began to write furiously.
The familiar room, the familiar atmosphere, Cui Weizhen's face remained calm, and he couldn't help feeling that time flies by. The time he spent sitting in the room answering papers seemed like yesterday, and now he has become a fellow examiner.
Bai Hanlin was patrolling around, and when he saw Cui Weizhen, he asked: "Have you ever had any problems in these two areas?"
Cui Weizhen shook his head: "Everything is normal."
"That's good."
Bai Hanlin's expression softened and he said: "You don't have to patrol all the time, lest the candidates become nervous when they see the examiner, come back to Hengjian Hall with me and sit for a while."
Cui Weizhen agreed.
Many examiners have returned to Hengjian Hall, and they are looking at the examination papers. In order to prevent accidents, there are always a few extra examination papers. Although they cannot be taken out, it is okay for the examiners to take a look.
"This year's test questions are not easy. I'm afraid there won't be many people admitted to the Jinshi."
"I don't know if the number of scholars admitted from the north and the south has changed this time."
The literary style in the south was prosperous and the level of scholars was higher. Therefore, the majority of candidates on the gold list were always from the south. In the previous dynasty, there was even a situation where all the people on the list were scholars from the south.
This incident caused quite a stir among the government, the public, and the scholars. The examiner was implicated. In order to appease the scholars in the north, the emperor held another reexamination. However, it was an indisputable fact that the scholars in the north were not as good as those in the south. In order to prevent this from happening again.
This happened, and from then on, there was a distinction between South List and North List.
There are high and low rankings in the North and South lists, and the division of factions comes from this. They are party members. The overthrow of the previous dynasty is inseparable from the party struggle.
After the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, we learned from previous mistakes and canceled the distinction between north and south. Coupled with the existence of "Tongbang Posts", the distinction between north and south was not too obvious. However, this time the name-blinding system was adopted, and the result is unknown again.
When everyone thinks about this, they can't help but feel worried. If the selection of candidates repeats the same mistakes as the previous dynasty this time, they may suffer a lot.
Bai Hanlin was not affected at all and said: "In the whole world, is it the land of the king, and on the shore of the land, is it the minister of the king. No matter north or south, they are all under the emperor's command, there is no need to make a distinction."
Everyone seemed to have taken a reassurance, and started complimenting each other: "What Mr. Hanlin said is absolutely true. It's us who are narrow-minded."
The atmosphere was harmonious, and everyone discussed the exam papers together again.