After a moderate turmoil, Meng Xinghe finally walked into the Gongyuan again. In a remote place, Meng Xinghe saw his seat.
He put the box on the dusty table, and a stench spread into his nose, which almost made Meng Xinghe's stomach turn. He looked up and saw that there was actually a latrine in the distance. It was a hot weather now, and there had been a year of accumulation inside. The stench kept drifting here with the breeze, which made Meng Xinghe, who occupied this worst position, feel very uncomfortable.
Forget it, I'll bear with you, God is going to give this person a great responsibility, and he must first work hard for his mind and body. After reciting these words silently in his heart several times, Meng Xinghe tore up a piece of cloth and tied it on his nose, quietly Waiting for the scientific examination.
At this time, Master Du, Hou Wenhai, and the old prince, the three examiners have arrived at the examination place. Master Du and the old prince are only invigilators, and Hou Wenhai is the Minister of Rites, and the imperial examination falls under his jurisdiction. As this session The most important examiner, of course, first talked about the rules of the imperial examination, emphasizing that cheating, whispering, and walking around are not allowed in the imperial examination. If there is anything that can be reported to the three examiners, each candidate should be informed during the examination. During the three days, no matter what happens, you are not allowed to leave the Gongyuan, otherwise you will be deemed to have given up the exam.
They were all students who had passed the provincial examinations and the provincial examinations. They had already memorized these in their hearts. Mr. Du and the old prince said a few words respectively, congratulating each student on being able to live up to the ten years of hardship and strive for the title of gold list, and then gave instructions. The first test paper of this year's imperial examination has been distributed.
The moment the students held the test papers, they unexpectedly stared at the test questions of this year's scientific examination. They all looked confused and overwhelmed. It was as if they had studied hard for ten years and suddenly saw an obscure and difficult book. He understood the literary masterpiece, and his originally confident expression suddenly became much darker.
What kind of test question is this? It is neither "The Analects of Confucius" nor "The Ming Jing" and is completely different from the knowledge they usually read. Everyone suddenly panicked, just like the soldiers who had already rushed to the front of the battlefield. When shouting to kill, they found that they had forgotten If you carry a sword and rush to kill with a scream, isn't it equivalent to risking your life?
The examination room suddenly became quiet, and the candidates who received the examination paper looked at the four inconspicuous words on the examination paper with expressions of deep thinking.
"The Sui Dynasty destroyed the Tang Dynasty,"
These four words completely overturned the content of previous examinations, but when they appeared in the imperial examination room, it was clear that the rulers were testing students' emergency response capabilities. For such flexible test questions, if students are asked to use the knowledge they have learned to answer, they would use Meng To understand it from Xinghe's inherent thinking, this kind of test question is equivalent to encountering the most flexible final question in the college entrance examination. If you don't master it well or your thinking is wrong, you will definitely lose everything.
Thinking about history, it has only been more than ten years since the Sui Dynasty fell to the beginning of the Tang Dynasty. But this year, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty used this test question to examine the world's scholars. What is the implication? Moreover, if the article is slightly wrong, it will be tantamount to deceiving the public and offending. With the power of God, the consequences are unpredictable.
The power of the emperor is unpredictable, and the emperor's will is even more unpredictable. Although Meng Xinghe has never seen the true face of Tang Taizong, he has read several history books in later generations. For this Tang Taizong who had the Xuanwumen mutiny scandal and was still a wise emperor, if To be honest, it is unrealistic to be forbearing, wise, and generous, because this man who had the same experience as Yang Guang also took power from his father's eldest brother, but the result was completely opposite. Only by knowing how to use and manage people's hearts can people begin to respect this unjust monarch from the initial insult.
The one who wins the hearts of the people wins the world. It seems simple, but it is difficult to do. It is not about knowing people and making good use of them and winning people's hearts. It is not about being so kingly that people want to kneel down and lick their heels. It is about operating slowly and slowly for a long time. When stewing meat, you can unknowingly put the fire into the meat, so that the meat is willing to be stewed by the fire, and it is not afraid of being shattered into pieces.
After grinding the ink and laying out the paper, Meng Xinghe regained his composure and started his usual style of first drafting the manuscript and then copying it onto the test paper.
"The Sui Dynasty destroyed and the Tang Dynasty was revived." This is an imperial examination question with political overtones. If you want to fully grasp the question maker's thinking, you really need to approach it from many aspects. Moreover, if you don't grasp it well, the article you write will be misleading. Dog look.
With the general answer in his mind, Meng Xinghe did not dare to panic. For a person who is determined to take the Jinshi examination, one wrong step will lead to his whole army being wiped out. Therefore, Meng Xinghe thought for a long time in his mind before he dared to write.
The pen tip came down and the first sentence was written in beautiful calligraphy.
"If you gain the Tao, you will get many help, but if you lose the Tao, there will be little help. The Sui Dynasty will be destroyed and the Tang Dynasty will be prosperous, and the world and the people will be harmonious."
He started with the words of Mencius, which mainly attributed the demise of the Sui Dynasty to a mistake, and also flattered the Tang Dynasty by the way, describing the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty as complying with the destiny of heaven. Rulers like this kind of respectful articles most, so Meng Xinghe started Even if you list your attractive features, it is neither outstanding nor mediocre.
To describe the demise of the Sui Dynasty in sixteen words, Meng Xinghe’s focus is on the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. No ruler wants to see his countrymen still discussing the affairs of the previous dynasty, and Meng Xinghe does not want to find shortcomings in Yang Guang. Fill in the number of words.
Soon Meng Xinghe's pen was full of energy and he wrote about Xing Tang.
He also wrote about the rise of the Tang Dynasty in order. Meng Xinghe knew that the question writer would not only examine how students viewed the prosperous Tang Dynasty, but also put forward his own thoughts on how to rejuvenate the country and stabilize the country, so that the markers could see it at a glance. A candidate’s thoughts.
Not daring to be careless in the slightest, Meng Xinghe answered the questions carefully.
"To prosper the Tang Dynasty, we must first govern the country, seek stability and stabilize the country. Disharmony in the country and turmoil in people's livelihood will lead to troubled times, and the country will not be able to survive."
It emphasizes that one should govern the country first, and then wait for the country and society to be stable before revitalizing and developing the country. The form is simple and the meaning is clear, so that the scorers can understand it at a glance.
Put pen to paper.
"The way to govern a country should not focus on hardness, which will lead to violence, nor focus on softness, which will lead to cowardice. Hardness and softness must be combined, and then governance can be successful. However, military revolution is to prevent insults and cannot be played for a long time, and punishment is to stop rape and cannot be used alone. There must be articles of benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, and music to decorate it with literature, and then the world will be universal..." Plagiarizing allusions is not difficult for Meng Xinghe. Meng Xinghe also remembered a few sentences about many ways of governing the country in later generations. He copied them and combined them with "The Analects of Confucius" 》The Confucian doctrines such as enriching the people and governing the country are eloquently written with the word "Qi Yu", and finally completed the idea of ruling the country first.
Next, rejuvenating the country is the focus of the entire article. The current Tang Dynasty has already made remarkable achievements in governing the country. As for rejuvenating the country, Meng Xinghe directly put the finishing touch and wrote, "The most important weapon of the country is the people, and the country is second." In other words, the ruler should be light-hearted, gently shake up taxes, focus on agriculture and encourage commerce, thoroughly control floods in the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers, open up canals, repair the northwest main roads, trade with neighboring countries, collect grain and accumulate capital in good years, rest and recuperate in bad years, and nourish the country in three years. , It will make the country rich in five years, and it will be rejuvenated in ten years..."
After another thousand words, Meng Xinghe finally completed the article on governing the country and rejuvenating the country. He looked at the sky and realized that he took the college examination very seriously. It was already past midnight. He opened the cakes and dry food prepared by Aunt Yun, and said Clear water, lightly fill his stomach, and then read it from the beginning again, correcting a few places, and then Meng Xinghe began the gorgeous ending.
"The sage said: To govern a country, there is nothing better than enriching the people, and there is nothing more difficult than making a country prosperous. There is nothing better than to eat the emperor's salary, to be loyal to the emperor, and to rise and fall of the country. Everyone is responsible for it. How can we avoid it because of misfortunes and blessings? To ensure the stability of the country, there is nothing better than to have civil servants do not do it. If a military officer loves money, he will not hesitate to die, so why worry about the world not being peaceful for eternity?"
After writing this flattery, Meng Xinghe breathed a sigh of relief. He finally tried his best to answer the question "Destroy the Sui Dynasty and Prosper the Tang Dynasty" in this year's imperial examination. He had tried his best. As for how he answered, he could not And know it.
Unlike the rural examination and the provincial examination, Meng Xinghe did not hand in the paper early, but seriously wrote his articles on the examination paper in beautiful cursive script. When he saw that the time was getting late, it was almost time to hand in the paper.
With the sound of gongs and drums, the examiner ordered the papers to be handed in. Half of the students in the examination room were almost desperate and handed over the papers. They shook their heads and sighed that this year's imperial examination was really too difficult. There was no Analects of Confucius, let alone the Ming Dynasty. , just four words, have killed the career path of many students.
"Brother Meng, how did you do in the exam?" Du Ruhui specially ordered someone to seal Meng Xinghe's test paper and paid attention to the whole process, for fear of making any mistakes. After all the test papers were sealed, he smiled and said: "You should be able to answer Bar,"
"It's okay," Meng Xinghe smiled bitterly and packed up his pen and ink to prepare for the exam the next day.
Du Ruhui listened to his answer which was quite pertinent. He stroked his three-inch beard and smiled. Although he was the examiner, he could not communicate too much with the candidates. He only asked a few ordinary questions and then walked away.
After resting in his seat all night, fortunately Aunt Yun prepared a lot of pastries, and Meng Xinghe lived well. Early the next morning, the three examiners handed out the test papers for the second exam. Today's exam was agricultural. Business should not be a problem for Meng Xinghe. Mathematics is his strength, much better than other students, so as long as he passes the first exam, he doesn't have to worry too much about the exams in the next two days.
Opening the test paper, Meng Xinghe was shocked again.
If yesterday's test questions were weird, then today's agricultural and business questions are even weirder and have no clue.
There is only one question on the agricultural and commercial examination, which is an arithmetic question about marching and fighting. The original translation roughly means that a distance of a thousand miles from Chang'an to the northwest is to prepare to transport food and grass for the warring army. There are two types: heavy cavalry and light cavalry. Different arms. Among them, heavy cavalry can travel 100 kilometers per day, while light cavalry is twice as fast as heavy cavalry. In the former section, heavy cavalry is used to transport grain and grass, and in the latter section, light cavalry is used to transport it to the military camp of the warring army. , it took a total of 8 days. Ask the students to calculate how many days it took the heavy cavalry and the light cavalry to cover the distance of one thousand miles.
After reading the general meaning of this question, Meng Xinghe took a breath of cold sweat. If he hadn't learned the linear equation of two variables and imagined it out of thin air, it would be difficult to calculate the result quickly.
On that examination paper, Meng Xinghe tried his best to write in an easy-to-understand manner. He did not even make assumptions about the unknowns. He finally calculated the results based on several formulas that had been derived in ancient times. It took six days for the heavy cavalry to transport food and grass in front. , while the light cavalry took two days. He was also very fortunate that this was the only question that the farmer and merchant could do fairly easily. However, Meng Xinghe wrote another sentence after the answer. If the light and heavy cavalry are matched The food and grass could be delivered earlier, and he would then close the test paper and wait for it to be handed in.
When collecting the papers, Du Ruhui asked Meng Xinghe how he did on the exam and whether he understood the meaning of the questions.
Meng Xinghe replied, "It's okay," and Du Ruhui left with a smile.
The test on the third day was poetry writing.
When the test questions were handed out, Meng Xinghe was shocked again.
He remembered that one month ago, he drew a picture of a beauty under the peony pavilion for a woman in the peony courtyard of Xiangguo Temple. But he never expected that the picture would become the last subject of this year's imperial examination. .
Looking at the charming, silky, gentle woman he painted in the portrait, like a fairy coming to the world, Meng Xinghe seemed to be attracted by the pair of autumn eyes of the person in his painting. Looking at it, it seemed to be smiling but not smiling, which was quite charming. Seeing this, Meng Xinghe's heart trembled, and he completely forgot to write a poem.
Who is she, how could she be so lucky to appear in the imperial examination where men are the most important, and who has the courage to let the world's talented people have the honor to see the portrait of a woman.
Curious about the identity of the person in the painting, Meng Xinghe woke up as if from a dream. He already had the answer in his mind. He picked up the brush in his hand, and on the examination paper, he used his excellent running script to write down the answer to the last exam of the imperial examination.
The clouds are like clothes, the flowers are like faces, the spring breeze is blowing the threshold and the dew is thick.
If we hadn't seen him at the top of Qunyu Mountain, he would have met at Yaotai under the moon.
A branch of red dew is fragrant, and the clouds and rain in Wushan are heartbreaking.
May I ask who in the Han Palace looks like him? Poor Fei Yan, who is leaning on her new makeup.
The two famous beauties are in love with each other, making the king smile.
Explain the infinite hatred of the spring breeze, the agarwood pavilion leans against the railing in the north,