Chapter 269: Imperial Examination and Poor Scholars
Since the spring rain, Wang Gui expected that Emperor Zhao Zhen's mood had improved a lot, so he chose this time to come to see him.
This is also the experience of Wang Gui's attendant for many years. He chooses an emperor to face the emperor when he is in a good mood.
Furthermore, Wang Gui was very sensible. In the two days after the provincial exam, scholars who had passed the provincial exam had been coming to visit him, wanting to thank him for the "admission".
However, Wang Gui rejected them all and said that the country selects scholars based on academic qualifications and selects people for officials... He is just reporting to the public and has no intention of giving any favors to others.
Wang Gui’s move was also a rule set by Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin.
Scholars were not allowed to call tribute officials as benefactors or disciples, and they were not allowed to call themselves disciples. This changed the bad habit since the Tang Dynasty started the imperial examination. Because the provincial examination was the emperor's grace, and the Song Dynasty also established the imperial examination system in which the emperor presided over the examination, so from then on
Jinshi all claim to be disciples of the emperor.
In the words of Song Taizu, in the past, most of the names of sciences were taken by powerful people. I personally came to test it and corrected all its shortcomings.
The reason lies in the difference between scholars and common people. The Song Dynasty cracked down on the clan politics since the Sui and Tang Dynasties, used people to control it, and achieved the goal of recruiting talents from poor families.
Wang Gui had a very good sense of proportion on this point. After the provincial examination, he refused all candidates to visit and gave all the power to recruit scholars to the emperor. Wang Gui also posted a notice in front of the palace, declining private visits to candidates who passed the examination.
Spread the word widely.
After completing these two points, Wang Gui submitted the provincial examination list to the emperor with a subscript.
Now there are pavilions on all sides of the temple, and the curtains are drawn up, allowing some wind and rain to blow into the temple.
As for the emperor Zhao Zhen, wearing a light yellow plain robe, he was doing calligraphy and painting in the palace.
The emperor painted and wrote when he was in a good mood, and he also painted and painted when he was in a bad mood. This was his way of relieving his emotions.
Wang Gui saw the emperor's decorations and knew that the emperor was frugal by nature and did not like luxury. He often wore a very worn-out piece of clothing, but he still wore it.
His plain robe was the third time he had seen him in several years.
In addition, Zhao Zhen often dealt with government affairs until late at night. One time he wanted to drink mutton soup, but he didn't say anything after being hungry all night. When Empress Cao found out, she asked why she didn't ask the imperial chef to prepare it. Zhao Zhen said that he drank mutton soup tonight, and the imperial chef
I will make preparations every night and slaughter hundreds of sheep in a year. How can I bear it and how can I bear it.
Once Zhao Zhen was seriously ill, Wang Gui and others frequently went to the palace with Prime Minister Wen Yanbo and others to attend him. However, they saw that all the royal awnings and mattresses where the emperor lived were of poor quality and had not been replaced for a long time.
Zhao Zhen often warned the prime minister that these are the people's anointing, and I dare not waste it lightly.
Having accompanied him for many years, Wang Gui was a little moved when he saw the emperor's frugality, but he immediately said seriously: "I will report my order to your majesty."
Zhao Zhen said without raising his head: "Scholar Wang, what do you think of this spring rain?"
Wang Gui glanced outside and said: "Reporting to Your Majesty, good rain knows the season, and spring will happen."
"Xueshi Wang said it was a good rain, and I agree," Zhao Zhen kept saying to Fan Zhen in his writing: "Xueshi Fan, after I heard that you served as a tribute to a colleague, you ordered your nephew not to take the exam. Do you want to avoid suspicion like this?
?”
Fan Zhendao said: "The veteran has been entrusted by His Majesty to serve as a tribute to fellow officials, so I dare not bend the law for personal gain. It is okay for my grandnephew to let him take the exam a few years later. The imperial tribute exam is the big plan."
“If I remember correctly, your great-nephew’s name is Fan Zuyu!”
“Reporting to Your Majesty, exactly.”
Zhao Zhen said: "This is really difficult to handle. If I want to use you as a tribute candidate for the next subject, should I make your great-nephew wait for another subject?"
Fan Zhen said resolutely: "Just wait a little longer."
Hearing Fan Zhen’s words, Wang Gui couldn’t help but glance at him.
Zhao Zhen made a few final sketches, then put them aside and said to Fan Zhen: "I trust the loyalty of the Qing family, and I also want to have more loyal ministers in the court who are as loyal as Qing. Let him do the next subject!"
“Old minister, I have accepted the order and thank you for your grace.” Fan Zhen said with a moving expression.
As he spoke, Wang Gui held up the provincial examination list, which was unfolded by two chamberlains beside Zhao Zhen and presented in front of the emperor.
The emperor walked up to the list and looked at it, and then said: "They are all famous people for a while, and they are well-deserved. This department of the Qing family has brought me many virtuous people, and they will all be the pillars of this dynasty in the future!"
"
With the words "Emperor", the three examiners were overjoyed.
Wang Gui said: "Your Majesty's desire to demand talented people has been sensed by heaven. Therefore, this provincial examination can be said to be a thousand people advancing hard, thousands of heads moving, and the world's virtuous people rushing from all directions to serve Your Majesty. This is not the merit of your ministers."
, it is truly a blessing from Heaven.”
Zhao Zhen and several ministers asked in detail about the provincial examination regulations. Emperors of the Song Dynasty were very concerned about recruiting scholars, and Zhao Zhen was even more so. This was the ancestral method, which was to control the power of personnel and eliminate the power of powerful people.
The disadvantages of power.
After asking some questions, Zhao Zhen smiled and asked seemingly casually: "I heard from the outer court that there was a scholar who had a group of butterflies flying on his scroll, and he refused to leave, and his name was mentioned repeatedly. Is this true?
of?"
Wang Gui thought to himself, could it be that you, the emperor, did this deliberately?
Wang Gui said: "Reporting to your Majesty, this is indeed the case. This was witnessed by several of our examiners."
Zhao Zhen asked: "Which person is the one who attracts the attention of the butterflies?"
Wang Gui said: "Reporting to Your Majesty, this is the second chapter of this provincial examination."
Wang Gui ordered Zhang Yue to be the second in the provincial examination before. He did it intentionally.
If he is ranked first, how can he be worthy of the emperor's nectar-based reputation? Therefore, he must leave this right to the emperor.
But now it sounds like the emperor did it by chance rather than on purpose.
Wang Gui thought to himself, could it be that he had misunderstood the emperor’s intention?
Wang Gui decided to tell the truth: "Previously, Xueshi Fan wanted to put this volume as a failure, but Wang Zhongcheng insisted on putting it first."
“Why is there such a controversy?”
Fan Zhen came forward to tell the reason for Zhang Yue's blunt statement. Zhao Zhen said: "A gentleman's words are not true, but Fan's words are reasonable."
Wang Chou said: "Your Majesty, this Zhang Yue is the scholar who became a three-character poem before, but later declined his background twice. In my opinion, this man is young and energetic, and his words are inevitably straightforward, but he also wants to criticize the evils of the times.
, If everyone's actions and words are not up to the mark, how can the court hear the truth?"
Zhao Zhen said: "I remember his poems. The grassroots people were eager to learn when they were young. They were poor and had no way to read the books. Every time they borrowed them from the library, they would write them down by hand and count the days to return them..."
"I still remember his three-character poems and articles. He is a man of literary talent and kindness. I wanted to give him a family background at first, but now it seems that I have given in. Is he really a member of the Xi Gong clan? Why is his family so poor?
"
Wang Chou said: "Reporting to your majesty, although Zhang Yue comes from the Zhang family in Pucheng and is of the same clan as Zhang Wenjian, he is from the Shu clan. When he was young, his family was poor and it was difficult to make a living by studying, so he once worked as a book servant for a living. This is true.
A child from a poor family."
Wang Chou thought that the purpose of the imperial examination was to select poor scholars and break the monopoly of the clans from the Sui and Tang Dynasties to the Five Dynasties.
However, the scope of this poor family is a little wider. For example, Wang Anshi and Ouyang Xiu, whose fathers are officials, can also be considered poor families.
And what Zhang Yue does is more genuine.
Not to mention that the poem Tong San Chuan came from a distant place. The emperor seemed to like it very much, otherwise he would not have recited it casually.
Wang Gui said: "Not only Zhang Yue, but the top three in this provincial examination, Jiang Yan, Wang Kui, and the tenth Huang Lugu came from poor families."
For example, the number one scholar in the Song Dynasty was awarded to the children of poor families by default, so there was a saying that "no one should be selected from the children of officials". So the number one scholar in the palace examination was actually among the top three in the provincial examination.
Fan Zhentu said: "Do you know, Academician Wang, whether Yue is getting married in this chapter?"
Wang Gui hesitated for a moment and did not reply.
Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "Oh, I look at the family situation. This son is only seventeen years old. He got engaged so early. I wonder who is so discerning?"
Fan Zhen reported back: "Your Majesty, if my inquiry is correct, Zhang Yue and Wu Chong, the current transshipment envoy to Huaidong, have already made an engagement."
Wang Gui and Wang Chou glanced at Fan Zhen in unison.
“It’s Wu Chong.” Zhao Zhen thought a little when he heard this.
Fan Zhenze said: "Your Majesty, the so-called poor people are not really poor people."
Wang Chou said: "Wang Kui came third in the provincial examination. Fan Xueshi was originally ranked first, but he is engaged to the grandniece of Zhao Wen, so he can't be called a poor scholar?"
Fan Zhen was talking lustfully, and Zhao Zhen smiled and said, "What do you think, Scholar Wang?"
Wang Gui said: "Reporting to your majesty, when the rich prime minister was not yet in the prime minister's position, he was also appreciated by the then prime minister Yan Yuanxiangong and became his son-in-law. This has never been short of talent throughout the ages."
Zhao Zhen nodded and said: "I read the article on the provincial examination. Zhang Yue, Wang Kui and Jiang Yan are all better than others. It is said that Fu Qing and Wu Qing knew someone in Hanwei and married him to a daughter. I will return it."
I admire their vision in choosing a son-in-law. At least I am far inferior to them."
Wang Gui saw Zhao Zhen suddenly and sadly, and everyone knew that he was thinking of his favorite Emperor Fukang.
Fukang Diji has been with Song Renzong for the longest time and is his most beloved daughter. Because Song Renzong has always felt guilty about his biological mother, he has always been very kind to his family. Later, Fukang Diji was betrothed to his biological mother's brother Li Yonghe at the emperor's discretion.
’s sixth son.
However, the two were extremely at odds with each other after their marriage. In the fifth year of Jiayou's reign, Princess Fukang suddenly rushed back to the palace at night and cried to Song Renzong about how badly her husband-in-law treated him.
However, the matter of opening the palace gate at night was severely criticized by Sima Guang, Wang Tao and other admonishers.
Song Renzong, under pressure from the public officials, not only failed to stand up for his daughter and punished the consort, but instead punished Princess Fukang and sent everyone around her away.
Princess Fukang was greatly stimulated and tried to commit suicide several times. Song Renzong was heartbroken when he found out about it, and the incident became a worry for him.
Wang Gui and the others did not dare to say anything anymore, but they saw that Song Renzong had already calmed down and said: "The two Qing families have a fair heart in recruiting scholars. I know that, so you don't need to argue anymore."
Fan Zhen and Wang Chou heard that they were arguing over the imperial court and showed disgrace, and then the three of them withdrew from the palace.
After Wang Gui said goodbye to the emperor, he went to Ouyang Xiu's house.
Two days after the provincial examination results are released.
Zhang Shi asked Zhang Qiu to find Zhang Yue, but learned that he was not in Taixue, nor did he go drinking and socializing with his classmates in Taixue.
Even his classmates didn’t know where Zhang Yue had gone.
It turned out that Zhang Yue had not gone anywhere in the past two days, but was living near Taixue, in the house originally arranged for him by the Wu family.
Before Zhang Yue passed the provincial examination, he went to this house only a handful of times.
But after passing the exam, Zhang Yue didn't go anywhere. He even refused to socialize with his classmates and stayed in this house with Huang Lu to prepare for the imperial examination.
The imperial examination is scheduled for February 27th.
Before this, there are still more than twenty days to go.
Since Jiayou refused to give up the imperial examination in the second year of his reign, many Jinshi candidates have disapproved of the imperial examination.
That's right, it is generally not possible to give up in imperial examinations, but if the examinee really wants to die, there is nothing to stop him. It is like insulting the emperor in the paper, no one can save you, and he will definitely be punished.
The next level is the fifth level.
As we all know, after the imperial examination, all candidates are divided into five grades.
The first and second classes are awarded and awarded. The third class is awarded by origin. The fourth and fifth classes are awarded by the same origin.
However, in the palace examination, the status of being backward was not eliminated. Instead, the first and second grades were changed to the same birth status, the third and fourth grades were the same, and the fifth grade was the same.
Among them, there are articles in the fifth category that are really poorly written and make major mistakes, such as accidentally writing the emperor's name, etc., so they will still be discarded.
However, this possibility is still too small for scholars who have passed the Jiejiaixi and Provincial Examinations.
Therefore, many candidates feel that they have already won the title of Jinshi. They have been out all night playing in the past few days, going in and out of brothels.
The last ten years have been depressing, and now it’s only human nature to relax.
Zhang Yue and Huang Lu stayed behind closed doors, studying here.
You can do anything for fun. Now there are only more than twenty days before the imperial examination. After ten years of hard work, do you still care about these days? If you work harder this time, it can be regarded as a perfect end to your study career.
As for becoming an official, Zhang Yue thought he could let himself go if he was not so ambitious.
With the high salary of an official in the Song Dynasty, Zhang Yue can fully experience what freedom of wealth is. For a commoner who works all day after graduation, is it a dream to talk about feelings and ideals?
It’s a pity that Zhang Yue is a time traveler. The pain of being a time traveler is that you will know what this nation will encounter in a few decades. In what year AD did Jingkang come?
Although Zhang Yue was studying in hiding, he did not lack any etiquette. He asked Tang Jiu to bring letters to Zhang Heng, Chen Xiang, Ouyang Xiu and others, saying that he was preparing for the palace examination and would visit him after the palace examination to express his gratitude for so many years of cultivation.
Grace.
There were also letters from Wang An, Wang Anli, brothers, Lu Zhijiao, Zeng Gong, Su Xun, Han Zhongyan, Wen Jifu and so on.
With so many people wanting to meet Zhang Yue one by one, it was hard to do anything, so he had no choice but to send a group text message.
Chen Xiang, Ouyang Xiu, and Zhang Heng all responded to the letter generously and shared their experiences in the imperial examination.
During this period, Zhang Yue from the Nine Dynasties of the Tang Dynasty went home. Zhang Yue learned that since that day when he was ordered to capture his son-in-law, the matchmaker from Bianjing had almost broken the threshold of his family.
Zhang Yue was also filled with emotion when he heard the news. His mood at this moment can be summed up in two lines of poetry.
It’s easy to understand the saying that after ten years of being cold and no one asked, once you become famous, the world will know you.
Another saying is: As the flowers gradually become more charming, Asakusa has no horse hooves.
Among thousands of flowers, I only picked one peony. As for the other flowers, why bother lingering over and over again if I didn’t pick them?
People are often wary of big things and never make mistakes, but they often stumble on small things.
In the past, the Wu family treated Zhang Yue with great respect, but now that he has gained the upper hand, even if he has no intention of regretting the marriage, if he is complacent because many dignitaries come to propose marriage, he may not be able to understand his own weight for a while, and at this moment hesitates a little, showing that he is waiting for the marriage.
The mentality of selling at a price or using it to suppress the wife's family is disrespectful to people. The Wu family has underestimated themselves from now on. Not only has it failed Wu Chong to appreciate him, but he has also failed to live up to the seventeenth mother's treatment of him.
Admiration.
Zhang Yue had already made up his mind to do this. At this time, he wanted to reassure the Wu family and avoid worries, so that he could go all out to prepare for the imperial examination.
Zhang Yue and Huang Lu came to live here to give an explanation to the Wu family in advance so that they could feel at ease. Now they have entrusted it to their brother and second aunt to discuss the matter of coming to propose marriage.
Zhang Yue made up his mind to come to propose marriage, and he became the hands-off shopkeeper.
It’s not that I don’t care, it’s that there is nothing more urgent than preparing for the palace examination that will be held in more than twenty days.