King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 808 This is no longer an ordinary rioter

The next day, after the examiners had drawn up the rankings, they signed them together and submitted them to the Imperial Household Department, and then they were handed before the Emperor.

Zhu Jinghong didn't look at it, but leaned back on the couch and let Xichun read the list to him.

Xichun took the list and read it softly: "The first place in the first class is Feng Yuan from Yingtian Prefecture, Nanjing; the second place in the first class is Song Ziyu from Zhenjiang Prefecture, Nanjing; the third place in the first class is Mu Xinrong from Shenyang Prefecture, Liaodong; the first place in the second class is Wen Yutang from Chengdu Prefecture, Sichuan..."

Xichun continued to read, but Zhu Jinghong no longer listened carefully because he had achieved his goal.

About ten minutes later, Xichun finished reading the last name, then knelt down in front of the emperor, and then held the title book in front of Zhu Jinghong.

"Pen!" Zhu Jinghong called out.

A palace maid came to the emperor with the imperial pen in her hand and handed it over carefully.

Taking the pen, Zhu Jinghong looked at Xichun and said with a smile: "Raise it higher!"

So Xichun could only reach her hand higher and hand the page to be reviewed to Zhu Jinghong.

Holding a red brush, Zhu Jinghong wrote the two words "照准" (zhaozhun) on the title book. These two words were the ones he was most skilled at writing.

"Let someone send it to the Imperial Household Department!" Zhu Jinghong said.

"Yes!" Xichun agreed.

After the memorial was sent to the Silijian for stamping, it followed the procedure and came to the Rites Department among the six departments. After they archived and signed it, it was sent to the Ministry of Rites for public release.

The officials of the six departments were all censors, and they were more or less honest. When they saw the unknown Feng Yuan on the list, they all felt a little confused.

After checking, everyone found out that Feng Yuan was the third from the bottom in the imperial examination, but now he was unexpectedly selected as the top scorer.

The officials in the Ministry of Rites were very dissatisfied, so they spread the news, and then people in other departments knew about it.

Those who were more radical scolded the examiners for being blind, but they only dared to scold these officials and would never dare to target the emperor directly.

So the question now is whether to exercise the power of the six departments to reject and return this printed question book.

Huang Xiuyong, the Minister of Rites, was in a difficult position. If the power of rejection was to be used, he would have to take the lead in handling the matter.

The six departments were powerful but of low rank, and he was only a seventh-rank official. Facing the imperial power directly was like a moth flying into a flame.

But right now the public is very angry. If he says he will follow the order, the anger of the people will be directed at him, and he will be doomed.

After thinking it over again and again, Huang Xiuyong said loudly: "Everyone, His Majesty must have been deceived by the cabinet and those examiners. Why don't we go to the emperor's palace together to make a remonstrance?"

As soon as Huang Xiuyong said this, the scene immediately became much quieter. Shouting loudly does not mean that one is willing to take the lead.

But as he said, Huang Xiuyong was framed by these people, and his words framed everyone around him, so that the scene finally became quiet.

There were more than a dozen people present, all of whom were the most "upright" censors among the six departments. Finally, one of them broke the silence and said, "I'm willing to go with you," which forced the others to respond.

When this group of people were about to enter the palace, the Northern Pacification Office had received an imperial edict an hour ago and dispatched an additional 100 captains to guard the Qianqing Gate.

The leader of the team is named Ni Jinzhong, who used to be the local thug Ni Er. Now he has been promoted to deputy captain.

Standing at the imperial steps outside the Qianqing Gate, Ni Er held the sword at his waist with one hand and the leather belt with the other, listening to the flattery of the two centurions on his left and right with a smile on his face.

Outside the palace walls further to the left and right, there stood dozens of captains in brocade uniforms. All of them had indifferent expressions but looked awe-inspiring.

"Okay, okay, let's talk about this later when we get back. Have you greeted everyone below you?" Ni Er asked, looking up.

One of the centurions replied, "Your Excellency, all the instructions have been given. As long as you give the order, we can arrest the person!"

"Tell the brothers that these people have offended the Emperor, so they don't need to be too careful. It would be better to let them suffer a little!"

"Yes!"

"Go and tell them again!" Ni Er said seriously.

The two men did not dare to be negligent, so they each went to their subordinates and solemnly conveyed Deputy Captain Ni's instructions.

Looking at the palace road in the distance, Ni Er was looking forward to the arrival of the officials. After all, he still had to rely on these people for promotion.

In addition to Ni Er, the Dragon Guards and Qianqing Gate guards on duty nearby also stood there waiting to watch the show. All they had to do was watch.

On the other side, Huang Xiuyong, with a group of about twenty people, had already passed through the palace road outside the Chongzheng Hall. After a few more steps, they would be able to see the Qianqing Gate in the distance.

But just after these few steps, Huang Xiuyong saw the large number of Jinyiwei on the opposite side, which made him feel terrified in an instant.

"Ouch……"

Huang Xiuyong fell down, then hugged his knees and cried bitterly, which caused a commotion among the people who were accompanying him.

Those who were more observant and flexible quickly gathered around Huang Xiuyong to inquire about his injuries, and saw that Huang Xiuyong was in so much pain that he couldn't speak.

So the few people who asked the questions immediately helped Huang Xiuyong up and shouted to send him to the Imperial Hospital, which shocked the others.

Then the others gradually came to their senses. After looking towards the Qianqing Palace, they all said that they would go and check on Huang Xiuyong's condition first. As for the matter of giving advice, no one mentioned it again.

A few minutes later, Zhu Jinghong received the report. He just smiled and continued reading the report.

Song Ziyu was waiting for good news, and he received the good news in the early morning, but it was the second place in the first class.

In theory, this is also a great honor for scholars, but this is not the case for Song Ziyu.

His psychological expectation was to get the top spot in the imperial examination, which was the first time in hundreds of years that he had won the top six places in the imperial examination. However, he was only the second place.

So after confirming the good news, he hurriedly asked who the first place was. He learned that it was Feng Yuan from Yingtian Prefecture in Nanjing, which surprised Song Ziyu even more.

He had a lot of interactions with Feng Yuan and was somewhat familiar with his knowledge. At best, he was at the lower third level, so it was outrageous that he was chosen as the top scorer this time.

But Song Ziyu was unable to investigate further because the top ten candidates in the palace examination would be summoned by the emperor before the imperial edict was announced to the public.

In other words, only the top ten have been announced so far, and the rankings of the others are still kept confidential.

Before dawn, Song Ziyu got dressed and rushed to the imperial city under the escort of the officials. When he arrived, he found that Feng Yuan had already arrived.

Feng Yuan was still in shock. He had never expected that he would be the number one scholar. Until now, he believed that it was a mistake and was thinking about how to clarify it when he met the emperor.

Feng Yuan knew his own level clearly. His greatest hope was to get into the second class. He never thought that he would get into the first class and be the first.

Song Ziyu wanted to go up and talk, but after thinking it over, he felt that he had nothing to say, and it would be embarrassing if he started an argument.

Soon everyone arrived, and everyone took a new look at Feng Yuan, this little-known figure.

As everyone arrived, a ceremonial officer led them into the palace, and they entered from the main gate of Daming Gate, passed Chengtian Gate and Duanmen, and arrived at Wumen.

Here everyone will line up and stand still, and the officials from the Ministry of Rites will call out the names and officially announce everyone's ranking.

When Feng Yuan heard that his name was the first to be called out, he had to admit that he had really become the top scorer.

This was the most official recognition. Song Ziyu, who won the second place, was heartbroken, but could only endure the pain silently.

Soon everyone was led into the Meridian Gate and finally brought to the Chongzheng Hall, where Zhu Jinghong would meet everyone.

The so-called interview was actually a procedural meeting. Everyone kowtowed and saluted according to the rules. Zhu Jinghong just encouraged everyone a few words and then announced that the so-called summons were over. Only the new champion Feng Yuan was left behind, which made him particularly nervous, as if he was an imposter.

Looking at Feng Yuan kneeling on the ground, Zhu Jinghong asked, "Did you write the essay for the palace examination deliberately for the sake of luck or did you really have this realization?"

If admitting the former is tantamount to deceiving the emperor, Feng Yuan can only have one answer.

After confirming that the etiquette was correct, Feng Yuan said, "Your Majesty, the essays I wrote are all based on my own experience, and I dare not make any false claims!"

Is Feng Yuan telling a lie? It doesn't matter to Zhu Jinghong.

Even if it is just pretending, as long as this guy pretends for his whole life, Zhu Jinghong can accept it. Of course, it would be even better if he is sincere.

To test this, Zhu Jinghong asked several questions in succession, all based on Feng Yuan's writings, to understand his views on future events.

Feng Yuan's answer did satisfy Zhu Jinghong.

"Speaking of which, I have seen you in my early years?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Your Majesty saved my life in Nanjing, and now you have personally selected me as the top student, which can be said to be a great blessing..."

"Your Majesty's great grace is beyond my ability to repay, even if I die a thousand times!" Feng Yuan kowtowed again, expressing his gratitude after ten years.

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Zhu Jinghong smiled and replied, "It can be seen that there is a will of heaven. Today you have won the first prize and I have gained a wise minister. This is the gift of heaven to me!"

With this relationship, the friendship between the monarch and his subject became even deeper, which made Feng Yuan overjoyed.

The summons was over, and when he followed everyone out of the palace, the imperial edict had already been announced outside, and the new scholars flocked to see the list.

After watching it, everyone was surprised that Feng Yuan was the first place, and Song Ziyu, the first place winner, was the second place.

Soon after, news came out that Feng Yuan, who was listed in the biography list, was summoned by the emperor alone, which caused an even greater uproar.

Everyone wanted to know what kind of amazing article Feng Yuan had written to be able to surpass Song Ziyu, the "Five Yuan", and be so favored by the emperor.

The palace examination essays are archived in the Ministry of Rites, and these new scholars will be able to see them later, but now they are impatient.

In fact, in addition to the newly-appointed Jinshi, there are also a large number of candidates who failed the imperial examination waiting in the capital, and these people are also very curious about Feng Yuan's articles.

Zhu Jinghong appointed Feng Yuan as the top scholar in order to announce his philosophy of governing the country to the outside world, and now he naturally has to meet everyone's expectations.

So that afternoon, some "people from the imperial court" used their magical powers to copy out the answer sheets of the three people who won the top prize in the palace examination and sold them secretly.

As a result, the content of Feng Yuan's article spread throughout the capital.

Everyone had been looking forward to it for a long time and was eager to read it, but after finishing it, they were greatly disappointed because the writing style was indeed unsatisfactory.

But after being disappointed, these students began to think about the reasons again, and then each of them realized a lot of things.

Especially those candidates who failed the imperial examinations many times saw a bright future from Feng Yuan’s rise.

And this is exactly what Zhu Jinghong wants to achieve.

Song Ziyu went to see Jia Yucun to get to the bottom of things. The latter didn't want to see him but couldn't resist the man's sincerity, so he had to bring him into the house to listen to him tell his grievances.

But what can Jia Yucun say?
He knew something about what happened in the palace. People from the cabinet and the six departments had raised objections, but none of them had any effect.

What could Jia Yucun say? As the emperor's confidant, he could not have any objection and had to support him unconditionally.

"This matter has been decided. No more words can be said. You can do whatever you want!"

This was Jia Yucun’s final reminder, which made Song Ziyu extremely upset.

The top six places in the imperial examination were gone... This was a fatal blow to him.

After walking aimlessly outside the capital and along the moat for a while, Song Ziyu recited Qu Yuan's last work "Huaisha".

"I looked at it with a faint gaze, and I thought it was blind. I thought white was black, and upside down was down..."

Then, Song Ziyu couldn't think straight anymore and jumped into the moat.

Fortunately, his accompanying servants rescued him in time and saved his life. However, he still fell ill and missed the banquet the next day.

When Song Ziyu was sick, outsiders would only think that he was suffering from a mental illness, including Zhu Jinghong, but he didn't care too much about it.

The palace examination has come to an end, but discussions in the capital are still heated, and the new scholars have begun to take up their posts step by step.

Feng Yuan, Song Ziyu and others entered the Hanlin Academy, starting their noble and hard life.

In the blink of an eye, it was April, and the changes in the situation in the southwest were reported back to the capital after more than 20 days.

Inside the warm room, Zhu Jinghong finished reading the report from the southwest and his mood became very bad.

In front of him was Li Wenzhao from the Southern Pacification Office and three governors in Beijing, who had also read the report.

"Everyone, what do you think about this matter?"

The three governors looked at each other, and one of them replied, "Your Majesty, I think this matter is not simple!"

"The refugees are a mob. How dare they attack the military camp? They are no longer ordinary refugees!"

Zhu Jinghong nodded, signaling the veteran to continue.

"Those big cities like Myanmar and other countries have been ordered to build the Annan Xingdusi, but I'm afraid they are not sincere and may not be willing to do this!"

"So you're saying that they are the ones behind this?" Zhu Jinghong asked.

"Most likely!"

Zhu Jinghong then looked at the other two people, who analyzed the situation from different perspectives. Some said it might be the British and French who were stirring up trouble, while others said it was excessive exploitation by the local people that caused the unrest.

In Zhu Jinghong's view, all three reasons are valid. In reality, the development of things is mostly the result of the combined effect of multiple factors.

Standing up from the throne, Zhu Jinghong asked, "How should we deal with this matter? Do you have any good ideas?"

After a moment of silence, one of the three said, "Your Majesty, I think... we should send troops in as soon as possible to prevent any changes in the southwest!"

Then someone else said, "Your Majesty, I think we should also inform the navy and ask them to pay close attention to the British and French things. It would be best if they could formulate a battle strategy in advance!"

"Yeah!" Zhu Jinghong nodded.

Walking to the center of the hall, Zhu Jinghong added: "The three governors of Annan, Guangxi, and Yunnan should also make emergency preparations in advance!"

"A few days ago, they each took the exam and said how good they were at training soldiers. Now it's time to test their true skills!"

After saying this, Zhu Jinghong said to Yu Hai who was standing at one side: "Send another edict to the Ministry of War and ask them to grant Wan Zehui the power to make arbitrary decisions on the spot!"

The southwest is too far away, and it is unrealistic for Zhu Jinghong to give remote commands, so he must delegate authority to his subordinates so that all the divisions can work together.

"The defense of the southwest needs to be strengthened. The Beijing camp must send reinforcements, tentatively... 3,000 people!"

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)