Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 600 Why Chao Tianjue

Shenjing, Imperial Examination Hall, March 27th, early morning.

It rained in spring again last night, and the air was filled with a cool and moist feeling.

A faint dawn had appeared in the eastern sky, casting a golden hue on the eaves of the Gongyuan's corner tower, leaving a magnificent and majestic silhouette against the dark blue sky.

Outside the Imperial Examination Hall, the vast and vast city of Shenjing was still immersed in a deep sleep, except for some faint hustle and bustle coming from the East Market not far away.

However, the densely packed rooms in the Imperial Examination Hall had already lit up their candles like stars, and from afar, it looked like a field of shining stars in the boundless night sky.

Compared with the previous few days, there were more patrol officers in each alley, the purpose was to prevent candlelight...

Since the spring examination began in the 15th year of Jiazhao, most of the candidates were still sleeping in their dormitories at this time a few days before the exam.

But today is different, because March 27th is the last day of the three policy essay examinations and also the end of the imperial examination.

Today at sunset, the Spring Examination will come to an end.

For all the candidates, today is the final sprint on their road to success.

During every spring examination, the Imperial Examination Hall would only provide one white wax candle per person for free every day; it was not because the imperial court was too stingy.

Because there are no less than 3,000 candidates taking the spring examinations in the Great Zhou Dynasty, even if each person uses a wax stick every day, tens of thousands of wax sticks will be consumed in nine days, which is an astonishing waste.

In addition, the number of rooms in the Imperial Examination Hall was very close, and lighting many candles at night posed a great fire hazard. Therefore, considering the safety of the examination, the court did not approve of the candidates studying hard by lighting candles every day.

But it is difficult to prohibit this explicitly, so students are allowed to bring in limited amounts of white wax, which leads to some students cheating by using wax seals.

Therefore, the white wax that the candidates brought into the examination room would be broken and checked by the officers, and almost no one was spared.

Broken wax is often inconvenient to light. On the last day of the imperial examination, in order to meet the needs of candidates who have to finish their manuscripts overnight, the Imperial Examination Hall will sell limited amounts of wax.

Of course, the wax trees and food in the Imperial Examination Hall were very expensive, but by the last two days of the examination, even the most expensive wax trees would be snapped up...

……

The first policy essay question in this imperial examination was too difficult and grand, which made the four subsequent policy essay questions difficult to start with.

Since March 24, when the three examinations began, only a small number of candidates received the first question. After some deliberation, they began to write their essays.

Most of the candidates would ponder over their ideas for most of the day, and would only start writing in the afternoon or even evening of the same day.

A small number of candidates with limited talents were unable to clear their thoughts until the next morning, and could only write reluctantly.

As the last night of the three sessions approached, many students worked late into the night, staying up all night, exhausting all their energy, revising and writing drafts over and over again, striving for perfection.

In fact, this situation is not uncommon at all. There were more than 3,000 candidates who took the exam, but less than one out of a hundred made the final list.

The imperial examinations in every dynasty started with the provincial examinations, and were destined to be a path to success for only a few scholars. For the majority of students who took the examinations, they were merely there to take the exams as a formality.

How many students spent nine days preparing for the Imperial Examination, only to be inferior to others in talent, determination and diligence and destined to miss the chance to be on the list of successful candidates. In the end, they could only move themselves.

……

Jia Cong started writing on the first day of the three examinations and completed the draft on the same day. In the evening, he reviewed the manuscript to sort out his thoughts and then turned off the lights early to rest.

The day after the three exams, he spent another whole day carefully reviewing and revising the draft, during which he revised several drafts and even wrote words on the back of the draft.

By the time I was sure of the final draft and no longer had any doubts about errors or omissions, the night wind was already chilly and the moon was rising in the east.

He folded the draft carefully and put it under the quilt, then carefully put the blank paper into the examination box, and lay down to rest early.

When he woke up the next day before the morning, he was refreshed, took some dry food and heated it on the stove, then ate breakfast carefully.

He also used the red clay tea that Daiyu had given him and added fresh Siamese tribute tea, and cooked it on the small stove in the dormitory.

When the hour of Mao arrived, the east was just getting light, the spring chill was filling the air, the fire in the stove was glowing red, the water was boiling, and the tea was ready.

He filled a cup with fragrant tea, and as soon as he drank the tea, he felt warm all over, his mind was clear and he was full of energy.

Then he took out yesterday's draft, ground ink and spread paper, finalized the five policy questions, and copied them neatly on the main volume.

……

Back then, Jia Cong's calligraphy couplet was posted on the door of his home by his wet nurse, Madam Zhao, and was accidentally seen by the retainers of Prince Kangshun. This made him stand out in the Jia family.

Over the years, whether he was studying or working as an official, he never stopped honing his calligraphy, and his calligraphy became more and more perfect.

He has been immersed in calligraphy for many years and has a solid foundation. His writing is fluent and fast, which is incomparable to ordinary people.

From the dark early morning till the rising sun, it took him only one hour to copy all the answers to the five policy questions.

On the snow-white answer paper, there are lines of elegant and neat handwriting, as if carved with a knife or an axe, neat and exquisite, pleasing to the eye.

However, no matter how exquisite the calligraphy is, very few people are lucky enough to see it, and it will eventually become a dusty file stored in a corner of the Imperial Examination Hall's archives.

Now that the joint examination is over, all the test papers of the candidates will be sent to the Ministry of Rites for recording before being distributed for marking.

The test paper will be copied once by a clerk using a red pen without missing a single word. The chief examiner and co-examiners will only look at the copied copy, while the original will be sealed and kept separately.

This is to prevent examiners from identifying people by their handwriting when marking the papers, which could lead to related cheating.

Jia Cong carefully read through the transcribed manuscript again to make sure there were no more mistakes or omissions. He then put away the draft and manuscript properly, and then relaxed completely...

At this time, many candidates were still pondering, and most of them began to copy the correct papers.

Occasionally, screams from individual candidates could be heard in the alley. Judging from their wailing sounds, they probably made typos during the copying process or the cover of the original volume was stained.

If this happens, the test paper will not be invalidated, but when the clerk copies it, it will be recorded as unclean, and the subsequent marking and grading will be deducted.

……

When the sun was at its zenith, Jia Cong began to bake dry food as usual and ate his lunch seriously.

However, most of the candidates in the examination halls were still writing furiously...

It was not until the afternoon that the clear sound of the cloud boards striking echoed in the alleys.

Some candidates felt relieved, but more candidates became more nervous and rushed to copy the final papers.

Because the cloud board was struck at the Shen time today, it meant that there was only one hour left for the three policy tests.

At the same time, the 15th year of Jiazhao's imperial examination will end in an hour...

After the sound of the cloud board, Jia Cong heard the clear ringing of bells in the nearby alleys, which were cheerful, lively, high-spirited, and relieved...

Because, after the third hour on the last day of the examination, candidates can start handing in their papers.

Although the questions in this year's imperial examination were more difficult to answer than in previous years, there was always a shortage of talented people among the 3,000 candidates who took the exam.

Some people rack their brains but find it difficult to come up with ideas; others have a flood of inspiration and can write thousands of words.

Among the thousands of students in the Imperial Academy, there were many people like Jia Cong who prepared the test questions in advance.

However, Jia Cong was not in a hurry to hand in his paper, because there were clear regulations for the imperial examination, that students entering the Imperial Examination Hall to take the exam could only leave the Hall together after the Wenhua Bell rang at the end of the imperial examination.

Even if you hand in your paper early now, you still have to wait in the dormitory for the Imperial Examination Hall to open.

Time passed slowly, and it was not until 5:45 pm that Jia Cong rang the bell in his cell. Not long after, two clerks and a yamen runner came to Jia Cong's cell to collect the papers.

Because collecting papers is also an important part of the examination, in order to prevent cheating due to paper substitution during the collecting process.

Every time the papers are collected, there must be two full-time clerks present at the same time to supervise each other.

When collecting the examination papers, both the candidates and the clerk who collects the papers have to register them in a book, and then put their signatures and seals on the folded corners of the original paper and the manuscript paper respectively.

Once the examination papers were damaged or lost, they could be registered in a thin book and proofread twice to trace the source. The officials who were responsible would be exiled at the least and executed at the most serious level.

After receiving the examination papers from the candidates, the clerk would immediately hand them over to the sealing official of the Imperial Examination Hall for sealing.

The sealing officer will fold the corner of the test paper with the name filled in, stamp it with the seal, and seal it.
Afterwards, the sealing officer will send the test paper to the recording officer for recording. The test paper copied with a red pen will not contain any other personal information except the test paper number.

The procedures were extremely strict and did not allow for any mistakes, otherwise the officials involved would be implicated and convicted...

……

By the time Jia Cong handed in his test paper, Lin Zhaohe, the top scorer in Hangzhou Prefecture, who was about ten seats ahead of him, also rang the bell for his success.

Further away in the examination room, Wu Liang, after nine days of examination, had a chubby face that looked a little haggard, but his eyes were bright as he watched the clerk collecting the papers go away, his eyes revealing anxiety and hope.

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After Jia Cong handed in his test paper, he packed up his belongings. A few quarters of an hour later, the Wenhua bell that opened the Imperial Examination Hall finally rang.

The rumbling sound of bells coming from the Imperial Examination Hall was loud enough to be heard throughout most of the capital city, and the imperial examination in the 15th year of Jiazhao officially came to an end.

When Jia Cong followed the crowd out of Shexiang and passed by Lin Zhaohe, he did not recognize the Hangzhou prefectural champion who had come to visit him.

Apart from going to the government office and working in the Firearms Department workshop, he spent the rest of his time at home and seldom went out.

Therefore, even a commoner scholar like Lin Zhaohe could not recognize the appearance of the famous Weiyuan Earl.

Jia Cong followed the crowd of candidates and poured out of the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall. The nearby streets were already filled with many horse-drawn carriages, all of which were the relatives and friends of the candidates who were waiting to take the exam.

Zhou Yan walked out of the Imperial Examination Hall in a depressed and frustrated mood. Suddenly he heard someone calling him from behind. He turned around to look for him among the candidates who were coming out.

Seeing Wu Liang's slightly plump smiling face, he waved at him and called out, "Brother Baokun, I'm here!"

Zhou Yan's eyes lit up slightly, and he immediately stopped and waited. Wu Liang stepped forward quickly and said, "I made an appointment with Bao Kun that day, why did you break the appointment and make me wait for so long?

How did Baokun do in the exam this time? Are you sure you can pass?"

Zhou Yan took Wu Liang a few steps away, glanced at the crowd pouring out of the Imperial Examination Hall, and sighed in a depressed mood: "I thought you and I had the chance, but I didn't expect that something unexpected would happen when the time came.

The questions in this interview were very difficult and awkward. It was really a mistake, a mistake..."

When Wu Liang heard Zhou Yan's words, his heart couldn't help but skip a beat.

Looking at his frustrated and lost expression, it was obvious that he had failed the exam very badly and most likely failed...

The words that were on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back.

Now let's talk about the incident that day when he broke his promise and was unable to inform the examiner Huang Hongcang in time.

There is no other meaning in doing this except to add to his troubles, and it will only create some entanglements. So why bother?

……

The two walked together for a while, and Zhou Yan suddenly thought of something and asked, "Xiwen, I remember that you appreciated Lord Xu's advice that day and bought the collection of essays he recommended.

This time the examiner was suddenly replaced by Lord Xu. Did you gain anything from his advice that day in this exam?"

Wu Liang's face froze a little after hearing these words, and he quickly said, "I listened to your advice and bought the collection he recommended that day, but I just bought it when I was in the mood..."

Seeing Zhou Yan's haggard face, Wu Liang sighed inwardly and said, "The first question of this examination is quite difficult. When I came out of retreat just now, many of my classmates were resentful.

I just wrote it carelessly. Now that you and I have come out of seclusion, whether we can achieve anything in this examination depends on God’s will.”

Zhou Yan sighed again after hearing this. Wu Liang said, "When I left the retreat just now, I didn't see Brother Yichun. He is a top scorer in the exam, so he must have done better than you.

If we have some free time in the future, the three of us can meet up and have a good drink together. I have been in the cell for nine days and I am almost smelly. I need to go back and wash up immediately. We will see each other again in the future."

Zhou Yan couldn't help but smile after hearing this. What Wu Liang said was indeed the truth. The candidates taking the exams had been staying in their dormitories for nine days, and they were all dressed in filth.

He waved to Wu Liang, hired a carriage and returned to his residence.

When Wu Liang saw his Zhou Yan's carriage going away, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and returned to Hongxiang Inn excitedly.

……

When Jia Cong walked out of the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall, he saw Jiang Liu standing on the side of the road with two carriages beside him.

When he saw Jia Cong coming out of seclusion, he hurried over and said with a smile, "Third Master, you are out of seclusion!

After noon today, the eldest lady and the girls at home asked us to prepare the carriage and wait at the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall to take you back to the mansion."

Jia Cong saw that in addition to Jiang Liu, the steward of the East Palace and a few servants were also waiting beside the carriage.

They saw that Jia Cong had messy hair but was in high spirits. Although he looked a little disheveled, a candidate walking out of the Imperial Examination Hall would not look so sloppy.

Everyone hurried forward to take Jia Cong's luggage, and the person who got off the other carriage was Jia Zheng, which surprised Jia Cong.

Jia Zheng said with a smile, "I just got off duty at this hour, so I came to see how Cong-ge was doing in the Spring Examination."

Jia Cong knew that Jia Zheng's so-called "just happened to be off duty" was just an excuse. He was obsessed with the imperial examination and was really concerned about his performance on the test.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "I am not worthy of having you come here again, Master. Don't worry, everything is fine."

When Jia Zheng heard the word "still good" and saw Jia Cong's bright face, he knew that he had done quite well in the exam and could not help feeling happy.

He smiled and said, "Good, good. With the arrival of a talented man, our Rongguo Mansion finally has a son who has made a fortune through his studies. This is truly a blessing from our ancestors!"

Jia Zheng praised Jia Cong a few more times. If he hadn't been too ostentatious on the streets, he would probably have wanted to let everyone know that Rongguo Mansion had also produced a successful Jinshi.

……

When all the candidates left the Imperial Academy, this grand examination that concerned the whole world entered the next stage.

The busyness in the Imperial Examination Hall seemed to have just begun.

Starting from tonight, the sixty sealing officials who had already gathered in the Imperial Examination Hall will seal and stamp more than three thousand test papers, totaling tens of thousands of original papers.

After noon tomorrow, the Ministry of Rites will organize clerks to transcribe all the sealed test papers with red ink.

The selection and selection of candidates for the Spring Examination will begin from the transcription of the examination papers...

Before admitting candidates, the registration officer will conduct various detailed checks on the examination papers.

Whether there are any taboos in the answer sheet, whether there is any self-description of family background, whether the number of words in the answer sheet is in compliance with the regulations, whether there are any presumptuous words on the paper, whether the accompanying draft is complete, etc.

As long as any one of the items is not in compliance with the regulations, the examination paper will be immediately discarded, even if the candidate's essay is brilliantly written.

When the candidates finished the nine-day spring examination and walked out of the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall, no one could really relax.

It would take a month from the end of the imperial examination to the final announcement of the names. What awaited them would be greater suffering and waiting, or even unknown changes...

(End of this chapter)