golden scales

Jin Pengtu had originally planned to do business in Daming for the rest of his life, but because of the sudden change in Jeju Island, his life took a different path.I am afraid that he will never forget the news from a relative from North Korea in the sweltering heat of June in the capital.

"I hope you can pass the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination and become an official dispatched to Jeju to make some contributions to the family." Naturally, that relative was also surnamed Jin, and at the same time brought five thousand gold as capital for Jinpengtu's operation in the capital.

Jin Pengtu really has no affection for the Jin family, because he is a son of a concubine.In North Korea, sons take their father's surname, but follow their mother's social class.For example, if the father is an aristocrat, if the mother is a pariah, the child is still a pariah.

In this regard, Jin Pengtu was very yearning for a society where there were no classes in Ming Dynasty, and as far as he knew, no matter what the status of the mother was, the bastard son of a noble family would not affect his own status.Even the Ming emperor's mother was not very noble, which still did not prevent them from ruling this great country.

However, Jin Pengtu has a lot of affection for "Jin", so he is very happy to be recognized by the Jin family who abandoned him, and happily accepts the five thousand gold.

In July of the 22nd year of Chongzhen, after a month of hard training in Chinese, Jin Pengtu finally obtained the Daming Grade A Diploma Examination, which is also the highest diploma he can obtain with his ability.

If it is said that only relying on the education of a few prostitutes to pass the entrance examination, Jin Pengtu is really against the sky. What's more, although the official imperial examination of Ming Dynasty does not prohibit foreigners from applying for the examination, the required household registration and guarantor are really beyond the reach threshold.

After obtaining the first-class diploma, Jinpengtu still needs to pass the oral Chinese test at Siyi Hall.The crown prince attaches great importance to translation work, so in addition to the Siyi Pavilion in the capital, there are also branches in various places, which are also called Siyi Pavilion, but they are under the direct management of Honglu Temple.

Spoken Chinese tests hosted by Siyi Halls around the world.It is said that the content is the same, but in fact they are quite different.For example, Hangzhou Siyi Hall tests Jiangnan Mandarin, Fujian Siyi Hall tests Minnan Mandarin, and Guangzhou Siyi Hall tests vernacular... Only Jingshi Siyi Hall tests Jingshi Mandarin.

Jin Pengtu could only speak the official dialect of the capital, so he had no choice.He was very worried about whether the various honorifics would be different for men and women, and even more worried about whether low-status prostitutes had unique language habits.Let yourself inadvertently lose face in front of the examiner.

On the tenth day of the seventh month, Dingmao Day.

Jinpengtu got up early in the morning, and sat in the pavilion to "repose" after washing.It wasn't until the servant came to tell the time that he checked his clothes for the last time to make sure that there was no disrespect, and then he paced out the door.

He used five thousand gold to buy a two-entry small house near the Huitong Hall in Dongjiangmi Lane, so that he could communicate with the North Korean envoys living in the Huitong Hall.The servant was brought to him from North Korea by the Jin family. He didn't need to spend a penny, and the man seemed quite honest and reliable.

The only thing Jinpengtu lacks now is concubines and maidservants.This month's wandering around Huajie and Liuxiang really made him a little bored, and he planned to buy two after passing the exam.

While thinking wildly in his mind, Jin Pengtu walked past the Shanglin Court Prison.Along the way, the trees are lined with shade and lined up straight.This was not common in the early years of Ming Dynasty. It was the new policy implemented after the crown prince came to power, which aimed to introduce natural scenery into the city.It is said that it was because he believed in Taoism, and he was a god who came down to earth to create a fairyland on earth.

In contrast, the cities of North Korea are really aggrieved and dry.It was so dirty and messy that it couldn't be compared with Daming at all.

With this in mind.Jinpengtu is very worried about his future.If he really went to Jeju to become an official, wouldn't he be able to see Daming's fairyland again?And Jeju is a place where criminal officials are exiled, who wants to go there to be an official!

——Or just find a chance to stay in Daming?Anyway, the Kim family has no relationship with me.

Jin Pengtu secretly made up his mind.

"Who are you, you just barge in like this?" The gatekeeper stopped Jin Pengtu, and the guards on both sides, who looked like heavenly soldiers and generals, also tilted their spears and glared.

Jin Pengtu hastily collected his soul.He bowed to the end: "It's a sin, a sin, Xiaosheng is a scholar who came to take the exam."

"Scholar?" The porter looked at him contemptuously, "Where's the certificate?"

Jin Pengtu quickly took out the admission certificate and handed it over.After the concierge finished checking, he made way for him to enter through the small door next to the middle door.

After Jin Pengtu went in, he realized that he was actually late.

There have long been many students from various countries gathered in the small courtyard between the front hall and the main hall.Finding someone to talk to with their own accents can be regarded as a cold-blooded experience.Jin Pengtu found that among these students were Annan people, Ryukyu people, and other barbarians from Nanyang. The most rare thing was that there was a big man in Mongolian costume among them.

Other foreign students wearing Hanfu consciously resisted him, and no one spoke to him.

At this time, there was still half an hour before the start of the exam.

Jin Pengtu didn't dare to wander around, but just looked around.

A row of test sheds separated by bamboo were built in front of the east and west hatchbacks of the Siyi Pavilion, running through the front and back, with reed mats on the top, and only a low table in the room, and mats on the floor.It seemed that both the examiner and the candidates had to sit on the floor.This kind of sitting method is upright sitting in Ming Dynasty, and this ancient custom is still followed when attending high-end ceremonial occasions, so sitting posture is also one of the assessment contents.

This is really not good news for North Korean men who are used to sitting on the floor.

After a while, several old soldiers began to set up curtains in the courtyard, and the examiner who came earlier also appeared under the eaves.They are all young people who are not too young, their waists are straight, their heads are slightly raised, and they criticize each other's candidates this time, which is quite condescending.

Of course, they are examiners today, so they are naturally higher than candidates.

Three bells rang, and an old soldier stood in front of the main hall, let go of his throat and shouted: "The time has come! All candidates, prepare your own credentials, and advance after learning the name!"

The candidates from various countries below were suddenly silent, quietly listening to the call of the old army, for fear of missing it.

Jin Pengtu was also quite nervous.He heard that the speaking test is about [-] out of [-]. There are more than [-] people here, and they can only get [-]. The competition pressure is still a bit high.

Following the swaying of figures behind the curtain, twelve examiners took their seats.

After a while, the veteran shouted out numbers and names, many of which were standard Han names.Jin Pengtu knew that this was a son of a Han Chinese who was doing business in North Korea. It was a shortcut to obtain a visa first by using Korean to get a visa, and then as a foreigner to study and become an official.

—— Daming doesn't care!

Real foreigners look at these people who fish in troubled waters, with fire in their eyes and unhappy in their hearts.

But Daming couldn't help it.

It is impossible for the visa officer of the Department of Shipping to conduct detailed and effective background checks, and all documents are official identification certificates issued by North Korea.And this kind of certificate is clearly priced in North Korea, and it is not harmful to local officials anyway.

Conversely, this behavior did little damage to the Ming court.Because the positions assigned to foreign officials are all low-level official positions, there is not much room for advancement, and it is mainly a means of assimilation.If they pass the exam, they are more likely to be sent to Taiwan, Liaodong, and North Korea. As for whether they are actually Ming people or Korean people, there is no difference.

Moreover, admission by proportion is just a rumor circulating among candidates, and it is a misunderstanding of the admission ratio statistics announced by the Ministry of Rites.Each examiner has an oral question and answer bank, which is randomly selected and has strict standardized scoring. As long as the score is qualified, it will naturally pass, and there is no such thing as choosing the best.

Of course, there is no need to tell them the specific rules so clearly.

After a long wait, Jin Pengtu finally heard his number and name, hurriedly stepped forward to salute, followed and guided the old soldier through the curtain and into a test room.Because he was walking fast, Jin Pengtu could still see the backs of the candidates leaving in front.

His examiner was a young man in his twenties, with a beard that had just begun to grow on his mouth, showing a bit of childishness.The examiner made a gesture of please sit down, with the wooden board in his hand, staring at Jin Pengtu's sitting posture, and began to score.

Jin Pengtu carefully restrained his expression and saluted like a ritual.However, he was nervous for a moment, his knees went limp, and he almost knelt down in front of the examiner, his heart twitched.

The examiner didn't smile.

This kind of knees landing at the same time is called "kneeling", not "sitting", and points will be deducted.

"Sir, please tell yourself." The examiner said leisurely.

Jin Pengtu didn't expect that the speaking test was not only about accent, but also about utterance. He became more nervous and stammered, "My surname is Jin, my name is Pengtu, Biaozi, Zi, Shinan, and I'm from Jeolla Zuo, North Korea. road……"

The examiner listened attentively, and the charcoal pen in his hand had already drawn a cross on the thin wooden board, indicating that there had been an unconventional or disrespectful wording in his statement.

——But his calligraphy is pretty good, it is taken from "Xiaoyaoyou".

With this in mind, the examiner put a little more emphasis on the side, which is considered an extra point.

Jin Pengtu was still trying to collect words, but he didn't know that the words he had spent [-] pennies to find a fortune teller on the street had already added a point to him.

After the self-report, the examiner also took some social knowledge of Daming today, as well as his understanding and views on Daming, and completed the second stage of assessment.

In the third stage, Jinpengtu picked up a piece of paper from the carton and analyzed and explained it according to the above words.There are Tang poems and Song lyrics on these pieces of paper, there are four books and five classics, and there are miscellaneous songs and scriptures... It doesn't matter if what is said is right or wrong, it just depends on whether it can be justified.

This is the easiest part to lose points, and it is also the easiest part to win the favor of the examiner.Jin Pengtu racked his brains to recall idioms and allusions, and finally saw the smiling expression on the examiner's face, which made him feel much more relaxed.

The examiner's smile is not necessarily because of the beautiful use of words, sometimes simply because some idioms are outrageously wrong.

Coming out of the examination room, Jin Pengtu breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing someone outside the side door looking very annoyed, he deliberately pretended to be calm, as if he had just experienced a trivial matter.

In fact, no matter what the exam is, you can only wait for the result. (To be continued..)

ps: Ask for a recommendation ticket, ask for a monthly ticket~~!