Chapter 95: Tribute Scholars Banquet
While the business of salt was bustling across the Great Zhou, the palace examination in the capital also began.
After the joint examination, the candidates who passed the examination were all looking forward to it, because it was said that the palace examination was held in the Zhaixing Tower!
From then on, the palace examination would be held every three years in the Zhaixing Tower. It was said that the top scholar after the palace examination would be conferred an official position by the emperor himself on the top of the Zhaixing Tower.
Kuixing points to the stars, your name is on the list of successful candidates, you are in high spirits, glorious and honored, it is truly cause for celebration!
None of the students participating in the imperial examinations were not excited after hearing this. Once the top scorer in the imperial examination was awarded an official position, it meant that the Great Zhou Dynasty would enter an era where one no longer had to rely on family background to enter the officialdom!
Zhaixing Tower is the tallest building in the capital and the place closest to the sky.
Students will participate in two banquets in total. One is before the palace examination, hosted by the prime minister, and all the tribute students in the capital must attend. The other is after the palace examination, called the "Qionglin Banquet".
That’s right, the person who was entrusted by Yan Xuanyu to hold the tribute banquet this time was the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou, Lin Fu.
Yan Xuanyu happily summoned his "favored minister" to the palace to discuss the tribute scholar banquet.
"Your Majesty, I have a lot of affairs to attend to in the court. If you entrust me with such an important event as the tribute scholar banquet, I will be rumored to have abused my power because the past of the criminal Jiang Yuanhua is still vivid in my mind." Lin Fu said sincerely.
What he said was true. The Prime Minister did have a lot of affairs to manage in the court now, but Yan Xuanyu had overlooked this point.
Taking advantage of the moment when he lowered his head in thought, Lin Fu said again, "Your Majesty, I think it is most appropriate for the Minister of Rites to host this banquet for tribute scholars."
The current Minister of Rites, Yao Wuzhou, is a good friend of Lin Fu. Lin Fu has quietly tricked Yao Wuzhou again.
Yao Wuzhou, who was far away at home, sneezed for some reason.
...
Tang Xing was lucky enough to pass the imperial examination and became a tribute scholar. What made him happy was that Fan Chuntai, who came to the capital with him, also passed the examination.
Fan Chuntai's ranking is even higher than his.
The difficulty of the examination questions increased, which exposed the shortcomings of students like Tang Xing who studied based on the imperial examination syllabus officially issued by the Great Zhou Dynasty.
After all, Fan Chuntai had studied in a private school for many years and had a solid foundation. Even if Tang Xing was talented, it would not be possible for him to catch up overnight.
But Tang Xing was already satisfied. Being able to walk all the way here was something he had never dared to imagine.
After passing the imperial examination, the identities and status of the people around him who complimented and congratulated him were much different from before in Hanyun City, which also allowed Tang Xing to see countless people and things that he had never seen before.
This sudden feeling of flying into the clouds did not make this student from a farming family in Hanyun City lost.
Tang Xing and Fan Chuntai had already agreed that after the palace examination, he would bid farewell to Fan Chuntai and set off to return to Hanyun City.
Fan Chuntai continued to stay in the capital waiting for the results of the palace examination.
...
Gongshi are also eligible to enter the Zhaixing Tower——
Compared to Tang Xing's indifference, Fan Chuntai was very excited.
The tribute banquet held in the palace also made him tremble in his heart!
Fan Chuntai had been restless for more than ten days, constantly pulling Tang Xing to ask him what he should wear to the banquet that day, and walking around the room discussing whether they should buy some clothes.
Tang Xing felt that it was unnecessary. The price of cloth in the capital was 20% higher than that in Hanyun City, and the silver they brought was not so much that they could not use it all. Moreover, he had a deeper idea that he did not say out loud.
From what Ming Chengyu and the other two unintentionally revealed in their conversation, he felt that His Majesty might be happier to see students from ordinary families like them pass the imperial examinations.
...
The tribute banquet was held in Xingyun Pavilion.
Xingyun Pavilion is located on the south side of the imperial palace. Compared with Wenyuan Pavilion, it is closer to the south gate of the palace, which is more convenient for students to enter and exit. It is also larger in area, and the interior decoration is simpler but still expensive, making it very suitable for hosting banquets.
"Gudong." Fan Chuntai swallowed quietly.
What knowledge can two students from a southern city have?
Neither of them dared to look around, and under the guidance of the palace servants, they entered the Xingyun Pavilion and sat down next to each other.
Tang Xing breathed a sigh of relief and knelt down properly.
Fortunately, the seats were arranged according to the order of arrival, otherwise he would have felt uneasy because there was no one he knew.
Dishes were served on the table in front of everyone like a stream of water.
Many students stared with their eyes wide open at the fragrant and thin slices of grilled meat - it was said that this was a way of eating that was only available in the palace, grilled with a secret sauce.
There are also various exquisite dishes that look pleasing to the eye and mellow and strong wines.
It was only a small eunuch who came to announce the start of the banquet. Some people felt it was a pity that the tribute scholars did not get to know the officials at the banquet. Before that, many people were looking forward to the emperor coming to Xingyun Pavilion in person.
"It seems that the only way to see His Majesty is to take the palace examination."
Many students thought that the banquet for tribute scholars was relaxed because there were no officials. They boldly took the fine wine, and gradually the atmosphere in Xingyun Pavilion changed. Everyone relaxed from their restraint and became very happy.
Tang Xing picked up a dish of Longjing shrimp in front of him and ate it while looking around.
Fan Chuntai asked quietly, "Are you looking for that Brother Yu?"
Tang Xing nodded.
If no one is seen, it means Yu Xuan failed the imperial examination.
The two of them expressed their feelings for Brother Yu.
"It's just that people with such ugly faces got admitted." Fan Chuntai said.
Tang Xing followed his gaze. Who else could it be but Ye He who caused trouble that day?
At this time, he was surrounded by a group of people and was drinking continuously. He looked very unhappy.
"Why are they walking around so freely?" Fan Chuntai moved around a bit. He was a little tired after sitting for a long time.
"It's you two brothers!" Just as they were talking, a deep voice came from above their heads. It was Pu Yixuan.
He had a smile on his face, and Tang Xing and the other man quickly stood up to return the greeting, also saying happily, "We meet here again."
The two avoided talking about their rankings in the imperial examination, because everyone could see the results, and Pu Yixuan had actually fallen from first place to forty-fifth place!
This gave the other jealous students a reason to attack him, saying that Pu Yixian only got the top score by following the imperial examination syllabus, and that he must be no less talented than them.
Pu Yixuan himself didn't care at all, instead he said seriously: That's it!
If there were no imperial examination books, how could someone like him have the chance to become a tribute scholar?
This frankness left others speechless.
Seeing Pu Yixian also holding a wine cup in his hand, Tang Xing couldn't help but say, "Brother Pu, please don't drink too much. Although everything is casual, we are in the palace after all."
Because they were not familiar with each other, Tang Xing only spoke briefly.
Pu Yixuan chuckled, "I know. I didn't want to drink at first, but the aroma of their wine was so strong that I decided to drink some."
"It's worthy of being the imperial wine." Fan Chuntai sniffed it, "It has a rich and mellow aroma..."
"Yes." Pu Yixuan nodded in agreement, "This wine is brewed in the palace and shipped to border towns and other places to sell."
Tang Xing and Fan Chuntai didn't know the story, so Pu Yixian explained, "This fine wine is strong and makes people feel hot after drinking it, so it was transported to the border town. The weather in the border town is harsh and sometimes very cold, so the soldiers drink this wine to keep warm."
"Since the peace talks with the Turks, we have sold a lot of this wine to them. Compared to the sake that the people of Da Zhou generally like to drink, the Turks prefer this."
Pu Yixuan knew a lot of things. After all, today's tribute banquet was relaxing. Tang Xing and Fan Chuntai ate and listened with gusto.
Suddenly a fragrant breeze blew, accompanied by very beautiful music.
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw dozens of dancers with long sleeves gracefully entering the hall.
Everyone stared at her in amazement. The actor's long sleeves were like ribbons, and his body was soft and graceful, as if he was about to fly.
Fan Chuntai lowered his head and stuffed food into his mouth frantically. This one is delicious, this one is also delicious...
Even though Tang Xing is always calm, I don't know where his eyes are looking at this time!
Pu Yixian was the most natural, openly admiring the actors' dancing: "As expected of someone from the palace music troupe, this tribute scholar banquet has really broadened my horizons!"
The eunuch who had delivered the message at the beginning reappeared at some point and said with a smile, "Teachers, please make yourselves at ease."
After saying this, he left with a few palace maids.
After a few songs ended, the actors suddenly dispersed, and the atmosphere in Xingyun Pavilion changed again, as if it had reached a new level.
"Student, let me help you serve the food." A cute actress seemed to want to snuggle in Fan Chuntai's arms.
"This... no need for that, no need for that..." Fan Chuntai's face turned red with embarrassment, and he started to snatch the chopsticks from the actor.
Still remembering that this was an entertainer from the palace music troupe, he didn't dare to use too much force, and for a moment the two of them were in a stalemate.
Finally, the actor said in a delicate voice, "Students are really boring."
After saying that, he stood up and walked away.
Fan Chuntai breathed a sigh of relief.
Tang Xing hid behind Pu Yixian early on. Some people have always talked about Pu Yixian's rough appearance and mocked him for not being like a scholar.
However, his advantage was revealed at this time. Pu Yixian was a one-man defense against ten thousand enemies. He could push away as many actors as he wanted!
"Ouch, student, you hurt us sisters!" The actor's eyes widened, and he seemed to be angry.
Pu Yixuan looked calm and composed.
Seeing that Pu Yixuan was still conscious, Tang Xing also breathed a sigh of relief.
"I always feel something is wrong." Pu Yixuan took another sip of wine and let out a sigh of relief.
"It's very different from what I imagined the tribute banquet would be like," Tang Xing also said.
This was very luxurious and lively, but he always felt out of place.
He looked to the side and saw a few familiar faces in the crowd——
Among those who were surrounded by beauties, drinking fine wine, and tasting dishes from the hands of actors, there were not only people from wealthy families who were accustomed to such scenes, but also many common students.
They can be described as extremely ugly.
Some of them were staying in the same inn with him and had even discussed a few issues with him.
He always thought everyone was good.
Tang Xing felt an indescribable feeling in his heart. When he came to his senses, he laughed at himself a few times.
If Yan Xuanyu were here, he would say that this kind of thing is very normal.
There is a saying that goes, some people don't seem bad because they don't have the capital to become bad.
The purpose of Yan Xuanyu holding this banquet was to act as a catalyst and expose some people to avoid trouble in the future.
What all the tribute students didn't know was that the palace servants who seemed to be serving dishes back and forth would line up in an orderly manner and walk quickly to another place after leaving Xingyun Pavilion.
A pavilion located on high ground.
There were many serious-looking officials sitting inside.
Compared with the laughter and joy in Xingyun Pavilion, it is like two different worlds.
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