After Li Qingyao stepped back and returned to the queue, his heart was still pounding wildly, and tears welled up in his eyes.
He was excited. Thinking of the eager looks from his family before he left home today, he felt a surge of pride, knowing he hadn't let himself down, nor had he let his family down.
The announcement of names had been going on for a long time, and Li Qingyao gradually calmed down amidst the announcements, beginning to have the mood to look at the main hall and the court officials.
During this time, he also made eye contact with Zheng Xingkai, whose expression held a hint of mockery, indicating that Zheng Xingkai had clearly seen Li Qingyao's foolish behavior just now. Li Qingyao's face flushed slightly, and he tried to avert his gaze, burying his head in the sand.
After the announcement of the winners in the Golden Hall, the top three scholars, led by them, paraded through the streets on horseback. Of course, only the top three had tall, fine horses; the others had to walk.
The top three scholars (Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua) were taken away to change into red robes. The Zhuangyuan wore a double-winged crown, the Bangyan wore a long-winged crown, and the Tanhua wore a brocade crown.
The other scholars watched with envy, and Li Qingyao was also extremely envious. Everyone wore flowers in their hair and then went to parade through the streets.
Here comes another aspect that will make everyone even more envious.
According to the Ministry of Rites, the top three scholars (状元, 榜眼, and 探花) could exit the palace through the main gate, while the rest of the successful candidates could only exit through the side gate.
It should be noted that only the emperor could freely enter and exit through the main gate. Even the empress, the mother of the nation, could only ride in a phoenix palanquin through the main gate on her wedding day or during her investiture ceremony. This was the only opportunity for the empress to enter the palace through the main gate in her lifetime.
Apart from that, only the top three in each subject were granted the honor of leaving the palace through the main gate.
As Li Qingyao and the other scholars exited the palace through the side gate, they heard a deafening roar of cheers outside the palace gate, and they quickly quickened their pace.
"Riding a swift horse in the spring breeze, one can see all the flowers of Chang'an in a single day."
The people of Kyoto packed the roads outside the palace gates, eager to catch a glimpse of the newly appointed scholars.
The Li family had already reserved the best private room at a restaurant along the route of the Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) parade, just waiting to see Li Qingyao.
A group of people, young and old, men and women, crowded into the room. Li Qingjun and Wang Jiao leaned against the windowsill, staring intently at the end of the road. After waiting for an unknown amount of time, they heard a deafening roar of cheers outside.
"They're here! The successful candidates have all arrived!"
"Which one has Qingyao seen yet?"
"Grandma, it's still far away. We can only see a tiny shadow."
Li Qing hurriedly squeezed in as well, and Yan Min was eager to try. Fortunately, there were two windows in the private room, both of which were open. The men occupied one window, and the women shared the other.
Pan Jinhua sipped her tea in her chair, smiling like a Maitreya Buddha. No rush; she wanted to see the spectacle when the others arrived. She'd never seen a scholar parade through the streets before.
All the successful candidates were overwhelmed by the immense goodwill of the people of the capital; their joy was beyond words. Flowers, applause, and cheers surged towards them like a tidal wave, and Li Qingyao felt like his face was about to burst with joy.
He came in fourth place, right after the top three, and suddenly he attracted a lot of attention.
"This young man looks so young, yet he's already a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). He's truly a promising young man!"
"That's right, and the seat is so close to the front. I wonder if they're married yet?"
"You don't know who he is? Have you heard of Lady Liang? This is a descendant of Lady Liang!"
Those who were well-informed immediately started chatting with those around them, and sure enough, they attracted the attention of those around them.
"Lady Liang! That Li family?"
Sure enough, exclamations arose.
"This is the place!"
The man looked even more smug, clearly enjoying the feeling of being in the limelight.
"As expected of a descendant of Lady Liang, she is truly outstanding!"
In March, the imperial court announced that it would conduct a trial of smallpox vaccination in the capital. News of the effectiveness of smallpox vaccination spread, and the entire court learned that Pan Jinhua had not presented any divine object, but had actually found a way to prevent and control smallpox.
This news caused a great stir in Kyoto. The smallpox epidemic was so severe that even the emperor was helpless. How could ordinary people escape it?
Even Pan Jinhua's past contributions have been brought up, and now some people in the capital are even setting up longevity tablets for her in their homes.
In private conversations, whenever Lady Liang was mentioned, not a single negative word was spoken.
Because the imperial examination had not yet ended and the court's current focus was on the civil service examination, it could not spare manpower. Therefore, the smallpox vaccination trial would not begin until mid-to-late May.
As Li Qingyao was walking down the street, a group of people suddenly threw all the flowers they were holding at him. Li Qingyao hurriedly caught a few and received a lot of kind smiles in return.
When he got to the restaurant, Li Qingyao kept looking up. Before he left home today, his mother had told him that the whole family would be watching him from upstairs.
Sure enough, they saw Qingjing and the twins. Wang Jiao and the others were huddled together, shouting and waving their hands with great force. Behind them were Gao Chuan and his wife, who were holding Xiao Ping'an.
At the other window were my great-aunt and mother, Aunt Mo and my little sister Qingzhi. My mother was laughing and crying at the same time, it was truly...
Upon seeing his family, Li Qingyao couldn't help but tear up, but his smile became even brighter.
"Junior brother!"
Just as his heart was brimming with emotion, he saw the restaurant on his right. Zheng Jiayu was leaning against the window, calling out to him loudly. Li Qingyao was both amused and exasperated, and waved in response.
When Zheng Jiayu saw that he had discovered her, she jumped three feet high with joy, and her master's wife watched them tenderly from the side.
After the parade, officials from the Ministry of Rites were to instruct the newly appointed scholars on the etiquette and manners for the Qionglin Banquet the following day.
This was also a source of glory for the newly appointed scholars, and everyone listened attentively.
Zhou Daban arrived just as I left the Ministry of Rites.
"His Majesty has summoned the top three scholars and the candidates for the imperial examination. Please come with me."
Li Qingyao and Hu Jin exchanged bewildered glances. He could understand the Emperor summoning the top three, as it was a common practice every year. Why was he being included as well? Li Qingyao was puzzled.
Could it be because of my great-aunt?
After a moment's thought, Li Qingyao felt that the most likely reason was his great-aunt.
Hu Jin and his two companions had also considered this matter, and their attitude towards the young man Li Qingyao became even more amiable. The four of them didn't have time for pleasantries and followed closely behind Zhou Daban into the Golden Hall.
After bowing deeply, the four men stood together, their faces expressionless, while their minds prepared their responses. The Emperor's summons was naturally for a conversation, and since they had the opportunity to meet him, they wanted to make a good impression.
Ying Hao was very kind and chatted with each of the four for a few minutes. They mainly talked about the scenery, customs, and traditions of their hometowns, with Li Qingyao saying a few words.
Ying Hao still values the top three, and he will be awarding official positions to these three at tomorrow's Qionglin Banquet, so he naturally wants to learn more about them.
After they had finished talking, Ying Hao told everyone to go back.
"That's all for today. I hope you will not forget your original aspirations."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Qingyao, please stay a moment. I have something to say to you."
Hu Jin and his two companions were surprised. Was the Emperor so close to the Li family? But they didn't dare to show it and slowly withdrew.
Little did they know, Li Qingyao was even more surprised than they were.
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