Chapter 124 The Imperial Edict is Issued
For the next few days, Shao Yanzhe and the others waited for the results of the imperial examination.
Inside the examination hall, the examiners were busy grading the papers. The papers in their hands were anonymized and copied, and they did not know who the owners of the papers were.
Therefore, it is highly unlikely that a candidate would be admitted simply because they saw an official's offspring.
A dozen or so examiners assisted the chief examiner in grading the papers, and were responsible for the first round of screening. They selected the best papers and then recommended them to the chief examiner.
Next, the chief examiner would review the exam papers recommended by the other examiners and select the ones he deemed suitable for admission.
Of course, the chief examiner still needs to check the papers rejected by the other examiners to prevent talented candidates from being overlooked.
After the papers were graded, the chief examiner and the other examiners jointly determined the final rankings. Then, the papers that had been anonymized were opened on the spot to reveal the information of the candidates who took those papers.
Finally, the list was filled out, starting with the last name and continuing until the first name was written. After dawn, the list would be posted outside the examination hall.
This is the basic procedure at the examination hall, barring any unforeseen circumstances.
However, an unexpected event occurred this time.
While an examiner surnamed Zhang was grading papers, a servant carrying food came in.
"My lord, dinner is ready." The servant put down the tray, looked at Lord Zhang, tapped the chopsticks in the air with his finger, and then left, closing the door behind him.
Seeing the servant's actions, Lord Zhang understood. He stood up calmly, walked to the table where the food was placed, sat down with his back to the door and window, picked up the chopsticks, ate with a porcelain spoon in one hand, and slowly twisted the chopsticks open with the other, revealing a small white paper roll hidden inside.
He pinched one end of the paper roll with his fingers, unrolled it, and saw what was on it.
He could see the contents clearly at a glance.
After noting it down, he threw the rolled-up paper directly into the charcoal brazier next to him.
After he finished tidying up, he began to eat formally, and then continued to review the papers.
Lord Zhang quickly searched through the exam papers and soon found his targets. Without even looking at the contents, he selected them and put them into the stack of papers that had passed.
He quickly finished grading the papers and, carrying the outstanding ones he had selected, headed towards the room where the chief examiner was.
"Lord Sun, these are the qualified test papers that I have selected."
The examiner, referred to as Lord Sun, was about forty or fifty years old. He had a serious expression. He looked up at Lord Zhang, then took the exam paper from him and began to read it.
He glanced at it briefly and then put the exam paper aside.
"I'll leave them here for now. I'll look at these after I finish reading the exam papers in my hand."
"Yes." Lord Zhang then casually found a seat in the room and sat down, glancing occasionally at Lord Sun who was reviewing the papers.
When she saw Lord Sun pick up her stack of exam papers, her fingers on the armrest of the chair involuntarily curled up, her breath caught in her throat for a moment, and she felt uneasy.
Although this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this, he felt somewhat uneasy this time.
He forced down his anxiety and stared at Lord Sun's expression, hoping to glean his thoughts from it.
However, Lord Sun's face showed very little expression; after looking at several exam papers, he didn't show any particular emotion.
Lord Zhang became increasingly uneasy, while Lord Sun would soon be able to see the exam papers.
He wasn't sure whether his superiors had informed Lord Sun. If they had, he would be fine, but if they hadn't, he would be in big trouble.
Just then, Lord Sun suddenly spoke up: "Lord Zhang, are you sure you didn't take the wrong exam papers?"
As he spoke, he put the test papers in his hand aside.
It’s over!
Lord Zhang shuddered and stood up from his seat, his legs trembling slightly.
"Is that so? Let me take a look."
As he walked over, he smelled a familiar scent and felt a surge of joy.
"Lord Sun, these exam papers were taken by the person you appointed."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Lord Sun with the eyes of someone looking at an ally.
Upon hearing this, Lord Sun's eyes flickered slightly. He looked up at Lord Zhang in front of him with a meaningful gaze.
Lord Zhang, however, believed that his ally on the other side had received his message and felt that everything was in the bag.
"Lord Sun, these exam papers don't need to be ranked very high, as long as they pass the imperial examination."
Lord Sun stared down at the exam papers, seemingly lost in thought. Soon after, he said, "Very well, I understand."
Lord Zhang finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Soon, the other examiners came over one after another to hand in their exam papers. Among them were a few papers that were not very good, but these examiners seemed to be blind and placed them next to the chief examiner without changing their expressions.
After reviewing the exam papers, Lord Sun's eyes darkened. He scanned the examiners present and noted their names and appearances.
But he knew it wasn't the time to alert them, so he could only add the owners of those appalling exam papers to the list first.
Perhaps, after dealing with Chief Minister Gu, he will petition His Majesty to hold another special imperial examination, allowing those candidates who were disqualified this time to take the exam again.
He sighed inwardly, but there was nothing he could do.
...
"Brother Shao, aren't you going to check the results?" Before dawn, Zhou Jiming knocked on Shao Yanzhe's door.
Shao Yanzhe woke up with a start. He responded and got up to get dressed and wash up. After he finished getting ready, he opened the door and went out, where he saw Zhou Jiming and the other four people who had already gathered.
He looked up at the still dark sky; it was only the fifth watch of the night, and there was still plenty of time.
"Why are you all up so early?" he asked, yawning.
Zhou Jiming looked nervous and said, "It's getting late. The results will be posted in an hour. We need to get there early, or we won't be able to see them at all."
Shao Yanzhe patted Zhou Jiming on the shoulder and comforted him, "Brother Zhou, don't worry, with your current level, passing the imperial examination is definitely not a problem!"
Zhou Jiming gave a somewhat stiff smile: "Then I'll accept your kind words, Brother Shao!"
The group didn't have time to eat and headed straight for the examination hall.
“I’ve already booked a table at Fu Man Lou, so I’ll definitely know the results as soon as possible,” Zhou Jiming said.
“At that time, the officials should come to deliver the good news. We can wait at home without having to make this special trip,” Shao Yanzhe said.
In reality, he didn't care about rankings. If it weren't for the need to have the ability to protect himself in this world overrun by ghosts and monsters, he wouldn't have continued taking the imperial examinations after passing the first level.
Zhou Jiming gave him a disapproving look: "How can these be the same?"
“That’s right, Brother Shao, it’s more satisfying to see the list yourself than to just look at it on the list,” Chen Yunhe echoed.
"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you." Shao Yanzhe quickly compromised.
Zhou Jiming had reserved a private room at Fumanlou on the third floor, near the window. From there, he could see the situation on Xingbang immediately, hear the sounds from close up, and even if he stood there, he could know the rankings right away.
The group sat in the private box, enduring immense suffering. Finally, the gates of the examination hall opened, and a group of yamen runners emerged. The leader, carrying white Xuan paper, went outside the examination hall and began to post the notices.
"The results are out!"
Someone shouted, and the candidates who had been waiting outside the examination hall instantly gathered around the yamen runners who were posting the results of the examination, surrounding them completely. If they weren't afraid of the knives in the runners' hands, they probably would have already pushed their way up.
Finally, the list was posted. The candidates eagerly looked at the list in front of them, starting from the back and looking at each name one by one, trying to find their own name.
Some are happy, some are sad.
"Hahaha! I won! I won!"
"Why! Why didn't I win again!"
"Waaaaah! We were just one spot short! Why?! I'm not reconciled!"
Below the list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations, one can see the diverse lives of ordinary people.
Overjoyed at passing the exam, his facial muscles contorted with surprise, and his eyes shone with an astonishing light.
He grabbed the person next to him and shook them violently, shouting, "I won! Hahaha! I won!"
The person he grabbed ignored him, turning his head sharply to look at the list, trying to find his own name, but to no avail.
"Didn't win again! Why?!"
The light in the man's eyes gradually dimmed, and he became utterly dejected, as if he had lost his soul. He squeezed out of the crowd and staggered away.
Just then, someone suddenly shouted, "The first place is Shao Yanzhe! Who is Shao Yanzhe? I've never heard of him before!"
"I've never heard of it either."
"I think I know something about it; I heard it comes from a small town."
"I never expected that this person would surpass the Four Great Talents to win first place. He must be exceptionally talented."
Shao Yanzhe, who was not far away, heard his name and then learned his ranking.
Although I don't care what rank I get, I'm still extremely happy to know that I'm number one.
Zhou Jiming and the others also heard it, and they quickly cupped their hands in a gesture of sincere congratulations to him.
Congratulations, Brother Shao, on winning the top prize!
Congratulations to you! Congratulations to you!
Chen Yunhe, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up: "If Brother Shao gets the top score in the palace examination, wouldn't that mean he'll achieve the triple crown?"
The private room fell silent for a moment, then the eyes of the group lit up as they looked at Shao Yanzhe.
"Brother Shao, if you can achieve the highest honors in all three levels of the imperial examinations, you will surely leave behind a glorious name for all time. You must work hard!"
"That's right, with your current ranking, you are the undisputed winner of the palace examination!"
"I'm waiting for Brother Shao to pass the imperial examination with top honors in all three levels, so I can see you riding through the streets in style!"
Upon hearing this, Shao Yanzhe's heart skipped a beat. It would be a lie to say he wasn't tempted, but he wasn't sure if he would become the top scorer.
He cupped his hands in greeting to the group and said, "Then I'll take your kind words!"
Soon, Zhou Jiming and the others also learned their rankings.
Zhou Jiming, Liu Mingyuan, and Chen Yunhe were ranked rather low, probably in the bottom 10s.
The three were very pleased with this.
Su Yuheng, Wen Yanqing, and Shen Jingzhou ranked even higher, at fifteenth, eighth, and sixteenth respectively.
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