In the autumn examination last year, all the answer sheets of the top scorers from various prefectures were submitted together. He took some time to take a look at them all. The one that impressed him the most was the top scorer Xiao Hechuan from Jeju.
His answer sheet was perfect, eye-opening, and the content was practical and neat.
A month ago, when he handed in his answer sheet for the Spring Examination, he was the most satisfied with it. Almost no one's answer could compare with his.
Therefore, His Majesty had a very good impression of him and was looking forward to what kind of policy paper he would write this time.
If he can satisfy me, I will train him well and he will become a pillar of Daqing in the future, which will be beneficial to the country.
Then, the emperor looked at Guo Gan who was sitting next to Xiao Hechuan. He knew Guo Gan. This boy also had extraordinary literary talent, but his test paper in the spring examination was not on the same level as Xiao Hechuan's.
At that time, when he was appointing the top scorer in the imperial examination, he did not have too much hesitation and directly decided that Xiao Hechuan would be the first in this spring examination.
Now, he sat there motionless, without writing, and just looked around, which made the emperor very confused.
But it is understandable, just like Jing said, the talents we need in Daqing are those who can truly contribute to Daqing's country and society. He has to experience the sufferings of the world before he knows what the people most expect and want.
Those who are content with pleasure, have never experienced the sufferings of the world, and who distinguish between rich and poor, noble and humble in their hearts, cannot truly understand the difficulties faced by ordinary people.
This is why, throughout history, the contributions made by students from poor families who entered officialdom were always greater than those made by students from wealthy families.
After being reminded by his son, the emperor, as the ruler of a country, felt ashamed.
Yes, although he was diligent in government affairs every day and had the best standards in terms of food, clothing, housing and transportation, he still didn't quite understand what the lives of ordinary people were like.
Now, he suddenly had an idea in his mind. He wanted to go to the countryside in person, make a private visit, and experience the life of ordinary people for himself.
When Eunuch Fu saw His Majesty frowning and looking at Guo Gan, he immediately understood what he meant, so he walked over to Guo Gan, bowed and asked him:
"Why is Mr. Guo so slow to start writing?"
Faced with Eunuch Fu's sudden question, Guo Gan was startled. He smiled awkwardly, then picked up the pen and began to grind the ink.
He complained in his heart, what's wrong with his cousin? Why did he provide false information and end up killing himself?
He never thought that it was his own fault. Now he was overwhelmed and had no idea what to write.
While he was stunned, Xiao Hechuan had already written several hundred words. Eunuch Fu walked over and took a look.
He answered the questions very seriously, sitting upright, and his official script was very standard, vigorous and powerful.
He thought to himself, it seems that I have to curry favor with this person, as this person will undoubtedly be the new noble of the court in the future.
During the subsequent exams, most candidates even made mistakes in writing, because the official script requires that characters be written very neatly, just like printed characters. If even a single character is not written correctly, it will affect the overall effect, and they will have to rewrite it.
Not to mention Guo Gan, he barely wrote a few words, but he insisted on having 2,000 words. Isn't this making things difficult for himself?
In the agony, the three incense sticks of the palace examination finally burned out, and Eunuch Fu arranged for someone to collect the answer sheets.
When he saw Guo Gan's answer sheet with a slightly sloppy handwriting, he shook his head helplessly.
If you can’t even write a word properly, don’t expect the content to be good.
Xiao Hechuan had finished writing a long time ago, and he still had a lot of paper left, so he wrote a few poems for fun.
When Eunuch Fu came to collect them, he told him that these were not his works, but that he had just written them for fun.
Eunuch Fu was shocked. Others complained that there was not enough time for the exam, but this guy had even some free time to write poetry.
However, he was a smart man, and he said to Xiao Hechuan:
"Mr. Xiao's poem is probably a masterpiece. Would you mind showing it to me?"
Eunuch Fu is the chief eunuch beside the emperor. His power is greater than some officials in the court. However, he calls himself an old servant in front of Xiao Hechuan and even uses the word "reward".
Don't be too obvious in your attempt to curry favor.
Xiao Hechuan is nothing now, so he is naturally terrified:
"You are too kind, sir. Please do as you please."
They are just a few poems. Can't you let people read them even though they want to?
Eunuch Fu took the poem as he wished, thinking of showing it to the Emperor later.
He doesn't understand poetry, but as long as the emperor can understand it, that's enough.
There is no need to announce the results of the palace examination. One just needs to wait for the emperor to summon them. Those who are summoned are those on the list, and there are a total of ten places.
The top three candidates in the imperial examination will be announced to the world and will be regarded as the top one.
The second place consists of the remaining seven people, and there will be a list, but it will not be announced to the world.
It is not completely over yet. When you meet the emperor later, he will ask some more questions and assign you a position based on your answers.
Guo Gan walked out of the imperial city in a daze. He felt that he should move to another place.
It's no exaggeration to say that his answer sheet is shit. He might not even make it into the top ten in this palace examination.
He has lost face, but the Minister of Rites is the one who has lost face.
It should be said that the entire Guo family is ashamed.
However, just embarrassment was not enough. What Xiao Hechuan wanted was to ruin Guo Gan's reputation.
Just now, during the palace examination, Helian Jing's people had found Mu Qing privately.
The Guo family has been busy with the Spring Examination and the Palace Examination recently and has been unable to spare time. Today, they all went to the palace, some were invigilating, some were taking the exams. During this period, Helian Jing's trusted guards found Mu Qing who was alone.
When Mu Qing was found, he had no idea what had happened. He only knew that a group of guards with swords surrounded him. Each of them looked masculine and fierce.
Mu Qing was timid and was so frightened that he dared not even breathe.
He didn't understand why these people knew that he had written the test paper for the young master and offered such generous conditions as temptation.
He didn't know who these people belonged to, and when they were persuading him to come out and testify and blow himself up, Mu Qing felt conflicted.
If he agreed, it would be tantamount to betraying his master. He and the young master grew up together. Although the young master was not very nice to him, the Minister was indeed very good to him.
Moreover, they promised that as long as he was willing to blow himself up, they could keep him safe, release him from slavery, and give him the opportunity to take the imperial examination in person. He would no longer have to hide in the dark like a shady rat, afraid of the light.
He watched as the glory that originally belonged to him was snatched away by others, while he was still a lowly servant.
He still has a chance to consider it, but if he misses it, he will bear the consequences at his own risk, and no one will protect him at that time.
On his way back home, he was still hesitating. Guo Gan had already returned. He was very angry and was looking for Mu Qing everywhere.
As soon as Mu Qing entered the room, he was hit on the head by a small jade ornament. His forehead was instantly broken and a stream of blood flowed down his cheek.
"Stupid thing, where have you been?"
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