After resting for a quarter of an hour at Yuqing Palace, Yongqi went to the Imperial Study to take a look.
Although Ji Xiaolan was not present today because it was the imperial examination, there were other tutors in the Imperial Study watching over him.
"Today we'll practice matching two-character couplets."
"Evening drum".
I drew Yongyan by random lot.
Yongyan stood up and replied, "The evening drum corresponds to the morning bell."
"Yao'er, what is classical Chinese?"
“Nonsense.” Mianyao’s two words stunned everyone present.
Yongqi, who was peeking from outside, almost burst out laughing. "(This girl must have been secretly reading Xiao Yanzi's classic quotes again.)"
"Then what does vernacular Chinese correspond to? It can't correspond to classical Chinese..."
Mianyao continued, "Or you're just talking nonsense..."
Everyone fell silent, "..."
"Then give me another poem, the last word of which must rhyme."
Mianyao smiled awkwardly, "Master, may I recite some ancient poems? The rhymes are a bit difficult for me..."
"Okay."
"Hardships and misfortunes befell me from the very beginning, and war raged, leaving only scattered stars around..."
Mianyao recited a poem by Wen Tianxiang, a poet from the Southern Song Dynasty, titled "Passing Lingdingyang": "Since ancient times, who has ever escaped death? Let my loyal heart shine in history!"
After watching for a while, Yongqi left the study.
They walked towards the Qianqing Palace on the opposite side.
Emperor Qianlong returned from the Hall of Supreme Harmony and headed towards the Palace of Heavenly Purity, where he happened to run into Yongqi.
"Yongqi".
Upon hearing Qianlong's voice, Yongqi turned to look at him, "Father."
As Emperor Qianlong walked, he said, "The Liu Yu and Qian Dayun you mentioned do seem quite promising, but I wonder if they can ultimately win?"
"Father, Xiao Yanzi and I both think highly of them, and we just hope they won't let us down."
Emperor Qianlong asked, "Is that so? If they both succeed, what positions do you plan to assign them?"
“Qian Dayun is going to the Ministry of Revenue. His family is in business, so he’s very sensitive to money matters. Sending him to the Ministry of Revenue will definitely allow him to discover something different.”
"As for Liu Yu, let him go to the Ministry of Justice."
"?" When Qianlong heard Qian Dayun's arrangement, he wasn't surprised, but when he heard Liu Yu's, he was stunned.
He was somewhat puzzled, "Why did Liu Yu go to the Ministry of Justice?"
"Liu Yu may look like a frail scholar, but he actually has his own set of principles, especially after being given pointers by me and Xiao Yanzi..."
"I believe that if he goes to the Ministry of Justice, there will be fewer and fewer wrongful convictions..."
Emperor Qianlong nodded, "Since you have everything in mind, then go ahead and do it."
"As for the others, we'll talk about it after their results come out."
-------------------------------------
On April 25th, the ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examinations was held in the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
Unless there are special circumstances, all civil and military officials must be present.
At 9:00 AM, civil and military officials were ready to enter the palace, and only then did the scholars who had passed the imperial examinations outside Tiananmen Square begin to enter.
On the Taihe Hall Square, civil and military officials stood on both sides of the Danchi according to their civil and military ranks, and the Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) stood in two rows behind them.
(Danchi: The red steps in front of the palace and the open space on the steps.)
After everyone had taken their positions, the music of Zhonghe Shaoyue began to play.
When Emperor Qianlong arrived, everyone kowtowed, chanting, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Civil and military officials entered the hall, and officials from the Court of State Ceremonial read out the imperial edicts inside.
Then, the examiner opened the papers and announced the name of the first-ranked candidate in the first category.
The sounds rang out one after another, and the scholars who had been waiting outside were led into the hall by officials from the Court of State Ceremonial to pay their respects.
The top scholar was Liu Yu, the second-place scholar was the short-statured Xu Jingshu, and the third-place scholar was Qian Dayun.
In the end, only ten people remained inside the hall.
"All ten of you, come with me."
Emperor Qianlong took the ten people to the Qianqing Palace. "Xiao Luzi, where are Yongqi and Xiao Yanzi?"
"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess should have arrived by now. This servant will go and see them."
Xiao Luzi walked out of the Qianqing Palace and had just stepped down the steps when she saw Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi coming this way.
He hurriedly ran back, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess have arrived."
"Your son/daughter-in-law greets Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be blessed."
"No need for formalities, please take a seat."
With a wave of his hand, Emperor Qianlong had Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi sit down.
The ten people standing below bowed their heads and called out, "Greetings, Your Highness and Your Highness's Consort."
Yongqi looked down at Liu Yu and Qian Dayun, who were bowing their heads, and laughed, "Liu Yu, Qian Dayun, you two look up..."
Liu Yu and Qian Dayun felt that Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi's voices were familiar when they first heard them. After looking up and taking a closer look at Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi, they finally recognized the two people in front of them.
"Qian Dayun, I've discussed it with Father Emperor, and we've decided to assign you to a position in the Ministry of Revenue."
"However, once you get to the Ministry of Revenue, you'll be a sixth-rank official in charge. As for whether you can make a name for yourself there, that depends on your own abilities. I won't give you any special treatment."
Qian Dayun glanced at Yongqi, then at Qianlong sitting in the center. Qianlong said, "The Crown Prince's words are my will."
"I obey the decree."
"Liu Yu, you should go to the Ministry of Justice. Since your ancestral home is in Guizhou, you should become the head of the Guizhou Provincial Bureau of Justice."
"I hope you won't let me down."
Liu Yu knelt down and shouted, "Your subject obeys the decree."
Afterwards, Yongqi called out the names of several other people present, saying, "I've seen you all before when I was at the inn. The fact that you're all here shows that you're all quite capable..."
Afterwards, Yongqi assigned the remaining people to the remaining Ministry of Rites, Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Works, and Ministry of War, as well as the Dali Temple, the Imperial Clan Court, and the Imperial Observatory around the Six Ministries.
After Yongqi finished making the arrangements, Emperor Qianlong began to speak, “Since Yongqi has made arrangements for you, I hope that you will each perform your duties and not let down the high expectations that I and the Crown Prince have for you.”
"There will be a banquet hosted by the Ministry of Rites for you tomorrow, so you should rest well and have a good meal. The day after tomorrow, you will enter the palace again to be formally appointed to your official positions, and your court robes, hats, and the Jinshi (successful candidate in the imperial examination) certificate will be handed to you..."
"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."
"Xiao Luzi, take them out of the palace."
Yongqi smiled and said, "We're going to Huibinlou this afternoon anyway, so let's go with them."
"Father, I take my leave."
"Your subject takes his leave."
Liu Yu and Qian Dayun were still in shock, unable to believe that the people they had been chatting with earlier were actually the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.
Yongqi stepped forward with a smile, "What's wrong? Haven't you two come to your senses yet?"
"No wonder you said you'd know after entering the palace..."
"So you're the Crown Prince!"
Little Swallow asked with a smile, "Doesn't he look like one?"
Qian Dayun said, "If you hadn't said he was the crown prince, we wouldn't have thought of that identity. But as soon as you said he was the crown prince, we immediately assumed he was..."
"Speak like that, don't be so reserved. Our Crown Prince is very easygoing."
Liu Yu gave an awkward laugh. "Really? I heard that the Crown Prince recently went to the Six Ministries to show his power..."
"Last time outside the Ministry of Rites, neither of you went over..."
"Then I heard that the Crown Prince and Crown Princess came that day, so all the yamen runners were trembling..."
Little Swallow pouted, "Who told them to have someone in their family who had such a sharp tongue, always causing trouble for us!"
Qian Dayun couldn't help but be curious, "What did they do to make such an approachable Crown Prince go out and unleash his power..."
Little Swallow explained briefly, "Someone in their family is worried that there aren't enough people in the Crown Prince's palace, so they're trying to squeeze more people in..."
Upon hearing this, Liu Yu and Qian Dayun nodded in agreement, "They deserved it!"
Qian Dayun laughed and said, "You two are a match made in heaven. Trying to add anyone else is just asking for a beating!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com