Because the autumn hunting trip was to start on November 15th, the palace examination originally scheduled for this day was moved forward three days.
There is no doubt that Zhou Jing'an was crowned the top scorer.
The second and third place winners were Li Rongqing, son of Li Zhijie, Vice Minister of War, and Chen Yuanzong, son of Chen Heng, Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate.
In addition, Cheng An's brother Cheng He ranked tenth in the second class and became a Jinshi.
The imperial edict appointing officials came down the next day, and the top three in the first class entered the Hanlin Academy.
Zhou Jing'an was granted the title of sixth-rank Hanlin Academy editor, Li Rongqing was granted the title of seventh-rank Hanlin Academy writer, and Chen Yuanzong was granted the title of eighth-rank Hanlin Academy emperor lecturer.
When the results of the palace examination were announced, the names were called out in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and the Ministry of Rites sent two teams to hang the list on Chang'an Street. The list was written on yellow paper, and it was truly "on the list of successful candidates". The list was hung for three days to be announced to the people of the world.
On November 12, many people gathered on Chang'an Avenue. It was bustling with people, talking to each other, and jostling each other, making it very lively.
There are many two-story teahouses or restaurants on both sides of Chang'an Avenue, and the second floor is designed in the style of a pavilion so that people can catch a glimpse of the top scholar.
Jiang Ling also went there, but did not make a big fuss. She just peeked carefully in the corner of the second floor of one of the teahouses.
After the names were called out and the notices were posted, the palace door slowly opened, and a ceremonial team came out first, holding flags and playing musical instruments.
Then a man and a horse came out. The horse was tall and majestic, with white hair all over its body and a red brocade hanging on its head. It walked out step by step.
The man on horseback was dressed in the attire of a Jinshi scholar: a scarlet brocade robe, a deep red silk robe, a deep sandalwood rim, a round collar and wide sleeves. On his head was a Jinshi gauze hat with wings-like horns on either side, draped with silk ribbons. He also wore a pair of hairpins with flowers and a pair of gold and silver plaques. In his hands, he held a tablet made of locust wood.
The young man with high spirits and high spirits was Zhou Jing'an.
He sat on a white horse and looked around. The teahouses and restaurants on the roadside were all hung with colorful silks and lanterns. The roadside was filled with people, who cheered as the music played. It was a lively and peaceful scene.
When you see someone you know, just wave and say hello.
Zhou Jing'an smiled knowingly, his eyebrows were bright, there seemed to be stars flowing in his eyes, and the corners of his lips raised slightly, causing the women on the roadside to blush, and some of the braver ones raised their hands and threw silk flowers at him.
He dodged slightly to the side without making a sound, but when he lowered his eyes he thought of Jiang Ling.
So I raised my eyes to look for it.
Is she here?
She hid nearby when the examination results were announced. Has she come today?
As she wished, I really passed the imperial examination. Wouldn’t she...wouldn’t she come to see me?
But there were so many people that the roads and buildings were packed with people. He searched quietly but couldn't find her, and he couldn't help feeling a little lost.
Jiang Ling secretly looked at Zhou Jingan and couldn't take her eyes off him.
It is true that clothes make the man, and with Zhou Jing'an dressed like this and the atmosphere set, Jiang Ling actually felt her heartbeat quickening.
Behind Zhou Jing'an was a ceremonial guard, followed by the second and third place winners. They walked through Chang'an Avenue with music and made a small circle along the main streets of the capital. Then they followed the people from the Ministry of Rites to the Enrong Banquet, also known as the Qujiang Banquet, which was a banquet hosted by the Ministry of Rites for the Jinshi.
The rest of the Jinshi and fellow Jinshi candidates all left through the side door.
Cheng An went to the side door to wait for Cheng He. Jiang Ling watched Zhou Jing'an walk away and then went to the side door to find her. The two of them walked together, excitedly talking about today's grand event, and then went home.
On November 15th, a ceremony was held to mark the start of the autumn hunt. Jiang Ling knelt behind the accompanying female relatives. She was separated from the emperor by a large crowd of people and could not see him at all.
Then he got on the carriage and slowly left the city gate.
This year was a little special. Unlike previous times, we did not hold the ceremony in the suburbs of Beijing. Instead, we went to the neighboring county and took the ceremony at Qinnan Peak in Guangling Mountain.
Jiang Ling got on the carriage and began to sleep.
It’s nothing, I just got up too early and felt sleepy.
Because the journey is a bit far and the team is long, it will take nearly a day to walk and arrive in the evening. We got up before Yinzhong today.
Moreover, yesterday Jiang Ling carefully reviewed what happened in the Mid-Autumn Hunt in the original book, fearing that she would miss any tiny details, so she lay in bed thinking about it until very late.
As a result, before falling asleep, I suddenly started and sat up with a "whoosh".
I almost forgot one thing!
Regardless of the night, she quickly put on her coat and called Zizhen, asking her to call Xiaobing over.
Then he hurriedly gave some instructions and made sure that everything was safe before falling asleep.
She felt like she was about to get up before she even slept, and the dark shadows under her eyes became heavier.
When she slowly woke up, she found that she was only halfway through the journey, so she covered herself with the blanket and fell asleep again.
She was sleeping soundly, but Zhou Jing'an was very energetic.
Everything had been arranged, but he still felt uneasy. To prevent any accidents, he got off the horse and got into the carriage to rehearse it carefully again. A quarter of an hour later, his brows slowly relaxed.
He opened the drawer and planned to take out the map of Qinan Peak to take a look, but he saw a wooden box underneath.
Zhou Jing settled down and recognized the things inside.
He sighed slightly, thinking that Ye Song must have brought it here without permission.
He took out the box and opened it, and a brush lay quietly inside.
Yes, it was the purple-hair brush that was not given away on Jiang Ling’s birthday.
He reached out and picked it up, stroking it slightly.
Thinking of Jiang Ling that day, a smile appeared in his eyes.
Then the scene of Jiang Ling and Lin Cixiao talking suddenly popped up in his head again, and the corners of his mouth drooped.
Lin Cixiao will also join this autumn hunt.
Tsk, Zhou Jingan clenched his brush tightly, wondering if he had any feelings for Jiang Ling...
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