As night fell, the entire Han army camp was unusually quiet, except for the occasional sound of patrolling soldiers' footsteps, accompanied by the sound of soldiers sounding fast asleep.
"My lord, the Han army only patrols every two quarters of an hour. Tonight, the moon is dark and the stars are few, which is extremely favorable for our escape. This is a golden opportunity!"
"Okay, let's escape once this patrol passes."
Hearing the snoring of the guards at the gate, Dianxian and several of his personal guards quietly gathered together.
"Walk!"
After a patrol of soldiers had left, Dianxian and several guards tiptoed out.
Seeing that the two Han soldiers at the door were still tightly gripping their weapons even after they had fallen asleep, a hint of doubt flashed in Dianxian's eyes.
"Young master, someone is coming!"
Dianxian also noticed a flame slowly moving towards them from not far away, and then he no longer hesitated.
"Walk!"
Soon, Dian Xian and his group quickly disappeared into the night.
Not long after Dian Xian and the others left, Tian Yan walked out of a tent not far away, looked in the direction where Dian Xian and the others had fled, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
In early April, at the Luoyang Imperial Palace, scholars recommended by officials from various regions were arranged by Liu Hong to undergo an examination in the square in front of the Deyang Hall.
Everyone was incredibly excited. They knew this was where the emperor handled state affairs, and it was also where he had ascended the throne. The fact that they were being assessed here showed how much the emperor valued them.
"The assessment begins!"
With Zhao Zhong's shout, all the students began to kneel and sit in front of their respective desks.
On the table, the Four Treasures of the Study were ready, and the two large characters "Enrich the Country" on the upper left of the bamboo slips were the topic set by Liu Hong.
Yang Biao stared at the words "enrich the country" and fell into deep thought. The Han Dynasty had accumulated many problems over the years, and the people's livelihood was in decline. The emperor's question was obviously intended to find a suitable strategy for governing the country.
After a long while, Yang Biao also began to write:
"If a nation desires to become wealthy, it must first enrich its people. This is achieved by practicing frugality and enriching the people, and by properly storing the surplus. Frugality is practiced with propriety, and enrichment is achieved through effective governance. By enriching the people, there will be a surplus. When the people are wealthy, the land becomes fertile and easy to cultivate, and when the land becomes fertile and easy to cultivate, the yield will be a hundred times greater. The ruler should collect the surplus according to the law, and the people should use it frugally according to propriety. The surplus will be like mountains, which, if not burned in time, will have nowhere to be stored. Why should a wise ruler worry about having no surplus? Therefore, by practicing frugality and enriching the people, one will surely gain a reputation for benevolence, sagehood, and virtue, and will also accumulate wealth as abundant as mountains."
This means that we should treat the people well and let them have wealth. Only when the people's lives are better will they have more energy to cultivate the land and produce more grain. This will not only earn them a good reputation but also increase their income.
Like Yang Biao, each student present, after careful consideration, displayed all their knowledge and wrote down their ideas on bamboo slips. Although they were different, their thoughts were almost identical: to gain the emperor's approval.
About an hour later, a bell rang, signaling the end of the assessment. A group of eunuchs then came forward, rolled up the bamboo slips, and carried them into the Deyang Palace.
Inside Deyang Hall, besides Chen Fan, Li Ying, Hu Guang, and Dou Wu, there were also the Imperial Academy's Chancellor, Doctors, and some prominent Confucian scholars, such as Cai Yong and Qiao Xuan.
"The assessment is over, students, please disperse!"
Seeing the last student's bamboo slip being carried away, Zhao Zhong shouted again, and then, led by the eunuch, all the scholars and students walked out of the palace.
Inside the Deyang Palace, Chen Fan and others began to carefully read these bamboo slips, taking out the best ones to pass around among themselves, offering their comments and opinions, then scoring them, and finally selecting the top ten to submit to the emperor for review.
"Your Majesty, these are the top ten scholars selected by us. Please review them."
Looking at the ten bamboo slips in front of him, Liu Hong nodded. "You have all worked hard. As for the rankings of the other students, you will discuss and decide on them."
"promise!"
After Chen Fan and the others bowed and left the main hall, Liu Hong began to examine the bamboo slips in front of him. Although everyone had different opinions and ideas, he greatly benefited from their knowledge and experience.
After a long while, Liu Hong put down the last bamboo slip and sighed, "No era is lacking in talented people; it's just that there are no people who know how to make good use of them."
Zhang Rang then said with a fawning expression, "Those as wise as Your Majesty are rare in ancient times. It is their blessing to have met Your Majesty."
"Heh~ Stop flattering me," Liu Hong chuckled, and after thinking it over carefully, handed the prepared list to Zhang Rang.
"Go and give this list to the Grand Tutor and the others. If they have no objections, then publish the list."
"promise!"
Zhang Rang accepted the list, bowed, and withdrew. Since the end of spring plowing, he had clearly felt that the emperor's attitude towards him had softened considerably, indicating that his actions had satisfied the emperor.
Liu Hong did not choose to summon or become close to those familiar figures on the list, because it was still necessary to maintain the dignity of the emperor.
Soon the ranking of the assessment results was posted outside the Nangong Palace, attracting the attention of countless scholars and students, all of whom eagerly hoped that their names would appear on the list.
First place: "Langya, Zhuge Gui".
Second place: "Hongnong, Yang Biao".
The three names are: "Yingchuan, Xun You".
Then there are figures such as Zhou Yi of Lujiang, Zhang Zhao of Jiangdong, Chen Qun of Yingchuan, Fa Zhi of Fufeng, and so on.
Yang Biao, standing in the crowd, frowned as he looked at "Zhuge Gui" above his own name. He knew Zhuge Gui, and he believed that his talent was no less than that of this Zhuge Gui, who came from a minor aristocratic family.
However, since this was a ranking made by the emperor himself, Yang Biao had no dissatisfaction with Liu Hong, but thought that Zhuge Gui's answer was more in line with the emperor's thoughts.
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