Chapter 1324 Ranking
In the village, Zhou Shuren and Zhulan sent the maid away, and the old couple planned to live a simple life for a few days. Zhulan was finally interested in cooking by herself, but she didn't make much progress in all these years. For the couple who were picky about food, they finally asked the cook to cook again.
During those three days, Zhou Shuren lived a fulfilling life, watching the snow, painting with his wife, and taking people hunting. As a result, Zhou Shuren wanted to retire even more.
Winter passed quickly, and before we knew it, it was New Year. The Zhou family’s annual small goals became a must-do program, and it became a good habit to summarize the gains and losses of the year.
After the New Year, Mingyun prepared for the Spring Examination, and more and more people in the capital came to bet on Mingyun.
The Zhou family was very afraid of disturbing Mingyun and never mentioned anything outside to put pressure on Mingyun.
Ran Wan's belly was already very big. Li was more careful than when she was pregnant. "I noticed that you didn't look good these past two days. Are you worried about Mingyun?"
Ran Wan touched her belly and said, "I'm afraid my husband will be under a lot of pressure."
She was also aware of the gambling outside, and was afraid that her husband would put too much pressure on her, so she had not had a good rest in the past two days.
Zhulan said, "Mingyun knows what's going on. If you take care of yourself, he can concentrate on preparing for the exam."
Mingyun attaches great importance to Ran Wan. The couple has watched everything about her since childhood. Mingyun knows all of Ran Wan's preferences, which requires a lot of effort to remember. This shows the position of Ran Wan in Mingyun's heart.
Ran Wan's ears turned slightly red. Her husband had said the same thing in recent days, but she couldn't help herself from worrying.
Zhao changed the subject, "I heard that the Hanlin Academy's Shujishi will be assigned an official position."
Su Xuan had the final say, "Yes, just these few days."
Li looked at her mother and asked, "Mom, will my fourth brother stay in Beijing?"
Only the fourth room and his wife knew that Changzhi would stay in Beijing, and the other rooms were unaware. Today, Zhulan gave the exact information, "Yes, Changzhi will stay in Beijing."
When Li heard this, she thought her father-in-law must have known the news. She would not ask anyone else because she would find out when the time came.
On the eve of the spring examination, the three-year assessment of the Hanlin Academy's Shujishi was completed and officials were assigned one by one. Chang Zhi stayed in the Hanlin Academy and was promoted from editor to historian, a sixth-rank official.
It was surprising that both Changzhi and Liu Song stayed in the Hanlin Academy.
Then the Spring Examination began. The night before, Zhou Shuren tossed and turned, and Zhulan couldn't sleep either. "Are you worried about Mingyun?"
Zhou Shuren, "Yeah."
He thought he would be calm, but it turned out that he overestimated himself. He was very worried about Mingyun. After all, the child was young and it was inevitable that he would be under pressure.
Zhulan, "There's nothing we can do. We can only trust him. You have to have faith in the children you teach."
Zhou Shuren pulled up the quilt and sighed, "I can only trust him."
Last year was a cold winter, and the spring examination was also exceptionally cold, comparable to the one Zhou Shuren held. After the spring examination was over, many people fell ill. Mingyun also caught a cold and had to take some medicine to get better.
Now everyone is waiting for the day when the results will be announced. Ming Yunwo stays at home with his wife, and often reads books to his unborn child.
Li didn't dare to ask her son how he did in the exam, but she didn't want to disturb the young couple, so she could only stay in the main courtyard.
Zhulan had heard enough of Li's sighs and said, "If you continue to sigh, don't come tomorrow."
She was also very upset, and Li's annoyance made her even more upset.
Li, "Mother, I sent a servant to inquire about the gambling situation, and found that many people bet on Mingyun. I am really scared."
Zhulan understood what Li meant. If Mingyun passed the exam, everything would be fine. If he failed, rumors would spread and many people would say a lot about Mingyun. "This is a hurdle that Mingyun has to overcome on his own. No matter what the result is, Mingyun will handle it well."
Mingyun needs to overcome this hurdle by himself. The halo is a double-edged sword. The more attention it gets, the greater the backlash damage.
The results of the Spring Examination came out, and the emperor was the first to know. He was also very concerned about Zhou Mingyun, but it turned out that Zhou Mingyun was not the first place.
The emperor has regrets but will not be disappointed. Second place is already remarkable. There are many talented people in the South. Seven of the top ten are from the South this time, which shows how high the quality of southern students is this year.
The prince asked, "Father, aren't you disappointed?"
Your Majesty, "I am not disappointed. On the contrary, I am interested in seeing Zhou Mingyun's reaction."
Results are not the most important thing; character and personality are what he values. Although he did not get the top spot in the exam, he was eager to know the reaction of the ranking. Zhou Mingyun was very smart and knew clearly what the consequences of not getting the top three spots would be.
The prince understood, "Then I am also looking forward to his performance."
On the day of the announcement of the results, Mingyun did not go to see them. He had a hunch in his heart when he left the examination room. Sometimes the hunch was very accurate. Sure enough, the housekeeper brought back the news of the second place.
Ming Yun saw that his brothers were all looking at him forbearingly, and he burst out laughing, "Am I so fragile in your eyes?"
He clearly said that as long as I try my best, I will be fine. There will be disappointments, but he won't care. He has tried his best with all his heart and has no regrets.
Ming Teng laughed, "Big brother is not fragile."
Mingrui looked at his elder brother carefully, and seeing that he really didn't care, he breathed a sigh of relief, "Brother, there is still a chance to take the palace exam."
Mingyun felt that his brothers were still naive, so he looked at Mingteng and asked, "Do you also think there is still a chance for the palace examination?"
Ming Teng helped his uncle-in-law with his work and saw a lot of balances. Sometimes he would meet the emperor emeritus. Because the emperor was from the Rong family, he would guide him. When looking at a problem, he would not only look at the present, but would consider the overall situation.
Ming Teng said gloomily, "Brother, it's not bad to be the second place like grandpa, and it's even better to be the third place."
Mingrui was stunned and looked at his second brother, "Second brother, why do you say that?"
Mingyun saw that Mingteng didn't want to explain, so he had to speak for himself, "Last year, the South was cleaned up, and the last No. 1 scholar was from the capital, so in order to appease the South or for balance, this year's No. 1 scholar will be in the South."
He paused and continued, "If I win the first place this time, it is because of my own ability. The top spot is almost certain. Nan Fang can't say anything. He is not as good as others."
Mingrui understood and continued, "Now that big brother didn't get the first place in the imperial examination, he won't be able to become the top scholar in the palace examination. Even if he performed well, the emperor gave big brother a chance. But if he didn't get the first place this time, the chance is gone."
To put it bluntly, my brother didn't seize the opportunity, and this year's top scholar is bound to come from the south.
Mingyun smiled and said, "The first place is amazing. You also noticed the ranking. Seven of the top ten are from the south. The fact that he didn't win the first place this time shows that he is very capable and the possibility of him making mistakes in the palace examination is very small."
So he doesn't need the emperor's balance, and he has the real ability to take the imperial examination.
Ming Teng understood what his elder brother meant. His elder brother accepted his defeat with all his heart. "But, elder brother, you have received too much attention in the capital. There will be slanderous remarks about you in the future."
Mingyun raised his eyebrows, "Is second place so bad? They didn't even get second place. Those who can say things that hurt me so much either have ulterior motives or have bad hearts. It's not worth it for me to worry about these irrelevant people. It's better to enrich myself instead of caring about these things."
How could he not be afraid of speech? He was never afraid. This was a rare lesson in his life. He remembered what his grandfather taught him, cherishing every hurdle, which was the most precious wealth. Once he had overcome it, he would not be afraid in the future.