These papers will be marked first by the same examiners.
The co-examiners are basically Hanlin scholars from the Hanlin Academy. They will write comments on excellent test papers and recommend them to the chief examiner. This is called "recommending papers."
Thousands of test papers were like a boundless ocean, and the examiners became somewhat numb as they continued to mark them.
Until an excited and high-pitched male voice broke the silence in the room:
"good!"
The other examiners seemed to have just woken up from a dream and looked over when they heard the voice.
He was an old man with gray hair and wrinkled face. His eyes sparkled as he looked at the test paper, and deep wrinkles appeared on his face as he smiled.
Several of the examiners put down their pens and wanted to go over to take a look at the test paper that Chen praised, but the old man had already stood up and said anxiously, "I have to show it to Master Ye as well."
Ye Daxueshi of the Hanlin Academy was the chief examiner of the examination. The co-examiners were only responsible for marking and recommending the papers. The chief examiner was the one who made the final decision on whether to admit the candidates. The ranking of the examination was also decided by the chief examiner and the deputy chief examiner. Of course, the papers rejected by the co-examiners would not reach the chief examiner, and those people would definitely fail.
After a while, Academician Ye and the two deputy examiners looked at the paper recommended by the old Hanlin, and they all praised it highly, saying that the candidate had "brilliant literary talent", "outstanding insights", "profound meaning", "clever planning" and so on.
Most of the examiners had an idea in their minds. It seemed that even if this candidate was not the champion of this exam, he would at least be among the top three.
Amidst the praises, a middle-aged Hanlin stared at the paper for a long time, swallowed his saliva, and said cautiously: "Master Ye, I think this handwriting seems a little familiar."
After he said this, everyone else looked at the paper.
The surroundings suddenly became quiet.
After a moment, someone chimed in first: "This handwriting does look familiar."
Everyone looked at each other, and most of them had noticed it and had strange expressions on their faces.
Another person hesitated and said, "This handwriting...could it be 'that person'?"
In the Great Qi Dynasty, only one person's handwriting was familiar to most officials.
"How is that possible!" Someone immediately retorted subconsciously, "That noble man is very busy, why would he want to take the imperial examination if he has nothing else to do?"
Some agreed, some hesitated, and some disagreed.
Another Hanlin cleared his throat and speculated, "Could it be that this candidate admires 'that person' and deliberately imitated his handwriting? Or is it that he wanted to deliberately attract the examiner's attention and stand out?"
In fact, even he himself felt that there was no basis for this statement. After all, there should not be many calligraphy works of the current emperor circulating outside. Even if there were, they should be in the army. Even if the students wanted to imitate, they must first have the emperor's original works.
"I remember that 'that person' was a student of Xie Wenjing, right? His brushstrokes are indeed 30% similar to Xie Wenjing's. Perhaps this candidate is also copying Xie Wenjing's calligraphy."
This sentence still doesn't seem very convincing.
Everyone's handwriting has its own unique style, and these Hanlin scholars are very familiar with the new emperor's handwriting.
Suddenly, the middle-aged Hanlin spoke again: "I remember the rumor that when the emperor was young, he once participated in the provincial examination."
This sentence instantly made everyone around speechless.
They all used the term "that one" in a euphemistic way, but now this guy said it directly.
After a moment of silence, someone broke the silence: "The emperor went to the north when he was fifteen..."
In other words, Gu Jue had participated in the provincial examination before he was fifteen years old.
"It's most likely that it was that old bastard Xie Wenjing who instigated it." The old Hanlin who recommended the paper said unhappily.
Xie Wenjing had served as Prime Minister and also as the Grand Tutor to the new emperor's son, which meant he was the Emperor's teacher. Probably only an old scholar like the old Hanlin who had devoted many years to compiling books in the Hanlin Academy would dare to call him the Emperor's teacher.
Having said that, most people actually think that this outstanding test paper is most likely Gu Jue's.
Thinking of this, everyone suddenly understood.
So that's why the cheating in this exam was discovered so quickly by the new emperor, and all those involved were caught in one fell swoop! After another silence, the deputy examiner asked cautiously, "Master Ye, how should this be decided?"
As for this answer sheet, it is definitely the best one they have seen so far. Whether it is the meaning, the plot, or the sentence structure, it is all perfect and amazing. But if this candidate is really the new emperor, is he suitable to be the champion? On the contrary, if he is not given the first place, will he be happy and feel comfortable?
No one can answer this question.
All the examiners felt a headache at the thought and looked at the chief examiner, Mr. Ye, in unison, intending to follow his lead.
Everyone got together, but couldn't come up with a solution for a while.
Finally, Academician Ye dismissed everyone and asked them to continue marking the test papers, while he himself went into the palace.
Academician Ye and Yang Xuanshan and others just happened to pass by each other. They nodded slightly to each other as a greeting and gave each other a sympathetic look.
When Academician Ye saw Yang Xuanshan's frown, he knew that the new emperor was causing trouble for the Ministry of Rites again;
Yang Xuanshan knew with just a little thought that the fact that Academician Ye appeared in the Imperial Study at this time must be due to some important matter, otherwise he, as the chief examiner, should be busy marking the test papers.
When Ye Daxueshi met Gu Jue's cold eyes, even if there was a trace of uncertainty in his heart before, it disappeared at this moment, and he was sure: it was Gu Jue, it must be him! He bowed helplessly, and he couldn't ask directly, so he started with a polite start: "Your Majesty, the third round of the examination will end at 3 pm today. Next, I will work with the deputy chief examiner and the other examiners to review the examination papers as soon as possible."
"This year's examination has been delayed for half a year, which is a lot of twists and turns. To reassure the students, we will speed up the marking of the papers..."
"My dear minister, what you said is very true." Gu Jue interrupted him, "Five days. The yellow notice will be posted in five days."
Five days?! Master Ye was dumbfounded.
Normally, there would be twenty to thirty days for marking the papers between the end of the exam and the announcement of the imperial edict. He had originally wanted to give the results within half a month, but the new emperor unexpectedly shortened the time to five days.
Gu Jue seemed to know what Grand Secretary Ye was thinking, and added: "Your Excellency, you can nominate a few more examiners from the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial College to assist in marking the papers."
This sentence finally made Academician Ye feel relieved. As long as the new emperor was willing to provide manpower, five days would not be a problem.
After all, he was the chief examiner of this subject, and those admitted scholars were his disciples. If the list of successful candidates was released early, the candidates would credit his achievement to him.
Ye Daxueshi agreed respectfully, and then did not dare to beat around the bush, and tentatively said: "Your Majesty, I have already reviewed a lot of examination papers this afternoon. This year's candidates are very talented. Before entering the palace, I reviewed a very outstanding answer sheet, which ranked among the top three."
"The calligraphy is also good, and the body has its own strength!"
Academician Ye slightly emphasized the words "Xie Ti" and was nervous, fearing that the new emperor would let him figure out the emperor's intentions on his own.
It turned out that this was the reason why Academician Ye came to see him.
Did this old scholar think he was a monster? Gu Jue was a little amused, but he didn't intend to embarrass him, so he said indifferently: "It doesn't take up a place."
What he meant was that there would be 200 candidates selected for the exam and he would not take up one of those places.
Academician Ye thought to himself: It is indeed the new emperor.
While he was relieved, he was more and more confused, not understanding why the new emperor participated in the imperial examination. However, he did not ask the truth and responded dryly: "I understand."
After the matter was done, Academician Ye could not wait to say goodbye.
On that day, Grand Secretary Ye urgently transferred personnel from the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial College, and added ten more examiners to the Imperial Examination Hall to help mark the test papers. For the next five days, they all stayed in the Imperial Examination Hall. Everyone wished they had three heads and six arms, and finally they finished marking the test papers within the time required by Gu Jue.
When the day came when the results of the imperial examination were announced, the entire capital was shocked and people were talking about the announcement of the results everywhere.
After the morning court session, Gu Jue personally took Shen Qianchen to see the yellow list.
There was a huge crowd of people in front of the yellow list, bustling about, creating a lively and festive scene.
Some were ecstatic, some sighed to the sky, some beat their chests and feet, some cried inconsolably, some cried for those who made the list, and some cried for those who failed.
At a glance, all kinds of human life seem to be here.
Shen Qianchen had good eyesight. Even though he didn't squeeze into the crowd, he saw a very familiar name on the list at a glance -
Yin Jiuxia.
Mainly because the position of these three words is eye-catching enough.
Shen Qianchen grinned, his teeth showing and his eyes curved into a pair of crescents, with a bit of childish innocence.
She knew that Gu Jue would definitely pass, but when she saw his name appear on the yellow list with her own eyes, she still felt happy, as if a bird was flapping its wings and circling in her heart.
"You've won!" She stood on tiptoe, raised her hand and pointed at the name on the yellow list, overjoyed, "Fourth place."
Shen Qianchen couldn't help but admire that Master Ye really knew how to balance things out.
The first three places are the most eye-catching. If they are given to Gu Jue, it will inevitably be seen as flattering the emperor. The fourth place is the best, as it praises the emperor's literary talent without being too outstanding.
Gu Jue naturally saw her name and said teasingly with a smile: "You are now the wife of Gongshi."
A middle-aged man nearby heard their conversation and bowed to Gu Jue with a smile, "Master Yin, congratulations. You are really modest. You are the fourth place, so you will definitely be able to get a Jinshi degree, and maybe even win the Jinshi degree!"
After a candidate passes the examination of "Gongshi" in the joint examination, it is equivalent to entering the dragon gate. The subsequent "Palace Examination" does not eliminate candidates, but only ranks the Gongshi. The first three in the first class are awarded "Jinshi Jidi", the second class is awarded "Jinshi Chuanchuan", and the third class is awarded "Tong Jinshi Chuanchuan".
As long as the fourth place in the joint examination does not make a big mistake in the palace examination, it is impossible for him to be relegated to the third place, and he will definitely be a second-class Jinshi. As for whether he can be the first-class champion, the second-class champion, or the third-class champion, it depends on luck.
The middle-aged man looked at Gu Jue carefully, his eyes lit up, and he said jokingly: "Master Yin, don't worry, even if you can't get the first place, you will definitely get the third place."
Shen Qianchen was amused by this sentence and burst out laughing.
She nodded seriously and said, "Jiu Xia, I also heard that the emperor likes to choose handsome men as the third place winner!"
The middle-aged man agreed with this and enthusiastically discussed with Shen Qianchen the successive top three scholars in the imperial examinations of the Great Qi Dynasty, swearing that most of them were handsome men.
Their conversation also attracted the attention of some people around them. When many people heard that this young man was on the list, they all looked at him with envy or curiosity.
Gu Jue touched his chin with one hand and looked at Shen Qianchen with sparkling eyes.
Was this girl praising him or teasing him? Well, no matter which one it was, it seemed to be something that made him happy.
Gu Jue smiled slightly, and his eyes became softer.
He looked up at the yellow list in front of him again and saw a familiar surname among the top three: Xuan.
The second place is a man named Xuan Wenxing.
Shen Qianchen also saw the name, and he and Gu Jue smiled at each other, thinking that it was most likely the person they all knew.
"The next step is the martial arts examination." Gu Jue said as he shook their clasped hands, meaning, let's go.
This year's military examination was originally scheduled for autumn, but because the imperial examination was postponed, the examination was also postponed from August to September.
Previously, because of the problem of empty pay in the army, Gu Jue issued an order to dismiss 30% of the military generals. In addition to transferring people from the north to fill vacancies in various garrisons, the next step is to select suitable talents from the military examination.
These talented generals cannot be used in a short period of time, and they need to be trained little by little in the army.
This was the first military examination after the new emperor ascended the throne, and there were a lot of young people who signed up. In addition to the sons of military generals and nobles, there were also some children of common people who came with the intention of giving it a try. Of course, these applicants had to go through a preliminary screening by the Ministry of War before they could be qualified to participate in the military examination.
Shen Qianchen and Gu Jue turned around and strolled leisurely. There were some people walking towards them, talking and laughing.
"Brother Han, you are not here to participate in the martial arts exam, so why are you here to see the list?" A tall, thin young man in gray enthusiastically greeted a rough-looking young man in blue. "Could it be that you have friends who have also participated in the exam?"
"Haha, do you think I look like someone who knows scholars?!" The young man in blue said with a smile, "I just came here to join in the fun."
The young man in blue was cheerful and cheerful. He casually said to a scholar who was crying uncontrollably, "Brother, stop crying. Even if you fail this time, can't you still take part in the Spring Examination next spring?"
The frail scholar in his thirties wiped his tears with his sleeves and smiled a little embarrassedly: "Thank you for your concern. I didn't fail the exam..."
He didn't fail the exam, which means that he passed! The young man in blue looked at him puzzled, so why was he crying? "Hahaha!" The young man in gray laughed like thunder, "Brother Han, he studied hard for more than ten years and finally passed the exam. He is crying for joy!"
Shen Qianchen also heard this conversation. He turned around to look at the bustling crowd, and the corners of his lips curled up.
Yes, these are tears of joy.
very nice!
The current Da Qi is better than the Da Qi in the previous life, and it is thriving!
And she and he became better too!
Tomorrow is the coming-of-age ceremony~ (End of this chapter)