After this episode ended and before the banquet began, Minister Wang called the names of other students to come forward.
After that, he no longer needed to ask others to draw questions. He drew them himself and asked questions one by one.
Those who answer well will naturally receive praise from him.
He was not surprised if the answers were not good. With a little guidance, he could make the other party wake up from their dream. Then he would encourage them a little and let them think more about it later.
Before noon, the top ten candidates in the provincial examination had all been randomly checked.
These outstanding candidates in the provincial examination saw that Mei Ruochu and Mu Erpang had taken up so much time and stole the limelight. Although they knew that there was a reason for it and that this would make people no longer doubt the fairness of the provincial examination, they felt a little uncomfortable - because in the original process of the Lu Ming Banquet, they also had the opportunity to perform, and for this reason they had made a lot of preparations the day before.
But unexpectedly, Shangshu Wang had already thought of this aspect. As a result, after the morning, all the students in the banquet hall felt admiration for this teacher.
After the banquet started, the chief and deputy examiners sat together with the candidates, while other officials sat at separate seats.
The seats of the candidates are arranged according to their scores. The better the scores, the closer they are to the examiners. This is an unwritten rule. It is also a symbol of honor.
Of course, the chief examiner also has the right to change the seats of the candidates and move the candidate he appreciates to sit next to him.
Minister Wang did not point to anyone else, but asked Cui Fei to sit in front of him, and said with a smile: "You young men, each one is weaker than the other. Although fame and honor are important, can they be more important than your health? This young man is very pleasing to my eyes, and he looks very blessed at first glance."
Although Cui Fei's current figure is no longer enough to make him feel inferior, it has never been something he should be proud of.
The plump and fair Minister Wang likes the plump and fair juniors.
Cui Fei perked up and went forward to sit down. Shangshu Wang asked him how many places he had taken in the provincial examination.
Apparently, Minister Wang felt that Cui Fei, who had a very lucky appearance, should rank high even though he was not among the top ten.
Although Cui Fei was a little embarrassed, he still reported his ranking openly.
Minister Wang said with a hint of surprise, "It's you."
Then he read the poem Cui Fei wrote in the provincial examination again, and finally commented: "Your answers to other questions are OK, but this poem is a bit pretentious. It's a good opportunity for you to come forward and sit down, and I will explain it to you in detail."
Many students were envious of Cui Fei's situation just now, thinking that he was just a little stronger than ordinary people, but he was looked at differently by Shangshu Wang. Now they just feel lucky - if they had to have their essays commented on by the teacher while they were eating, even if the teacher Shangshu Wang was particularly kind, the meal would be tasteless.
Minister Wang glanced at these people with amusement, "Don't think that I'm letting you off just because I didn't order you. After the banquet, those who haven't spoken to me yet will have to come to me in turn to register their names!"
Although these words sounded like a joke or a scolding, he was actually saying that if other people wanted to get his guidance after the banquet, they would also have the opportunity.
Everyone agreed, and Shangshu Wang said, "Look at my brain. I can't remember things when I'm old. There are six people from your academy, and now five of them are in front of me. Isn't the other one left behind? That candidate, come and sit over here."
Wei Shu ranked twentieth, and his seat was not far away. Moreover, Minister Wang did not ask others to move their seats to accommodate Wei Shu. Instead, he asked Cuiwei's students to move their seats closer to him, just like the elders in a family greeting the younger ones, to make room for Wei Shu.
Seeing them sitting next to each other in an intimate and familiar manner, Minister Wang looked at them with a smile, but his eyes were a little vague.
I think it reminds me of the time when I was young and I used to chat with my classmates.
After Minister Wang came to his senses, he started eating first, and then the other students followed suit.
No one was talking at the dinner table. It was so quiet that the only sound could be heard: the chopsticks colliding with cups and plates.
Minister Wang asked everyone to relax a little, "I am old now, and I like to listen to the noise. You should take care of me and talk freely."
With his encouragement, everyone finally relaxed and began to talk quietly.
Seeing that everyone was no longer so restrained, Minister Wang also asked Mei Ruochu: "I noticed that the poem you wrote today was even better than the one you wrote during the provincial examination. But were you too nervous during the provincial examination and that affected your performance?"
Just as Mei Ruochu was about to put down his chopsticks and reply, Minister Wang waved his hand, telling him not to be so polite. He then replied, "To answer your question, I wasn't nervous during the provincial examination, it was just because of... some minor problems. I dare not pollute your ears, anyway, I will work harder in the future."
Mei Ruochu didn't think it was shameful to be on the wrong side of the stick for three consecutive times, but talking about it at the dinner table was unappetizing.
But when he said that it was half hidden and the other half revealed, it really made Minister Wang curious.
They always say that old people are always childish. At his age, sometimes his mentality is really like that of a child. Seeing that he couldn't get any more information from Mei Ruochu, he turned to look at Chen Aoshuang.
Chen Aoshuang continued to use her chopsticks, as if she didn't notice.
His five senses are not as good as those of an average person, so this kind of situation is bound to happen. Mu Erpang certainly couldn't bear to see Shangshu Wang misunderstand him, so he took the initiative to take on the task of answering questions. He didn't say anything specific, after all, if he said it out loud it would affect everyone's appetite as Mei Ruchu thought, so he just frowned and gently fanned his nose with his hand.
Minister Wang is of an age when it comes to sperm. He himself had passed the imperial examinations in his early years, so he knew what was going on at a glance. He raised his eyebrows slightly and asked with his eyes how many rounds there were.
Mu Erpang made the number three again.
This situation was miserable, but under such circumstances, Mei Ruochu still passed the imperial examination and became a top scholar, which showed that his talent was even higher.
The fat on Shangshu Wang's face trembled. The old man wanted to laugh but also felt sympathy. Finally, he comforted him: "When God wants to give a man a great responsibility, he must first make his heart and mind suffer and his muscles and bones work hard. Experiencing a little hardship when you are young will also help your future growth."
Mei Ruochu should naturally be the one.
After asking this, he asked Wei Xi and Wei Shu, "You two look about 70% alike, but you are much thinner than your brother, and your complexion doesn't look very good. You should keep in mind what I told everyone to take care of their health, understand?"
Wei Xi also responded, "I have suffered a lot in this regard. I almost failed this provincial examination... I will definitely remember your teachings in the future."
Among these four people, one was sentenced to three consecutive terms of imprisonment, and another was so weak that he almost couldn't make it. How come the students of this academy are both excellent and prone to illness?
Minister Wang thought so and questioned Mu Erpang with his eyes.
The meaning is obvious. Did you encounter any problems during the provincial examination?
Mu Erpang really didn’t, but Shangshu Wang now seemed to like making eye contact with him and just looked at him with a smile.
Mu Erpang thought for a while and said, "The student is fine. Nothing else happened to him. It's just that he has little experience and has not studied for a long time. He can't think of questions as fast as other students in the academy. He almost missed the deadline for submitting the paper."
Minister Wang nodded in understanding. "You look younger than them, so it's not easy for you to pass the Central Asian Yuan exam. After all, you studied several years less than them. As long as you work as hard as before, you will make up for the gap sooner or later."
Mu Erpang agreed, and Chen Aoshuang suddenly said, "It's not a few years, it's almost ten years. Hanshan started learning at the age of ten in his own academy, and it only took him five years to get to where he is now."
Although Shangshu Wang was a kind person, most of the candidates still respected and feared him, and no one dared to speak before he gave the signal.
Mu Erpang and the others couldn't help but sweat for Chen Aoshuang. Fortunately, Shangshu Wang was not surprised and said, "There is such a strange thing?! What a pity. I have to leave for my hometown tomorrow. I will return to Beijing to report my work after staying in my hometown for a while. I don't have more time to listen to the story. Let's meet again in Beijing and talk about it."
The next time we see each other in the capital will be during the Spring Examination in February next year.
The imperial examination was presided over by the Ministry of Rites, so Shangshu Wang naturally could not meet with the candidates before the exam.
So this "reunion" actually means that they will meet again after they have passed the joint examination or even the palace examination.
These words are also full of encouragement and hope for them.
Mu Erpang and the others all agreed.
Later, Shangshu Wang naturally not only talked to them, but also talked to other candidates, which also made them feel warm and comfortable.
After the banquet, Minister Wang, as he had said before, also called on some candidates who were ranked tenth or later on the provincial examination list to come forward and speak.
It also encouraged the candidates who were not selected by him to be bolder and come forward directly if they had anything they wanted to ask.
The excitement lasted until dusk, when all the candidates received their documents, and the Lu Ming Banquet finally came to an end.
After the banquet was over and they left the Governor's Office, Mu Erpang finally let out a long breath and looked at Chen Aoshuang and said, "During the banquet, you suddenly spoke? At that time, cold sweat broke out on my back."
Chen Aoshuang answered incoherently, and no one heard it clearly. They just thought that he regretted it, so no one had the heart to say anything to him.
Wei Xi continued, "At the beginning of the conversation, Minister Wang asked Brother Shen the least questions. Later at the dinner table, he showed concern for everyone, but he didn't ask Brother Shen any questions..."
Mei Ruochu added: "But if Minister Wang didn't like Brother Shen, when he wanted to get an answer, the first person he looked at was Brother Shen. It didn't look like he didn't like him."
The two meticulous people analyzed the situation at the banquet one by one. The careless Wei Shu and Cui Fei were a little surprised after listening to it - were they sitting at the same table and having a banquet just now? How come so many things happened during the meal?
As they were talking, they returned to Shusheng Lane. Chen Cui and Lao Buyu had almost finished packing their bags.
After all, there were less than four months left until next year's imperial examination. Chen Cui thought about returning to Qingzhou Prefecture to recuperate for a few days and then setting a time to go to the capital.
The journey to the capital is long and it takes time to prepare the gifts.
Moreover, it had been quite a while since she left the academy, and she was worried that the young men would be affected by the rules, so she prepared to leave early.
The young men always listened to her on such matters, so they did not ask much after returning. They just told her and Lao Buyu what they had seen and heard today.
Knowing that Minister Wang not only easily resolved the rumors, but was also unusually amiable, Shen Cui was completely relieved.
The next morning, Cui Fei left Cui's servants to take over the property from the owner, and the group set out on their journey back to Qingzhou Prefecture.
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