lcionline Chapter 383 The Emperor Personally Supervises the Examination
Chapter 383 The Emperor Personally Supervises the Examination
Chapter 383 The Emperor Personally Supervises the Examination
Emperor Zhao Yong sat high above, able to take in all the tribute students.
Of course, only those in the first few rows could be seen clearly, especially the top ten in the imperial examination.
The top ten in the imperial examination sat in the first row, with the top scholar in the center, flanked by the second-ranked scholars and the third-ranked scholars.
Liu Peng, the top scholar, was twenty years old and had just come of age. He had a handsome and upright face with fair skin, and because he was in the center, he was very conspicuous.
However, the emperor only glanced at it before his gaze unconsciously shifted away.
He is the grandson of Prime Minister Liu and the nephew of Consort Liu. I remember seeing him at a palace banquet before.
The emperor turned his gaze to Liu Peng's left and right. The tribute student on the right was obviously older, probably over thirty.
As for his looks, he's just average; not ugly, but not handsome either.
Then he turned his gaze to the left, and this time he looked for a while longer.
Having practiced martial arts for many years, Jiang Xiaoqi naturally felt a gaze fall upon him and linger for a long time.
Jiang Xiaoqi lowered her eyes, naturally not looking for the source of the gaze.
I've practiced these etiquette rules several times in the study space these past few days, and I know them by heart.
At this moment, the chief eunuch beside the emperor also noticed that the emperor's gaze had stopped, and then looked in the same direction.
Wow~ This time, there are quite a few talented people in the imperial examination. They have high rankings, are young, and are quite good-looking!
The head eunuch silently admired him, a barely perceptible smile appearing on his lips.
This tribute student will likely gain the emperor's favor in the future, after all, his master is known for his good looks, and none of the court officials are ugly.
Those who were less attractive were sent to serve as officials in other places, while those who were good-looking stayed in the capital, all so that their eyes could be more comfortable.
Emperor Zhao Yong admired his future ministers and seemed to finally remember the important matter at hand: the palace examination was still underway.
He gave the head eunuch a wink, and the head eunuch understood.
"The imperial examination begins! Unfold your papers!"
At the sound of "Unroll the scrolls," the palace servants distributed the scrolls in order from front to back. After all the scrolls had been distributed, the bell was rung to signal that the candidates could begin answering the questions.
Jiang Xiaoqi poured a small pool of water into the inkstone, pinched the ink block with her slender fingers, and soon the ink of the right consistency was ground.
Wearing the same blue robe and square scarf, with the same writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, Jiang Xiaoqi's position seemed to be coated with a halo, making him very pleasing to the eye.
Liu Peng had finished grinding his hair. He didn't want to be influenced by others, but he still couldn't help tilting his head slightly.
This second-ranking scholar was too mysterious. After arriving in the capital, he never participated in any poetry gatherings. Although he was a second-ranking scholar, he was not well-known among the many tribute students.
Even fewer people knew about him than the third-place finisher in the provincial examination; everyone guessed he was a bookish nerd who wasn't good at socializing.
He noticed this person while queuing outside the palace today, and unexpectedly, he found him sitting to his left after entering the palace. This person was none other than the rarely seen provincial examination runner-up.
She's very young and good-looking. I heard she's related to my family, and she seems to be quite young too.
It seems this third-place finisher should be this one, Liu Peng thought.
He glanced at it briefly before turning his attention back, but in the blink of an eye, he had already decided on Jiang Xiaoqi's ranking in the palace examination.
Just as the gaze from the head of the table was finally withdrawn, the gaze from the right came again. Jiang Xiaoqi thought she had been very low-key, so why was she still attracting attention from all sides?
In this regard, one can only say that he is completely unaware of his own appearance.
Of course, it's not true that someone is handsome without realizing it. In this world, as long as you're not blind, there's no such thing as someone who is beautiful without realizing it or handsome without realizing it.
It's just that we've gotten used to it and stopped caring, but other people aren't used to seeing it, so it naturally attracts their attention.
See? See? It won't hurt you to take a look.
Jiang Xiaoqi picked up his pen and cleared away the distractions.
The only sounds in the main hall were occasional footsteps and the occasional passing of bright yellow figures, making the examinees all tense.
The emperor usually only stays for half an hour to an hour, but today, for some reason, he not only didn't leave, but also started to inspect the area.
This policy question was indeed posed by the emperor himself, and it was a question without a standard answer.
The topic is "The Cornerstone of a Nation," a simple four-word question that asks candidates to explain what the cornerstone of a nation is. This scope is very broad, allowing for a great deal of room for creative expression.
Public sentiment, rule of law, military, money, land.
For a country, they all seem to be important and indispensable.
However, when writing policy essays, if you try to cover everything, you may end up covering nothing. If you focus on all the key points, it's the same as having no key points at all.
Trying to say everything might result in not explaining anything clearly or in depth.
The best approach is to start from a single point, draw lines from that point, and then expand outwards to a broader scope, clearly articulating your viewpoint in a divergent manner.
After a moment's thought, Jiang Xiaoqi picked up his pen and began to write. Once the pen touched the paper, it never stopped except when he dipped it in ink.
Emperor Zhao Yong walked up behind Jiang Xiaoqi, leaned down slightly to examine him, and a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes.
This handsome scholar... his idea is quite original.
Jiang Xiaoqi was well aware that someone was openly spying on him, but his strategy was nothing to be ashamed of, so let them see it if they wanted.
Anyway, I'll have to submit my paper to this person sooner or later, since I shouldn't fall out of the top ten.
Liu Peng also noticed that someone was behind him, but for some reason, he could tell that no one was looking at his exam paper, which made him feel a little disappointed.
Well, it's an open secret that His Majesty is good at looking at women, both inside and outside the court. Although I'm not ugly, I'm definitely inferior to the one on the left.
Forget it, I am more talented than him. The top scholar doesn't need a good face; talent is the most important thing.
After making his rounds, the emperor returned to his seat at the head of the table.
The head eunuch hurriedly served fragrant tea at a suitable temperature, hesitating whether to advise His Majesty to rest in the back.
Normally, His Majesty has never stayed this long during the palace examinations; I don't know what happened this time.
The sun slowly moved forward and finally hung at noon as it wished. The palace servants gave each of the candidates for the palace examination a bowl of water and a steamed bun.
After all, bringing anything into the palace examination was not allowed; otherwise, it would be suspected of being an assassination attempt.
Jiang Xiaoqi didn't eat the steamed bun; she only drank a few sips of water to moisten her throat.
After all, I ate a small fasting pill before coming in, so I wasn't hungry at all.
Several other scholars from the family who had come to take the exam were also given a pill, and they all ate it without thinking.
The exam ended with the chime of the bell.
The palace servants collected the exam papers and temporarily sealed them in boxes.
Because the emperor supervised the entire examination, the candidates had to perform a grand ceremony again.
Fortunately, the etiquette officer also provided training on this aspect, so it's better to be prepared than not.
The candidates kowtowed to see off His Majesty the Emperor. After Emperor Zhao Yong and his officials left, the candidates then left the main hall in an orderly fashion.
The sunlight outside the palace was gradually weakening, and it was estimated that it would be completely dark by the time we reached the palace gate.