The Kingdom That Never Sleeps CH 042 Metropolitan Imperial Examination
To see a thousand miles further, climb one story higher.
Qianli Tower is in the west of Shengjing City. From the fourth floor, one can see the endless Grand Canal like a silver ribbon in the distance. On the day after the huishi ended, Tang Shen and Shopkeeper Lu arrived at Qianli Tower. Shopkeeper Xing, with a round, joyful face, had been waiting for a long time.
Shopkeeper Xing looked Tang Shen up and down and laughed, "I didn't expect gongzi to be so youthful, truly a talented young man."
Tang Shen bowed slightly, "Shopkeeper Xing."
Shopkeeper Xing said, "Our young master hasn't arrived yet. Please move to the private room and rest for a while."
The three of them went upstairs together. Tang Shen entered the private room while Shopkeeper Xing and Shopkeeper Lu waited outside.
Inside the private room, Tang Shen saw a screen depicting a thousand mile mountain. On the left was a multi-treasure shelf filled with various treasures and antiques. Looking to the right, he saw two closed windows. When Tang Shen opened them, the sights and sounds of the bustling streets and the grandeur of Shengjing were in full view.
"Upon climbing this tower, one feels a vast, refreshing joy, raising a cup in the breeze, filled with happiness!"
Gazing at the prosperous scenery of Shengjing, Tang Shen suddenly understood Fan Zhongyan's words.
"What a feeling of vast joy, raising a cup in the breeze. Since that's the case, how can there be no wine?"
Tang Shen quickly turned around and saw the heir of Prince Jing, Zhao Qiong, dressed in brocade robes and wearing a jade crown, had already entered. The two exchanged glances, and Zhao Qiong stood still, surprised to see him. After a moment, Zhao Qiong said in amazement, "It's you!"
Tang Shen bowed, "Greetings to the heir of Prince Jing."
With a bit of thought, Zhao Qiong quickly realized the connections. He understood that Tang Shen had intentionally submitted his card to the Prince Jing Manor and attended the Top Scorer Banquet. However, Zhao Qiong didn't mind such minor matters. On the contrary, he was pleased that the soap business involved a scholar with official status.
Zhao Qiong called for Shopkeeper Xing, "Serve the dishes."
Shopkeeper Xing responded, "Yes."
Zhao Qiong turned back to Tang Shen, "The huishi just ended yesterday. Did you go?"
Tang Shen smiled, "Of course."
"Great, then today let's not talk about those business matters. Let's just talk about poetry and beauty. We'll discuss everything else after the results are out, shall we?"
Tang Shen hadn't expected to finalize the soap and essential oil business on their first meeting. On the contrary, Zhao Qiong's words indicated that he was genuinely interested in cooperating with Tang Shen. If Tang Shen passed the exam and became a jinshi, Zhao Qiong's attitude might change even more favorably. Discussing cooperation afterward would be highly beneficial for both parties.
So, the two of them simply enjoyed drinking and chatting.
Being young and not very good at drinking, Tang Shen was not pushed too hard by Zhao Qiong.
Two hours later, the two had become friends. Tang Shen stepped out of the private room and bowed to Zhao Qiong, "No need to see me off, heir."
Zhao Qiong replied, "Then I'll wait for the results and celebrate with you properly when the time comes."
Tang Shen and Shopkeeper Lu left Qianli Tower. Shopkeeper Lu, somewhat surprised, said, "I thought the heir of King Jing would be difficult to deal with since he is royalty, but he is quite approachable and didn't put on any airs."
Tang Shen remembered something and smiled, "Shopkeeper Lu, why do you think Prince Jing Manor runs Qianli Tower and Autumn Hall?"
Shopkeeper Lu replied, "It's normal for the royals in Shengjing to have businesses in the city. Why, is there something wrong?"
"Indeed, there's nothing wrong. But Prince Jing Manor deals in fine food, wine, and jewelry. The Prince is a wealthy royal with no real power. Those truly lucrative businesses, like last year's canal repairs, where any official involvement meant huge profits, are out of his reach!"
Government projects like canal repairs often serve as significant sources of income for royals and high-ranking officials.
This doesn't necessarily imply corruption, but there are numerous ways to profit from procurement and construction decisions. While not as much as through corruption, the profits are still substantial.
The Prince can run the largest restaurant and jewelry store in Shengjing but can't influence government affairs. This shows he is merely a wealthy royal with a title but no power.
Some might become corrupt in such circumstances, while others would enjoy their leisure.
Tang Shen thought the heir of Prince Jing didn't seem resentful. After all, the current emperor maintained a good facade, and no one could accuse him of being a tyrant; he was merely an emperor interested in Daoism and immortality. Throughout history, many emperors sought immortality, and in comparison, Zhao Fu could be considered a wise ruler.
The emperor didn't mistreat his brothers, and the Prince was happy with his peaceful life.
As for the intricate royal secrets, Tang Shen wasn't privy to them yet.
Shopkeeper Lu asked, "Little Boss, when will the results of the huishi be released? Will it be like the xiangshi, released ten days later?"
Tang Shen immediately laughed and said helplessly, "It's not that easy!"
The huishi is the final stage of the imperial examinations. Once you pass the huishi, you won't fail again, just waiting for the palace exam to give a ranking among the successful candidates. No matter how poorly you do in the palace exam, the worst you can get is the last place.
The huishi is so important that, in addition to the anonymized system, each examinee's paper has to be copied by someone else before being reviewed by the examiners.
There are over ten thousand papers from the juren examinees nationwide, and the hired xiucai need three full days to finish copying them, and they might still not be done.
In fact, Tang Shen's estimate of three days was an understatement. The exam ended in mid-February, but the examiners didn't receive the papers until February 27. The names had already been covered, and the handwriting was not by the examinees. All the papers were neatly written in the official Guange script. After worshiping Confucius, the examiners locked themselves in a hall to concentrate on grading the papers.
Five days later, thirty examiners finally selected the top ten papers from the exam.
Taking advantage of the chief examiner, Grand Secretary Li, being away on business, one of the examiners quietly sighed to his colleagues, "The questions this time were indeed biased and strange. Some examinees' essays were flowery but off-topic. The breaking open of the topic was so obscure that I find it hard to speak about it. It's way off. We can't select such essays for the top ten; we can only let them pass and hope they might shine in the dianshi later."
When Grand Secretary Li returned, everyone reviewed the final ten papers together.
The huishi, like the xiangshi and tongshi, placed the most importance on the first session. In the first session, Grand Secretary Li set three questions: "The official requests to see the sage," "Those who flee from Mohism will inevitably return to Yangism," and "I reflect on myself three times a day."
The first question alone eliminated a large number of examinees.
The three vice examiners of the huishi included two scholars from the Hanlin Academy and one assistant minister from the Ministry of Rites. One of them said, "I think this paper is an excellent choice for the top candidate. Gentlemen, please see, for the question 'The official requests to see the sage,' the candidate broke open the topic with Confucius teaching the world, the comparisons are clear, and the conclusion is insightful."
Everyone looked at the paper and said, “Excellent!"
Another vice examiner said, "Gentlemen, why don't you look at this essay?"
Everyone looked over again.
Grand Secretary Li, being older, was not as sharp-eared and keen-eyed as the other examiners. He picked up the paper and brought it close to his eyes to read carefully. "If Heaven gave birth to the sage but we couldn't see him, we would request three times to see his sage words, seeing the sage without knowing it... Ha, it truly shows great respect for Confucius. Let me look at the second essay." After a while, Grand Secretary Li said, "A mediocre piece, solid writing, and brilliant style, but the topic is broken open in a conventional way. This paper can enter the top ten, but how can it be the top candidate?"
The vice examiner being stared at by Grand Secretary Li was distressed. Grand Secretary Li was a pedantic old scholar, known for his eccentric temperament. The difficulty and bias of the questions he set this time reflected his difficult nature. He was not an easy person to get along with at the Hanlin Academy either.
The vice examiner said, "Li daren, have you seen his third essay?"
Grand Secretary Li lowered his head to read the third essay. After a while, he suddenly paused, then brought the paper closer to his eyes, carefully reading it several times from top to bottom. Suddenly, he said, "Good! What a phrase 'Correct mistakes if there are any, encourage yourself if there are none.' The writing connects ancient and modern times, as if hearing the voice of the sage." He couldn't help but recite these words several times and called the other examiners in the hall to see the essay.
Grand Secretary Li, with his eyebrows raised in delight, praised, "Each word is profound, an excellent piece, truly the best work of this year's huishi!"