As the brush strokes and ink splashed, time passed by in a flash, and October 20th arrived before we knew it.
Early in the morning of that day, a large area was marked off in the northern city of Yingtian, and all businesses were stopped. A row of sheds and mats were erected, covering everything from top to bottom, left to right, strong and sturdy, and able to block wind and rain. All around were wooden walls, with only the back side left empty, so that the examiners could check on the candidates.
Zhu Ping'an wore a Confucian scarf, a green robe, and carried a writing brush, inkstone, and a wide bamboo water cup. According to the notice issued by the educational official a few days ago, he lined up at the front of the queue in Anqing Prefecture. According to the yamen runners, the students on government stipends lined up at the front.
The fat guy just went to their Fengyang Mansion team to queue up and wait for admission. Although he had successfully presented the gift, he was still a little nervous and uneasy.
When the students came in, some yamen runners carried several baskets of cakes and side dishes into the tent. These were the meals that Zhu Ping'an and his classmates would have during the imperial examinations. They were quite frugal.
The school official Zhao Wenhua and several other officials were sitting on a high platform at the northernmost end of the shed in their official uniforms. In front of them were bright lights, tea, seasonal fruits and vegetables. Zhu Ping'an couldn't see what this famous traitor in history looked like from a distance. He gave up after taking a few glances. It was too far away to see clearly.
Outside, there were more than twenty soldiers wearing swords, scattered on the west side of the tent, standing with swords slung over their shoulders. More than ten yamen runners stood at the door to check the students entering. Except for pens, inkstones, and water jugs, nothing else was allowed to be brought in.
According to the regulations, Zhu Ping'an and other students unbuttoned their robes to reveal their inner garments, holding their pens, inkstones, and water bottles in one hand and their socks in the other, waiting for the two yamen runners to search them. Zhu Ping'an was in the front, waiting for the five men in front to finish their search before it was his turn. To be honest, it was still a bit scary to be touched by two grown men.
After passing the test successfully, Zhu Pingan put on his socks and shoes and entered the tent. Inside, an instructor checked Zhu Pingan's identity. After the verification, a yamen runner led Zhu Pingan to his seat.
The seats were very simple, with a table and a chair, nothing else. All candidates sat facing south, with their backs to the inspector, and the distance between the two tables was about four feet.
There was a corridor in front of the seat with two large drowning buckets on both sides of the corridor. Fortunately, it was far away from Zhu Ping'an.
When almost all the students had entered the examination hall, the examination papers were distributed. The yamen runners handed out the examination papers to the students present one by one. The examination papers were sewn with the seal of the education official and the serial number. The examination paper in Zhu Ping'an's hand had the serial number "Lishan No. 7", which was randomly written by the education official. There was a blank space under the serial number for writing one's name.
According to the announcement a few days ago, Zhu Ping'an wrote his name and personal information below: Zhu Ping'an, a student of Huaining County School, thirteen years old, has not taken the imperial examination.
You have to write your name in the imperial examination. This is an important difference from the provincial examination for students. If you have a name, there will inevitably be some shady things. However, this kind of thing is generally not dared. The Jinyiwei and the Dongchang are not vegetarians. Even if there is, it will definitely be limited to the smallest scope. The school officials also have to have their heads. If all the places are handled in this way, it will cause the students to be angry and offend the factory guards or report it to the censor or the emperor. You will have to bear the consequences.
After the yamen drum was beaten three times, yamen runners would patrol the area holding plaques with questions written on them. In addition, several minor clerks would read the questions aloud to ensure that those with poor eyesight and hearing would know the questions.
There were only two questions. One was an eight-part essay question, and the other was a policy essay question. Zhu Ping'an immediately copied the two questions neatly on a scrap of paper.
I have to say that although Zhao Wenhua's character is very bad, his cultivation is still quite high. The prefectural records he wrote were even included in the Sikuquanshu. As far as these two questions are concerned, they are still of a very high standard.
The title of the eight-part essay is as follows: The Master said to Yan Yuan: "If it is used, it will be put to use; if it is abandoned, it will be hidden. Only you and I have this.
This is a topic from the Four Books. It is not a difficult topic, but a very standard topic. However, it is difficult to write this eight-part essay well. This topic comes from the original text of the Four Books, which is a discussion between Confucius and his disciple Yan Hui about the two life choices of ancient scholars: using and abandoning, and hiding. However, it is not easy to write well.
This sentence basically means that Confucius was bragging about Yan Hui. The specific meaning is this.
Confucius said to Yan Yuan: "If someone can employ me, I will spread the great principles of governing the country and bringing peace to the world; if someone cannot employ me, I will keep these great principles of governing the country and bringing peace to the world to myself. Only you and I can do this."
In the eight-part essay, the title is the definition of the content of the essay. The whole essay can only be expanded on the title, and the scope cannot be expanded or narrowed at will, just like digging a well, the diameter from the wellhead to the bottom of the well must be the same. This topic can only discuss the issues of "use, abandon, act, hide" Confucius, Yan Hui, and Confucius' words to Yan.
Therefore, it is not easy to stand out among thousands of people and write this eight-part essay well.
Comparing it with some of the eight-part essays written by top scholars in his previous life and adding his own understanding, Zhu Ping'an thought for a moment, then raised the corners of his mouth and confidently wrote down the first sentence:
“The wise man waits for capable people to show his abilities before he shows them.”
This first sentence is called the "opening" in the eight-part essay. It is the most important part of an eight-part essay. Whether the essay is well written or not, and whether the score is high or not, depends on this sentence. The opening should not be repeated with the title, but should summarize the meaning of the title.
Zhu Ping'an was very satisfied with his solution. Just based on this sentence, he felt that the test was almost a piece of cake.
"Sage" refers to Confucius, and "capable" refers to Yan Hui. "The appropriateness of behavior and hiding" refers to the appropriate "behavior and hiding". The word "subtle" not only reflects the teacher-student relationship between Confucius and Yan Hui, but also highlights Yan Hui's understanding. A loud drum does not need a heavy hammer. Zhu Ping'an was very satisfied with this solution.
After writing the opening line, Zhu Ping'an dipped his brush in the inkstone, and then continued to write the following parts:
"The behavior and hiding of a sage is not easy to predict. Only after Yan Zi understood it can we talk to him."
"So I want to tell you this: Throughout life, there are only one or two paths for people to choose from, and those who can not be exhausted are often rare. When you have something you can be confident of, you may be alone without sharing it, or be alone without anyone to talk to. This is the meaning of singing in your sleep to comfort yourself, and I am fortunate to have something to tell you now."
"There is only you and I, and at this moment, I am relieved and understand in silence."
Zhu Ping'an's eight-part essay can almost be described as a flood of inspiration and flowing writing, and he wrote it in one go without any punctuation.
When I finished writing this eight-part essay, there were still candidates nearby who had not started writing yet.
At this time, Zhu Ping'an was thirsty, but he resisted the urge to drink water. Some days ago, I heard some students talking about drinking water during the imperial examination. You must not drink water during the imperial examination. Although there are tea servants in the examination hall, you must not drink water, no matter how thirsty you are. If you drink water, it will be recorded by the examiner on the high platform. Even if it is not treated as cheating, your test paper will be downgraded, no matter how well you write.
Therefore, although he was thirsty at this time, Zhu Pingan just licked his lips with the tip of his tongue and endured it. He could drink water during the break and meal time. He couldn't ruin his road to the imperial examination for the sake of a momentary pleasure. (To be continued 88 Reading ()