Although he is young, his articles are increasing day by day;
When you are fifteen or sixteen, you will pass the exam in one go.
Zhu Ping'an curled his lips slightly, silently reciting this poem by a child prodigy, and looking at the various candidates queuing up, his heart was extremely calm. Because I didn't waste any time, I lived up to my youth, and youth will naturally not treat me unfairly.
The waiting time was long. There were soldiers holding torches all around, and braziers were burning everywhere. The whole place was brightly lit.
More than 5,000 examinees from thirteen provinces in the north and south gathered outside the gate, carrying examination baskets and bedding, and lined up in long queues, waiting to enter, like migrant workers squeezing into trains during the Spring Festival.
This scene made Zhu Ping'an think of the Spring Festival travel rush, and he couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
While Zhu Ping'an and others were queuing outside waiting for the exam, the inner and outer curtain officials inside the gate were making careful arrangements for this examination.
There were two chief examiners for this joint examination. The chief examiner was Xu Jie, the Minister of Rites, a senior official of the first rank. The deputy chief examiner was Yan Maoqing, the second in command of the Censorate, the Left Deputy Censor-in-Chief, a senior official of the third rank and an important member of the Yan Party. There were also eight other co-examiners. These people were the inner curtain officials for this joint examination.
The left assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites was in charge of the examination, who was also a member of the Yan Party. In addition, there were two censors in charge of the examination. There were also several people in charge of supplying, collecting and sealing the examination papers, recording the relatives, reading the papers, receiving the papers, and inspecting the gates. These people were the outer curtain officials of this examination.
Of course, the main force is still the soldiers responsible for maintaining order, searching, security and other tasks.
After the mobilization meeting of the inner and outer curtain officials is over, the outer curtain officials will be responsible for letting the candidates in batches according to their regions to wait for the exam.
The Nanzhili examination area where Zhu Ping'an was located was the second batch to enter. After the first batch of Shandong candidates entered, the Nanzhili candidates where Zhu Ping'an was located, amid the envious gazes of candidates from other regions, carried their bags and rushed towards the gate, lining up for inspection and entry.
After hundreds of examinees from the entire Nanzhili entered the gate, several soldiers closed the gate. Then a middle-aged official in an official robe walked out from the crowd, surrounded by four officials.
"My dear talents, I am the supervisor of this joint examination. One of my duties is to supervise and check for hostages. You are all outstanding talents from various places who have passed the provincial examinations. You are the best in various places. You all came here because of the song "Deer Singing". I cannot use the methods I used to deal with thieves to prevent you from passing the examination. However, the country has its own laws and the family has its own rules. This joint examination is a gift from the emperor. I believe that you are as grateful as I am. In order to repay the emperor's gift, the search for hostages in this joint examination will be carried out strictly in accordance with the rules. I also came here through this search. I believe that all of you talented people can understand me."
This middle-aged official in official robes was one of the two examiners. He walked up to the candidate from Nanzhili and spoke with a serious face.
"I'm going to say this first. If any of you dare to bring writings, transcripts, or other things you shouldn't bring into the examination hall, once discovered, you will be sent to the Military Affairs Department for questioning. After a month in shackles, you will be sent back to your hometown to serve as an official, and your title as a successful candidate will be revoked. You will never be allowed to take the examination again, and you will not be allowed to be promoted! The officials and soldiers who are responsible for checking for things you carry should also be strictly responsible. The search should be repeated twice. If problems are found in the latter search, the former will be punished. If problems are found in the Imperial Examination Hall, both the former and the latter will be punished. Soldiers will be transferred to remote garrisons, and officials will be fined one year's salary."
Under the stern instruction of the supervisor, the atmosphere in the whole venue suddenly became serious.
"I advise all candidates to cherish their hard-earned reputation. Before I announce the start of the search, you still have a chance to remove the illegal items that you are carrying. I will not hold you accountable for the past. From now on, I will give you ten breaths of time."
As the middle-aged official spoke, he waved his hand, and all the officials and soldiers present turned their backs to the candidate, creating a blind spot in the direction of the candidate, and no movement of the candidate could be seen.
Then
Zhu Pingan saw some small pieces of paper, wax balls, palm-sized booklets, etc., which were thrown to the side of the wall one after another, and even a porcelain pillow.
Uh, the juren also cheated.
As expected, everyone is the same. Zhu Pingan couldn't help but laugh. Just like when he was a graduate student, graduate students also used various methods to take exams, such as soaking small pieces of transparent tape in clean water and sticking them on water cups, sharing in WeChat groups, printing out cheat sheets, etc.
"Very good, start the search."
Ten breaths later, the middle-aged official looked at the various cheat sheets on the ground, nodded with satisfaction, and signaled the officials and soldiers in charge of the search to divide the candidates into groups and begin the search.
The officials watched from the side, while the soldiers were responsible for the specific search work.
The inspection of the gifts and supplies carried was similar to that of the provincial examination. Clothes, hats, robes, insoles, socks, etc. would all be searched. Clothes had no lining, cushions could only be one layer, inkstones could not be thick, brushes had to be hollow, food had to be cut, etc., similar to the provincial examination.
After watching the entire process of the first candidate being searched, Zhu Ping'an still had to say that the search for the joint examination was much stricter than that for the provincial examination and the examination for students of higher learning, because in addition to the gifts and supplies you carry, your entire body will also be subject to a strict body search.
How do they search you? They just take off your clothes and let several soldiers grab and pull your body. The search can be said to be very thorough. How should I put it? The following are all necessary procedures.
Open your mouth, well, there's nothing hidden in your mouth. Look at your ears, well, there's nothing hidden in your ears. And your hair, well, there's nothing in your hair. And your body, are there any tattoos or ink marks or anything like that
After checking all these places on the body where things can be hidden, there is one more place, you know, that also needs to be checked.
I watched the guys at the front of me as they were inspected with red faces and thick necks, and I watched the soldiers conducting the thorough searches with a deliberate air of thoroughness.
Zhu Ping'an had a deeper understanding of a saying, that is, "When a scholar meets a soldier, he cannot explain his reason clearly." Perhaps this saying came from this time.
When a scholar meets a soldier, he can’t explain his reason clearly!
Most of the scholars and soldiers started to interact with each other at the Imperial Examination Hall. The soldiers carried swords on their waists, looking very impressive. The scholars who were usually arrogant and proud now looked like grandsons, with their heads down and their heads downcast under the scorching sun. The soldiers ordered them around, and they dared not even fart. In this way, the scholars had to go through the procedures of searching for contraband and verifying their identities, and the soldiers also took the opportunity to vent their disrespect for the scholars, searching them meticulously, even taking off their clothes and pulling open their five grains.
Intellectuals are such proud beings that they even pose when they die, and now they are being treated like this.
Why in history, scholars always have trouble with warriors, and why so many scholars use all means to make the warriors suffer.
Why
Where do they get so much anger and hatred
Now that I think about it, I guess it was because I had been insulted by the soldiers during the imperial examination, and the resentment was so deep that I lost my composure and became disillusioned. (To be continued.)