After the palace examination, the tribute students went home to relax.
The four hundred examination papers they wrote were handed over to the secret file after being received, handled and sealed. Theoretically, these palace examination papers should be reviewed by Emperor Jiajing, who was busy with his cultivation and alchemy, so he had no time to review so many examination papers. Therefore, Emperor Jiajing appointed eight examination examiners including Yan Song according to the convention, and they were to review the examination papers from the next day. The eight of them took turns to review each examination paper, and then they handed over the best ten examination papers of this palace examination to the emperor for review, and the emperor decided the ranking of the top three.
The tribute students were in a good mood after the exam, and Emperor Jiajing was also in a good mood, because the elixir he had been eyeing for a month was finally refined tonight.
This elixir is no ordinary elixir, it was obtained by Master Tao Zhongwen from an overseas relic after fighting a several-foot-long guardian snake. This prescription not only requires ninety-nine and eighty-one precious medicinal materials, but also the first menstruation of a hundred pure girls and nineteen "Hanzhen Biscuits" as an inducer (Hanzhen Biscuits: the clotted blood in the mouth of a baby when it is born), supplemented with nineteen kinds of materials such as dragon birth incense and meteorites from outer space, and it was refined using a secret method for 30 days and nights to obtain it.
After the medicine was refined, a strange phenomenon appeared in the sky, and a thin mist suddenly swept across the West Garden. According to Master Tao, this medicine can not only prolong life, but also strengthen the body and increase offspring. If taken for three consecutive days, one can have sex with several women at night without losing his semen.
The hole in the medicine cauldron of Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl opened, and the medicine was taken out and put into the jade plate. Nine pills were the color of cinnabar, round like quail eggs, and exuded a mysterious atmosphere.
Because he was in a hurry to take the pill, Emperor Jiajing didn't care whether it was night or not. According to the usual practice, he sent a eunuch to summon Yan Song, the chief minister, who was on duty in the board room in the Western Garden, and gave Yan Song a pill, which moved Yan Song so much that he burst into tears.
"It tastes a little bitter, but has a slightly sweet aftertaste. My heart and lungs feel hot, and I feel a few years younger. It seems that I have the impulse of youth again. Even if I were to be broken into pieces, I would not be able to repay the immortal for giving me the medicine." An hour later, Yan Song reported his feelings after taking the elixir with tears of gratitude.
"I am very pleased with your sincerity."
Emperor Jiajing was very satisfied with Yan Song's work. Yan Song had been working overtime in the board room of Xiyuan these days, writing poems, arranging palace examinations and handling other government affairs. The eunuch on duty said that Yan Song was so busy that he had not taken a bath for seven or eight days. Thinking of this, Emperor Jiajing turned his head and told Huang Jin, who was serving beside him, "Huang Ban, go and tell the Ministry of Internal Affairs to make a silver inscription with the words 'loyalty, diligence and intelligence' and choose an auspicious day to send it to Wei Zhong's house."
Loyal, diligent and smart!
These four words are almost the highest praise for a subject!
At this moment, Prime Minister Yan Song was so shocked by these four words that he lost his composure. The old man suddenly became like an emotional young girl. He didn't care that his hair and beard were all white. He knelt on the ground with a thud and kowtowed hard. When he raised his face again, he was already in tears.
"I, an old minister, thank you for your great grace. I have devoted my life to you. Even if I die, I cannot repay your kindness." Yan Song raised his old face. Tears were streaming down his face, and his nose was running.
Yan Song's attitude of a scholar willing to die for his friend made Emperor Jiajing shake his head and smile, "Wei Zhong, what are you doing? You are so old, but you still cry easily. Get up, go back and have a good rest. You will review the papers tomorrow. Don't let me down, Wei Zhong."
"The emperor's grace is as deep as the sea, and the minister's loyalty is as heavy as a mountain. I, an old minister, will do my best and will review the examination papers impartially and carefully." Yan Song kowtowed heavily again.
Emperor Jiajing nodded in satisfaction, and then set his eyes on the elixir in the jade plate, as if he couldn't wait to take it. Yan Song was a man of good sense. Seeing Emperor Jiajing's actions, he knew what Jiajing meant, and knelt down tactfully.
After Yan Song knelt down, Emperor Jiajing could not wait to start taking the elixir. He took the elixir with great solemnity and changed into a Taoist robe. He burned three incense sticks devoutly and "ran" a full cycle on the Tai Chi Bagua mat according to the "Taoist method" recommended by Tao Zhongwen before starting to take the elixir.
A round-faced, green palace maid in Taoist robes pinched a pill with her slender white jade fingers. With her other hand, she held up a crystal clear jade cup filled with dew collected in the early morning. She knelt respectfully in front of Emperor Jiajing and asked him to take the pill.
Emperor Jiajing took the red pill handed to him by the palace maid, put it into his mouth without hesitation, and then moved the pill down his throat with the morning dew.
Just as Yan Song described, Emperor Jiajing felt the pill was a little bitter at first, but after it entered his stomach, he had a sweet aftertaste. A warm current rose from his dantian and merged into the four meridians and eight vessels, and then a surging impulse arose spontaneously.
"Call Concubine Lu, Noble Lady An, and Concubine Xi to Cheng'en Hall in Yuxi Palace." With a flushed face, Emperor Jiajing stood up from the Tai Chi Bagua mat and instructed the eunuchs serving him.
A pure bundle of white grass, a girl as beautiful as jade.
Relax and take off, no feeling of my veil,
Don't let the dog bark.
Lanling Liaoxi was in great joy and had a good night's sleep. Concubine Lu, Noble Lady An and Concubine Xi, who were summoned last night, were sent back to their respective palaces in the middle of the night after Cheng'en. After the joy, Emperor Jiajing rested alone in Cheng'en Hall until dawn.
After waking up in the morning, Emperor Jiajing could not wait to send someone to inform Master Tao Tianshi. It was not that there was a problem with the elixir yesterday, but that Emperor Jiajing rested very well after the joy last night and had a dream. It was because of this dream that Emperor Jiajing sent someone to inform Tao Zhongwen.
Tao Zhongwen was recommended by the previous Heavenly Master Shao Yuanjie. When he first entered the palace, Tao Zhongwen gained the trust of Emperor Jiajing with his superb Fushuili sword skills to eliminate evil spirits. Especially last year, in the 29th year of Jiajing, there was a severe drought in the capital area. Tao Zhongwen prayed for rain in accordance with the emperor's order. He set up an altar and performed rituals for three days, and heavy rain fell for three days. Emperor Jiajing was very pleased and issued an edict to reward him with the title of "Gongcheng Bo", with an annual salary of 2,000 dan.
Tao Zhongwen is an old Taoist priest with white hair and a youthful face. He wears a gray and white Bagua Taoist robe. His hair is white, but there is not a single wrinkle on his face, giving people a feeling of reverse aging. Just looking at this face can make people want to call him an old immortal involuntarily.
Tao Zhongwen did not dare to neglect the imperial edict after receiving it, and followed the eunuch who delivered the message all the way to the bedroom of Emperor Jiajing.
After Tao Zhongwen paid his respects, Emperor Jiajing told him about his dream last night.
"After taking the elixir last night, I felt refreshed and slept soundly all night. But when I was about to wake up, I had a dream. In my dream, I saw the Emperor Taizu Gao. He was standing on a river bank covered with green duckweed, looking at me for a long, long time..."
"I am terrified that I have not been able to restore the country left by my great ancestor. I call myself an unworthy descendant and pay my respects to my great ancestor."
"Taizu still looked at me without saying a word. Finally, he pointed to his feet and flew away."
"Is this dream of reconciliation?" (To be continued.)
ps: Congratulations to Hanmenbang068 for becoming the leader of this book. Thank you very much and thank you for your support.