Generally speaking, the imperial examinations rarely involve disputes among saints, and asking for the saint's words mostly just tests some common sense.
However, this year's Tongsheng examination happened to have questions involving the dispute over the holy way. I wonder what the saints meant by this.
Fang Yun didn't think much when he was answering the questions, but now he had extra energy and fell into deep thought.
The contents of the imperial examinations, like those of "Sheng Dao" and "Wen Bao", more or less reveal things that are difficult for ordinary people to perceive.
Shen Ming continued to read the questions and compared them. When he got to the third page, he paused for a moment and said, "This question seems to be about the content of Zuo Zhuan. It asks about the approximate distance between Qufu, the capital of Lu, and the border of Qi during the time of Duke Zhuang of Lu. This question... I'm afraid it's one of the difficult questions in this Tongsheng exam. Fang Xusheng gave a lot of answers, a total of three paragraphs. It seems that during the time of Duke Zhuang of Lu, the adjacent territories of the two countries changed at least three times. I wonder if you have any answers?"
Deng Xuezheng shook his head and said, "If I am given enough time, I may be able to answer this question. However, this question is very tricky. Border changes are one of the questions, and the most difficult one is the distance between Qufu and the border of Qi. I am still thinking about it after answering the question. So far, I have not found any book that clearly states the distance between the two places."
Captain Lu Hong nodded and said, "When I saw this question, I was also at a loss. I don't know which book records the distance. As for the changes in the border, if there is enough time, I may be able to slowly sort it out, but this question alone may take an hour. I'm afraid no one will be able to answer this question this year. Fang Xusheng said that the territories of the two countries changed three times. Can you explain it?"
"Please help me, Magistrate Fang!" Shen Ming, Tao Dingnian and others asked loudly.
Fang Yun glanced at everyone. Lu Hong was a military strategist and really wanted to ask for advice, but Shen Ming and the others were obviously stirring up trouble, hoping that he would make a mistake. After all, knowing the answer and explaining the solution in detail are two different things. One is to know it yourself, and the other is to teach others.
Fang Yun was not at all nervous. He said, "If you want to know the changes in territory, you naturally need to know the number of battles between Lu and Qi during the reign of Duke Zhuang of Lu. It is determined by the number of battles, location, and final negotiations. The Zuo Zhuan records that in the ninth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, Lu was defeated by Qi. In the tenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, Lu defeated Qi with Cao Gui as its general, which was the famous Battle of Changshao. This led to the popular Cao Gui debate, making 'the first attack is strong, the second is weak, and the third is exhausted' a good story. Please remember this. I will mention it again later. In the nineteenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, Qi attacked the western border of Lu. This can also be considered a war between the two countries, but Qi is to the north of Lu. This time Qi attacked the west, no matter how much territory it lost, it would not cause a change in the distance to the north, so it is not counted. In the thirteenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu..."
Fang Yun determined that it was during the reign of Duke Zhuang of Lu through the records of the Spring and Autumn Period in Zuo Zhuan, Gongyang Zhuan, and Guliang Zhuan. The northern border between Lu and Qi changed three times, and these three changes changed the distance between Qufu, the capital of Lu, and Qi.
After Fang Yun finished speaking, Shen Ming and other officials were speechless. Some officials praised him unanimously.
"As expected of you, you are Fang Xusheng. You have quick wit and intelligence, which is beyond the reach of us!"
"In the world, except for Fang Xusheng, I'm afraid no one can sort out the wars between the two countries that took place in the past few decades in such a short time. During the Spring and Autumn Period, wars were frequent, and it would be impossible to sort them out without careful sorting."
Lu Hong thought for a moment and asked, "Fang Xusheng, you just mentioned the debate between Cao Gui and the Battle of Changshao that took place in the tenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, and you said you would mention it later. Why didn't you mention it at all later?"
"Huh?" Everyone then realized that Shen Ming immediately became alert. This might be Fang Yun's oversight, or perhaps a breakthrough.
Fang Yun smiled and said, "Captain Lu, you are a military expert. Others don't know how to calculate the approximate distance from Qufu to the border of Qi State, but how come you can't calculate it! You are just a bookworm, a bookworm!"
When Fang Yun finished speaking, he put away his smile and his voice made the ears of the people around him buzz.
Fang Yun was dressed in white, standing in the pavilion with a serious look, and he looked intimidating without even getting angry.
Everyone present felt a chill instinctively throughout their bodies. Even Shen Ming couldn't help but lower his head. Fang Yun was the county magistrate, but he was also a virtual saint!
During the palace examination, Fang Yun could not use the privileges of the virtual saint, but people could not ignore his status.
If Fang Yun criticized Lu Hong's government affairs as a county magistrate, the officials present could directly refute him. But Fang Yun was discussing academic matters, so everyone had to listen first. After Fang Yun had expressed all his views, everyone could object.
Lu Hong looked at Fang Yun and felt that the person standing in front of him was not a teenager, but a strict teacher. He did not dare to be angry at all. He bent down and said humbly, "Please give me some advice, Saint Fang Xu."
Fang Yun said: "Recite Cao Gui's Battle at Chen" once!
Lu Hong was still somewhat puzzled. After a brief thought, he recited in public: "Duke Zhuang of Lu was about to make a large bell. When the shape was completed, Cao Gui came in and said, 'In the past, when the Zhou Dynasty granted Lu a fiefdom, it was seven hundred miles from east to west and five hundred miles from north to south...'"
Lu Hong continued to recite.
"Cao Gui's Visit to Chen" is also known as "Cao Mo's Visit to Chen". It records the discussion between Cao Gui, a great military strategist of the State of Lu, and Duke Zhuang of Lu on political and military affairs. It is a military book. However, due to its long history, it was written more than a hundred years before Confucius was born, and many parts of it have been lost.
For scholars, the history before the birth of Confucius is relatively vague, which is also the difficulty of this question.
After reciting the entire "Cao Gui's Battle at Chen", Lu Hong still felt somewhat confused. The other officials also tried their best to think about it, wondering what secrets were hidden in it.
Seeing that no one could think of it, Fang Yun sighed and said, "Lu Hong, let me ask you, what is the terrain like between Qufu and the border of Qi?"
"It's a flat terrain." Lu Hong replied.
"How did Lu and Qi fight at that time?"
Lu Hong answered without hesitation: "The chariots are in front and the soldiers are in the back. The terrain there is simple, so the tactics are naturally simple as well."
"Let me ask you again, how many days would it take for Lu to fight against Qi's army as described in Cao Gui's Battle of Chen?"
"It will be over in two or three days at most."
"Can you estimate the speed of the chariots and soldiers?"
Lu Hong was stunned, and so were all the officials.
Almost in an instant, everyone suddenly understood and showed joy, as if they had gained something from reading.
Lu Hong immediately replied: "So that's how it is. In the tenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, Qufu was about 110 miles away from the border of Qi."
"Good." Fang Yun nodded slightly.
Some officials suppressed their joy and looked at each other, seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.
It was almost unrelated, but Fang Yun was able to find a connection between them. He calculated the distance between the two places through details such as the deployment of military equipment, battle time, and chariot speed in the military manual. It was incredible. The most important thing was that everything was completed in just a few breaths.
Deng Xuezheng threw away the test paper in his hand and said, "On this question alone, I am far inferior to Fang Xusheng. I admit defeat first."
Lu Hong also threw away the test paper in his hand and said, "The student also admits defeat. The wisdom of the genius is far beyond my reach."
The other eleven people who participated in the competition looked embarrassed, but they did not give up. However, their momentum was completely crushed by Fang Yun, and each of them looked worried and sad, like students being criticized by their teacher.
Yuan Jun Wen Gu said solemnly: "Next question."
Next, Shen Ming continued to answer and check the questions one by one. (To be continued…)