Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 5001: Examination Room Fight
February 18th, Rainwater.

Today is the provincial examination.

It was still dark in the sky, with dark clouds still gathering in the air and a cool breeze carrying moist water vapor. Students from various counties under the jurisdiction of Jingzhao Prefecture had already been waiting outside the city. When the gates of Chang'an were opened at once, they rushed in and headed for the county government offices of Chang'an and Wannian counties respectively.

Every neighborhood and street in the city had already been patrolled by teams of ten left and right Jinwu Guards, fully equipped with helmets and armor, so that they could respond to any possible riots at any time.

The whole city is on high alert.

The examination is divided into three sessions, each lasting three days. The examination venues are different depending on the subjects applied for, and the examination contents are also different.

At the end of the Mao hour, the gates of the county government office were opened, and officials from the Ministry of Rites, together with the Jinwu guards, verified the candidates' identities and conducted full body searches to prevent cheating. They then allowed the candidates to enter the examination room prepared in advance inside the government office one after another to wait for the exam.

Inside the lobby of the Wannian County Yamen, the lights were bright and there were many people. Fang Jun, Ma Zhou, Xu Jingzong, Li Anqi and others gathered together, while officials from the Ministry of Rites and the county yamen were coming in and out, busy at work.

Ma Zhou glanced at the gloomy sky outside and said to Li Anqi, "It's going to rain. Arrange officials to patrol at any time. If there is a leak in the examination room, it must be dealt with in time. We must ensure that the examination goes smoothly and do not let the candidates delay the examination because of the rain."

Li Anqi quickly agreed: "I will personally lead a patrol later to ensure everything is safe."

Fang Jun warned: "Don't act alone when handling affairs. Make sure that the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate are present. The three parties should check and supervise each other to ensure that there is no favoritism or corruption. Don't underestimate the ability of the candidates, and don't overestimate the integrity of the officials."

Since ancient times, preventing cheating has been of paramount importance in any examination process. It is true that the devil is always one step ahead of the saint. All kinds of incredible methods emerge in an endless stream. Once cheating occurs, it is not only unfair to other candidates, but also causes many officials to be implicated and dismissed from office.

The Tang Dynasty's imperial examination had just started and there was a lack of experience in many areas. If cheating occurred, the consequences would be far-reaching.

Li Anqi's heart trembled, and he hurriedly said, "Don't worry, General, I won't worry about it!"

Being promoted from Huangmen Shilang to Wannian County Magistrate was a solid step. He only needed to work for a few more years to accumulate political achievements and qualifications, and with the help of his family connections, he could be successfully promoted to Shilang of Six Ministries and rise to the top in his career. However, if there were mistakes in the imperial examination and there were stains in the evaluation, he might have wasted twenty years and still not be able to reach the high position of Shilang of Six Ministries.

The imperial examination tested students from Jingzhao Prefecture, but it was also a big test for him, and he had to ensure that it went perfectly.

Fang Jun nodded and looked at Ma Zhou and Xu Jingzong: "After this year's provincial examination, we will write to Your Majesty to build a Gongyuan in each prefecture for the purpose of examination. After all, the conditions of the prefectures in various places are different. If there is a shortage of houses and the buildings are simple, it will affect the candidates, which is very inappropriate."

He participated in the reform of the imperial examination and made many improvements based on the previous Sui Dynasty's imperial examination system in accordance with later generations. However, he had never experienced the examination himself, and most of his information was hearsay. He was also unable to grasp many details and could only make improvements one by one during the implementation process.

One of them was the Gongyuan, which was built all over the country specifically for the imperial examinations.

Ma Zhou stroked his beard and nodded, "It is indeed necessary. It is fine in a prosperous prefecture, but if it is a remote and barren place, the official residence of the prefecture is simple and shabby, and it is difficult to properly arrange the examination room."

Building tribute academies in all provinces across the country may seem like a huge task and would be extremely costly, but considering the current environment where infrastructure construction is in full swing everywhere, the money and people are available, and it is easy as long as the planning is done well.

An official came forward and said respectfully, "The examinees have entered the academy and are ready. Please ask the Minister to preside over the examination."

The Jingzhao Prefecture's provincial examination was held in Chang'an. Due to the large number of candidates, it was divided into two examination halls, Wannian and Chang'an, and was supervised by the two prime ministers, the Minister of the Central Secretariat and the Minister of the Palace, respectively. Ma Zhou was in charge of the Wannian examination hall, and Liu Li was in charge of the Chang'an examination hall.

Ma Zhou stood up suddenly, clasped his fists towards Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong, and said in a deep voice: "Please sit here, I will go and preside over the meeting."

Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong also stood up and returned the greeting: "Please!"

……

The sky gradually brightened, the dark clouds had not yet dispersed, a breeze blew by, and a light rain began to fall.

The rising clouds are like billowing smoke, and the heavy rain is like scattered silk.

The examination is in full swing.

Except for the main hall, all other buildings in Wannian County were emptied and used as examination rooms. However, there were so many candidates that they had to set up a temporary shed in the courtyard, with tables and chairs placed inside and curtains hung around it. The complex situation of the examination room increased the difficulty of invigilation.

All the invigilators were on high alert and did not dare to slack off in the slightest. After all, this was the first nationwide imperial examination since His Majesty ascended the throne. Everyone from top to bottom had made careful preparations, and there must not be the slightest mistake.

The Wannian County Government, the Ministry of Rites, and the Censorate each sent officials to form numerous invigilation teams, who were required to monitor the candidates and supervise each other, and to walk around the examination room at all times to ensure the smooth progress of the examination.

Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong held umbrellas and strolled inside the county government office, paying attention to the situation in the examination room from time to time.

Xu Jingzong passed by an examination room, took a look inside, and said softly, "Isn't this Prince Xu... The Zongzheng Temple is begging His Majesty to allow the royal family members to take the imperial examination. This is also a step forward. As long as they have a heart for learning, they will not become idle and idle even if they cannot pass the examination. If they can persist for a long time, there will be a few talented people in the royal family."

In fact, the royal family has unparalleled educational resources, strong policy support, and sufficient financial support. As long as the children are humble and eager to learn, once they pass the imperial examination, their future will be limitless.

Therefore, even if the royal family suffers a heavy blow and is unable to recover now, it will surely become strong and revived in time.

Fang Jun agreed: "When the royal family is prosperous, troubles will arise from within the family. When the royal family is weak, the country will be unstable. Now the royal family is weak, and we need to strengthen it to stabilize the country."

The royal family is a double-edged sword. It is not good to be too strong, and it is not good to be too weak. Throughout history, whenever a dynasty was at its peak, the royal family was neither too strong nor too weak, but stable and reliable.

The two men walked leisurely and when they reached the courtyard, they saw a sudden commotion coming from the temporary examination room. Then the Jinwu Guards who were responsible for maintaining order in the examination room came running in and escorted the two men out together with the invigilating officials.

One of them had his arms tied behind his back by the Jinwu guards, but he still struggled and shouted, "I am Prince Jiang, your majesty's brother, and a descendant of Emperor Taizong! This man plagiarized, and I reported him. What's wrong with that? Let me go immediately. If you delay my success in the imperial examination, you will not be able to bear the responsibility!"

The other one had disheveled hair, looked depressed and kept silent...

The invigilating officials and the Jinwu Guards were somewhat helpless in the face of the constant shouting of Prince Jiang Li Yun. Although he disrupted the order of the examination room, he was a prince of the current dynasty after all. They couldn't just beat him with a stick and then expel him from the examination room and disqualify him, right?
Just when he was in a dilemma, he saw Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong coming together. The former shouted in a deep voice: "King Jiang, shut up and don't disturb the examination room, otherwise I will strip you of your clothes and beat you with sticks!"

Li Yun was startled, and when he turned around and saw that it was Fang Jun, he immediately stopped. One moment he was showing off his princely majesty, and the next moment he looked submissive and smiled, as well-behaved as he could be...

The invigilating officials and Jinwu guards standing by were somewhat indignant. You are a prince, and you have the nerve to bully the weak and fear the strong to such an extent?
Li Yun smiled and said, "It's my brother-in-law. Are you the invigilator today?"

Fang Jun stepped forward with his hands behind his back, his face solemn: "Don't be so playful, the examination room is an important place, call on your position!"

Li Yun: “…”

Fang Jun ignored him and asked the invigilator beside him: "What happened?"

The official hurriedly said, "Candidates Li Yun and Dou Huairang provoked each other and fought during the exam, seriously disrupting the order of the exam room. I had to expel the two from the exam room to ensure that the exam continued."

Fang Jun frowned: "Dou Huairang? Look up. Why did you disrupt the order of the examination room? Don't you know the rules of the examination room and the consequences of disrupting the examination room?"

……

The Fufeng Dou family has a long history and has always been famous for its military achievements. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, it became the backbone of the Guanlong clan. However, since the Empress Dowager Taimu married Emperor Gaozu, the Fufeng Dou family became a noble family of the Tang Dynasty and inevitably fell into depravity.

The family quickly split into two groups, with some indulging in pleasure and doing nothing, and others still having ambitions and determined to achieve great things, such as Dou Huairang.

Born into the Dou family of Fufeng, Dou Huairang had been living a life of luxury since childhood, but he always insisted on studying. After entering officialdom, he worked diligently and conscientiously. He was considered a rare rising star among the nobles. He was well prepared for this imperial examination, intending to make a splash, thus stepping onto a new level and making his career smoother.

Today, when I entered the examination room and was preparing my writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, I discovered that the person sitting in the adjacent examination seat was actually King Jiang Li Yun...

He had also heard about the royal family members participating in the imperial examination, but he did not expect that the usually playful and frivolous Prince General would also come. This fellow was famous for his ignorance, so what could he do in the exam?
I became a little wary.

Sure enough, during the preparation stage, Li Yun came over and asked him to copy it with a smile...

Dou Huairang flatly refused.

He already knew that the chief examiner this time was the imperial attendant Ma Zhou, who was the most impartial and ruthless. He was also assisted by big men such as Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong. Which one of them could the Dou family afford to offend? Once it was discovered that he had plagiarized for King Jiang, he would be disqualified from the exam.

His family has already proposed marriage to His Majesty, and His Majesty is also interested in strengthening the relationship with the Dou family, but Dou Huairang does not want to be a son-in-law who only eats and waits for death. He has great ambitions, and even if he becomes a son-in-law, he wants to be like Fang Jun.

How should I accept the decision if I am disqualified from taking the exam and my career is hopeless?

However, he underestimated Li Yun's shamelessness. Shortly after the exam started, this guy actually threw a ball of paper at him. Before he could react, Li Yun had already raised his hand and stood up, reporting him for plagiarism...

Dou Huairang was furious and tried to refute him, but Li Yun rushed forward with his fists raised...