Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 343 Not allowing one to be burdened with personal mischief for even a single day.
Inside the Chongzheng Hall, incense smoke curled upwards.

Emperor Zhao Zhen sat upright on the dragon throne. Although he was slightly tired due to catching a cold, his gaze swept over the many talented people in the palace, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction, as if "all the heroes of the world are now under my control."

He looked down at the scholars through a thin gauze curtain and spoke.

"Having reviewed the list of candidates for this year's provincial examinations, I see a gathering of talented individuals from all corners of the land, a true blessing for our nation. There are also those who have studied diligently for decades and are now among those listed here. I believe you all possess the talent to govern and manage affairs, therefore the palace examination is not intended to test your memorization, but rather to observe your character and insight. I hope you will fully express your thoughts and ambitions through your writings. I will personally review your excellent works and select the best talents for the nation."

Zhao Zhen's words were not only directed at Lu Beigu and the others.

In fact, those who came to participate in the palace examination today were not only the "Jinshi" who passed the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites in the second year of Jiayou.

Among the crowd, there was also a small group of candidates who were granted special permission to participate in the palace examination because they had failed the examinations multiple times. They were the so-called "specially recommended scholars".

These people have one thing in common: they are all old men.

They weren't old men around fifty like Su Xun or Zeng Gong, but rather old men in their sixties or seventies who still insisted on taking the exam, all with white hair and hunched backs.

It's really pitiful to see someone spend their whole life taking exams only to get this one chance.

For the Song Dynasty, it was uncertain whether these "specially recommended scholars" who passed the palace examination would live to see the end of their probationary period and be officially appointed. Therefore, this system did not consume much resources. Giving these old men a free title of scholar was enough to fulfill the lifelong wish of these candidates.

So why is it necessary to set up such a guaranteed reward?

It's not that the Song Dynasty was truly benevolent, but rather it's the same principle as "leaving an opening when besieging an army."

With such a guaranteed reward hanging on their heads, those who fail the exam will have two expectations. The first expectation is, "If I try harder next time, maybe I'll pass." This expectation can last for many years. But after they realize that no matter how hard they try, they will not pass, the second expectation is, "If I keep going, there is still the guaranteed reward of being a 'specially appointed scholar'."

In this way, if the exams continue, people will not go to extremes, which will help maintain the stability of the entire Song Dynasty.

Think about it, what if someone followed Huang Chao's example without this system?

He had been trying to pass the imperial examinations for many years without success. In a fit of anger, he thought, "Since I can't get into Kaifeng, I might as well storm Kaifeng." Then he raised an army and rebelled. Wouldn't everyone be dumbfounded?

It can only be said that the Song Dynasty did a very good job of learning from the experiences and lessons of the late Tang and Five Dynasties period.

In a broader sense, the "palace examination" not only included the Jinshi examination, which included the "Jinshi examination recommended by the Ministry of Rites" and the "Jinshi examination recommended by special recommendation", but also included other examinations, namely the palace examinations for subjects other than the Jinshi examination.

However, the level of importance attached to the various palace examinations is completely different from that of the imperial examination for the highest degree. Only the Emperor, despite his illness, will have to continue to preside over the examinations tomorrow.

After listening to the Emperor's instructions, the scholars, following the instructions given by the officials of the Ministry of Rites, bowed in unison to the Emperor behind the light gauze curtain.

At this moment, Zhao Zhen's gaze also fell on the scholars at the front.

He had never seen Lu Beigu's appearance before, but the seats for the palace examination were arranged according to the results of the provincial examinations of the Ministry of Rites, so he could identify Lu Beigu at a glance based on the seat.

Although Zhao Zhen couldn't see Lu Beigu clearly through the light gauze curtain, he could still tell that Lu Beigu was indeed as the Imperial City Guard had described: handsome and dignified.

The previous incident involving Princess Fukang, as well as the overt or covert recommendations from Yang Anguo, Ouyang Xiu, and others, had already made the young man's name known to the emperor.

"If my sons had not died young, they would probably be this age by now."

A sorrowful thought suddenly crossed his mind, but Zhao Zhen simply said, "Let's begin the test."

The eunuchs, carrying pre-printed scrolls, began distributing them according to seating order, and the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense.

The scholars from Fujian, especially those in the third and fourth rows, visibly became excited.

The rare heavy snowfall during the provincial examination last month was nothing short of torture for these southerners who were used to living in warm climates.

Therefore, almost everyone's condition was affected to some extent.

Now, with spring in full bloom and the exam taking place in a grand hall that provides shelter from the wind and rain, free from external interference, they are determined to unleash their full potential and avenge their previous defeat.

After all, Fujian is a land of great literary tradition and fierce competition in the imperial examinations. They carried not only their own future but also the earnest expectations of their village and clan, and even the face of the entire Fujian region.

At this moment, they have no choice but to fight with all their might to live up to Fujian's reputation as the "top province in the imperial examinations".

Zhang Dun was naturally aloof and arrogant. He attributed his failure in the provincial examination to the unfairness of fate. At this moment, before the papers were distributed, he looked around at the people in the hall, with only one thought in his mind.

"The provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites is nothing; today is the time to see the real test!"

Not only were Zhang Heng, Zhang Dun, Lin Xi, and Lü Huiqing full of fighting spirit, but scholars from other places such as Jiangnan, Huainan, and Jinghu were also striving to improve their rankings.

Of course, there are also lazy bums who don't strive for progress, like Shen Kuo. This kid is staring blankly, not knowing what he's thinking. He originally thought he would need to prepare for the exam for several years to pass, so passing the exam this year was a complete surprise. He felt that whether he competed or not, he would be at the bottom anyway, so he simply gave up.

As for Su Shi, as his health improved, his condition actually began to decline noticeably.
Unfortunately, good writing is often accompanied by bad luck. Su Shi was the kind of person who could produce great writings the worse his circumstances were. At this point, he was no longer under pressure regarding his future and his health had returned, so he no longer had the same superhuman state of writing in the snow.

Lu Beigu, who was sitting at the front, took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and turned his gaze to the exam paper that had just been handed out on the table.

This was the most important exam of his life.

In the morning, the tests were on copying scriptures and interpreting them in ink; the papers for copying scriptures were distributed first.

After browsing through the exam paper, Lu Beigu found that the questions in the pasting exam were not difficult, at least much simpler than those in the provincial exam.

This is understandable. The Emperor has already made it clear that the palace examination will not test memorization. Moreover, for elites like them who have been selected through multiple rounds of trials, no matter how difficult the questions on the classics are, they are not really difficult.

Therefore, the idea behind setting questions for the palace examination was to simply make the questions from the classic texts simpler, so that the candidates could relax at the beginning and then perform at their best.

Lu Beigu carefully wrote down the answers to all ten questions on the sutra-related questions on a draft paper first, and after confirming that they were correct, he copied them onto the exam paper.

The process didn't take long, but Lu Beigu could feel that there were eyes watching him intently from directly in front of him.
However, Lu Beigu could not raise his head. The palace examination had strict rules and regulations. Without permission, one was not allowed to peek at the emperor's face or offend the monarch.

Therefore, he could only keep his head down and wait it out, while his mind began to dwell on what had happened yesterday.

Song Xiang had already analyzed it for him. In situations like yesterday, the palace eunuchs, in order to avoid the inevitable surveillance of the Imperial City Guard, generally could not quickly transmit information from inside the palace to outside.

Therefore, even someone as powerful as Jia Changchao was in a state of waiting yesterday, waiting to see if his plan would succeed or fail, and he could not get news from the palace in time. His communication with the palace was not as smooth as Tian Kuang's communication with Song Xiang outside the palace.

But today is different. Jia Changchao will definitely receive the news today, and there is a high probability that he will have follow-up plans.

Therefore, Lu Beigu couldn't just wait idly. If the emperor issued an edict to Kaifeng Prefecture after he finished the palace examination, ordering him to undergo an investigation according to the rules, then he would have to go to Kaifeng Prefecture. He would need to carefully consider who to talk to and what to say beforehand.

As for Lu Beigu, he was actually looking forward to this investigation.

In Lu Beigu's view, Jia Changchao's framing was not without flaws. Perhaps the other party thought he could destroy any possible witnesses and evidence, but after careful deduction, he felt that there was still a chance to seize clues and launch a counterattack.

But this comes with a prerequisite: the Kaifeng Prefecture must cooperate with him. To be honest, that's very difficult to achieve.

Although he had met Bao Zheng, the two didn't really have any relationship. In fact, Lu Beigu had even kept something from Bao Zheng regarding the hot air balloon incident. Therefore, he had no idea what Bao Zheng, the prefect of Kaifeng, thought of him.

Therefore, in Lu Beigu's plan, Bao Zheng was not considered as the point by which he "turned the tables".

Fortunately, he still had his deputy, Wang Anshi.

Lu Beigu pondered to himself how to persuade Wang Anshi, who was currently on the rise in his career, to take the risk and help him investigate this frame-up incident.

This future "stubborn prime minister" is known for not being greedy for money or fame, and is almost a person without weaknesses.

Although Lu Beigu's relationship with Wang Anshi was better than his relationship with Bao Zheng because of the existence of the Qingsong Society, it was impossible for him to win Wang Anshi over based on friendship alone.

If Lu Beigu wanted Wang Anshi to use his power to help him conduct a counter-investigation, then he had to come up with something that would sway Wang Anshi.

Thinking about this, Lu Beigu fell into deep thought.
Just as he was starting to get a clue, a sound like a set of chimes rang out.

The eunuchs quietly and quickly collected the examination papers of the candidates in the hall, and then distributed Mo Yi's paper.

Just as Song Xiang and Feng Jing had told him before the exam, the meaning of the calligraphy in the palace examination was completely different from that in the provincial examination.

The difference isn't that the questions on Mozi (墨义) no longer come from the Spring and Autumn Annals and the Book of Rites, nor is it that the difficulty of the questions has changed significantly. Rather, it's that the format of the questions and the main focus of the examination are different.

The purpose of the provincial examinations conducted by the Ministry of Rites was primarily to select candidates, so they would specifically choose some subtle and profound questions to test students' analytical abilities and on-the-spot responsiveness.

The imperial examination's "Ink Theory" mainly tests the candidate's stance on "loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness." Therefore, it combines the "Spring and Autumn Annals" and the "Book of Rites" into one test, rather than testing them separately.

For example, in the first question, "The *Spring and Autumn Annals* records in the second year of Duke Huan's reign that 'the ruler of Teng came to court.' The *Gongyang Commentary* says, 'Duke Huan murdered his ruler internally and caused chaos externally. Why did the ruler of Teng come to court? This is a criticism.' However, the *Book of Rites* says, 'When the feudal lords meet at Xi, it is called a gathering; when they offer sacrifices, it is called an alliance. It does not mention the wrongness of paying homage.' So, when the Marquis of Teng performed the court ceremony during the murder, was he honoring the king or siding with the wicked? How should we weigh the differences between the praise and criticism in the *Spring and Autumn Annals* and the regulations in the *Book of Rites*?"

These kinds of questions are not difficult at all, but if candidates want to catch the eye of the officials, they must firmly grasp the point of "respecting the king and repelling the barbarians".

—Because you need to demonstrate your stance to the authorities through your answer to this question.

If one deviates even slightly, focuses too much on the analysis, or says a few words to defend Teng Hou, then it's all over; the ranking will definitely not be high.

Lu Beigu's mind raced, and he quickly settled on a line of thought: "We should delve into the conflict between the legitimacy of the dynasty and the system of rites, and use 'respecting the king and repelling the barbarians' as the guiding principle to analyze the predicament of the Marquis of Teng, who was caught in a dilemma."

He picked up his pen and wrote it down.

"The court visit of the Marquis of Teng was not out of respect for the king, but rather an act of siding with evil. The Spring and Autumn Annals records him as 'Viscount of Teng' to demote his rank. Duke Huan murdered a traitor, which aroused the indignation of the whole world. Instead of punishing the traitor, the Marquis of Teng paid homage to him. This was to recognize the usurpation and regicide as legitimate. The Gongyang Commentary's criticism is profound! As for what the Confucian scholars say, it is the usual rites. However, the Spring and Autumn Annals has 'changes in rites,' which means that in extraordinary times, the rites of paying homage to the king are evidence of siding with evil. Guanzi once said, 'Propriety, righteousness, integrity, and a sense of shame are the four pillars of a state.' The Marquis of Teng did not uphold these principles. Therefore, Confucius demoted his rank and wrote 'Viscount' to punish his heart."

The subsequent questions on the meaning of ink also examined similar stances.

Among them were key points that Song Xiang had prepared for him, such as "filial piety".

The Book of Rites, in the chapter "Tan Gong," states, "Shen Sheng received a gift and died; this is the ultimate act of a subject." Zheng Xuan's commentary states, "A filial son does not lead his parents into injustice." However, the Spring and Autumn Annals, in the second year of Duke Min's reign, records, "Zheng abandoned its teacher," and the Guliang Commentary criticizes it as "the ruler is not a ruler, and the subject is not a subject." If Shen Sheng were in the territory of Duke Zheng, should he have remained steadfast to the death? Should he have defied orders? Let us examine these two classics to understand the principles of loyalty, filial piety, and expediency.

This type of question, which combines various elements, is completely unfamiliar to the vast majority of test takers.

Because the palace examination is different from the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites, many candidates have experience with the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites, but no one has experience with the palace examination!
Therefore, even if one hears from others that the palace examination will include a combination of questions, what kind of questions will be asked? How to answer them correctly? What are the key points and approaches? One is truly clueless about all of these questions.

In addition, the interval between the palace examination and the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites is very short, often only a little over half a month, so even if you want to change your approach to practice, there is not much time.

Even a peerless genius would be hesitant and uncertain when faced with a complex problem for the first time, given this information gap.

At this point, the benefits of having an experienced teacher to guide you become apparent.

Lu Beigu remained calm and followed the approach taught to him by Song Xiang, using the "distinction between principle and expediency" as a starting point, and wrote: "Shen Sheng adhered to the principle and attained benevolence, while Zheng Bo exercised expediency and brought disaster."

"Shen Sheng remained loyal to his father even unto death, while Duke Zheng abandoned his army to indulge his desires; the two cannot be compared. The *Tan Gong* says, 'Do not lead your parents into injustice.' Shen Sheng hanged himself to preserve his father's name of filial piety, which is the ultimate example of filial piety. Duke Zheng, on the other hand, devised a treacherous plan to abandon his army, which not only led his ruler into inhumanity but also caused the death of his subject. The *Spring and Autumn Annals* directly uses the word 'abandoned,' condemning his scheming. If Shen Sheng were in Duke Zheng's position, he would certainly not have imitated the filial son who would rather die for his principles than cause trouble. This is the *Spring and Autumn Annals*' distinction between the civilized and the barbarian in relation to the fundamental principles of the relationship between ruler and subject."

As Lu Beigu answered these questions, he suddenly found them quite interesting.
Because he was absolutely certain that some of the questions were set by the officials themselves, with the aim of embellishing their own reputations.

For example, the *Book of Rites* states, "There are three kinds of filial piety: the greatest is to honor one's parents; the next is not to disgrace them; and the lowest is to provide for them." However, the *Spring and Autumn Annals* records in the first year of Duke Yin's reign, "Duke Zhuang of Zheng defeated Duan at Yan," completely obscuring the mother's kindness and filial piety. If we follow the teachings of the *Book of Rites*, how should Duke Zhuang of Zheng conduct himself? Does the *Spring and Autumn Annals* use the word "defeated" to condemn his failure to educate his children, or to criticize his lack of kindness?

This is to use Zheng Bo to contrast with the emperor!
After all, who doesn't know that during the Tiansheng era, the young Emperor was extremely filial to Empress Dowager Liu E, a story that has become a legend?
Therefore, Lu Beigu also started from this point. Although he did not explicitly write about how the emperor of our dynasty was, he praised the emperor for being extremely filial to his mother and purely innate by criticizing Zheng Bo for being unfilial and scheming.

However, the emperor's intentions are not always so obviously and directly expressed in the questions.

Several questions were even presented in reverse order.

In other words, the official deliberately misled the test taker in the question, implying that he should not praise the matter, but actually wanted to see the test taker's answer that praised the matter.

The reason for this is, of course, that the emperor does not want his thoughts to be completely guessed, and that he is testing whether the candidates are sycophants. If a candidate is a pure flatterer who answers all questions according to the preferences of the questions, then he is certainly not an upright official.

Of course, if you insist on answering everything in a contradictory way, trying to be an "upright official," the emperor won't be happy.
In short, it's a very difficult "degree" to grasp.

However, Lu Beigu felt that he had grasped the situation very well, because Song Xiang had already explained to him in detail the Emperor's attitude towards issues such as loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness.

The government likes candidates who uphold loyalty because they are expected to be loyal to the government; it likes candidates who uphold filial piety because it serves as a banner for the government to assert its legitimacy.

However, their attitude towards benevolence and righteousness may not be as straightforward as it appears.

For example, in the 22nd year of Duke Xi of the Spring and Autumn Annals, "Duke Xiang of Song and the people of Chu fought at Hong, and the Song army was defeated." The Zuo Zhuan describes his "not attacking those who were not in formation," and the Gongyang Commentary praises him for "not forgetting the great rites when facing important matters." However, the Book of Rites says, "A gentleman does not make himself suffer for even a day, as if he did not live a full day." Wasn't Song Xiang's benevolence impractical? How can one reconcile "rites and righteousness" with "practical achievements"?

If we follow the stereotypes about officials, this question would definitely ask for praise of benevolence and virtue, and commend Duke Xiang of Song! How could we say that Duke Xiang of Song was pedantic?

But in reality, Zhao Zhen was never a truly benevolent and righteous person.

For him, "propriety" and "achievements" were merely different aspects of his rule. Sometimes he would bring them up and discuss them, and sometimes he would discard them.

Zhao Zhen's personality was fully demonstrated in the events surrounding the Qingli Reforms, and it had long been seen through by some veteran officials, including Song Xiang.

Therefore, faced with this question that most candidates would fall into the trap of naturally following the official's "benevolence and righteousness" line of thinking to praise Duke Xiang of Song, Lu Beigu not only did not write in favor of Duke Xiang of Song, but instead sang a different tune.

"Song Xiang's benevolence was merely an admiration for empty rituals while neglecting practical warfare. The Zhou Rites clearly state in the 'Nine Methods of Attacking' that 'if they rely on natural defenses and refuse to submit, then attack them.' The Chu people considered themselves barbarians, and we should strike them swiftly without missing the opportunity, rather than treating them with propriety. However, Duke Xiang was bound by the outdated principle of 'not attacking those who are not in formation,' which caused the Chinese to lose their edge. Was this not contrary to the great principle of 'pacifying the state and securing the nation' in the Book of Rites? Therefore, the Spring and Autumn Annals recorded his defeat not out of regret for the loss, but to criticize him for harming the country with propriety."

Lu Beigu became more and more confident as he answered the questions. After completing all ten questions on the integration of ink meaning, he was in peak condition and felt that he had completely shaken off the tension and anxiety of yesterday.

Before we knew it, the sun had already risen.

The dark clouds of early morning quietly dispersed, and the entire hall was filled with light.

(End of this chapter)