Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 351 Outside Donghua Gate, the Top Scholar's Names Are Announced! [Seeking Monthly Tickets!]

March 11th, the second year of the Jiayou era.

Just after the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), the area outside Donghua Gate was already bustling with noise.

As the waning moon dipped westward and the morning stars were not yet hidden, the outline of Kaifeng city appeared solemn and silent against the indigo blue sky.

However, the atmosphere outside the east gate of the imperial city had already been ignited by another kind of fervent expectation.

The massive crowd surged forward like a tidal wave, completely filling the huge square.

The scene was bustling and lively, filled with scholars, their relatives, servants, onlookers, and even vendors selling breakfast soup noodles and hot drinks.

The air was filled with the lingering chill of the night, mixed with the aroma of food.

When Lu Beigu arrived, the sky was already showing signs of turning a bluish-green.

He was practically pushed forward by the crowd, and it was only with great difficulty that he found a gathering place for his fellow Sichuan natives on a slightly elevated embankment near the palace wall.

The brothers Su Shi and Su Zhe had already arrived.

Su Shi's face was still slightly pale, but he could not hide the spirited look in his eyes. He was wrapped in a thick robe and was rubbing his hands together as he chatted and laughed with the people around him.

Su Zhe appeared much calmer, and when he saw Lu Beigu squeezing over, he quickly waved.

"Brother Lu, this way!"

Lu Beigu squeezed through the crowd and greeted them with a cupped-hand salute.

"It's finally here!"

Cui Wenjing grabbed him, his voice trembling slightly with excitement: "This spectacle is even more terrifying than the day the provincial examination results were announced!"

Cui Wenjing had specially changed into a new silk shirt today, washed his hair, and combed it meticulously, but his eyes were bloodshot, indicating that he had not slept all night.

Su Shi laughed loudly, “The announcement of names outside Donghua Gate is the most glorious moment in a man’s life, an extraordinary occasion, so naturally everyone who can come has come.”

As he spoke, Su Shi exhaled puffs of white breath, and then coughed a few times.

"Is Brother Zizhan feeling much better?" Lu Beigu asked with concern.

Seeing that Su Shi, though still looking ill, was in excellent spirits, he felt somewhat relieved.

"It's alright, it's alright." Su Shi waved his hand, smiling freely, "I'm basically fine, just coughing occasionally."

Then, taking advantage of his height, Lu Beigu began to scan his surroundings.

Not far to the east, a group of scholars from Fujian were gathered together, with Zhang Dun, Lin Xi, Zhang Heng, and Lü Huiqing standing at the center.

Their expressions were completely different from the somber mood when the provincial examination results were announced; each of them had a burning gaze, staring intently at the tightly closed vermilion palace gate.

Lin Xizheng whispered to Lü Huiqing beside him, "The humiliation of the provincial examination will be avenged today!"

Lu Huiqing nodded and said, "The wind and snow were bitterly cold at that time, which was not our fault. But now, our success or failure depends on this battle."

Upon hearing Lü Huiqing's words, the proud Zhang Dun snorted coldly.

He raised his head, his jawline taut: "What is the point of this success or failure? If I can't even get to the top of the palace examination, I'd rather give up this honor and go back to my hometown to take the exam again."

Zhang Heng, who was standing nearby, listened but said nothing.

Zhang Heng understood Zhang Dun's character well, knowing that Zhang Dun was indeed the kind of person who refused to be second to anyone. According to most people's thinking, being able to become an official was already a great achievement. However, for Zhang Dun, who had a very high opinion of himself, he needed to achieve a satisfactory ranking. If he was not satisfied with his ranking, he was capable of giving up the official title he had already obtained.

However, in Zhang Heng's opinion, although Zhang Dun was exceptionally talented, he was still too young and lacked a bit of skill in taking exams.

A little further away, Zeng Gong, Zeng Bu, and a group of fellow Jiangxi natives stood solemnly.

Zeng Gong was still wearing that faded old shirt, and his expression was much calmer than that of ordinary people, as if the surrounding noise had nothing to do with him. However, Zeng Bu, who was behind him, looked down and saw that the knuckles of his hands behind his back were slightly white from the force he was exerting.

Wang Shao stood nearby, looking relaxed, chatting quietly with his friends, occasionally glancing up at the palace gate with a smile on his lips.

For the vast majority of those who passed the imperial examinations, they knew they were powerless to compete for a top ranking and had long since given up hope of achieving a good ranking, so they adopted a more relaxed attitude.

After all, passing the palace examination meant having an official position, and one's life would be completely different from the past.

The candidates from Henan Prefecture surrounded Li Shi, a middle-aged man dressed in an expensive fur coat and with an elegant demeanor. He could not hide his anticipation at this moment. He would occasionally chat with the Cheng brothers, Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, beside him, and sometimes look towards the direction of the palace gate. Young scholars such as Zhu Guangting were even more excited and stood on tiptoe to look.

Time slipped away slowly in the anxious wait.

As dawn broke, the morning light tinged the clouds red, adding a golden edge to the majestic palace walls.

Suddenly, a series of orderly footsteps and the clanging of metal armor plates came from inside the heavy palace gates.

"The door's about to open!" someone shouted.

This sound, like cold water thrown into boiling oil, instantly ignited the entire audience.

Many people unconsciously surged forward, the crowd rising like a surging tide, only to be firmly stopped by the Imperial Guards maintaining order.

"Silence! Silence!"

Officials from the Ministry of Rites in front of Donghua Gate tried their best to maintain order, but their voices were quickly drowned out.

"Squeak-"

With a heavy, long thud, the two massive vermilion palace gates of Donghua Gate finally opened slowly inward!

Inside the gate, one could vaguely see the figures of officials in scarlet robes, as well as the bright yellow silk scroll that would determine the fate of hundreds of people, carried by eunuchs in yellow robes.

—The Golden List!
Everyone held their breath at that moment.

Hundreds of gazes, as if drawn by a magnet, were fixed on the slowly emerging palace gate passage.

The roll call is about to begin!
At this moment, all was quiet outside Donghua Gate.

The clamor of voices that had just erupted suddenly subsided the moment the palace gates opened.

A suffocating tension gripped everyone's hearts.

The banners on the city wall fluttered in the morning breeze. The eunuchs spread out the list of names horizontally, but because there were so many people, most of them could not see the rankings.

But that's okay.

On this occasion, there are specially appointed officials with loud voices and good timbre to be responsible for announcing the names.

Without keeping everyone waiting long, the official began calling out the names as soon as the list of successful candidates was unfurled.

His steady yet penetrating voice, word by word, echoed clearly outside Donghua Gate.

"In the second year of the Jiayou reign (1847), Lu Beigu of Luzhou passed the imperial examination and was awarded the first place in the first class of Jinshi!"

Even with mental preparation, Lu Beigu still felt a "buzz" in his ears, all the sounds around him instantly faded away, his blood rushed to his head and then suddenly dropped back down, and his limbs felt a little weak.

He saw Su Shi beside him widen his eyes in surprise, Su Zhe excitedly grab his arm, and Cui Wenjing gape as if shouting, but he heard nothing. He also saw countless gazes instantly focus on him, filled with admiration, praise, and jealousy.
A moment later, Lu Beigu finally heard a sound.

"Brother Lu! The top scholar! He's the top scholar!"

Su Zhe's exclamation finally broke through his throat, filled with pride and joy.

"The undisputed champion!"

"Brother Lu is truly unparalleled in the world!"

"A literary champion has emerged from my Sichuan region!"

The scholars of Shu were instantly excited and rushed forward to offer their congratulations, their excitement overflowing.

Lu Beigu took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down from the enormous shock.

He cupped his hands in greeting to those around him, but his fingertips trembled slightly uncontrollably.

Before the commotion subsided, the master of ceremonies continued reading.

"The top-ranked scholar in the imperial examination, designated as the second-highest scorer—Zhang Heng of Jianzhou!"

"Wow—"

The second-place scholar was from Fujian! A huge cheer erupted from the crowd of Fujian scholars, and the oppressive atmosphere from before vanished.

Zhang Heng's tense face suddenly relaxed, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up.

However, upon hearing this ranking, not only did Lin Xi and Lü Huiqing's expressions become complicated, but even Zhang Dun's face instantly darkened.

The people around him had different thoughts, and unlike the people of Shu who congratulated Lu Beigu, they did not immediately go to congratulate Zhang Heng.

Fortunately, the awkwardness only lasted a few moments before a chorus of congratulations rang out.

The roll call continues, and each name announced touches the hearts of countless people.

"A top-ranking scholar in the imperial examination, designated third place by imperial decree—Dou Bian of Caozhou!"

The top ten were all marked with the word "imperial appointment," which was the emperor's power in the palace examination, meaning that he could rank the top ten entirely according to his own preferences.

Apart from that, all other tasks were done by examiners who were temporarily selected.

The thirty-two officials who worked behind the scenes—the editors, the readers, the judges, the inspectors, and the finalists—formed a little-known team for the imperial examination this year.

In any case, this job was not as prestigious as the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites, because the purpose of the palace examination was not to select candidates, but to make the candidates feel that they were "disciples of the emperor". Therefore, only the emperor could show his face, and these people could not show their faces.

The imperial examination rankings in the Song Dynasty were divided into five grades.

The first rank was called "Jinshi Jidi" (进士及第), the second rank was called "Ci Jinshi Chushen" (赐进士出身), and the third to fifth ranks were called "Ci Tong Jinshi Chushen" (赐同进士出身).

When the second-class students were called out, there was another commotion in the crowd, and those whose names were called were overjoyed.

However, as the rankings continued to decline, people discovered that the overall rankings of the palace examination and the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites changed significantly.

Several candidates who had previously ranked highly in the provincial examination due to their greater cold resistance have now fallen to second or third place.

Zeng Gong remained standing ramrod straight. When his name was read quite late in the poem, his fingers stroking his beard paused slightly before returning to normal.

A faint trace of disappointment did indeed flash deep in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by magnanimity.

Twenty years have passed, and Zeng Gong no longer has many extravagant desires.

Zeng Gong even knew why he ranked so high in the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites. On the one hand, it was because his teacher Ouyang Xiu was the chief examiner, and he wrote in the most authentic classical style, so he was bound to get a high score. On the other hand, it was because of his poor living conditions. No matter how cold it was, he always wore only a single layer of clothing, so he was more resistant to the cold than others.

Neither of these two favorable conditions existed in the palace examination.

Zeng Gong nodded slightly to his younger brothers and brothers-in-law around him, clearly having already foreseen the principles of profit and loss in the world.

Seeing his composure, Zeng Bu and the others beside him had no choice but to suppress their emotions as well.

When Su Shi heard the rankings, the smile on his face faded slightly.

His ranking was indeed far behind that of the provincial examination, although he was still at a high level, the spirited look between his brows had faded somewhat.

Su Shi subconsciously touched his beard, which was already quite thick but hadn't yet turned into a full beard, then smiled with relief and whispered to Su Zhe, "The seasons are unpredictable, but literature is destined."

However, there was a hint of self-consolation in those words.

Su Zhe's ranking actually improved compared to the provincial examination, which made him even happier. He kept talking to Lu Beigu, saying, "Today at the Qionglin Banquet, we should drink a big cup of wine!"

The most disappointed person was probably Li Shi from Henan Prefecture.

He ranked second in the provincial exam, but his ranking has dropped significantly this time.

As a descendant of meritorious officials and nobles, his smile appeared somewhat stiff at this moment. Although he still maintained his composure and bowed to his fellow villagers who came to congratulate him, it was clear that beneath that forced calmness lay immense disappointment.

The rankings of Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi, and others remained unchanged, while the rankings of young scholars such as Zhu Guangting in the palace examination were slightly better than those in the provincial examination. However, seeing that their fellow townsmen were not as excited, they also suppressed their joy.

After the top three contestants finished their performances, a completely different and strange atmosphere emerged among the Fujian scholars.

Logically speaking, Zhang Heng was the second-highest scorer in the provincial examination, and Lin Xi, Zhang Dun, Lü Huiqing and others also made significant improvements in their rankings compared to the provincial examination, basically ranking in the second or third place. This should have been the moment to sweep away the gloom and hold their heads high.

However, each of these people had their own agenda. Although they seemed to get along well on the surface, they looked down on each other and each felt they should rank higher than others. Therefore, although they all achieved high rankings, they were visibly not very happy.

The most unhappy one was Zhang Dun, whose face was almost ashen.

Lu Beigu took in everyone's reactions and was filled with mixed emotions.

As my mentor Song Xiang had predicted, the changes in the rankings of the palace examination revealed the true strengths and weaknesses of each person once the influence of the environment subsided.

Fortunately, with Feng Jing's careful guidance, he, who had no experience in the palace examination, felt as if he had experienced it before when he took the exam.

Moreover, thanks to his mentor Song Xiang's advance predictions and patient explanations, Lu Beigu was far better prepared than others for the new mixed-type questions on ink and meaning that appeared in the palace examination, as well as the emperor's true preferences.

Otherwise, even with the favor of the officials, he might not have been able to become the top scholar on his own.

However, these thoughts only lingered in his own mind.

After all, adequate preparation before the exam is one of the necessary conditions for success in the imperial examination.

Right now, he has already been named the top scholar outside Donghua Gate; he is truly the undisputed top scholar of the Song Dynasty!
Lu Beigu took a deep breath, suppressed the turmoil in his mind, and straightened his clothes.

After the names were called, there was a series of honors, including going to the Jiying Hall to pay homage, presenting a poem of thanks, receiving a robe from the emperor, riding a horse through the streets from the Donghua Gate to the Qiji Hall, and going to the Qionglin Garden in the west of the city to attend the Qionglin Banquet.

As the top scholar in the Dingyou year of the Jiayou era, he was undoubtedly the center of all this!

Furthermore, the list of outstanding talents in the Dingyou year of the Jiayou reign, a list that has been passed down for millennia, will be recorded in history as "Lu Beigu's examination in the second year of the Jiayou reign"!
At this moment, the sun is high in the sky.

The morning light completely dispelled the thin mist, and golden light bathed Donghua Gate.

(End of this chapter)