Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 3 Young Master Yan

Before long, Huang Jin took three answer sheets from the bottom of the third-class answer sheets.

The room soon echoed with a not-so-loud voice. After all, while reviewing examination papers didn't require bathing and changing clothes, doing so while cleansing oneself seemed disrespectful to these scholars, and if word got out, it could damage the current emperor's image as someone who values ​​talent.

As fate would have it, Yan Maoqing's answer sheet, which was ranked last among the top three, was the first to be read aloud:
"Your Majesty, the title of this answer sheet is: 'Cultivating the Mysterious and Profound to Confirm the Mandate of Heaven.'"

"It is said that a truly wise person who governs the world must first understand the divine; a sage king who rules over his people should first and foremost revere the Way and its arts..."

Eh?
After reading only two sentences, Huang Jin sensed that something was amiss with the answer sheet, and his voice grew softer and softer, revealing a growing lack of confidence.

"Ok?"

Zhu Houcong also suddenly raised his head, lifted his buttocks and pulled in his abdomen, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
"louder please!"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Huang Jin quickly perked up and continued reading:
"The mystical cultivation is not the illusionary art of magicians, but the manifestation of the Way of Heaven. The Book of Documents says, 'Consider and follow the clear mandate of Heaven.' The Book of Changes says, 'The sage establishes teachings through the divine way.' Your Majesty personally prostrates before the heavens; this is the same as Yao's reverence for the heavens and Shun's accord with the seven celestial bodies..."

"Plop—Gulp!"

With a soft sound, Zhu Houcong's constipation seemed to ease a bit, and a foul stench filled the small sandalwood room, which even the precious ambergris could not mask.

Upon seeing the remarkable effect of this answer sheet, Huang Jin's spirits immediately lifted, and he quickly continued reading:

"...Observing the reign of Emperor Wen of Han, who upheld the principles of Huang-Lao philosophy of tranquility and purity, a peaceful and prosperous era ensued; in the early years of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, who revered Lao-Zhuang philosophy, the Kaiyuan era began to flourish. Thus, we know that the teachings of Huang-Lao and the doctrines of Confucius and Mencius are fundamentally the same but differ in their specific manifestations, both serving to assist in the achievement of the Way of the King..."

"Puff puff puff—glug glug glug!"

Huang Jin continued his efforts:

"...Your Majesty, I humbly request: "
He widely recruited alchemists, just as Emperor Wu of Han treated the young emperor, and extensively sought the secrets of longevity.

The Zhaigong Palace was expanded, following the example of Emperor Huizong of Song's construction of Genyue, in order to gather the spirit of heaven and earth;
He often composed poems in the style of Tao Hongjing, aiming to attain enlightenment and reach the realm of the Three Pure Ones…

"Crash, lala, lala -"

Zhu Houcong squinted his eyes in comfort. He couldn't remember the last time he had cleansed himself so smoothly. At this moment, he even felt as if he were floating on clouds!

"...This humble servant, being of lowly birth and ignorant of taboos, humbly offers this humble offering in accordance with the principles of the *Daodejing* and the *Yinfu*..."

"...The Emperor is pleased, and spiritual cultivation is progressing daily; the nation is secure, and millions enjoy springtime!"

"Gudong!"

With the last splash of water, Zhu Houcong let out a sigh of relief:

"Ah—that feels so good!"

Huang Jin knew that the purification process was nearing its end, so he quickly put down the answer sheet, took a silk cloth, dipped it in warm water, and knelt down to clean the dragon ditch.

As soon as he bent over, an unprecedented stench hit him like a wall, making him gag and almost vomit up his dinner from the night before.

This is a very flavorful answer sheet, very pungent and very spicy!

Fortunately, he had received strict training, so no matter how much he felt like vomiting, he would never vomit in front of the emperor. He wouldn't even make small movements like wrinkling his nose; at most, he would just quietly hold his breath.

But then Zhu Houcong asked a question:
"Interesting... Huang Ban, who wrote this answer sheet?"

As soon as Huang Jin was forced to open his mouth, he felt his chest fill with a stench, and tears almost welled up in his eyes:
"Your Majesty, the examination papers were sealed and could only be opened when the Grand Secretariat filled out the list of successful candidates. I really didn't know that."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Houcong did not insist, but simply pondered and nodded slightly.

There are certain systems in the imperial court that cannot be broken. Even if he is the emperor, he cannot act without restraint, much less do as he pleases.

Otherwise, once those censors and officials seize upon this as a pretext, even if they dare not speak frankly about metaphysics for the time being, they will certainly use it as an excuse to question the credibility of the court's system for selecting officials.

If public opinion gets even more chaotic, and the cabinet uses this as an excuse to refuse to fill out the list and delay the announcement of the results, then it will be easy to shift the blame for undermining the selection system onto him... Similar things have happened before in the previous Great Rites Controversy and New Policies.

However, he also felt that this scapegoat and shield who "dared to speak on behalf of the emperor" was really rare, and he felt somewhat guilty for not making the most of him.

After pondering for a long time, Zhu Houcong finally asked again:

"After the announcement of the results tomorrow, will the Ministry of Rites select probationary officials from the second and third rank scholars?"

"Exactly."

"Put these answer sheets back exactly as they were, without changing their order. When they are sent to the cabinet for the final ranking after the banquet, you will go with them to find out my identity in this life."

"The slaves obey the order."

Huang Jin bowed and agreed, having already roughly guessed Zhu Houcong's thoughts.

Without a doubt, he has successfully attracted the Emperor's attention, and the Emperor is very likely to try to influence the selection process.

The current Minister of Rites, Yan Song, is quite eager to curry favor and advance his career. As long as the Emperor gives the order, Yan Song will do his best to cooperate, and it will be a piece of cake for him to be selected as a probationary official in this lifetime.

Never underestimate the probationary scholar.

The Shujishi were equivalent to the best candidates among the Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), and they would enter the Hanlin Academy to observe and study alongside the Zhuangyuan (top scholar), Bangyan (second-place scholar), and Tanhua (third-place scholar).

The Hanlin Academy was the most important source of Grand Secretaries for the Inner Cabinet, and officials serving there had a chance to rise rapidly in their careers; the prestige of their positions was no less than that of the top three scholars (Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua). However, the Emperor's move clearly had other intentions.

Whether this is a blessing or a curse in this lifetime is another matter entirely...

……

evening.

Yuzhang Guild Hall.

"Regarding tomorrow's announcement of the results, do any of you gentlemen have any reliable inside information?"

"Brother, you jest. If it's just hearsay, how can it be reliable?"

"Speaking of which, by now the lists of those who made it into the second and third tiers of the imperial examination should have been filled out by now. I wonder how many of us will be able to make it into the second tier?"

"I didn't perform well in this imperial examination, so I can't even dream of getting a second-class ranking..."

"Brother, you shouldn't underestimate yourself. With your literary talent, it's not impossible for you to become the top scholar when the time is right."

"Brother, please stop teasing me. If you ask me, instead of daydreaming, we should hurry up and prepare for the selection. Now that Minister Yan is in charge of the Ministry of Rites, and we are affiliated with the Yuzhang Guild Hall, who knows, maybe we can be lucky enough to be selected as a probationary official because we are from the same hometown..."

"..."

Yan Maoqing silently ate his rice while listening to his fellow students chatting idly about this and that.

There are two guild halls in Beijing that were built with donations from people from Jiangxi.

One of them is called Jiangxi Guild Hall, and the other is Yuzhang Guild Hall.

This kind of clubhouse has a more straightforward name that also contains a pun.
—The room for successful candidates in the imperial examinations.

As the name suggests, this place was a convenient residence for candidates who came to the capital to participate in the palace examination.

Those who were able to enter the palace examination were already undisputed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), with one foot already in the door of the Ming Dynasty's officialdom.

Therefore, those who donated funds to build the association hall were not entirely doing charity out of a sense of hometown ties; some of them were also looking to cultivate their own followers and invest in promising new talents.

Yan Maoqing was from Fengcheng, Jiangxi. When he transmigrated, he was already staying at the Yuzhang Guild Hall.

It is said that the Yuzhang Guild Hall was built in recent years, and the person who spearheaded the donation was none other than Yan Song, the current Minister of Rites, who was from Fenyi, Yuanzhou Prefecture, Jiangxi Province.

The Jiangxi Guild Hall, on the other hand, has a longer history and greater reputation.

The largest donor to the Jiangxi Guild Hall is Xia Yan, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, who is also from Jiangxi, with his ancestral home in Guixi, Guangxin Prefecture.

In terms of official rank, family background, seniority, and influence, Xia Yan is now far superior to Yan Song.

Therefore, of the more than twenty candidates from Jiangxi who took the imperial examination, more than ten stayed at the Jiangxi Guild Hall. Only the former master, who had the mindset of "better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix," and a few candidates who "did not know the times" stayed at the Yuzhang Guild Hall.

Isn't this a kind of taking sides, a forced choice to take sides even before entering officialdom?

Of course, the choice of those candidates who chose to hang their names at the Jiangxi Guild Hall is also understandable.

After all, apart from Yan Maoqing, the time traveler, no one could foresee the future, and naturally no one could have predicted that Yan Song would be the ultimate winner, while Xia Yan, who was nearly seventy years old, would end up with a tragic fate of being beheaded.

However, Yan Maoqing no longer cares about these things; he has only one obsession in his heart:
That is to get away from the turmoil of the court as soon as possible, retire and return to one's hometown.

Just as he was thinking this, a candidate named Zhang Yusheng came over and jokingly said:

"Brother Yan Nian, judging from your calm and composed demeanor, you must be very confident about the results of tomorrow's announcement, right?"

"indeed so."

Yan Maoqing put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and nodded.

"To be honest, Brother Zhang, I only figured out my strategy when the palace examination was almost over. In my haste, I made three corrections to my answer sheet. Thinking about it carefully, there should still be a few typos. I should be able to secure the last place in the third class as sure as a rock."

"This……"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yusheng's smile froze on his face, and the other candidates also stopped smiling.

This is why the palace examination was not an elimination mechanism; at worst, one could only be a third-class Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). Otherwise, based solely on such a paper, one would not have been able to pass the palace examination, let alone the provincial or metropolitan examinations.

The atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

Zhang Yusheng and the others couldn't think of anything to say to offer him a perfunctory consolation.

at this time.

A tall, fat man with a short neck and fair skin, dressed in fine clothes, led several servants and rushed into the hall.

Upon seeing this person, everyone immediately rose and bowed:
"Greetings, Young Master Yan."

After the tall, fat man returned the greeting briefly, his single eye fixed on Yan Maoqing, scrutinizing him from head to toe before he spoke:
"You are Yan Maoqing?"

(End of this chapter)