Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

"Do you have to pawn your clothes to buy wine?" Zhang Hao asked in surprise.

The servant explained, “I have inquired. The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty has treated Wu Qimai well, and he pays him his salary on time every month.”

"But you can't afford to squander it, drinking fine wine every day."

"Now that I'm broke, I can only pawn my clothes to buy cheap liquor."

Zhang Hao asked, "Wasn't he imprisoned?"

Chapter 3549 The Demise of a Kingdom

“Last year there were soldiers watching over him, but this year he’s free to go out on the streets,” the servant said.

Upon hearing this, the former officials of the Jin Dynasty praised, "His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty is truly benevolent, allowing the deposed ruler of a fallen kingdom to move about freely."

"More than that. I've heard that the former Song emperor is now serving as an official in the Ming Dynasty."

"If two deposed monarchs can be treated so well, then we civil officials certainly have a way out."

"That's right, that's right. Those who assist in registering households and making meritorious contributions will be granted official positions without having to participate in the special imperial examination."

"Long live the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty!"

"..."

These guys were shouting in the street to make their stance clear and distance themselves from Wu Qimai, whom they had just met.

Wu Qimai carried a jar of wine home, while his wife, Tangkuo, was weaving cloth.

The servants of the Duke of Anle's mansion were initially paid by the imperial court, but gradually Wu Qimai had to pay his own salary.

To save money for wine, Wu Qimai dismissed all his servants.

Due to a stroke, Wu Qimai's left leg and left arm are weak, and he walks like a lame person.

"Husband, please drink less," Tang Kuo advised.

"It's better if they're drunk."

Wu Qimai remained expressionless, broke the seal on the wine jar, poured a large bowl full, and drank it directly without any side dishes.

While drinking, I suddenly felt excruciating pain all over my body.

He not only suffered a stroke, but also had severe gout.

The more it hurts, the more you should drink.

Getting drunk makes it easier to sleep, or rather, to die drunk.

Today, Wu Qimai was in a bad mood, and he unexpectedly encountered those rebels on the way.

After drinking three bowls, Wu Qimai suddenly trembled, gripping the edge of the table with one hand to endure the excruciating pain, and struggling to bring the wine bowl to his lips with the other.

"Snapped!"

The wine bowl fell to the ground and shattered.

Wu Qimai was in so much pain that he could no longer sit up and gradually curled up on the ground.

Tangkuo tried to help him to bed, but Wuqimai pushed his wife away forcefully and roared, "Traitors! They're all traitors!"

After shouting for a while, he pleaded, "Wine...give me wine...let me get drunk quickly..."

After hesitating for a moment, Tang Kuo finally couldn't resist the pleading and poured a bowl of wine for her.

Drinking while lying on his side was inconvenient, so Wu Qimai struggled to snatch the wine bowl.

He put the wine bowl on the ground, curled up and lay prone on the ground, drinking the wine with his buttocks sticking out like a wild dog eating.

The more I drink, the more it hurts; the more it hurts, the more I drink.

Sweating profusely from the pain, he finally finished the bowl of wine: "Pour it again, pour it again!"

Tang Kuo wiped away his tears, picked up the wine jar, and poured him another bowl.

Wu Qimai immediately pounced on him.

Why would Zhao Yuan kill him in this awful state?

Not only were they too lazy to take action, they even removed the guards.

Zhao Yuan was eager to see how much longer Wu Qimai could live in this state.

.....

The Imperial Examination Hall of the Ministry of Rites was located in the southeast corner of Luoyang City. During the Song Dynasty, it was called the Henan Prefecture Imperial Examination Hall.

Since it will be used to host the national imperial examinations in the future, it will naturally need to be expanded.

An entire neighborhood nearby was demolished and incorporated into the examination hall.

The merchants and common people who had moved away were all settled in the nearest temples and monasteries.

The temples and monasteries were converted into residential buildings and shops, and the residents were compensated with a sum of money as a rental subsidy during the conversion period.

Former officials of the Jin Dynasty, led by Zhang Hao, participated in the special imperial examination in the original examination hall.

The questions were announced one by one, leaving more than 300 candidates stunned.

Question 1: A prefect in Liaoning Province, taking advantage of a land survey, accepted a bribe of 1,000 strings of cash and concealed 5,000 mu of land for a powerful clan.

He also took a woman from a prominent local family as a concubine, receiving her dowry of 3,000 strings of cash and 500 mu of land as a dowry.

Q: According to the "Great Ming Code," what crime did the prefect commit? How should he be punished?

Zhang Hao's forehead began to bead with sweat, partly because he didn't know the answer, and partly because he knew it was a warning.

Last year, the imperial court gave these former officials of the Jin dynasty a full year to prepare for the special imperial examination.

Furthermore, a specific scope of the exam was defined, requiring them to carefully read books such as the "Great Ming Code".

Zhang Hao had also read the "Great Ming Code" carefully, but that was all; he did not try to memorize it in detail.

His attention was focused on books such as "The Correct Meaning of the Analects" and "The Correct Meaning of Mencius" compiled by the Ming Dynasty government.

In particular, the "University Justice" and "Doctrine of the Mean Justice" are said to have been written by Emperor Zhu.

We definitely need to pay close attention to him. Zhang Hao is only in his early thirties, and he's memorizing the entire text with the same enthusiasm he had for studying as a teenager.

What the heck is the first question about law?

Zhang Hao thought of his cousin Zhang Xuanzheng, who had been beheaded, and his cousin Zhang Xuansu, who had been implicated and exiled. He quickly wrote down the answer: "The main culprit was beheaded, and the relatives were exiled."

But is it illegal to take a woman from a prominent family in the area where one is employed as a concubine and accept her dowry?

Zhang Hao vaguely remembered that it seemed to be a violation, but he couldn't remember why it was a violation.

After careful consideration, he could basically guess what the situation was: it was probably to prevent collusion between officials and powerful figures.

But what exactly is the charge?

How should it be judged?

Zhang Hao scribbled something on the draft paper and left the answer sheet blank for the time being. If he couldn't think of an answer before handing in the paper, he would copy it onto the answer sheet.

Question 2: Mencius said, "The people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important." Discuss this statement in detail.

Zhang Hao was secretly delighted when he saw the question. He had already memorized the official Ming Dynasty version of "Mencius: The Correct Meaning," and with his own erudition, he could draw upon a wide range of sources.

Chapter 3550 A Good Official

But as he began to write, Zhang Hao's expression turned serious.

He went back to review the first question!

Liaoning, land surveying, bribery, powerful clans, marriage, state affairs, ruler and people...

After thinking for a full quarter of an hour, Zhang Hao was basically certain that the second question was not a question about the meaning of scriptures.

Rather, it's strategy!

To be on the safe side, he checked the third question, only to find that it didn't exist.

This time, the exam only had two questions.

Furthermore, the first question's stem pointed the way for the second question.

Zhang Hao spread out a draft paper and wrote: "The Liao dynasty lost its throne and the Jin dynasty gained it; the Jin dynasty lost its state and the Ming dynasty came to power."

"Why is this? It's because the people's hearts are with them..."

There were only two questions in the entire day's test.

Zhang Hao revised his policy essay again and again, eventually writing more than 8,000 words.

He focused on the key theme of "popular sentiment" and elaborated in detail on why the Liao and Jin dynasties perished.

From official systems to governance, from military affairs to civil administration, the failures of the Liao and Jin dynasties are clearly summarized.

After criticizing the Liao and Jin dynasties, he praised the benevolent rule of the Ming Dynasty and lavishly flattered the retired emperor and the emperor.

More than 300 exam papers were submitted, and Zhai Ruwen led the way as the examiners.

Only a few people got full marks on the first question.

The second question was surprisingly answered by half of the candidates as a question about the interpretation of scriptures.

Three days later, the imperial edict was posted.

Zhang Hao called his friends to check the list, and immediately found his name; he had ranked fifth.

Only twenty will be accepted.

More than three hundred people sighed and lamented, resenting the Liangshan emperor for treating the former Jin officials poorly. They felt that the number of people to be admitted in this special imperial examination was too small!

In Zhao Yuan's view, there were quite a few. More than ten people who had been registered as commoners in the Ming Dynasty were directly granted official positions for their meritorious service.

Now, another twenty Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) have been admitted through a special examination, bringing the total number of former Jin officials to over thirty to continue serving in their posts.

These only apply to civil officials over the age of thirty.

Jin generals who surrendered and rendered meritorious service were directly incorporated into the military system, and even Jurchen people could join the army.

Meanwhile, Jin Dynasty civil officials under the age of thirty could participate in the regular imperial examinations in Liaoning and Hebei.

The imperial examinations in these two provinces were not rigorous. As long as you had genuine knowledge and skills, you could definitely pass the provincial examination and become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination). If you continued to study, you might even become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination).

An imperial attendant rode up on horseback and said to the former Jin officials who were looking at the list of successful candidates, "His Majesty has decreed that you need not participate in the palace examination. The top twenty candidates in the special examination will all be granted the title of Jinshi."

"For the next month, study the Great Ming Code carefully. After passing the examination at the Ministry of Personnel, you will be appointed to an official position."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The person who was accepted immediately shouted.

The passerby then asked, "Where is Kang Guojun, the first-place winner of the Enke exam?"

“Here!” A young man in his early thirties stepped forward.

The man said, "Follow me into the palace to meet the Emperor."

As Kang Guojun headed towards the imperial city, all the former officials of the Jin Dynasty were filled with envy.

Some speculate that Kang Guojun's ability to be received by the emperor was not only due to his own achievement of ranking first in the exam, but also perhaps because of his deceased father.

Kang Guojun was filled with enthusiasm and determined to make his mark in the Ming Dynasty.

He waited for a long time in a side hall of the Chuigong Hall before being led inside by a eunuch. He bowed respectfully and said, "Your subject Kang Guojun greets Your Majesty the Emperor!"

Zhao Yuan nodded approvingly: "Not bad, you didn't kneel."

"It seems you have memorized the etiquette section of the Ming Dynasty Code very well. No wonder you got full marks on the first question."

Kang Guojun said, "As a minister of the Ming Dynasty, one should be familiar with the laws of the Ming Dynasty."

"Sit down," Zhao Yuan asked. "Is Kang Gongbi your father?"

Kang Guojun sat down and said, "It is indeed my father."

Zhao Yuan then asked, "What position do you hold in the Jin Kingdom?"

Kang Guojun replied, "I served as a prefect through hereditary privilege, but offended my superiors and colleagues, so I was transferred back to the capital of the Jin Kingdom to serve as a rites official."

“A promotion in name only, but a demotion in reality, referring to the artisans in charge of making seals.”