Poor but talented scholar

Chapter 97: The Second Round of Examinations End

Lu Shouye was completely exasperated: "Chuan'er, if we get fourth place but don't do well in the retest, won't all our efforts have been for nothing?"

"It's not a complete waste of time, but this fourth place means that my son is now firmly on the threshold of first place."

"As long as he doesn't make any mistakes in the second exam, my son will be able to obtain the status of a government-subsidized student. With this status, he will be exempt from all taxes and corvée labor in the future."

After explaining everything, Lu Chuan sat back down at his desk.

"Promote filial piety and brotherly love to uphold human relationships, and strengthen clan ties to promote harmony and unity..."

......

The second round of examinations began, and the professors from the National Chengchi University sat upright in the main hall, looking down at the students below.

"The second examination tests true ability and integrity. I will not tolerate any opportunism or cheating during the examination."

The professor's stern shout sent chills down the spines of many students sitting in the front row.

As the gates of the examination hall closed, the second round of examinations officially began.

The constables carried wooden signs with the questions and walked quickly through the examination room.

Silently read the first four articles of the "Sacred Edict and Extensive Instructions," within half an hour.

The Four Books essay topic is "When out in public, serve the ministers and officials; when at home, serve your father and elder brothers." The examination poem is "On the Spring Mountains After Rain," limited to eleven rhymes.

The rules for the second round of exams are extremely strict: there is no draft paper, and you must write directly on the main exam paper.

Even a single misspelled word or a speck of ink will result in a direct demotion.

He took a deep breath and began to write from memory.

"Promote filial piety and brotherly love to uphold human relationships, and strengthen clan ties to promote harmony and unity..."

His mind was completely clear.

After reciting the imperial edict from memory, Lu Chuan didn't even have time to rub his wrists before his gaze immediately locked onto the title of the Four Books: "When at home, serve your father and elder brother."

Before putting pen to paper, he thought of the comment given by the twelve educational officials of the Great Qian Dynasty over the past thirty years on the saying, "When you go out, serve the ministers and officials; when you return home, serve your father and elder brothers." "Too much flattery of ministers and officials will lead to a loss of backbone; too much indulgence in one's father and elder brothers will lead to a loss of propriety."

He began to write.

A virtuous person who bears the responsibility of his family and country must first do his best in his duties.

Officials and ministers are respected for their high positions, and fathers and elder brothers are valued for their close relationships. In their conduct, they fear losing respect; in their practice, they fear failing to earn love. The foundation of a scholar's character lies in this.

Moreover, in all the world, there is no one who can serve high officials without serving his father and elder brother.

In my opinion, those who are ambitious and aspire to great heights often set their sights on the high halls of power and curry favor with the powerful and wealthy. When they look at their own families, they are arrogant towards their own flesh and blood and neglect filial piety and brotherly love.

This is putting the cart before the horse, the act of a hypocrite. The teachings of a sage begin with those near and end with those far, from close to distant.

Therefore, he served the high officials not for personal gain or to curry favor with those in power, but to uphold the laws and regulations of the state, fulfill his duties, and diligently observe his responsibilities even after retirement.

The reason they respected the high officials was because they respected the emperor's appointed officials, not because they respected the officials' personal power.

When a man enters the household and serves his father and elder brothers, he removes his official robes and puts aside his formal manners.

He was always courteous and respectful, fearing no disobedience; he personally cared for the sick and needy, enduring their hardships. Even with great honors, he would not bestow them upon his clan; even with extraordinary talent, he would always bow to his elders. His obedience to his father and elder brothers was a natural expression of his innate nature, not a pretense of outward appearance.

Therefore, one should cultivate both inner and outer virtues, and handle all matters in accordance with propriety. Ministers and officials will be loyal, and fathers and elder brothers will be filial.

The benevolent spirit of one household can serve as a model for the whole world; the upright conduct of one's own person can at least live up to the expectations of sages and worthies.

After finishing the article, Lu Chuan was a little tired and planned to take a break.

He placed the brush on the mountain-shaped brush holder.

I turned my head to the side and looked through the gap into the distance.

The sky after the rain carried a sense of cleansed aloofness.

Doesn't this perfectly reflect his current state of mind?

I don't strive for fleeting glory; I only wish to leave a touch of green in this world after the rain.

He began to pick up his pen, and this time his movements were much lighter.

Since the first spring thunder, a vast expanse of verdant green has flowed forth.

A wisp of cloud rises over the distant peaks, and a light rain has ceased on the stream before us.

The clear river swells with emerald green, and the painted pavilion stands serenely shrouded in verdant hues.

It washes away the grime of a thousand mountains and soothes the sorrows of ten thousand families.

The old trees are bathed in a cold, misty light, while the new bamboo shoots are soft and pink.

Climbing vines along bird paths, standing by the water to watch fishing boats.

Creation is impartial, and the universe lingers here.

My heart remains unblemished, I walk alone towards the clear autumn.

When the last character was written, the entire scroll was clean and tidy, without a single ink stain.

Lu Chuan breathed a long sigh of relief.

All these years of hard work have finally come to an end.

The examination hall doors opened, signifying the complete end of the provincial examination.

Over the next three days, Yingnan Prefecture gradually fell silent.

After the official results are posted, the vast majority of people have already been eliminated.

By this time, the number of people still waiting in the prefectural city for the final ranking results had decreased by more than half.

Most of the restaurants and inns that were usually bustling with activity were empty, leaving only a few hundred students who had survived the main event waiting.

This time, neither Lu Chuan nor his son Lu Shouye went to join the commotion in front of the examination hall.

The window in the inn room was half open.

Lu Chuan was sitting at the table, holding a copy of "Shuowen Jiezi" in his hand, flipping through it slowly.

His expression remained calm, as if the results posted outside the window had nothing to do with him.

"Chuan'er, have some hot tea."

Lu Shouye picked up the teacup from the side. Although his hands were still trembling slightly, his energy and spirit were obviously much better than a few days ago.

Having witnessed his son's thorough explanation before the re-examination, he felt more confident.

Whether he came in first or fourth place, his son Chuan'er was already a model scholar.

No matter how much the rankings change in the re-examination, once the system changes, no one can overturn it.

The father and son sat quietly in the house, listening to the tea brewing on the stove, enjoying an unprecedented period of leisure in the past few months.

However, the innkeeper had long been unable to contain himself.

"Quickly, quickly, carry those two basins of money laundering materials to the front gate, and get that red silk ribbon ready for me."

The shopkeeper's excited shouts came from downstairs.

With fewer candidates taking the second round of exams, the results were released quickly. Often, once the first-ranked candidates were determined, messengers would ride horses to various inns to deliver the good news.

The shopkeeper had already gone all out, preparing red envelopes out of his own pocket, filling them to the brim, and even neatly pasting the red paper on them for good luck.

Not only that, but two strings of firecrackers for good luck were also hung on either side of the signboard, carried high by the shop assistants on bamboo poles.

Several waiters, dressed in brand-new clothes, stood craning their necks at the entrance of the inn, staring motionlessly in the direction of the Gongyuan screen wall.

"Shopkeeper, do you think this young Mr. Lu can still make it into the top three in the second round of the exam?" A waiter sniffed and asked in a low voice.

"You don't know anything." The shopkeeper slapped the waiter on the back of the head, his eyes gleaming. "Fourth in the main exam, and as long as he doesn't make any major mistakes in the retest, he's a sure thing to become a first-class scholar. If our little shop produces a scholar, then every scholar in Yingnan Prefecture will want to come here by name. You all better keep your eyes peeled. As soon as you see the red silk on the messenger, light the firecrackers immediately."

Inside the house, Lu Chuan turned a page of his book, listening to the shopkeeper's cursing downstairs: "Father, judging from this noise, the shopkeeper is even more anxious than we are."

Lu Shouye smiled and said, "He just wanted to bask in your literary aura. Chuan'er, your father is not worried now. Whether it's first or second class, when we go home, we can go to the ancestral hall to burn a stick of incense."