About half an hour after the exam began, Professor Zhang and others, who were the promotion officers, suddenly walked out of the west hall. The invigilators sitting around the examination room were all from Guizhou, and they also entered to meet the promotion officer at this moment.

Each promoter is assigned an invigilator to supervise each other.

The invigilator holds a small stamp in his hand and stamps the candidate's ink roll along the way, which is called "Lecture Poke".

By this time, the candidates have written about 100 words and must be copied onto the official answer sheet for the invigilator to stamp and validate – to prevent anyone from cheating.

The one next to Wang Yuan was pulling the sleeve of the promotion officer, and said with a sad face: "Sir, give me a little more time, I have already written the lecture, and I will be able to transcribe it soon!" ”

The promoter shook his sleeves and left, and the examinee's face suddenly turned to ashes. It is estimated that he was born in an ordinary military family, and it is not easy for him to study, so he hopes to receive rice in the future to reduce the burden on his family.

But the invigilator didn't poke him, and everything was in vain.

It is true that the Dao test can be taken for a whole day, and you can stop to eat in the middle, but the first 100 words of the first question must be written within half an hour of the start of the test.

If you haven't written it out at the time of stamping, or if you have forgotten to copy it on the answer sheet, the invigilator will not stamp it. When the marker corrects the test papers, you can write your essay in a frenzied manner, and if you don't have a "starting stamp", you will have to be downgraded by one level, or you can even be directly judged to fail, because you are suspected of cheating in the middle of the game.

Also, the Ming Dynasty Taoist exam was only one test, unlike the Qing Dynasty where there were several exams. Unless there is a fraud case, there is no possibility of re-examination, and the invigilator does not give a stamp, which is almost equivalent to a death sentence.

"Alas!"

Wang Yuan shook his head and sighed, feeling sorry for his neighbor's table.

But in an hour, you can't even write a hundred words, who can blame for this?

Professor Zhang took the invigilator to poke all the way, and when he poked Wang Yuan, he couldn't help but stop and take a closer look.

"You've finished all four of your writings?" Professor Zhang asked.

Wang Yuan was designing the five scriptures on scratch paper, and replied without raising his head: "It's done." ”

Professor Zhang had no taboos, bent down to carefully check the answer sheet, and couldn't help nodding in approval: "The article is simple, old-fashioned, and can be a model for all beings." What is your name? ”

"Wang Yuan." Wang Yuan replied.

"After you go to school, I will teach you the art of making yourself." After Professor Zhang finished speaking, he left, asked the invigilator to poke Wang Yuan, and then poked other candidates.

The old professor has been a talent for decades, and he can't even get the exam, and he only gets the annual tribute quota by boiling his qualifications. However, he still thinks very highly of himself, and when he sees that the future student is a material that can be made, he wants to teach this student to write Bagu Wen himself.

It was more than half an hour, and Wang Yuan finished writing all the five scriptures.

It's really too simple to write a question in Xishu, and it can't be compared with Jiangnan, and people in Jiangnan have already begun to have interception questions.

Let's take an example of a truncated question: "It is better to be a person than a bird, and it is better to be a bird." ”

The examiner of this question was so bad that he cut off the scriptures so much that even Confucius was confused.

A boy made the title "Mrs. is not as good as a bird, it is really shameful", and then he was completely blind, and he didn't know how to contact King Wen. He repeated this sentence in his mouth, annoying the candidates next door, and the neighbor blurted out: "Shame, shame!" Shame on him, Mo Ruoshi King Wen. ”

The boy was overjoyed when he heard this, and immediately wrote it into the volume, and because of this sentence, he was admitted to Xiucai.

……

Wang Yuan carefully revised and proofread, then copied it to the answer sheet, and then packed the exam box and prepared to hand in the paper.

Xi Shu kept sending people to keep an eye on Wang Yuan, and immediately called him when he saw this. There was no Zhu paper in the Dao test, let alone a vague name or anything, so he began to correct the test paper for Wang Yuan on the spot.

The questions of the four books were not enough, and when the questions of the Five Classics were reviewed, Xi Shu suddenly smiled and asked, "Which book are you reading?" ”

Wang Yuan said: "I studied both "Justice" and "Daquan". ”

Xi Shu advised: "If you want to be promoted in the exam, put down "Justice" first. After you become an official, it's not too late to read "The Five Classics of Justice". ”

"Follow the teachings of the Grandmaster." Wang Yuan arched his hand.

The official imperial examination textbooks of the Ming Dynasty were the "Four Books Daquan" and the "Five Classics".

For these two sets of books, Gu Yanwu's evaluation is: "Bullying the court at the top, and slandering the scholars." The abolition of scripture began here. ”

In a word, the textbook is purely a blind chicken.

This originated from Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di's sons, who felt that some content was not conducive to rule, so they began to mess around.

Zhu Di summoned his courtiers to compile books, including the "Four Books" and "Five Classics". He abandoned theories other than physical science, and arbitrarily tampered with Zhu Xi's scriptures and meanings in order to suppress the minds of scholars.

The "Five Classics" was slightly better, and it was not abandoned by the mainstream until the end of the Ming Dynasty, and candidates went to read the "Five Classics of Justice" in the Tang Dynasty.

"The Complete Book of Four Books" is simply impossible to evaluate, the court is blind and the private printing is also deleted, and Zhu Xi is so angry that he jumps out of the coffin. By the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the students of Guangzhou University simply read the "Annotations on the Four Books" directly, and treated the official textbooks as a piece of waste paper. The same is true for the examiner, who asks questions according to the "Notes on the Collection of Four Books", because the "Four Books Daquan" often contradicts itself.

Back then, Shen Fuxuan inadvertently came into contact with the "Five Classics of Justice", and immediately took it as a guideline, and discarded the "Five Classics" without regard to it, which led to various deviations from the program when examining people.

Now teaching Wang Yuan, Shen Fuxuan also admonished: "You must master the "Five Classics", otherwise it will be difficult to conduct scientific examinations. But if you are a scholar, the "Daquan" is all nonsense, and you should take "Justice" as the criterion. ”

This led to Wang Yuan's study of the Book of Rites, which had to be read in two different versions, one for the exam and the other for study.

Professor Zhang seemed to have a good relationship with Xi Shu, so he leaned over and asked, "How is it?" ”

Xi Shu drew circles on Wang Yuan's scroll, nodded and said, "If there is no accident, it should be the head of the case." ”

This is to record Wang Yuan as a student on the spot, and the school officer has this right.

"Thank you, Grand Master." Wang Yuan hurriedly thanked him.

"Don't thank me," Xi Shu said with a smile, "With your talent, it is enough to take the examination in Guizhou." But if you want to be admitted to the Jinshi, you have to work harder, and Guizhou has not been a Jinshi for ten years. ”

To be precise, it is twelve years without going out of Jinshi.

This can be seen from the degeneration of Guizhou, when Song Ang was in charge, he greatly promoted culture and education, ran social studies, and exchanged ideas with health studies and division studies. This prompted the students of the health institute and the children of the commoners to have a tendency to learn, and often took the exam to produce two jinshi.

As a result, as soon as Song Ang died, Song Ran took the throne and suspended all social studies. Corruption was also rampant in the guards, and the children of ordinary military families had no money to study. As a result, Guizhou has not been in and out of Jinshi for 12 consecutive years!

Xi Shu put Wang Yuan's scroll aside and admonished, "Stand behind me." ”

"Yes!" Wang Yuan stood honestly.

About half an hour later, someone finally handed in the papers.

Xi Shu glanced at Baguwen and said with a smile: "Zong Lu, your article has improved. ”

The probationary officer only served for three years, and at the same time as the Taoist examination, he also had to evaluate the former students. In the first year, the annual examination is used to test the homework of the students; In the second year, the subject examination will be conducted to determine the list of candidates for the township examination; In the third year, there is no exam to prepare for the township exam.

However, Xi Shu is a special case, and he should be in office for five years, and he will not leave Guizhou until the end of the next township test.

The student in front of him is called Chen Wenxue, the word Zonglu, and he is here to take the annual examination today - in order to save trouble, Xi Shu took the Taoist examination and the annual examination together, anyway, the annual examination is equivalent to the final exam.

Xi Shu handed this person's test paper to Wang Yuan with his backhand: "You can evaluate it." ”

Wang Yuan read it carefully and said, "It's all flat and stable. ”

Xi Shu said with a smile: "You kid is very slippery, obviously you are not very brilliant, but you want to say anything stable." ”

"Shame on the students!" Chen Wenxue hurriedly bent over.

Xi Shu also encouraged: "Although it is not brilliant, it has improved a lot compared to last year." Or my question is too simple, it is not easy to write new ideas, you should not be presumptuous because of this. He picked up Wang Yuan's scroll, handed it to Chen Wenxue and said, "You appreciate it." ”

Chen Wenxue immediately clasped his hands and took the test paper respectfully.

Wang Yuan's eight-strand essay, the essay is only average. But in terms of lifting and turning, it is like lubricating oil, and there is no hindrance in reading. The most wonderful thing is the process of discourse, from beginning to end there is not a single nonsense, and all kinds of arguments and arguments are closely linked.

This article, even if it is placed in Jiangnan twenty years ago, can easily be lifted in the exam!

Of course, it's hard to say right now.

In today's Jiangnan Township Examination, the examiners and candidates all prefer literary style, and the problem solving is the same as writing, and the simple and steady style of writing is very disadvantaged.

Chen Wenxue read Wang Yuan's volume repeatedly, and then arched his hand and said: "Xueyou is a great talent, and I am ashamed of myself." ”

"Don't dare." Wang Yuan returned the salute.

After a while, two more students handed in the papers, namely: Tang Yan, the word Boyuan; Ye Wu, the word is cang.

Xi Shu asked them to review each other's articles, and then commented on them one by one, completely teaching the four as personal disciples.

Finally, Xi Shu said to Zhang Bangchen: "Professor Zhang, after the entrance examination, after the new students enter the school, you can organize all the division students. ”

"What's the matter?" Zhang Bangchen did not agree directly, but asked the reason.

Xi Shu explained: "I personally took them to Longgang Mountain to study, and they all worshiped under Mr. Yangming. ”

Zhang Bangchen was taken aback, and then bowed.

Wang Yangming offended Liu Jin's degraded official, Xi Shu actually led the students in Guizhou in person, and all of them worshiped Wang Yangming's door, and the political risk in the middle was so big that it scared people to death.

At the very least, it can be said that he is not afraid of the powerful, which makes Professor Zhang admire it very much.

In fact, Xi Shu didn't have much contact with Wang Yangming, and from the year of Jinshi, Xi Shu was still Wang Yangming's predecessor, so there was no reason to do such a thing.

There must be something hidden!

This has to be mentioned, another deputy envoy in Guizhou, Mao Ke.

Mao Ke and Xi Shu went to work at the same time, because of old age and frailty, he fell ill halfway to Guizhou. He has been recuperating for the past two years, but he has a deep friendship with Xi Shu, and the two hope to work together to run Guizhou's education well.

Coincidentally, Mao Ke and Wang Yangming are fellow villagers.

Not long ago, Wang Yangming wrote a letter to Mao Ke, explaining the truth he had just understood, and hoped that Mao Ke would help him do admissions publicity.

Mao Ke was impressed by the theory of "heart is reason" and immediately helped Wang Yangming to do publicity, which led to the news of Song Gongzi, who was grounded.

And Xi Shu also learned from Mao Ke's mouth that Wang Yangming was talented, so he planned to take all the students to Longgang Mountain to study.

As for Song Gongzi's father, Song Jian, this person is not well-informed.

Although Xi Shu is Yang Tinghe's Sichuan countryman, he has no intimate relationship at all, and Song Jian wants to take Yang Tinghe's line wrong.

Wang Yuan's teacher is Xi Shu, and the business teacher is about to be Wang Yangming, both of whom are not dealing with Yang Tinghe, and Wang Yuan will definitely become a political enemy with Yang Tinghe in the future.

In other words, Yang Tinghe belongs to a strange flower, and he successfully ended the century-old north-south dispute in the Ming Dynasty with the posture of a-stirring stick. If you add Wang Yuan's-stirring stick, I am afraid that the Ming Dynasty Hall will be smeared with dung.