It's the end of the day, but the official list still hasn't written a word!

As long as the fire in the Gongyuan does not burn people's lives, it is not a big deal, and it does not matter if the grass roll is burned, because the grass roll does not need to be returned to those candidates who have fallen behind, the problem is that there is a grass roll that needs to be checked and burned, although there is a transcription student as a clue, but the transcription student has absconded in fear of crime, before the arrest and interrogation, how to prove the innocence of this illegal examination paper? What should the two examiners do with this exam paper, which is obviously framed by others, but there is no evidence?

Also, this fire not only burned all the grass rolls, but also burned more than 100 copies of the ink scrolls, and it was said that after the release of the list, the more than 100 candidates who could not receive the papers were willing to rest, and they were in a bad mood, and now there is more reason to accuse the field of unfair favoritism and fraud, it is conceivable that the 44th year of Wanli Bingchen will be the subject with the most criticism from the government and the opposition.

The atmosphere in the public hall was extremely depressing, and all the examiners and outer curtain officials were silent, waiting for the chief examiner Wu Daonan to make a decision - Wu Daonan was nearly seventy years old, his hair was white, his cheekbones were high, his cheeks were shriveled, the age spots on his face were obvious, but his eyes were blazing, and his expression was stern, he looked around at the officials in the hall and did not speak for a long time -- the house where the grass rolls were stored suddenly caught fire, which was obviously related to a certain or even several officials in the court, and it was precisely when these people learned that they wanted to check the grass rolls, so they temporarily ordered someone to burn the evidence. The eve of the release of the list is the most relaxed moment in the Gongyuan, all the people in the Gongyuan, it is not difficult to secretly throw a candle into the burning of the pile of grass rolls that are not very important, as for why this fire did not burn early, it is natural that the cheating framer did not expect that things would come to this point, because the first question must be dethroned, and when the paper is sent out, the candidate is shouting that the first paper has been replaced, but who will believe it, that is, what if it is believed, the Hanlin Academy grinding examination paper is only for Chinese, and will never investigate a falling paper, Because of this, the precedent cannot be opened, otherwise all the candidates who have fallen behind will ask for a re-examination, and it will be chaotic - but what the cheating framer never expected is that a test paper with a violation of the first question can make the examiner feel sorry for his talent with the excellence of the second or third field of craftsmanship, and recommend it all the way to the examiner's desk, and with the insistence of Xu Guangqi, a person who is extremely serious in doing things, the spearhead is finally pointed at the grass scroll - Wu Daonan has already thought clearly about the causes and consequences, and this fraud and framing is of course aimed at the candidate whose name is not yet known. But the impact on him as the chief examiner is also great, these people are willing to spend so much effort and means to violate the law to deal with a candidate, then this candidate is obviously not an ordinary candidate, should have a lot to do with high-ranking officials in the DPRK, the Zhejiang Party, the Xuan Party, the Qi Party, or the children of the Donglin Party? If there is no Xu Guangqi's insistence this time, it seems that the roll call and writing the list will be carried out normally, but when the candidate gets the ink scroll that has been replaced, the resentment and injustice can be imagined, and he will use his relationship between the DPRK and China to create public opinion, and the injustice will eventually be sprinkled on him, the chief examiner, regardless of the size of the power behind him, it is not good for him Wu Daonan, he will inexplicably offend a group of people because he presided over an examination, he was not in harmony with the first auxiliary Fang Congzhe, and the party regarded him as an enemy, then he will have a worse time in the cabinet in the future. This is a poisonous plan to kill two birds with one stone - "pop" two crisp cracks, two big red candles burst out of two lanterns, the oppressive atmosphere seemed to be loosened, Wu Daonan spoke: "Start dismantling, roll calling, and writing lists." ”

The officials looked at each other, and Liu Chu, the deputy chief examiner, asked first: "Elder Wu Ge, what should I do with this exam paper?" He pointed to the ink scroll on the long table.

Wu Daonan said: "Although the first question of this exam paper cannot be tested with a grass paper, it is obvious that he was replaced and framed, and the transcription student who escaped must be arrested and brought to justice, and this ink paper will remain unchanged according to the ranking of the red grass list." ”

According to the ranking of the red grass list filled in before, this exam paper is the sixth place - Li Songti, the supervisor of the provisional office, objected: "Wu Ge Lao, this is not in accordance with the system, how to convince the world's scholars by taking this paper that violates the temple of the first emperor." ”

Another supervisor, Zhou Shidan, also echoed Li Song's objections, and Zhou Shidan and Li Song were the inspectors of the Imperial History of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.

Zhang Heming, the first-room official of "Spring and Autumn", said: "This crime is obviously deliberately framed by someone, and this case will eventually come to light, how can you know that the candidate has been wronged but turn a blind eye?" ”

Li Song said: "In the absence of conclusive evidence, what you say about being wronged is just speculation, and you can't count it." ”

Zhou Shidan said: "The file of the offense is written in black and white, and the evidence is conclusive. ”

The two Zhengqipin Inspectors are very principled, and they are not timid in front of the cabinet ministers, and the Ming Dynasty's words are so sharp.

Xu Guangqi had been thinking about how to prove the innocence of the grass scroll after it was destroyed, and then said: "There are so-called methods of cheating on the examination papers, such as cutting the head alive, bees collecting honey, and snake shelling. ”

Zhou Yingqiu, the sealing official, was secretly frightened, and sneered: "Who can guarantee that those lowly craftsmen have not been bought. ”

Wu Daonan was convinced that this volume was framed, and said quietly: "As the president of Bingchen Keli, the old man has the right to decide to dethrone him. ”

Of course, Zhou Yingqiu was unwilling, and said: "Since Elder Wu Ge has made every effort to admit this illegal volume, if there is any turmoil in the future, the lower officials will not dare to take responsibility. ”

Wu Daonan was very suspicious of this sealing official, and said: "Whoever is responsible should bear it, the inner and outer curtain officials have their own responsibilities, don't say more now, the scribe began to check the Zhu and ink scrolls." ”

According to the convention, from the sixth place to the number of the sixth place, the sixth place is this examination paper that has been full of twists and turns - more than 100 pairs of eyes of the officials in the hall are staring at the two hands of the unsealed scribe, watching the miami was torn off, revealing the frontispiece of the ink scroll, and another scribe beside the dismantling scribe looked at the frontispiece and said loudly: "Zhang Yuan, the son of Yimao Keju, Shanyin County, Shaoxing Prefecture, Zhejiang Province, is nineteen years old, and he is in the Spring and Autumn Period. ”

The hall was silent, and the hustle and bustle outside the gate of the Gongyuan in the distance was faintly heard - most of the officials in the hall had heard of Zhang Yuan's name, a young talent, a famous family in Bagu, a famous family in Shanyin, a disciple of the champion, and the head of the Han Society.

Wei Guangwei squinted at Xu Guangqi, and said hesitantly: "I see, it is really the same door willing to contribute." ”

Xu Guangqi didn't answer, and his heart fluctuated: If it was really Senior Brother Zhang who was framed, who would have such hatred for Senior Brother Zhang?

Liu Chuxian, the deputy chief examiner, said: "Take the ink roll and show it to me." ”

The scribe presented this ink scroll, Liu Chu first carefully looked at the words on the frontispiece, the handwriting on it is the same as the text of the second and third ink scrolls, and the handwriting is also the same as the handwriting of the first two to seven questions, that is, it is a little different from the handwriting of the first volume of the offense, but if it is said that the examination paper has been cut, but there is no trace of the cut, and I can't see it when I look at the candle flame, what is going on?

Wu Daonan, who was sitting on the side, also looked at it seriously and said: "Whether this scroll has been cut or not, I can't see it with my faint old eyes, but there are people in the palace who are good at framing, and I asked the internal officials to send two internal servants to identify it early in the morning, do you have any objections?" ”

The supervisor Li Song was aggressive: "If the internal servant's appraisal is not fake, and the transcription student can't be arrested for a while, how can the veteran Wu Ge explain to the saint?" ”

Wu Daonan said: "The old man said that everyone is responsible for their own responsibilities, and how to report to the emperor is the old man's business, Lord Li doesn't seem to be able to ask at this time, and there is a fraud case in the field, is the supervisor not responsible?" ”

Li Song and Zhou Shidan were silent, and the fraud occurred in the outer curtain, which was the responsibility of the outer curtain official.

Zhou Yingqiu, the official of the seal, broke out in a cold sweat, and now he only hopes that the master of framing calligraphy and painting from Songjiang is skilled, and he can be spliced seamlessly, and other framers can't tell the difference.

Because Zhang Yuan's examination paper was very important and completely attracted the attention of all officials, he was not as jubilant as Xiang Ke when he was ranked as the leader of the Five Classics, and he was not even energetic when the officials grabbed the festive candles.

The dismantling of the number, roll call, and writing the list did not end until the early morning of the 27th, when the impatient candidates were about to break the gate of the Gongyuan.

The written official list must also be stamped with the seal of the Ministry of Rites, Liu Chu is the official secretary of the Ministry of Rites, and the official seal is brought with him, and the big seal is immediately stamped, and the promotion officer and the supervisor lead 800 battalions of soldiers to escort the official list to the wall in front of the hall of the Ministry of Rites and announce it...... Outside the gate of the Tribute Academy, 8,000 candidates and tens of thousands of relatives, friends, and servants have been waiting for most of the night, in the first half of the night they saw the Tribute Courtyard as if there was a fire, but the gate was still not opened, I don't know what happened so that the list could not be sent out for a long time, until three o'clock in the morning, only to hear the sound of the Dragon Gate cannon, the three major doors were opened, the first two teams of battalions came out, shouting loudly to order the people to retreat, everyone slightly to the sides of the way, just listen to the drums and music, the honor guard listed, several officials on horseback escorted a yellow silk color pavilion out of the gate, The color pavilion is the main list, and the candidates in the square have asked:

"Who is Huiyuan?"

"Did Uncle Yang from Wuxi County, Changzhou Prefecture, Nanzhili, get in the same school?"

"Is there a new name of Wang Zhengxin on the list?"

"Roger, is there any?"

"Pang Shanglian, Pang Shanglian-"

"Zhang Jie, is there any Zhang Jie?"

“……”

The shouts were overwhelming, and the sound seemed to overturn the officers on horseback, and the crowd was so crowded that they couldn't get out at all, and the officers discussed a few words with the supervisors, and then condescended on horseback and said loudly to the dense crowd in the square: "Silence, silence, I announce to you in advance the names of the top five candidates in this examination——"

The square soon quieted down, but the breathing sound of tens of thousands of people was also huge and deep - Zhang Yuan and his uncle Zhang Lianfang, his brother Zhang Dai, as well as Qi Biaojia, Huang Zunsu, Wen Zhenmeng, Huang Ting and other Han Society colleagues more than 20 people stood under a few poplars half a mile away from the gate of the Gongyuan, it would not be so crowded here, they had just arrived, and they had waited for three hours, because it was far away, they could see more clearly when the Gongyuan was on fire before, the dark red fire and the green smoke made them shocked, fortunately, the fire did not spread, It was extinguished soon after, and when it was ugly, he still didn't see the gate of the Gongyuan opened, Zhang Dai said: "Something must have happened, should you burn all the rolls?" ”

Zhang Lianfang said with a smile: "If the paper is burned, I will ask for a retest, so I have to fight for another chance." ”

While talking, I finally saw the dragon gate open, but the officials who sent the list to the Ministry of Rites were squeezed out of the way, and an official began to announce that the top five in the examination were made, Zhang Yuanxin also raised it, listened attentively, and heard the promotion officer say in a loud voice: "The fifth place in the Bingchen Branch Examination is Quanzhou Hong Chengchou-"

Hong Chengchou was with Zhang Yuan, and his whole body trembled when he heard the words, this good news came too quickly, too suddenly, ecstatic, Zhang Yuan, Zhang Dai and others hurriedly said hello to Hong Chengchou, Hong Chengchou was so happy that he couldn't speak-Zhang Lianfang said: "Don't talk, listen to who is the fourth place?" ”

I heard the examiner announce: "The fourth place in the Bingchen Branch Examination is Jiaxing Qian Shisheng-"

Zhang Dai whispered to Zhang Lianfang: "Qian Shisheng was the leader of the "Book of Poetry" in the Zhejiang Township Examination last year, and this time the examination was also the fifth room of "Poetry", which is amazing. ”

The re-commissioner also announced: "The third place in the Bingchen Branch Examination Jiangxia He Fengsheng-"

The people of the Han Society were not familiar with this He Fengsheng, and continued to listen-"Bingchen Branch will take the second place in the Shaanxi Raid. ”

Zhang Dai laughed and said: "Laifu, the second place in Laifu, the first place must be meson, haha." ”

Zhang Yuan said: "It's a reply, not a blessing." ”

Laifu was on the side, grinning "ho-ho".

"The first place will be—"

The promotion officer glanced at the audience, the audience held their breath and was silent, and the promotion officer said loudly: "Bingchen Branch will be Yuan Suzhou Shen Tonghe." ”

Zhang Yuan's heart sank sharply, a deep pain began to eat away at his heart, he had this feeling, if he was not in the top five, then it was very likely that he would fall to Sun Shan, either his craftsmanship was not good, or he would hone for another three years, he couldn't play better than this time, he had tried his best, if he couldn't win, in addition to the Mandate of Heaven, it would be calculated, and Huiyuan turned out to be the Shen Tonghe he who he met in Beicheng Manjing before, then he was more likely to be framed by calculations - Zhang Dai and others didn't think like Zhang Yuan, The ranking of the examination is not very important, it doesn't matter if you don't enter the top five, the key is the palace examination, the final ranking is determined by the palace examination, and the official is also determined according to the ranking of the palace examination, as long as the examination can be on the list, what makes Zhang Dai and others angry is that Huiyuan turned out to be Shen Tonghe, Wen Zhenmeng, Fan Wenruo and other people in Suzhou Mansion were even more angry, and couldn't help but roar:

"Shen Tonghe cheats! Plagiarize! ”

The vast majority of the hundreds of candidates in Nanzhili have heard of Shen Tonghe's shameful reputation, and at this time, seeing that Huiyuan turned out to be Shen Tonghe, who was unlearned, unskilled, and angry, they all shouted one after another, and other candidates in the square also followed suit, and the scene was chaotic for a while, and many candidates rushed up to snatch the positive list in the yellow silk pavilion for a sneak peek, those battalion soldiers could not protect it, and retreated, and the prison officer Zhou Shidan accidentally squeezed people and horses into the roadside trench, and when they were rescued by the battalion soldiers, they were already wet and embarrassed- Seeing that the situation was not good, the commander only ordered the battalion soldiers to escort the Yellow Silk Pavilion back to the Gongyuan, which was really a strange news that had never been seen in the Ming Dynasty for more than 200 years.

(To be continued)