Chapter 121 Yu Yanran
The chief examiner this time is again His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. If I can show my face in front of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and get his attention, my future will naturally be promising.
These people will naturally not let go of such a good opportunity.
However, when they saw the test questions, they were as confused as those students.
However, they have been officials for many years and are much better than the candidates in all aspects of their mental ability.
They quickly came to their senses and gathered together to discuss the matter.
After discussing for a while, no one could understand the meaning of the question, so they simply formed a group to find Zhao Xing.
Zhao Xing was idly competing with Gu Tingye in martial arts when he learned that a group of invigilators wanted to see him, so he stopped and let them in.
"Your Highness, we greet you!" everyone bowed.
"The answer sheets have just been distributed. Why are you coming to see me instead of going to supervise the exam?" Zhao Xing asked, waving his hand.
"Your Highness, when we saw the essay questions, we found it difficult to understand their true meaning. I'm afraid it's even more difficult for the other candidates to understand. I wonder if Your Highness could help us clear up our confusion? If the candidates ask, we can answer them." said an invigilating official.
"I thought it was something else. The test question is a circle. As the saying goes, there is no order without rules. This circle can be regarded as the rules. The question can be understood as being within the rules or outside the rules. To put it simply, there are no restrictions, allowing the candidates to express themselves freely. The imperial examination selects talents for the country, and no one is perfect and everyone has his or her strengths. I think there shouldn't be too many restrictions. Let them express themselves freely and show their strengths." Zhao Xing said.
"Uh…"
Everyone was speechless after hearing this. At first glance, this statement made sense.
But in reality it is not that simple.
It's like writing the character "一". If you let a child look at it and ask him what it is, the answer will definitely be "一".
But if an adult were to watch it, most people's first reaction would also be "one", but they would also be unable to help but wonder if there is any deeper meaning in it?
This is the thinking of ordinary people, let alone these candidates.
"Your Highness, is this how we answer the candidates?" asked an official.
"No!" Zhao Xing shook his head and said, "If the candidates have any doubts, just tell them that the test questions are correct and don't say anything else." Zhao Xing said.
More than a dozen invigilators looked at each other in bewilderment, but since Zhao Xing said so, they just had to do as Zhao Xing said. After all, Zhao Xing was the chief examiner, and any problems would not be their fault.
So he said goodbye and left. As soon as he returned to the public housing, the clerk came to inquire whether there was something wrong with the test paper.
An official said a few words to these clerks, and they retreated.
After these petty officials left, they went to their respective areas, followed by a soldier holding a gong.
The soldiers struck the gong to attract the examinees' attention, and the clerk shouted, "There is nothing wrong with the test questions. If anyone makes noise again, you will be disqualified from the examination!"
Soon, the Gongyuan, which had been a bit noisy, became quiet again.
Even though many of them still didn't understand what the test questions meant, they could only scratch their heads and think about how to answer them.
Many people didn’t eat or drink for a day, their hair was pulled out, their eyes were bloodshot, and they didn’t write a single word. It seemed that the test questions were driving them crazy and they were on the verge of collapse.
There were also some smart ones who roughly understood the meaning of the test questions and started to write with ink.
No matter what they think, time will not stop.
The sun rose and the moon set, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.
On March 25th, just as the sky was getting light, countless people flocked towards the Imperial Examination Hall.
Most of these people were children from families who participated in the examination, and some came just to watch the fun.
The guards at the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall separated the crowd from the candidates and left an open space at the entrance to facilitate the candidates to come out.
After midday, the sound of clappers rang out in the Imperial Examination Hall, and the clerks began to collect the answer sheets under the supervision of the imperial guards.
The imperial guards will supervise the entire process of collecting and sealing these answer sheets.
At the time of Si, the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall opened and the students left the hall in batches according to their areas.
"How is Xiong'er doing?"
"Erlang, are the test questions difficult?"
For nine days, we had to eat and drink in a small examination room, not to mention taking a shower or changing clothes. You can imagine how bad it smelled.
However, the crowd of onlookers had no time to despise him. When they saw their son coming out, they quickly pushed through the crowd, went up to him, and asked him questions.
Faced with questions from their parents and relatives, some of the candidates who looked haggard burst into tears.
This imperial examination is so difficult.
For a while, outside the Imperial Examination Hall, there was chaos and confusion due to questioning, crying, and the voices of yamen runners urging the people to leave quickly.
The crowd dispersed around noon, and Zhao Xing went straight back to the East Palace and took a good bath.
Although you can take a bath in the Gongyuan, the conditions are limited after all.
While Zhao Xing was taking a bath, the topic of the imperial examination essay had already spread throughout Bianliang.
Even though the question was set by the prince, it still aroused public outrage.
Those families whose sons participated in the imperial examination directly wrote letters to impeach Zhao Xing.
When the government learned about this, they handed these people over and reprimanded them, and then the purpose of Zhao Xing's asking the questions was revealed.
After hearing the reasons, those indignant candidates fell silent.
Zhao Xing's words were entirely for their benefit. What else could they say?
In addition, Zhao Xing asked people to prepare rice porridge for the candidates. For a while, no one talked about the test questions anymore, and everyone started praising Zhao Xing.
After Zhao Xing finished bathing, he received an imperial decree from his father and went to the palace.
The emperor originally wanted to scold Zhao Xing. He did not expect that this exam question would cause such a big response. He wanted Zhao Xing to stop messing around in the future.
However, after meeting Zhao Xing, he found that he seemed to have lost some weight, and felt a little distressed, and could not bring himself to scold him.
"You've been through a lot these days. Take a good rest for a few days. I won't have anyone send the bundle over," said the emperor.
Zhao Xing's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said, "Thank you, father!"
To be honest, he didn't have a very comfortable life as a crown prince. He read books and essays every day, and his free time was very limited.
Now that the East Palace Academy has been closed, his father has asked him to take a few days off from watching the tattoos. He can finally have a good rest for a few days.
"By the way, Mr. Yu's granddaughter reached the age of marriage a few days ago. I have told Mr. Yu to go to the Eastern Palace to serve you in advance, and then give her a status when you marry a wife in the future." said the emperor.
Zhao Xing was stunned and said, "Father, this is not good, right? Yu Xianggong will definitely not be willing to do this."
"This is not something you should worry about. People will move to the East Palace tomorrow. You are the crown prince and should know that the country is the most important. The continuation of bloodline is also related to the stability of the country." said the official.
Well, force him to have a baby.
Seeing that his father was determined, Zhao Xing didn't say anything. He talked with his father for a while, then went to see Empress Cao and his mother, and left the palace in the evening.
The next morning, Zhao Xing was fishing. The late March sunshine felt very comfortable on his body. Zhao Xing lay in the rocking chair, drowsy.
"Your Highness, have some tea." A gentle voice woke Zhao Xing up.
Zhao Xing was about to get angry, but when he saw clearly, he was stunned and asked, "When did you come?"
"I just arrived!" Yu Yanran said with her head down.
Zhao Xing frowned slightly and said, "Why call yourself a slave? From now on, call yourself a concubine."
Yu Yanran opened her mouth when she heard that. She had no official status now and entered the Eastern Palace as a palace maid to serve Zhao Xing. It was against etiquette for her to call herself a concubine.
But she was weak in character and did not dare to refuse, so she was at a loss for a moment.
Zhao Xing saw that he seemed to have frightened her, so he sighed, looked at the palace maids and eunuchs standing in the pavilion, and waved his hand, saying, "All of you leave!"
"Yes!" The palace maids and eunuchs responded, bowed, and retreated in an orderly manner.
Yu Yanran became even more nervous. Although Zhao Xing had asked her to talk to him before, there were always servants around. This was the first time she was truly alone.
"Sit down." Zhao Xing pointed to the stone bench beside him and said.
"Thank you, Your Highness." Yu Yanran bowed and sat down.
Zhao Xing looked at Yu Yanran. Feeling Zhao Xing's gaze, Yu Yanran lowered her head even lower, and a blush appeared on her face.
(End of this chapter)