Chapter 83

The four examination papers were picked up by several people.

After the handwriting was repeatedly identified, Minister Geng sighed, "It's not just similar, it's clearly the same! Look at these identical characters, the writing style is exactly the same."

This statement made the scene fall silent, and the four ministers looked at each other speechlessly.

More shock and disbelief filled the air; it was hard to believe that the top candidates from the four departments were all from the same person. The question was, the four departments had given these four papers full marks, what did this mean?

The evaluation of the imperial examination had certain standards. Those who received four 'poor' grades were naturally eliminated, and those who received four 'average' grades were only considered to have barely passed, which did not mean they were admitted, and they were likely to fail.

One could imagine, if someone only passed all four subjects with average grades, could they become a tribute scholar?

Those who received four 'good' grades had a chance to pass the imperial examination and be listed, but the result would depend on how many people met this standard.

Those who received four 'excellent' grades were undoubtedly admitted.

However, the possibility of one person scoring exactly the same on all four questions was very small, as there would naturally be differences in the scores for each question.

There were also different standards in the rules.

For example, 'excellent' could be divided into nine or ten points, and most people who received an 'excellent' grade got nine points. Only those who were exceptionally outstanding would receive ten points. As the saying goes, there is no first in literature, as it can easily lead to disputes. Therefore, it was rare to give a perfect score.

So, anyone who received a perfect ten 'excellent' grade, and the other three questions met the 'average' standard, would be listed and admitted. This was a saying that someone who was competent in all aspects and excelled in one area was a talent the court could use.

One perfect score plus three passing grades was enough to be admitted. What about four perfect scores?

Of course, at this point, it was only the handwriting that was similar, and it was only estimated that the papers were from the same person. No one could be certain until the truth was revealed.

What was there to be proud of now? No one had the heart to look at the content of the answers.

Minister Chu already waved his hand and said, "Hurry up, hurry up, quickly reveal the names and see who they are."

Minister Geng couldn't help but ask, "What if it really is the same person?"

Minister Luo smiled bitterly, "We are already at the stage of registering and listing the names. The four answers have already been grouped together. Can we change the judgment just because we suspect the handwriting is the same? If we do that, the court will scold us to death, and we will be thrown into prison. The saliva of the scholars across the land could drown us." He waved his hand, "Reveal the names, I want to see if there really is a prodigy who can top all four departments!"

Hearing this, the other three chief examiners nodded and immediately signaled the hall officials to come and reveal the names.

The hall officials immediately took a small silver knife to cut open the sealed names on the examination papers, and the court-appointed proofreaders were ready to record the names and scores.

The first paper to be opened was the policy essay. As the seal was lifted, it read: Liang Tao County, Liestate, Asheng!

"Asheng..." one of the observing examiners muttered.

The proofreader immediately recorded the candidate's name and the score of the paper.

Next, the poetry paper was opened, and the name revealed was the same. The four department heads immediately looked at each other, and it was indeed the same person.

Then the classics and history paper was opened, and the place and name were still the same as before.

"Wow!" Minister Luo Ye Wen sucked in a breath, pinching his beard in amazement, "Such a talent should not be unknown. Why have we never heard of him before?"

The poetry paper was opened last, and the name was still neatly written: Liang Tao County, Liestate, Asheng!

The atmosphere in the room suddenly exploded, and the onlookers were in an uproar.

Although they had already suspected the result, the four chief examiners were still shocked and could not speak for a long time.

"Heaven, it really is from the same person!"

"Have you ever seen a candidate who scored full marks in all four subjects in the imperial examination?"

"Where have you seen it? According to historical records, since the founding of the Jin Dynasty, there have been only two such cases. This should be the third!"

"A once-in-a-century event has happened to us."

"Fortunately, so many people witnessed it. Otherwise, they would have accused us of cheating."

"Look at what you're saying, Minister Luo. Even if it were cheating, no one would dare to give such high scores! Which cheating candidate would dare to ask for it?"

"After today, this person will surely become famous! We are fortunate to witness it!"

The excitement in the examination hall was unknown to the outside world. After the excitement, the ranking and the announcement of the results could not be delayed.

After all the candidates' names were revealed, the scores of the four papers were combined, and over 8,000 people met the passing standard. There were many overlapping scores, such as many people scoring two 'good' and two 'average'. No problem, they would be ranked in the order of policy essay, classics and history, poetry, and literature.

The court valued practical ability the most, even if it was just theoretical. In the case of the same score, the candidate with the higher score in the policy essay would be prioritized. If still the same, the candidate with the higher score in classics and history would be prioritized, followed by the poetry score, and literature was the least important.

After sorting out all the rankings, the relevant personnel repeatedly verified to avoid any mistakes.

The day before the announcement, a small window in the examination hall was opened, and a secret document was passed out.

The secret document contained the scale of the ranking group and several options, such as how many people would be admitted if the admission line was set at one 'excellent' and three 'good' grades, and how many people would be admitted if the line was set at four 'good' grades.

A small officer waiting outside received the secret document and immediately led several riders to the palace to hand it over to the cabinet. The cabinet would then discuss and determine the admission line based on the options provided by the examination hall, and then report to the emperor for approval.

The secret document would not involve any candidate's scores or names to prevent any bias in setting the admission line.

In other words, no one knew how many people would be admitted at the beginning. The court would make the decision based on the overall performance of the candidates. If the overall level was good, more people might be admitted; if the overall level was low, fewer people might be admitted.

The chief examiners of the examination hall had no power in this matter.

After the cabinet's approval returned to the examination hall, the hall, which now knew the admission line, became busy again, preparing for the announcement the next day...

The announcement of the imperial examination results was not the same as the final list after the palace examination. The list was revealed outside the examination hall.

Before dawn, the examination hall was already crowded with people, and more people were still coming from all directions.

A group of soldiers kept the crowd of onlookers outside the large archway.

The large archway was covered with a large red cloth, and the names behind the red cloth were related to the future and fate of many people. Red lanterns were hung on both sides, creating a festive atmosphere even before the list was revealed.

The scene was noisy, with various discussions everywhere. Most of the people on the scene were not the candidates themselves.

As the sky gradually brightened,

Mr. Ming, dusty and carrying a bag and wearing a hat, was among the crowd. He was dressed in simple clothes and had just arrived at the scene. He was immediately pushed and squeezed by the people who came later, making it impossible to stay away from the crowd.

After the imperial examination began, he left the capital and went to a village by a lake, where he fished on a boat.

This was not the first time he had been there. Since he no longer participated in the imperial examination, he did not want to stay in the capital or hear anything about the examination. He wanted to wait until the examination was completely over before returning. However, this time he could not resist, tossing and turning and unable to sleep, and walked back to the capital at night, waiting for the city gates to open and then came here as if driven by a ghost.

Since he first participated in the imperial examination, he had quietly observed the list every time for over thirty years, but his name was never on it.

He grew up with the name of a prodigy, boasting of his extensive knowledge, and passed the provincial examination at the age of ten. At sixteen, he participated in the imperial examination as a provincial candidate, which was a great honor! He was praised as a prodigy, a talent the elders and the people had high hopes for, and his suitors filled his doorstep, and he could choose any suitable woman.

He chose a woman from his hometown whom he considered the most beautiful, gentle, and virtuous.

He was once so proud!

Later, he fell here and could never get back up.

Thus, his fate was sealed here, and his soul was hooked here, unable to escape or run away.

In the noisy crowd, Mr. Ming's mind was in chaos, and he could not hear what the people around him were saying, and he did not even notice when his hat was knocked off and trampled.

When the sunlight shone on the archway, and the light gradually covered the entire red cloth, making it vividly red, the drum sounds suddenly echoed, and the gates of the examination hall opened. The four chief examiners led a group of judges out.

The four chief examiners climbed the steps of the archway, bowed to the people, and then stood on both sides.

Bang! With the loud sound of a large copper gong, the four chief examiners each pulled a red silk, and the red cloth covering the archway slid down, revealing a large white board with red characters, which was the list of candidates who passed the imperial examination.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the board.

The characters on the board were large, but the line of characters at the top was even larger, each character as big as a basin.

Three large, bright red characters: Asheng.

Below them was a smaller line: Liang Tao County, Liestate.

Below that was another line of smaller characters: Policy Essay (10), Classics and History (10), Poetry (10), Literature (10).

Then came the rankings of other candidates, with the same font size as the smaller characters. Asheng's name was the only one without a ranking, and it did not need one, as everyone could see that he was the top candidate.

"Asheng..."

"He is from Liestate. Hey, the top candidate is from our Liestate, Asheng is from our Liestate..."

"What do the four '10's below mean? I didn't see such a line of small characters in the previous imperial examination."

The excitement and envy of countless people filled the air outside the examination hall.

"..." Mr. Ming was shocked, and no one on the scene was more shocked than him. His mouth was open wide enough to fit an egg.

He thought he had seen it wrong, but when he checked the place of origin, it was correct. The boy he taught had said he was from Liang Tao County, Liestate.

That guy... the one who needed to be hit with a stick to study... actually passed the examination? Not only did he pass, but he also became the top candidate?

Shocked! Extremely shocked, his head was buzzing.