Chapter 236: The Road to High Office 36 (Editing)

Chapter 236: The Road to High Office 36 (Editing)

"The Sage has arrived~"

The sharp voice of the eunuch rang out, and everyone in the Hall of Supreme Harmony stood up, bowing to the man dressed in bright yellow robes.

"Long live the Emperor! May he reign for ten thousand years!"

"Ministers, please rise."

The seating positions of the imperial examination candidates were arranged according to their spring examination results. Therefore, Xu Zeping, seated in the center of the first row, could clearly see the boots embroidered with five-clawed golden dragons. As the Great Jing Emperor turned to walk toward the grand teacher's chair, Xu Zeping secretly glanced at the emperor's back and quickly lowered his head.

The Sage was of average height, around 5'8", which was typical for men in the Great Jing Dynasty.

His upright posture and commanding voice revealed him to be a vigorous elder.

"Minister Zhang, distribute the exam papers," said the Great Jing Emperor, seated in the grand teacher's chair, as he looked interestedly at the candidates of this year's spring examinations.

To a keen observer, it would be noticeable that his gaze lingered on Xu Zeping for a moment longer.

Zhang Jie handed a stack of exam papers to Minister Wu and, smiling, said, "To avoid wasting the candidates' time, I would like to request Minister Wu's assistance."

Wu Rong did not get upset by Zhang Jie's instruction but instead took two more stacks of exam papers and placed them in front of the two censors beside him. "I would ask the two supervising censors to help."

The candidates below kept their heads lowered, as if no one had seen the minor dispute among the ministers.

To rule the empire, one must first consider the well-field system, and if needed, impose limits on land ownership.

Upon seeing this question, Xu Zeping couldn't help but glance toward Jiang Changfu. It seemed that the Sage was already quite dissatisfied with the hidden land issues in the Jiangnan region.

According to previous speculations, this major issue should have been left to the next crown prince to resolve, so why would the Sage bring it up today?

He rubbed the pen and considered that, following the historical trajectory of the Ming dynasty, this was a land reform proposal by Hai Rui aimed at addressing governance challenges.

However, the well-field system was not a wise move for the development of the times; it was a step backward historically.

The well-field system first appeared in the Shang dynasty and matured during the Western Zhou period.

Under the well-field system, land belonged to the Zhou king and was allocated to commoners, who could only use it—effectively making all land state property.

The first part of Minister Hai's proposal was to implement the well-field system, and the second part was to limit land ownership to address hidden land issues.

In fact, the current land policy of the Great Jing was the peak land ownership system of the small-farming society.

Therefore, the first part of the question about the well-field system could be completely ignored; the focus should be on the second part, imposing limits on land ownership when necessary.

Was this a warning or a test?

The more confused Xu Zeping's thoughts became, the calmer he appeared. He had an excellent solution in mind, but if he proposed it, wouldn't he be chased down by the Huai Lake faction in Jiangnan?

The land policy implemented by the Great Jing included civilian land, official land, military land, and merchant land.

The limits were 100 acres for civilian land, 1,000 acres for official land, 5,000 acres for military land, and 500 acres for merchant land.

In fact, these limits mirrored those suggested by Minister Hai, but without specifying individual owners, they could encourage fraudulent behavior.

What Xu Zeping wanted to propose was the implementation of a land registration system, similar to the "land ledger" system, accurately assigning land and taxes to each individual based on their household registration. Any unregistered land would be seized by the state.

Xu Zeping remembered what his elder brother had said—that he needed to make a standout performance in the imperial examination. He decided, even if it meant being pursued by the Huai Su faction, he was ready!

Grinding the ink and wielding the brush, it took no more than thirty minutes to complete a draft that would be remembered for ages.

It was only then that Xu Zeping noticed the bright yellow figure standing beside him. His hand trembled, and a drop of thick ink fell onto the pristine draft paper.

"Such a shame."

Emperor Sheng'an uttered three words in a low tone, then walked away with his hands clasped behind his back to the next tribute scholar.

It was only then that Xu Zeping realized his back was soaked with sweat.

He carefully examined the draft once more. Thankfully, there were no words that would offend the Sage.

Xu Zeping wiped his sweating forehead with his sleeve and began to polish the draft, toning down any harsh words.

"Zhang Qing, do you think the newly appointed scholar in the center looks like Xu Bianxiu?"

After strolling around, Emperor Sheng'an returned to the central armchair and took a light sip from his teacup.

His voice was quiet, but just audible to Zhang Jie and the other three.

Zhang Jie, astute, immediately understood the Sage's meaning—

No matter how unconventional the article he wrote was, this person had earned the emperor's favor!

Though curious about Xu Zeping's writing, Zhang Jie kept his curiosity in check and responded quietly, "The Sage is wise. That newly appointed scholar is Xu Bianxiu's younger brother."

Hearing the term "newly appointed scholar," Wu Tian Ding and the others began speculating about this year’s top scholar.

Wu Tian Ding fawningly flattered Emperor Sheng'an, "Congratulations, Sage, on gaining another fine minister."

...

The evening the final imperial examination ended, Zhang Jie saw Xu Zeping's answer sheet. The elegant calligraphy couldn't mask the sharp policy discussions of the young man. Seeing these practical strategies for governing the country, Zhang Jie finally understood what the Sage meant.

The Sage loved talent, without a doubt.

If they didn't immediately signal that this man was favored by the emperor, he might be overlooked by others...

After all, the eldest prince had recently become quite close to the Huazhou Lake faction...

Recalling Xu Zeping's shipbuilding proposal from the spring exam, Zhang Jie marked a bright red "pass" on his paper. What a great talent for governing the country!

The very next day, the Sage announced the method at the morning court, assigning it to the Ministry of Revenue.

Besides the chief examiner, Emperor Sheng'an, the final imperial exam included four deputy examiners and ten associate examiners.

The four deputy examiners for this session were Elder Zhang, Elder Wu Rong, and the two imperial censors.

Seeing the bright red "pass" on Xu Zeping's paper, Wu Rong silently cursed Zhang Jie as a sycophant, but quickly added his own "pass."

Fourteen "pass" marks on one answer sheet—such favor was unheard of, even for someone like Liu Huaizhi!

On the fourth day of the fourth month, the final exam results were announced.

All the candidates gathered at Fengtian Hall to hear their rankings announced.

"Which of you do you think will be this year's top scholar?" Emperor Sheng'an asked with a smile, eyeing Xu Zeping, Jiang Changshou, Shi Hua, and Qiao Yang.

"I am honored and hope to earn the title of top scholar!" Xu Zeping said, prostrating himself, his voice filled with sincerity and fear.

"Oh?" Emperor Sheng'an looked at Xu Zeping, amused. "Why do you say that?"

"Your humble subject hopes to surpass my elder brother!" Xu Zeping, unafraid of the consequences, raised his head, like a newborn calf fearless of anything. "Since childhood, I have been restrained by my elder brother. At the age of three, when I began my enlightenment, he forced me to read this and that. In my heart, my elder brother is like a rooster that crows every day, only showing his authority over me.

I also want to show off my authority in front of my elder brother!"

Everyone in Fengtian Hall fell silent, listening to Xu Zeping's bold comparison of his elder brother to a crowing rooster... They wanted to laugh but dared not.

However, the Sheng'an Emperor saw the deep admiration Xu Zeping had for his brother, raising him as a son since he was three... Was this the brotherly love of ordinary families?

Suddenly, the emperor thought of the late Xiao Yao Wang.

They say the imperial family is ruthless...

The Sheng'an Emperor restrained his emotions and laughed heartily, "Very well! Very well! I will grant your wish to surpass Xu Bianxiu!"

"Zhang Qing, announce the imperial list!"

"Xu Zeping from Huahu Prefecture, Dongxiang Province, has exceptional literary talent and has achieved the highest honor, being named the top scholar of the Sheng'an nineteenth year. He is awarded the rank of Sixth Grade Xiu Zuan and is granted the title of Jinshi and enters the Hanlin Academy."

"Jiang Changfu from Yanjing, with remarkable literary talent, has won my heart and is named the Bangyan of the Sheng'an nineteenth year. He is awarded the rank of Seventh Grade Bianxiu and is granted the title of Jinshi and enters the Hanlin Academy."

Just as Shi Hua thought his name would be called, Zhang Jie glanced at Qiao Yang behind him.

"Qiao Yang from Yanjing, with outstanding appearance, is comparable to the Pan Lang of this generation. He is named the Tanhua of the Sheng'an nineteenth year, awarded the rank of Seventh Grade Bianxiu, and is granted the title of Jinshi and enters the Hanlin Academy."

Shi Hua lowered his eyes, dejected, for the first time in his life regretting that he wasn't handsome enough; otherwise, how could he have missed the top positions?

As he lamented inwardly, Zhang Jie continued to read—

"By the mandate of heaven, the emperor decrees:

The Bangyan and Tanhua are young and promising, and have caught the emperor's attention. I hereby grant them marriage.

The Long Rong Imperial Son, my beloved son, is of noble birth. Wise and clever from a young age, he brings joy to the Empress Dowager daily... I appoint the Bangyan as the Imperial Son's consort, with the wedding to be held soon.

The Chang'an Commandery Princess, my beloved niece and daughter of the Prince Jin... I appoint the Tanhua as her Yi Bin, with the wedding to be held soon."

Hearing these two marriage decrees, Shi Hua was stunned. The only thought in his mind was—thank goodness, he wasn't chosen for a marriage!

In the Great Jing Dynasty, princesses, imperial sons, commandery princesses, and similar titles held high status. Once married into the royal family, not only was it difficult to take concubines, but even returning home to filially serve one's parents became a challenge, akin to becoming an in-law of the imperial family.

More importantly, being chosen as an in-law meant losing real power, which was a fatal blow to ambitious scholars who wished to realize their grand ambitions.

As for whether there were royal relatives who could both enjoy the benefits of the royal family and still pursue their ambitions? Yes, there were—county princesses and county princes.

Typically, those granted the titles of county princess or county prince were daughters or sons of princesses, imperial sons, or commandery princes. They did not threaten the imperial power and thus had relatively more relaxed conditions.

"I accept the decree."

Jiang Changfu and Qiao Yang, one after the other, respectfully accepted the imperial decree.

Seeing Jiang Changfu's calm demeanor, Xu Zeping suddenly realized that he might have already known he would be selected as the Imperial Son's consort, so...

Thinking of the Sheng'an Emperor's examination question, Xu Zeping felt that the emperor was indeed a ruler with a strong sense of humanity.

Having decided to clean up the hidden fields in Jiangnan, the emperor also considered the merits of his officials over the years. Thus, selecting Jiang Changfu as the Imperial Son's consort was also a gesture of respect to the Jiang family.

After all, the Long Rong Imperial Son was the youngest son of the Sheng'an Emperor and the Empress, and the younger brother of the Crown Prince.

If the Crown Prince ascended the throne in the future, with the Long Rong Imperial Son as a protective talisman, the Jiang family would not end up in a bad situation.

Xu Zeping had a guess that perhaps the task of registering the land would be assigned to the Crown Prince...