Chapter 63

Chapter 63

The Palace Exams lasted only one day, and because everyone was busy answering questions, time seemed to pass quickly.

Yun Changxie hardly looked up throughout the entire process, only raising it slightly during lunch to take a quick stretch break.

The lunch was prepared by the palace.

To prevent food from staining the exam papers and to avoid any stomach issues among the candidates, the meal was kept very simple—just basic flatbread and thin rice porridge, nothing like the refined dishes one might expect from the palace.

While Yun Changxie and the others were taking the Palace Examination, the matriarch of the main family was in the ancestral shrine, praying.

The old lady knelt inside the shrine, offering prayers for her three grandsons.

She had three sons in her lifetime, all of whom had became jinshi.

Back when she was raising her three sons, she hadn’t felt as nervous as she did now.

Truthfully, she didn’t have particularly high expectations for her grandsons.

She didn’t demand that they become high officials like their fathers, achieving great glory.

But the Yun family came from a modest background, and it couldn't afford for them to fail even the jinshi examination—that would surely invite ridicule.

The old lady stayed in the shrine all afternoon, waiting until the candidates returned from the palace before, accompanied by servants, she went to the main gate to greet them.

Yun Changmu and Yun Changyou returned together in a carriage.

Yun Changxie didn’t accompany them and instead went straight home.

The results would be announced in three days, after which they would change into ceremonial robes for the Grand Ceremony of Announcing the Results.

During the ceremony, all the candidates would wear identical robes—only the top three in the first rank would wear special robes.

Yun Changxie didn’t expect to make the first rank. He was practical and only aimed for the second rank.

As long as he earned the jinshi degree, with the help of his uncle and eldest cousin, he could land a good government position somewhere.

After putting in the work for three to five years and achieving some merit, he could eventually return to the capital with a respectable position.

Meanwhile, Yun Changmu was in low spirits.

His academic skills were solid, but his nerves were lacking.

He had been a juren [provincial graduate] for years, repeatedly failing to move up, trapped at that rank for a long time.

Yun Changyu had always told him to chill out, but he could never manage it.

His obsession with the imperial examinations made him overly nervous during every test.

This Palace Examination was no exception. Having been outdone by Yun Changxie before, he was already unhappy and wanted to perform well this time to earn more recognition from his elder brother and father, so he wouldn’t be outshone again.

But the more he hung up on this, the more unstable his mindset became, and he kept zoning out during the exam.

He was terrified of performing poorly again, fearing another scolding from his elder brother and father.

He felt he hadn’t done well this time, especially when he saw Yun Changyou emerge from the examination hall with a smile—his already bad mood got worse.

The main family didn’t ask how they had performed.

The two of them returned and went straight to rest.

The day before the results were announced, the jinshi candidates were called to the palace to learn the procedures and etiquette for the Results Announcement Ceremony.

Among them, one person held a special role—the announcer, who would know his ranking in advance.

The announcer was the top scorer in the second tier, responsible for announcing the names in front of the grand hall.

This announcement was the public announcement of the Palace Examination rankings.

Typically, names in the first rank were called three times, those in the second tier twice, and those in the third tier once.

The announcer ended up being an unexpected choice—Yun Changyou.

Yun Changxie and this cousin had hardly talked before.

Yun Changyou was easygoing, always smiling.

He didn’t have anything against Yun Changxie, but the two hadn’t crossed paths much because they had both been busy—Yun Changyou with preparing for the Metropolitan Examination and then the Palace Examination.

Now that the Palace Examination was finally over, they still had to prepare for the Grand Ceremony.

Learning that Yun Changyou was the announcer surprised both Yun Changxie and Yun Changmu.

Yun Changyou was held back for special training—he had more rituals to learn and would likely be delayed in leaving the palace.

The next day was the Grand Ceremony, when the results would be officially announced.

Yun Changxie got up at dawn and rode in the family carriage to the palace gates.

There, he joined the lineup with the others before entering the palace in an orderly line.

The Grand Ceremony was held in front of the main palace hall.

Aside from the jinshi candidates, government officials and military officers also attended.

By the time the candidates arrived, the officials had already taken their positions, lined up by seniority on either side of the grand hall.

As Yun Changxie walked forward, he noticed Vice Minister Yun, Yun Changyu, and others.

Yun Changyu was from the Court of Judicial Review, standing with a few others beside him.

Yun Changxie didn’t risk staring and quickly followed the group past them.

When the ceremony officially began, Yun Changyou came forward, clutching the list of examination results.

Upon seeing a certain name, his expression changed noticeably.

He fought back a grin before beginning the announcement of the top-tier names—starting with the top three.

The top three candidates were summoned to enter the main hall to meet the Emperor.

"The top-ranked scholar of the top tier in the twenty-third year of the Fenghe era—Qu Xiangyang!"

Qu Xiangyang, a man in his early forties, immediately stepped forward with measured steps upon hearing his name and knelt before the main hall.

After his name was called three times, the runner-up was announced.

The second-ranked was the Bangyan, a scholar in his thirties with a slightly plump figure.

Yun Zhangxie had seen him twice before—apparently a scion of an aristocratic family with a rather high status.

Before Yun Zhangxie could continue observing others, he distantly heard his own name.

"The third-ranked candidate of the top tier in the twenty-third year of the Fenghe era—Yun Zhangxie!"

At first, Yun Zhangxie thought he had misheard, but when Yun Zhangyou called his name again, he adjusted his ceremonial robes and stepped forward.

Following the two ahead of him, he performed the ceremonial kowtow and was then led by a eunuch along the imperial pathway into the main hall.

The imperial pathway was reserved for the Emperor alone, yet the three of them were now permitted to walk it—an unparalleled honor.

But at that moment, Yun Zhangxie felt little of the expected elation, only disbelief.

He had always believed his scholarship vastly inferior to Yun Zhangmu and Yun Zhangyou.

He had thought placing in the second tier would be an achievement, never imagining he would rank in the top tier.

Now, as he entered the main hall and knelt before the Emperor seated on the Dragon Throne, he remained dazed.

Then, the Emperor suddenly addressed him by name.

"You are Yun Zhangxie, correct?"

Yun Zhangxie quickly stepped forward and bowed slightly. "Your Majesty, I am."

"You have an elder brother, Yun Zhangyu, the top scholar from over a decade ago. In scholarly achievements, you fall short of him."

"I am ashamed. My learning is not even a tenth of my brother's."

"Hahaha, indeed, you are not his equal in scholarship. But you have your own strengths. The essays on policy questions you wrote were excellent, with unique insights quite unlike the other candidates."

...

The Emperor merely made some casual remarks to Yun Zhangxie, like an elder chatting with a junior. Afterward, His Majesty paid him no further attention, focusing instead on the top scholar.

They remained in the main hall for a long time, only leaving with the eunuchs after the ceremony outside concluded.

Next was the procession for the top scholar—today's star was the top scholar himself.

The top scholar would be dressed in the most distinctive ceremonial robes and ride a tall horse at the head of the procession.

As the Tanhua, Yun Zhangxie also wore ceremonial attire, with a large red silk flower fastened to his chest.

As they exited the palace for the parade, the golden list of rankings was posted at the palace gates.

The Yun family soon learned of Yun Zhangxie's and the others' rankings.

Yun Zhangxie was third in the top tier—the Tanhua.

Yun Zhangyou was first in the second tier—the Court Herald (Chuanlu).

Then came Yun Zhangmu, placed in the third tier—though not a regular Jinshi, he was a Tongjinshi.

Upon hearing the news, the Yun family had gathered early along the parade route.

They were quite familiar with such ceremonies and knew the best spots to get close to the procession.

Su Qingruo and Lin Shi waited together on the second floor of a modest tavern, which offered an unobstructed view of the parade when it passed.

They had not brought the children along.

Today was special—the streets were packed.

With such crowds, bringing children risked injury.

Aicao leaned on the railing, standing on his toes to peer into the distance. Over the past two years, he and his sister had grown considerably taller.

Since Yun Zhangxie had their slave status revoked, neither had done much physical labor.

Now living in comfort, Aicao had grown into a handsome youth, worlds apart from his former rustic appearance.

At seventeen or eighteen, matchmakers had already come seeking last year.

But Yun Zhangxie felt he was still too young—not fully matured at that age, yet expected to marry and start a family.

No matter how good the in-laws, they could never compare to one's birth family.

Yun Zhangxie's stance was simple: wait a few more years until he was fully grown before marrying.

Some criticized Yun Zhangxie for meddling too much, arguing that postponing marriage until his twenties would make securing a good match difficult.

But Yun Zhangxie disagreed. As long as he had influence, as long as he held official position, eligible suitors would come forward for Aicao regardless of age.

Events proved him right.

Most people were status-conscious, like the Emperor's First Princess.

Though older and widowed, she still had no shortage of men vying to become her imperial consort.

Now that Yun Zhangxie was the Tanhua, his status had risen dramatically overnight. As the brother of his husband, Aicao would have no shortage of marriage offers.