Chapter 32 3. The Guimao Branch Examination ended in a deserted environment

On the afternoon of April 24th, Yang Du and several other students from Hunan came to Beijing in a hurry and lived in the Changjun Guild Hall.There was still more than a month before the exam, and the reason why they chose this day to go to Beijing in advance was to witness the grand occasion of the No. 1 Scholar playing horses and touring the Golden Street, because tomorrow was the day of the Guimao Branch Trial Test.Yang Du has participated in the two examinations, but failed.Taking the exam together, other people's high school, his own failure, the depressed mood can be imagined, not to mention he is a person with great talents, how can we see such a scene!Therefore, on the day of the first two Chuanlu sessions, he drank and fell asleep alone in the guild hall, and did not go out on the street at all.This time it was different, he didn't take part in the exam, so naturally he didn't have the pride of passing the exam or the frustration of failing, and he also had the leisurely mood of watching.After all, this is a once-in-three-year event. Since you are in the capital, how can you miss it?

In the early morning of the next day, Yang Du and a few friends came to the Forbidden City's Meridian Gate and squeezed into the crowd of thousands of people.The Manchus conquered the Central Plains, controlled the crowd with less, and relied on the martial arts power of the Eight Banners to force the Han people to obey.After entering the customs, the regent Dorgon adopted the suggestions of Fan Wencheng, Hong Chengchou and others, and changed suppression to win over.The first is to bury Emperor Chongzhen, and all the old officials of the Ming Dynasty will be retained in their original positions;In this way, the Manchu regime was consolidated.Because of this, the imperial court attached great importance to the provincial and general examinations of each subject in the Qing Dynasty.Starting from Shunzhi, each generation of emperors personally attended the ceremony of passing on the coffins of the imperial examination.

From the twenty-sixth year of Qianlong, the ceremony of passing on a group of people is scheduled to be on April 25th, and the place is set in the Hall of Supreme Harmony.The Hall of Supreme Harmony is what folks call the Hall of Golden Luan. This hall is located in the center of the Forbidden City and enjoys the highest status.In the early morning of the year of the meeting, Luan Yiwei set up Lu Bufa in front of the hall, set Zhonghe Shaole under the eaves of the hall, and set Danbi Dale in the gate of Taihe.There are two yellow tables in the Ministry of Rites and Honglu Temple: one is on the east couplet in the hall, and the other is in the middle of Danbi Shang.Also set up a cloud plate on His Majesty Dan, and set up a colorful pavilion with an imperial battle to preach outside the Meridian Gate.Ministers of the third grade or above are dressed in court clothes and stand under the Majesty Dongxidan.At the beginning of the morning, the Minister of Rites went to the Qianqing Gate to play and invited the emperor to ride in his official dress, and his attendants led him into the Hall of Supreme Harmony for his seat.At this time, Zhonghe Shaoyue played the chapter of Longping, and a guard came to the roof with a whip.This whip is called static whip, also called Ming whip.The whip is made of leather, one foot and three feet long, and the handle is made of wood painted with vermilion lacquer, one foot long, with a dragon head carved on it.The guard Kong Wu is powerful.I saw him pick up the static whip and slowly rotate around himself, the faster he danced, the whip gradually spiraled up.Suddenly there was a clear and loud noise, and the sound wave went straight to the sky, and it lasted for several minutes, with the aftertaste of dragons singing and phoenixes whistling, which seemed incomparable to any sound in the world.Dance like this three times in a row, and after three tones, Danbi played the chapter of Qingping with great music.At this time, all the officials in the palace test reading papers bowed three times and kowtowed nine times to the north.The university scholars entered the palace to present the yellow list of the east case, and when they came out, they were awarded to the minister of the Ministry of rites, and the minister of the Ministry of rites then presented it to Danbi in the middle of the yellow case.So the officials of Honglu Temple introduced new Jinshi to take their place.The new Jinshi were wearing court uniforms and crowns with three branches and nine leaves on their heads, standing behind His Majesty the princes and ministers of Dongxidan.The Chuanlu official sang: "In a certain year and a certain month, the emperor of the Qing Dynasty launched an examination for the tribute scholars in the world. The first class will be awarded Jinshi and rank, the second class will be awarded Jinshi's background, and the third class will be awarded with Jinshi's background." The person who is the first person in the first class will be led out of the class, right in the middle of Danbi Yudao and kneels to the left, and then sings the person who is the first and the second person, and then led out of the class, kneels later on the left side of the royal road, and then Someone who sang the first, third, and first class was also guided out of the class, so he knelt down on the right side of the road.Then sing the names of the second and third new Jinshi, but no longer guide them out of the class.After the roll call, the drums and music were played, and the officials on both sides of Danchi and the new Jinshi, led by the university scholars, knelt down three times and kowtowed nine times to the emperor sitting in the Hall of Supreme Harmony.Finally, Zhonghe Shaoyue played the chapter of Xianping, and the ceremony ended here, and the emperor returned to the harem by car.The Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites put the yellow list in the cloud, sent it out of the Meridian Gate, and put it in the colorful pavilion. Then the school captain carried the colorful pavilion, with a yellow umbrella in front of him, and went all the way to the east. Outside Chang'an Gate, Zhang hangs on Chang'an Street.There are guards on both sides of the gold list with spears to protect them. After hanging up for three days, they are taken down and kept in the cabinet.At the same time when the Minister of Rites left the Meridian Gate with the list, the new Jinshi were divided into left and right teams, with Zhaode Gate on the left and Zhendu Gate on the right.One and three people followed the list and came out from the middle of the Meridian Gate.According to the rules of the Qing Dynasty, His Majesty Zhongdan is the imperial way, and the imperial way is not practiced unless it is driven by the emperor.The middle road of Meridian Gate is the imperial road, and the imperial road cannot be opened unless it is imperial.None of the princes or prime ministers could violate this rule, but the three of Dingjia knelt down and walked on the imperial road. This was a special honor for the three of Dingjia, and its purpose was to elevate the status of the imperial examination.

The next day, the emperor gave the new Jinshi a banquet at the Ministry of Rites, called the Enrong Banquet, which was modeled after the Qujiang Banquet in the Tang Dynasty.Scholars in the Tang Dynasty regarded the title of the Yanta and the banquet in Qujiang as the supreme honor in their lives.Following the example of the Tang Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty not only set up an honor banquet, but also engraved the names of all the new scholars on the stone tablet of the Guozijian, so as to be immortal.At the Enrong Banquet, gold bowls were used for the top three, and silver bowls for the second and top three. Everyone was given a palace flower and a small silk plaque with the words "Enrong Banquet" written on it. The only champion was different and was given a silver medal .On the banquet, there are golden plates and jade bowls, delicacies from mountains and seas, and the delicacies of the heavenly chefs, which are not found in the folks.

Before the Guangxu and 1898 years, the ceremonies and banquets of each subject were roughly the same.However, today's branch——after the bloodshed of the 1898 Movement and the invasion of the Eight-Power Allied Forces, the Ceremony of Passing on Lu of Guimao Branch, the situation and scene are quite different from the previous ones. First of all, the disgusting thing was that half of the senior officials above the third rank did not attend, and some of the people who came were also lazy and indifferent, without the excitement and excitement of the past.Looking at the front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony again, there is no such thing as a halo book or a car, and the scene is deserted and gloomy. The new Jinshi who are standing under the verandah of the side hall on the left, waiting for guidance, have already begun to wonder and feel uneasy: Could it be that the emperor will not come?I was muttering in my heart, and sure enough, the Minister of Rites announced: The emperor is unwell in the holy body, so he cannot participate in the ceremony of passing on the coffin.It turned out that the thirty-three-year-old Emperor Guangxu was not physically unwell, but mentally weak.Since the events of the 1898 Years, Emperor Guangxu has actually been a prisoner in Yingtai.In the past two years since returning to Luan from Xi'an, the situation has not improved.He was taciturn and melancholy all day long.Sometimes when Cixi received ministers and workers, she also took him to sit beside her.He knew that this was the fake appearance of the old woman to put on a facade, so he always kept a gloomy face and said nothing.Cixi asked him to appear in some important palace ceremonies, but he often refused with excuses.Because he knew in his heart that although the reign title of the Qing Dynasty was still called Guangxu, the country no longer belonged to him.Out of this kind of mood, he has no interest in participating in the passing ceremony that was valued by his ancestors and himself in the past.

If the emperor doesn't come, can he still be called the palace test biography?People often call Jinshi the emperor's disciples, but in fact the emperor does not attend their examinations, and only on this day, he meets them from a distance.For most of the new scholars, maybe this is the only time in their life to see the sky.But that's enough. The Ninth Five-Year Real Dragon Emperor, without relying on his special status as a new scholar, can ordinary scholars see him in his lifetime?With this experience of meeting each other, they are well-deserved of the four characters "Student of the Son of Heaven".But, now that the emperor doesn't come out to meet him, what kind of ceremony is this?Not only lost the opportunity to see the beauty of the sky, but also made the reputation of "Student of the Son of Heaven" not resounding.These Xinke Jinshi finally understood why the princes and ministers were so few and far between. It turned out that they had already known the inside story of the emperor's refusal to participate.

Although the rest of the ceremonies were held according to the regulations, they were all pretentious like acting, lacking real soul: the three quiet whips were not clear or crisp, only the sound, without aftertaste; Kneeling on the empty throne in the hall, it looks like offering sacrifices to the ancestors who have passed away; even the voice of the roll-calling officials of Honglu Temple is not as loud and pleasant as before.With great difficulty, Yang Du and the citizens of the capital who were watching the bustle hoped for the gold list.The Minister of Rites holding the gold list was listless, and the No. 1 Scholar, No. 2, and Tanhua who followed behind were also unsmiling. The new Jinshi who came out from both sides scattered as soon as they went out.After the three people from Yijia left the Meridian Gate, Zuo Pei and Tanhua Yang Zhaolin, who were second in the list, still sent Wang Shoupeng, the number one scholar from Shandong, to the Qilu Hall, and then Yang Zhaolin from Guizhou sent Zuo Pei to his home in Ramen Hutong. In the end, Yang Zhaolin was only in his small Accompanied by the book boy, he quietly returned to the Yunnan Guild Hall.The so-called No. 1 Scholar's tour of the Golden Street ended in such an atmosphere that was neither beautiful nor enthusiastic.

The next day, Yang Du heard that the Enrong Banquet was also held in a disrespectful manner.The host, Prince Gong Zaicheng, only sat in the lobby of the Ministry of Rites for a while. After the new Jinshi finished the ceremony, he flicked his sleeves and left.It is said that the reason for rushing back to the palace was to listen to the singing of a beautiful new actress from Sanxi Troupe.The officials who participated in the examination were also not all in attendance. The palace flowers were made of red paper, and the small silk plaques with the words "Enrong Banquet" were also omitted.On the table were coarse porcelain bamboo chopsticks and home-cooked dishes, which made all the officials and Jinshi who attended the banquet dumbfounded.

In the evening, Yang Du went to Piku Hutong to visit Xia Shoutian.Xia Shoutian has been promoted to a servant of the Imperial Academy, and his official career is going well, but he is depressed.In the year of Gengzi, he fled west with Luan, went through all kinds of hardships and dangers, and always felt a kind of shame like subjugation in his heart.Although it has been more than a year since I returned to Beijing, this feeling of depression has not been completely removed.He showed Yang Du "Gengzi Chang'an Miscellaneous Poems" he wrote when he was in Xi'an.Yang Du read poems such as "Lu is in chaos and there is no punishment, and the people of Zhou Dynasty go to the ceremony. Shenzhou is on the left side, and the emperor is competing on the west track", and his heart is also very heavy.He told Xia Shoutian what he had seen and heard in the past two days. Xia Shoutian smiled wryly, thinking of the scenery when he was ranked second five years ago, he felt as if he had passed away.

Yang Du said: "Next year is the 70th birthday of the Empress Dowager, there must be Enke." "Yes, Enke has been confirmed." Xia Shoutian nodded and said, "This autumn, the chief examiners and deputy chief examiners in Yunnan and Guizhou provinces have been released." Yunnan and Guizhou are located in remote areas, and the roads are difficult. The examiners of the rural examinations have always released these two provinces first, so that they can start the journey first. Yang Du asked, "Who was released?" "The chief examiner in Guizhou released Li Zheming, and the deputy chief examiner was Liu Pengnian. The chief examiner in Yunnan released Zhang Xingji, and the deputy chief examiner released Wu Qingdi."

Yang Du said: "Li Zheming and Zhang Xingji have never heard of it. Liu Pengnian and Wu Qingdi, when they took the examination in the year of 1898, I heard that one of them released the main examiner from Sichuan and the other from Henan. It is a big province, and their qualifications are also old, so if you think about it, Li and Zhang must be the seniors of Hanyuan." "What kind of seniors, they are all the same year as me in the Wuxu Division." Xia Shoutian sneered, "One is one year older than me, and the other is three years younger than me. They are the least diligent and least promising people in the Imperial Academy." "That's strange, why did they have such good luck? Is the backing very strong?" Yang Du asked in surprise. "They don't have a strong backing either, they only rely on the names that their father gave them back then." "What does this have to do with the name?" Yang Du looked at his old friend's gloomy face in bewilderment, as if he had fallen into the mist for five miles. "It's ridiculous to say it!" Xia Shoutian stood up angrily, "A certain old man said that next year will be Lafayette's 70th birthday, and it will be a year of auspiciousness and celebration. The list was drawn out, and these four people were selected, and they formed the words "next year's auspicious celebration" and reported it to the Lafayette. Sure enough, the Lafayette was very happy, and immediately rewarded him with a gold-encrusted auspicious jade wish." Yang Du re-pronounced the names of Li Zheming, Liu Pengnian, Zhang Xingji, and Wu Qingdi, and really formed a good saying "Auspicious celebration next year". "In this way, the two old men Liu and Wu had no choice but to be wronged to be the deputy of the young man. Some people told this old man that it was unreasonable for Li Zheming to be released as the main examiner in Guizhou, and Zhang Xingji was young and his poetry was the worst. Yunnan is taking the main exam, which has caused an uproar in Hanyuan, and is afraid of future mistakes. It is best to replace someone. Then the old man said, who should I replace? I will never find a person with the word "Ji" in his name. Lafayette has approved, Can you still disappoint her old man? Forget it, if it doesn’t work, it’s his fate, tell the Hanyuan masters not to be jealous.” Yang Du was astonished that the grand ceremony of picking up materials was the most important thing for the country, but it was so child's play.In connection with the abnormality of the past two days, the two old friends sighed.The decline of the general examination ceremony symbolizes the decline of the country's power; the absurdity of releasing the rural examination examiners exposes the absurdity of state affairs.It seems that the national fortune of the Qing Empire is really on the verge of collapse.