Reborn Rongruo

Chengde, as a student of Shangsanqi, originally only needed to take the exam of "translation", but Chengde had been preparing for this for many years and had made such a big determination. What he wanted was not this kind of course. The result of shortcuts and loopholes.The reason why he is so persistent and determined to participate in this imperial examination is that besides gaining fame, he really hopes to use this imperial examination to show his talent and win a stage for himself, so that people all over the world can face up to it. Myself, especially those in the palace.

The township examination, including the first round of next year's general examination, will take the stereotyped essay. This is not difficult for Chengde, who is accustomed to poetry and proficient in poetry and books, but it is not so easy for other candidates. I heard that there are many Scholars often devote their entire lives to stereotyped essays.

Stereotyped essays mostly use the sentences in the Four Books and Five Classics as the topic, but the scientific examination requirements can only explain the meaning of them according to the meaning of the topic.Not only must the wording use the tone of the ancients, which is called speaking on behalf of the sages, but the format is also very rigid.The structure of the eight-legged essay has a certain formula, the number of words is also limited, and the syntax requires duality.Therefore, many people also call stereotyped writing Zhiyi, Zhiyi, Shiwen, Shiyi, Babiwen, and Sishuwen.

In fact, an eight-legged essay is an article composed of eight couplets, generally divided into six paragraphs.Break the topic with the first sentence, continue the topic with two sentences, and then explain why, which is called the origin.The main part of the eight-legged essay is the four paragraphs of the starting section, the middle section, the back section, and the bundle section, each of which has two paragraphs.The summary is used at the end of the article, which is called the summary of recovery.

The atmosphere in the examination room could not be described as serious, but it was extremely quiet. Apart from the sound of the wind blowing leaves, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of pens being written.With no distractions, Cheng De took his pen to the next level and finished an article in one go. After putting down the pen, he twisted up the rice paper and blew on the ink on it.Check it carefully again to confirm that it is correct, then put the paper aside and start the next one.

The invigilation of the imperial examinations in the Qing Dynasty was very strict. Candidates had to go through a strict body search before entering the Gongyuan, so they all entered the venue one day in advance—that is, the eighth day of the junior high school.When all candidates entered the numbered room and took their seats according to their number, the door of the Gong Yuan would be locked. During the whole exam period, the candidates were all in the "numbered room" for "eating, drinking, sleeping" and were not allowed to come out until the exam was over.

The number room is very simple and narrow, only wide enough for three people to sit side by side. Chengde's height is absolutely unable to stretch his legs when he sleeps at night.There is no door in the number room, which is for the convenience of the examiner to observe the actions of the candidates to prevent fraud.Only two rows of slides, one high and one low, are installed on the walls on both sides to insert the wooden boards. The high wooden boards are used for writing, and the low wooden boards are for people. When you sleep at night, insert the high wooden boards into the low ones. The slides of the wooden boards are assembled into a bed, except for a pot of charcoal fire and a candle, there are no other objects.

It would be a lie to say that the whole day of the exam does not consume physical strength. Chengde saw a candidate on the opposite side collapsing after handing in the paper, knocking his head on the upper partition. It hurts, but the man didn't move at all, obviously passed out.

Even so, no one can go to help him at this time, and they are not allowed to leave the number room during the exam.August of the lunar calendar can be said to be the most comfortable season of the year, but that is also under normal circumstances.In a place like the No. [-] room, at night, the smell is simply unbearable for ordinary people.There are many people who shit, fart, snore, or grind their teeth. If your row of rooms has sweaty feet, or someone next door has body odor, then you will have to bear it these days.

It is also thanks to Chengde who has been pampered since he was a child, and has been refined for so many years, and he has endured this environment without saying a word. Although his spirit seems to be getting worse day by day, he has persisted anyway.

In the second round of the township examination, one of the five classics, that is, the imperial edict, judgment, table, and imperial edict, all require more than [-] words for argumentative essays.In the third session of the [-]th, the examination of the five current affairs policies is to express comments or opinions on the current affairs and government affairs at that time in combination with the theory of Confucian classics.

Cheng De finished writing one by one carefully, and finally heaved a sigh of relief when he came out of the number room.He could no longer care about the strange smell on his body, boarded the carriage that his family had picked him up, leaned against the wall of the carriage, and fell asleep directly from sleepiness.

When Chengde arrived home, Aixinjueluo looked at his son who was obviously haggard and thinner, and was so distressed that he quickly ordered Xiao Si to send the hot tub that he had prepared earlier to Chengde's room, and then asked the maid to boil it. A few hours of ginseng soup was sent to Chengde, and he was asked to drink a bowl of ginseng soup before taking a bath, so as not to faint after being steamed by the hot water for a while.

When Chengde came back, Mingzhu hadn't gone to court yet. After washing up, he ate some snacks and fell asleep on the bed.This sleep did not wake up until the sun set in the west.Mingzhu knew that he was working hard, so she didn't ask him to talk after court.It was not until dinner was over that he was called to the study for questioning.

"I've read all the questions in the township examination this time, and the answers are quite satisfactory. What do you think?" Seeing Chengde's weight loss, Mingzhu also felt sorry for him. Ahmad naturally should or should care.

"Son doesn't think it's difficult." Cheng De had nothing to hide in front of his own mother, and replied truthfully.

"That's good." Mingzhu nodded, watching Chengde's eyes shift, he felt that it was time to say something.So, he said: "Although the list has not been released yet, you should know in your heart that the path you have chosen now is the same as Ama's. This path is not easy to walk, but you have to take it well and go smoothly! What should I do?" Do it, you have to know your mind. Your temper...is what your mother and I are most worried about. Sometimes you have to learn to be flexible, otherwise the water in the court is so deep, if you are not careful, you will lose your head. You have to You have to have this awareness beforehand!"

"Son, remember Ama's teachings." Cheng De obediently responded. In fact, he knew that Ama still had something to say, so he was not in a hurry, waiting for Mingzhu to speak.

Sure enough, Mingzhu said again: "You haven't been in Beijing for the past two years, and there are many things you don't know. Now Rong Guiyi is in the limelight in the palace. Ever since she gave birth to the emperor's elder brother Chengrui, the empress dowager has always treated her well." She has blue eyes. Although Chengrui passed away in May this year, the emperor loved her even more. Last year, the Empress of December also gave birth to an elder brother Chenghu. In addition to your elder brother Chengqing who was born to your aunt earlier this year, the emperor has successively passed away. With three elder brothers, the heirs are prosperous, and the empress dowager is also very relieved." Mingzhu had been observing Chengde while speaking, and seeing his hands hidden in his sleeves clenched tightly, she sighed in her heart, and changed the subject, "Follow me You said this to let you know what to do, if you are really lucky to be an official in the court, you must always remember what you should do and what you should not do, and don't repeat your childhood foolishness!"

Chengde didn't expect Mingzhu to say these things to him, these words have been very straightforward and even mercilessly shattered the illusion in his heart with the facts.At this time, if Fan Chengde is only showing affection to Xuan Ye, maybe he should choose to give up after hearing these words, but Chengde knows that even though he is hurting like a thousand arrows piercing his heart, he also Can't let go.

Chengde answered 'yes' in a low voice, lowered his head, and Mingzhu couldn't see his expression clearly.

The days that followed were as dull as water.Chengde went to the Imperial College every day to attend classes as usual, and in his free time, he went to Nan Huairen's Tiangong Pavilion to help out. He also followed Nan Huairen to learn his native dialect and a very popular language in the West called English.

A few days later, when it was time for the township examination to release the rankings, Chengde won the title of "Jieyuan" without accident. The news spread like wildfire among the children in the capital. Nalan Chengde, the eldest son of Master Yushi Mingzhu's family, is a talented man even though he was young. He won the first provincial examination at the age of 16. It can be said that he has a bright future.

Because of this incident, the news that Chengde was not engaged was also spread. Many dignitaries in the capital who had daughters waiting for their daughters rushed to Mingzhu's house in the name of congratulations to inquire about the news. It is a must to bring Chengde to receive him once or twice. It is good to see him, and Chengde's appearance is even more legendary.In the end, the rumors became that the eldest son of Mingzhu's family, Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, has both good looks and suave manners, not to mention his talents, and the most important thing is that he has not yet been engaged. A lifetime of blessings.

All of a sudden, the noble ladies in the capital flocked to him, showing great enthusiasm for visiting Aixinjueluo.Almost every day, there were several waves of door-to-door proposals for Cheng De, making Aixinjueluo very happy, but after discussing with Mingzhu, she did not agree to any of them. Let's wait until Chengde has passed the general examination and palace examination.

The general examination will be held in February next year, followed by the palace examination in March.If Chengde is admitted to the first rank, then the status of the daughter-in-law here should not be too low, and she needs to be selected carefully.

The winter of this year was snowy, and it snowed for more than a month in the twelfth lunar month.Seeing that the end of the year is approaching, the heavy snow seems to have no intention of stopping.It's okay in the capital, after all, most of the rich and powerful live there, and there are no sights of people freezing to death on the street.However, the snow is nationwide, and some remote mountainous areas and coastal areas have already suffered disasters due to continuous heavy snowfall—for example, in Daye, Hubei, "there are many people who died of freezing and starvation"; in Kaifeng, Henan, "The wells are ice, and the roads freeze to death"; in Nanchang, Jiangxi, "the pedestrians freeze to death"; in Huaining, Anhui, "a lot of people died from freezing"; In Linyi, Shandong and other places, "many people freeze to death" and in Weihai, "the death of pedestrians does not matter, and there are also people who freeze to death in the house." Such memorials and snowflakes were frequently introduced into the palace, and Kangxi's mood was also like these days of cloudy snow. The days are normal, there is no trace of smile lines for many days.

The emperor was in a bad mood, and everyone followed suit.On this day, Li Dequan got the order of the Empress Dowager, and urged the emperor to go out of the palace to relax.

Kangxi thought about it, although the capital city is not as good as the disaster area, there are always common people there, maybe he can get some inspiration by walking around and listening to the people.So, after the morning court, he changed into casual clothes, led Li Dequan, and brought three or five guards out of Shenwumen.

Emperor Kangxi sat in the teahouse for a long time, his complexion not only did not improve, but worsened.Just because, after he had listened for a long time, there were also topics about the disaster, but people talked more about the marriage of Nalan Chengde, the eldest son of Mingzhu's family.I heard that in this provincial examination, Chengde must understand the Yuan Dynasty. Ma Qi, the eldest son of Mi Sihan, the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, won the No.5 Jingkui. The difference between the two is three years old, and Ma Qi is the eldest. The only young talent among the first few, the two met several times and had a good chat. They became acquainted and often walked around each other. Recently, I heard that Mi Sihan intends to betroth his second daughter to Chengde. The matter seemed to have been approved by Mingzhu, only one engagement ceremony was missing.

Li Dequan naturally heard these words verbatim. While listening, he secretly observed Emperor Kangxi's reaction. From the teacup that he hadn't picked up for a long time, it could be seen that the emperor still cared about that son. of.

Li Dequan knew that if he continued to stay like this, if he listened to it, he was afraid that something bad would happen, so he hurriedly approached Kangxi and said in a low voice: "Master, if this tea is not to your taste, why don't we go to another teahouse?"

Kangxi was bored, and he knew that if he stayed here and listened, he would not guarantee that he would lose his mind and do something that would hurt that person, so he nodded after hearing what Li Dequan said, and prepared to leave.His position was by the window. As soon as he stood up, he looked up and saw two people coming out of a pastry shop opposite.They were two teenagers, the older one was carrying a bag of snacks in one hand, and the younger one naturally pulled up the cape of the cloak with the other hand.The younger boy smiled and said something, and the older boy replied, but he couldn't hear what he said, but the younger boy's face turned red instantly but he could see it clearly.

The smaller boy turned around and left, his footsteps were a little anxious, he staggered and was about to fall before he took two steps, but fortunately the older boy reacted quickly, he rushed over to hug the little boy, and held him up It's okay if it's stable.

The older boy laughed, and the younger boy lowered his head, his face was blocked by the cloak, and his expression could no longer be seen clearly.

It was still snowing outside, and there was a thick layer of snow on the street.Xuan Ye's heart sank straight to the bottom of the valley.Even though he couldn't see the boy's expression clearly from the angle he was standing at now, he could still guess that his face must be blushing at the moment, and he was ashamed, because that person was Nalan Chengde whom he was very familiar with.

Before Li Dequan could make a sound, Xuanye had already rushed out of the teahouse.

Ma Qi was still laughing, and said while laughing: "You said you look like a girl, why are you really so delicate? Are you okay? Didn't you sprain your ankle just now?"

Chengde shook his head, trying his best to suppress the sudden hotness on his face, "It's okay, thank you brother for your help just now!"

"You and I treat each other as brothers, since we are our own brothers, why are you being so polite! Let's go!" March stopped his joking tone, patted Chengde on the shoulder seriously, and pulled him to leave.

At this moment, he suddenly heard a call from behind, "Chengde!" The tone was somewhat dissatisfied and angry, and Chengde was shocked, and he froze at the moment without responding.

Ma Qi looked around and saw a man of his stature walking towards them with a gloomy face.