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In July of the 41st year of the Jiajing reign, the entire Jinan Prefecture was shrouded in sweltering heat.

With more than a month to go before the provincial examinations in August, Gongyuan Street by Daming Lake was already packed with carriages and horses, as scholars from all over the country drove up the prices of inns to higher levels than the water level of Baotu Spring.

Su Ning sat beside the ice chest in the library of the prefectural school, his fingertips tracing the entry for "Grain Transport" in the "Comprehensive Examination of Documents".

Outside the window came the laughter and chatter of the newly appointed scholars, who were gathered around "Master Hengwen," whom the provincial education commissioner had invited from the capital, to ask him for advice on current affairs.

"Brother Su, aren't you going to listen?" Zhang Ruming, a classmate, leaned closer, holding a copy of "The Complete Book of Human Nature and Principles." "I've heard that this gentleman is well-versed in the writing style of Grand Secretary Yan..."

Su Ning closed the book: "If one only knows how to guess what the superiors want, how is he any different from a lowly clerk?"

He looked at the old locust tree in the courtyard and said, "The triennial competition requires talent for governing the world."

"But……"

"Brother Zhang, I appreciate your kindness, but I really don't want to waste my energy on this kind of thing."

"Fine! I'll go by myself then."

To avoid the hustle and bustle, Su Ning requested permission to go to Qingzhou Academy to prepare for the exam.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the academy, he heard a heated argument, with more than a dozen scholars arguing incessantly in front of the "Provincial Examination Prediction Questions".

"The examination will definitely cover the Grand Canal transport!" A plump scholar waved a collection of current essays. "My father works in the Ministry of Justice, and he said that Lord Yan Shifan has been frequently requesting Grand Canal transport files lately!"

The thin, poor student immediately retorted: "Mencius said, 'The people are the most important,' so we should examine agricultural administration!"

In the chaos, the academy's headmaster struck the gong: "In the provincial examination of the thirty-eighth year of Jiajing, did you guess 'Japanese pirates' and 'salt administration' and were you correct? The questions are in the classics, not on the lips of the powerful and wealthy!"

That night, Su Ning was organizing her notes in her dormitory.

By candlelight, he placed "Supplement to the Great Learning" alongside "Shandong Gazetteer" and drew a diagram of the flow of raw silk at the bottom of the "Land Tax" page, inspired by a letter from his cousin Zhou Zhengjie.

Zhou Zhengjie's "Sinking Fish and Falling Geese" brothel in Beijing is doing very well, and he has already established connections with the female relatives of high-ranking officials and nobles in the Ming Dynasty.

In fact, the rulers of ancient China had no sense of secrecy. It is said that civil officials in the Song Dynasty would write about state affairs in their books in order to publish their biographies.

Therefore, Zhou Zhengjie can now get the information he wants without lifting a finger, after all, "pillow talk" is a really hard thing to explain.

……

On July 15th, the academy suddenly held a mock exam.

When the title card was revealed as "How can we ensure that the people are well-off and the ruler's resources are not scarce?", the entire room erupted in uproar. It turned out that this question was from the same source as last year's college entrance examination question!
Most people hurriedly searched for old drafts, but Suning remained calm and unhurried.

Su Ning recalled the tax registers he had seen at the Laizhou government office, and combined them with the account data from "Sinking Fish and Falling Geese," he cut straight to the heart of the matter: "If you want the emperor to have enough resources, you must first regulate the people's production... Now, the profits from silkworm farming are ten times that of rice, yet the mulberry fields in Zhejiang and Zhili have all fallen into the hands of powerful and wealthy people..."

When writing about the "profits from maritime trade," Su Ning specifically cited data from Qi Jiguang's military report regarding Japanese pirates plundering raw silk.

While others were still spouting platitudes about "light taxes and levies," Suning had already written mathematical calculations on the edge of a draft: if 30% of Zhejiang's mulberry fields were put under government control, annual revenue could increase by millions.

Sure enough, the test results were posted quickly, and Suning topped the list.

The plump scholar said sullenly, "Brother Su, you have quite the nerve to criticize 'converting rice paddies into mulberry fields'?"

Is telling the truth also wrong?

"This……"

……

That night, a strange servant knocked on the window: "My master invites Scholar Su to come to the mansion for a chat."

Su Ning glimpsed the blue sedan chair at the alley entrance through the crack in the window; it was the family sedan chair of the Shandong Provincial Governor.

"I am busy preparing for the exam and cannot keep my appointment."

"Scholar Su, don't be too arrogant!"

"..."

Su Ning didn't argue with the servant anymore. Instead, she blew out the candle and heard the angry sound of the sedan chair driving away in the darkness.

Three days later, the academy received an anonymous letter accusing Suning of "colluding with merchants".

The headmaster summoned him for questioning, and Su Ning directly produced his daily notes: "All of the students' financial transactions are recorded and traceable. However, the mulberry paper used for the posters is unique to the 'Wenhanzhai' studio in Jinan—"

"Oh? Did you foresee what would happen today?"

"Of course not! It's just a student's personal habit."

"Yes, it was a misunderstanding! But as students, we can't be too arrogant."

"The headmaster is right! I understand."

"Go ahead! Just keep it in mind."

"Student, take your leave."

……

On the first day of August, Suning received three urgent letters.

The father's letter, wrapped with dried jasmine, read: "The mulberry tree planted at home has been successfully cultivated, and this spring it yielded three catties of silk."

My cousin Zhou Zhengjie's letter carried the scent of sandalwood: "Noble ladies in the capital are vying to use the phrase 'beauty that could make fish sink and geese fall from the sky,' and I'm enclosing a hundred taels of silver for travel expenses."

On the day she set off for the exam, Su Ning filled her luggage with specially made candles...

A mixture of whale oil and pine resin can burn for six hours without going out.

As he passed by the Prince's Mansion, he saw the carriages of scholars from all over the country raising clouds of dust, among which was a carriage bearing the insignia of the Yan family.

……

At 3:45 AM on the ninth day of the eighth month of the forty-first year of the Jiajing reign (1552), at the Jinan Examination Hall.

The area in front of the examination hall was packed with people.

The 36,000-jin "Dragon Gate" roared open in the morning mist, and hundreds of lanterns formed a galaxy, illuminating the pale faces of scholars from all over the country.

Su Ning was in the "Earth" line when he heard the sound of the search officer tearing open the book basket. Someone copied the scriptures onto the lining and was immediately stripped of his academic honors.

When it was Su Ning's turn, the search officer suddenly stopped him: "Why is this candle unusually heavy?"

"It's mixed with pearl powder; it'll brighten your eyes and refresh your mind," Su Ning replied frankly, secretly handing over two taels of silver.

As expected, the inspector smiled with satisfaction upon finding the silver, and then did not give Su Ning any further trouble.

The search officer held his specially made "double-hair brush" and examined it for a long time before finally waving him off.

As he passed through the second "inner dragon gate," he heard cries of despair behind him: "Ten years of hard study..."

When he finally entered cell number twelve, which read “Xuan”, he found that the cell was only three feet wide and the walls were covered with newly pasted mulberry paper.

Unfolding the examination basket, besides the Four Treasures of the Study, there was also Jiaodong maltose from Zhou's shop, as well as ginseng slices he had prepared himself.

Before the gong sounded, Su Ning looked towards the opposite cell.

I saw the old scholar who had fainted during the exam grinding ink, his forehead dripping sweat onto the "Selected Works of Cheng Mo," soaking the four characters "Loyalty to the Emperor and Patriotism."

Therefore, exams are all about mindset, and it's inevitable that many people fail repeatedly.

In this tiny cubicle that determines the fate of countless people, Su Ning slowly unfolded the exam paper.

Thinking of the peach wood charms my mother sewed onto my clothes when I left home, and my father's words, "Just strive to have no regrets," I knew I had embarked on a narrow bridge with no way back.

……

Just as Suning had set up the inkstone, three clapperboard sounds rang out, and the inscription was hung high:
The Guanzi (a classic Chinese text) states: "When the granaries are full, people know etiquette." The Mencius (another classic Chinese text) states: "Only a scholar can have a constant heart without constant property." Which of these two is correct?
A collective gasp filled the room.

This question not only requires distinguishing between Guan Zhong's utilitarianism and Mencius's theory of human nature, but also requires focusing on the reality of "impoverished people and distressed scholars" during the Jiajing reign.

Sobbing came from the next room, and the old scholar in the front row was grinding ink with trembling hands, ink splattering all over his face.

Su Ning closed his eyes and concentrated, then suddenly opened them.

He picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and slashed the subject like a knife: "Guan Zhong enriched the country, while Confucius and Mencius enriched the people. Their paths were different, but they led to the same goal. Now, looking at the countryside of Qi and Lu, the mulberry fields have all fallen into the hands of the powerful and wealthy, while the poor scholars, without any stable property, talk vainly about perseverance. Is this not like trying to catch fish by climbing a tree?"

Suning incorporated mathematical thinking into classical texts, comparing the "annual revenue of the Maritime Trade Office" with the "deficit in the Imperial Warehouse," and using land data from the "Shandong Gazetteer" to corroborate the evidence of land annexation.

While others were still piling up "benevolence and morality," Suning was already calculating in draft form how much revenue could increase if 30% of the mulberry fields in Zhejiang were converted to government-run operations.

The second exam tested the interpretation of the classics. The topic was the chapter "Sufficient food and sufficient military strength" from the Analects.

Suddenly, a thunderstorm broke out, and rainwater poured down through the holes in the roof. Su Ning quickly shielded the exam paper with his body.

The water droplets still blurred the ink on the four characters “民信之矣”.

The imperial censor on patrol happened to walk up to the building and frowned upon seeing the scene.

Suning remained calm and wrote in the margin: "Water stains are like the people's suffering; though they stain the paper, they do not conceal its sincerity."

He then started anew, combining "The Art of War" and "Discourses on Salt and Iron" in a comprehensive discussion, which showed a more sophisticated approach than the original text.

The final question posed was: "On the Southeastern Japanese Pirate Raids and the Northwestern Border Defense."

Su Ning recalled the record in Qi Jiguang's military report about Japanese pirates robbing raw silk, and also recalled Gao Gong's lecture at the prefectural school on the "Nine Border Areas Grain and Salary Case".

Therefore, he boldly proposed "using commerce to support war": "I have observed that the maritime merchants of Jiangsu and Zhejiang send millions of catties of raw silk to Japan every year."

If a Maritime Trade Office were established to centrally purchase and sell goods, and the profits were used to build warships, then the threat of Japanese pirates could be transformed into a source of revenue…

When he got to the passionate part, he cited data from his own experience of "converting rice paddies to mulberry fields" and pointed out that "mulberry fields falling into the hands of powerful and wealthy people" was the root cause of the Japanese invasion.

Finally, the author shifts focus: "Just like the tea-horse trade in the Northwest, if it could ensure that the border people had enough to eat, who would be willing to risk communicating with the barbarians?"

On the third night, the candles were almost out.

The old scholar in the opposite cell suddenly fainted. When the servants carried him out, the dry food in his arms rolled to the ground. It turned out to be a mixture of clay and chaff.

Su Ning silently broke the last half of the candle in two and gave it to the candidates in the adjacent cell.

In the flickering firelight, he saw the examinee write the four characters "Qing Zhang Tian Mu" (meaning "to survey the fields") on the exam paper, his handwriting as firm as his own.

This era was never short of steadfast individuals, but unfortunately, the Ming Dynasty's system did not allow them to exist.

As the clock struck midnight, the dawn pierced through the clouds.

Su Ning walked out of the cell and heard some people crying, some laughing, and many more remaining silent as iron. He looked back and saw the golden plaque of "Zhigongtang" glowing with a blood-red light in the morning sun.

……

After the provincial examinations concluded, Jinan was like a pot of water that was about to boil.

In the teahouses on Gongyuan Street, the scholars watched their tea cool down, their eyes glued to every passing yamen runner.

Su Ning stayed at the Jidi Inn on Furong Street and still maintained his habit of reading aloud every morning. However, his reading of Mencius was always interrupted by his neighbor's repeated nagging, "The results should be released soon."

A sudden frost fell that morning. As the old servant of the Jidi Inn swept the snow from the steps, he muttered, "A timely snow promises a good harvest. What a good omen..."

Before the words were finished, the sound of horses' hooves came from the street, and three cavalry captains galloped by, carrying yellow flags: "The results will be announced at 9:00 AM..."

The area in front of the screen wall of the examination hall was already packed with people.

When the clerk from the ceremonial office brought out a vermilion lacquered wooden tray, the crowd surged forward like a tide.

An elderly scholar with white hair had his turban knocked off by the crowd, and he stood on tiptoe, shouting, "Let this old man see! From the twenty-third year of Jiajing's reign until now..."

"Fifth place! Zhang Ruming from Qingzhou Prefecture!" The announcement was instantly drowned out by cheers.

Su Ning stood quietly beside the stone lion, overhearing two scholars with southern accents whispering, "I heard that this year's top scholar is from Laizhou Prefecture?"

"Could it be the one who wrote 'New Strategies for the Grand Canal'..."

Suddenly, the entire room fell silent.

Then, the Imperial Censor personally unfurled the list of successful candidates, and his clear voice pierced the cold wind: "First place in the Shandong provincial examination of the 41st year of Jiajing's reign—a student from Laizhou Prefecture, Su Ning, Su Anbang!"

Amid cheers, Suning was pushed forward by the crowd.

When the Imperial Censor of Education handed over the congratulatory red notice, he gave him a special look: "A young talent, his policy essays are particularly outstanding."

It turns out that his essay, "How to Ensure the People's Prosperity and the Ruler's Abundance," was listed as a questionable paper by the examiners because it directly pointed out the malpractice of the "conversion of rice paddies to mulberry fields."

However, the imperial censor overruled the objections, saying, "This article contains detailed data. If we dismiss someone based on their words, wouldn't that be betraying His Majesty's desire for talent?"

Just as everyone was eager to catch a glimpse of the newly appointed top scholar, a sudden cry of sorrow arose.

But the white-haired old scholar slumped to the ground, half a hard steamed bun rolling out of his tattered examination basket. He had taken the exam eleven times in a row.

Su Ning bent down to help him up and quietly slipped a silver ingot into his steamed bun bag.

Everyone's fate is different, and there's not much you can do about it.

……

When the good news reached Sujiawu, Zhou was drying persimmon cakes in the courtyard.

The village chief led the entire clan, young and old, into the courtyard, and the eight-bearer sedan chair stopped right at the gate.

"Congratulations to the top scholar!" The county magistrate personally presented the official hat, "According to custom, a memorial arch should be erected..."

Before she could finish speaking, Zhou suddenly fainted under the persimmon tree. She remembered that three years ago, her son was practicing calligraphy under this tree with a branch.

That night, Su Shouzhou choked up as he faced the ancestral hall: "Father, you said on your deathbed that our family would produce a scholar who passed the imperial examination, and now..."

On the altar, a new examination basket belonging to Su Ning was placed, containing not only writing brushes and ink, but also local specialties from the capital sent by Zhou Zhengjie.

On the third day of the celebratory banquet, a secret message arrived from Jinan.

It turned out that Yan Shifan smashed his teacup to pieces after seeing Su Ning's exam paper: "How dare this brat criticize national policy!"

Xu Jie, however, chuckled in the Grand Secretary's office: "This young man is knowledgeable in economics; he could be of use."

These disturbances have not yet reached Jiaodong Bay.

At this moment, Su Ning is receiving congratulations from the instructor at the academy, while the first snow of the winter is falling outside the window.

He recalled the peach wood charms his mother sewed into his cotton robe when he left home, the candle he shared with others in the examination hall, and even more so, the clay that the old scholar had rolled off.

Amidst a vast army vying for a single log, some are destined to become dust.

……

On the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, Su Ning set off for Beijing to participate in the imperial examination.

The clansmen planted eighty osmanthus trees at the entrance of the village, and the county magistrate presented him with a copy of the "Hongwu Precious Instructions" that he had personally copied.

As the carriage passed Qingzhou, a scholar suddenly appeared kneeling by the roadside: "This student wishes to follow the top scholar to the capital!"

Su Ning recognized him as a poor scholar from a neighboring county, whose provincial examination essay had been published in the "Qilu Chengmo" book along with his own.

"You flatter me, fellow cultivator! It'll be good to have company when we go to the capital together."

"Thank you very much, Scholar Jieyuan."

As the wind and snow swept over the pavilion, more than a dozen candidates gradually followed behind the newly appointed top scholar's sedan chair.

Unbeknownst to them, three pairs of eyes in the capital were already watching this group...

Yan Shifan, the one-eyed dragon, hid his cold laughter in the sound of the abacus; Xu Jie's expectations were hidden in the smoke of the inscription; and Zhang Juzheng had just unfolded his "New Policy on the Grand Canal" at the Prince Yu's mansion.

However, Su Ning understood that becoming a top scholar was just a stepping stone; the real examination was waiting in the imperial city, where the air was filled with the fragrance of medicinal pills.

……

In the early spring of the forty-second year of the Jiajing reign, Beijing was still enveloped in a chilly atmosphere.

The guild halls outside Chongwen Gate were filled with candidates taking the imperial examinations, and the Shandong guild hall where Su Ning stayed began to resound with chanting of scriptures every day at dawn...

Some scholars burned incense and prayed while looking at the "Selected Works of Cheng Mo".

Late at night on the seventh day of the second lunar month, an old servant of the guild hall knocked on the door: "Su Jieyuan, a guest has arrived."

Under the candlelight was his cousin, Zhou Zhengjie, who brought a sandalwood box: "Cousin, this is a newly made 'folding inkstone' based on your drawings. It's very convenient for the examination room."

He lowered his voice again, "The Yan family has been hosting a banquet for the examiners recently, and Xu Ge Lao's protégés are also making moves everywhere."

Su Ning pushed open the wooden box: "Cousin, do you remember what I said when 'Sinking Fish and Falling Geese' was first erected?"

Zhou Zhengjie was taken aback: "Cousin, you said... that genuine products are the foundation of one's livelihood."

“The same applies to the imperial examinations.” Su Ning looked towards the capital city. “While some people scheme and plot, others must rely on their true talents and abilities.”

……

At dawn on February 9th, torches blazed like dragons in front of the Shuntian Prefecture Examination Hall.

As three cannon shots shattered the morning mist, the candidates were astonished to see the severity of the search for this year's imperial examination...

Not only did they disassemble the examination basket, but some craftsmen even used copper hammers to strike the inkstone to examine its inner layers.

"Number 730!" As the name was called, Su Ning entered the cramped cell.

I had just spread out the exam papers when I suddenly heard screams from the opposite cell...

A scholar was found to have smuggled silk books, and was immediately stripped of his academic honors and banned from taking the exams forever.

The first question in the Analects was unexpected: "A gentleman is not a vessel."

Most candidates recited the classic texts about "generalists," but Su Ning wrote with great flair: "What we now call 'tools' are not merely vessels and wine vessels, but rather the ability to govern the world and benefit the people. Canal boats, spinning wheels, and weapons—aren't they all tools? A gentleman should use tools, not be a tool..."

During the second exam on the Spring and Autumn Annals, hail suddenly fell.

While protecting the scroll, Su Ning caught a glimpse of the gold thread on the corner of the official's robe, realizing he was a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial.

He knew perfectly well that although the Jiajing Emperor did not attend court, he was always keeping an eye on the court and the people.

When the topic "Duke Zheng defeats Duan at Yan" appeared, the entire audience was filled with speeches about "filial piety and brotherly love".

Suning offered a unique perspective, discussing "preventing chaos through systems": "If Wu Jiang's favoritism had been tempered by propriety and law, and Gong Shu Duan's greed had been restrained by the system, how could they have ended up killing each other like family?"

The text subtly satirized the Yan faction for undermining the discipline of the imperial examination system, which amazed the inspecting officials.

When the final question was posed, the entire room fell silent—"Questions on the Water Transport System and Military Expenses of the Nine Border Regions."

This is truly a solution to the problem of the national treasury deficit!
Most candidates simply followed the old theory of "reducing expenditure and increasing revenue," but Su Ning, combining data from Shandong's salt tax and the Jiangnan textile industry, proposed "three strategies": "Short-term rectification of the salt, iron, and tea-horse trade; medium-term reopening of maritime trade; and long-term land survey throughout the country..."

When writing about "land surveying," he specifically cited data from Laizhou Prefecture that he had personally investigated, pointing directly to the "powerful and wealthy hiding their land."

On the third night, strange noises suddenly came from the cell next door.

The scholar frantically tore at his exam paper, screaming, "I've memorized three thousand essays, yet not a single one is usable!"

When the servants dragged him away, they left a trail of blood on the snow.

Su Ning distributed the remaining candles to those on either side, and the three of them used the light to write quickly.

As the candle burned out, he added a final line: "When the people are poor, wickedness arises; just as frozen earth seeks warmth, so too must corruption be eradicated. To eliminate corruption, we must first reward honesty with generous salaries."

……

On the day the results were announced, the first spring snow had cleared.

When the Minister of Rites read out "Su Ning, the eighteenth in the second class," the old servant of the Shandong Guild Hall burst into tears on the spot. He had witnessed too many scholars leave with graying hair.

Sometimes, those who witness the events are even more moved than those directly involved.

At the Qionglin Banquet, Xu Jie specifically inquired about the "Money Law Policy".

Yan Shifan watched coldly until he saw the copy of "New Strategies for the Grand Canal" that Su Ning presented to Prince Yu, at which point he suddenly gripped the jade cup tightly.

Unbeknownst to Su Ning, his oil-stained exam paper was being circulated in the office of the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Lü Fang annotated in red ink: "Economic and practical learning can make up for the shortcomings of the Qingci (a type of religious writing)."

Emperor Jiajing opened his eyes in front of the alchemy furnace and asked, "Ask that boy if he can figure out the timing of the elixir?"

As the evening drum sounded, the newly appointed scholars walked past the cypress tree planted by Emperor Hongwu himself.

Su Ning's official robe was still stained with the dust and mud from the examination hall, and he had already received three invitations: the Xu family poetry gathering, the Yan family birthday banquet, and the Yu Prince's lecture.

...(End of chapter)