There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 301 Release of List
The imperial examinations of the Han Dynasty differed slightly from those of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The three examinations still tested candidates on the Four Books, five-character eight-line poems, the Five Classics, and policy questions. However, each examination added mathematics, physics, and chemistry as supplementary questions.

The bonus questions are worth a lot of points; the more you answer correctly, the higher your score will be.

The first imperial examination in the Great Han Dynasty has begun to adopt a point system.

Without a points system, Nie Yu wouldn't be able to grade the papers.

His cultural level is far inferior to that of the ancients; it's difficult for him to discern the quality of an article. Moreover, judging based solely on the writing style relies too heavily on the examiner's ability and character; a more straightforward approach would be far more convenient.

Using a point-based examination system, at least the candidates selected will have a guaranteed minimum level of ability, though we can't say the upper limit.

Since Nie Yu couldn't abolish the imperial examination system, he might as well reform its rigid structure, inject some fresh blood into it, and allow it to transition smoothly.

As for whether scholars across the land will feel dissatisfied?

There's no need to worry. As long as the Han Dynasty can maintain its throne, scholars are very adaptable and can accept things as long as they don't go too far.

For example, Zhu Yuanzhang once felt that the imperial examination system was a waste of the country, as the officials selected were all just good at writing and composing poems, incapable of doing anything else. So he abolished the imperial examination system and replaced it with local recommendations for officials, which lasted for fifteen years, and the scholars didn't utter a single word.

In the end, the recommendation system was even more problematic than the imperial examination system. Most of the officials selected through recommendation were people with connections, their abilities were not guaranteed at all, but they were very good at corruption.

After much effort, Zhu Yuanzhang realized that the imperial examination system was slightly less of a trap, at least it wouldn't produce so many incompetent and corrupt officials.

In the examination hall, the examiners discovered the examination papers one by one.

"Hmm, the first few questions on the Four Books were fine; I've been reviewing them for over a month, so they shouldn't be a problem. But what about the math, physics, and chemistry questions that follow?"

Cheng Siju took the exam paper, flipped through it several times, and suddenly felt a little puzzled.

He quickly skimmed through a few math problems and found that it was just arithmetic, only with a different name, and it was quite difficult, even involving the application of the "Shang Gao Theorem" (Pythagorean theorem).

He was completely baffled by the physics and chemistry subjects that followed.

Cheng Siju held the paper and read it carefully, word by word: "Is boiling water in a teapot a physical phenomenon or a chemical phenomenon? No, what does boiling water in a teapot have to do with physics or chemistry?"

Cheng Siju was completely bewildered. As a candidate from Anhui, his disadvantages were finally becoming apparent.

The scholars and candidates from the Han Dynasty might be able to answer these questions. But these candidates from the newly occupied territories of Anhui and Jiangxi, who had never seen the systematic textbooks on mathematics, physics, and chemistry from the Han Dynasty's academies, simply couldn't understand the specific concepts and meanings of these subjects.

This seems a bit unfair? That's right, it's unfair. Nie Yu wants them to remember that math, physics, and chemistry are not niche or obscure subjects; they are included in the imperial examinations.

If you want to get good grades, then work hard to learn math, physics, and chemistry, and take the natural science exam!
Cheng Siju stared at the exam paper for a long time. He could solve a few math problems, but he couldn't understand the physics and chemistry problems at all and could only guess.

Fortunately, the physics and chemistry exam papers mostly consist of multiple-choice and true/false questions, so even if you don't know the answers, you won't be completely unable to solve them.

Nie Yu still showed mercy.

The first session of the imperial examination lasted three days, leaving the more than two hundred candidates in the examination hall questioning their existence.

What kind of question is this?

After struggling to finish the exam by guessing and some guessing, many candidates instinctively flipped to the back of the paper during the second exam, wondering if there would be any more strange math, physics, or chemistry questions.

And then, damn it, it actually existed.

The first exam was already taken, so why is there a second exam?
Several candidates immediately raised their hands to report to the proctor, who glanced at them and casually replied, "The papers are all set by the Ministry of Rites and reviewed by the Prince of Han, so there won't be any mistakes. Focus on answering the questions!"

With no response, I had no choice but to grit my teeth and continue answering the questions.

Fortunately, many candidates had already gained experience from guessing in the first round and began to learn to apply what they learned to other situations. They guessed much faster in the second round, and a few people, having read some extracurricular math and physics textbooks out of boredom, actually managed to solve a few problems.

Those who did this all pretended not to know anything, preparing to make a fortune in silence.

The nine-day imperial examination was over quickly, and more than two hundred candidates left the examination hall, their eyes glazed over.

It wasn't because they stayed in the examination hall for too long; it was the first special imperial examination in the Han Dynasty, and the Ministry of Rites was afraid that the candidates would get sick from the long hours, so they specially arranged to provide them with heating fuel, clean drinking water, and other daily necessities.

Compared to the regular imperial examinations, this was indeed a special examination. The government had made such meticulous arrangements, handling every detail imaginable, that candidates only needed to focus on taking the exam.

Of course, this was only the first special imperial examination held by the Han Dynasty. As the territory expanded and the number of examinees increased, these privileges would no longer be available.

"Brother Siju, wait for me!" Wang Yang jogged to catch up with Cheng Siju, who had just left the examination hall and was heading back to the inn.

Cheng Si stopped abruptly, patiently waiting for the other party to catch up.

Wang Yang walked alongside him and casually asked, "Brother Siju, are you confident about this year's imperial examination?"

Cheng Siju did not hide anything and shook his head, saying, "I'm afraid I'll fail this year's imperial examination!"

"Why is that?" Wang Yang asked, quite surprised. Cheng Siju smiled wryly: "There were three exams, and I guessed on a third of the questions. Mathematics was alright, but physics and chemistry were really hard to figure out."

Upon hearing this reason, Wang Yang sighed helplessly, "That's right! This year's special imperial examination has actually added three subjects: mathematics, physics, and chemistry. I can barely understand the mathematics, it's just arithmetic. But as for physics and chemistry, I've never even heard of them before. To be frank, when I was in the examination hall, I almost thought that the Prince of Han was deliberately making things difficult for us candidates."

Cheng Siju said, "Yes, I've had that thought too, but after thinking about it, it's completely unnecessary. The King of Han is the founder of the dynasty. He opened the special imperial examination to select scholars and win the hearts of the people. Why would he deliberately make the exam questions difficult?"

He paused, then continued, "Furthermore, while the questions seem difficult, they provide multiple correct and incorrect options. Even if you don't know the answer, you can still make a subjective judgment. Moreover, regardless of whether it's math, physics, or chemistry, the questions are all closely related to our daily lives. They are clearly not random questions; there must be a deeper meaning behind them."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yang thought about it carefully, then clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Brother, what you say seems to make sense. Many of the questions involve the daily lives of ordinary people. Could it be that the King of Han is deliberately testing us candidates?"

Wang Yang drew inferences from this example and quickly connected it to the national policies of the Han Dynasty.

The national policy of the Han Dynasty was to distribute land and abolish slavery, which can be summarized as suppressing landlords and providing relief to the common people.

Wang Yang and Cheng Siju walked along the road, chatting idly and speculating.

There were many other candidates chatting and daydreaming like them, all feeling overwhelmed by this special exam. They were exchanging experiences to see if others could answer the questions; if no one could answer them, that would be good news.

After the provincial examination, the next step was closed-door grading.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the examination process typically took about half a month.

The situation was quite different in the Han Dynasty. Because there were far fewer candidates, only about one-tenth of the number in the normal imperial examinations, and because it was a points-based examination system, the grading process was much faster.

However, Nie Yu still issued an order in advance, forbidding candidates from paying respects to their mentors after the exam!
"Zuoshi" is an honorific title for the chief examiner of the provincial and metropolitan examinations, and paying homage to a Zuoshi is an outdated custom under the imperial examination system of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Candidates established a false teacher-student relationship by presenting their student cards to the examiners and paying their respects.

A mentor can directly influence a candidate's career path. For example, Jiao Hong, a minister in the Ming Dynasty, served as the chief examiner and promoted Xu Guangqi to first place in the provincial examination. Zeng Guofan was also given the title "Guofan" when he visited his mentor Zhu Shiyan during the Daoguang era.

The first imperial examination of the Han Dynasty was organized by Gu Jing, the Minister of Rites, while the Minister of Personnel should have been the chief examiner (usually a Grand Academician, but the Han Dynasty did not have Grand Academicians, so the position was postponed).

However, to demonstrate the importance that the Han Dynasty placed on this matter, the chief examiner was Luo Dian, the only Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) and a highly respected headmaster of Yuelu Academy.

Five days later, the results of the imperial examination were announced.

The list of successful candidates included sixty-one people, representing one-third of the candidates who passed the provincial examination.

Cheng Siju arrived at the notice board early to check the list. He wasn't arrogant at all, and just looked from back to front. He immediately saw his name and couldn't contain his excitement, shouting, "I...I passed! I passed! 59th place!"

A stranger standing nearby, speaking with a strong Gan accent, shouted with elation, "Haha, I won! Sixty-first place!"

"I got in too, 53rd place."

"..."

The rankings are all quite low, but that doesn't matter; winning is winning.

The rankings in the provincial examinations were only a preliminary assessment; the final rankings of the top three scholars were determined by the palace examination.

If one's policy essays are strong enough, even if one ranks last in the provincial examination, there is still a slim chance of becoming the top scholar.

Moreover, even if they didn't do well in the palace examination, it wouldn't affect their becoming Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examination) and being appointed to official positions outside the capital.

Beneath the list wall, some rejoiced while others grieved; those who made the list laughed heartily, while those who didn't were dejected.

Even Wang Yang, who came with Cheng Siju to see the results, and another candidate from Susong, unsurprisingly failed the exam.

Although they were mentally prepared, the two still couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

Cheng Siju, however, did not rejoice. Instead, he stepped forward to comfort him, saying, "Brother, do not be discouraged. This year's imperial examination is a rare event, and I was only fortunate to pass."

It was truly a stroke of luck; they ranked third from the bottom and almost failed to make the list.

"Thank you for your comfort, brother. I have not given up on myself. I would also like to congratulate you on passing the imperial examination!" Wang Yang quickly composed himself and cupped his hands to congratulate Cheng Siju.

Cheng Siju has already passed the imperial examination and will be officially appointed to an official position after passing the palace examination to determine his ranking.

Whether it's the current personal relationship with someone from the same county or the connections for future career advancement, these are all worth Wang Yang cultivating and maintaining.

As Wang Yang spoke, he pulled another person along, and the three of them left the results announcement site together and went to the nearest restaurant to drink and celebrate, also to relieve their depression.

(Working overtime today, will update later)

(End of this chapter)