Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 205 After the examination, the Vice Minister arrested people.

The history of policy questions is long and rich, dating back to the Han Dynasty when they were used as a method for selecting and testing talent. Their content is all-encompassing, covering everything from basic strategies for governing the country and classical texts to current affairs and policy responses.

When the imperial examination system was first established in the Qing Dynasty, it only tested policy essays. As the times developed, the examination content for the Jinshi degree gradually added the test of classical texts and miscellaneous essays. Moreover, since miscellaneous essays were more specific and visible in assessing talent, the weight of the examination score for miscellaneous essays became increasingly important.

The reason is simple: while policy questions seem to test the broadest and most comprehensive range of knowledge, they are often too broad and impractical. The Jinshi degree is merely an entrance examination for officials, and the group it faces is destined to lack a concrete and profound understanding of national affairs and the great principles of history and classics.

Therefore, there were many criticisms of the imperial examination policy test. During the Yonglong era of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Liu Sili, the Assistant Minister of Personnel, said that the imperial examination candidates only recited old policies and had no real talent. Therefore, an imperial edict was issued to test the imperial examination candidates on two miscellaneous essays, and only those who were well-versed in literature and law could be tested on policy.

For young people who have not yet entered officialdom, whether they are asked about national policies or principles, most of them are just relaying other people's opinions or merely expressing their emotions, without any actual content.

However, this does not mean that the examination of policies is meaningless. In the higher-level imperial examination system, the examination of policies is the only selection method.

This is because the talents selected through the special imperial examinations were a level above those who passed the imperial examinations. After passing the special imperial examinations, they were immediately appointed to official positions without having to undergo further selection or the selection process by the Ministry of Personnel.

This year's imperial examination consisted of one essay on Laozi, one on Zuo Zhuan, and three on current affairs.

The "Laozi" essay has become a fixed item in the imperial examinations in recent years. Since the current sages have reached the pinnacle, they have been even more revered for Laozi and have personally annotated many Taoist classics. The "Laozi" is not only listed in the examination texts, but also required to answer questions on its meaning.

However, to be honest, the officials mostly did a perfunctory job in this regard, and their commentaries on the Laozi did not offer any academic summaries that surpassed those of their predecessors. Therefore, candidates only needed to briefly explain the original meaning, and they would generally pass.

Zhang Dai had several Taoist priests in his family, so he was naturally familiar with the interpretation of Laozi's text. As for the questions in Zuo Zhuan, they were simply about Cao Gui's debate on war, which made Zhang Dai feel as if he had returned to his junior high school classroom.

The three policies were, unsurprisingly, two on border affairs and one on current affairs. The border policies inquired about the relationship with the two great enemies, Tibet and the Turks.

The reason for focusing the questioning on this year is that the situation among the three parties has changed. Last year, Tibet and the Tang Dynasty had another border conflict, while the Turks repeatedly requested to continue their marriage alliance with the Tang Dynasty.

As for the policy at the time, it naturally refers to the handling of last year's disaster.

In short, these five policy questions were both difficult and easy for Zhang Dai, and of course, to answer them well, he had to carefully consider them. Even if he could predict the fate of the Three Kingdoms for the next hundred years and that the Turks would not last a hundred years, from the perspective of modern people, he would still have to put forward a series of theories to support his views so that modern people could understand and agree with them.

Yesterday, Zhang Dai resolved the four policy questions in a single day, so he wasn't in a hurry. In the evening, he even squatted in his test room and had a small hot pot. While others were still working late into the night by candlelight, he went to sleep soundly.

By the next day, Zhang Dai was left with only one current affairs question. The task was naturally easy, but he answered it with even more care.

Unlike other candidates who merely quoted classical texts and spoke in generalities about the benevolent rule of the king and the virtues of the former emperor, he genuinely participated in the disaster relief work. He also learned from his subordinates about the latest and specific difficulties in the disaster area, such as the outbreak of cattle plague after the disaster and the resurgence of drought and floods in the early spring.

Therefore, Zhang Dai's policy proposal contained fewer clichés and focused more on practical strategies for dealing with the situation. It wasn't just for the current provincial examination; it could have served as a disaster relief and famine preparedness plan for the year, even if presented to the imperial court. However, to be fair, nobody paid any attention to him.

While answering the questions, Zhang Dai was also pondering in his heart that after the provincial examination, regardless of whether he passed or not, he would travel east to see how the disaster relief efforts were progressing. He had had this idea last year, not to avoid the personnel disputes in the capital.

Because he put more effort into this last policy essay and it took him much longer than the previous ones, by the time Zhang Dai finished writing them all, it was already afternoon. He checked all five essays from beginning to end to make sure there were no violations before submitting them to the court.

While the other candidates were still brainstorming their answers, Zhang Dai's emergence from the examination booth immediately attracted everyone's attention. Li Yi, who was already certain of winning the top scholar title, asked in surprise, "Is Zhang Dai going to request an audience, or is he handing in his paper?"

Although Zhang Dai felt he had no hope of becoming the top scholar, he didn't mind trying to dampen the other's confidence. So he said with a smile, "Li Shiqi may know that I am good at writing, but my true strength lies in the imperial examination. Last year, when I took the prefectural examination at the Secretariat, even the Secretary Li of the Secretariat had difficulty answering my questions. If I don't want to be a failure for those who come after me, I need to work even harder!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yi's expression indeed turned serious. Zhang Dai's achievements in the prefectural examination had already spread throughout the capital, and he had naturally heard of them, but he always felt that there was something somewhat strange about the matter. Seeing Zhang Dai complete the examination with ease, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Having reached this point, he naturally hoped to win the top scholar title in one fell swoop, so he had no interest in talking about going to Song San Niang's house for a drinking party anymore. After turning his gaze away from Zhang Dai, he answered the questions more seriously.

Yan Tingzhi, the examiner, was also surprised that Zhang Dai had submitted his paper half a day early. However, he didn't say much. After taking the paper, he quickly glanced at it and stamped it with his seal. He then said to Zhang Dai, "The other examinees are still focused on writing their essays. Seeing that you have too much luggage and can't carry it all at once, leave this paper here first. Have your servant fetch it later." Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai broke out in a cold sweat. His luggage was so much that even the examiner couldn't help but complain. He was treating the imperial examination like a vacation. Perhaps only in the Tang Dynasty could someone do something like that.

He was not worried that his things might be lost if left here. Upon hearing this, he first nodded in agreement, and then bowed deeply to Yan Tingzhi, saying, "Thank you for your care and guidance these past few days, Master. Whether I pass the exam or not, I will definitely come to pay my respects again after this matter is settled. I hope you will accept my thanks!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Tingzhi smiled and nodded, saying, "I have no generous salary to offer, Lord Yan, but I await your arrival with a simple bed. Zhang Liu, please leave now, and we will meet again another day."

Zhang Dai was a little embarrassed by what he said, and sighed that his grandfather was really too indecent. He was so greedy that he was known throughout the court, yet he was able to get off the ground smoothly. Where could he go to seek justice?
Yan Tingzhi was clearly just joking, and Zhang Dai naturally wouldn't take it too seriously.

Although the relationship between a master and his student was not as close as it was in later generations, it was still a connection in the officialdom. For example, Pei Kuan and Xi Yu, whom his grandfather had selected when he was in charge of the imperial examinations, were not Zhang Shuo's close confidants, but they were still quite friendly to Zhang Dai when they met in public or private.

After bidding farewell to Yan Ting, he walked out of the examination hall. There weren't many people outside at this time, since the examination lasted for two days, and those who had come to see the examinees off couldn't stay here indefinitely, as this was the location of the offices of various ministries under the Ministry of Personnel.

"My lord, my lord, I'm here!"

Ding Qing was squatting under a willow tree, chatting animatedly with someone, when he heard someone shout that some candidates were leaving the examination hall. He looked up and saw that it was his own son. He hurriedly waved and rushed forward, saying, "I heard that it wouldn't end until evening at the earliest. My son is leaving now. His answers must be excellent!"

Zhang Dai smiled but didn't say anything. He was exhausted from answering questions for two consecutive days, so he told Ding Qing that his luggage was still in the examination room and then prepared to leave to go home and catch up on his sleep.

He had already walked some distance when he bumped into Miao Jinqing, who was walking out of the Ministry of Personnel.

Miao Jinqing's expression froze upon seeing him, as if he had seen something he shouldn't have. After a moment, he said urgently, "Zhang Dai, what are you doing here? Did you leave first? You, you wait here, don't move, don't move!"

After saying this, he turned around and hurriedly ran towards the Ministry of Personnel.

Hearing this nonsensical remark, Zhang Dai felt a mixture of curiosity and annoyance. He thought to himself, "If this guy brings me back two oranges later, I'll definitely give them both a good beating!"
Although he always looked down on his father, he couldn't just let people play these kinds of ethical games. Of course, Miao Jinqing might not know this either, so he was particularly curious about what kind of evil this guy was up to.

Miao Jinqing returned quickly, followed by a serious-looking Cui Mian, who was accompanied by a large group of armored soldiers, all of whom were heading towards them menacingly.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Dai's expression immediately changed. Damn it, did he commit a crime by handing in his exam paper early? This Cui Mian actually brought Southern Army soldiers to arrest him, what kind of deep grudge did he hold?
He completely disregarded Miao Jinqing's instructions, turned and ran west, while signaling Ding Qing to run east. He still carried the fish tally for entering and leaving the palace, figuring that Cui Mian wouldn't dare lead troops into the palace to arrest him.

Miao Jinqing hadn't expected Zhang Dai to be so aware of the danger. In the blink of an eye, the guy had already run several meters away. He could only shout, "Zhang Dai, stop! Cui, Cui Sanqi, is not trying to make things difficult for you..."

Zhang Dai ignored what he was saying and continued running westward, intending to stop and see what the situation was like after entering the inner city.

"You must immediately bring this criminal back!"

When Cui Mian saw that the boy was running faster than a rabbit, he was immediately furious.

Originally, the decision to surround the examination hall and prepare for the re-examination had been made in the morning, but Prime Minister Du Xian insisted that there were already soldiers stationed outside the examination hall. If more soldiers were to be added, it would inevitably disturb the candidates and make them unable to concentrate on answering the questions. Therefore, he ordered that the examination hall be surrounded in the evening when the candidates had finished answering the questions.

But unexpectedly, this delay allowed someone to slip through the net by submitting their paper first. So Cui Mian disregarded the prime minister's order and ordered Miao Jinqing to lead a squad of soldiers to capture Zhang Dai, while he and the rest of his men sealed off the examination hall exit.

Zhang Dai ultimately failed to escape into the inner city. After running for some distance, he encountered a group of Southern Army soldiers patrolling the city. Seeing the situation of fleeing and being chased, two of them immediately stepped forward with staffs.

Upon seeing this, he immediately stopped, turned around and looked at Miao Jinqing, who was chasing after him in a fit of anger, and asked in a deep voice, "Master Miao, what has stopped me? I left the examination hall early today so that I could go to the palace to report to my beloved relative that the examination will go well!"

Miao Jinqing had no time to ponder the unspoken meaning in his words. Seeing that the boy had finally stopped, he shouted breathlessly, "No, you can't leave! Cui Sanqi and the Prime Minister have a plan, and you disciples still have to take the miscellaneous essay exam again!"

(End of this chapter)