Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 219 The disciples entered in worship, their demeanor dignified.

As newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), Zhang Dai and his entourage did not need to make any special announcements when entering the capital city; the invitations they received on the day the results were announced served as their passes.

The original procedure for the ceremony of paying homage to the prime minister was for the host to lead the new scholars to the Secretariat for a formal audience, and then the students would proceed to the Chancellery in order of their rank to pay their respects to the prime minister.

Later, the imperial examinations were overseen by the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and the corresponding etiquette became more standardized. As new members of the bureaucratic class, the newly appointed scholars' audience with the Prime Minister, the head of all officials, became more ceremonial.

On this day, the prime ministers would wait at the Imperial Academy, and all the officials would accompany them to watch the ceremony. The top scholar would lead his disciples to the hall to pay their respects. This ceremony was called "passing through the hall".

During the Huichang era of Emperor Wuzong of Tang, Ding Leng, a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), ranked second in the examination. On the day of the audience, the top scholar (Zhuangyuan) had other business to attend to, so Ding Leng was asked to lead the audience. Ding Leng was ugly and had a stutter. When it was his turn to enter and deliver his speech, he could only say, "Leng Deng Deng, Leng Deng Deng..." Because of his nervousness and stutter, he was unable to finish the word "Deng Ke" (passing the imperial examination).

Therefore, some people jokingly said that Ding Leng was good at playing the zither, and that he would perform for the prime minister on the day of his audience with the emperor, and that he would often be referred to as "Leng Deng Deng".

Since there was no master to guide them, Zhang Dai and the others went to the Secretariat after arriving in the capital.

The group of thirteen, dressed in fashionable attire, stood out quite a bit as they walked along the main street of the imperial city. Zhang Dai, in particular, had frequented the area since his rise to fame last year, and many officials in the capital recognized him. In addition, the other successful candidates in the imperial examinations were acquainted with each other to some extent, so their group quickly attracted considerable attention.

"What brings Zhang Liulang here?"

An official stood by the roadside and called out to Zhang Dai, asking him a question.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai smiled and said, "The results of the provincial examination have been released recently. We, your students, were fortunate enough to be selected by the chief examiner and recommended to the country. After thanking our master, we have come to the province today to pay our respects to you, Your Excellency."

"Have you paid your respects to the master? Has Master Yan finished his business and returned home?"

Hearing his reply, more officials became curious. They were also concerned about personnel matters in the Ministry of Personnel. Yan Tingzhi was still imprisoned due to his troubles, and they had not heard that there was a solution to the matter. So how could he accept the gratitude of a newly appointed scholar?

Or perhaps these newly appointed scholars, with their quick wits, turned around and became the patrons of other officials?
"Our master, Master Yan, is still preoccupied with other matters and has not yet met with us. However, we disciples dare not disobey the proper etiquette and can only pay our respects at the gate before entering the palace."

Zhang Dai then replied that he was gradually figuring out a pattern: if one's voice carries little weight, one should try to attract attention; only with high visibility will those in power be more likely to act according to the rules.

Of course, it only works if it attracts the attention of influential people. If they go out into the streets and shout, even if they get a lot of attention, it won't be very effective, and they might even be charged with disturbing the peace.

In short, officials must fight each other; if they don't, the emperor won't be able to sleep at night, and the common people will suffer.

Sure enough, when the officials in the capital heard that the successful candidates of this year's imperial examinations were acting so enthusiastically, they all perked up. Some even followed along, eager to see if the prime ministers would receive these candidates who had come to pay their respects without any formal guidance from their patrons.

Zhang Dai was quite familiar with the route to the Secretariat. He headed north along the main street, then turned west after reaching the imperial court, and finally arrived at the gate of the Secretariat.

It was morning, and many officials were standing inside and outside the Secretariat waiting to be summoned. When Zhang Dai and his party arrived at the gate, they were quickly stopped by the guards.

A team leader stepped forward and demanded, “Which department do you all belong to? What do you have to report? If you have a formal invitation, wait in the corridor. If you don’t have one, choose one of your officers to go in and ask the clerk or registrar to return to their quarters. You are not allowed to linger here and make a scene!”

As the head of the southern provinces, the Secretariat was that domineering. No matter if you were a vice minister in a ministry or a governor of a prefecture, you couldn't enter the gate without a summons from the Secretariat. Even a gatekeeper captain could directly turn you away.

Of course, it was also because Zhang Dai and his entourage were neither vice ministers nor governors that the team leader dared to be so formal and businesslike. If it were a high-ranking official in purple robes, even if the prime minister could not meet him in time, he would most likely be led to sit and wait in the corridor, with plenty of tea and snacks prepared.

Among the successful candidates were many sons of officials, but they were still a little nervous and reserved when they arrived at the gate of the Secretariat, which represented the highest power of the imperial court.

Upon hearing that the chief scribe and recorder would also be required, someone couldn't help but whisper, "The officials are so busy with their affairs every day. Even if we were to become recorders, how many days would we have to wait before we are summoned?"

Zhang Dai, however, did not have such a heavy psychological burden. Moreover, he knew that the prime minister did not work in the Secretariat at all. Waiting for the Secretariat to go through the procedures was not as good as waiting for Yan Tingzhi to be sentenced, and then for them, the newly appointed Jinshi, to be in the embarrassing situation of a snake without a head!

"We are all successful candidates in the imperial examinations and are here to pay our respects to Your Excellency. We now need a servant to guide us to the Secretariat and the Chancellery. Since you lack proper etiquette, you should inform Your Excellency immediately and not keep them waiting. Otherwise, you will be held responsible!"

He was always a professional at using someone else's name to intimidate others, and upon hearing the leader's reprimand, he immediately straightened his face and spoke loudly.

"This...this...is this really a formality?"

The captain was stunned by these words. These soldiers of the Southern Army had been conscripted in the eleventh year of the Kaiyuan era and were assigned to guard the palace for two months each year. They only began to take turns resting after the emperor's eastern tour. They had not been assigned to guard the Secretariat for long, so how could they be familiar with the Secretariat's procedures? In addition, Zhang Dai spoke in grand words and his tone was extremely arrogant. He even treated the Secretariat's servants as doormen, which naturally made the captain suspicious. He ordered his soldiers to stay there and hurriedly went to report to the chief clerk.

The officials who had followed him here knew a little about the situation, and when they saw Zhang Dai startling the guards, some of them couldn't help but laugh and cheer.

As the saying goes, it's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. When they were doing business in the capital, they had often been insulted and shouted at by the gatekeepers of the two provinces. They usually swallowed their anger and dared not make a fuss. So when they saw Zhang Dai shouting at them, they found it very interesting.

After the reorganization of the Secretariat-Chancellery into the Chancellery, the prime minister would often remain in the Chancellery to handle government affairs, while the affairs of his own office would be handled by his subordinates.

Now that Li Yuanhong and Du Xian are vying for power, the situation is even more complicated. The affairs of the Secretariat are only handled by a few secretaries in rotation. Only major matters are reported to the Secretariat and await Li Yuanhong's return to the province for handling.

After the group leader entered the office, he first reported to the chief clerk, but the chief clerk had never encountered this situation before, so he could only continue to report it, which was passed through several people before finally being presented to the secretary of the Imperial Secretariat. Since Yao Yi had recently been handling matters related to the provincial examinations, this situation was naturally reported to Yao Yi.

"A Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) paying homage to the prime minister without a host to guide him? That's utterly ridiculous!"

Upon hearing this, Yao Yi immediately raised an eyebrow and instinctively wanted to reject this unreasonable request.

But he quickly changed his mind and thought of the scene when Zhang Dai was decided by the prime ministers to be the top scholar in the imperial examination. Moreover, apart from Zhang Dai, the rankings of the other successful candidates were also personally determined by the prime ministers.

It was somewhat inappropriate that these scholars, who had just passed the imperial examinations, were turned away by the prime minister.

Therefore, after weighing the options, Yao Yi did not directly order the rejection of the matter. Instead, he quickly wrote a note and instructed an official to send it to the Secretariat. If the prime ministers wanted to meet these people, then it would not be too late to have someone introduce them.

However, just as he finished giving his instructions, another official rushed in and reported: "Reporting to Lord Yao, Zhang Dai, the top scorer in the spring examination, said that if the officials of the Secretariat are too proud to be persuaded and refuse to guide him, he will lead his followers to the Chancellery to petition again."

"This Zhang fellow is truly meddlesome! Let him lead you into the corridor first, and don't let him go anywhere else!"

Upon hearing this, Yao Yi felt a headache coming on, and after thinking for a moment, he gave the order.

Not to mention Yao Yi's growing annoyance at Zhang Dai's antics, Li Yuanhong, in the main hall of the Secretariat, couldn't help but find himself both amused and exasperated upon seeing the memos presented by his subordinates.

He ordered the officials of the Personnel Department to be summoned and asked in a deep voice, "Has the Ministry of Personnel not yet properly handled the matter of Yan Tingzhi and others in the Performance Evaluation Department?"

Upon hearing this, the official in charge of the clerk's office shook his head and said, "Governor Cui personally investigated the matter and was determined to find out the truth. He said that the confessions of the officials involved were not entirely true, so the case has not been closed and the officials have not been executed."

As this man was presenting his report, Du Xian came in from outside. Upon hearing this, he said coldly, "The talents of Cui Sanqi are misused in this position. He should be put in charge of the Court of Judicial Review!"

Cui Mian was recommended by Li Yuanhong, and Li Yuanhong felt somewhat uncomfortable hearing Du Xian's mockery. However, he had no way to refute it, since Cui Mian, a proper Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was not dedicated to selecting and appointing virtuous and capable officials, but instead was doing the work of interrogating cases, which was indeed putting the cart before the horse.

He ignored Du Xian and instead instructed, "Go to the province and inform the newly appointed Jinshi that the matter of Yan Yuanwai's appointment is still under discussion by the selection department. They can come to pay their respects after the matter is settled. The affairs of the Secretariat and the Chancellery are too busy for me to see them..."

"Wait a minute, what happened?"

Du Xian was still unaware of the situation, but after hearing a few keywords, his sensitive nerves were already aroused.

He came to Li Yuanhong's desk and immediately saw the note sent by Yao Yi. After glancing at it briefly, his eyes lit up and he immediately said, "The officials in the selection department are merely drawing salaries and making unclear judgments. The successful candidates have not yet been released from their official posts and have not shown any gratitude!"
These disciples, undeterred by the disturbances of officialdom, first paid their respects to their master and then to the prime minister. Their conduct was perfectly reasonable and dignified. Why should I refuse to see them? Prime Minister Li is busy with his case, so I will go to see him!

After saying this, he walked straight out of the hall, and no one could call him back.

Seeing this, Li Yuanhong couldn't help but secretly lament his predicament.

If he bypassed the Ministry of Personnel to meet with the successful candidates, he would be putting pressure on Cui Mian. Although Cui Mian was somewhat straightforward, he was, after all, the one who recommended him to the court. If a rift developed between them, it would inevitably affect his personnel decisions.

However, now that all the successful candidates have come to the Secretariat to pay their respects, it is Du Xian, the Vice Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, who is the one to receive them. This will undoubtedly make people suspect that he is in league with Cui Mian and is deliberately avoiding the matter.
One of the main reasons Zhang Shuo lost power was his faction formation. Li Yuanhong had only just established his authority as prime minister, yet he still had a direct rival, Du Xian. Naturally, he dared not easily be embroiled in such accusations, so he could only quickly stand up and hurriedly catch up with Du Xian.

(End of this chapter)