Great Zhou Wensheng

Chapter 210, Part Five: [Suppressing the Nation]! It can't be suppressed anymore, it's completely out of control!

Imperial Examination Hall.

"Click~!"

A streak of purple lightning ripped across the sky, illuminating the face of Hanlin scholar Zhao Mingcheng, which was contorted with horror.

"Jiang Xingzhou, this is the third article that can protect the nation?!"

Fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead and rolled down his trembling cheeks.

The chief examiner of the imperial examination felt a tightness in his throat and even found it difficult to breathe.

He subconsciously clenched the secret letter in his sleeve—a letter personally written by Chen Shaoqing, the Grand Secretary, after recommending him as the chief examiner, the words of which exuded a chilling murderous intent.

As a close confidant of Chen Dang, Zhao Mingcheng understood better than anyone the profound significance of his position as chief examiner this time.

Amidst the undercurrents of the imperial court, Chen Shaoqing needed this weapon to eliminate any potential threats to the Chen faction's foundation on the battlefield of the imperial examinations, a battlefield without gunfire.

In particular, the emergence of new top-ranking scholars who achieve the highest honors in all three categories must not be allowed—they must be completely eradicated.

However, at this moment, Jiang Xingzhou in the examination room surprised everyone by composing three poems and essays on the theme of "Protecting the Nation" in the first round of the examination.

That soaring literary spirit could not be described simply as "achieving the highest honors in the imperial examinations"; it was as if it was about to create an even more terrifying literary legend on top of that—each piece a national treasure, a national treasure!
"This guy... is too scary!"

A storm raged within Zhao Mingcheng, and his legs trembled uncontrollably, making it difficult for him to even stand.

Jiang Xingzhou's brilliance in the imperial examinations was in no way inferior to Chen Shaoqing, who had achieved the highest honors in all three levels of the examinations! No, it was even... superior!
Could he be the next Chen Shaoqing?

No, he might be even more terrifying than Chen Shaoqing!
Zhao Mingcheng's heart pounded, and he broke out in a cold sweat, almost wanting to turn around and run away.

He never imagined that he, a Hanlin scholar and the chief examiner of this imperial examination, would be so awestruck by the talent of a candidate!

but……

He clenched his fist tightly, his nails digging deep into his palm, forcibly suppressing the fear.

Even if Jiang Xingzhou is a genius, he is only a newly appointed Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) at present!
Later, one must become a Hanlin Academy Academician and a Grand Academician of the Ten Halls and Ten Pavilions, both of which require promotion.

Only then are they qualified to enter the central government of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries... Which of these positions is easy to climb?
Back then, it took Chen Shaoqing, the Grand Secretary, a full twenty years to rise from the top scholar in the Three Realms to the Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion and finally to the position of Grand Secretary.

Even if Jiang Xingzhou truly possesses extraordinary abilities, he would have to endure at least one or two decades in the imperial court to truly threaten Chen Shaoqing's position!
And these past twenty years... have been enough for him to die countless times!
A cold glint flashed in Zhao Mingcheng's eyes. He calmed down, took a deep breath, suppressed the surging horror in his chest, and his eyes grew increasingly gloomy.

He straightened his official robe, his fingers trembling slightly inside his sleeve, but he still forced himself to remain calm and walked step by step toward the Jiangnan Examination Hall.

Inside the examination room, Jiang Xingzhou wielded his pen like a sword, his ink falling like rain, his literary aura surging like a dragon.

Zhao Mingcheng stood outside the examination hall, his gaze icy, his voice low and slow, as if talking to himself, or like a venomous snake flicking its tongue—

"Enough is enough."

Haven't you heard the saying, "The tallest tree in the forest is the first to be felled by the wind"?

He sneered, his sleeves fluttering slightly, and his fingertips tapped lightly on the wooden railing of the examination room, producing a dull sound.

"No matter how amazing he is, he is just a poor scholar, a rootless duckweed."

Even if someone possesses extraordinary talent, it would still take ten or twenty years to establish themselves in the imperial court!

Before that happens, it's best to keep a low profile!
"Watch out, the steel knife might break!"

He turned his head slightly, the shadow obscuring half of his face.

"Don't try to shake a tree like an ant; you're overestimating your abilities and courting death."

Jiang Xingzhou paused slightly, raised his eyes to glance at the seemingly dignified figure outside the examination hall, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips.

—A clown!
A dignified Hanlin scholar and chief examiner of this imperial examination, instead of thinking about selecting talents for the country, he lingers outside the examination hall like a hyena kept by someone, trying to suppress literature with his power.

He lightly tapped the table with his fingertips, causing the ink in the inkstone to ripple slightly.

Let's see what Zhao Mingcheng can do to me!
"Wow--"

Jiang Xingzhou casually grabbed a paper slip from the table and unfolded it with a flick of his sleeve.

The words in black and white on the white paper immediately caught the eye—[Longyou], [Guanzhong].

His gaze turned cold, and his knuckles turned white.

"These are the two articles!"

Jiang Xingzhou suddenly chuckled, picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and began to write with flowing strokes.

Since some people don't want to see him rise to prominence in the imperial examinations—

Then he would show all the officials what true power was, this was just the appetizer!
Jiang Xingzhou stared at the question, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

"Writing about Longyou,"

A slight smile played on his lips as his brush was already dipped in thick ink.

He didn't even bother with drafts, but wrote quickly directly on the Xuan paper answer sheet.

"The most noteworthy is Wang Zhihuan's 'Liangzhou Ci' from the Tang Dynasty—"

With a flourish of the wolf-hair brush, the ink strokes leaped and danced like dragons and snakes:
The Yellow River flows far up into the white clouds, a lone city stands amidst ten thousand mountains.

Why should the Qiang flute lament the willows? The spring breeze never reaches Yumen Pass.
The scholarly atmosphere within the examination hall surged and condensed into a phantom image of the Yellow River, rushing straight up to the heavens.

The three characters "Yumen Pass" transformed into a majestic city gate in the sky above the examination hall, suppressing all directions!

"As for Guanzhong, what other poem can compare to Zhang Yanghao's 'Mountain Slope Sheep: Reminiscing about the Yuan Dynasty at Tongguan'?"

Jiang Xingzhou sneered, and without pausing, his brush moved like a dragon and a snake:
[Peaks gather like a crowd, waves surge like fury, the Tongguan Pass lies between mountains and rivers.]

Looking westward towards the capital, I hesitated.

Heartbreaking are the places where the Qin and Han dynasties once stood; countless palaces have all turned to dust.

Prosperity brings suffering to the people;
When the dynasty falls, the people suffer!
As the last stroke was made, the entire examination hall trembled violently!

The words "Tongguan" in the poem transformed into blood-red mountains, while the words "the people suffer" burst forth with dazzling golden light, blinding Zhao Mingcheng and the others.

"Part Four, Part Five."

"Two more articles to protect the nation!"

Inside and outside the examination hall, countless candidates and officials from the Ministry of Rites were horrified.

After writing two essays, Jiang Xingzhou's inspiration ran dry, but he put down his pen to recharge. He then looked out of the examination hall, his eyes gleaming with a sharp glint.

Inside the examination hall, the officials of the Ministry of Rites, both high and low, were already in complete chaos.

"boom--"

As the fifth poem, a testament to national strength, was unveiled, the entire examination hall trembled violently. The literary imagery overlapped, and a dazzling array of colors erupted, overwhelming the senses.

Thunder roared across the sky, and the wind howled relentlessly!
The officials of the Ministry of Rites, both high and low, were pale-faced and huddled together in a helpless frenzy.

"This, this!" An elderly official from the Ministry of Rites staggered backward, his official hat askew. "I have been an official for thirty or forty years, and I have never seen such a scene before!"

"Quickly! Restore order to the examination rules! Order all candidates to remain calm and not panic!"

The examiner yelled at the top of his lungs, but the exam papers on the table were lifted up by an invisible literary aura and fluttered in the air like snowflakes.

Zhao Mingcheng gripped the corridor handrail tightly, his knuckles turning white.

He watched helplessly as the soaring literary energy transformed into a five-colored canopy, enveloping the examination room where Jiang Xingzhou was located—this was clearly the legendary phenomenon of talent erupting like a volcano, a "five-energy convergence"!
"Rebellion! Rebellion!"

His lips were pale and trembling, but he couldn't utter a single complete sentence.

Inside the examination hall, Jiang Xingzhou watched the officials rushing around in a panic, a cold smile playing on his lips.

These usually high-ranking court officials were now like ants on a hot pan, not knowing what to do.

The examiner, Tang Xiujin, held the cup with a slight tremor in his hand, and a startling light flashed in his aged eyes.

He repeatedly recited the poem "Liangzhou Ci," and unconsciously stood up.

"What a magnificent description of 'a lone city amidst towering mountains'!"

His strong fingers pressed heavily on the words "lonely city," his voice trembling with excitement:
"With just seven words, the perilous terrain of the Yumen Pass in Longyou is vividly depicted!"

The isolation of Yumen Pass and the arduous defense by the border soldiers are all contained within this passage!

How could someone who isn't from a military family possess such keen observation skills?!

"'The spring breeze does not reach Yumen Pass'—this line perfectly captures the heartbreaking longing of countless soldiers guarding the frontier. The spring breeze from their hometown cannot reach Yumen Pass!"

As he straightened up, tears welled up in his eyes: "I have guarded the border for decades, and only today do I realize what a masterpiece truly is!"

The isolated city and the Jade Gate Pass truly embody the essence of Longyou poetry, capturing its finest beauty!
Such poignant and heart-wrenching words could only have been penned by someone who had personally experienced three to five decades of frontier service!

At this point, Tang Xiujin suddenly stopped.

He then remembered that the author of such a poem was a young scholar who had never set foot outside of Jiangnan and had not yet come of age—Jiang Xingzhou!

This Minister of War, who had experienced decades of ups and downs in the imperial court, stood frozen before the jade steps of the Minglun Hall like a child just starting school.

Every wrinkle on his aged face trembled.

"This young man is truly a peerless prodigy."

His dry lips parted, and his voice was hoarse beyond belief.

Above the sky, the words of a poem titled "Liangzhou Ci" were shining brightly. The chilling aura emanating from the lines sent shivers down the spine of this veteran general who had been guarding the border for many years.

"My test is this: [If you don't understand the country, how can you govern it?]"

Tang Xiu's laughter carried an indescribable desolation: "I had hoped that these scholars who only talk the talk would at least become more familiar with the situation of our sect, and stop just spouting empty words."

Experience the difficulties of governing a country!
Only in this way can one serve as a county magistrate or prefectural governor in the future!
But unexpectedly…

He turned around abruptly, his official robes fluttering in the wind: "There really is someone who can understand all ten paths of the world!"

Jiang Xingzhou's understanding of the Ten Paths of the Great Zhou Dynasty had penetrated to his very bones and was ingrained in his blood!

At this point, the Minister of War choked up: "He clearly used his flesh and blood to measure every inch of the mountains and rivers of the ten circuits of the Great Zhou!"
Even though I served as the governor of the northern frontier for ten years, and considered myself skilled in governing the border regions, I still couldn't match his profound understanding of the northern frontier, Longyou, and Guanzhong!

The sleeves of the official robe of Wei Shili, the Minister of Rites, were already soaked with tears.

With trembling hands, this high-ranking official copied a poem, "Mountain Slope Sheep: Reminiscing about the Yuan Dynasty at Tongguan," onto a scroll of paper.

The ink on the rice paper was not yet dry, and each stroke seemed to be weeping blood.

In the former Yuan Dynasty, the northwestern border region was a land of constant warfare and endless conflict.

Centuries of war have ravaged the Guanzhong Plain, leaving its people impoverished and their lives filled with misery.

"[The places where the Qin and Han dynasties once stood are now only dust, a testament to the sorrow of those who passed through them.]"

Prosperity brings suffering to the people;
When the dynasty falls, the people suffer!
With just these three sentences, Jiang Xingzhou's compassion is truly moving! Only a grandmaster of literature could do this!
That was a masterpiece that transformed the suffering of all living beings into words that pierced the heart!

All the officials, high and low, of the Ministry of Rites wiped away their tears.

The desolation conveyed between the lines enveloped the entire examination hall in a nameless sorrow.

This is no longer a poem written by a scholar who has passed the imperial examinations; even a great Confucian scholar of the time could hardly write a poem that moves people so deeply.

Wei Shili was truly impressed.

Previously, he had no feelings for Jiang Xingzhou and paid him no attention.

Now, you can experience the exam in person.

This dignified Minister of Rites was deeply moved and felt immense respect for Jiang Xingzhou.

Jiang Xingzhou's literary and moral heart has reached the level of a great Confucian scholar, a state of compassion for humanity.

Even the most ardent scholars in the Hanlin Academy, who devoted their entire lives to studying the classics, could not write a single line of such an article!
One or two thousand candidates from Longyou and Guanzhong looked up in bewilderment, their pupils reflecting the two brilliant moons in the sky.

"who am I?"

A scholar from Longyou dropped his brush with a "plop," and ink splattered onto the exam paper, creating a stain.

"Where are we?

The candidates from Guanzhong Road were completely stunned, craning their necks to look at the radiant "Liangzhou Ci" and "Tongguan Huaigu".

"Uh... I remember now."

An elderly scholar from Longyou looked around blankly, then suddenly pinched himself hard.

Pain.

I remembered——

This is the examination hall for the Spring Imperial Examination!

And these talented scholars from Longyou, who usually pride themselves on their knowledge of the frontier, are now being trampled underfoot by a young man from Jiangnan with the purest frontier poems, crushing all their pride!
"Hahaha"

Suddenly, someone burst into a maniacal, miserable laugh inside the examination room in the northwest corner.

A scholar from Guanzhong, acting as if possessed, tore at his clothes: "I have studied Guanzhong history books for thirty years and read hundreds of volumes of local county gazetteers!"
But it's not as good as his three lines of poetry—

[The places where the Qin and Han dynasties once stood are now only dust, a testament to the sorrow of those who passed through them.]

Prosperity brings suffering to the people;
When the dynasty falls, the people suffer!
So many epic tales are encapsulated in these three sentences!

Suppressed sobs could be heard from all over the examination hall.

These once arrogant scholars are now finally experiencing the same hardships that scholars from the north, the central plains, and the south have tasted—

That was the bitterness that seeped from the very marrow when one was crushed by absolute talent.

"Snapped--"

The crisp sound of a slap echoed particularly loudly in one of the examination rooms.

Qin Wen, the top scholar from Guanzhong, slapped himself hard, his right cheek quickly swelling up, but he seemed oblivious, staring intently at the poem "Remembering Tongguan" in the sky.

"[Peaks gather like a crowd, waves surge like fury, the Tongguan Pass lies between mountains and rivers.]"
Tongguan, Tongguan!
Tongguan County, this is my hometown!

This talented scholar from Guanzhong suddenly collapsed onto the desk, his forehead slamming heavily against the edge of the inkstone: "I, Qin Wen, am unworthy to be a native of Tongguan!"

Even the very soul of our hometown has to be written by outsiders!

Blood trickled down his forehead, but he laughed bitterly: "After I finish this spring examination, I'm going back to Tongguan to kneel in the ancestral hall!"

Not far away, there was another examination room.

Li Yuankui, the top scholar of Longyou, slumped down, his carefully prepared copy of "Longxi Chapter" scattered on the ground.

He gazed at the poem "Liangzhou Ci" in the sky and suddenly recalled the words of Lü Mengzheng, the top scholar from the northern frontier—

"Wherever the boats on the river go, we should retreat three steps to avoid their sharp edge!"

Li Yuankui finished the sentence with a wry smile, his voice hoarse beyond belief.

This once renowned prodigy of Longyou finally understands what true despair is.

It wasn't the resentment of losing to peers, but rather the sense of powerlessness that welled up from the bottom of one's heart when facing an insurmountable mountain.

In a corner of the examination hall, thousands of candidates from Jiangnan Road silently ground their ink and wrote poems at a leisurely pace.

They were already used to being pressed to the ground and repeatedly kneaded and ruthlessly crushed—after all, back in Jiangnan, many people had already been rubbed into the ground many times by that monster.

Chen Mansion.

Grand Secretary Chen Shaoqing stood with his hands behind his back in front of the window, the rosewood window frame creaking softly under his knuckles.

The towering beam of light outside the window stretched his shadow long, casting it onto the blue brick floor like a drawn sword.

Twenty years.

He entered officialdom at a young age and has now risen to the top of three provinces and six ministries. How many people's bones have paved his way to success?

The Chen family of Yingchuan, with its thousand-year-old lineage and three generations of painstaking efforts, has earned the title of Grand Secretary with the purple-gold fish-shaped pouch today.

—The struggles in the imperial court have always been a matter of life and death!

Allies? Just pawns.

Political enemies? Just skeletons.

He slowly stroked the jade belt at his waist, then suddenly let out a cold laugh.

Outside the window, the beams of light above the Imperial Examination Hall grew increasingly dazzling, illuminating the entire city of Luoyang as if it were daytime.

The light that fell into his eyes felt three times colder than the frost and snow of the twelfth lunar month.

"Jiang Xingzhou is truly greedy!"

A cold glint flashed in Chen Shaoqing's eyes, and his fingers tightened abruptly.

—The power of the central government of the Three Departments and Six Ministries of the Great Zhou Dynasty can only be held in the hands of Chen Shaoqing of the Chen family!
"Who is in the examination hall right now?"

Chen Shaoqing's voice was deep, and his knuckles slowly tapped the table, producing a dull sound.

The servant bowed and spoke very quickly: "The chief examiners are Zhao Mingcheng, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy; Xu Shiheng, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites; and Zhao Wen, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites..."

Zhao Mingcheng was Chen Shaoqing's trusted follower.

Although Xu Shiheng and Zhao Wen, the two vice ministers of the Ministry of Rites, were not his direct subordinates, they were still affiliated with the Grand Secretary and usually followed his lead.

—In this imperial court, apart from the ministers of the three provinces and the heads of the six ministries, how many people dare to act without respecting the whims of the Grand Secretary?!
"Hmm." Chen Shaoqing nodded slightly, a flash of coldness crossing his eyes. "Pass on a message to Zhao Mingcheng, tell him to tell Jiang Xingzhou—it's easy to break if you've gone too far, know when to stop!"

He lightly tapped the memorial on the table with his fingertips, his voice low but undeniable: "These three articles that safeguard the nation are already astonishing. To continue writing them may not be a blessing."

He paused, a slight smile playing on his lips, his tone carrying a hint of both kindness and power: "Tell Jiang Xingzhou that I can make an exception and recommend him for the position of Vice Minister in one of the Six Ministries, second only to the Minister."

He came from a humble background; to have achieved this much is already an incredible stroke of luck. He should be content.

Before the words were finished, suddenly—

"Crack!"

A thunderclap ripped through the night sky, causing the candlelight to flicker and illuminating Chen Shaoqing's suddenly somber face.

"Report! Jiang Xingzhou's fourth chapter, [Protecting the Nation]!"

"Report! Jiang Xingzhou's fifth chapter, [Suppressing the Nation]!"

The servant came to report, his voice trembling and choked with sobs. They seemed to sense it too: a storm was brewing, and something terrible was about to happen.

"boom--"

Thunder rumbled, like the wrath of heaven and the resentment of man.

Chen Shaoqing's body swayed suddenly, and everything went black before his eyes, making him almost unable to stand.

—What exactly is Jiang Xingzhou planning to do?!

(End of this chapter)