You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 311 The First Underwater Swimming Competition for Imperial Examination Candidates at the Summer Palace

Overwhelmed with gratitude, Emperor Shunzhi reached out and helped the equally flattered Jin Shengtan to his feet.

"You are Jin Shengtan, the talented scholar from Wu County?"

"I have read your books. Your 'Water Margin Storytelling' is excellent. It is profound yet easy to understand, and the characters come to life on the page. I love reading it every time I read it."

Jin Shengtan was so excited that he couldn't utter a complete sentence.

What is it like for a poor, penniless writer who makes a living by writing to have his novel praised by the emperor in public?

Happiness needs no words!

Back in Suzhou Prefecture, when Qian Qianyi and Wu Weiye led the "Donglin Scholars" to protest against Jiang Qingyun, Jin Shengtan was among them. Luckily, he didn't drown.

Logically speaking, given the severity of the crime, one should be beheaded.

However, the people personally executed by Zhu Guozhi, the governor of Jiangsu, were all powerful figures from the Donglin Party who owned tens of thousands of acres of fertile land. Poor and pedantic scholars like Jin Shengtan were not worth mentioning; he was simply treated as someone who had farted.

Later, various provinces held special imperial examinations, allowing Jin Shengtan, a poor scholar, to slip through and become a prestigious scholar, which led to the scene we see today.

……

The emperor and his minister held hands, speechless and choked with emotion.

"How did you come to the capital, my dear minister?"

"Your Majesty, we are all candidates who have come to the capital to participate in the imperial examination."

Shunzhi's heart stirred.

"Someone, serve tea to all the candidates."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The crowd was moved to tears, bowing and scraping.

So this is what it means for the Emperor of the Great Qing Dynasty to be so kind and approachable, to respect scholars and to uphold the orthodox tradition. That little Chiang Kai-shek is truly despicable; for his own selfish desires, he actually imprisoned such a sage ruler.

While the scene was in chaos~
Emperor Shunzhi said in a low voice: "My dear minister, you must pass the imperial examination with flying colors, become a high-ranking official as soon as possible, and restore the Qing dynasty."

Jin Shengtan nodded vigorously.

About half an hour later~
The candidates boarded four large boats arranged by the Ministry of Rites and sailed on Kunming Lake.

A light rain was falling, and a night cruise on the Imperial Lake, drinking wine and composing poems together, was truly a rare experience in life.

Jin Shengtan, drunk, shouted at the night sky.

"Would this move your heart?"

"How dare you not move?"

At the stern, four boatmen lowered their small boat and rowed swiftly into the night on the lake.

……

Emperor Shunzhi could not sleep at night. Standing at the window of his palace, he looked out at Kunming Lake, feeling lonely, weak, and helpless.

"emperor?"

"Consort Tong, where do you think my mother has gone?"

"Your Majesty, I dare not say."

"I've fallen to this state, what is there that you wouldn't dare to say?"

"The Empress Dowager is a woman of great courage and strength. With the world in such dire straits, she would never stand idly by. Therefore, I suspect that the Empress Dowager is either dead or under the control of Chief Minister Jiang."

The words have not yet fallen.

Thunder rumbled in the Kunming Lake.

The emperor and empress looked at each other, their eyes filled with terror.

At this moment, a small amount of ignition powder in the ship's hold exploded, which then ignited nearby oil cans, and the fire spread rapidly.

In just a few dozen breaths, lake water began to flood the cabin, and the boat began to sink.

The candidates looked like startled cockroaches.
"Help~"

"Help~"

The ship sank too fast; there wasn't even time to write a final poem.

Jin Shengtan was born in a water town. He knew that a sinking boat would create a whirlpool, so he jumped into the water in advance. However, he was drunk and his arms and legs were not under his control.

It was pitch black all around, and I couldn't tell which way was which.

As Jin Shengtan gradually weakened, he lamented, "What a pity," and then sank to the bottom of the lake.

Half an hour later, Kunming Lake returned to its deathly stillness.

The next day.

Huang Zongxi personally directed the salvage operation.

The soldiers rowed small boats and dragged the bloated corpses ashore one by one. Finally, they used fishing nets to scoop up a total of 756 corpses.

In the following days, dozens more bodies were retrieved from the water.

Huang Zongxi:
"Announce to the public that during last night's thunderstorm, some candidates were boating on Kunming Lake when their boat was struck by lightning and caught fire. This was a tragic accident, and we must learn from it." "Yes, sir."

……

Youanmen Grand Hotel.

An official from the Ministry of Rites announced loudly: "By order of the Grand Secretary, the imperial examination will be held in three days. All candidates must demonstrate their true talents and learning. The court will select the best candidates and reward them with official titles and ranks."

All the candidates bowed in unison.

Zhou Peigong was among them, his expression unchanged, but he was still shaken.

Around dusk~
There was a knock on the door.

"Is Brother Zhou here?"

"Brother Yao!"

"Want to go out for a cup of tea?"

"Very well, I shall comply."

After wandering around for a while, the two found a quiet tea stall and sat down.

Yao Qisheng asked impatiently, "Brother Zhou, do you know what the place where the scholars from Hubei lived was originally used for?"

Zhou Peigong smiled wryly and said, "It's probably a prison or an execution ground."

"That's right! It used to be the You'anmen Prison, which was specifically for detaining Manchus."

"Brother Yao, I can tell you've come from an extraordinary background."

"Now that things have come to this, I will not hide it from you. I have a recommendation letter from the Governor-General of Liangjiang. With this letter, I can meet the current Grand Secretary without taking the imperial examination."

Congratulations, Brother Yao.

Yao Qisheng remained silent, only offering a bitter smile.

Zhou Peigong lowered his voice and pointed to the sky: "Brother Yao, who exactly is that person?"

Yao Qisheng winked mischievously: "It's a man."

The two laughed heartily and finished a bowl of hot tea.

"Brother Yao, I think that person is very likely to overthrow the orthodox tradition."

“How come you see?”

"intuition."

……

Compared to Yao Qisheng, Zhou Peigong was younger and more impulsive.

“Brother Yao, we met by chance and immediately became like old friends, as close as brothers. There are some things I have to say.”

"Please speak~"

"When the Qing Dynasty entered the Central Plains, they were originally barbarians, and their killings were numerous. However, the Qing emperors respected the orthodox tradition and selected virtuous and talented people. This was a case of barbarians entering China, not China entering barbarians. Therefore, although there were minor flaws, they did not detract from the overall excellence."

"Now, the imperial power is waning, and powerful ministers are in power. They act erratically, disregard the orthodox tradition, and kill scholars in Jiangnan and the capital. It seems that they intend to wipe out all the Confucian scholars in the world."

"In my opinion, if one respects the orthodox tradition, then even the chieftains of the barbarians are rulers of the Chinese nation. If one does not respect the orthodox tradition, then even the rulers of the Chinese nation are barbarian chieftains."

silence.

There was a long silence.

Yao Qisheng put down his teacup: "Brother, I admire you. You dare to say these things, but I wouldn't dare."

"Brother Yao, I fear the three-thousand-year-old lineage of Daoist tradition is in danger."

"Then what do you mean?"

"Fight!"

"No, I think it should be about lying low, accumulating strength, and waiting," Yao Qisheng said earnestly. "When a hurricane passes over a hill, the sturdy trees are uprooted, but the grass remains unharmed. Why? Because the grass is soft and bends with the wind. We must obey it, follow it, flatter it, and preserve our usefulness."

Zhou Peigong remained silent.

Yao Qisheng continued:
"In political struggles, one must never casually reveal one's true intentions. Trying to fight a losing battle is futile; no matter how tough your neck is, can it be tougher than a steel blade?"

"Besides, that guy also commands the elite Eight Banners army. Killing 5000 or 50000 scholars is just a military order. We need to hide, be soft, be ambiguous, and be vague, and wait for the opportunity to deliver a fatal blow."

Zhou Peigong sighed softly.

Yao Qisheng spoke sincerely:
"Brother Zhou, you are too sharp and bold in your words and actions, which can easily lead you into trouble. During the imperial examination, you must hide your true intentions. As long as you are alive, you can always find a way to make a comeback."

"Thank you, Brother Yao."

When the two parted ways.

Yao Qisheng earnestly instructed again: "Brother Zhou, you must, absolutely must, conceal your true intentions."

"I will always keep Brother Yao's teachings in mind."

Zhou Peigong took two steps back, bowed, and clasped his hands, revealing the stubble of his freshly cut hair.

(End of this chapter)