Di Ming

Chapter 166 Autumn in August
Good things don't go out, bad things pass thousands of miles.

In just one day, the whole city was abuzz with news, and everyone knew about it.

Something happened to the Zhang and Liu families in Qingqiao.

The two companies were not only involved in smuggling overseas, but also colluded with eunuchs from two bureaus to resell imperial tribute silks.

Even more ridiculous, two smuggling merchant ships fully loaded with goods were actually robbed and murdered by pirates in the waters off Chongming Island.

Not only were goods worth 300,000 taels lost, but more than 300 of the family soldiers also died. The compensation alone would amount to 20,000 to 30,000 taels of silver.

Zhang Shixun is also suspected of arson and murder, and has been interrogated by the Imperial Censor. All three charges will be tried together.

Those in the know understand that both companies are finished.

Even the official position of Zhang Xianyi, the patriarch of the Zhang family, was affected by his son, and impeachment was inevitable.

At the very least, it would be a case of failing to properly manage his household and educate his children. He'd barely settled into his newly acquired position as Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Shandong before being reassigned.

Subsequently, Liu Yuanchu was also imprisoned by Jiangning County for two crimes: reselling imperial tribute silk and smuggling it overseas.

The heads of the Zhang and Liu families were arrested within a single day.

The two men had just been arrested when the homeless people who had been begging peacefully before suddenly rushed into the two courtyards and robbed them of their belongings!
Their reasoning was that the Zhang and Liu families had committed crimes, were rich but uncharitable, disregarded the law, and made their fortunes unjustly, even daring to sell the emperor's possessions!

With both families' servants perishing at sea, how could they possibly stop the large influx of refugees?

Before they could report it to the authorities, the refugees rushed into the inner courtyard and took anything of value they saw.

Calligraphy and paintings, porcelain, antiques, screens, furniture... take whatever is valuable.

The members of both families, armed with weapons, fiercely guarded the treasury, thus preventing it from being robbed.

The large group of refugees looted the two houses for more than half an hour, practically taking all the valuables and valuables except for the treasury!
That's incredibly audacious. The Liu family is one thing, but the Zhang family compound belongs to the Shandong Provincial Surveillance Commissioner!
Fortunately, the refugees seemed to have discussed it beforehand, and there was no murder, arson, or rape of women; they only looted.

Even worse, a group of vagrants led by someone stormed the accounting offices of the two companies and stole the loan receipts from the two loan sharks, all of which had the debtors' fingerprints on them.

These usurious loan receipts were worth tens of thousands of taels of silver in principal and involved thousands of debtors.

Once the refugees had fled, the once magnificent and luxurious garden was practically emptied out.

The losses were extremely severe and difficult to estimate!
Many of the women wailed and cried, their grief heart-wrenching.

Their jewelry was all stolen.

Good heavens! Those damned robbers!
The brothers and uncles who temporarily took over the household affairs felt no joy in managing the family, because they had inherited a mess!
Now, even the tenants and patrons of the two companies have been attracted by the low-interest loans offered by Zhu's Bank and have abandoned the two companies.

With the Zhu family backing them up, the tenant farmers were no longer afraid of them.

...

When the news spread, the cargo owners who had previously cooperated with the two companies rushed to their doors, demanding that they immediately pay for the goods.

The smuggling ship that was hijacked by pirates had goods worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.

Seeing that both families were about to suffer misfortune and might have their homes confiscated for being "traitors," they no longer cared about their friendship and demanded that the payment be handed over immediately.

The goods were purchased from them by the Zhang and Liu families, but they hadn't been paid yet. The two families originally planned to pay them after the goods were delivered to Chongming Island and they received the silver.

But now, the goods have been stolen, the servants are dead, and not a single tael of silver has been returned; in fact, the money still has to be repaid to the owner!
The two families were utterly devastated!
Misfortunes never come singly; this is adding insult to injury.

Seeing that the two families were refusing to pay, the cargo owners feared that the government would preemptively seal up the two families' treasuries.

So these wealthy men also hardened their hearts. They took the IOUs and, under the pretext of repaying debts, took advantage of Zhang Shixun and Liu Yuanchu being arrested, and led their servants to force their way into the two families' treasuries to settle the debts.

They didn't take more than they were entitled to; they only took the payment they were owed.

However, this resulted in both families losing over 100,000 taels of silver.

Then, the next day, the order from the garrison eunuch Tian Yi arrived.

Pretending that the Zhang and Liu families were illegally smuggling tribute silks from the palace, the court seized their account books and treasuries, sealed off their inner courtyards, and moved all members of both families to the front courtyard for temporary residence.

On the same day, the Imperial Inspector Qiao Bixing and the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of Nanjing Wang Yongji jointly submitted a memorial impeaching the newly appointed Shandong Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Zhang Xianyi.

Qiao Bixing's words were very harsh, directly stating:

"His son's actions are intolerable under the law. Since he has persisted in his evil ways and continued his misconduct for so long, it is impossible to atone for his failure to properly educate his son by condoning or tolerating such behavior. Even if he had instigated or encouraged his son to commit evil, he would not be exempt from punishment..."

This means that Zhang Xianyi's actions were not simply a matter of failing to properly educate his son; it was either an act of indulgence and leniency, or he instigated his son.

Qiao Bixing was an imperial inspector, and his influence was considerable. With this impeachment, along with the impeachments from Tian Yi and Wang Yongji, Zhang Xianyi would be demoted even if he wasn't dismissed from his post.

If he had any sense of shame, he would have resigned because of his son's situation.

According to the customs of Ming Dynasty officials, Zhang Xianyi would most likely retreat in order to advance, resign from office to take responsibility, and then plan to be reinstated.

The so-called crimes of reselling tribute silk and smuggling are committed by many people. In fact, the crimes can be serious or minor, depending on whether one gets caught and how seriously one takes them.

Just like embezzlement, most officials do it. It can be a big deal or a small deal; if they don't get caught or investigated, nothing happens, but once they are caught and investigated, it becomes a big deal.

Unfortunately, both Tian Yi and Qiao Bixing were very serious.

……

Inside the summer chamber of the Zhu family's inner courtyard, Ning Caiwei listened with a smile to Ding Hongxiu's report while eating cantaloupe:
"...So much silk! The brothers spent ages carrying it. I bet once it gets to the island, the commander and my father will be so happy they'll order a feast..."

"But the 20,000 taels of silver as a deposit was given to the Zhang family. Our money is gone..."

Ning Caiwei personally handed her a piece of melon. "Those silks, although they were my idea and plan, were ultimately spoils of war won by the soldiers of the Jinghai Army."

"Without the Jinghai Army's participation, our plans would be difficult to succeed. Public matters are public matters, and private matters are private matters."

"Therefore, I will only take half of the spoils for myself, and the other half will belong to the public and be considered as the spoils of the Jinghai Navy."

"Once the goods are sold, I'll take half the silver."

Although these goods are worth 300,000 taels, they would fetch far more than 300,000 taels if sold in Macau or Japan!

With one resale, it should fetch at least 500,000 taels. Then, Ningyin Trading Company will receive 250,000 taels!
What an incredible windfall!

Ding Hongying and the others were utterly impressed by Ning Caiwei.

Making money like this is ruthless, absolutely ruthless.

They treated the Zhang and Liu families, these powerful local families, like infants.

However, Ning Caiwei knew very well that without Little Tiger's intelligence support, dealing with the two families would not be so easy for her.

Ning Caiwei took out an account book. "Hongxiu, get ready. We're going to buy up the Liu family's assets. We'll swallow the Liu family first."

"We will buy the Liu family's land, shops, and even the brothels in town at low prices. They will have no choice but to sell them off cheaply."

Ding Hongying was a little puzzled, "Why only take over the Liu family's property? What about the Zhang family's? Are we out of money? We can borrow from Master Tian."

Gu Hongxiu shook her head: "The Zhang family has a high-ranking official, how can we swallow them up? As long as Old Master Zhang is not finished, we cannot swallow the Zhang family, even if we have money."

“The Liu family is different. Their official lord is dead, and now they've been hit with another disaster, which is why we can make our move.”

Ning Caiwei said, "We don't have enough silver. Even if we force the Liu family to sell their property at a low price, it will still cost at least thirty or forty thousand taels of silver. I'll go to the garrison headquarters to borrow money. Hongxiu, you take some people to see the Liu family and make them agree to our conditions—"

“If they don’t agree…” Ning Caiwei smiled coldly, “their former tenants will take away the land that rightfully belongs to them, and the government will shut down their shops and brothels… In the end, they will have nothing.”

"If they're smart, they'll let us take it over at 20% of the original price, and we can still get tens of thousands of taels of silver. If they're too late, they won't even get 20%..."

"Alright, I'll take care of it right away!" Gu Hongxiu smiled brightly. "It's so enjoyable working with you, young lady. I never thought I, a woman like Gu Hongxiu, would have a chance to prove myself!"

Ning Caiwei said calmly, "Don't rush this matter. We can force them slowly. It's a big deal. The Liu family will take at least two or three months to figure it out. They won't sell their assets at a low price unless absolutely necessary."

"But the acquisition must be successful before September."

"I want to warn other wealthy and powerful families who want to take advantage of the Liu family not to stick their claws into Qingqiao, or I will chop off their claws."

"Hehe, if our family passes the imperial examination, the Liu family will no longer dare to hesitate."

……

Ning Caiwei was ruthless and ruthless in the outside world, using all her methods in officialdom, business, and public opinion. She not only obtained goods and IOUs, but also forced the Liu family, who were in dire straits, to sell their assets at a low price.

However, Zhu Yin was in seclusion studying, oblivious to everything else.

I went through all the possible questions in the provincial examinations again and again.

In particular, the first exam focused on the Doctrine of the Mean. Every sentence and every word of the text was analyzed and interpreted in the context of Zhu Xi's psychological understanding.

Then, imitating Zhu Xi's mindset, he wrote one essay after another in the eight-legged essay style.

He even stopped going to the Imperial Academy. He felt that the trip was too time-consuming, and that preparing for the exams at the Imperial Academy was less efficient than preparing on his own.

He would visit Shen Yiguan every five days to receive guidance on his essays. Soon, the provincial examination, held in late June, arrived. This examination was a qualification test for those who wished to participate in the provincial examination.

Zhu Yin was already able to get first place in the monthly exams, and he passed the imperial examinations with ease.

After the imperial examinations concluded, Zhu Yin's qualifying tickets were distributed.

The floating ticket is the examination admission ticket and also the candidate's ID card.

Issuing floating tickets was actually the first step in the examination process. It meant that the candidates were qualified to participate in the provincial examination and could use the floating tickets to travel to the two capitals or the provincial capital to take the exam.

Zhu Yin saw his name, hometown, age, and school written on his ticket.

Having obtained the floating vote meant that Zhu Yin truly had a place in the provincial examination.

Next, we just have to wait for the examiner's message.

The examiners were divided into outer curtain officials and inner curtain officials.

The imperial inspector, who supervised the examinations, was the most important official in charge of the outer curtain. The examiners, of course, were the officials in charge of the inner curtain.

Zhu Yin intensified his review while waiting for news from the examiner every day, feeling that the days were passing very slowly.

……

Early August.

Finally, news arrived: following the cabinet meeting in Beijing, the official examination papers were issued, and the Grand Minister of Rites announced the decree at the Meridian Gate, confirming that the examiners of the Imperial Examination Hall had been officially appointed.

The chief examiner of Yingtian was Liu Yuanzhen, the Left Vice Minister of the Left Spring Palace and concurrently a Reader-in-Waiting of the Hanlin Academy.

The deputy chief examiner was Wang Zudi, the tutor of the Imperial Household Department.

According to regulations, once the cabinet issues a memorial, the chief examiner must leave the capital within five days and is not allowed to receive guests during this period.

Considering the varying distances between Yingtian and other provinces from Beijing, the appointment of examiners for each province also occurred at different times.

In fact, before the thirteenth year of the Wanli reign, the examiners for the provincial and Nanjing provincial examinations could be selected by the imperial inspectors from among the teachers of local prefectural schools, and the imperial court did not necessarily send officials from the capital to serve as chief examiners.

This demonstrates just how powerful the Imperial Inspector was. Back then, the Imperial Inspector was the true chief examiner.

However, due to the existence of fraudulent activities, the court changed the rules starting in the thirteenth year of the Wanli Emperor's reign.

Although the imperial inspector still supervised the examination on-site and could select co-examiners and supervisors, the two chief examiners had to be officials appointed by the central government from Beijing.

Therefore, although Qiao Bixing was the Imperial Inspector of Yingtian, he no longer had the power to appoint the chief examiner of the provincial examination. He only appointed four co-examiners and one supervisor.

On the fifth day of the eighth month of the sixteenth year of the Wanli reign, Wang Zudi and others, the chief examiners of the provincial examination for the year of Wuzi in Yingtian, who had traveled south from Beijing, secretly arrived in Nanjing.

The imperial inspector immediately led the supervising official out of the city to welcome the chief examiner, and then, in accordance with the regulations for officials from outside Nanjing visiting Nanjing, they went together to Xiaoling Mausoleum to offer sacrifices.

After the ceremony at the mausoleum, the supervising official led the examiners into the city and immediately into the mansion in the examination hall. Then, according to the rules, the tribute was "locked up," and the inspector affixed a seal.

From today until the results are announced at the end of the month, the examiners are not allowed to leave the examination hall. They will eat and sleep in the examiners' quarters within the examination hall and are strictly prohibited from leaving.

Then, the troops of the Five Cities Garrison surrounded the area, and the yamen soldiers of Yingtian Prefecture and Jiangning County also kept a close watch.

No one was allowed to enter the examination hall, and not even a single note was allowed to leave the examination hall.

There were four tall watchtowers around the examination hall, where government soldiers stood watch and overlooked the entire examination hall to monitor any cheating.

This is the "tribute lock" system, which originated in the Song Dynasty and is still in use today.

As for the questions for the provincial examinations, there were also many intricacies involved.

The four examiners drew lots. The examiner who drew a lot divided each of the four books into several sections and then presented them to the chief examiner.

The examiner selects one passage from each of several passages and circles it as the scope of the exam.

Then, the four examiners each asked a question from several passages, for a total of sixteen questions.

These sixteen questions were then presented to the chief examiner. The chief examiner selected three questions. These three questions were the first to be tested in the first round: "The Meaning of the Four Books".

However, although these three questions are all from the Four Books, their importance varies. The first question is the most crucial.

In other words, the first of the three exams is the most important. And in the first exam, the first question is the most important. Therefore, the most weighted question is the very first question of the first exam.

The examination procedure for the Five Classics is similar to that for the Four Books. However, the Five Classics are optional, with a total of twenty questions, four for each classic, and candidates only need to choose one classic to study.

Zhu Yin chose to study the Book of Poetry among the Five Classics because he was most familiar with it and had the most profound understanding of it.

As a time traveler, Zhu Yin's understanding of this year's provincial examination in Yingtian was limited to knowing that the first question of the first session was based on the *Doctrine of the Mean*. Therefore, his focus for reviving the *Doctrine of the Mean* was on it.

This is his first small advantage.

His second minor advantage was that he was a candidate from the Imperial Academy. Why was this also an advantage in the exam?

Because candidates from the Imperial Academy had a higher chance of being admitted to the lowest level of the imperial examinations than those from prefectural or county schools. How much higher? Twice as high.

The examination papers of Imperial Academy students were numbered differently from those of Xiucai students. The paper numbers contained the character "皿" at the beginning, so they were also called "皿字卷" (dish-character paper).

In Southern Zhili, 135 candidates were admitted as Juren (successful candidates in the provincial examinations), while only 30 were candidates from the Imperial Academy. The problem is, the number of Xiucai (successful candidates in the county-level examinations) far exceeded the number of Imperial Academy students.

With these two small advantages, Zhu Yin felt he had a 60% chance of winning!
With the arrival of the triennial autumn imperial examination, the entire city of Nanjing has become even more lively and immersed in a tense and exciting atmosphere.

The lanterns and couplets in brothels, inns, pleasure boats, and restaurants have been changed to reflect the festive atmosphere of the imperial examinations, such as "passing the exam with flying colors" and "passing the imperial examination with flying colors".

Even beggars on the street would change their begging phrases to more elegant ones when they saw scholars: "May you be blessed with good fortune, may the star of literature descend to earth, and may your descendants be noble and powerful for generations to come..."

The entire Zhu family felt an invisible pressure.

Lancha and several other Jurchens, after learning about the importance of the provincial examination, also prayed to Mother Foduo to bless Ezhen to pass with flying colors.

Even in the vast Qingqiao area, many people were paying attention to Zhu Yin, Gu Qiyuan, and a few others who were participating in the provincial examination.

Gu Qiyuan was different from Zhu Yin. He wasn't enthusiastic about reviewing his lessons; his mind was still on epigraphy, which left Zhao Chan'er helpless.

Zhao Chan'er scolded her husband, "You both have the same opportunity to participate in the provincial examination. Look at Zhihu, he is so hardworking at such a young age. He is really smart and diligent. But you are not worried at all."

Gu Qiyuan said, "These things can't be rushed. It all depends on fate. I've reached the right level, and I no longer need to study the Four Books and Five Classics. I don't need to study as hard as Zhihu. Whether I pass or not depends on luck."

Zhao Chan'er knew that what he said made a lot of sense and she couldn't refute it.

These past few days, both the Confucius Temple and the Wenchang Temple have been packed with people.

Whether they were students in Nanjing or candidates from other prefectures and counties in Southern Zhili, as well as their families, they all went to the Confucius Temple and the Wenchang Temple to offer incense and worship Confucius and the God of Zitong.

Ning Caiwei also led people to the Confucius Temple and the Wenchang Temple to worship Confucius and the God of Zitong.

Because the provincial examinations are held on the same date across the country, the entire Ming Dynasty is now focused on the autumn provincial examinations.

On the sixth day of the eighth month, Zhu Yin, Gu Qiyuan, and others, carrying the purchased scrolls, entered the imperial city together to go to the Ministry of Rites to "print the scrolls" and "register and approve them."

To Zhu Yin's dismay, despite the grand scale of the provincial examination, the imperial court not only failed to provide writing materials, but even the examination papers had to be brought by the candidates themselves.

However, in order to prevent candidates from cheating, they were required to bring a dozen or so drafts and the final exam paper to the government office in charge of this matter to register their information three days before the exam.

After inspecting the roll of paper and finding no problems, and confirming that it met the specifications and paper quality, the official in charge would stamp the roll with his official seal and personal notes, thus declaring the roll qualified.

Then, red grids were printed on the scroll paper, similar to the composition books of later generations. It turns out that the composition books of later generations originated from ancient times.

This process is called "printing".

Zhu Yin couldn't understand why, if the exam papers could be printed and distributed uniformly, there had to be an extra step of "printing the papers."

Once the exam papers are printed and the registration is approved, all the pre-exam procedures are complete.

Next comes the formal exam.

That day, Zhu Yin went to the Ministry of Rites, and Ning Caiwei was not idle either.

She purchased a wide variety of items needed for the examination, covering everything imaginable, and had already prepared everything perfectly for Zhu Yin.

Entering the Imperial Examination Hall is like entering a deep sea. Now, the autumn heat is raging, and the weather is unbearably hot and humid. After all, the little tiger is only eleven years old. He will have to stay inside for a full nine days, with only two short breaks to "go out for fresh air." How could Ning Caiwei dare not make thorough and meticulous preparations?
For food, Ning Caiwei prepared milk candy, pastries, mooncakes, braised meat, pickles, ginseng slices, longan, and other items.

In terms of examination supplies, not only were there examination baskets filled with writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones, but also toothbrushes, tooth powder, scented soap, candle scissors, candlesticks, candles, lanterns, teapots, door curtains and other items were prepared.

There are also Boshan incense burners, spices, and so on.

Ning Qingchen also prepared medicines to refresh the mind, as well as medicines to improve blood circulation and relieve summer heat.

My sister-in-law is so thoughtful.

On the ninth day of the eighth month of the sixteenth year of the Wanli reign, the autumn imperial examinations officially began!

P.S.: That's all for today. These past two days have been very fast-paced, thank you, goodnight! Hopefully I can maintain my position on the monthly ticket rankings this month! Sorry for the many typos tonight, I've been too busy.

(End of this chapter)