White-robed Minister

Chapter 109 0107 [Ouyang Xiu: Seeing you reminds me of Han Qi]

As soon as Ouyang Xiu returned home, his son Ouyang Bian exclaimed with delight, "My lord, Xu Sanlang has become the top scholar in the imperial examination!"

"I know."

Ouyang Xiu pulled out a stack of papers: "I have already obtained the essays for the top six candidates."

Ouyang Bian quickly took it, and the other brothers also gathered around to watch.

These examination preparation documents were usually copied after the rankings were determined but before the official results were announced. They were written by clerks in the Ministry of Rites, and they could sell them for money, which many scholars were willing to buy.

In the coming months, booksellers will continue to print and sell these books.

Ouyang Xiu said to his sons, "Let's read Xu Xingzhi's 'Ode to the Emperor Da Lu' first. We can read the rest of his articles later."

""

Although his eldest son, Ouyang Fa, did not pass the imperial examination, he had been granted the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) through years of hereditary privilege. His current official position is Palace Attendant, and after two more promotions, he can become Palace Attendant Censor.

After reading the entire essay, Ouyang Fa couldn't help but sigh, "Truly worthy of a top scholar's writing; I am no match for it!"

Ouyang Bian thought to himself: You didn't even pass the imperial examination, and you had to rely on hereditary privilege to be granted the title of Jinshi. Naturally, your writing is not as good as Xu Xingzhi's.

Ouyang Xiu said, "You should all copy it once and carefully savor its essence. I will explain it to you in detail tomorrow."

The sons immediately went to copy the poem.

Ouyang Bian said in a low voice, "My lord, it seems that Xu Sanlang does not want to give the thanks money."

"Go and tell him not to apply for a tax exemption. If he needs money, he can borrow it from me," Ouyang Xiu instructed.

If you don't pay a thank-you gift, you won't offend the emperor; what you'll really offend are your fellow graduates.

Ouyang Bian said, "Many friends intended to lend him money, but he resolutely refused. He seemed to have some kind of method, but I really couldn't guess it."

Ouyang Xiu remained silent, wanting to see what Xu Lai was up to.

Prince Ying's Mansion.

Zhao Xu's life became increasingly smooth, but he struggled to keep up with his studies.

Previously there were only three teachers, but now there are five, who take turns teaching him various subjects.

There was a teacher named Sun Yong who was particularly annoying. Zhao Xu handed over his copy of "Han Feizi" to Sun Yong for proofreading, but Sun Yong said it did not conform to the Confucian classics and advised Zhao Xu not to be obsessed with this view.

Zhao Xu could only argue that it was for collection purposes, and that he actually didn't like "Han Feizi".

Ugh, so boring.

When talking with his teachers, Zhao Xu dared not tell the truth at all; he missed the days when he corresponded with Xu Lai. Unfortunately, Xu Sanlang had not returned to the capital for a long time.

"Your Highness, Your Highness!"

Zhang Anji rushed in.

"What is it?" Zhao Xu was doing his homework, which was assigned by the teachers and was causing him great distress.

Zhang Anji said in a low voice, "The results were announced today, and the top scholar has been revealed."

"So early? It's not even March yet," Zhao Xu said, puzzled.

Zhang Anji reminded him: "Understood, the palace examination will not be held."

"Oh, I almost forgot," Zhao Xu put down his brush, "Who was the top scholar?"

Zhang Anji smiled and kept everyone in suspense: "Your Highness may guess."

Zhao Xu asked, "Do I know this person?"

Zhang Anji nodded: "I recognize it."

Zhao Xu observed the eunuch's expression: "Could it be Xu Lai?"

"Your Highness is brilliant, you guessed it right away!" Zhang Anji flattered.

Zhao Xu was extremely surprised: "He's only eighteen years old this year, right? I thought it would be a few years before he passed the imperial examination, but I didn't expect him to become the top scholar so quickly."

Zhang Anji said, "I'm not the top scholar in the imperial examination yet."

This was even more prestigious in the Song Dynasty, because the palace examination could be influenced by personal connections, while the Ministry of Rites examination required a truly rigorous test.

Upon hearing Zhang Anji's words, Zhao Xu couldn't help but feel smug.

Because Xu Lai was a talent he had his eye on. He became the top scholar at such a young age, which shows that he had good judgment and was able to recognize talent!

Zhao Xu instructed, "Go and fetch Xu Lai's written document."

Zhang Anji said, "It's not available on the market for the time being; we'll probably have to wait another half month."

"Get it as soon as possible," Zhao Xu said.

"yes!"

As soon as Shen Kuo got off work, he rushed to the Yu residence to offer his congratulations with Su Song and Lin Yi.

"Haha, Xingzhi, you're really here," Su Song laughed. "We were just saying you might have gone drinking and we probably wouldn't be able to find you today."

Xu Lai warmly welcomed them and introduced Yang Shu and Yu Shanyuan.

Yu Shanyuan inevitably felt inferior, as he was the only one present who was not a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations).

The three first congratulated Xu Lai on passing the imperial examination with top honors. Upon hearing that Yang Shu had also passed, they quickly congratulated him as well.

Su Song took out a dozen pages of manuscript: "This is the content of 'Mathematics' and 'Geometry' that we have supplemented in the past few months. You were preparing for the exam before, so I didn't want to bother you with it."

"How well are these two books being distributed?" Xu Lai asked.

Lin Yi replied, "It spread extremely quickly in private; I estimate that hundreds of copies have already been made. Jia Dianzhi, who is retired at home, specifically sent his disciples into the city to copy the entire book."

Jia Dianzhi was Jia Xian, a great mathematician of the Northern Song Dynasty. His academic achievements include the "Jia Xian Triangle" and the "method of extracting roots by multiplication," among others. He was too old and had retired, and now lived in the suburbs of Kaifeng.

There were a lot of students who studied arithmetic and astronomy under Jia Xian. If he promoted mathematics and geometry, it would mean that all his disciples and grand-disciples would also have to learn them.

This will greatly increase the speed at which these two books are disseminated.

After chatting about these things for a while, Xu Lai inquired, "How can I obtain detailed information about Tokyo's public housing? I want to know the total number, which neighborhoods it's located in, and its current status."

Su Song laughed and said, "Then you'll have to go to the store and housing department to check the documents. Besides, it's possible that there are accounts but no actual properties, and the documents don't match the reality. The store and housing department has been out of money for a long time and doesn't have enough manpower to check public housing."

Xu Lai observed the expressions of the three men and realized that none of them could help.

Who should we contact then?

Xu Lai, a minister with the authority to access documents related to the shop and residence, is currently only relatively familiar with Ouyang Xiu.

But would Ouyang Xiu support him?

Maybe.

It's also possible that it might not.

We need to find a way to make the chance of success 100%.

That evening, Xu Lai saw Shen Kuo and the others off. Instead of turning back into the house, he hailed a donkey cart and headed straight for Ouyang Xiu's residence.

It wasn't late, and Ouyang Xiu was still awake, studying epigraphy by lamplight.

The servant led Xu Lai to the study, where Ouyang Xiu, flipping through books on epigraphy, joked, "Why is the top scholar not out drinking and celebrating, but instead coming to see this old man?"

Xu Lai took out a piece of paper: "Only today did I realize the value of the silver in gratitude. Moved by this, I composed a poem. Please offer your critique, sir."

"Put it down." Ouyang Xiu continued his study of bronze and stone.

Xu Lai put the poem down and stood quietly to the side.

Ouyang Xiu turned his head and glanced at him.

With just one glance, his expression turned both amused and annoyed: "You want to renege on Xie Enyin's claim, but why drag me into this?"

"I'm not trying to drag Lord Ouyang into this; this poem was truly written from the heart," Xu said. "I even planned to write this poem on the palace wall on the day I presented the silver as a token of my gratitude."

"Nonsense!" Ouyang Xiu finally snapped.

Xu Lai, however, feigned a nonchalant attitude: "My lord, please calm down. This thought startled me as well; it was indeed inappropriate to inscribe a poem on the palace wall. It violates regulations!"

Ouyang Xiu said irritably, "Go and write your own poem; if you cause trouble, you'll have to bear the consequences yourself. Why mention me in your poem?"

"There aren't any questions yet, are there?" Xu said.

What is that poem about?

Magpies sing sweet tidings on branches, a woman in red robes sheds tears that stain her lapel. Yet, she laments the emperor's abundant favor, for he first demands a poor scholar's reward money.

The second sentence uses two allusions.

The first anecdote is related to Ouyang Xiu. When he was the chief examiner in the second year of the Jiayou era, he said that he vaguely saw a man in red robes who would nod in approval when he encountered a good article.

The second story is about a carp leaping over the dragon gate. The carp hitting the wall with its forehead symbolizes setbacks in one's career or failing an exam.

If Xu Lai were to inscribe this poem on the palace wall, it would surely mean that he had just passed the imperial examination with top honors but then suffered a setback in his official career.

Ouyang Xiu finally put down his book on epigraphy: "Speak, what exactly do you want?"

"I would like to review the documents related to the shop and residence," Xu said.

Ouyang Xiu was increasingly confused: "How did this get involved with shop and household affairs again?"

Xu Lai leaned close to Ouyang Xiu's ear and whispered something to him.

After listening, Ouyang Xiu stared intently at Xu Lai: "When I look at you now, do you know who I'm reminded of?"

'

"I don't know," Xu Lai shook his head.

Ouyang Xiu said, "I am reminded of the current prime minister, Han Xianggong."

He didn't say the other half of what he meant: Xu Lai is just as shameless and cunning as Han Qi!

Xu Lai quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your encouragement, sir. I will certainly work even harder. However, you flatter me. I am still no match for you, sir."

Ouyang Xiu wrote a note and stamped it with his personal seal: "Go to the shop and residence office yourself, and check whatever you want to check quickly."

I will help you submit your memorial. These things really need to be addressed.

Xu Lai treated Ouyang Xiu as a tool.

Wasn't Ouyang Xiu the same?

Both sides went their separate ways and hit it off immediately.

In other words, the discussion about Puyi had not yet begun, otherwise Ouyang Xiu would not have been in the mood for it.

Xu Lai immediately bowed and withdrew.

After Xu Lai left the study, Ouyang Xiu picked up the poem again, savored it carefully, and then smiled as he burned it over the candle flame.

Ouyang Xiu sighed, "Yu Andao has found a fine son-in-law. So cunning at such a young age, he might really become prime minister in the future."

He thought back to his youth, when he was full of passion and ambition, but he didn't know how to be flexible and insisted on seeing things in black and white.

As I've experienced more, I've come to realize that the world isn't simply black and white.

Most of the time, it's actually gray.

Take Tokyo's low-rent housing as an example. Did the emperor and his ministers not see it? But there are just too many implications, and no one wants to mess things up, because it could easily cause chaos.

But what will happen if no one takes care of it?

Later, during Wang Anshi's reforms, he conducted a detailed investigation into the number of low-rent housing units in the capital, which was reduced by half compared to the peak of Emperor Renzong's reign!

There's also Xie Enyin.

Which scholar would be willing to pay?

But no one dared to step forward, for fear of offending their fellow graduates or inadvertently displeasing the emperor.

Someone definitely needs to break through the barrier.

Those who expose this will inevitably get burned.

What truly surprised Ouyang Xiu was that Xu Lai was willing to expose the truth but didn't want to get burned himself; instead, he wanted to drag everyone down with him.

Wanting both is simply outrageous.

What's even more outrageous is that it might actually be done for him.

(To my fellow reader, don't blindly trust information found online. If you want to argue with me, go read the original text yourself, don't use AI.)

Or try searching on Baidu. The *Wenxian Tongkao* (Comprehensive Examination of Documents), in its section on elections, doesn't contain that passage at all; instead, it clearly records that the matter was resolved in the sixth year of the Xining era. (It made me spend half an hour searching through the *Wenxian Tongkao*!)

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