After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

"Shhh..."

Jia Shi'an let out a soft sigh, picked up the case file and flipped through it. He disliked the person's handwriting and couldn't help but feel that this was a rare drawback in the transcription of provincial and metropolitan examinations.

Upon seeing the two vermilion seals at the end, the young official, a third-rank official, was stunned for a moment. After a few breaths, a bitter smile appeared on his lips.

"Oh……"

"Above."

"Center C".

The two red seals were vastly different.

The former is the highest level, and the latter is the lowest level.

The former was an assessment given by his superior, Luan Zongyuan, the Minister of War, while the latter was an assessment given by Zhao Silang, the Right Vice Minister of Rites.

Jia Shi'an suddenly felt a headache coming on. According to the rules for reading the papers, he would give his evaluation after reading them.

Whatever is given must be brought up on the spot so that the eight examiners can take a look and give their evaluations, in order to avoid unfairness to the candidates.

He was only in his early twenties when he passed the imperial examination. After more than ten years of training in other places, he naturally appeared young compared to other examiners, but he was no longer a naive young man.

Seeing that it was his own Minister who had given the "Top Grade" rating, Jia Shi'an knew without even looking at the policy essay that he would have to give at least a "Top Grade" rating, or even a "Middle Grade" rating.

At such a moment, as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, one must absolutely not compromise or try to smooth things over.

Thinking of this, although he didn't know why Minister Luan would give such a poorly written article a "superior" rating, he had no choice but to take a good look at this policy essay.

Even without a reason, he had to find one or two reasons for Minister Luan.

Jia Shi'an took a breath, flipped back to the first page of the policy essay, and looked at it carefully.

"..."

"Your subject respectfully notes: Agriculture is the foundation of the world, the source of life for the people. When agriculture prospers, the army is strong; when the army is strong, the country is powerful; when the country is powerful, the state is secure."

"Since the time of the Yellow Emperor, the Chinese people have strengthened their military and social order, established laws and rituals, never slackened in their duties, tamed the great rivers, and carved through the mountains. Yet, the state was in turmoil, heroes rose up against each other, and the Chinese and barbarians fought each other, causing the verdant landscape to vanish in an instant, and the common people to rise up in rebellion with bones filling the fields. All their plans and actions were aimed at ensuring the stability of agriculture! ... Therefore, I say: when agriculture is stable, the world is stable; when agriculture is lost, the world is lost..."

"Um……"

Jia Shi'an tightened his grip on the scroll, and his eyes suddenly narrowed!

"What is the purpose of ensuring agricultural stability?"

"Qin established its state by imposing strict laws, implementing a system of agriculture, warfare, and the granting of titles. After six generations of hard work, it seized the imperial power and became the dominant force in the land. However, it suddenly adopted a tyrannical rule, lost its power, and was eventually overthrown by Emperor Gaozu of Han."

"The Han dynasty was characterized by light taxes and levies, resulting in peaceful agriculture and a prosperous populace, a period celebrated by Emperors Wen and Jing; however, at the end of the Han dynasty, powerful clans seized land, causing unrest among the people and ultimately leading to the Yellow Turban Rebellion..."

"The Tang Dynasty established its agricultural foundation through the system of militia and the two-tax system. Emperor Taizong braved danger, pacified the empire, and laid the foundation for the glorious Tang Dynasty!..."

"Until our founding emperor, using the military household system, a million soldiers were supported without consuming a single grain of rice! ... Pursuing the fleeing enemy and driving out the defeated, restoring China, his achievements were immeasurable! ... The emperor was cautious..."

"From my perspective, the key to ensuring agricultural stability lies in both taxes and laws. Taxes should be levied leniently on the people, and laws should be stricter than those that seize land..."

"Hoo..." Jia Shi'an held his breath, and after a long while, he silently took a breath.

"...Those who manage agriculture are wise men who plan for it, through taxes and laws. The common people suffer, their problems lie in the heavens, the earth, and the tools they use."

"Heaven refers to the timing of events. The heavens are unpredictable, and the sun, moon, and stars move. Drought, floods, and locust plagues are beyond our control, yet human effort is not necessarily invincible..."

"If the corvée labor is not for the construction of palaces or for raising troops... but merely for wells, canals, weirs, dikes, and dams, to control, retain, and divert water, wouldn't that be effective? Water and agriculture are inseparable, and Heaven's will may not be so difficult to overcome..."

"The land is the soil's fertility. Without fertilizer, there is no land; without land, there is no food. No one is less important than raising the people of an entire state... No one is less important than a scholar writing an essay..."

"Among the tools, there are oxen, farming implements, waterwheels..."

……

Sandalwood incense was burning on the desk. When the incense had burned down to about half its original value, Lord Jia was reading this article.

When the sandalwood incense had burned down to more than half its length, Lord Jia was still reading the article.

The young eunuch standing nearby glanced sideways. Two articles had just been passed around, but since Lord Jia was still reading this one, they were passed to other officials.

The young eunuch appeared humble and respectful on his fair face, but secretly harbored resentment in his heart.

I wonder if Lord Jia is tired and wants to take a break, because he keeps reading this article over and over again.

A little while later.

Jia Shi'an's eyes were filled with complex emotions. He let out a deep breath and put down the poorly written policy essay.

He pondered for a moment.

He shook his head with a wry smile.

After a long pause, the young third-rank official, with a resolute expression, picked up his blue brush, wrote the words "Jia Shang" at the end of the scroll, and solemnly stamped it with his vermilion seal.

It was the end of the Hai hour, and everyone's eyes were already a little sore and red.

The Court of State Ceremonial prepared rooms for everyone to rest in the Wenhua Hall. At midnight, the officials reading the papers could go to rest and continue reading the papers at dawn the next day.

"My lords."

At this moment, Jia Shi'an, the least senior among the eight, suddenly stood up, raised a policy essay in his hand, which drew puzzlement and sidelong glances from the others.

Jia Shi'an gave a wry smile and said:

"This policy essay has received mixed reviews; two people rated it A, while one rated it C... Hmm... I would like to trouble you gentlemen... and let me, Jia, take a look."

……

……

It was snowing heavily outside, and the weather was freezing cold.

When Zhu Cuiwei opened her eyes from her sleep, only a few specks of moonlight shone through the window.

It's almost dawn.

She extended a pale, white hand.

Even though the room had an underfloor heating system, as soon as she got out of bed, a fine north wind slipped in through the cracks in the doors and windows, blowing against the back of her hands.

The Empress of Liang, who didn't want to get up early but had no choice but to go to court, let out a small sigh of relief; the back of her hand was very cold from the wind.

She slowly got up from the young doctor's embrace, lifted the quilt, and then covered herself with the quilt again after getting out of bed.

Just by turning his head, he saw the other person sleeping soundly with steady breathing in the hazy moonlight, and he felt a surge of anger, wanting to shake the other person awake.

Such thoughts were brewing every day during the winter.

So whenever she heard that someone was going to take the imperial examination, she couldn't help but feel happy, because she could legitimately call them to take it... It was just a pity that this year's imperial examination had already ended...

The empress, who silently got up and dressed, had a somewhat complicated look in her eyes.

She went home early yesterday and made preparations for a long time, intending to tell the other party her true identity.

But when the words were on the tip of my tongue, I really didn't know how to say them.

In her opinion, this should be a good thing... but it seems... such a good thing would be seen differently by the other party.

After all, for example, some people are unwilling to inherit the hereditary title of Marquis of Jingbei, which is right before their eyes, and would rather join thousands of other students in taking the imperial examination to enter officialdom.

Prince Consort...

The Grand Prince Consort...

Although the Grand Prince Consort is different from the Prince Consort, he still has some real power. After all, the Grand Prince Consort Shangguan is a shining example, so if one has ambitions, one can still make some progress.

However, it was only "slightly".

The cabinet, the six ministries, and the various vassal states will definitely try to control the grandson-in-law.

The real power over the military, finances, and personnel—like preventing interference from the empress dowager in politics—is very difficult for the grand prince consort to touch.

She reached up and rubbed her eyes, her face slightly flushed.

The matter is imminent, yet I am at a loss for what to do.

She has been very conflicted for the past few months.

On the one hand, they hoped that the other party would get what they wanted and pass the imperial examination with flying colors.

On the other hand, I also had a vague feeling that... wouldn't it be better if the other person failed the exam?

If that's the case, he can only follow his uncle's arrangement and, after the alliance between Daliang and the Northern Dynasty is finalized, obediently propose marriage to her as the heir of the Marquis of Jingbei.

pity……

The woman was both surprised and exasperated... The other person had not only become the top scholar in the provincial examination, but also the top scholar in the metropolitan examination... He was about to become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination).

The day after tomorrow... no... tomorrow is the grand ceremony for announcing the results of the imperial examinations... there's no escaping it now.

Although the other party's right hand was injured and their handwriting was poor, they should not be able to make it into the top ten, and their strategy essays would not even reach her level.