The Sage of Confucianism and Taoism

Chapter 4 Other People's Children

Fang Yun sighed and said, "I just said that I was completely awakened. But misfortunes often bring blessings. Last night I met a strange man who taught me a lot of things. I remembered things that I couldn't remember before, and I suddenly understood things that I didn't understand before. It was like I had opened my mind."

Yang Yuhuan looked at Fang Yun half-doubtfully and asked in a low voice, "Who is that person?"

"He didn't say his name, but said that I was half of his closed disciple. If I can't pass the imperial examination, I don't deserve to know his name." Fang Yun knew that he would become different after all, so he made up such a story to alleviate other people's suspicion.

Yang Yuhuan's beautiful eyes were full of surprise, and she asked, "Jinshi? Only when you are a Jinshi can you know him, then who is he? University scholar? Great scholar? Could he be a half-saint?"

"Then I don't know." Fang Yun shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"Since you have a famous teacher to guide you, you will definitely pass the imperial examination! I'll go back and cut two taels of meat, and let you eat enough tonight!" Yang Yuhuan smiled happily, and her smile was brighter than the spring sunshine.

"Then buy more, buy a pound, and just stew a chicken." Fang Yun knew that if he failed the exam, he would die. Buying more was his last luxury. If he passed the exam, he would not be short of this little money.

Yang Yuhuan nodded without hesitation and said, "Then listen to you! You are the head of the family."

Fang Yun did not expect that Yang Yuhuan was not only beautiful, but also so sensible and protected his dignity everywhere. In her eyes, eating so much in a day was already a waste of money, but she still did not hesitate, fearing that Fang Yun's self-esteem would be frustrated.

Fang Yun sighed in his heart: "Maybe she will say in her heart that as long as she works harder and suffers more, she can earn back the money. How can such a woman be let down. If I can pass the exam, I will never let her suffer any more!"

Yang Yuhuan took out a sugar cake she had baked this morning from the bookcase and said, "I baked two more. You didn't eat in the morning, so eat now."

Fang Yun took the sugar cake and ate it slowly.

The food on the day of the exam is always better than usual. You have to stay in the Wenyuan at noon, eat and answer questions at the same time, and you have to bring your own food and water. The Tongsheng exam is easy to write, but the Xiucai exam takes three consecutive days. You have to eat, drink, sleep and defecate in the small exam room. If you have any physical problems, you can't stand it.

The old ox staggered all the way to the east of the city and soon arrived outside the Wenyuan.

The Wenyuan has red walls and green tiles, and is shaded by green trees. It is full of vitality in the morning light.

There is a large group of people standing outside the Wenyuan, including children in their teens and gray-haired old people. They are lining up in ten rows and gradually entering the Wenyuan. At a glance, there are no less than 2,000 people, and there are more parents and relatives who are not queuing.

Fang Yun was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that the population of Ji County is less than 90,000, and the number of people taking the Tongsheng exam can reach 2,000.

Fang Yun knew that the literacy rate was very low in ancient times. The literacy rate of ancient Chinese men was about 10%. In the Republic of China, it was only 15%. More than half of them were various craftsmen who needed to learn to read. The proportion of scholars was less than 5%, but this proportion was already the highest among ancient countries. Most of the ancient Western nobles were illiterate, and the literacy rate of many countries was less than 1%.

In Fang Yun's opinion, it would be enough for Ji County to have three or four hundred people in the Tongsheng test, but he didn't expect that there would be two thousand people. This number is too scary.

Ji County is a lower county, and it can only admit fifty Tongsheng a year!

Fang Yun was surprised. He didn't expect that he underestimated the intensity of the Tongsheng test.

Fang Yun quickly remembered that the population density of Shengyuan Continent was much higher than that of ancient China.

The county government is divided into upper, middle and lower according to the degree of wealth, and Ji County is a lower county with relatively poor land resources. However, because of the existence of talent, as long as the common people are not lazy, they will not starve to death. Fang Yun and Yang Yuhuan are the best examples. Even if they only have two children, they can still support themselves and even barely support one person to study.

The county magistrate and other officials in the Holy Court Continent have a very important duty: to help farmers.

When there is less rain, local officials will hold a "Rain Prayer Meeting" and call on local people with literary status to write poems and articles for rain prayer. If the poems and articles are good enough, the talent will attract the vitality of heaven and earth, and then it will rain.

If the local scholars fail to pray for rain, or the weather is too dry, then the officials will prepare "literary treasures" and "holy pages" and other things, and consume their talent to write famous works of ancient celebrities to pray for rain.

When there is more rain, a "Flood Control Meeting" will be held. When there is a locust plague, a "Locust Expelling Meeting" will be held, and it is inevitable to write locust expelling tunes and locust extermination songs.

There are countless such meetings.

It is precisely because of talent that the grain output here is far better than that of the ancient earth, feeding more people. In addition to the attraction of literary status, many people tighten their belts to support their children's education, so there are so many people in a county's Tongsheng exam.

"Here, talent is the primary productive force."

Fang Yun thought to himself, and was helped out of the car by Yang Yuhuan.

Candidates nearby looked over. Not many knew Fang Yun, but everyone knew the famous Xi Shi of Jiangzhou. Even if they had never seen her, they could guess it at this moment, because Yang Yuhuan was too beautiful.

Many people were eager to make a move, but unfortunately the county exam was about to start, and they could not make any extra arrangements. They had to suppress the idea of ​​a talented man meeting a beautiful woman.

Yang Yuhuan had been used to being looked at since she was a child. The slight shyness in her eyes flashed away, and then she helped Fang Yun and carried the book box for him without any care.

Everyone was even more envious. This woman was so virtuous that they wished they could become Fang Yun.

"Fang Yun!"

"Sister Yuhuan!"

Then four people left the team and walked over quickly. Everyone carried a bamboo book box. Except for one person who was obviously younger than Fang Yun, the other three were several years older than Fang Yun.

Fang Yun only took one glance and remembered that they were classmates in a private school and had studied together for more than three years. Among the four of them, except Liang Yuan, whose family owned a rice shop and was relatively wealthy, the others, like Fang Yun, were from ordinary families.

The parents of the four of them are still alive, and their family conditions are better than Fang Yun's, but they have never looked down on Fang Yun. Their feelings for each other are very sincere, but twelve-year-old Ge Xiaomao once said with a red face that he made friends with Fang Yun so that he could see more of them. Sister Yuhuan.

"Fang Yun, what's wrong with you?" Liang Yuan was the tallest among the five. He jumped over in a few steps and looked at Fang Yun with a frown.

Although Fang Yun put on clean clothes, his head was wrapped with a medicine cloth and there were obvious bruises and wounds on his face.

Fang Yun smiled and said: "It was rainy last night and the road slipped and fell. They were minor injuries and will not affect the exam."

Ge Xiaomao said worriedly: "Is it okay to be injured like this? Is it really possible?"

Fang Yun said half-jokingly: "Mencius said: When heaven assigns a great responsibility to a person, he must first strain his mind, strain his muscles and bones, starve his body and skin, and deplete his body. I encountered dangers before the exam, and encountered the teacher's teachings. , it can be seen that God will give me a great responsibility."

"Teacher? Did Mr. Sun specifically teach you?" Liang Yuan asked curiously.

"It's not Mr. Sun, it's another teacher you don't know. Without talking about this, we will line up to enter the liberal arts college. Sister Yuhuan, I will carry the book box."

Liang Yuan, a tall man, grabbed the book box and said, "I'll help you carry it. Let's go."

Another classmate, Lu Zhan, supported Fang Yun, bid farewell to Yang Yuhuan, and lined up to enter the liberal arts college.

Fang Yun looked around. That Fang Yun also passed the Tongsheng test last year, but this was his first time here.

Ge Xiaomao complained in a low voice: "I'm only twelve years old, and it's a waste of money to come here. It's okay to make a crooked poem, but it's too difficult to 'ask for the Holy Word'. In addition to the Thirteen Classics, there are also some works of saints. Zi Kong It has been over a thousand years since the Master was canonized , dozens of people have been canonized, and "Please Shengyan" selects and examines the works of many sages. I went to private school for five years, but I only recited "The Analects of Confucius", "Mencius", "Book of Changes", "Zhou Rites" and "Spring and Autumn". I can't pass the Tongsheng test."

Fang Yun knew that the so-called "asking for holy words" was similar to later generations' questions and answers, filling in the blanks and dictating, asking candidates to fill in the previous or following text according to the prompts, and some even had to write a whole chapter dictating.

This reminded Fang Yun of the imperial examinations of the Tang Dynasty.

The imperial examination in the Tang Dynasty in China was called "Tie Jing". Tie Jing was an important subject for admitting candidates. It was to copy a few sentences from the scriptures, then cover up a few words and let the candidates fill in. It was easier than asking for the Holy Word.

The main reason why Tang poetry flourished was that the imperial examinations in the Tang Dynasty also examined poems and poems, which accounted for a huge proportion.

In the Holy Yuan Continent, the Holy Academy found that poetry and talent were the best match, especially the war poems and war poems that could be passed down from generation to generation, which affected the rise and fall of the human race. Therefore, poetry must be tested in the imperial examination, and frontier poems were the top priority.

Liang Yuan smiled and said: "You are young. I asked you not to come here for fame, but to gain knowledge. Just do your best. The Tongsheng Examination's 'Please Holy Words' has thirty test papers as soon as it comes out. The government examination tests talents." The number of "Please Holy Words" even reaches 100. It is jokingly called a hundred-page test. How can you get all the answers correctly?

Lu Zhan said: "Xiao Mao, don't be discouraged. Except for the four great talents, no one can answer all the 'Please Holy Words' in the Tongsheng Examination correctly, and neither can we, let alone you. Fortunately, the scope of the Tongsheng Examination is smaller. The Scholarship Examination" "Please Shengyan's talent is tricky and eccentric. In the imperial examination for hundreds of years, no one from all generations has answered it correctly, even those sages who were eventually canonized."

Ge Xiaomao breathed a sigh of relief and said: "Liang Yuan, this time the Tongsheng test is all up to you. No one of Mr. Sun's disciples has been successful in the Tongsheng test in recent years. People in other private schools laugh at us. We can't compare to that person who has a photographic memory." The forgotten prodigy Fang Zhongyong cannot be compared with others! I hope my ancestors and saints will bless me.”

"You!" Liang Yuan laughed and shook his head.

Fang Yun was slightly startled when he heard the name Fang Zhongyong.

At this moment, someone nearby suddenly said loudly: "Fang Zhongyong is here."

Everyone immediately followed the sound and saw a young man about thirteen or fourteen years old getting off a carriage. The young man had a serious face, without any childishness, and his eyes were not as agile as a prodigy should be. He looked more stable than his peers.

Then a middle-aged man in a gorgeous brocade robe got out of the car triumphantly, and many parents immediately came forward to compliment the middle-aged man.

There were three to four thousand candidates and their relatives and friends in front of the Academy of Arts. As soon as Fang Zhongyong and his son arrived, most people stopped talking and looked at Fang Zhongyong and his son.

Fang Yun didn't expect that the father and son, both with the same surname Fang, would be so dazzling.

Fang Yun recognized Fang Zhongyong and his father Fang Li, who were his distant relatives. In terms of seniority, Fang Yun was the uncle of the prodigy Fang Zhongyong, but the relationship between the two families was too far away and they had no contact.

Ge Xiaomao said enviously: "Fang Zhongyong's reputation as a child prodigy is even greater than that of Sister Yuhuan in Ji County. Not only does he have a photographic memory, but his ability to recite poetry is far better than mine. His father said that he could do it when he was ten years old. The reason why I took the Tongsheng test for the first time this year was because I had accumulated a lot of experience and was trying to be the first in the Tongsheng examination. "

"He is the leader of the case this time. The leader can enter the Fuwen Academy in Dayuan Prefecture without taking the exam. It is the best school in the prefecture, many times better than our private school." Liang Yuan said.

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