Chapter 295 The imperial examination focuses on agriculture Zhao Yingluo nodded and continued: "I have a mansion outside the palace with a quiet environment. If you are willing, you can move there to stay away from Zhang Mansion, a place of right and wrong." Hearing this, Li Qingzhao pondered for a moment and then politely declined, "Thank you very much for your kindness, Your Highness, but I still want to stay here and get used to the life here." After hearing this, Zhao Yingluo did not force her. She respected Li Qingzhao's decision, "In this case, I will not persuade you any more. However, if you have any needs or encounter any difficulties, you must tell me and I will try my best." Help you.” Li Qingzhao burst into tears of gratitude, "Your Highness the Princess's kindness will be borne in mind by my wife." Zhao Yingluo patted Li Qingzhao's hand gently to express comfort, "Okay, don't be too sad. I still have official business to deal with, so I will go back to the palace first." After saying that, she stood up and prepared to leave Zhang Mansion. Li Qingzhao also quickly stood up to see her off, "Your Highness the Princess, please go slowly. I will respectfully see you off." After returning to the palace, Zhao Yingluo immediately summoned her confidant Xiaolian, "Xiaolian, send someone to secretly protect Li Qingzhao and ensure her safety. In addition, if there is any trouble, report it to me immediately." Xiaolian bowed and responded: "Yes, Your Highness the Princess." Zhao Yingluo added: "Also, if Li Qingzhao needs help, just go and help. Remember?"
"Remember, Your Highness Princess." Xiaolian replied respectfully. The next day, in the court hall, the Minister of Civil Affairs held a wat board and solemnly asked Zhao Yingluo how to deal with those who were suspected of buying officials. On the third day, Left Prime Minister Lu Yihao looked serious and said in a deep voice: "These candidates have evil intentions and are trying to gain fame through improper means. This trend cannot last long. In my opinion, they should be deprived of their reputation as candidates and banned from participating. We will serve as a warning in future imperial examinations.” Privy Councilor Zhu Shengfei nodded in agreement: "What Prime Minister Lu said is absolutely true. Such acts must be severely punished to maintain the fairness of the imperial examination." However, there are also different voices above the court. Some courtiers believed that such punishment was too severe and almost ruined the career of these candidates. One of the ministers came forward to advise: "Your Highness, Princess, I believe that although these actions are inappropriate, depriving them of their honors and permanently banning them from scientific examinations is tantamount to ending their official careers. Can we consider a lighter punishment? Give them a chance to change their ways?" After Zhao Yingluo heard the opinions from all sides, she frowned and weighed them again and again in her mind. She understood that the imperial examination was an important way for the country to select talents and its fairness must be maintained; but at the same time, she was not willing to completely ruin their future because of temporary mistakes in these exams. After some careful consideration, Zhao Yingluo finally made a decision. "I have decided to deprive these people who are suspected of buying official positions of their current civil service titles as punishment." Zhao Yingluo's voice echoed in the court, "However, they still have the opportunity to change their ways. In the future , if they can retake the imperial examination through proper channels, I will allow them to take the imperial examination again." As soon as this decision was made, the court officials shouted: "Your Highness the Princess is wise!" Later, Wen Boyuan came to the prison with the decree of Her Royal Highness the Princess. He read this decision to the scholars still in prison. After hearing this result, the scholars had different reactions. Some were eclipsed, but others shed tears of gratitude, thanking Her Highness the Princess for her leniency and giving them a chance to start over. Wen Boyuan looked at the group of young scholars in front of him and said coldly, "This is the last opportunity Her Royal Highness the Princess gives you. I hope you can cherish it. There is still a long road ahead, so don't go astray again." After saying this, After speaking, Wen Boyuan ordered the jailer to open the cell door and let the scholars regain their freedom. The three days when the list of Jinshi was announced flew by, and then came the much-anticipated palace examination. Compared with previous imperial examinations, the content of this imperial examination was innovative. In addition to traditional poetry and policy theory, the subject of agriculture was also added, aiming to select talents who were both literate and practical. Outside the palace hall, the candidates who were on the list arrived one after another with excitement and curiosity, their faces filled with longing and expectations for the future.
Wang Shou'en repeatedly told them what to pay attention to after entering the palace: "Fellow Jinshi, after entering the palace hall, remember to keep quiet, don't make noise, and pay attention to etiquette. You represent my image as a scholar in the Song Dynasty, so you must act with caution." The candidates nodded in agreement, and then filed in under the leadership of Wang Shouen. Zhao Yingluo sat next to the dragon chair, her eyes moving on the candidates. She noticed that some of these newly promoted Jinshi had gray hair. This scene made her sigh secretly: "It is said that they study hard for ten years in a cold window. It seems that some people study hard for the imperial examination for more than ten years. Thirty-year-old Ming Jing, fifty-year-old Jinshi, the imperial examination really put in a lot of effort A person's life." The imperial examination should pay more attention to practicality and efficiency, and cut down on irrelevant examination content so that truly talented people can stand out more quickly. This will not only reduce the burden on candidates, but also allow Song Dynasty to select outstanding talents faster. With her thoughts turning around, Zhao Yingluo took a deep breath and stabilized her emotions. She stood up and announced loudly: "The palace examination has officially begun!" Following her order, the newly promoted scholars began to write furiously, and the entire hall was suddenly filled with the rustling sound of brush strokes across paper. Zhao Yingluo did not return to the throne immediately, but chose to go down to the palace in person to check the candidates' answers. She walked slowly among the candidates, her eyes lingering on each candidate's test paper. She found that most of the Jinshi answered questions very quickly in the poetry and policy sections, and their writing was full of style. They were obviously very familiar with these traditional subjects. However, when Zhao Yingluo saw the examination papers for the agriculture section, the situation was somewhat different. I saw that many Jinshi were obviously much slower in writing when faced with agricultural topics. Some were even thinking hard and scratching their ears from time to time, looking a little at a loss. Zhao Yingluo frowned slightly and couldn't help feeling a little emotional. She added the subject of agriculture, with the original intention of selecting comprehensive talents who are both literate and practical. However, it seems that these scholars' understanding of agriculture is still quite limited. She walked up to a Jinshi who was worrying about agricultural topics and asked softly: "What do you think about agriculture?" The Jinshi raised his head and replied with some fear: "Back to your Royal Highness, the student mainly studies poetry and books on weekdays, and does not know much about agriculture. But the student believes that agriculture is the foundation of the country, and food is the most important thing for the people. If we don't How can you govern a country if you understand the art of farming?” After hearing this, Zhao Yingluo nodded slightly in approval: "You are right, agriculture is indeed the foundation of the country." After speaking, she continued to inspect the answers of other candidates. Throughout the entire examination process, Zhao Yingluo was silently observing the performance of each Jinshi, and was constantly weighing and considering in her heart.