Chapter 147: The Correct Policy Essay |
All examination papers had their names sealed.
During the initial large-scale review by ordinary scholars, because the total volume was so massive, transcription wasn't required. However, once papers were narrowed down to the top one-fifth—the more refined pieces that would be elevated to the Grand Secretaries for grading and ranking—those articles needed to be completely recopied (as already emphasized in the previous chapter).
Sun Kang had read countless articles. The reason he was familiar with Sun Qian's handwriting was because talented young masters from top-tier aristocratic families often socialized with Grand Secretaries, so he could recognize them.
Therefore, the only thing he could confirm about this article was that it wasn't Sun Qian's.
So his first place in the lyrical composition section seemed uncertain once again.
No, not uncertain.
Absolutely impossible.
All of Sun Qian's previous articles combined couldn't match this single examination essay.
Unless he had an extraordinary performance during this exam—his thoughts flowing like a fountain, like great rivers rushing into the sea, unstoppable—only then could he produce something comparable.
If this article had been written by Sun Qian, even if his policy essay was a mess, given the Grand Secretaries' already established bias toward favoritism, he would definitely become the zhuangyuan.
Moreover, with this single ode, he would go down in history.
Whether future generations would be interested in Yu Dynasty history—nobody knew.
And within Yu history, those who would know about the minor Battle of Shuofeng would be even fewer.
Shuofeng earned fame in the present age.
This "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo" could earn eternal fame across ten thousand generations.
Wait a moment...
Could this handwriting possibly be Song Shi'an's?
A remarkably bold idea suddenly occurred to him.
But he quickly dismissed it.
"An Exhortation to Learning" and "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo"—their writing styles were worlds apart.
No matter how you looked at them, they wouldn't make anyone think they came from the same person.
If someone could reach the pinnacle in the realm of logical reasoning while simultaneously achieving new heights in the realm of ornate literary style, that person would be too terrifying.
Master one method and master ten thousand methods?
But the more he looked, the more he felt it resembled Song Shi'an's handwriting.
However, his instinct—or rather, his pride as a scholar—made him reluctant to acknowledge it. After all, could there really be someone in their early twenties who could dominate the entire Great Yu literary world as a literary giant?
Might as well hang himself with a white silk cord.
"Master Sun, what do you think?" At this moment, the scholar grading the paper looked at him and asked pleadingly, "Does it deviate from the topic?"
Does it deviate from the topic?
If this was indeed Song Shi'an's work, but it's name-sealed, couldn't I use the reason of topic deviation to directly reject it, placing it after the 600th rank?
That way, even if his policy essay was naturally excellent as expected, he'd only be a jinshi at best.
Forget zhuangyuan—he wouldn't even make the top ten.
Wouldn't that mean victory in this struggle?
However, in the next instant, his heart tightened as belated fear swept over him.
Foolish! Why am I even concerned about this?
Other people's articles could be rejected at will since examination papers aren't made public and no one would care. But Song Shi'an was currently being watched by the entire realm. If they said the author of "An Exhortation to Learning" didn't even get yi-grade in lyrical composition, what would be people's first reaction?
They might not immediately assume corruption.
But they would definitely think: Didn't even get yi-grade? What exactly did he write?
I need to take a good look at it.
The only outcome would be: Who exactly criticized this article so severely that it was deemed worthless?
Scholar contempt for one another was real.
But scholars caring about face was also real.
No one would take responsibility for this. He would become the jealous, petty clown who shamelessly suppressed "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo," eternally infamous alongside this article that would go down in history for millennia.
"The cross-examination review is for you all to decide. Why ask me? Do you lack even this much judgment?"
Sun Kang directly passed the paper back and said, "Time is tight, responsibilities are heavy. Once you've finished reading, return to your own seat and continue grading."
With that, he turned and left.
"Ode to the Goddess of the Luo" returned to the grader's hands.
He had originally greatly appreciated and admired this article. Therefore, during the initial review's suggested grading, he naturally didn't hesitate to assign it: jia-grade.
The other scholar conducting cross-examination also greatly loved this article. He could tell at a glance that this wasn't good writing for the sake of good writing. However, he also felt there was some suspicion of topic deviation. After all, it didn't directly write about rivers—it diverged somewhat.
Of course, no one wanted to be the petty person who suppressed a universally acknowledged excellent article. His suggested grade was also: jia.
………
Meanwhile, in Minister Sun's study.
Last night, Sun Qian had completely transcribed from memory the lyrical composition section. As for the policy essay, being a lengthy discourse, he naturally couldn't reproduce it word for word, but at least he extracted all the key content from the policy essay.
Then, first thing in the morning, he compared answers with his father.
The moment he saw the lyrical composition, Sun Yan revealed a smile. He raised his head to look at his son across from him and asked, "Why didn't you write about our Yangzhou's Xi River?"
Xi River was a tributary of the great river that passed through Minister Sun's hometown, Quyang.
It was essentially their mother river.
"Father, your son thought that the court already disapproves of our Yangzhou Sun clan's estrangement from Sheng'an. They've always felt that we're not like those Jiangbei families who are grateful for imperial grace." Sun Qian analyzed himself. "Writing about Xi River would indeed be easier and allow me to express clan sentiment to the fullest, but the sentiment would be too narrow. To His Majesty, my patriotic feelings would also seem insincere."
"Clever."
This was the difference between Sun Qian and Sun Heng.
One was constantly scolded by Minister Sun for stupidity, his mind rigid to the extreme.
The other understood at a single hint and was quite confident.
When asked, he boldly answered.
And everything he answered hit the mark.
"'The great river originates from Kunlun's mystic garden, pours forth from the celestial well of the stars.'"
Just this opening line made Minister Sun quite satisfied. He couldn't help but nod, saying, "I had your younger sister practice the zither, learning 'Emerging Lotus'—that's our Yangzhou's own literary tradition. Small bridges over flowing water, gentle and moving. When northern scholars come south of the Yangtze, they're often reluctant to leave, lingering endlessly, precisely because of the beauty of Jiangnan women. But you must know, our literature is self-protective, and to some extent, somewhat petty."
"Your son understands." Sun Qian nodded.
What northern Great Yu people criticized most was that southerners didn't love their country.
They lacked deep patriotic sentiment.
Sun Yan didn't avoid this point.
Throughout history, whoever controlled the Central Plains controlled the realm.
Unifying the realm never happened from south to north.
Often, the north was already settled before the south submitted.
Aristocratic clans were the south's own 'court.'
But Sun Yan didn't think there was anything wrong with this approach.
If you don't give Jiangnan aristocratic families power, yet you want them to be loyal to the sovereign and love the country like meritorious nobles—was there such reasoning?
Now Sun Qian's article revealed an attitude:
I can also speak of this. I can also love my country.
"'Waves crash against mighty passes, once shattering Ji Wang's cavalry; tides submerge Qi swords...' This allusion is also good."
Ji Wang was Ji Yuan's ancestor.
When Ji Wang was at his most powerful, he had completely occupied the lands north of the river, mustering hundreds of thousands of troops wanting to cross south, with great momentum toward unifying the realm.
The result went without saying—he lost that battle.
The occupied northern territories all returned.
These words, though somewhat disrespectful toward Ji Yuan, so what?
Shuofeng had been won. At least the northern frontier wouldn't be easily lost for the next ten years.
The possibility of Ji Yuan unifying the realm in this generation was also slim.
Even if he truly marched south and Great Yu fell, would he still hold a grudge against the Yangzhou Sun clan over this poem?
He wouldn't.
The limit Ji Yuan could achieve in this lifetime was to unite Jiangbei. If he wanted to become the mighty lord who unified the realm, to be the eternal emperor who ended the chaotic era, his policy toward Jiangnan could only be amnesty.
After reading the entire piece, Sun Yan judged: "As first place in the examination's lyrical composition section, it's qualified."
Of course, it was merely qualified.
One couldn't have overly high demands for an examination essay written during a test.
So-called perfect-score college entrance exam essays—in terms of literary quality, the vast majority scored 0.
They had no significance whatsoever.
Examinations tested adaptability and accumulated knowledge. They rewarded the diligence of scholars and revealed the tip of the iceberg of natural talent.
This was also why the vast majority of famous transmitted works basically didn't originate from civil service examinations.
"Father, compared to Song Shi'an, how is it?" Sun Qian asked.
"Far inferior to 'An Exhortation to Learning.'" Sun Yan changed his wording after speaking, "No, it's incomparable."
Sun Qian had nothing to say.
"'An Exhortation to Learning' exceeded the scope of civil examinations. It has enlightening significance." When Sun Yan said this, it also served as consolation. "But this examination favors you. In terms of literary style, you surpass him. Of course, he definitely also has literary talent, but it's absolutely not his strong suit."
If he were flawless, that would be excessive.
How could a person be excellent in all aspects?
"Let's not discuss lyrical composition anymore. Talk about the policy essay."
Sun Yan continued reading Sun Qian's summary of the policy essay section, saying, "When I heard this topic yesterday, I immediately guessed His Majesty had set it."
"Is this a warning to us?" Sun Qian asked.
"A warning to all the realm's aristocratic families." Sun Yan said without concealment, "Don't treat Shuofeng entirely as Song Shi'an's victory. This should be the Emperor's victory. So His Majesty currently has great confidence."
Shuofeng had been won. Everyone focused their attention on Song Shi'an, the Sixth Prince, and the Wu Prince faction, thinking they were unstoppable.
But they forgot that the Emperor was happier than anyone.
When gambling the nation's fate, he hadn't backed down either. He hadn't replaced anyone. Instead, he continuously increased troops and expanded the situation.
If they had lost, he and Song Shi'an would have suffered misfortune together.
"Excellent, this understanding of yours is quite excellent." After Sun Yan finished reading, he nodded. "Not avoiding the salt and iron matter is good."
Salt and iron monopoly, also called 'salt and iron state management.'
The absolute main source of Great Yu's tax revenue.
If one waved their brush toward saving public funds and such matters, that would be self-deception.
"I focused on discussing innovation in salt and iron management. I wrote more deeply in this area." Sun Qian said.
The salt and iron monopoly—this system had been passed down for at least a thousand years.
But anything, once it reached later periods, would inevitably develop problems.
What needed to be written now was how to return money to His Majesty.
"Good, good, good."
Sun Yan stood up, saying "good" three times in succession, his tone certain: "No matter which examination session this was placed in, you would be zhuangyuan."