Chapter 137: After the Imperial Examination

As Zhang Yue stepped out of the examination hall, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky. It is said that spring rain is as precious as oil, especially in the drought-prone northern regions—but it happened to rain at just this moment. He hadn’t brought an umbrella before entering the hall, and now, seeing candidates everywhere, he knew someone from his family must be waiting outside but couldn’t arrive anytime soon.

Recalling the terrifying few days he had spent in the examination hall, he wished he would never set foot there again. This was no different from the college entrance exam—those examination halls were even worse than pigsties. No matter how powerful one’s family might be, the conditions in those halls remained unchanged. Moreover, officials patrolled constantly, and examiners supervised regularly. Spending days there was even more unbearable than being in prison. Fortunately, it started raining only after the exams ended; otherwise, facing such rain inside would have made the dampness unbearable, and leaks in the roof would have made it impossible to take the exams.

“New Year’s Festival.”

Standing on the street, watching the candidates stream out—some dejected, some elated, some full of vigor, some silent—waiting for acquaintances inside and his own father, he suddenly felt a heavy pat on his shoulder. He turned around instinctively and saw an unexpected figure.

“Your Majesty…” Zhang Yue forced himself to swallow the next two words. Glancing around, he saw several burly men scattered about, all with vigilant expressions. Then he asked in a low voice, “How did you end up here?”

“Today is the day when the Ministry of Rites’ imperial examinations conclude. Of course, I came to see who the outstanding candidates this year are. Who would have thought I’d find one right away?” Zhu Zhanji joked, though his face bore only a faint smile. “The second-to-last hurdle in these exams is the test conducted by the Ministry of Rites. Failing it doesn’t mean everything is lost, but it does mean another three years of delay. I heard the first exam question this year was, ‘As a subject, one should serve his ruler with benevolence and righteousness.’ The other two questions were similar. How did you do?”

The essays were naturally written in elaborate parallel prose, as ornate as possible. But as for how well he had done? How could he be sure? Thinking this, Zhang Yue simply shrugged and said, “I did my best. I’m probably the youngest candidate this year. If I pass, it would be unfair to those older candidates with gray hair.”

“If you fail, that would truly be unjust!” Zhu Zhanji, who had other thoughts in mind, smiled upon hearing Zhang Yue’s words. “Although the imperial examinations are meant to select talented individuals, for the court, character and integrity are more important than ability. You’ve impressed Emperor Grandfather twice—so obtaining the title of candidate scholar should be a piece of cake for you.”

By now, the light drizzle had turned into a heavier rain. Someone was holding an umbrella behind Zhu Zhanji, but Zhang Yue, carrying his examination basket, had half of his body soaked and felt extremely cold. Yet he made no attempt to take shelter under the emperor’s umbrella, only hoping that his father, Zhang Zhuo, would emerge from the examination hall soon. Hearing Zhu Zhanji’s words at that moment, even he, though bold, felt his face heat up.

“Yuanjie!”

Hearing this voice, Zhang Yue quickly looked up and saw Wan Shijie standing at the entrance of the examination hall with Zhang Zhuo in a blue satin robe. It was Wan Shijie who was calling him. Realizing Zhu Zhanji was nearby, he knew he would have to say something if he went over, so he smiled and said, “I really can’t take what you just said at face value. This examination is serious, and I’m not very confident. It’s already a great fortune to be granted the title of scholar; becoming a candidate scholar or even a Jinshi won’t be that easy. My father has come out—I need to go greet him. Please forgive me.”

Zhu Zhanji watched thoughtfully as Zhang Yue bowed deeply and made his way through the crowd to greet Zhang Zhuo and Wan Shijie at the entrance. The father and son seemed very close, chatting and laughing. He couldn’t help but think of his father, Zhu Gaochi, who was still in Nanjing. Though they were father and son, he had spent most of his time on northern expeditions with his grandfather Zhu Di, leaving little time with his father, let alone having such a familiar relationship. In contrast, he was closer to some court officials in the Eastern Palace, like Yang Shiqi or Liang Qian.

At that moment, the attendant holding the umbrella for him noticed that more and more candidates were gathering in front of the examination hall and whispered, “Your Imperial Grandson, the rain is getting heavier, and there are so many people. Perhaps…”

“It’s not a knife falling from the sky—what’s there to fear? These are just candidates who can’t even hold a chicken. With so many guards here, how could they hurt me?” Zhu Zhanji snorted impatiently. Seeing another person join Zhang Zhuo and Zhang Yue, all four of them drenched by the worsening rain, he turned to an attendant behind him and said, “Take two oil-paper umbrellas over and give them to them. These candidates are also talents of the court—don’t let them catch a cold!”

Although Zhu Zhanji kept saying he valued the talents in the court, the attendants who followed his orders were not fools and surely wouldn’t mistake anyone. There were only two oil-paper umbrellas, while there were eighty or ninety candidates everywhere—how could that be enough? So he rushed straight over to Zhang Yue and the others, handing them the umbrellas with both hands.
“Third young master, my master thought it was raining heavily, so he asked me to bring two umbrellas.”
Zhang Zhuo and Wan Shijie found this strange, but Zhang Yue knew it was Zhu Zhanji’s kindness and quickly accepted them, thanking him. He handed one umbrella to Wan Shijie so that he and Fang Rui could share it, while he quickly opened his own umbrella to cover his father’s head.
By then, the rain had become even heavier, and most of the candidates had left the examination hall. Wan Shijie and Fang Rui walked ahead, while Zhang Yue used most of the umbrella to shield his father, leaving his own half of his body exposed to the rain. After walking a short distance, he felt someone gently push his hand holding the umbrella—it was his father.
“Look, half of your body is already soaked. Don’t focus only on me. Spring isn’t like summer; the weather can change suddenly. What if you get sick?” Zhang Zhuo, who was usually not as strict with his son as other fathers, immediately put his arm around Zhang Yue’s shoulders and said with a smile, “I don’t even know who kindly gave us the umbrellas. Don’t let their kindness go to waste.”
Although the weather was cold and half of his body was wet, Zhang Yue felt warm inside. The road in front of the examination hall was made of stones. It was fine to walk on on sunny days, but now, with the rain, the road was slippery, and the gaps between the stones were filled with water. One could easily slip and sprain an ankle if not careful, not to mention holding an umbrella that obstructed vision.
After finally finishing the exam, many candidates were unsteady on their feet and ended up falling into the mud. Even Fang Rui stumbled halfway, and it was only thanks to Wan Shijie pulling him that he managed to stay upright. Zhang Yue and his father supported each other as they struggled to walk to the intersection, where they saw a long line of carriages.
“Young master, young master! We’re here!”
Zhang Yue immediately spotted the Liansheng and Lianhu brothers, standing there under raincoats, waving vigorously. He quickly helped his father over and noticed another black carriage behind. He inwardly praised his family for their thoughtful arrangements. He then told Wan Shijie and Fang Rui to get on the latter carriage, instructed the driver to first go to Xicheng Pailou Alley before returning to the Duke of Yingguo’s residence, and then he and Zhang Zhuo got on the first carriage.

Zhang Zhuo had come to Beijing to take the exams and originally had no intention of staying at the Duke of Yingguo’s residence. However, Zhang Fu was no easier to reason with than Lady Wang, firmly refusing his request. Now that the exams were finally over, as they sat in the carriage on their way back, the father and son began talking about Lady Gu and the others who had moved from Kaifeng to Beijing. Zhang Yue counted the days on his fingers and realized that it was very likely the entire Zhang family from Xiangfu had arrived by now.

Thinking of this, ignoring the rain outside, he quickly lifted the carriage curtain and asked, “Liansheng, have grandmother and the others arrived?”

“Young master, the old lady and the others arrived three days ago, and Lady Duke of Yingguo even arrived two days earlier!” Liansheng, sitting on the horse, turned around, wiped the rain from his face, and smiled. “Although the mansion there is almost ready, more furniture and decorations are still needed, so the Duke and Duchess insisted that the old lady and the others stay at their home.”

Lian Hu also stopped his horse. When the carriage caught up, he happily interjected, “I’m glad to tell you, young master, that the eldest young master has also returned. Although Songshan Wei was captured by the Japanese pirates earlier, the eldest young master fought bravely in Jinxian Wei and is now a deputy thousandth-in-command. The Duke of Yingguo asked the emperor for leave for him, and he’s come specifically to arrange the marriage.”

Neither Zhang Zhuo nor Zhang Yue expected so many things to have happened while they were in the examination hall. Thinking of the bustling scene at the Duke of Yingguo’s residence, the father and son exchanged glances and laughed as soon as they lowered the carriage curtain.

Amid the continuous rain, the carriage finally reached the west gate of the Duke of Yingguo’s residence. Before the carriage even stopped, Zhang Yue jumped out quickly and rushed inside like the wind. Zhang Zhuo followed closely behind, called out irritably, but seeing no reaction from his son, he could only shake his head helplessly. He took the umbrella handed to him by Liansheng and strode inside. Although it was slippery from the rain, his steps were much lighter than when they left the examination hall. Thinking of his wife and daughter he hadn’t seen in a long time, he couldn’t help but smile.

From a distance from the second gate, Zhang Yue already saw the figure standing there to greet him. Though he could only vaguely see the honey-colored dress in the rain, he immediately recognized it as his mother, Lady Sun. He quickened his pace even more. As he neared the gate, he saw Lady Sun ignoring the rain, dropping the umbrella held by the maid, and rushing over. He also rushed forward in a few steps.

“Mother!”

At this moment, Lady Sun was overjoyed and didn’t care that Zhang Yue was drenched. She immediately pulled him into her arms. It wasn’t until an old woman hurried over with an umbrella that she burst into laughter, though she scolded, “You’re almost sixteen already. Why run so fast in the rain? What if you get hurt? Look at you, completely soaked—why didn’t you put on a raincoat or carry an umbrella? Come with me inside to change clothes. The old lady and the others are in the lady’s main room…” Before she could finish speaking, Lady Sun raised her eyes and saw her husband walking over with an umbrella, smiling. Her eyes instantly filled with tears, though it was hard to tell whether they were from the rain or sorrow.