Chapter 496
Chapter 496
Eunuch Ye quickly presented two exam papers. The king picked up the first one and began to read. He skimmed past the initial questions on classics and geography, moving directly to the policy essay and poetry sections. Even though it was a copy, Ning Yuanxian recognized the writing as Zhu Hongbing’s at a glance. Zhu Hongbing called him ‘uncle,’ and the king, being exceptionally fond of him, treated him like a child of the Ning clan, making his style very familiar. After reading the essay and poems, the king was overjoyed.
‘Zhu Hongbing, this boy has truly performed well. This essay and these two poems are more than enough to crush every other candidate in this metropolitan examination.’
In his essay, “On the Feudal System,” Zhu Hongbing had maintained a perspective identical to Ning Yuanxian’s.
‘Good boy, truly well written. This should have secured him first place, so why are the examiners hesitant to award it? Is it because Zhu Hongbing is the queen's nephew and the prime minister's grandson that they dare not grant him the top spot? Are they trying to suppress him because of his noble birth?’
Then, Ning Yuanxian picked up the other exam paper. Not even two minutes into reading it, he was utterly stunned.
‘He answered all the classics and geography questions correctly? All one hundred and twenty of them? Is this man human, or a monster?’
The moment he began reading the essay, “On the Feudal System,” the king flinched, instantly sitting up straight.
‘Excellent, excellent!’
Every single word in that essay struck a chord in Ning Yuanxian's heart. Each passage quoted the sages, yet it also provided the most sacred justification for the implementation of the new policies. This essay was not only profound but also far-sighted, planning for the future. It was so good it could have been proclaimed to the world in place of the “New Policy Edict” he had previously issued.
Everything King Ning Yuanxian had considered was in this essay, and even things he hadn’t. Compared to this, Zhu Hongbing's essay was still immature. The king then read the “Autumn Wild Goose Poem” and the “Roc Fu,” and his eyes grew hot. The writing didn't just capture his thoughts; it made his very soul tremble. If his soul were a single string, the poems on the paper seemed to pluck that string wildly, making him shiver and his hair stand on end.
‘The person who wrote this poem and fu is my confidant. A soulmate. How difficult it is to find such a person in this world!’
The king was lost in a special kind of sentiment, unable to pull himself out.
‘So this is why the examiners sent the papers to me. They had already reached a conclusion but couldn't bring themselves to rank Zhu Hongbing second, so they passed this difficult problem on to me. This man is first place. Unquestionably first place.’
Unlike the examiners, Ning Yuanxian had already made up his mind. No matter how much he favored Zhu Hongbing, the boy could only be second. The writing on the second paper did not seem to be the work of an ordinary man.
“Whose paper is this? When did such a world-class genius appear in our capital?”
Eunuch Ye replied to Ning Yuanxian's question.
“According to the rules, the name cannot be revealed until the grading is complete.”
Ning Yuanxian was utterly baffled.
‘Impossible. I've never heard of such a genius among the candidates in the capital. If there were someone like this, they would have made a name for themselves long ago.’
Then, a shiver ran down Ning Yuanxian's spine.
‘Could it be... No, it can't be.’
Ning Yuanxian was inwardly shocked, yet filled with anticipation.
“Go, go to Ning Zheng's estate and bring me that... that madman. I have questions for him.”
Despite hearing the name several times, Ning Yuanxian still couldn't remember it. Who would want to remember the name of a stray dog or a street cat?
“Yes!”
Eunuch Ye received the order and hurried out.
***
More than an hour later, Madman Lan appeared in the royal palace, his legs trembling. He then knelt on the floor.
“Th-this humble subject greets Your Majesty.”
He seemed to have collapsed on the floor, unable to get up.
‘This fellow loves to act. A piece of trash who dared to pleasure himself in the examination hall for the Special Grace Examination is now trembling in fear?’
The king judged him instantly with a single glance.
‘In his thirties, handsome, with a complicated past, audacious, pretentious, and fond of bluffing. Among beggars and vagrants, he could be considered one of the more meticulous ones.’
The king kept his distance. Even though Madman Lan was no longer a beggar, in Ning Yuanxian's eyes, once a beggar, always a beggar. Therefore, he didn't want to get close to him, touch him, or even breathe the same air. This was a rather typical way of thinking for the upper class.
“Show it to him.”
As soon as the order was given, Eunuch Ye handed a copy of the exam paper to Madman Lan. Ning Yuanxian asked him.
“Is this your exam paper?”
Madman Lan bowed his head and replied.
“Yes, it... it is mine.”
Hearing this, both the king and Eunuch Ye were stunned.
‘It... it really is your paper? Everyone thought you submitted a blank sheet, but you not only answered all the classics and geography questions correctly but also produced such a timeless masterpiece of an essay and poems? Are you planning to make a name for yourself and astonish everyone with this?’
Inwardly, the king should have been ecstatic. Because if Madman Lan astonished the world, the biggest beneficiary would be Ning Yuanxian. Recently, censors had been attacking him daily, and thousands of candidates had even surrounded the Ministry of Rites. Though unspoken, many people were mocking the king, saying he had absurdly allowed eleven beggars to participate in the Special Grace Examination. But now that Madman Lan had performed so well, it was Ning Yuanxian's moment to shine. It would mean he had the insight to recognize exceptional talent. But for some reason, the king wasn't excited; instead, he felt extremely uncomfortable. He soon realized the reason for his discomfort.
‘Do you think a mere Madman Lan like you is worthy of being my confidant by writing such an essay and such poems?’
Yes, that was the reason. What a difficult and harsh person this was to serve. The king believed that someone he disliked was not worthy of resonating with him on the same level. It was like a woman who got pregnant, was abandoned by her lover, and when another man who would give his all for her offered to be the child's father, she told him, "You're not even worthy."
The king asked with a cold expression.
“Lan... Ling, speak the truth. Did you cheat in this Special Grace Examination?”
A young eunuch gestured, and everyone in the vicinity withdrew. Madman Lan sighed inwardly. This king was exactly as he had imagined. To him, anyone other than those he favored was less than a dog or a pig. Of course, Madman Lan was included in that group.
“Madman Lan, if you tell a single lie, I will tear you to shreds.”
Madman Lan bowed his head and said.
“Your Majesty, legally speaking, I did not commit any fraud. However, factually speaking, this humble subject did indeed cheat.”
The king's furrowed brow relaxed as he said.
“Tell me the truth.”
Madman Lan replied in a trembling voice.
““On the Feudal System,” the “Autumn Wild Goose Poem,” and the “Roc Fu” were actually written in advance by Young Master Shen Lang, who then had me memorize them. I merely copied them in the examination hall.”
Hearing this, the king was ecstatic.
‘Hahahaha! Just as I thought. It was that wretched fellow. In this world, only someone like him is worthy of being my confidant. Only he could enter my heart and write words that stir the depths of my soul. Because we are both equally arrogant, supremely intelligent, and meticulous people. The likes of you, Madman Lan, and others are not worthy. It was indeed written by Shen Lang. My guess was correct.’
The excited king's earlier discomfort vanished completely, and he poured himself a cup of tea, sipping it with satisfaction. Madman Lan and Eunuch Ye both thought inwardly that the king was truly something else. After a while, the king remembered an important matter.
“But how could Shen Lang have written this essay and these poems in advance? Was the exam question leaked?”
Madman Lan replied to the king's question.
“Young Master Shen prepared over a thousand policy essays and three thousand poems.”
Hearing this, King Ning Yuanxian was dumbfounded.
‘Over a thousand essays and three thousand poems? Did he churn them out like a sow giving birth to piglets? Is that wretched fellow Shen Lang really that incredible?’
“Of course, the other essays and poems were not as outstanding as the ones that appeared on the exam. However, for the likely questions, Young Master Shen wrote incredibly profound pieces that spoke from the heart. It was as if Young Master Shen were a deity; he didn't need to outline his writing, effortlessly composing vast passages just by thinking.”
This was what Madman Lan truly believed. He thought Shen Lang had written all those essays and poems by himself.
“Shen Lang, that wretched fellow dared to predict the exam questions? He's asking to die, to die, to die!”
At Ning Yuanxian's outburst, everyone thought to themselves.
‘Your Majesty, isn't your acting a bit poor? If you're going to talk about killing him, shouldn't you at least lower the corners of your mouth?’
Then, Ning Yuanxian finally remembered another important issue.
‘Madman Lan only had a month. Did he really memorize over a thousand essays and poems? And he got all the classics and geography questions right too.’
“Did you memorize all the dozen or so books required for the Four Books and Five Classics, and the geography subject?”
Madman Lan nodded in response to the king's question.
“You memorized over a thousand essays in just one month?”
Madman Lan nodded again. The moment the king saw this, his head tingled.
‘Does a genius with a photographic memory really exist in this world?’
“Ye, bring him a book. Tell him to memorize five thousand characters in the time it takes for one incense stick to burn.”
The young Eunuch Ye immediately brought a book, handed it to Madman Lan, and lit an incense stick. A quarter of an hour later, the incense had burned out. The young eunuch took the book back from Madman Lan and asked him to recite the first five thousand characters. As a result, Madman Lan recited everything without a single mistake, leaving Eunuch Ye and the king utterly impressed.
‘Truly a talent!’
‘Incredible! But Shen Lang is even more incredible than this man. Madman Lan wandered for years, yet no one recognized his talent. Shen Lang saw it at a glance and unearthed him. A discerning judge of talent is still great without a thoroughbred horse, but a thoroughbred horse that never meets a discerning judge becomes nothing.’
However, the king now faced a difficult problem.
‘How should I rank the literary portion of this Special Grace Examination? Should I make Zhu Hongbing first? But Madman Lan's essay and poems are so outstanding; anyone can see his writing is superior. Should I make Madman Lan first? That would cause a huge uproar. The key issue is that Madman Lan's essay and poems were copied, and the original author is Shen Lang. If Madman Lan lacks genuine talent and learning, giving him first place will only lead to the truth being exposed that it wasn't his own work. When that happens, it won't just be a disgrace; it will escalate into a major cheating scandal in the imperial examinations.’
The king now found it extremely difficult to make a decision.
“Lan Ling, what is the level of your own essays and poetry?”
“They are decent. If Your Majesty would like to give me a topic on the spot, I can answer immediately.”