A Record of Officialdom

  In the Tongzhou Prefecture of Shaanxi Province, in the county seat of Chaoyi, there was a village to the south of the city. The villagers were all surnamed either Zhao or Fang, with no other families present. This village was neither big nor small, with around twenty to thirty households. For generations, they had been engaged in agriculture. However, when it came to Old Man Zhao's generation, he surprisingly hired a teacher to instruct his son in the classics. By the time of his grandson, they suddenly produced a young scholar who passed the imperial examination. The villagers were amazed and thought that this was no small feat. They all rallied around him, and the Fang family gradually became overshadowed. The Fangs, feeling envious, also spent money to establish a school and invited a renowned Confucian scholar from the city to come and teach their children.

  Mengmen Xiushi: Mengmen, academy; Xiushi, namely Xiucai.

  This man, named Wang Ren, had given up his ambitions due to his age and devoted himself to teaching in the countryside. In just a few years, he opposed democratic politics and claimed that "the most outstanding person" was one who could produce several talented individuals: some could recite poetry; others could write a few lines of verse. Among them was a student with exceptional talent, who even used his brush as a "lecturer". The local gentry were extremely pleased with these students. By the Double Ninth Festival in September, everyone had discussed and agreed to invite Mr. Wang again next year. Seeing that he would be retained at the academy, Wang Ren was naturally delighted. This student who could give lectures, his name was Fang Bikai. His family's gate had two large trees, one on each side, so locals called him "Big Tree Head Fang Family". Fang Bikai's father said that starting next year, he would send Mr. Wang an additional four taels of copper coins as a gift.

  "Opening lecture": refers to the third paragraph of the eight-part essay, written by beginners who write eight-part essays.

  It was the year of the "big comparison", and Zhao's family sent their son to take the imperial examination. After the exam, they waited anxiously for the results at home. One day after the Double Ninth Festival, a group of people gathered in front of the house, wearing red hats and posting notices. Fang Baoqin, who had been watching the commotion on the street, rushed over to Zhao's house upon hearing the news. He saw a crowd of people busy posting notices, and his eyes landed on one that read: "Congratulations to Mr. Zhao Yinwen, who has passed the Shaanxi provincial examination with honors, ranking 41st among the successful candidates." Fang Baoqin was so absorbed in reading the notice that he didn't notice someone patting him on the shoulder until he heard a voice calling out "Brother-in-law". He turned around to see none other than Zhao Laotou, the grandfather of the newly successful candidate Zhao Yinwen.

  Originally, this was a must-open, because earlier Zhao Fu had passed the imperial examination and become a scholar-official, he already had the intention of attaching himself to them. He hastily arranged for his third daughter to be betrothed to Zhao Wen's brother through a matchmaker, so Old Man Zhao hurriedly called him "in-laws". As soon as he looked clearly, he saw that it was the father-in-law, and without even entering the house, he knelt down at the gate, kowtowing three times. Old Man Zhao returned the courtesy, hastily helping him up. Fang Bokai brushed off the mud on his clothes while saying: "Now you can believe my words! I often said that the vision of the gentlemen in the city is not bad at all. Ten years ago, when Wang Xiangsheng from Stone Tablet Building came down to offer sacrifices, he stayed in your house for a short while. After lunch, Mr. Wang had nothing to do and walked into the study, where it happened that a group of students were there reciting poetry. Mr. Wang was momentarily delighted and said: 'I'll also come up with a couplet.' That day, it had rained twice, and Mr. Wang's upper couplet was exactly two characters: "rain". I thought to myself: this young master would surely blurt out something like "sun coming out". Mr. Wang nodded his head and said: 'The two characters "rain" and the three characters "sun coming out", although they differ by one character, are still quite good in tone. This child will probably turn out to be somewhat accomplished.' You think about it, didn't this fulfill Mr. Wang's words?" Old Man Zhao said: "Indeed! If you hadn't brought it up, I would have forgotten all about this matter. Now that we're already in the ninth month, around the end of the month or the beginning of next month, Mr. Wang will certainly come down to offer sacrifices again. In-laws, at that time, gather all your children and let Mr. Wang examine them. Hopefully, your young master will turn out just like my little grandson." Fang Bokai heard these words and was naturally delighted in his heart, and after chatting for half a day, he finally bid farewell and returned home.

  At that time, the family had already served lunch, but he didn't eat; instead, he walked back and forth alone in front of the study corridor, muttering to himself about "good news for the young master" and "reporting good fortune". The family members didn't understand what he was saying. Fortunately, there was Mr. Wang in the study, who had been successful before and knew the subtleties. After listening, he said: "These are words from the newspaper, why is he reciting them?" He thought for a moment and then said: "I understand, it must be that Zhao's child passed the imperial examination today, and our master saw it and became envious again, and his old illness has relapsed." He quickly called out to Old Three: "Quickly help your father into the house and sit him down, don't let him stand in the wind." This Old Three was a clever child who knew how to speak well. After hearing this, he quickly helped his father inside, but unexpectedly, his father rushed into the study and kowtowed twenty-four times in front of Mr. Wang. Mr. Wang hastily returned the courtesy and helped up Mr. Fang, saying: "Master Fang, let's talk about it, where did this start?" At this time, Mr. Fang couldn't say a word, pointing to his own heart with one hand and then pointing to his son Old Three with the other, and then making a bowing gesture towards Mr. Wang. Mr. Wang had already understood three or four parts of what was going on, so he pointed to Old Three and asked: "Master Fang, is this because of him?" Mr. Fang nodded. Mr. Wang said: "This is easy." He pulled over a stool with one hand and let Master Fang sit down, then took Old Three's hand and said: "Old Three, do you know why your father is acting like this today?" Old Three replied: "I don't know." Mr. Wang said: "It's because of you." Old Three asked: "What about me?" Mr. Wang said: "You haven't heard that it was Zhao's older brother who passed the imperial examination today, have you?" Old Three said: "He passed his own exam, what does it have to do with me?" Mr. Wang said: "It's not like that. Although someone else passing the exam has nothing to do with you, your father still has some fire in his eyes." Old Three said: "His fire is his business, what does it have to do with me?" Mr. Wang said: "That's where you're wrong!" Old Three asked: "What am I wrong about?" Mr. Wang said: "Your father only has one son, which is you, and since he had you study, naturally he hopes that you will make progress and become a successful official like your brother-in-law in the future." Old Three asked: "What's good about passing the imperial examination?" Mr. Wang said: "After passing the exam, you can go on to pass other exams, become an official, and have many benefits!" Old Three asked: "What are the benefits?" Mr. Wang said: "Once you become an official, you'll have money to earn, and you'll be able to sit in court and sentence people, and when you go out, you'll be greeted with drums and music. Ah, these benefits won't come from not studying or passing the exam!" Old Three was still young, but after hearing "once you become an official, you'll have money to earn", although he didn't say anything, his heart had some movement, and he remained silent for a while. After a moment, he suddenly asked: "Teacher, you're also a scholar, why don't you go take the exam and become an official?"

  Rahman Lin: Those who passed the imperial examination, except for the top three in the first class, were appointed to the Hanlin Academy according to the rules. Others also participated in the imperial examination, and those with excellent scores selected by the emperor became junior compilers of the Hanlin Academy.

  At that time, Fang Bikai heard Mr. Wang's words to his son and was delighted for a moment, and the phlegm in his throat also loosened up a lot. Later, he heard Mr. Wang say that after becoming an official, there would be money to make, and he let out a loud "ah" and spat out a large mouthful of sticky phlegm. Just as he had spit out half of it, he suddenly saw his son retort Mr. Wang's words, leaving Mr. Wang speechless, and the phlegm stuck in his throat again, not coming out. He stared at Mr. Wang with both eyes, waiting to see how he would respond to the student.

  This is the first time Mr. Wang has ever seen such a big temper, today it's clear that his son is not good enough, he clashed with him and caused trouble. But the more he tried to speak, the more phlegm came up, wanting to spit but unable to, wanting to say something but unable to, anxiously scratching both hands, foaming at the mouth. Lao San was still muttering: "If you're a bit better, go take the imperial exam and become an official for me to see, don't just idle around eating food in our house." Wang Ren heard this and became even more furious, grabbing a board and rushing over to hit him, Lao San crying and jumping, making an even bigger commotion. It was still Lao San's uncle who heard the noise and rushed in, slapping Lao San twice; then made several bows to Mr. Wang and apologized profusely; only after leading his son out did things calm down.

  Now, as for Old Man Zhao, since his grandson passed the imperial examination, he was incredibly pleased. From then on, there were always people from the yamen coming to stay at his house in groups of three or five, and they would provide him with an abundance of food and drink every day, including opium. Old Man Zhao handed over a list of all his relatives and acquaintances to the yamen runners and told them to fill out the invitations and deliver them to each household. He was also busy selecting a date for the ancestral worship ceremony and hiring chefs from the city, saying that he wanted to offer whole pigs and sheep as sacrifices, as well as hire fireworks experts, musicians, and ritual specialists. Furthermore, he was busy selecting a date for the celebratory banquet and inviting all his relatives and acquaintances. He also said that now that his grandson had passed the examination, from then on they would have several more families of fellow graduates to socialize with. He was also busy ordering six flagpoles from the carpenter: two in front of their own house, two at the ancestral tomb, and two at the ancestral temple. He was also busy having a sign made, wanting to ask Mr. Wang, a distant relative who was an official in the capital, to write the three characters "Haoxian Hall" for him. After thinking it over, he realized that there wasn't anyone else in the city who could be asked to do this favor, so he sent a generous gift to Mr. Wang and asked him to write the three characters. That night, he had the sign made by a lacquerer and hung it at the entrance of their house, which was quite glorious. He also busied himself making a set of warm clothes for his grandson, preparing for the day when they would receive guests to celebrate.

  Bao Fang: The person who reports the good news to the newly successful Juren or Jinshi is called Bao Ren; a group of such people is called Bao Fang.

  Old Zhao's family, for three generations, were country folk with limited knowledge. They couldn't have managed all this without the help of his relatives, who invited West Guest Wang Xiaolian to come and assist. Only then could they achieve such orderliness. Next, they prepared a large red gold-lettered invitation card, which read: "We respectfully choose October 3rd, due to our young grandson's good fortune in the autumn examination, to host a humble wine banquet, and humbly await your presence." Below it was written: "Zhao Dali and his son Baishou, as well as his grandson Wenxiang, pay their respects." On the outside of the red envelope, in the center, were written the three characters "Wang Da Ren" (Mr. Wang), with the eight small characters "City Stone Tablet Building Prodigy's Residence" below it. Everyone knew that they were inviting none other than Wang Xiangshen. Additionally, they asked Wang Xiaolian to write a letter in four-six format, which was nothing but words of admiration and longing for him, asking him to come and bestow his presence upon them. Old Zhao also instructed them to add a note at the end, saying that on the first day of the month, he would send his children to ride donkeys into the city, and by the second day, they could ride back down; here, two rooms in the villa had been cleaned up, so as to invite him to stay for several more days. The invitation card was sent out, and Wang Xiangshen agreed to come. Old Zhao was overjoyed.

  Autumn examination: Autumn examination. Qián refers to the place where the imperial examination is held, and the examination date is in autumn.

  There's a saying that goes, "When there's something to do, the day is long; when there's nothing to do, the day is short." As the days passed by, one day was just like another. The Zhao family, big and small, were busy from dawn till dusk, exhausting themselves to the point of collapse. On the third day of the new year, early in the morning, Old Man Zhao got out of bed, woke up his wife and children, and they all started their daily routine: washing their faces, changing clothes, eating breakfast... After finishing everything, it was already around 9 am. They rushed to the ancestral temple for worship. The whole family followed behind Zhao Wen, who walked in front as the top scholar. As soon as they entered the temple, several relatives came out to greet them. There was an old man with a long white beard and a pipe in his hand, sitting still without moving. When Zhao Wen saw him, he recognized him as the clan elder and hurried over to call out "Elder Sir!" The old man nodded, looked him up and down, and asked him to sit down. He said: "Congratulations, young master! You've become a member of the imperial family now! I don't know what kind of good deeds our ancestors did in the past, but today they're all being rewarded through you. I heard from the older generation that it's not easy to pass the imperial examination. When you went in for the exam, your ancestors from three generations ago followed you in and stood at the Dragon Gate, helping you carry the heavy load of books. Otherwise, how could you have carried over a hundred pounds of things? It's also said that Wenchang, the old master, is the chief examiner in the underworld. On the day when the results were announced, Wenchang wore a hat and sat at the top; below him were many judges writing on the list. Whoever was listed in the underworld would be listed on the imperial examination results, without any mistake. At that time, your ancestors from three generations ago had to go to the underworld to check the results and then go to thank the Jade Emperor, so they couldn't sleep for three or four nights. Young master, it's really not easy for our ancestors to have endured until today and be rewarded by you."

  Longmen: refers to the second gate of the imperial examination hall, also refers to the third gate, meaning that crossing this gate can lead to a sudden success.

  The father and son were talking in the house when suddenly there was a commotion outside. When asked what was happening, only Zhao Wen's grandfather was seen with sweat all over his face, stomping his feet and scolding the cook, saying: "They still haven't come until now! These good-for-nothings, not even eating good feed!" He cursed as he fanned himself with a big hat, shaking it back and forth, getting so angry that his eyes turned red. Just then, the cook came in carrying bowls and utensils. Everyone blamed him. The name of the dish was "Carp Jumping Over the Dragon Gate".

  "My master! From morning till now, I've been walking on an empty stomach for over thirty miles just for this one thing! Not even half a cent has been seen, and yet he says to send me to the yamen first. The high officials in the city, the Hanlin and Shangshu, how many have I served? Never have I seen such a violent and unreasonable master like him, pretending to be a gentleman in front of me! He's always talking about being a king of the countryside, but I'm afraid even if he were to replace the king of the countryside, no one would want him! One moment he's scolding, the next he's throwing down the cooking utensils and saying 'I won't do it anymore, wait for him to send me away!' Everyone saw that the cook was angry and wouldn't make any more dishes, so the ancestral worship couldn't be completed. Just as everyone was in a state of disarray, Zhao Wen's uncle came over and spoke kindly on both sides, eventually deceiving the cook into continuing with the preparations. The dishes were all made and presented. At this time, the clan collectively pushed for the new filial piety to take charge of the sacrifices, accompanied by the clan elder. Everyone followed behind, kowtowing. Although there was a master of ceremonies shouting orders on the side, they were all country folk who didn't understand these rules, so some made their bows first and then kowtowed, while others kowtowed first and then made their bows. The master of ceremonies saw that they were not in order, but could only go along with them perfunctorily. After the ancestral worship was completed, everyone returned to their own homes, and it was a lively scene as people came and went. When counted, there were still more people wearing grass shoes. As for the gifts presented, they continued unbroken; at most one hundred copper coins, but also twenty or thirty, and not less than that."

  Abuse: abusive language.

  Look, the sun is setting in the west, and the village elder Wang has arrived. The three generations of the Zhao family had been waiting anxiously for a long time, as everyone who was going to drink the celebratory wine had to wait for Village Elder Wang to arrive before they could start. Everyone's stomachs were growling with hunger, and they were getting impatient. Suddenly, they heard that he had arrived, and it was like a gift from heaven. They all went out to welcome him. It turned out that Village Elder Wang was riding in a sedan chair, and before it even reached the gate, Zhao Wen's father rushed forward, grabbed hold of the bearers, and led them to the entrance. Village Elder Wang got out of the sedan chair, and the three generations of the Zhao family hastily greeted him with bows and salutations, ushering him in as if they were welcoming a phoenix, and he took his seat at the head table.

  Only two guests were invited here, Wang Xiaolian and Bin Dong. Wang Xiaolian is a relative of Wang Xiangshi, and they are from the same family. Wang Xiaolian is younger than Wang Xiangshi by one generation, so they address each other as uncle and nephew. His host Fang Bizheng also wore a red hat and white top hat, wearing a sky-blue outer garment, pretending to be elegant and refined, accompanying them below; however, he was not wearing boots on his feet, but only a pair of green Liang's blue cloth shoes.

  The village elder sat down, and before the conversation started, he shouted "Come!" A man wearing a red tassel hat, Second Master, responded with a "Yes!" The village elder then asked, "Has the small gift we brought been handed over?" Before Second Master could respond, Old Zhao already had a small red envelope in his hand, saying to the village elder, "You're making us trouble again, this is absolutely not acceptable!" The village elder wouldn't agree. Old Zhao had no choice but to accept it and called his grandson over to thank Village Elder Wang. After having some tea, they started dinner.

  The king sat in the middle, with several seats on either side, all of whom were wearing grass shoes and short sleeves. Some people who couldn't even get on the platform were waiting to eat in the courtyard. Here, wine was served and seats were arranged according to etiquette, but Old Zhao didn't understand any of it, so he entrusted Wang Xiuliang to act as host on his behalf. At this time, Wang Xiuliang sat facing south, Wang Xiuliang faced west, Fang Bikai faced east, and the two grandsons sat at the bottom making polite conversation. After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Wang Xiuliang and his nephew discussed the "examination papers" released by the chief examiner of that province this year, saying they must be elegant and refined, and outstanding in every way. They also talked about several new jinshi from their county who had passed the exam, each of whom was deeply talented and destined for greatness even before the results were announced, just as expected: it's clear that good writing is valuable, and fame is not undeserved.

  闱墨：the articles written by new jinshi and juren during the imperial examination.

  The two men were chatting enthusiastically, and before they knew it, they had drunk several more cups. It turned out that this Wang Shangshen was also a double-provincial scholar and had served as an inspector of the Imperial Censorate. After retiring due to old age and illness, he returned home and taught at the local academy. Among the people present, except for Wang Xiaolian, there was no one else who could engage in conversation with him. Zhao Wen, although a new jinshi, was still looked down upon by Wang Shangshen because of his youth and inexperience. As for his grandfather and Fang Bikai, they had both become "gourds with cut-off mouths" at this point, only able to pour wine and offer dishes, without any opportunity to interject a word, so they too remained silent.

  The village squire drank until he was half drunk, and his thoughts flowed like a spring. He couldn't help but speak loudly to Wang Xiaolian: "Old nephew, how many years do you think this 'essay' will take?" Wang Xiaolian listened to these words and didn't understand them. He couldn't answer a single sentence. The chopsticks in his hand held a meatball, which he didn't put into his mouth. He just stared at the village squire with wide eyes. The village squire nodded twice and said: "This is a long story. In our dynasty, there are many famous scholars who don't need to be mentioned. Just talking about Shaanxi Province, there was Mr. Lu Runsheng, who taught many talented people. The former prime minister, Yan Laoren, and the nobleman who served as the Minister of Justice, weren't they all reading Mr. Lu's essays when they were young? They only achieved great success later on!" As he spoke, he pointed to Zhao Jiazu and his grandson, saying: "Take me for example. I remember that year, I was 17 years old and just started learning how to write from Mr. Shi Botong. Although Mr. Shi was an old jinshi who failed the imperial examination thirteen times, he had memorized the entire 'Ren Zhai Tang Wen Gao'. He taught me to read 'Zhi Yi Quan', which is a primer for beginners. Every day, I would only learn half of it. Because my memory was poor, Mr. Shi cut out the article and pasted it on the table with rice paste, asking me to recite it with my head down. But no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't memorize it. For this, I suffered countless beatings and punishments, kneeling for who knows how long. It wasn't until now that I finally became a jinshi. Alas! Although I suffered greatly, it was not in vain." Wang Xiaolian replied: "This is exactly what the proverb says: 'Those who suffer the most will become the best.' Not to mention other things, just these few words you spoke are truly heartfelt and meaningful, and only someone with your experience could say them."

  Zhiyi: refers to eight-part essay.

  ② Economy: Manage the world and govern the country.

  Upon hearing this, Wang Xiang couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and smile, patting Wang Xiaolian on the back and saying: "Exactly, my young friend! You're able to say something like that, your writing really has put in a lot of effort. Although I'm not seeking official advancement now, you also don't have any ambitions for fame or fortune. You teach students in the countryside, while I manage education in the city - we're both spreading the teachings of our master and cultivating talent for our imperial court. The rise and fall, the gains and losses here are all very important. Don't look down on yourself, my young friend - this heavy responsibility is on the shoulders of us two uncles and nephews. In the future, we'll maintain the world's order, and even if we face hardships, our will won't be shaken. As for Zhao, although he's just been newly appointed as a high-ranking official, he's still one of us scholars. He'll surely make our teachings shine brightly in the future, carry on the legacy of our predecessors, and take over from them. Who else can do it? It's only right that we should take on this responsibility! Come on, young man, let's strive to do better!" By this point, he was getting carried away, his eyes closed, shaking his head and waving his hands around.

  Zhao Wen listened to this and couldn't help but feel a sense of respect. His grandfather, Fang Bi Kai, initially understood some of it, knowing they were discussing literature. Later, Wang Xiang Shen's mouth was full of literary phrases, and he made many foolish gestures, making Zhao Wen want to laugh but not daring to do so. Just as he was feeling puzzled, a sudden commotion broke out from outside. Upon inquiry, it turned out that Wang Xiang Shen's second brother-in-law had been given two silver coins as a gift by his master, and Zhao Wen's father had given him three copper coins as foot money. The man complained that it was too little and demanded more. Zhao Wen's father said, "Your master only gave two silver coins, which is less than thirty coins when exchanged. Now I'm giving you three copper coins, which is already extra." The second brother-in-law retorted, "If the foot money isn't increased, I won't leave even if I have to run a long distance. I still need to eat a bowl of rice!" Zhao Wen's father refused to give him food, but he insisted on eating and ran into the kitchen to grab some noodles. The cook didn't comply, leading to an argument that escalated until they reached the main hall, where Wang Xiang Shen stood up and scolded, "You good-for-nothing! You have no regard for the law!"

  At this moment, Wang Xiaolian came out and did something good or bad. He took out two copper coins from his pocket to buy him a pancake to eat, and only then was there no more trouble. After sitting down, Wang Xiangsheng was still angry and said, "When I go back, I will definitely take the plaque to the government office and beat this kid hundreds of times to teach him a lesson!" However, Zhao Lao heard this and immediately interceded for him, saying, "A person who has been punished by the authorities is like a ghost who will never be reborn. Wouldn't that ruin him? You should accumulate good deeds instead of punishing him. When you go back, just scold him a few times to teach him a lesson." Wang Xiangsheng didn't say anything after hearing this. Fang Bikai suddenly remembered Zhao Lao's words and wanted to test Wang Xiangsheng's son's talent, so he got up and went to find Lao San. He called out for half a day but couldn't find him anywhere. Finally, he found him in the kitchen, where he was gnawing on a bone with his oily hands. When he saw his father coming, he wiped his oily hands all over his new clothes. His father was both angry at his son's lack of progress and sorry for the clothes, and his eyes were blazing with anger. He suppressed his temper and didn't say anything else, but first took a cloth to wipe his son's hands and said he wanted to take him to see Wang Xiangsheng. Lao San was not someone who could be taken out in public, and no matter how his father tried to persuade him, he refused to go. His father was so angry that he slapped him on the ear, and Lao San cried out in pain. Everyone came over to mediate, and his father had no choice but to give up.

  Here Wang Xiangsheng had a few more dishes, stood up and bid farewell. Old Zhao also asked Wang Xiaolian to speak for him: "My grandson is young and has never been out; if there is an idle steward in the Wang mansion, please recommend one to follow my grandson to Beijing next year for the imperial examination." Wang Xiangsheng also agreed. Just now everyone sent them off at the gate, got into the carriage and left. To know what happens next, listen to the next episode.