Chapter 145: Stop Meming

Do you want to learn how to write poetry and rhymed prose? The kind that gets you exiled to Lingnan.

That was precisely the nature of the association between Wu Chuhou and Cai Que. When Cai Que was young, he studied poetry and prose under Wu Chuhou. Later, when Cai Que rose to the position of Chancellor, Wu Chuhou visited him and asked for his patronage and advancement.

Cai Que refused. Consequently, Wu Chuhou threw his lot in with Wang Gui, prompting Cai Que to marginalize and squeeze Wu Chuhou out at every turn.

Furious, Wu Chuhou ultimately orchestrated the Carriage-Cover Pavilion Poetry Case, which resulted in Cai Que being demoted to Lingnan, where he eventually died of old age.

Some remarked that while Cai Que certainly deserved death, he should not have been executed on the pretext of his poetry. Wu Chuhou’s maneuver consequently earned him an honorable place among the infamous wicked officials.

Therefore, upon hearing that Cai Que had offered to introduce him to study poetry and prose under Wu Chuhou, Zhang Yue naturally understood that the other man meant well. However, pondering the matter, Zhang Yue decided he was not yet desperate enough to risk exile in Lingnan just to learn poetry, and thus politely declined Cai Que's offer.

When Zhang Yue went to visit Cai Que, he brought along two bottles of plain wine, several Xuan brushes, and a roll of Shu paper.

The plain wine was an everyday indulgence; consuming it quietly in the Directorate of Education without being spotted by the lecturers ensured one would escape reprimand. Given the heavy academic workload, the students there always favored this little comfort.

As for the Xuan brushes and Shu paper, they were gifts for Cai Que, intended as an early congratulatory gesture for the upcoming spring imperial examinations where he hoped to secure a place on the prominent roll.

Cai Que was exceedingly pleased to receive Zhang Yue’s gifts.

On his way back to his dormitory, Zhang Yue saw Cai Que hurrying after him, carrying a block of fine ink and several catties of pomegranates. These pomegranates were also known as golden cherries. In the region south of the Yangtze River, out of a taboo regarding the personal name of Qian Liu, pomegranates were referred to as golden cherries.

Seeing Cai Que go to such trouble, Zhang Yue could not help saying, "Brother Chizheng, you are being overly formal. These Xuan brushes and plain wine were merely items I had readily on hand. You make me quite embarrassed by reciprocating like this."

Zhang Yue knew that Cai Que’s family background was indeed difficult. His father had been dismissed from office by Chen Zhizhong, leaving the family stranded in Chen Prefecture, struggling from one meal to the next.

In the past, Zhang Dun’s brother-in-law Huang Haoqian had frequently provided them with relief, but even so, after entering the Directorate of Education, Cai Que lived a very frugal and constrained life.

Cai Que smiled and said, "Sanlang, as the saying goes, courtesy demands reciprocity. You call these brushes and wine things on hand, but no one else brings them—only you. It shows that you hold this foolish elder brother in your heart. I accept this sentiment."

Insisting no further, Zhang Yue replied, "Very well, then I shall await the good news of Brother Chizheng topping the imperial roll!"

With a resolute look in his eyes, Cai Que said, "I accept your auspicious words, Sanlang... Is there anything else, Sanlang?"

Hesitating for a moment, Zhang Yue decided to speak his mind frankly: "Brother Chizheng is open and aboveboard, refusing to take the slightest unfair advantage of his friends. This is naturally the conduct of a gentleman. I believe that when you one day cast off your common garments to enter officialdom, you will surely look after the common people in the same manner—just, upright, and incorruptible."

Cai Que burst into laughter and said, "Sanlang, what nonsense are you talking about? I can hardly foresee the day I will cast off my common robes. Farewell!"

Watching Cai Que depart, Zhang Yue thought to himself: Cai Que grew up in poverty, and right at the beginning of his official career, he was exposed and accused of corruption and bribery, leaving an indelible stain on his record that plagued his official reputation for the rest of his life.

He wondered how much of his warning the man had actually taken to heart.

Entering officialdom for the first time required the utmost caution. A single misstep right at the start meant carrying that disciplinary mark for a lifetime, making the path of normal promotion immensely difficult—unless one was willing to seek alternative routes or attach oneself to powerful patrons.

Yet was the path of clinging to powerful patrons an easy one to walk?

Not only did one need to be adept at flattery and ingratiation, but more importantly, one had to possess value in the eyes of those patrons and be utterly obedient.

Zhang Yue had no idea how much of his advice Cai Que had managed to absorb; he could only feel that he had done his best out of goodwill.

Upon returning to his dormitory, Zhang Yue distributed the several catties of pomegranates gifted by Cai Que among his dormitory peers.

This was also in accordance with the consistent instruction of his elder brother Zhang Shi: whenever one had good food at hand, it must always be shared with others rather than enjoyed alone.

During the distribution, one of his classmates took a pomegranate, ate it, and chuckled, "Sanlang must have made quite a bit of money recently from seal-carving."

Hearing this, Zhang Yue merely smiled and said nothing.

There was no help for it; while the Directorate of Education was filled with brilliant minds and many who were intelligent in their studies, there were also not a few whose social tact left something to be desired. Most of these individuals harbored no malicious intent, so Zhang Yue simply let the matter slide.

Truth be told, his daily expenses were indeed covered by the proceeds from his seal-carving. Every month, he would sell or semi-gift two or three pieces, bringing in an income of two or three strings of cash.

Zhang Yue had recently received a letter from home informing him that a courier on official business to the capital had brought him winter clothing and several strings of cash, which meant his finances would soon become much more comfortable.

Zhang Yue carved two more seals that night. The next day happened to be the full moon, a day of rest at the Directorate of Education.

He happened to have five or six ready-made leisure seals on hand that he wished to dispose of.

Naturally, Ouyang Fa and his brother frequently came to Zhang Yue to purchase leisure seals, but as friends, Zhang Yue could never bring himself to accept their money. Whenever Ouyang Fa made a request, Zhang Yue invariably gave the seals to them as gifts.

Of course, the two Ouyang brothers would never take them for free and always reciprocated with generous gifts, which constantly left Zhang Yue feeling rather embarrassed.

Therefore, whenever Zhang Yue carved leisure seals, aside from those he gifted to Ouyang Xiu and Ouyang Fa, he would take the rest to the Great Xiangguo Temple to sell them for some extra pocket money.

Rising early that morning, Zhang Yue first went to pay a visit to Ouyang Xiu’s residence.

Ouyang Xiu currently held the concurrent posts of Hanlin Academician and Longtu Pavilion Academician, and was serving as the Prefect of Kaifeng.

This position was not the "Prefect of Kaifeng" frequently romanticized in theatrical tales; such a title was not a permanent post, and those assigned were generally acting as or holding the actual administration of Kaifeng Prefecture.

After taking charge of Kaifeng Prefecture, Ouyang Xiu was swamped with official duties. Ever since their initial meeting, Zhang Yue had never had the fortune to see him again.

Over the past half year, Zhang Yue had visited Ouyang Xiu’s estate several times, but on each occasion, he had been received solely by the two brothers Ouyang Fa and Ouyang Xiu's other son, Ouyang Fei.

Arriving at Ouyang Xiu’s estate this day, Zhang Yue brought along some modest gifts to request an audience.

To his surprise, Ouyang Xiu was actually at home.

Ouyang Fa accompanied Zhang Yue into the estate and informed him that Ouyang Xiu was currently entertaining guests, inviting him to join them so they could meet and greet one another.

Gathering his composure at this thought, Zhang Yue walked into the main hall.

He saw Ouyang Xiu seated prominently in the center, with two young officials dressed in green robes seated on the lower tier.

Zhang Yue first paid his respects to Ouyang Xiu, who smiled and said to the two men below: "This is the third young master of the Zhang family whom I just mentioned to you."

Upon hearing this, the two men stood up and exchanged greetings.

One introduced himself as Chen Shunyu, a native of Xiuzhou.

The other introduced himself as Qian Zao, a native of Suzhou.

Qian Zao smiled faintly and said, "Sanlang, you truly live up to your reputation as the scion of a distinguished family."

Meanwhile, Chen Shunkan remarked, "As the younger brother of Brother Zhihou, I was present at the banquet at the Wu residence that day. Your line, 'Look up, all ten thousand souls in the mortal world,' remains fresh in my memory."

Zhang Yue modestly muttered a word of self-deprecation. He had indeed heard of these two men before.

Back in Huzhou, Chen Shunyu had studied under Hu Yuan and had passed the imperial examinations in the sixth year of the Qingli era.

As for Qian Zao, his lineage was even more illustrious; his ancestor was Qian Liu of the Wuyue Kingdom, and his paternal uncle was the Hanlin Academician Qian Mingyi, who was a sworn enemy of Ouyang Xiu.

Qian Mingyi had once used Ouyang Xiu’s affair with his niece to attack and slander him, ultimately resulting in Ouyang Xiu’s demotion to Chuzhou. However, another member of the Qian family, Qian Weiyan, had once served as Ouyang Xiu’s superior and had shown him great favor and patronage.

Yet it was said that later, when Ouyang Xiu compiled the *History of the Five Dynasties*, he used many derogatory terms when describing the Qian family of Wuyue, presumably settling old scores under the guise of history.

Zhang Yue wondered inwardly why Qian Zao was here. Given that they were enemies, how could he possibly appear in Ouyang Xiu’s private residence?

Feeling secretly puzzled, Zhang Yue watched as the two men took their leave shortly afterward.

Ouyang Xiu’s expression appeared rather calm, and Zhang Yue did not dare to ask too many questions.

Holding a stack of manuscripts, Ouyang Xiu smiled and said, "These two intend to take the grand imperial examinations next year, so they have come to submit their policy essays to me."

Only then did Zhang Yue understand.

The grand examinations referred to the *Zhiju* (special imperial selection). According to regulations, candidates for the grand examinations had to submit fifty policy essays to officials of the two secretarial bureaus and above—twenty-five essays on governance and twenty-five critical analyses. Afterward, the senior officials would select those whose literary style and reasoning were superior to participate in the palace examinations. The two men had come today precisely to submit their drafts to Ouyang Xiu.

An idea flashed through Zhang Yue’s mind, and he immediately spoke to Ouyang Xiu about his desire to find a teacher for poetry and rhymed prose.

Ouyang Xiu looked at Zhang Yue and said, "I have reviewed your classical exegesis, policy essays, and poetry. Your proficiency in classical exegesis surpasses your policy essays, your policy essays surpass your poetry, and as for your poetry and prose—they are barely readable."

Zhang Yue knew this was the truth; he truly lacked natural talent for poetry and rhymed prose because such skills could not be improved simply through rote memorization.

Ouyang Fa laughed from the side and said, "Since Sanlang is not adept at poetry and prose, why not take the grand examinations instead? I only wonder if Sanlang has any confidence regarding the Six Treatises of the Secret Pavilion."

Ouyang Xiu glanced at Zhang Yue and rebuked Ouyang Fa, "Are you not trying to ruin Sanlang by saying that?"

Aside from requiring nominations from two recommending officials, the special selection examinations required the endorsement of senior officials from the two secretarial bureaus, and the most difficult hurdle by far was the Six Treatises of the Secret Pavilion.

Just how difficult were the Six Treatises of the Secret Pavilion? The scope of the examination questions was broad—so broad it was enough to drive one to a breakdown!

To what extent?

It included the "text or commentaries of the Nine Classics, the Seventeen Histories, the Seven Military Classics, the Discourses of the States, the writings of Xunzi, Yangzi, Guanzi, and Master Wenzhong."

In other words, candidates had to memorize both the main texts and the commentaries of all these books beforehand.

It had taken Zhang Yue several years just to memorize the Nine Classics.

As for what the Seventeen Histories were? In later generations, someone capable of reading through the Twenty-Four Histories thoroughly would be considered a towering genius.

The Seven Military Classics included *The Art of War by Sun Tzu*, *Wuzi*, and others. Mastering all of them meant one could practically take the military imperial examinations.

And there was more besides.

Anyone who had finished reading even a single one of the Nine Classics, the Seventeen Histories, or the Seven Military Classics along with their commentaries could be hailed as a giant among humanities scholars.

The talents selected through the special examinations were required to be capable of not only mastering the classics but also understanding history and even engaging in "armchair strategy" on paper.

Zhang Yue immediately declared, "Reporting to Academician Ouyang, this humble student mastered the Nine Classics at the age of fourteen."

If an ordinary person had made such a claim of mastering the Nine Classics, everyone would have called them arrogant and shameless.

Yet Zhang Yue spoke with absolute confidence; whoever dared to challenge him would simply receive a resounding slap across the face.

Seeing Zhang Yue's impassioned expression, Ouyang Xiu nonchalantly remarked, "I already know about your..."

Zhang Yue’s face darkened with frustration. Could this great master please stop playing around with running gags? Couldn't he be a bit more serious?

Ouyang Xiu smiled and continued, "...I already know your mastery of the Nine Classics is remarkable. When you were tested eleven times at the county school, you passed the Nine Classics brilliantly in almost all of them, with only one session where you passed eight. Truly, you are a rare talent of broad erudition and memory seen once in a century. It is simply a pity that you cannot take the grand examinations at present."

"Why is that?" Zhang Yue asked.

Ouyang Xiu smiled. "The grand examinations require the endorsement of officials at the rank of senior secretary or above. Right now, your reputation is not yet prominent—that is the first difficulty. Secondly, in recent years, those who take the grand examinations are mostly holders of the regular Jinshi degree. You should prioritize passing the regular Jinshi examinations first."

"Come to think of it, you rather resemble another student of mine, Zeng Zigu. He is adept at policy essays but takes a light view of standard examination prose, which is why he repeatedly failed and was tempered until last year before finally passing the Jinshi examinations."

Zhang Yue thought to himself that, when all was said and done, he still had to take the regular Jinshi examinations first—yet his poetry and prose were indeed his fatal weakness.

Hearing this, Zhang Yue said, "Academician Ouyang, my poetry and prose..."

Ouyang Xiu smiled and said, "No matter, I shall find someone to teach you. I only wonder if he will agree or not."