Chapter 24: Setting a Precedent

"Thump! Thump!"
"Thump! Thump!"
"The weather is dry, beware of fire! The weather is dry, beware of fire."

On a dark, windy night, the watchman who had just sounded the second watch had barely walked away when a sneaky figure suddenly appeared in the shadows outside the back gate of the Qisheng Academy. After carefully confirming that there were no outsiders, the dark shadow quickly reached the academy wall. With nimble movements, he climbed using the protrusions and indentations of the wall, reaching the top in the blink of an eye—a display of skill that proved this was not his first time doing such a thing.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Unfortunately, just as the dark shadow crossed the wall and landed in the courtyard almost silently, his body accidentally brushed against a thin black string. The string tugged at a bell hanging on the wall, emitting a clear sound, and shouts immediately rang out from the darkness within the Qisheng Academy.

"Someone's here! Charge! Catch him, don't let him get away!"

In the end, thanks to the combined efforts of several imperial guards, the dark shadow was soon caught. After a brutal beating and confirming that he was a former servant who had done odd jobs at the Qisheng Academy, he was dragged to the front of the main hall and handed over to Zhao Guangyi and his nephew Zhao Dezhao, who were on duty for the first half of the night.

A test paper was quickly found on the servant. Upon seeing that the content was a response to the exam questions personally set by Zhao Kuangyin, Zhao Dezhao couldn't help but smile and say, "It really is impossible to guard against everything. My father released these questions only yesterday morning, and to think they have already leaked out of the exam hall in just one day. It seems we must be twice as careful tonight and tomorrow."

"Don't worry, with your uncle here, even if the questions have leaked, absolutely no one will be able to get the answers into the exam hall."

This was the confident reply of the exam supervisor, He Huaipu. Then, as if to prove that he wasn't just bragging, his only son, He Lingtu, personally brought over a man. He displayed a piece of white silk covered in tiny, neat script and a silver cake, laughing as he said, "He wanted to use silver to bribe the petty official in charge of delivering supplies. Fortunately, our soldiers were diligent enough to discover it in time."

"Very good. We must keep a close eye on the delivery of items to the candidates; don't let those curs find any loopholes," He Huaipu nodded with satisfaction and ordered, "Give that silver cake as a reward to the soldier who discovered the cheating. Tell them clearly: as long as they find contraband, the confiscated money belongs to the finder—we generals won't take a single cent. Furthermore, there will be additional rewards for whoever discovers the most contraband!"

He Lingtu agreed without hesitation and immediately went to reward the imperial guard. On the side, Zhao Guangyi felt envious—envious that his unworthy nephew had such self-funded henchmen like He Huaipu and his son. He laughed on the surface, saying, "The two Generals He are truly thorough. With the two of you commanding the guards, the fairness and justice of this examination will not only be unprecedented but likely unmatched in the future."

"You are too kind, Your Highness. We are merely doing our humble best."

He Huaipu spoke with feigned humility, but his expression lacked true respect. Zhao Guangyi, accustomed to being flattered, felt angry inside, but there was nothing he could do. He excused himself to "inspect the grounds" and led his confidant, Chen Congxin, away from the hall, unwilling to keep watching the sight of He Huaipu and his son fawning over his unworthy nephew.

Chen Congxin understood Zhao Guangyi's frustration. Once they reached a secluded spot, he whispered comfortingly, "Your Highness, please calm your anger. The He family are the Prince's closest kin; their fates are intertwined. It is no surprise they are working so tirelessly for him. Fortunately, we do not need to come into direct conflict with them. Let the Prince have his moment in the spotlight."

Zhao Guangyi snorted, noncommittal to the advice, and changed the subject. "In this examination, our only hope seems to be Chai Chengwu. If he can successfully secure the top spot as Zhuangyuan, my reputation can still be saved. But if he accidentally fails, I will lose face in front of all the scholars in the world."

Knowing how much effort Zhao Guangyi had invested, Chen Congxin could only continue to comfort him. "Rest assured, Your Highness. Yang Zhaojian has already accepted Wu Daozi's painting, and Wang Hu has thanked us repeatedly regarding his son's situation. Aside from the Emperor, three of the five examiners will choose Chai Chengwu as the Zhuangyuan. As long as the Emperor remains impartial, the Zhuangyuan will surely be your student, Chai Baochen, and the others."

Chen Congxin's reassurance did not put Zhao Guangyi at ease. Looking toward the main hall, Zhao Guangyi, projecting his own nature onto others, couldn't help but think: "If that scoundrel is determined to oppose me, could he be playing some kind of trick in this matter as well?"

People know how to seek advantages and avoid harm. Upon discovering that the anti-cheating measures for this examination were surprisingly strict, those candidates and their families who had been holding out hope chose to pull back from the brink, not daring to play any more tricks. By the third day of the exams, even though it was confirmed that the questions had leaked, the number of people finding excuses to deliver items to candidates was significantly lower than in previous years.

Moreover, most of those who did deliver food or stationery to the candidates were truly providing necessary items. The occasional bold fools who tried to gamble on slipping through were all thwarted by Zhao Dezhao's endless anti-cheating methods—there was no help for it; the cheating methods of the Song Dynasty were simply too primitive, and trying to deceive a veteran of exam halls like Zhao Dezhao was pure wishful thinking.

Seeing that the discipline of the exam hall had greatly improved, Zhao Dezhao, who was effectively in charge of the provincial examination, was secretly pleased. However, things were not entirely smooth sailing. Near noon that day, while Zhao Dezhao was patrolling the hall with Liang Zhouhan, another examiner, Wang Yisun, who had been keeping a low profile, suddenly appeared by his side under the guise of an inspection.

Wang Yisun took the initiative to greet him. "Your Highness has worked hard. The discipline in this examination is so strict; your contribution is truly monumental. With your example, the imperial examinations in the future will surely be even more fair and just."

"You are too kind, Right Councilor. I am merely doing what I can."

Zhao Dezhao feigned humility. Wang Yisun smiled slightly and suddenly changed the subject. "The provincial examination ends this evening. I wonder if, during your patrols, you have come across any brilliant essays that caught your eye? Or perhaps any promising young newcomers expected to rank in the top three?"

"I haven't had the chance, to be honest," Zhao Dezhao said, giving a rare, truthful answer. "I didn't want to influence the candidates while they were writing, so I haven't looked at the papers. I plan to review them all once the exam is over."

"Really?" Zhao Dezhao's rare honesty actually drew skepticism from Wang Yisun. With a look of surprise, he asked, "Could it be that Your Highness hasn't even taken a special look at the paper of the famous Kaifeng talent, Chai Chengwu? He was the top performer in last year's prefecture exam and the prized student personally selected by the Second Prince."

Sensing the hidden meaning in Wang Yisun's words and knowing that he belonged to Zhao Pu's faction, Zhao Dezhao hesitated before giving another honest answer. "I haven't paid attention to that. Although I've heard the name Chai Chengwu, I haven't met him. For the sake of fairness, I haven't made any attempt to get to know him."

"Your Highness is truly detached. I admire that," Wang Yisun complimented, then smiled and continued, "However, the Second Prince is completely different. I have heard rumors all over Bianliang that Chai Chengwu is expected to take the top spot this year to prove that the Second Prince's judgment in last year's prefecture exam was flawless. Therefore, I dare to speculate that the Second Prince must be very concerned about this."

Since Wang Yisun had brought it to this point, Zhao Dezhao knew he must have an ulterior motive. He smiled and said, "Is that so? If that is the case, I hope that great talent, Chai, does not disappoint my uncle."

Wang Yisun smiled again, changed the subject once more, and asked, "Your Highness, a funny story related to examinations just came to mind. I wonder if you have heard it?"

"What funny story?" Zhao Dezhao smiled on the surface, but inwardly he became more vigilant.

"A story about examinations and a fly," Wang Yisun began directly. "It is said that during the previous dynasty, a candidate who passed the prefecture exam was on his way to the capital for the provincial exam. While passing through a desolate mountain area, he accidentally discovered a corpse that had died suddenly, lying alone in the wilderness. It was quite pitiful."

"The candidate, being kind-hearted, dug a pit and buried the corpse, allowing the deceased to rest in peace. He then continued to the capital to take the provincial exam and performed quite well. It’s hard to say if he would definitely be the Zhuangyuan, but a Jinshi degree was certainly within reach."

"However, just as he was leaving the exam hall, the candidate suddenly remembered that there was a character for 'Emperor' (Di) in his essay, but he had forgotten the dot on top. This was a grave error of carelessness. According to the rules, no matter how good his essay was, his paper would be voided. The candidate was so regretful he was nearly heartbroken, almost jumping into a river to end his life."

At this point, Wang Yisun smiled slightly and continued, "But what the candidate never dreamed of was that a few days later, when the court posted the results, he had placed third (Tanhua)! The candidate was both happy and confused, and even more afraid that if someone found out later, the crime would be worse. He took the initiative to find the examiner and honestly confessed. Your Highness, care to guess how the examiner answered?"

"I cannot guess. I have never heard this story before," Zhao Dezhao admitted his ignorance honestly. Fortunately, Wang Yisun didn't keep him in suspense and smiled, saying, "The examiner told the candidate that while grading, he had noticed the missing dot, but a fly just happened to land on the spot where the dot should have been, filling in the character with its body. When the examiner slapped the fly, it turned into a dot, perfectly completing the word."

"A fine story," Zhao Dezhao applauded and smiled. "If I am not mistaken, that fly that sacrificed its life to repay the favor must have been the soul of the corpse the candidate had kindly buried, right?"

"Your Highness is brilliant. Afterward, the candidate did indeed dream of the owner of the corpse, who admitted that he had transformed into a fly to repay the favor by helping the candidate fix his unintentional mistake."

Wang Yisun nodded with a smile, acknowledging that Zhao Dezhao had guessed the ending. With a mysterious expression, he added, "I wonder if such a story will occur in this provincial exam? If it’s to repay a favor, that’s fine, but if it’s to seek revenge, the outcome would be too tragic. Ten years of study, wasted because of a single stroke."

"The Right Councilor's words are very true," Zhao Dezhao agreed on the surface, while internally cursing the malice of Zhao Pu's faction. To strike at political rivals, they were actually inciting him to use the grading process to frame a candidate.

Seeing that Zhao Dezhao had understood his implication, Wang Yisun stopped pressing the matter. He bowed and said, "Your Highness, I shall go take a look over there. One small matter: your strict supervision has caught many people helping candidates cheat. I ask that you have them interrogated carefully and sentenced with caution, so as not to harm the innocent."

Zhao Dezhao nodded with a smile, and Wang Yisun finally moved in another direction. Liang Zhouhan, who had been silent until now, stepped forward and whispered, "Your Highness, judging by Wang Yisun's tone, many of those we caught cheating are likely backed by people in Minister Zhao's faction. I suggest you be lenient and not investigate too thoroughly."

"Minister Zhao's greatest weakness is his greed. If he doesn't change that, he will surely fall because of it one day," Zhao Dezhao sighed, then added, "However, there is no need for us to fall out with him over this. Let's not get involved in the cheating investigation; let the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Justice handle it."

"And what about Right Councilor Wang's hint?" Liang Zhouhan asked in a low voice. "The method he hinted at is despicable, but very effective. With just a light touch of ink, Chai Chengwu, whom the Second Prince is pushing so hard, won't just miss the Zhuangyuan spot—even passing the exam at all would be difficult."

The moment to test his character had arrived. Although Zhao Dezhao did not act purely out of conscience, he also did not resort to extreme measures to eliminate rivals. After a moment's calculation, he made a different choice. "Whether Chai Chengwu passes or not has nothing to do with us. Our goal this time is to please my father. We will proceed according to the original plan. As for Chai Chengwu, if he truly has the ability to take the top spot, then let him take it."

At the beginning of the You hour (5:00 PM), the first provincial examination of the Kaibao era, which had lasted three days and two nights, finally came to an end. The candidates handed in their papers according to the rules and, exhausted, left the hall to return to their lodgings. Zhao Guangyi, Yang Zhaojian, and the other examiners were also worn out, but due to their duties, the deputy examiners dutifully came before Zhao Dezhao to discuss how to proceed with the grading.

As the matter involved whether his prized student could successfully secure the top spot, Zhao Guangyi did not stand on ceremony and spoke first. "Let's follow the old rules: we, the co-examiners, will take turns grading the papers, select the ones we are satisfied with, gather them to discuss the rankings, and finally report them to His Majesty for his decision."

Having already accepted benefits from Zhao Guangyi, Yang Zhaojian and Wang Hu naturally agreed to his suggestion immediately. Wang Yisun of the Zhao Pu faction, hoping to sabotage Zhao Guangyi's student, also nodded in agreement. However, to Zhao Guangyi's surprise, Zhao Dezhao firmly refused. "No, that is too prone to corruption. We must change the grading method."

"How is that prone to corruption?"

Zhao Guangyi's question was not feigned ignorance; he truly had not studied the flaws of the system. Zhao Dezhao replied, "For example, if I had a relative named Zhang San taking the exam, when I saw his paper, I could set it aside as 'satisfactory' to help him. Even if he doesn't get the top three spots, he would at least secure a Jinshi degree, which would be unfair to other candidates."

After a pause, Zhao Dezhao continued, "By the same logic, if you, Uncle, or Minister Yang have relatives or students taking the exam, you might make decisions unfair to other candidates when you see their names."

Realizing the logic, Zhao Guangyi set aside his pride and asked curiously, "That is true, but how do you think we should grade the papers to be fair and just to all candidates?"

Zhao Dezhao produced a stack of blank paper he had prepared and smiled. "It's very simple: we will cover the names on every test paper before we grade them. This way, we will avoid the pitfalls of favoritism toward our own students or relatives."

PS: The system of "covering names" (huming) for grading began 24 years after the setting of this book, in 992 AD. The pioneer was Chen Jing, the then-Director of the Directorate for Palace Buildings.