Chapter 81: Establish your authority
Looking at the expressions on everyone's faces, Shen Yichen's smile widened. He actually came late on purpose today.
The reason is simple, that is to give them a warning!
The news of fraud in the Chengguo Mansion has been circulating for some time now, and I, as the top three winner, must have been questioned a lot. There must be countless people who are jealous and looking for trouble .
And these main forces of communication are among the group of new scholars waiting today.
Okay, very good. You danced so happily before. Just wait patiently today. I’m the first in the college examination and the protagonist of today’s banquet!
So most of the time Shen Yichen keeps a low profile and doesn't bother to find someone to show off when he has nothing to do. That's because the time is not right.
Since you want to pretend, you might as well find the right time to pretend to the fullest. Is there any better way than today to let the new scholars of the Jiazi year in Yingtian Prefecture welcome you with a bigger show?
It is a good habit for people to remain humble, but you must not let others forget that you have an arrogant side, otherwise all kinds of evildoers will come to you like flies.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. The middle door is open now. Please go in."
Shen Yichen was very respectful and even raised his hand as if to invite someone in, but no one took a step forward.
The reason remains the same. The list of rules for the imperial examination is put first. Shen Yichen hasn't even entered yet, so who dares to take the first place?
"Brother Shen, since you are the first in the case, please go first."
"Yes, Mr. Shen, please go first."
"Brother Shen, please."
The other new scholars were not ignorant of the rules. Some of them were willing to submit to Shen Yichen and took the initiative to step aside to make way for him to go first.
"Since you are so generous, I will take the lead."
Shen Yichen said the most polite words, but did the most arrogant things. He walked forward with his head held high, treating the other new scholars as guests, and walked over the threshold into the Academic Affairs Office, leaving only his back to everyone.
Seeing this scene, some of the scholars who had been waiting for a long time and were resentful felt even more frustrated and distressed.
It would be fine if Shen Yichen acted arrogantly, at least we could find a handle to prove his arrogance and confront him directly.
But Shen Yichen's words and manners were extremely polite, and there was nothing wrong with him.
But the effect is also very obvious. Anyone who is not stupid will understand that Shen Yichen's behavior is deliberate.
He made it clear to everyone that he was not someone to be trifled with. He still remembered the rumors he spread and the trouble he caused in the past, and now he was paying them back.
"It's really a great honor to be the first in the case."
Looking at Shen Yichen's back as he walked away, a young scholar finally broke the silence and said something in an envious tone.
"So you can't judge a person by his appearance. Who would have thought that a year ago this maid gave birth to a child and was despised and laughed at by everyone, but today she can be the leader?"
An old scholar with white hair and beard nearby replied with emotion after hearing this.
He had also taken several boy's exams and was very familiar with Shen Yichen's past, which made him feel that life was even more unpredictable.
"Don't be sentimental, just go in. It's great that you can pass the imperial examination at your age."
"Yes, go in."
"Brother Chen, please."
"please."
After Shen Yichen entered the middle gate, the rest of the newly-appointed scholars followed him into the academic administration office.
Only the group of people who had teased Shen Yichen before were still standing at the door with embarrassed looks.
"Heh, you're really late to show us your authority."
"It's just one first prize, but those who don't know would think it's three first prizes in a row!"
"Dong Hai, Shen Yichen is riding on your neck now, can you still tolerate this?"
"The exam question leak incident is unclear, and the relationship with Sun Tixue is unclear. I don't accept this case!"
The people who stayed behind were filled with righteous indignation. Shen Yichen's attitude was already humiliating, so how could they swallow this?
So they all turned their eyes to Xu Donghai. On the one hand, this kid was young and impatient, and liked to take the lead in this way.
On the other hand, Xu Donghai has a strong background and is well-educated, so he can suppress others in most cases.
It's just a pity that they chose the wrong opponent this time. Xu Donghai faced everyone's gaze without saying a word, and stepped over the threshold directly, with no intention of challenging Shen Yichen at all.
What's going on? Even Xu Donghai is afraid of Shen Yichen?
This scene made many scholars who fanned the flames feel disappointed. If even a "powerful force" like Xu Donghai withdrew, wouldn't Shen Yichen be able to control the imperial examination in Yingtian with one hand?
Xu Donghai actually knew very well what everyone was thinking.
In the past, he dared to cause trouble even without any fanning the flames. The first reason was that he was too young and his personality was indeed rather impulsive. The reputation of a child prodigy since childhood and his family background made him overly arrogant.
In addition, Xu Donghai is not stupid. He knows that it is easy to grab the limelight and establish prestige in the hearts of others. The reputation of a literary leader may seem insignificant on weekdays, but it can guide public opinion at critical moments.
Especially in the late Ming Dynasty, the bigwigs of various schools, even if they had no fame or honor, were all treated politely by everyone, from the county magistrate to the six ministries and cabinet. This is the power of the leaders of the literary world.
However, the series of disastrous defeats and the words of his uncle Xu Qi after the college entrance examination had almost made Xu Donghai understand a reality.
That is, the current Shen Yichen is no longer the maid-born child who could be despised. Whether it is the civil official group of Yingtian Prefecture or the military generals and relatives, he has a high degree of favorability.
With the bloodline of Duke Chengguo Zhu Yong backing him up, he will surely rise to prominence in the future!
The latter sentence was the original words of his uncle Xu Qi, so while waiting and facing the complaints of other Zhaowen Academy classmates, Xu Donghai always kept a low profile and did not get too involved.
When the opponent's strength and class are not inferior to or even higher than yours, blindly provoking them is tantamount to seeking death.
Xu Donghai is just young and impulsive, but he is not stupid.
Shen Yichen entered from the middle gate and walked into the Academic Affairs Office. To be honest, he had been in the Ming Dynasty for almost a year, and this was the first time he walked through the main gate of the Gaozhai compound, except for the gate of his own courtyard.
If he was not the first in the Three Major Prizes, relying solely on his academic title, he could not even get into the Educational Affairs Office, let alone the main entrance.
No wonder many ancient novels and plays have given the number one scholar parade a high position. The reason is that on that day, in addition to fame and fortune, the whole ceremony also gave the new number one scholar an unparalleled sense of honor.
It can be said that from the emperor, civil and military officials to the common people and peddlers, the whole world revolved around the new number one scholar!
The front hall and courtyard of the Academic Affairs Office were already furnished with tables and chairs, and the seating arrangement was similar to that of the family banquet at the Chengguo Mansion.
Due to the limited space in the front hall, only three tables were placed. The Superintendent of Education Sun Ding, the Prefect of Yingtian Prefecture Li Min, and the Magistrate of Jiangning Zhou Shun sat at the main table, with Sun Ding in the middle.
At the same time, the guest of honor seat on the left hand side of the table was reserved for Shen Yichen. As the top three candidates, he should sit in the most important guest of honor seat. As for the other empty seats, they were arranged according to the ranking of the candidates in the college examination.
As luck would have it, Xu Donghai happened to sit next to Shen Yichen. I wonder who was disgusted by the two of them sitting together at this celebration banquet.
Shen Yichen walked into the main hall, but did not sit down immediately. He had to wait for the rest of the new scholars to arrive and pay homage to the three chief examiners together.
This is not only a matter of etiquette between officials, but also being selected by the three examiners is equivalent to having a teacher-student relationship.
Of course, the "sitting teacher" in the early stages of the imperial examination is merely a title and a ceremonial one. The real interest relationship between teacher and student depends on the chief examiner who selects you as a Jinshi.
After waiting for everyone to arrive, Shen Yichen shouted loudly: "Student Shen Yichen leads the new scholars of the Jiazi year to pay homage to the Grand Master!"
"Greetings, Grand Master."
One hundred and twenty newly-appointed scholars bowed in unison, creating an extremely spectacular scene.
When Sun Tixue saw this scene, he felt a sense of pride and a smile on his face. After all, if it weren't for Shen Yichen's title of the top three winners, he would hardly have seen such a grand scene.
Sun Tixue stood up, bowed to all the scholars and said, "I am very pleased to see you all so full of vigor and vitality today."
"Each morning banquet to entertain distinguished guests is worth decades of no one asking about your presence. I hope that all students will remember this high-spirited moment today, and in the future banquet to celebrate your success, you can still be as young as you are now, dressed in fine clothes and riding a vigorous horse!"
Sun Ding's words made many scholars feel excited. Being a scholar is far from the end of the imperial examination. Today's banquet is just a beginning. One day, one must ascend to the throne to make the ten years of hard study worthwhile!
"Thank you, Grand Master, for your words!"
There was another unanimous salute.
And this time, not only Sun Ding stood up to return the gift, but also Li Min and Zhou Shun, who were sitting with them, stood up and saluted to congratulate the new scholars.
This is the difference between having merit and not having merit. Without merit, no matter how famous you are or how talented you are, the three examiners present today will not be able to greet the students on an equal footing, even to give them face on special occasions.
Today, their return gifts were not only to give face and congratulate the new scholars, but more importantly, a recognition of their fellow scholar-officials.
"Okay, everyone, please sit down."
Although Sun Tixue was a school official who strictly followed the etiquette of the scholar-officials, he was naturally free and easy and did not put on airs.
After saying a few simple words, he asked the new scholars to take their seats and prepare for dinner. This was unlike many leaders in later generations who held meetings and talked for a long time without making any sense and just talked for the sake of talking.
"Thank you, Grandmaster."
After the students returned the greetings, they sat down in order, and Shen Yichen naturally sat at the main table. However, what surprised Shen Yichen was that he found that Meng Fan, the descendant of the chieftain, was also sitting at the end of his table when he was taking the exam.
Shen Yichen had never seen the case list, so he was not clear about the rankings of others. The fact that Meng Fan could sit at the last place at a table of eight meant that he was ranked fifth in this Yingtian Academy exam.
I really didn't expect that the barbarian who was considered uncivilized by the people of the Ming Dynasty could actually get a good score of fifth place. It seems that Meng Fan has some talent.
