The door of each compartment was open, making it convenient for the officials patrolling outside to observe the movements and scenes in the room and check whether anyone was cheating.
After taking several deep breaths and talking to himself in his heart to cheer himself up, Takigawa's heart, which had become a little panicked due to the sudden accident, gradually calmed down.
The return of his emotions to calm also made Takigawa's thinking sharp again.
The thoughts that were originally like a tangled ball of wool were also sorted out one by one.
After sorting out his thoughts, his experience of studying under his teacher, the sinologist Xiang Sheng Chun Shui, turned into a series of images that flashed through his mind one by one.
Later, Takigawa was surprised to find that his master Shunsui Aisei once emphasized the phrase "knowing that it cannot be done but doing it anyway".
Takigawa remembered that it was about a year ago. Shunsui Aiei spent nearly half an hour in a class explaining this sentence to his disciples, including Takigawa.
Many allusions are also cited to help everyone understand this sentence.
His teacher Xiangsheng Chun|Shui admired Confucius the most, and therefore he also highly praised the "Analects of Confucius", which collected the words and deeds of Confucius and his disciples.
Because he admires "The Analects of Confucius" the most, Xiangsheng Chun|Shui has done the most in-depth research on "The Analects of Confucius".
When explaining the contents of "The Analects of Confucius", Xiangshengchun|Shui will also be extra attentive.
And Takigawa still remembered nearly 90% of what Aioi Shunsui said at that time.
Takigawa couldn't help but feel secretly delighted.
I am glad that I am Shunsui Sagara's disciple.
I am glad that I still remember the main point that Shunsui Sagara said when he explained this sentence.
Takigawa organized his words while carefully recalling how Sagara Shun|sui had explained this sentence at that time.
After finishing his mental draft, Takigawa picked up the pen again, dipped the tip of the pen into ink, bent down, and began to write word by word on the test paper.
After picking up the pen and starting to write, Takigawa felt as if he had received help from gods and ghosts, and his ideas flowed like a flood.
He entered a state of ecstasy and could not even hear the footsteps of the officials who were pacing and patrolling in the corridor.
Takigawa put all his heart and soul into answering the question.
Only after writing the last word did Takigawa's body and mind slowly detach from the test paper.
After quickly putting down the pen in his hand, Takigawa immediately began to read the article he had just written impatiently.
The more I read, the more I was amazed.
Takigawa felt that this was the best article he had ever written.
It was truly a true Pharaoh, with a riot of colour. After reading it once, Takigawa couldn't help but wonder, "Did I really write this?"
After reading it over and over again several times, Takigawa put down the test paper in his hand with satisfaction.
Takigawa now felt that his self-confidence was about to overflow from his chest.
His article will surely receive unanimous praise from the examiners - Takigawa is fully confident of this.
Takigawa felt that he had seen the scene where he won the first place in the literary examination and successfully let the elder councilor Matsudaira Sadanobu know about him.
When he thought that he was very likely to catch the eye of Matsudaira Sadanobu, Takigawa couldn't help but imagine how he would display his talents once he was appreciated by Matsudaira Sadanobu and was promoted and trained by Matsudaira Sadanobu.
Takigawa had already begun to imagine how he would revitalize the shogunate and govern the country after he was appreciated and promoted by Matsudaira Sadanobu.
He had to first present to Matsudaira Sadanobu the various proposals he had painstakingly formulated before, such as "vigorously revive the discipline of the samurai" and "capture Ogata Ittosai at all costs and behead him in public."
By "reviving the discipline of the samurai", the decadent and corrupt lifestyle of the samurai can be eliminated.
Takigawa firmly believed that as long as he continued to implement his political proposition of "vigorously revitalizing the samurai discipline" and "severely punishing bandits who violated the Bushido", the country's situation would be turned around within a few years.
This country, which was devastated by the Tenmei famine three years ago, will be revived under his governance, and the shogunate will regain the unparalleled power it had when Lord Ieyasu was alive.
And he will also be remembered forever as a famous minister like Niwa Nagahide and Maeda Gen'i, and will be admired by hundreds of millions of people in the future.
Takigawa was immersed in his ambitious fantasy.
Because he was too immersed in fantasy, a weird and disgusting smile appeared on Takigawa's face...
——It’s time to hand in the paper soon!
Takigawa couldn't wait to hand in the paper.
Takigawa was quite confident in his answer sheet. He felt that he could vaguely see the examiner being surprised after seeing his test paper, and then rushing to see whose test paper it was.
…
…
Ogata held up the pen whose ink was almost dry and stared at the test paper on the desk in front of him.
The scene of him sacrificing himself to assassinate Matsudaira Gennai a year ago, and the scene of him single-handedly conquering the shogunate three months ago, replayed back and forth in Ogata's mind.
This forced Ogata to repeatedly review the two craziest things he had ever done.
"Knowing it is impossible but still doing it" - this sentence is one of the most famous sentences in "The Analects of Confucius".
There have always been different interpretations.
The most widely circulated and accepted interpretation is: It does not mean doing something even though you know you cannot do it, but doing things without asking whether you can do it or not, and doing so with a clear conscience regardless of the outcome.
——The decision by me, the elder of the Kuranaga family, and Ichiro to assassinate Matsudaira Gennai... can be considered as "knowing it is impossible but still doing it"...
While Ogata was expressing this brief emotion in his heart, a faint smile unconsciously appeared on his face.
Ogata is not stupid.
As the person involved, he knew better than anyone how difficult it was to assassinate Matsudaira Gennai.
If the assassination fails, it means death.
Even if the assassination is successful, the perpetrator will be charged with the crime of "killing the master" and will be wanted and hunted by the shogunate.
Whether the assassination is successful or failed, it is not a good result.
However, knowing that the assassination would be extremely difficult and that there would be no good results regardless of success or failure, Ogata decided to abandon everything, including his life, and draw his sword against Matsudaira Gennai.
Ogata believed that Kuranaga family elder, Ichiro and others must have been in the same mood as him at the time: facing a known tragedy, they still moved forward courageously.
Ogata's mood when he attacked Nijo Castle three months ago was similar to his mood when he decided to assassinate Matsudaira Gennai a year ago.
Even though he knew that this move would be tantamount to completely offending the shogunate and Shiranui, he still did it without hesitation.
Ogata carefully recalled his state of mind when he made up his mind to assassinate Matsudaira Gennai and attack Nijo Castle, while he picked up the pen, dipped it in ink, and slowly wrote on the test paper...
Ogata melted his feelings and determination at that time into the ink at the tip of the pen, turning them into words...
…
…
When the sun reached its highest point, the government officials punctually struck the gong to inform everyone: time had come.
Ogata also tried an extreme operation - when the gong used to inform everyone that the time was up was struck, Ogata had just finished writing the last word.
After handing the test paper to the official who came into the room to collect the papers, Ogata breathed a sigh of relief.
"It's more tiring than I thought..."
Then he smiled bitterly and sighed in a low voice.
It had been a while since Ogata had concentrated so much and bent over to finish a test paper, so he was not used to it. After finishing the test paper, he just felt a little dizzy.
After kneading his right hand which was a little numb from writing for a long time, Ogata took back the knife placed at his side, quickly left the teahouse, and returned to the inn where he, Atachi, and Huluya were staying.
As soon as Obe returned to the hotel room, he was immediately surrounded by Atachi and others, who asked him how the written test went.
"It's OK," Ogata replied, "I was able to answer most of the questions, but there were a few that I didn't know whether were right or wrong."
"What's more difficult is that there were some unexpected things that happened during this written test..."
Ogata briefly informed everyone about the unexpected incident of an extra question on the test paper.
After leaving the teahouse, Ogata paid attention to the conversations of people around him.
Therefore, Ogata discovered that everyone was very surprised about the extra question on the test paper.
After leaving the teahouse, most people were discussing with their friends why the number and types of questions on the test paper were different from what the government had said before, or sharing with their friends how they answered the "composition question".
"I basically answered that question casually." Ogata, who was sitting cross-legged on the tatami, said in a half-joking tone, "I don't know if my answer is considered acceptable. I also don't know if that question is important..."
"If only those who answer that question well can pass the written test, then we're in big trouble..."
"Well, be more confident, Ogata-kun." Genichi, who was sitting in the corner of the room like a loser as always, laughed while drinking. "For questions like this one that involve writing an essay, it all depends on whether the examiner agrees with what you wrote."
"Perhaps the examiner particularly likes your answer and decides to give you the first place in the essay test."
"I don't dare to think about getting the first place in the exam." Ogata said unhappily, "I never thought about getting the first place in the exam from the beginning. My goal from the beginning was just to 'pass the exam smoothly'."
"Hehe." Genichi let out a strange low laugh, "Ogata-kun, do you know what is the most profound truth I have learned after living for so many years?"
"That is - what happens in life is always more exaggerated and unreasonable than the stories told by storytellers."
"So it's not impossible that your essay just happened to suit the examiner's taste, and the examiner decided to give you the first place in the essay test."
After saying that, Genichi took another big gulp of wine and then burped loudly.
Looking at Genichi who was drinking leisurely, Ogata couldn't help but complain in his heart:
——Speaking of which…it seems that Master Genichi has done nothing since he came to Edo. He just stays in the corner of the room drinking every day…
…
…
That evening——
Edo, Matsudaira Sadanobu's residence, Matsudaira Sadanobu's room——
"Master Lao Zhong, this is the final test paper."
Matsudaira Sadanobu's nickname, Tachibana, placed a large pile of test papers on the tatami in front of him.
"Yeah." Matsudaira Sadanobu, who was sitting not far in front of him, nodded gently, "Tachibana, thank you for your hard work."
At this time, piles of test papers were placed on the tatami between Matsudaira Sadanobu and Tachibana.
These test papers are from those participants who took part in the "Imperial Examination" this morning.
After all the test papers were collected, Matsudaira Sadanobu immediately sent people to start marking them.
Matsudaira Sadanobu sent a total of 10 people to mark these papers.
The scope of correction for these 10 people is limited to the first 100 fill-in-the-blank questions, and the "composition question" at the back is not their responsibility to correct.
Because these "fill-in-the-blank questions" were quite easy to mark, and the 10 markers carefully selected by Matsudaira Sadanobu were all proficient in Chinese studies.
So it only took one afternoon for these 10 examiners to finish processing all the test papers.
All the test papers that had been corrected for fill-in-the-blank questions were sent to Matsudaira Sadanobu's residence tonight.
The reason why the 10 examiners only marked the fill-in-the-blank questions and not the "composition question" at the end was because Matsudaira Sadanobu specifically requested that the last question of the test paper be marked by him personally.
Matsudaira Sadanobu folded his hands over his chest, glanced at the piles of test papers in front of him, and showed obvious disappointment on his face. He said softly:
"The number of people participating in the 'Imperial Trial' is much smaller than expected..."
According to official statistics, there were only 538 people who took part in the "Imperial Examination".
Only 508 people showed up for the written test this morning, and 30 were absent.
In other words, the total number of people who actually came to participate in the "Imperial Trial" was only over 500.
Much less than Matsudaira Sadanobu expected.
When he heard that a large number of people from all over the world would flock to Edo, Matsudaira Sadanobu was very excited, thinking that many people would come to participate in the "Gozen Trial".
But who would have thought that until the registration deadline, the total number of people who signed up for the "Imperial Trial" was only a little over 500...
Seeing the disappointment on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face, Tachibana quickly explained:
"Many people went to Edo just to see the excitement of the 'Gozen Test', not to participate in the 'Gozen Test'."
"Some people originally wanted to participate in the 'Imperial Examination', but found that in addition to the martial arts competition, the 'Imperial Examination' also requires literary competition, so they gave up."
"Some people gave up participating in the Imperial Examination for other reasons."
As soon as Tachibana finished speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu let out a long sigh.
"Well, although the number is much less than expected, it is not to an unacceptable level."
“I hope more people can pass the written test successfully.”
After saying this, Matsudaira Sadanobu placed the table beside him in front of him, and then spread the pen, ink, and inkstone that he had prepared early in the morning on the table.
Tachibana knelt on one knee in front of Matsudaira Sadanobu, looking at Matsudaira Sadanobu who was fiddling with the table, smiled bitterly and asked softly:
"Master Lao Zhong... do you really want to review these test papers one by one?"
After saying that, Tachibana couldn't help but take a look at the piles of test papers in front of him.
There are 508 people participating in the "Imperial Examination", which means there are a total of 508 test papers.
Matsudaira Sadanobu planned to mark the last question of these 508 test papers himself... Tachibana felt his scalp tingling just imagining the workload.
Matsudaira Sadanobu, knowing what Tachibana was worried about, smiled slightly:
"For me, who has directed countless political affairs, this is just a small matter."
“And I can read very quickly.”
"It only takes me one more day to read and correct all this amount of work."
When he finished saying this, Matsudaira Sadanobu had just arranged the table and all the items on it.
"Lord Rochu, you may not know that many people who participated in the 'Imperial Examination' today complained why the questions in the examination papers were different from what the government had said before." Tachibana continued with a wry smile.
As for Matsudaira Sadanobu, he chuckled after hearing what Tachibana said:
"It seems that we did a good job of keeping it secret. No one knew there was a question like this at the end of the test paper."
"…Master Laozhong, I still don't understand."
Tachibana's voice suddenly became much deeper.
"Why did you suddenly add this question to the exam paper? Why did you keep it strictly confidential and not let everyone know about this question before the exam started? And why did you mark this question yourself?"
Tachibana is Matsudaira Sadanobu's nickname.
Generally speaking, everyone would only choose their own confidants to be their nickname.
Matsudaira Sadanobu was no exception, and Tachibana was one of his confidants.
As a close confidant of Matsudaira Sadanobu, Tachibana naturally knew a lot of inside information.
For example, the written test paper initially only had 100 fill-in-the-blank questions, and there was no "composition question".
It was Matsudaira Sadanobu who suddenly ordered to add this question and demanded that it be kept strictly confidential, not allowing any outsider to know that there were other questions in the test paper besides the fill-in-the-blank questions.
After silently listening to the series of questions raised by Tachibana, Matsudaira Sadanobu said in a calm tone:
"If everyone knows in advance that there will be this type of question, then everyone will prepare early."
"This way, I won't achieve what I want."
"As for why I added this question, and why I asked this question myself..."
After a short silence, Matsudaira Sadanobu raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a faint smile.
"There are many reasons for this."
"The main reason... is probably just to see if there are any like-minded people."
After saying something that made Tachibana feel confused, Matsudaira Sadanobu waved his hand at her.
"Okay, you can leave first. I'm going to start marking the papers, don't disturb me."
Tachibana wanted to ask what Matsudaira Sadanobu meant by what he had just said.
But seeing that Matsudaira Sadanobu had already begun to politely drive people away, Tachibana didn't feel comfortable saying anything more. He could only quickly respond with a loud "yes" and quickly leave Matsudaira Sadanobu's room.
After Tachibana left the room, Matsudaira Sadanobu moved the stack of test papers closest to him to his side, and then spread out the test papers one by one on the desk in front of him.
What Matsudaira Sadanobu had just said to Tachibana, “I can read very quickly,” was not bragging.
He has been reading books since he was young, and thus he has unknowingly developed the ability to accurately understand the main content of an article even at a glance.
Matsudaira Sadanobu looked through them quickly, one after another.
His hands moved quickly, but the expression on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face did not change much.
He just flipped through the test papers one after another with an expressionless face.
The moon outside the window keeps changing its position as time goes by.
The oil lamp in the room was also replaced once.
The expression on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face finally showed some changes.
But it’s a bad change.
The originally expressionless face now frowned slightly.
A hint of displeasure also appeared on his face.
"One by one... they are all just reciting from a script..."
After finishing reading another test paper and placing it on top of the "hill" of test papers that had already been read, Matsudaira Sadanobu uttered these words in an impatient tone.
Matsudaira Sadanobu rubbed his eyes which were already a little sore.
Because he was concentrating on marking the papers, Matsudaira Sadanobu didn't realize how much time had passed since Tachibana left.
I just instinctively felt that it should be late at night and it was getting late.
Matsudaira Sadanobu opened his still sore eyes, glanced at the "hill" of completed exam papers next to him, and thought to himself:
——Have you already looked at more than 50 test papers?
In terms of results, tonight was quite fruitful.
After hesitating for a while between the two options of "going to bed" and "correcting the papers for a while longer", Matsudaira Sadanobu chose the latter.
After rubbing his eyes for a long time, until tears came out, Matsudaira Sadanobu felt that his sore eyes felt better.
After regaining his spirit, Matsudaira Sadanobu took another test paper that he had not yet looked at from the side.
Compared with all previous test papers, there is nothing particularly noteworthy about this test paper.
The handwriting can only be considered neat, not beautiful. You can tell at a glance that it is the work of someone who has not practiced calligraphy professionally.
Judging from the choice of words and sentences, the person who wrote this test paper is not very talented in writing.
Matsudaira Sadanobu originally thought that this would be another boring test paper.
However... after his eyes quickly swept across the lines of words on this sheet, Matsudaira Sadanobu's originally calm expression and look gradually began to change.
More and more emotions began to appear on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face.
After reading ten lines at a glance, Matsudaira Sadanobu quickly turned his gaze back to the beginning of the article and started reading again.
This time, Matsudaira Sadanobu read it very carefully.
Almost read it word by word.
After spending many times more time reading the article on the test paper than the first time, Matsudaira Sadanobu quickly turned back to the first page of the test paper to see who the owner of the test paper was.
In order to make it easier to identify who each test paper belongs to, the name of the owner is written on the first page of each test paper.
After quickly returning to the front page of the test paper, Matsudaira Sadanobu immediately rushed to see the name written on the test paper.
"Mashima...Goro..."
Then he whispered the name in a low voice.