Chapter 383: 197 Real Versus Fake Missy (two updates combined into one) _5
This round delved into policy questions.
The topic was so tricky that some candidates might well have wished to keel over at first glance.
The question asked for a discussion of the virtues of legitimate seniority.
The “Spring and Autumn Annals” states — the eldest legitimate son should succeed, not the more virtuous, the distinguished, not the eldest.
This means that only the legitimate son in a family is entitled to inherit the family fortune. Even if a child born out of wedlock is older, the legitimate son should take precedence, unless the legitimate son passes away, then it is the turn of the illegitimate son.
Take for instance, the late Young Lord of Zhaodu, who was the youngest son in his family, and had two older half-brothers, yet they had no right to inheritance, he was the only one who could be addressed as Young Lord.
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Now that he’s dead, the Marquis of Xuanping’s wealth should logically be inherited by his eldest illegitimate son unless another legitimate son emerges from Princess Xinyang’s belly.
If a family has several legitimate sons, then the eldest legitimate son inherits the property, like Gu Changqing of the Dignity Marquis Residence.
Both of them were in the legitimate and senior ranks based on their virtues, but there were also those who did not have the corresponding virtues, like the former Crown Prince.
The Empress Dowager had no children all her life. The eldest prince, son of Lady Liu, was made Crown Prince by the former emperor.
After his plot to rebel with the Liu family, he was demoted to commoner status. By convention, the second prince should have been made heir, but instead, the fifth prince, who is now the Emperor, was chosen.
After ascending the throne, the Emperor made Empress Xiao’s son the Crown Prince.
If you agree with the principle of promoting the eldest and legitimate sons but not the virtuous, then the Emperor’s throne is illegitimate; however, if you disagree, then you are criticizing the Emperor’s choice of Crown Prince, as everyone knows that although the Crown Prince is the legitimate son, he is not the most outstanding among the princes.
This is a question of life and death!
The candidates from Youzhou have gone mad.
Who have they offended in Youzhou this year? The provincial exam’s policy question was to reduce the size of the states, and the provincial exam question is even trickier, and they’re even examining the Emperor’s family affairs!
Although it is not fully articulated as the matter of succession, no one is a fool.
Furthermore, strictly speaking, succession is not the Emperor’s family affair, it is a state matter.
As it is a state matter, there is nothing that should not be used to test these candidates.
In essence, their minds should be thoroughly tested.
Thankfully, the weather was cold, so no one suffered a heatstroke, but two elderly candidates fell ill due to wind exposure, clearly frightened by the question.
Prince An squinted slightly when he saw the question.
Who came up with this question? The Hanlin Academy or the Emperor? If it was the Emperor, what was his intention?
Was he dissatisfied with the Crown Prince? Or was he trying to strike back at the Zhuang family who wanted to pull down the Crown Prince?
After all, if one chose the eldest legitimate son, the current Crown Prince should be chosen; if one chose the senior son, it should be Lady Zhuang’s eldest prince.
Prince An soon burst into laughter.
This is interesting.
The question is truly interesting!
Both Fen Lin and Lin Chengye could hardly manage this round, they belonged to those without much political sense, and they couldn’t discern the deep-seated implications behind the question, they still thought it was only about the literal meaning.
Fen Lin was an only child. Regardless of who was appointed, everything would belong to him!
Lin Chengye, being the illegitimate child, was told by his father that inheriting the family business was not promising, that being an official was where the promising future lies, so none of his brothers wanted to inherit the family business, they all wanted to be officials.
If he doesn’t pass the provincial examination, he has to return and inherit his family business like his brothers, becoming a little tycoon.
He doesn’t fancy that, it’s so melancholy.
When Xiao Liulang received the test question, his expression did not change much, but he obviously felt that it was more difficult than the previous exams.
He closed his eyes and drafted an answer in his mind. When he was finished, he did not rush to write it down, instead, he sat for another half an hour and overturned his initial thoughts.
…
The candidates inside the Imperial College were all looking desperate. They wished they could just throw their pens away, while outside the quiet, cold cobblestone path, a thin and gaunt figure stared blankly at the college’s enclosure wall.
The test question was spread half an hour after the exam started, and now everyone in the tea houses and wine shops knew about it, only nobody was able to send the answer in.
A man stood beneath the lofty walls, clutching a piece of paper in his hand, on which was written the test question.
His eyes sparkled with excitement.
He could do it.
He knew how to solve this question! He had already thought of at least ten answers in his head!
He clenched the paper in his hand, his body trembling uncontrollably.
“Who’s there?”
A patrolling guard spotted him.
He immediately began to run!
To avoid disturbing the candidates, riding was prohibited in the vicinity, and the guards patrolled on foot, which was sufficient to catch this weak man.
“It’s you?” Once the guard had pinned the man to the ground, he recognised his identity.