Just like the song "Looking ahead from left to right, love (fate) will take several turns". When you feel at the end of your tether, the dark clouds suddenly disperse and the sun rises. However, when you think you have a bright future, there is actually a big evil storm.
(The article is long, please wait patiently. )
The champion is the dragon, a native of Tongcheng, Anhui Province, and the champion in Jiaqing period. (Before Jiaqing, the emperor was Qianlong. After Jiaqing came to power, he killed Xiao Shenyang, the favorite of Qianlong, so there is a saying that "Xiao Shenyang fell and Jiaqing was full"; The emperor after Jiaqing was Daoguang, and the first Opium War took place in Daoguang's post office.
Long Ruyan's life has experienced ups and downs, which is quite unexpected.
The first accident: the scholar is in the heart of the emperor, and the champion is from scratch.
As we know, the top scholar should take the exam step by step, that is, the scholar (first-level exam, bachelor's exam), the juren (second-level exam, after the provincial exam) and the top scholar (third-level exam, senior high school entrance exam+palace exam, that is, the Jinshi exam, and the first place in the palace exam is the top scholar).
These three-level exams often take many years to complete. Therefore, most people need to study and review while working, except those who are very lucky and have finished the Level 3 exam at a young age.
So is Long Ru Yan. His family is poor. After winning the top prize, he left home to work in Beijing. This man is very talented and flexible. He worked as an assistant to a flag-bearer official, writing official documents and settling accounts, which was very appreciated by his master.
So the opportunity came. This year, the whole world is celebrating Jiaqing's birthday. Such an important project, as long as officials who are qualified to play the throne, can not show anything? To the emperor, besides some rare things, there is also a very important thing, writing a congratulatory letter.
The content of the congratulatory letter is nothing more than praising and praying for the emperor. It is easy to sing praises, but it is difficult to write them to make the emperor "happy"! Ordinary words, old routines, the emperor despises; Full of flattery, that is "hard licking", and the emperor may not appreciate it. So we need to lick new ideas.
The congratulatory letter written by Long for this official is unique. He selected more than 100 sentences from the poems written by Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong, and integrated them into a long poem. This is great! Why?
First, the idea is good, no one has done it;
Second, it is difficult. For example, Emperor Qianlong left tens of thousands of poems. How to choose poems is the first question. String the selected poems into new works, which meets the requirements of poetry, such as rhyme and logical coherence, which is the second problem; There is a third question. Don't forget what this poem is used for, that is, it should conform to the theme of "celebrating birthdays", and the central idea should not be lost, otherwise it will be beside the point.
Emperor Jiaqing was really pleased with the delivery of the works. Hearing that the author Long is a scholar, he immediately gave him the status of "first-class juren". At that time, classes had been suspended in recent years, and it was the exam season (exam, that is, Jinshi exam). Jiaqing greeted him intimately: let Long, who has just obtained the jury qualification, jump in line to take the Jinshi exam.
Long Ruyan took the exam, but failed. Long Ruyan is not depressed: after all, it is the first time, and it is expected that a newcomer will fail the exam. But Emperor Jiaqing was unhappy: People like me didn't even rank? Do your examiners have any intentions?
Officials in Manchuria heard that the examiner was reprimanded. So when he took the exam again three years later, Long Ruyan won the exam and was recorded as the first place. Emperor Jiaqing saw the list, and he was also very satisfied. He was the number one scholar. He also boasted with joy: "The person I like is really strong! Not bad! "
In this way, Long Ruyan, the champion from Beipiao, was originally separated from Juren by a mountain, and the result was the champion in a blink of an eye.
The second accident: the son was born in poverty, and the young lady was particularly fierce.
Mān hān means careless. I deliberately used the word "fierce", which means that this person is not only confused, but also very strong and inflammatory.
"Childe" refers to the dragon, while "Miss" refers to the dragon's wife Lu.
Long Ruyan was born in an ordinary family, and his father died young, leaving the mother and son alone. Fortunately, with the help of my mother's brothers, Long Ruyan can still study, but life at home is really difficult.
At this time, there was a drama of "privately booking a lifelong back garden and winning the championship". A rich boy named Lu took a fancy to the future champion, and often took him to his home, took care of him, dressed him well, and told him to study at ease.
The appearance of "Golden Dad" has really improved the life of dragons and ignited the light of life for young dragons. On the other hand, during his schooling, he spent a long time with Miss Lu's family and fell in love. It is also possible that Lu Jia took care of Long Ruyan and came up with the idea of being a son-in-law at home. So you love me, it's natural, young lady, to get married.
It's just that the economic strength does not match, and this door-to-door son-in-law is not good either. "Nothing is a scholar". Before the imperial examination was successful, scholars wanted money but no money, and social resources were scarce. To put it bluntly, even books, pens and ink have to rely on the support of my father-in-law's family. Long Ruyan felt a little bitter.
There is no record in the history books about the time when Long Chengjia became a scholar. China champion 18 14, about 30-56 years old. It can be inferred that Long Ruyan lived in his father-in-law's house for about ten years. During this period, I have always been just a scholar. I guess I took several exams and failed.
Dependence on others, fame and fortune, my father-in-law's original appreciation gradually turned into disgust, and my wife's previous love is now only boring. So there was Long Ruyan's drifting to the north, so there was the Xi champion mentioned earlier.
After winning the first prize, Long Ruyan was specially promoted to work in the south study room (the emperor's office), which was a leap forward. And he was originally the number one scholar elected by Emperor Jiaqing, "the emperor's own". If it goes well, Long Ruyan will have a bright future.
Unfortunately, life doesn't believe in the word "if". Although the relationship between the dragon and his wife has improved after winning the first prize, it is not so easy to change the pattern that men are superior to women and men are weak and women are strong in more than ten years of life! The toughness and confusion of his wife finally led to the second big accident in Long Ruyan's life.
Here's the thing. Long Ruyan has a job to write a biography (memoir) for the former emperor Gan Long, which is very important and glorious for literati officials. But Long Ru Yan made a mistake.
On this day, Long Ruyan quarreled with his wife again. Some people say that who is strong and who is weak in the relationship between husband and wife depends on who runs away from home after the quarrel. In the dragon family, of course, the wife is strong and the husband is weak. After the quarrel, Long Ru Yan ran away from home and hid in a friend's house. At the right moment, the office sent the proof of "Memories of Qianlong" to Long for proofreading. After the wife accepted the certificate on her behalf, she threw it aside; The next day, someone came to pick it up, and the wife returned the certificate intact without explanation.
That's it. Something's wrong. Qianlong's records were sent to Emperor Jiaqing for review. Jiaqing saw a lot of typos. Looking at it again, "Emperor Gaozongchun" was written as "Emperor Gaozongjue"! This is a serious political mistake!
As soon as I checked, Chang Ru Yan was in charge of proofreading. Well, I can't afford to raise such irresponsible talents! So an imperial edict: negligence in work, negative favor, immediate dismissal, never use!
-just the sky's the limit, everyone, was immediately dismissed for the people, and forever deprived of public qualifications, want to turn over all have no chance! Accident is not an accident? Surprise or not?
A few years later, Emperor Jiaqing died and Long Ruyan was chartered to attend the funeral. At the funeral, Long Ru Yan looked back: this was his true "nobility". Besides, the nobility never let me down. On the contrary, I failed my nobles, made the world laugh at me for jumping high and falling hard, and secretly laughed at the emperor's ignorance of people ... I was ashamed and bitter in my heart, and I cried so sadly!
Daoguang, who just came to power, heard about it and was full of pity, and gave him a small official. Promotion is out of the question. Make a living on wages. Ron Ru Yan was a handyman when he died.
This bumpy life is really full of accidents! Awarded the "Life Accident Award" to the dragon, right?
Li Pan, a native of Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, was the top scholar in Kangxi period.
Historically, Jiangsu and Zhejiang were places where Mandarin met, with many champions. In the Qing Dynasty, there were 1 14 champions, 49 in Jiangsu Province and 20 in Zhejiang Province, accounting for 60% of the total champions.
Li Pan was born in a scholarly family, and his grandfather and father were both famous scholars in the late Ming Dynasty. When Li Pan won the highest prize, he should be 43 years old. Here is an anecdote:
It is said that Li Pan is tall and has a big appetite. It is estimated that after years of scientific research, there is not much surplus grain at home, so when Li Pan took the court exam, the first-class rich man brought ginseng, the second-class rich man packed some good meals, and the third-class poor man brought dry food; Li Pan is particularly prominent. He brought 36 cakes (wheat cakes, once said, steamed bread).
The length of the court exam is one day, even if you eat three meals and 36 cakes, that's too much! What's more, this Li Pan is no longer the age of "small boy, eating poor old man" (already 40 years old). Because of this, Li Pan has suddenly become a hot figure in the examination room, and many people look at novelty.
Li Pan is also a slow-witted person. It is said that his handwriting is not good and he is slow to answer questions. As a result, everyone else has finished the test paper, and he is still dawdling. The examiner came to urge, and Li Pan was so anxious that he begged: "Look at me, I have studied all my life, and my fame is at stake. Just do me a favor and let me finish the test paper calmly. "
The examiner also knows that these people have been admitted, and no matter what the results of the palace exam are, they will all be officials in the future, probably their colleagues. So I brought a candle and lit it to let him answer the question slowly. Li Pan burned the midnight oil and finally finished the answer before the end of the exam.
After the results came out, Li Pan answered very well. Emperor Kangxi also heard the stories of 36 famous books and read his serious answers. He is a calm and dedicated person with both knowledge and practical ability, so he was appointed as the top scholar. The students in the same exam laughed at him as the "top scholar".
Why is the "number one scholar" the loneliest? Here comes the fun.
Two years later, Li Pan was appointed as the examiner after having obtained the provincial examination in Shuntianfu. Where is Shuntianfu? In today's Beijing, it is equivalent to drawing out the imperial city, and all other counties and districts are managed by Tianfu. Therefore, Shuntianfu is at the emperor's feet, and Shuntianfu's rural examination is also the most important one in the country. As it happens, Li Pan stumbled when he was an examiner, and it is a stain that can't be washed away all his life.
After the examination results were announced, some candidates reported that Li Pan had taken bribes and practised favoritism, which undermined the fairness of the national examination. At that time, there was a couplet: old ginger was not spicy at all; Xiao Lida has a sweet taste.
"Old Ginger" refers to the assistant examiner and new ginger; "Xiao Li" is the examiner and the new champion Li Pan. At that time, Jiang was old and didn't take charge, so he was "completely spicy"; "Great sweetness" naturally means that Li Pan gained a lot of benefits for himself in the exam.
As a result, the examiner was dismissed, jailed and awaiting investigation. Li Pan, who has just won the honor of champion for more than two years, suddenly became a prisoner; Tanhuajiang died in prison. Time also? Life also?
A few months later, the verdict came down and Li Pan was exiled to the northeast.
In fact, after a thorough investigation, it was proved that Li Pan did not falsify, and this scientific research case was only provoked by someone with ulterior motives. However, people are sensitive and have doubts about the fairness of scientific research. Under the interweaving of many factors, Li Pan, the top scholar in Wan Li who should have been high-spirited and promising, unexpectedly lost her wings and died in vain.
Three years later, Li Pan was released and returned to his hometown. It is said that Kangxi later remembered to use him, but Li Pan was already disheartened. From then on, he read books, recited poems and fished at home, and lived a lonely life.
After studying hard at the cold window for more than 30 years, he won the top prize for two years and was exiled for three years, and then he was blamed and disappeared into history. Isn't the life of such a top scholar the loneliest? !
Wang, a native of Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, was the top scholar in the last years of Kangxi.
What kind of person is Wang?
Before he won the highest prize, everyone was thinking: How can a talented person, Rainbow Stan, find a scholar and a juror so hard?
When he finally won the first prize, people thought: Oh, my God! Sure enough, gold will shine sooner or later! Wang Fei wins, that is, he will win the first place in the test, and palace examination will win the first place, so he is an undisputed scholar!
That's the kind of person. When Wang was young, his poems were famous and his articles were outstanding. Literary celebrities Wang Shizhen and Cha spoke highly of him. The Governor of Jiangsu listed Jiang Zuo Poems (Selected Poems of Fifteen Sons of Jiang Zuo), and Wang ranked first.
But Wang at this time is not even a scholar. He took exams for many years and didn't become a scholar until he was 30. Then I continued to take the juren exam, this time for a longer time. I took the exam for almost 30 years, and at the age of 58, I was admitted. In the second year, I took the exam and won the first place; Participated in the temple fair and won the first place, which is the champion.
This year, Wang was 59 years old. He was known as the "No.1 scholar in flowers" and "No.1 scholar with a bald head" and was the oldest No.1 scholar in the imperial examination history of Qing Dynasty.
It is said that after Kangxi finished in palace examination, he took Wang's paper and asked the examiner, "Will the candidates in the world be convinced if you take this paper as the number one scholar?"
The examiners replied in unison: "No one is dissatisfied."
It can be said that Wang Shi Dan won the highest award, which is well deserved.
The tragedy is right after this. The first reason is that Wang is a pure scholar, honest and indifferent, and is often calculated in officialdom. The second reason is that he is really old and a little hard of hearing. Kangxi was in his fifties at this time, and he really didn't like having such an old man around him. Therefore, after Wang won the top prize, he edited and wrote books in the history museum for ten years without promotion. Later he retired due to illness.
He just retired and went back to his hometown. He has a second place in the same year (the second place in palace examination in the same year) called Zhao Jin. Because he was an associate examiner, he was detained in Jiangsu, so he was imprisoned. Anyway, it was the same year. I was a colleague and retired. The other party was kept at home. Did I go to prison to visit my old friend?
So Wang went to visit the prison. The day after the visit, Zhao Jin committed suicide in prison. Now, trouble!
Is there something hidden in this? Did Wang and Zhao Jin reach some kind of deal? Was Zhao Jin rescued from prison by Wang? Why doesn't the victim look like Zhao Jin himself? ……
A series of questions and rumors came to my face. The 70-year-old Wang was put in prison. It's no use defending yourself. It is impossible to let people go before the case is clarified. After staying in prison for about two years, Kangxi felt sorry for him and finally let him go. More than two years later, Wang died.
Think about it: the teenager became famous and was admitted at the age of 58. Is he wronged? I finally won the first prize and sat on the bench in the history museum for 10 years. I just thought I could enjoy the sunset after retirement, but I was sent to prison for several years. Do you feel wronged?
This is the story of "too wronged champion" Wang.
At the beginning of the imperial examination in the Qing Dynasty, there was a two-session system of dividing the list between the flag and the Chinese, that is, calculating by subject, the flag bearer opening the list, and the Han people opening the list. In this way, there will be two champions in each exam.
However, we know that the standard-bearer who has just entered the Central Plains is definitely far behind the Han people in study and examination. At the same time, there are some political considerations, such as letting all flag-bearers take the imperial examinations. Who will call in the future? So soon, I changed my policy and stopped taking exams, the same papers, the same list; The standard-bearer wants to manage, but there is no way; You love to take the exam or not, and you think you can't pass the exam of Han people. Right, you should practice martial arts well.
This is also the origin of a total of 1 12 scientific expeditions in the Qing Dynasty, resulting in 1 14 champions.
But in this way, the standard-bearer champion rushed up, which is so unique. This is the only standard-bearer champion in the Qing Dynasty who surpassed Han students in the examination room and was really admitted.
Chongqi, the flag bearer, was the son of Cezanne 'a, an important official in the middle and late Qing Dynasty, and was the top scholar in Tongzhi period. Tongzhi is the son of Cixi. He acceded to the throne at the age of six, and the real power was in the hands of Empress Dowager Cixi.
Chongqi's life is very interesting. He comes from a powerful family, and his father is the Chief Military Minister (Prime Minister). However, when Chongqi was 24 years old, his father was dismissed for failing to suppress the Taiping Army and was almost sentenced to death. The whole family was implicated, and Chongqi was originally an official of the Ministry of Industry, but he was also dismissed.
Prosperity is exhausted, and prosperity turns cold in an instant. The young Chongqi can be said to have tasted the coldness of the world and the warmth of human feelings. Fortunately, he likes reading. Before that, he also took an examination of juren, and calligraphy and painting were considered to be good hands. So, he put down the figure of the son of the former prime minister, worked as an aide, continued to study, and embarked on the road of imperial examination.
Thus, due to the mistake of fate, the only standard-bearer champion was born. At the age of 36, Chongqi took the exam, was admitted, and then took part in palace examination. At that time, there was a tacit understanding among the upper echelons of the imperial court: the flag bearer could not be the champion.
However, after Chongqi's papers were handed in, the candidates' names were sealed and marked. Results The first paper selected by the examiner was Chongqi. The top paper was given to the emperor and empress dowager of the two palaces. When I opened the seal, I was dumbfounded: the flag bearer admired Qi.
The emperor is only ten years old and still doesn't understand. He shouted that Chongqi was the champion. However, the empress dowager of the palace did not dare to do so. The purpose of the imperial examination is to win over the Han scholars and really make a flag bearer a champion. This is a political event. Will scholars in the world be convinced? Will Han officials have problems?
So, the paper was returned to the examiner and the military official: you discuss an idea. As a result, discussions broke out one after another, and the final conclusion was: only writing words can't separate flags. Since it is an exam, let's talk about the results. Of course, this is also related to the times. At this time, it has been more than 200 years since the Qing dynasty entered the customs. It doesn't matter if you win a flag-bearer championship. This is the first time, and it is impossible for the standard-bearer to test this level next time.
In the end, Chongqi was designated as the champion, the only recognized champion in history of qing dynasty.
Where does Chongqi's sad life come from?
At first, Chongqi's life took off again, which seemed more brilliant than his father and former chief military minister Cezanne. He became one of the teachers of the little emperor. A few years later, his daughter was made queen; Chongqi himself was transferred to many posts, and he was named a third-class benefactor, and the official was General Shengjing, the minister of the household department and the minister of the official department.
But as the saying goes, when his daughter became a queen, it should have been the best lever for Baiqi to make a fortune, but in fact it became a stone in his tragic life.
Tongzhi gradually grew up, unwilling to be bound by his mother Cixi; But where can Cixi be a good quarrel? Power is tightly grasped. The contradiction between mother and son began, and the queen naturally stood on the side of the emperor. Only two years after the coronation of the Queen, the young Tongzhi Emperor died. Empress Dowager Cixi stared at her everywhere, and she wanted to die. The queen had no choice but to find her father and ask: How could I die?
Chongqi was silent for a long time and answered: Can't you eat?
The queen replied: OK. So he died of hunger strike.
Chongqi took a long sick leave and was refused. Since then, she has been working hard. Let him go where the job is the hardest. 1900, when Eight-Nation Alliance invaded Beijing, Empress Dowager Cixi fled to xi 'an with Guangxu and ordered Chongqi to stay in Beijing as a minister (and Chongqi was also a staunch supporter of the Boxer Rebellion) to clean up the mess.
Chongqi knew he was in danger and ran around all day. His wife ordered the servant to dig two big holes in the house. The whole family, men, women and children, sat in the pit and asked the servants to fill it and bury it alive. The servants refused and ran away in panic. Eventually the whole family set themselves on fire. Chongqi hanged himself after learning the news.
This champion, the only flag bearer in the Qing Dynasty, lived a sad life in such a heroic way at the age of seventy, and his whole family was martyred.
At this point, I was silent for a long time. After reading the miserable life of the four top scholars, I wonder if readers will also have some feelings about life. The ancients said: one life, two fortunes, three geomantic omen, four virtues and five studies. I don't believe in Feng Shui, but I feel the same way as I get older.
People, unable to resist fate, have to pretend to be free and easy, saying, "Follow fate, follow fate." Fight for what you deserve, love what you deserve, drink your loneliness, live a normal life, and let the rest of the success or failure go!