Generally speaking, the Imperial Examination rarely involved battles between the Saints. Most of the time, it was just a test of general knowledge.
However, this year's Imperial Examination had a topic related to the battle of the Divine Path. What was the Saints' intention?
Fang Yun did not think much when he was answering the questions, but now that he had extra energy, he started to think.
The Imperial Examination was similar to the Divine Path and the Literature Bulletin. It could more or less reveal things that normal people would not be able to detect.
Shen Ren continued to read the questions. When he reached the third page, he paused for a moment and said, "This question seems to be about the content of 'Zuo Zhuan'. It asks about the approximate distance between the capital of Lu State, Qufu, and the border of Qi State during Lu Zhuanggong's time. This question … I'm afraid it's one of the most difficult questions in this Imperial Examination. Fang Xusheng answered a lot. There were three paragraphs in total. It seems that during Lu Zhuanggong's time, the borders of the two countries changed at least three times. I wonder if anyone has any answers? "
Deng Xuezheng shook his head and said, "If I had enough time, I might be able to answer this question. However, this question is very tricky. The border changes are one of the questions. The most difficult one is the distance between Qufu and Qi. I was still thinking about it after answering the question. So far, I haven't found any books that recorded the distance between the two countries. "
Constable Lu Hong nodded and said, "When I saw this question, I was also helpless. I don't know which book recorded the distance. As for the border changes, given enough time, I might be able to figure it out slowly. However, this question alone could take up two hours. I'm afraid no one will be able to answer this question this year. Fang Xusheng said that the territories of the two countries changed three times. Can you answer my question? "
"County Magistrate Fang, please answer my question!" Shen Ren, Tao Dingnian and the rest asked loudly.
Fang Yun scanned the crowd. Lu Hong was a military man and sincerely wanted to ask for advice. However, Shen Ren and the rest were obviously heckling him. They hoped that he would say something wrong. After all, knowing the answer and explaining the solution were two different things. One was to know the answer themselves, while the other was to teach others.
Fang Yun was not afraid at all. He said, "If you want to know about the changes in the territories, you need to know the number of battles between Lu and Qi during Lu Zhuanggong's time. You need to know the number of battles, location, and final negotiations to determine the answer. Zuo Zhuan. Lu Zhuanggong's ninth year. Lu was defeated by Qi. In the tenth year of Lu Zhuanggong's reign, the State of Lu defeated the State of Qi with Cao Gui as their general. It was also the famous Battle of the Long Ladle, which led to the popular Cao Gui Debate, which led to the decline of the Cao Gui Debate. Exhausted by the third, it became a much-told story. Please note this down and mention it again later. In the 19th year of Lu Zhuanggong's reign, the State of Qi attacked the west of the State of Lu. This could also be considered a war between the two countries. However, the State of Qi was to the north of the State of Lu. This time, no matter how much territory Qi lost, it would not affect the distance to the north. Therefore, it was not counted. In the 13th year of Lu Zhuanggong … "
Fang Yun had recorded the history of the Spring and Autumn Annals through the Zuo Zhuan, Gongyang Zhuan, and Gu Liang Zhuan. It was confirmed that during Lu Zhuanggong's reign, the border between the State of Lu and the State of Qi had changed three times. The distance between the Lu Kingdom's capital, Qufu, and the State of Qi was altered.
After Fang Yun finished, Shen Ren and the other officials were speechless. Some of them praised him.
"As expected of Fang Xusheng. His mind is so sharp that we can't compare to him!"
"In this world, other than Fang Xusheng, no one can compare to him. I'm afraid that no one can understand the history of the war between the two countries in such a short period of time. During the Spring and Autumn Annals, wars were frequent. Without careful analysis, it's impossible to understand. "
Lu Hong thought for a while and asked, "Fang Xusheng, you mentioned the Cao Gui Debate and the Battle of the Long Ladle in Lu Zhuanggong's tenth year. Why didn't you mention it later?"
"Eh?" It was only then that everyone realized that Shen Ming's spirit immediately rose. This might have been Fang Yun's oversight, or it might have been a breakthrough.
Fang Yun smiled and said, "Arrester Lu, I can't believe you're a military man. Other people might not know how to calculate the approximate distance between Qufu and the State of Qi, but how can you not know? You're just a bookworm! "
Fang Yun stopped smiling at the end of his speech. His voice was so loud that it made the ears of the people around him buzz.
Fang Yun was dressed in white and stood in the pavilion. His expression was solemn and dignified.
Everyone present felt a chill run down their spines. Even Shen Ming couldn't help but lower his head. Fang Yun was the county magistrate, but he was also Xusheng!
During the Court Examination, Fang Yun couldn't use Xusheng's authority, but the crowd couldn't ignore his position.
If Fang Yun criticized Lu Hong's administrative problems, the officials present could refute him directly. However, Fang Yun was discussing knowledge. Everyone had to listen first. They could only object after Fang Yun expressed his views.
Lu Hong looked at Fang Yun and felt that the person standing in front of him wasn't a young man, but a strict teacher. He didn't dare to show any anger. He bowed and said humbly, "Please enlighten me, Fang Xusheng."
Fang Yundao said, "Recite 'Cao Gui's Chen' once!"
Lu Hong was still puzzled. He pondered for a moment before reciting, "Lu Zhuanggong was a large bell. Cao Gui entered the room and said, 'In the past, the Zhou dynasty sealed Lu, seven hundred from east to west, five hundred from north to south …'"
Lu Hong continued reciting.
'Cao Gui's Chen' was also known as' Cao Mo's Chen '. It was a book that recorded the discussions between Cao Gui and Lu Zhuanggong. It was a military book. However, due to its long history, it was written more than a hundred years before the birth of Confucius, and many of its pages were lost.
For scholars, the history before the birth of Confucius was relatively vague. This was also where the difficulty of this question lay.
Lu Hong recited 'Cao Gui's Chen' in its entirety, but he was still puzzled. The other officials also tried their best to think about it, but they couldn't figure out the secret behind it.
Fang Yun sighed when he saw that no one could figure out the answer. "Lu Hong, let me ask you. What's the terrain between Qufu and Qi like?"
"It's a plain," Lu Hong replied.
"How did Lu and Qi fight back then?"
Lu Hong answered without hesitation, "The war chariots are in front, and the soldiers are behind. The terrain there is very simple, so naturally, the battle tactics there are also very simple. "
"Let me ask you again. In 'Cao Gui's Chen', how long would it take for Lu to resist the Qi army?"
"It would take at most two or three days."
"Can you estimate the speed of the war chariots and the soldiers?"
Lu Hong was stunned, and so were all the other officials.
Almost immediately, everyone was enlightened. Joy appeared on their faces, as if they had learned something from the book.
Lu Hong immediately replied, "I see. Ten years after Lu Zhuanggong's death, Qufu was about one hundred and ten li away from Qi's border."
"Good." Fang Yun nodded slightly.
Some of the officials reined in their joy and looked at each other. They could see the helplessness in each other's eyes.
It was almost impossible for Fang Yun to find the connection between the two places. Based on the details in the military book, such as the timing of the battle and the speed of the war chariots, he was able to calculate the distance between the two places. It was simply inconceivable. Most importantly, all of this happened in the span of a few breaths.
Deng Xuezheng threw away the test paper in his hand and said, "Based on this question alone, this official is far inferior to Fang Xusheng. This official admits defeat."
Lu Hong also threw away the test paper in his hand and said, "This student also admits defeat. The wisdom of a genius is far beyond my reach. "
The other eleven contestants looked embarrassed, but they didn't give up. However, their morale was completely crushed by Fang Yun. They all looked like students who were being criticized by their teachers.
"Next question." Wen Gu said in a low voice.
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