Chapter 387: Promotion and salary increase, ready to cut people
The Ming Dynasty provincial examination was a local examination held by Southern and Northern Zhili and the various provincial governments. It was held in Nan, BJ Prefecture and the provincial government's residence, that is, the provincial capital.

It is usually held in August, so it is also called "Autumn Examination".

After that comes the imperial examination in February of the following year, also known as the "Spring Examination".

The Minister of Rites, Tian Jingxian, had been busy with the provincial examinations for two months in a row, and the nearly seventy-year-old man became ill from overwork.

After Ou Zanghua held the full-month banquet, he brought some supplements and went to meet his old leader.

The Tian family was a scholarly family in the Ming Dynasty. His grandfather, Tian Wenzhi, was successively awarded the titles of Senior Advisor and Minister of Rites, and his father, Tian Kuan, was successively awarded the titles of Senior Advisor and Minister of Rites.

Tian Jingxian himself was also a typical scholar-official, devoted to justice, willing to give, and a simple and honest person.

He has been an official for more than forty years and has remained as honest and conscientious as ever.

Upon hearing that Ou Zanghua was coming to visit, Tian Jingxian asked the housekeeper to take him to the study. He changed his clothes and walked slowly over with the help of the housekeeper.

"Master Zong, please come slower." Seeing that Tian Jingxian had a sallow complexion and slow steps, Ou Zanghua hurried forward and took the other hand that was supporting Tian Jingxian, showing concern.

"Jingyu, please sit down!" Tian Jingxian smiled, walked to the main seat and sat down, then called Ou Zanghua.

"Thank you, Uncle Zong."

"Weizhi has returned to his hometown to observe mourning for three years and will not be able to return until next year. This old man's hyperactivity is indeed a hindrance." Tian Jingxian's voice was loud and clear. He looked at Ou Zanghua and said calmly, "Fortunately, Your Majesty is wise and asked Jingyu to come to the Ministry of Rites in advance, otherwise it would have really delayed things."

Ou Zanghua said modestly: "Master Zong, you are too kind. I just did my duty."

"It's great that you can do your job well!" Tian Jingxian said, and asked the housekeeper to take out a book from the cabinet, handed it to Ou Zanghua and said, "This is the "Minutes of the Imperial Examination" summarized by me, Jingyu can refer to it."

"Thank you, Lord Zong. This has been a great help to me." Ou Zanghua took it immediately without any hesitation.

"In addition, Xie Dazhong, Du Xuanjing, and Jiang Mengbin are all talents that can be used."

Ou Zanghua stayed in the Tian Mansion for a while and chatted with Tian Jingxian for a long time before getting up to say goodbye.

After getting on the carriage, he couldn't help but sigh. Looking at Tian Jingxian's face, he not only had hyperactivity of yang, but also liver and gallbladder disease. In this way, he would not be able to work normally in the next few days.

Judging from the old man's personality, he will probably write a letter of resignation.

In this way, the next Minister of Rites may not be like Tian Jingxian, who has no time to take care of Ou Zanghua.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but press his eyebrows, feeling speechless.

Xia Sheng, the Minister of Honglu Temple, had to retire due to poor health. Now the same is true for Tian Jingxian. Could it be that he is born to be incompatible with his direct superior?

"Forget it, let's take it one step at a time!" Ou Zanghua complained slowly, then took out the "Minutes of the Imperial Examination" and started reading it.

Tian Jingxian is indeed an old minister. He wrote down all the details that need to be paid attention to in the examination, and even specifically noted why he did so. This is much more reliable than the later netizens who always "guess" on Bihu.
In September, the sky is high and the clouds are light, and the grass and trees are lush.

Protected by the Helan Mountains and nourished by the Yellow River, there are thousands of miles of fertile fields and numerous lakes and wetlands.

This is Ningxia Prefecture, the lake city in the northern frontier known as the 72-linked lake!

Ningxia Wei is located here.

As one of the nine important towns in the Ming Dynasty, Ningxia Prefecture had no shortage of soldiers, especially cavalry.

The border troops here have been fighting against the Mongols all year round and their style is very heroic.

At this moment in the military camp, An Guo was holding a crescent-shaped sword in his hand and turned around to chop down.

The man fighting with him immediately rolled over to avoid him, but An Guo swept his sword across the ground to chase after him.

The Mongolian exerted force from his waist, flipped in the air and swung his sword to counterattack. The sword light was like a silver dragon, going against the trend and directly attacking An Guo's vital points.

An Guo raised the corner of his mouth slightly, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes, he straightened the hilt of his knife, and used the move "Fisherman Asks for Advice", neither avoiding nor giving way, using softness to overcome hardness, and cleverly blocked the opponent's sharp knife.

Then, he lifted the crescent-shaped sword with one hand, channeling his strength into the blade, as steady as a mountain, and swept out with a "crossing the river and cutting the water" move, not only blocking all the opponent's retreat routes, but also hitting the Mongolian warrior's helmet heavily with a force of ten thousand pounds.

"Bang!" With a loud noise, the helmet flew off.

Pointing his sword, An Guo shouted, "Submit or not!"

"I don't accept it!" The Mongolian shook his head, very stubborn.

"Okay, you have guts!" An Guo laughed loudly, and the crescent-shaped sword in his hand spun like the wind, instantly turning into a silver lightning, and slashed out horizontally with the "turning sword and lifting" method. The sword light flashed, like the upside-down Milky Way, which was magnificent.

The Mongol dodged sideways and tried to counterattack with a diagonal strike, but An Guo reacted too quickly and used a move of shaking his arm and flicking the knife. The powerful internal force in his body surged out like a river bursting its banks and poured into the crescent-shaped knife, sending the already injured Mongol flying a dozen feet away.

An Guo put away his sword and stood up, looking at the Mongolian calmly and said: "This is your last chance. I am very busy. If you don't surrender, I will kill you!"

The Mongolian spat out a mouthful of blood, half-knelt on the ground in a somewhat listless manner, and said, "Abuda is willing to surrender to the general." An Guo grinned, walked over to help Abuda up, and promised, "From now on, you will be my brother. If I have a piece of meat, I will not let you go. A man of honor once he speaks cannot be taken back!"

"Thank you, General!" Abuda responded gratefully.

Afterwards, An Guo arranged for his personal soldiers to take Abuda downstairs to heal his wounds, while he returned to the tent. Among his classmate military scholars, only Liu Donglai, Yuan Qiuyun and Xue Bin remained with him. The other classmates who were related to him had been transferred long ago, and those who were not related to him either died or returned home after being dismissed from office.

"Brother!" When the three saw An Guo coming in, they all stood up and bowed.

"Everyone sit down," An Guo looked at his brothers, smiled and said, "Abuda has surrendered. After winning him over for a while, we will let him lead the way out of the pass to destroy the Tartars."

The three of them smiled. Like An Guo, they were born in important towns in the Nine Frontiers and had an irreconcilable feud with the Tartars. As long as they could kill the Tartars, they didn't care about the means.

At this moment, a personal soldier ran in and said, "Sir, the cavalry reported that an imperial edict has arrived. You should be ready to receive it."

An Guo was stunned, and asked hesitantly, "Shall I accept the order?"

"Yes, the Jinyiwei who was traveling with us pointed out my name. Please accept my order!" said the personal soldier with a smile on his face.

An Guo frowned, then sighed and said, "Misfortune often follows blessing, and blessing often follows misfortune. Never mind, everyone, clean up here and we will welcome the imperial edict!"

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison and quickly took action to tidy up the tent carefully.

In a short while, the Jinyiwei appeared outside the camp. An Guo immediately organized his men and made way for a straight path. Liu Donglai and Yuan Qiuyun carried the incense table and placed it in front of the big tent.

"The imperial edict has arrived!"

The eunuch's sharp voice came: "Ningxia Weidu Commander An Guo, receive the order!"

An Guo, his three brothers and a group of soldiers knelt on the ground and shouted "Long live the emperor".

"The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims: There is a man called An Guo, who is an extraordinary warrior, brave and skilled in battle. He is always the first to lead his troops in battle, and is fearless and courageous. His loyalty and bravery make him a pillar of the country and a pillar of the state. I highly commend him, and I have specially promoted him to the commander of Suzhou Guard to give him a heavy responsibility and to demonstrate his ability."

"The border of Suzhou is the gateway to our country. It is a place of security and danger. It cannot be defended without a wise and brave general. An Guo, you should do your best to be on guard and be ready to fight day and night to consolidate our borders and keep our people safe. You should be especially vigilant against the dangers of the enemy and take precautions to prevent foreign invaders from taking advantage of the situation, so as to ensure the peace of our territory and the happiness of our people."

"An Guo should fulfill his duties conscientiously to show his loyalty and live up to my expectations. I decree this!"

"Your Majesty, I, An Guo, obey your order! Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will do my best to safeguard the peace of the territory and the happiness of the people!" An Guo took the imperial edict with both hands excitedly. He never thought that His Majesty valued him so much.

Look at the words used in the imperial edict: unrivaled in martial arts, valiant in battle, and fearless in bravery.
There are also special instructions to be vigilant and not to be attacked, that is, you have to fight on your own!
Mongolian Grand Master, here I come!

Even the eyes of the three brothers who followed him suddenly brightened.

These three people were able to pass the imperial examination and become military scholars. They were not inferior to others in either martial arts or talent.

In their opinion, the most important reason why they wasted their time here was that they were persecuted by Liu Jin.

Liu Jin is a complete eunuch and a traitor, and those who were persecuted are not important officials and generals, right?
It’s a pity that the emperor is far away. Even if they have great talents, it will be in vain without a stage to perform them.

But now it’s different. Big brother has caught the eye of His Majesty and has a stage to display his talents, and they can also get a share of the spoils!

If the imperial court takes major action, it is not impossible to be granted a title of nobility or a general.

The eunuch smiled and said, "I will tell Your Majesty about Commander An's sincere desire to serve the country."

"Angel, please follow me. I have prepared some light wine. Please do me the honor of having a couple of drinks!" An Guo led the eunuch into the big tent, and his personal soldiers immediately brought wine and a roasted lamb.

While eating and drinking, the others became more confused the more they drank, but An Guo became more sober.

He suddenly realized that he hadn't done anything great recently, so there was no reason for His Majesty to suddenly look upon him with new eyes. Could it be that he had received help from a noble person?

The first person that An Guo thought of was Qiu Yue, Marquis of Xianning. They had had a brief contact when King Anhua rebelled.

But An Guo still had doubts in his heart and did not dare to jump to conclusion, fearing that if he was wrong, he would offend both of them.

After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere gradually became better. He first praised the eunuch for his broad knowledge and deep understanding of the emperor, and then slowly led the topic to the doubts in his heart: "Angel, does your majesty have the ability to know everything? Otherwise, why did you think of me?"

"Hahaha, Commander An, you want to know something else, right?" The eunuch laughed and pointed out directly.

"Hehe. Sure enough, my thoughts cannot be hidden from the angel." An Guo shook the eunuch's hand without any embarrassment.

The eunuch pinched the silver in his hand, estimating that there were about 20 or 30 taels, which was not much but it was considered thoughtful, so he did not embarrass him: "Well, I just heard from my ancestor that it was Lord Ou, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, who recommended you."

Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites?
Lord Ou?
An Guo became even more hesitant. He had never even heard of this person, let alone seen him.

It seems that before going to Suzhou, I have to get to know Lord Ou first, he is my benefactor.

(End of this chapter)