In the third year of Rende, during the height of summer, the Emperor held an extraordinary imperial examination. The civil and military examinations were conducted simultaneously, and after the results were posted, the top three scholars from both categories entered the palace on the same day to receive their titles.
The rankings for the military examination had already been decided on the training grounds. However, the rankings for the top three civil scholars required them to enter the Zhaoyang Palace for a personal examination by Pei Hengyu.
The day of the palace examination was the hottest in all of July. The grand secretaries in the front row had been standing in the hall for only a quarter of an hour before they were already sweating. Pei Hengyu sat upon the dragon throne, gazing down at his ministers, his eyes fixing on Wen Qiushan, who stood beside the Minister of Rites. In his hand, he held the list just submitted by the Ministry of Rites, which contained the names of this year’s top three civil scholars. Among them, the name "Wen Jingyue" was conspicuously displayed.
Chapter 107