Nanzhou Prefecture's Academic Inspector was named Zhu Chengyu. He had once come from a poor household, spending years studying by lamplight and going into debt to do so.
At last, in the eighth year of Zhengde, he passed the imperial examination in second place.
He was a model of inspiration for impoverished scholars.
The students of Nanzhou Prefecture also took Zhu Chengyu as their example, spurring themselves on.
When Zhu Chengyu passed in second place, he was full of youthful pride, convinced his literary talent was flourishing. He saw how corruption and bribery were growing ever more rampant in Great Zhou's officialdom.
Remembering the days when he had studied in poverty, he felt all the more that those officials were despicable.
He swore to make his way in officialdom and change this tide of corruption.
His first official post was Hanlin Compiler. Yet on his very first day, his desk was piled high with silver.
He flew into a rage!
He wanted to toss all the silver away and denounce the person who had sent it.
But when he took a closer look, there were a full two hundred taels.
Only then did he realize: he was an official now.
Denouncing bribery was something poor scholars did. What did it have to do with an official like him?
Still, scholars were always like this. They liked to amass wealth, but also wanted a good reputation.
A perfect example of wanting it both ways.
Though Zhu Chengyu was greedy, he cared about his reputation, too. He had only just stepped inside when he heard someone ask how much it cost to buy a Xiucai Scholar's title.
Anger immediately showed on Zhu Chengyu's face. He opened his mouth to rebuke the speaker, but then he saw that it was Qian Bochou.
"Oh,