In ancient times, the first name was No. 1 Scholar or Dingyuan, the second name was Ranking Top, and the third name was Tanhua. The top three are collectively referred to as the three tripods. The imperial examination was to select officials through examinations. It is called imperial examination because it adopts the method of selecting talents according to different subjects.
The official imperial examination of the Ming Dynasty was divided into three levels: the local examination, the joint examination and the palace examination. The provincial examination is a local examination held by the Zhili and the other administrative commissioners in the south and north. It is located in the South, Beijing Mansion, and the residence of the Chief Executive. Before the Ming Dynasty, schools were only one of the ways to send examinees to the imperial examinations. In the Ming Dynasty, going to school became the only way to the imperial examination. Those who studied in the Imperial College in the Ming Dynasty are generally called Jiansheng.
Those who have passed the provincial examinations at all levels and entered the government, prefecture and county schools are generally called students and scholars. The imperial examination system developed into the Qing Dynasty, and gradually declined, with more and more drawbacks. Although the rulers of the Qing Dynasty severely punished the imperial examination system for fraud, due to the shortcomings of the imperial examination system itself, fraud became more and more serious, and the imperial examination system finally disappeared. It has lasted for more than 1300 years.