The twentieth-century Japanese historian Ichisada Miyazaki wrote about the “hell” of this system. For 10 points each:
[10e] Name this general type of system where candidates for the Chinese civil service were tested using written assessments. Richard Bentley was the first to introduce these competitive formal tests into a Western university.
ANSWER: Chinese Imperial examination system [or kējǔ zhìdù; accept exams]
[10h] Successful candidates in the civil service exams were awarded this degree title. From the reign of the Míng emperor Yīngzōng (“EENG-DZONG”), only holders of this title were permitted into the Hànlín Academy.
ANSWER: jìnshì [accept presented scholar; anti-prompt on zhuàngyuán]
[10m] One perk of being a jìnshì (“DJIN-shur”) was that they were exempt from taxes and from this type of labour often referred to by a French word. Adult males under a certain age were expected to provide 21 days of this type of labour a year, unless they could buy their way out of it.
ANSWER: corvée labour [or láoyì; accept yōng]