The imperial examinations were a system for selecting talent to serve as civil officials, and from the unification of China into a dynasty onwards, a system for talent cultivation had largely been in place. Following the adoption of the imperial examination system in the Sui and Tang dynasties, the most significant educational institutions were shuyuan (academies). There were both public and private academies, and the best-regarded among them typically assumed the functions of imparting a comprehensive Confucian value system, notably related teachings, and of a library, ancestral hall, and public lecture hall. Surrounding this system of imperial examinations and academies, many cultural phenomena that would accompany traditional scholars throughout their lives arose, such as ritual sacrifices to Confucius, rules and standards on learning, examination hall rules, and the so-called rites of the district symposium.