Chapter 52

Apart from the desks and chairs, there was also a bed for the candidates to rest. Not far away, there was a basket. Ye Qing walked over and flipped through it, finding a jar of tea, six layers of meat pancakes, simple as they were, not as considerate as Qianqian's preparation, but representing the goodwill of the court.

Originally, during the early years of the dynasty, the state and people were impoverished, and these provisions were prepared for poor candidates to show that everyone, regardless of status, would be treated equally, which was highly praised. Some were even moved to write poems. However, in this peaceful era, it was merely a formality.

Everyone was a child scholar. Even if they were originally poor, once they had an official position, many job opportunities would be available. As long as they were willing to work, a few meals would not be a problem.

Ye Qing covered the food basket, put down his book basket, and listened to the faint noise, inspecting the items on the table. On the table were several brushes of different thicknesses, of various sizes, for the candidates to choose from, showing the court's meticulousness in the imperial examination. Next to the brushes was an inkstone and a stack of Xuan paper, all uniformly distributed and already placed here, waiting for the candidates to use them when the time came.

In fact, at the level of scholar, except for the Xuan paper which must be uniform, the brushes, ink, and inkstones could be brought by the candidates themselves. This leniency was to promote better performance, similar to how in e-sports on Earth, players could bring their own mice and keyboards.

After three incense sticks, all the candidates were in place.

The sun gradually rose higher. At the entrance of the rear hall, Lan Chongwen looked at the time on the sundial and loudly announced, "The time has come, the examination officially begins. All candidates, do not be anxious, wait for the distribution of the examination papers."

As the invigilators called out, the main gate was locked, and military barriers were set up outside, not to be removed until the examination was over. From this moment on, except for the invigilators and the real people, no one was allowed to enter without a special order from both the court and the Daoist court.

The silver seal on the plaque of the rear hall shone brightly in the sunlight, suppressing the qi of the entire venue, prohibiting all special activities—this did not mean that the qi was gone, but rather that it was hidden, temporarily losing its influence on the mortal world.

The real people did not interfere with the normal procedures. Thus, the three chief invigilators and six deputy invigilators, all holding examination papers, began distributing them. Soon, they reached Ye Qing.

The deputy invigilator who distributed the examination paper to Ye Qing was not very old, around thirty, in his prime, wearing an eighth-rank official uniform, with the authority to oversee part of the examination venue.

Among the many invigilators, the three chief invigilators were all seventh-rank, while these deputy invigilators were eighth-rank, with a clear distinction between them.

After distributing the examination paper to Ye Qing, the deputy invigilator was about to leave when he accidentally saw Ye Qing's examination tag. His eyes instantly lit up, and he was inwardly surprised, "Isn't this the protagonist of the Dragon Lord's banquet?"

However, he still had work to do and could not say more, so he continued to distribute the examination papers to other candidates.

After the deputy invigilator moved away, Ye Qing picked up the examination paper and carefully examined it. He smiled, but after the smile, his mood became heavy.

The layout was the same as in his previous life. Among the three examination papers, the first was still the "Tiejing," which involved selecting a few characters and their meanings, and the candidates had to write the corresponding passages from the Three Classics and Five Canons.

Ye Qing was well-versed in the classics and had a photographic memory, so this was not a problem. In fact, child scholars who could reach the county examination level were generally familiar with the classics, but they needed to pay attention to their handwriting and avoid typos.

Ye Qing put this paper aside and looked at the second one. The second paper was an analysis and discussion of the teachings of the sages, testing the candidates' theoretical knowledge.

Ye Qing put this paper down and continued to the third one. As expected, the third paper was a difficult case from a certain place, requiring the candidates to make a decision based on the Three Classics and Five Canons and explain their reasoning.

Scholars were the pillars of the state, preparing to serve in local positions. Without this ability, what use would they be?

Overall, these questions were much more difficult than the child scholar examination. However, for Ye Qing, who had passed the provincial examination in his previous life and had read tens of thousands of articles, the classics and their principles were well within his grasp.

He felt a slight joy but suppressed it, pondered for a moment, took a sheet of Xuan paper, and began to write quietly.

At this time, the other candidates were still struggling, some drafting outlines, and even Yu Fan was concentrating on his composition.

After the deputy invigilator finished distributing the examination papers and returned, he passed by and was startled. Recognizing the name, he knew about the "Tongshi" who had written with an iron pen at the Dragon Palace banquet. However, what he saw now was the opposite.

Seeing Ye Qing's brush moving swiftly, his thoughts flowing like a fountain, the invigilator approached and watched for a moment, inwardly admiring him, then left without a word.

Ye Qing was fully focused and did not pay attention, writing one paper after another. When he was hungry, he took out the food and water from his book basket, and when he was tired, he rested for a while.

Compared to child scholars, the same three papers for the scholar examination required more extensive elaboration. They did not need to be original but had to cover all aspects and leave no gaps.

This was a deepening of the understanding of the simple memory of child scholars, with a large amount of text, both a mental and physical task. It was common for candidates to be exhausted, and it was even more common for them to not finish in time.

The volume of these examination papers was ten times that of the child scholar examination and five times that of the provincial examination, earning it the nickname "Ox Plow Examination."

In simple terms, it tested the candidates' writing skills. Since child scholars had the qualifications to practice Daoist techniques, it also tested their foundation.

Many "pure" scholars who only read books and refused to cultivate their foundation were eliminated.

After all, this was not a Confucian examination but a Daoist examination. Without any cultivation, how could they advance?

This was why Ye Qing, contrary to his usual behavior, started writing as soon as possible. Even if he knew everything, he had to complete all the papers within two days, which was a tight schedule.

However, as long as he had some time left at the end, he would not fear any mistakes or dirty papers. These could be replaced with new ones, a special allowance in the scholar examination.

By noon, Ye Qing had finished the first paper. He placed it separately to avoid smudging the ink and characters, saving the trouble of rewriting.

He reviewed the first paper and was satisfied.

Each principle was basically covered in the Three Classics and Five Canons. Citing a relevant passage was considered passing, but additional discussion would earn extra points.

Ye Qing remembered everything.

In his previous life, candidates would review old questions, and some would search through the Daoist classics, even citing references from the Dàyǎn Fùjīng, producing answers more detailed than the standard answers.

This impulse to write the content from the Dàyǎn Fùjīng came to him as he wrote, but he suppressed it.

This would certainly raise suspicions of leaking questions, and even the authority of the county government would have to investigate, which would be a big trouble.

"At this level, it should be word-perfect, with all the Three Classics and Five Canons cited, leaving no room for criticism," he thought, then unfolded the second paper.

"This is the discussion of principles, the final question in the child scholar examination, with only three questions, two small and one large. Now there are seven questions, all major, making this paper five times the workload."

"Seven articles, two days to think, draft, refine, and write, are extremely mentally and physically draining."

"Even if one has a natural talent for writing, without a solid foundation, they cannot sustain it, which is one of the main reasons why poor scholars are eliminated."

"Many poor scholars are said to have written until they spat blood, wasting their examination opportunity."

"Thinking back to my previous life, I could pass in one go after three years, thanks to the accumulation, the knowledge from Earth, and most importantly, the great fortune. Unfortunately, facing a great calamity, how could I resist the world's pressure?"

He pondered, originally thinking of using the provincial examination articles to take a chance, but after experiencing it again, he found the idea laughable.

"Seven major questions, hastily written, and each at the provincial level, even a top scholar might not achieve this. This would immediately alarm the court and the heavenly court. Within three days, an imperial envoy would ride to investigate me. If any traces were found, even a god could not save me."

"Let's use the county examination articles, but choose the best ones, to achieve the highest quality!"

"Whether I can succeed depends on fate."

Thinking of this, he meditated, recalling the thousands of articles he had read in his previous life, two thousand for the county examination, eight hundred for the prefecture examination, and two hundred for the palace examination.

At this moment, profound insights flowed through his mind. Compared to the child scholar examination, he could be more lenient, except for some taboos, even some exquisite phrases from the prefecture examination could be used to enhance the articles.

However, the sundial was at noon, and the silver seal was shining. Ye Qing frowned, abandoned his thoughts, and thought to himself, "The county examination has a copper seal, the county examination has a silver seal, the prefecture examination has a gold seal, and the qi-suppressing aura is getting stronger. Even a moment of thought might be affected."

"Only in the palace examination, with a jade seal, is the qi deeply hidden, and even at noon, there is no qi-suppressing aura, returning to simplicity."

Apart from Lan Chongwen and Zeng Lian, the other deputy invigilator was Yang Cai, an official.

Yang Cai was fifty years old, with a fair complexion and no wrinkles. He patrolled the examination venue and saw a young man sitting in an examination room, looking at his paper, clearly having finished the first paper and was checking it.

The man was dressed in fine clothes, with a high hairpin, a calm demeanor, and a natural authority. Yang Cai was deeply impressed and thought to himself, "This is the demeanor of a great family, worthy of being the son of the Yu family."

Yang Cai coughed lightly, said nothing, and just glanced at the paper. Yu Fan also glanced at him, their eyes meeting, and they understood each other, but adhered to the rules, not saying a word, and their eyes moved away.

Yang Cai smiled slightly, looked at Yu Fan again, and made a decision in his heart.

He had passed the child scholar examination at eighteen, the scholar examination at twenty-three, and the provincial examination at twenty-seven. However, after nine years of further examinations, he failed to become a jinshi and served as an official at the provincial level, eventually reaching the eighth rank.

However, above the eighth rank, each position was unique, and he could not advance further. At his age, he still had the hope of becoming a county magistrate and achieving "enlightenment"!

To advance, he needed support, so he tried to find a patron and managed to establish a connection with the Yu family, worried about the lack of opportunities to show his worth—thus, following Yu Fan's words and making some adjustments would not be difficult.

People only thought the examination venue was strict, with real people supervising, and even the invigilators could not interfere, but there were always some means. Thinking of this, Yang Cai pondered, a spark in his eyes, and headed towards an examination room.

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