Chapter 282 Exam

Li San Niang's words were truly unexpected by the dozens of midwives sitting around.

They expected Li San Niang to introduce the Midwife Assistance Association and explain how to pass the midwife exam, but they never expected that Li San Niang, a female doctor, would tell them that "the profession of midwife is very meaningful and necessary for both the individual and the Tang Dynasty."

This sudden increase in height stunned everyone present with those few words.

In the past, they never imagined that being a midwife would be so important, that it could be linked to the future of the country.

Of course, the reason why Li San Niang involved the profession of midwife in such a big way is that she genuinely believed that women and children are the future and hope of a nation and a country.

Throughout history, the most valuable thing has always been human beings!

Secondly, Li San Niang's ultimate goal in opening the midwifery school was to provide women who were generally expected to marry and give birth as long as they were not physiologically ill with proper assistance during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, so that they could get through difficult times in their lives instead of having to "endure, bear it, rely on luck, and accept fate" as they had in the past.

Therefore, Li San Niang wanted to elevate the profession of midwife, so that those who are midwives and those who will need midwives in the future would know that being a midwife is a truly meaningful profession.

Just as rulers throughout history have repeatedly emphasized the importance of agriculture in every society, the foundation of a society is what truly matters.

Then, Li San Niang added a few more words: "Today, after the three evaluations, only the top ten will be selected as the first batch of students for my Midwife Academy."

Facing the gazes directed at her, Li Sanniang simply smiled and continued, "If you can complete your studies at my midwifery school, pass my exams, and deliver babies without making any mistakes within six months, then you can graduate."

"If needed, I can help connect you with families who require your services for childbirth. I'll also give priority to recommending you to the Medical Alliance or the Imperial Medical Bureau if they need personnel."

When Li San Niang mentioned the Medical Alliance and the Imperial Medical Bureau, the women who were already whispering among themselves were stunned for a moment, and then suddenly the commotion in the courtyard increased dramatically.

This is similar to a village head being recommended to the county government. Although he can't become an official, it's still a chance for an ordinary person to meet a big shot in their eyes.

This is truly remarkable!

Midwifery was originally a profession among aunts and gossipy women, and in the general perception at the time, it was not considered anything special.

Otherwise, how could Li San Niang, a female physician in Chang'an, have attracted the attention of women by saying that being a midwife was a meaningful profession?

Upon hearing Li San Niang's words, those who had come to investigate and find out what the Li family's Women's Assistance Association and Li San Niang's Midwifery School were all about suddenly felt a sense of regret.

This made Li San Niang's words sound incredibly appealing. If one didn't participate in this exam and seize this opportunity, wouldn't one be missing out on a tremendous opportunity?

For example, a young woman who came with Yulian, who was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, felt a little regretful, but was very optimistic about the prospects that Li Sanniang had mentioned.

After Li San Niang finished speaking, she bowed and left the stage, and then Li's mother came up again.

"I hereby announce the official commencement of the first examination for Li Mingfang's Midwifery Academy!"

After saying that, Xiao Silang, quite appropriately, started banging his little gong.

The sound of the gong heralded the start of the midwife examination, bringing the still astonished women out of their discussions and thoughts.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please follow the number plates and form groups of ten. The first ten people should come to this room first."

Those who haven't been called yet should go to that room and wait. After the first group finishes the first test, their names and queue numbers will be called.

After Li Dasao finished speaking, Li Ersao added, "Those who didn't get a number, please go to the next room. Tea and snacks are available there."

Sister-in-law Li pointed to the two rooms on the left and right, and led the first ten people to the room on the left. Brother Li and the four little ones also got to work, quickly clearing out the chairs and benches in the yard to make room for the exam.

Although they had listened to Sister-in-law Li's explanation and Sister-in-law Li's demonstration from the beginning, when it came to actually moving their arms and legs, the women, who were not young, were still a little embarrassed.

Sun the midwife laughed: "Why are you all so reserved?"

We all know that being a midwife requires physical strength, so it's understandable that they assess strength and prefer those with good physiques.

"If you two don't let loose later, it'll be a blessing for this old woman, haha."

Ding, who had been feeling uneasy about being an old woman, felt completely at ease after hearing what Sun said.

"We're all women, what's there to be afraid of? Old Granny Sun, I won't let you get away with this!"

Midwife Sun spoke up for Chunlan's sake, hoping to help everyone present relax. Seeing that her words had an effect, she simply smiled and didn't respond to Midwife Ding's words.

With midwife Sun and midwife Ding leading the way, the remaining seven or eight people seemed to have let go of their mental shackles. One by one, they tied their belts, took out their jewelry, and even took off their shoes and tidied their socks in a corner of the room to avoid being seen.

After Sister-in-law Li and Sister-in-law Li explained the first test again, everyone went to the courtyard that had been prepared. Mother Li, Third Sister Li, and Qiu Xiang stood aside and watched. Sister-in-law Li first called out the names according to the numbers on the nameplates. After everyone responded, she said, "The first test begins."

The twenty or thirty people who hadn't received their registration forms or number plates were now standing on the periphery of the courtyard watching the first group of ten people making some strange movements.

“I’ve never seen such an exam before, Third Sister Li. Look,” the woman gestured toward the courtyard with her eyes, then turned back to the person beside her and said, “This is quite interesting. Why do we have to stretch our arms and legs, squat down and stand up again?”

Before she could finish speaking, the people in the courtyard started running around the rather large yard.

"Oh my, why did it start running?"

Is this a race to see who can run the fastest?

Before the woman's friend could reply, another woman nearby interjected, "It must be to test a person's strength, so delivering a baby must be a physically demanding task."

"Being older, or having a weaker constitution, makes it difficult to work as a midwife."