Chapter 187 Chapter 187 Women’s Huiyuan

The examination was divided into three sessions, each lasting three days, during which candidates had to stay overnight in the examination room.

July is the hottest month of the year, with scorching sun and rampant mosquitoes.

The candidates sat in a small room, finding it difficult to even turn around, let alone stretch their limbs freely.

Whenever the sun is scorching and the examination rooms are stuffy, the candidates rack their brains to answer the questions, sweating profusely and having to endure the invasion of mosquitoes. It is really miserable.

Some candidates with poor physical fitness suffered from heatstroke and fainted on the first day, and were carried out of the examination hall horizontally by patrolmen.

What's worse, some people suffer from vomiting and diarrhea due to high stress and hot weather.

The smell spread, rushing into their nostrils. The examinees' eyebrows jumped, and they felt that something was wrong. Then -

"vomit!"

In the examination room, the sounds of vomiting were heard one after another.

The patrolmen appeared again and escorted the examinee who was vomiting and suffering from diarrhea out of the examination room.

"Let me go! I haven't finished writing my article yet..."

The candidate struggled and screamed, but it was of no avail. He could only watch the examiner take away his test paper and be sent to the courtyard where sick candidates were housed to receive treatment from the imperial physician.

After the third exam, Ruan Ran felt like he had been marinated. An indescribable smell emanated from his whole body, and his white linen robe was wrinkled, like a smelly rag that had not been washed for three days.

The moment he walked out of the Imperial Examination Hall, Ruan Ran raised his hand to wipe away the sweat on his forehead and exhaled a breath of hot air: "Finally, the exam is over."

Ruan Ran paused and bowed when she saw Zhao Mucheng handing in his paper and leaving with her.

Zhao Mucheng has been practicing martial arts since he was young and has a strong physique. After going through nine consecutive days of high-intensity examinations, his face is still rosy, only his clothes are slightly messy. Seeing this, he bowed and returned the greeting.

She recognized the girl.

She ranked second in the preliminary examination and was also the adopted sister of Duke Wen.

She is a smart girl with a promising future.

Zhao Mucheng met those clear eyes and inexplicably felt that they would become colleagues with a very good relationship.

"Aunt."

Qian Ran walked out of the Imperial Examination Hall with tired steps and waved weakly.

"You don't look well, are you feeling unwell?" Ruan Ran grasped Qian Ran's wrist. Although a few years younger than him, he acted like an elder. "I told you to do morning exercises every day, but you refused to listen. You've been doing it for a few days and then slacking off for a few days, always trying to get away with it. Now you understand the benefits of exercise, don't you?"

Qian Ran drooped his head, looking obedient: "I know I was wrong, I will definitely exercise more in the future."

"It's not a big deal. It's just a lack of energy and blood caused by excessive fatigue." Ruan Ran withdrew his hand. "I'll go to my aunt's pharmacy and get two prescriptions. I'll be able to replenish my energy and blood after taking them for three to five days."

Ruan Ran was weak when he was young, and it took four or five years of treatment for him to gradually get better.

As the saying goes, long illness makes a doctor, she can still judge the most basic pulse conditions.

Qian Ran's face wrinkled into a ball, and he replied in a muffled voice, "Okay," not daring to bargain.

Zhao Mucheng wanted to laugh, but she knew that little girls were very concerned about their reputation, so she turned her head, raised the corners of her mouth, and walked away in big strides.

but--

Which direction is west?

Zhao Mucheng looked down at his left and right hands, rubbed them secretly for a while, and finally figured out the direction with difficulty, then went out of the city.

In February, Li Jin bought a piece of wasteland from the government.

It took only twenty days for two thousand people to reclaim the wasteland, build houses, and plant seasonal fruits and vegetables at the doorsteps.

The martial arts examination had already ended, and today only Zhao Mucheng was left struggling to answer questions and write essays.

She had to go back quickly, everyone was waiting for her at home.

......

While Ruan Ran and Qian Ran were talking, Feng Xiu also handed in his paper and left the examination room.

The three of them were walking towards the carriage of Duke Wen's mansion when suddenly a loud noise came from behind them.

"Brother Zhang seems to have lost his ability to recognize people. We need to rush him to the clinic!"

Ruan Ran looked back and saw that the dying man lying on the back of a man was actually the man who had been with the Yin-Yang woman before the examination started.

——The word "lower-head man" came from Du Qingzhu's mouth, vividly expressing her disdain and disgust for certain men. Ruan Ran felt that it was very appropriate to use it here.

The man below had a pale face, his eyes were dull, and he looked like he was going to die soon.

Ruan Ran suddenly felt refreshed: "Ah~ Some people keep saying that women are inferior to men, but in the end they themselves are even inferior to women and have to rely on others to carry them out of the exam room."

Feng Xiu suppressed a laugh and continued, "Like a weakling. What a loser."

Qian Ran put his hands on his hips and said refusing to be outdone: "Unlike us, he's still full of energy, more than enough for another game of polo!"

The useless man cocked his head and tried to open his eyes wide to recognize the person who was speaking.

He was already suffering from the heatstroke and his head was swollen. In a semi-conscious state, he was brutally humiliated by a group of women. He was so angry that he rolled his eyes and lost his breath. His head hit his companion's shoulder and he fainted.

The companion who worked so hard but still got hit in the head: ".t....."

I'm so annoyed that I really want to throw him to the ground and let him die.

Ruan Ran took a small revenge and succeeded in making the man faint. He was immediately very proud. With Feng Xiu on his left hand and Qian Ran on his right hand, he climbed into the carriage with a proud and arrogant look. After sitting down, he waved his hand and said, "Go home!"

Feng Xiu and Qian Ran smiled at each other, as if drinking ice water in the hottest days of summer, and most of their fatigue disappeared.

"That guy just now was clearly suffering the consequences of his bad words. Judging from his condition, he will most likely fail the examination."

“Serves you right!”

When they returned to Duke Wen's Mansion, Du Qingju had been waiting for a long time.

"I heard from the imperial physician at the Imperial Hospital that in previous years, both the provincial and metropolitan examinations resulted in fatalities, either from heatstroke or freezing. Even though you guys are as strong as calves, I'm still a little worried, so I specifically told Dean Lan to come back early."

The three girls sat in a row, stretched out their hands obediently, and let Du Qingju take their pulses.

After making sure that nothing serious happened, Du Qingju felt relieved: "The water is ready. Take a shower and rest quickly. Have a good sleep and get enough rest. We can talk about it tomorrow if there is anything else."

Ruan Ran and the other two were just planning this. After showering and changing clothes, they had a few bites to fill their stomachs and then fell asleep on the bed.

Du Qingtang and Fu Ci each returned home with a stack of documents. When they learned that the three candidates at home had already fallen asleep, they just nodded and sent the documents to Cuiwei Garden.

After returning home, the overseas envoys reported everything they saw and heard in Xiajing.

Although those in power were dissatisfied with Daxia's oppression of women, their impression of Daxia improved somewhat because His Majesty had opened up the imperial examinations for women, and they also became interested in so-called trains, cement, glass lamps and other things.

They also asked people to study how public buses worked, but the structure of that big thing called a steam engine was so mysterious that even the most skilled craftsmen could not decipher it.

After careful consideration, the leaders of various countries sent envoys to Daxia to discuss matters related to technology exchange.

Rather than paying for it, they want to master the technology thoroughly.

Of course, they will offer something of equal value in exchange.

As a result, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was extremely busy.

Minister Fu Ci has been busy all day and still has a lot of documents to process, so he has to work late into the night.

After delivering the documents, Du Qingtang went back. He had dinner with his sisters and returned to the main courtyard alone. After washing up, he sat under the glass lamp and took out the book he had not finished reading last night.

A while ago, Du Qingtang and Fu Ci found several books in the shops of overseas merchants. Although the books were written in foreign languages, the merchants were very considerate and asked people to translate them into the language of Daxia, and hired scholars in the city to copy the translation under each paragraph.

Comparing them one by one, the meaning of the sentence becomes clear at a glance.

The book in Du Qingtang's hand tells the story of a female slave who counterattacks to become a queen. The heroine is tough and strong, and the author does not deliberately stereotype or blur the supporting characters in order to highlight the heroine. Regardless of whether they are good or bad, they all have their own shining points.

The story was full of ups and downs, and Du Qingtang read it with great interest, unknowingly forgetting the time.

“Gugu——”

The small wooden door of the clock opened automatically, and the cuckoo popped out, making a crisp sound.

Du Qingtang suddenly woke up and looked at the time. The hands pointed to eleven.

It's already midnight.

Du Qingtang: “…”

Du Qingtang decisively turned off the lights and lay down on the bed in the dark.

But when she closed her eyes, the power of women revealed between the lines of the book still deeply shocked her mind, making her heart beat faster and excited.

Although there was suspicion of worshipping foreigners, it had to be admitted that this was an experience Du Qingtang had never had when reading Daxia books.

Du Qingtang placed his hand on his chest, feeling his pounding heartbeat. The scene of candidates filing out of the Imperial Examination Hall in the evening suddenly emerged in his mind.

For thousands of years, only men were eligible to enter the Imperial Examination Hall.

But this time it was completely different.

Among those candidates there were both men and women.

Moreover, the number of men and women is equal, which seems to be evenly matched.

Du Qingtang curled his lips slightly in the darkness.

She believed that in the near future, Daha would possess the majestic female power as described in the book.

Du Qingtang fell into a deep sleep and had a dream.

In the dream, countless women were commanding power in the court, fighting on the battlefield, and riding the wind and waves in the business world.

They had smiles on their faces, confident and dazzling.

-

While Du Qingtang was sound asleep, the examiners had already started marking the papers in full swing.

Because there were women participating in this special examination, and Xiajing and various provinces admitted at least 150 women in the preliminary examination.

The combined number of women and men is more than twice that of previous years.

Dozens of examiners worked almost without sleep, their pens leaving shadows behind. It took them half a month to finally finish grading all the examination papers and select 600 of them to be the candidates for this imperial examination.

"Are you sure?"

"Confirmation and certainty."

After repeated comparisons and screening of nearly 20,000 test papers, they were absolutely sure that these 600 were the best.

After a brief silence, one examiner tightened his pen and said, "What if there's a woman..."

The chief examiner reached out, took the teacup, took a sip, and then put it back in the distance. "Isn't it because of its fairness and justice that the imperial examination has existed for thousands of years?"

Everyone was speechless, their eyes flickering.

The chief examiner was too lazy to try to figure out his subordinates' thoughts and said in a deep voice, "Open the seal."

"......yes."

The examiner opened the sealed envelopes on the 600 test papers one by one, and the obscured information such as name, age, and place of origin came into view.

The further they went, the more rapid their breathing became.

The chief examiner sat at a high place, taking in everyone's expressions, and curled the corners of his mouth slightly.

The weather in Daxia is about to change.

......

On the first day of August, the results of the imperial examination were announced.

At dawn, the candidates set out from their homes and inns to go to the Imperial Examination Hall to see the results.

"I heard that this year's Entry Examination has admitted hundreds of students. Maybe I'll be lucky enough to be on the list."

"You idiot, the number of admissions has increased, and the number of test takers has doubled."

"...Don't mention it, I forgot about it."

"Oh, this is really ridiculous. I don't understand why we let women take the imperial examination with us. By the way, how is Brother Zhang doing now?"

"I've been lying in bed for several days since I came back from the clinic. I only managed to get out of bed two days ago. I guess it will take a while for me to come over."

"That woman's words that day were far too harsh. Brother Zhang was so angry that he almost fainted. Otherwise, he wouldn't have suffered so much."

When the group arrived at the Imperial Examination Hall, many candidates had already arrived early, most of them were women.

Someone couldn't help but sneer, "They came so enthusiastically, but later no one made the list. That would be ridiculous."

Zhao Muqing glanced at the other person sideways, but didn't take it seriously. He continued talking to the other person: "So, you are all members of the Qiong Ying English Society?"

The Princess of Changle County nodded and made a circle with her fingers: "To be precise, they are members of the Qiong Ying Society from different places."

The women began to introduce themselves.

"My name is Zhang Xiaoxue, and I'm from the Qiongying English Society in Qingyuan County."

"My name is Du Minjing, and I'm from the Qiongying English Society in Shaoqing Prefecture."

"My name is Xia Duo, and I'm from the Qiong English Society in Xiajing."

"My name is..."

After a round of reporting, I found that in addition to the Qiong English publishing houses located in provinces, prefectures, and counties, there was actually one located in a village.

The woman named Luo Yuzhen said shyly, "The county magistrate forbade us to open a club in the county seat, so the members had no choice but to move the Qiong Ying English Club to Luojia Village. Don't underestimate Luojia Village, it's just a remote and backward village, but we have over a thousand members!"

Ruan Ran couldn't hide her astonishment: "The Qiong Ying Society in Xiajing only has over 4,000 people."

Luo Yuzhen smiled and said, "You may not know, but a few years ago, the prefect of our Jingdong Prefecture was beheaded by the imperial envoy for refusing to reinforce the neighboring Shaoqing Prefecture. The county magistrate was a lackey of that official, so he held a grudge against Lord Du, and even his hatred extended to all women."

"He sent people to destroy the newly built Qiong Ying Literature Society in the county town, so we had no choice but to hide it in Luojia Village."

"Fortunately, the vast majority of the people are able to distinguish right from wrong and are reasonable. Not only did they help us keep the matter secret from their superiors, they also sent their own daughters and granddaughters along with us."

"Over time, the number of members gradually increased."

"So that's how it is. You're very brave and determined," Zhao Muqing sighed. Beneath the soft skin of these women lay bright and dazzling souls. "We've been staying in the village all year round, and we had no idea that the Qiongying English Society had already spread across every inch of Daxia."

"Speaking of the Qiong Ying Society, it was first established in Qingyuan County, Baoding Prefecture. It became famous because its members worked together to rescue a woman who was almost sold by her parents. After more than ten years of development and growth, it has become what it is today."

"Is that so?"

"Yes..."

In the crowd, Zhang Xiaoxue pursed her lips and smiled.

She will always remember that afternoon.

She was locked in the dim woodshed. Sister Meng kicked the door open, rushed in, and hugged her. Her voice trembled with heartache and anger: "Don't be afraid, Xiaoxue, you are safe. From now on, they can no longer do anything to you."

The gate of the Imperial Examination Hall burst open. Zhang Xiaoxue turned to look, and the crystal light in her eyes disappeared in an instant.

The yamen runners surrounded a middle-aged man in official robes and poured out of the Imperial Examination Hall.

The middle-aged official came forward holding the red list, and the candidates spontaneously made way for him, staring intently at the bright red color.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the red list was slowly unfolded and firmly posted on the notice wall.

The middle-aged official said a few words of encouragement, his eyes swept across the woman dressed in hairpins and skirts in the crowd, he sighed silently in his heart, and strode away.

There was a huge crowd of people in front of the red list, and everyone was trying hard to get forward.

"Move aside, let me take a look first."

"Why would a woman join in the fun? Even if I look at it, I won't necessarily be on the list."

"Hey! What are you talking about? I'm going to beat your mouth to pieces!"

"ah!"

A shrill scream suddenly rang out, the woman laughed out loud, and the man's face turned ashen.

"Men like this shouldn't be spoiled." Qian Ran muttered softly. With extraordinary perseverance, he pulled his aunt and cousin into the charge. Soon he came to the front, raised his head and tried hard to find his own name. After a while, he cheered, "I got it! I got it! I got it! Ahhhh!"

Hearing the bell-like laughter, the men's hearts skipped a beat and their faces were filled with disbelief.

“I actually won?”

"That's impossible!"

But this is just the beginning.

"Sister Zhao, congratulations on winning the first place in the high school entrance exam!"

"Aunt, you are second!"

"Xu Qing, you are ninth, and I am twenty-eighth."

"Sister Zhang, you got it too."

“…”

Female voices, some soft and some clear, rose one after another, like thunderbolts striking the heads of the men. Every word was weighty, hitting them on the heads one after another, making them dizzy and stunned.

"How come there are so many women on the list?"

"Could it be that the Imperial Examination Hall made a mistake?"

"Have you found your own names?"

"I found it, but the ranking is not very good. I will probably be ranked in the top three in the palace examination."

"It was too hot in the dormitory, and I felt dizzy and unlucky. I failed the exam."

"Impossible! I answered every question perfectly, how could my name not be on this red list?" Zhang Jianhong, a subordinate, struggled to squeeze to the front. He looked from the end one by one, but couldn't find his name. He immediately became furious. "There must be something wrong with this red list! With my ability, even if I'm not the champion, I'm definitely on the list!"

"...Is it possible that you think you're perfect?"

Although he thought it was incredible that a woman made the list, a candidate next to Zhang Jianhong couldn't help but complain.

Zhang Jianhong, however, could not hear anything. Like a wild horse, he rushed around in front of the notice wall, searching over and over again.

"No."

"Still no."

"How could there not be?"

"I must have missed it. Let me look for it again."

Zhang Jianhong muttered to himself and read it again from the beginning.

The eyes of the people around him changed from sympathy for him who failed the exam to looking at him as if he were a madman.

"Look at his expression, it's so ferocious and terrifying."

"Are you crazy?"

"In ancient times, Fan Jin passed the imperial examination, but now Jian Hong fails?"

Although it was not very kind, many people still laughed out loud.

......

The announcement of the imperial examination results is the top priority.

Whether it is for the candidates and their families, or for civil and military officials.

Especially this year.

Emperor Qingyuan seemed to be under a spell and actually allowed women to take the imperial examinations together with men.

If women passed the provincial and palace examinations and successfully entered the court, it would be tantamount to opening the door for women to take the imperial examinations and become officials, which would be difficult to stop from then on.

At that time, women will crow like hens at dawn, and men will be in unrest at home. At the very least, the family will be broken up, and at the worst, the country will be shaken. The consequences are unimaginable.

When many officials woke up this morning, their right eyelids twitched violently.

It is said that if the left eye twitches, it will bring good fortune, and if the right eye twitches, it will bring disaster. They could not help but think of today's imperial examination results.

But until the last moment, they still didn't give up.

Before leaving, they instructed their servants to go to the Imperial Examination Hall to check the results.

From then on, whether attending the morning court or handling official business, they were absent-minded, their hearts had already flown to the Imperial Examination Hall.

"I don't know what the situation is outside now."

"If nothing unexpected happens, there must be a woman on the red list."

"Master Zhu, why bother boosting others' ambitions and destroying your own prestige? There are over 10,000 men taking the imperial examination this time. They all went through many trials and tribulations, working diligently and step by step to get to this stage. Look at those women, let alone the academy and provincial examinations. I'm afraid they haven't even done many serious imperial examination questions. How can they be a match for those successful candidates?"

"But didn't Lord Hu say a while ago that the essays of the top three in the preliminary exam were on par with the previous year's top scorer?"

Lord Zhu's words left everyone speechless.

Just at this moment, news came from the Imperial Examination Hall—

The top scorer in the civil examination was Zhao Muqing, the military advisor of Lijiazhai.

The second is Ruan Ran, Duke Wen’s adopted sister.

Among the 600 tribute scholars, there were 246 women.

Among them, there were 208 women from the Qiongying English Society.

The top scorer in the military examination was Li Jin.

Among the three hundred tribute scholars, there were one hundred and thirty-six women.

Among them, there were 128 women from Lijiazhai.

Civil servant: “…”

military attache:"......"

After a long silence, Master Zhu's tone was vague: "So, those women are really going to serve as officials in the court?"

No one answered.

But Lord Zhu already had the answer.

Master Zhu gritted his teeth and slammed his fist on the table, full of resentment: "Why?"

Why should they be allowed to serve as officials in the court?

Why should they be allowed to take away the power that belongs only to them?

"There's nothing we can do about it. After all, they have the support of Duke Wen and Earl Haining."

"These two have the full support of His Majesty."

"His Majesty?"

"If Your Majesty does not intend this, even if Duke Wen, Earl Haining, and Yan Cifu speak eloquently, they will not succeed."

"I really don't understand what your Majesty's intention is in doing this," Lord Zhu said bitterly, "After all, we underestimated the enemy. As long as we unite as one and resolutely oppose, even your Majesty will find it difficult to silence the people of the world."

At this moment, a middle-aged official sitting in the corner suddenly spoke up: "Is it possible that we didn't underestimate those women, but underestimated Duke Wen and Earl Haining?"

Master Zhu frowned, "What do you mean, Master Fang?"

Lord Fang twirled his beard and sighed, his expression filled with righteous indignation: "If you want to stand out in the imperial examination, you have to study hard for years, get up at the crack of dawn, and forget about food and sleep."

"Look at those women. Even though there was the Qiong English Society, they never received any targeted instruction related to the imperial examinations, let alone diligently studying the Four Books and Five Classics day after day, poring over exam questions."

"Under such circumstances, how could they defeat those who had studied hard for decades and become tribute scholars?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Master Zhu could not wait to reply: "Master Fang, you mean that Duke Wen and Earl Haining are interfering and making them..."

Lord Fang smiled meaningfully: "There is no other possibility except this."

Everyone suddenly realized what was going on and slammed the table in anger.

"Great! I was once impressed by the erudition of those women, but the truth turned out to be so unbearable!"

"No, Huang will immediately submit a memorial to His Majesty, requesting that His Majesty send someone to thoroughly investigate this matter and expose the shameless true colors of Duke Wen and Earl Haining!"

As Mr. Huang was about to pick up his pen to write a memorial, he was stopped by Mr. Fang: "Have you all forgotten the lessons learned from those people before you?"

The anger on Mr. Huang's face froze.

In February, eighteen officials who plotted to assassinate Du Qingtang, intending to injure her and make her unable to take care of herself, or even kill her in an accident, were thrown into jail.

After investigation by the Ministry of Justice, the crime was confirmed. Emperor Qingyuan personally issued an oral order, stripping them of their official hats and exiling them two thousand miles away on the charge of plotting to murder an imperial official.

Because of this, no matter how many people were panicked, uneasy, and resentful, they dared not go against Duke Wen and Earl Haining, for fear of ending up in the same tragic situation as those eighteen people.

"What should we do? We can't let these two abuse their power for personal gain, undermine the fairness of the imperial examinations, and ruin the futures of countless candidates, can we?"

Lord Fang smiled calmly, "Don't panic. We can't do anything to them, but that doesn't mean we can't do anything to the other candidates."

He wanted to completely ruin Du Qingtang's good reputation among the scholars of the world and nail her to the pillar of shame.

As for whether public power is used for personal gain, who cares?

Tens of thousands of scholars across the country petitioned at the same time, and Your Majesty had to deal with her no matter what.

He wanted to destroy everything Du Qingtang wanted.

......

At the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall, Zhang Jianhong was still looking for his name on the red list word by word.

Outside the crowd, many people were watching Jianhong's every move with the intention of laughing at him.

“How many times?”

"Sixty-eight times."

"I'm afraid he's really crazy."

"Well, every year there are students who can't bear the blow of failing the exam and go crazy. They just go crazy in their own way."

In front of the notice wall, Zhang Jianhong began his sixty-ninth search.

"No...no...still no..." Zhang Jianhong's eyes were red, his voice was hoarse, and he was almost stuck to the red list.

At this moment, a voice suddenly rang out from the crowd: "How strange! We've been studying for ten years, studying like crazy, even studying like a prostitute. Many of us have even taken the imperial examination more than once. How could we lose to a group of women who have never taken the imperial examination and have such limited experience?"

Another voice took over the conversation, "I find it strange too. They haven't attended any proper private academy, let alone learned how to write eight-legged essays. How come they were able to rank among the top 20,000 candidates?"

Zhang Jianhong paused while looking at the list, a flash of light seemed to pass through his mind, and he suddenly understood.

"I see! I see!"

Zhang Jianhong pushed through the crowd and ran to the Dengwen Drum on the left side of the palace. He picked up the drumstick and struck it with all his might.

As drums beat, Zhang Jianhong shouted hysterically, "I want to sue Duke Wen and Earl Haining for favoritism and corruption, for bribing the examiners and making it easier for women to take the exam!"