On the fifth day of the ninth lunar month, the autumn sky was clear and the air was crisp, with the sweet fragrance of osmanthus blossoms filling the air.

Ten days later than other provinces, the highly anticipated provincial examination of Zhongchen Province finally began.

The provincial examination in the old calendar was divided into three sessions, each lasting one day, and took about half a month in total.

After Qin Minghuang ascended the throne, he vigorously reformed the imperial examination system, changing it to a two-day, one-time examination.

On the first day, we examined the interpretation of the classics and the two practical articles, "Discourse" and "Judgment".

"Discussion" is an argumentative essay, which requires citing classical texts and expounding on viewpoints;

The "judgment" section simulates officials judging cases and writing judgments, testing their legal knowledge and document skills.

The next day, they examined the students' knowledge of classics, history, current affairs, policy questions, and poetry.

The process may seem simplified, but in reality, the time is more tight, posing a more severe challenge to candidates' knowledge reserves, writing speed, physical strength and energy, and even psychological qualities.

The key to the first day was undoubtedly the writing of those two official documents.

If one has a solid foundation in the sutras and can answer quickly, one can have more time to carefully conceive the answer.

The same applies to the second day. If the writing on the first day is not going well and one's mind is unsettled, it will inevitably affect the state of one's strategy discussion on the second day.

If one's policy arguments encounter obstacles, one's poetic expression will inevitably suffer.

Ultimately, it tests one's true talent and comprehensive adaptability, making it more practical and demanding than the old calendar.

The area in front of the Fengjing Examination Hall was already packed with people.

At the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), when it was still dark, the four imperial heirs had already arrived.

Since this was a formal provincial examination, its scale was far greater than that of the previous supplementary preliminary examinations, so the three junior examinees were not allowed to come this time.

Qin Zhaoyue strongly protested, stating that she was the younger one.

Unfortunately, he was ruthlessly rejected by the other three and "pulled" out of his warm bed.

At this moment, she forced herself to stay awake and stood up straight, not daring to openly doze off.

On the one hand, there were no suitable cushions, and on the other hand, there were many high-ranking officials present today.

The two supervisors from the Department of Ceremonies and the Department of Astronomy personally supervised the examination, and several officials from the Censorate also stood not far away.

If she were impeached for improper conduct, she would be drowned in spittle; it would be a huge problem.

Among the crowd of examinees, Helian Chaolu stood quietly, dressed in a simple and elegant ruqun commonly seen on women in Fengjing.

Her eyes were clear and bright, with an unwavering determination.

She had reached the final step and completed all the tasks assigned by His Majesty.

If he passes the imperial examination this time, the official position promised by His Majesty and the prospect of staying in the Six Departments of Fengjing will be fulfilled.

At that time, relatives and friends from the far northwest can be brought to Fengjing, completely breaking the old rule that binds border nobles from leaving their homes.

Once she has established herself in Fengjing, she can gradually exchange the clan's property for businesses in the capital, thus sparing the clan members from the suffering of being targeted and exploited.

By marrying into the Fengjing family and managing the business for one or two generations, her family can truly integrate into Daqian.

Xiao Yunshuo's attire still bore the distinctive characteristics of the Northern Border Shuofeng Dynasty, making him stand out among the Fengjing costumes, naturally leaving a small empty space around him.

She paid no attention to the stares, and like any other ordinary candidate, she carried her heavy examination box and looked around the solemn examination hall with a complicated expression.

Only now did she truly realize:

In Dagan, women could truly enter the imperial examination hall with dignity and could indeed pass the examination and become officials based on their talents.

Women can also live in the sunlight, without having to be confined to their boudoirs for their entire lives, without having to know only how to be a good wife and mother, and without having to only read "Admonitions for Women" and "Instructions for Women".

The magnanimity and breadth of vision of the Great Khan Empress are truly unprecedented and unparalleled.

One thing she truly meant was that she genuinely admired the empress and the thorny path she had paved for women across the land.

If she had been born in the north wind...

A flood of thoughts rushed into my mind like a tidal wave.

Chen Yu was hidden in the bustling crowd, her face slightly pale, unable to hide her nervousness.

In her examination box were two ink sticks, one of which was the common pine soot ink, and the other... looked no different from an ordinary ink stick.

The experts in Xuanji Guard who were proficient in this art had already tested it repeatedly and found that the writing made with that special ink stick did not disappear immediately.

It will only begin to fade gradually after about nine days, until it disappears completely.

This method is not uncommon, but its brilliance lies in its timeliness.

The results of this provincial examination were announced ten days later. The ink was still on the paper when the papers were being graded and ranked. But problems arose precisely when the results were posted and the papers were displayed for public viewing!

It was extremely well concealed, and the initial inspections were flawless, even leading the Xuanji Guards to suspect that it might just be a smokescreen.

At this moment, Chen Yu's apparent tension was mostly feigned.

The Xuanji Guard commander named Dou Zhan had repeatedly assured her that her father and younger brother were under strict protection and there was absolutely nothing wrong with them.

Once she enters the examination hall, there will be powerful experts at the Divine Martial Realm secretly overseeing things, so she doesn't need to worry and can just focus on taking the exam.

However, some people are truly on the verge of collapse.

Wen Tingwan stood not far away, her fingers gripping the handle of the exam box tightly.

He kept his head down and his eyes darted around, glancing quickly around every now and then, only to look away again as if startled.

She bit her lower lip so hard it almost bled, and her breathing became rapid and disordered as she tried to suppress her panic.

How she longed to shout it out loud, to tell everyone that she was being coerced, that someone was forcing her to cheat!

Wen Tingwan had tried before; her old maid and personal maidservant in her courtyard had twice attempted to send out a distress message, but both attempts were unsuccessful.

He then inexplicably fell ill, suffering from vomiting and diarrhea, clearly having been ambushed.

Thinking of how they writhed on the ground in agony when the poison took effect, Wen Tingwan couldn't help but shudder.

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!