Chapter 28 The Imperial Examination

The Nanjiang County government has resumed normal operations.

The situation was similar in Guangyue Prefecture.

The positions of prefect and education commissioner, which had been vacant for a year, were finally filled.

Although the magistrates of the seventeen counties below could not attend in time, they all sent congratulatory letters.

The first thing the prefectural government did was to issue a decree that the provincial examinations would be held as scheduled.

Tell the scholars in each county to prepare.

Students must arrive in the prefectural city before August 20th, and the official examination will be held on August 22nd, lasting for three days.

Upon hearing the news, the scholars and students of Guangyue Prefecture were overjoyed and eagerly praised the new prefect and education official for his wise and far-sighted policies.

Nanjiang County also received the document.

Su Qing instructed Instructor Gu to handle the matter and to notify the scholars on the roster who met the requirements to depart no later than the sixteenth of August.

“The travel expenses for going out to take the exams are quite high, so the government provides each scholar with two taels of silver as an incentive,” Su Qing said.

Instructor Gu was quite surprised.

Su Qing was surprisingly generous.

Wasn't she indifferent to the imperial examinations?

Seeing that he did not answer, Su Qing continued, "Compile the list as soon as possible and report it to the prefectural school."

It means compiling a list of candidates in advance and preparing their admission tickets.

She certainly didn't want the list to be wrong or forgot to bring her exam admission ticket.

Instructor Gu quickly answered yes, and then glanced at his son Gu Congsi beside him.

Su Qing looked over and said, "It's about to start, you should go back and prepare for the exam."

Su Qing said this back in early July.

Tell him to stop staying in the government office and go back to his studies.

Gu Congsi said, "Wait a little longer."

Su Qing naturally understood that as a new county magistrate, she was different from the person in charge and wanted to have more helpers.

However, at this point, Gu Congsi had no excuse and could only nod: "You're right, I'll go prepare for the exam."

Seeing that Su Qing had no intention of staying, Gu Congsi had no choice but to step forward.

The two exchanged questions and answers, making Instructor Gu's teeth ache, but he couldn't openly challenge them.

However, before Gu Congsi had gone far, he heard Fei Kaiyu volunteer, cheerfully saying, "Sir, I can take over Scholar Gu's job, and I don't even need to prepare for the exam!"

He will wait until the end of the year to prepare for the children's examination!

Gu Congsi turned his head to look, his expression naturally displeased.

"The exam is important," said Instructor Gu, pulling his son along. "Once you pass the imperial examination and become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examination), you'll have nothing to worry about."

Although Instructor Gu's carefree attitude differed from Gu Congsi's.

He managed to offer some words of advice, and he stared intently at Fei Kaiyu, wondering what could be causing him to laugh so happily.

As for Su Qing.

She remained calm, only feeling that having an extra helper was not bad.

So, anyone can do it?

Anyone who stands by her side is fine as long as they can help her.

Gu Congsi paused for a moment, then quickly left.

Once you pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, you'll have nothing to worry about.

He needs to be more useful.

One cannot simply be a clerk who can be replaced at any time.

It can only be made better.

Su Qing will value it even more.

Even Xiaofei said, "Sir, it seems that Scholar Gu wants you to keep him."

After all, they are engaged!

Not leaving a single word?

For some reason, Xiaofei was actually quite happy.

In his opinion, Scholar Gu was not good enough for their adults.

Of course, no one dared to say this aloud, since everyone thought Gu Congsi had a bright future.

Su Qing joked, "Some people just can't be kept."

There's no need for that.

During this period, Gu Congsi practically kept bringing up the idea of ​​getting engaged.

Mei Niang was also looking forward to it.

She and the Gu family repeatedly fooled him, which led to the temporary shelving of the matter.

However, Gu Congsiyue did so.

She dared not tell the truth before the provincial examination.

The provincial examination was held once every three years.

They knew that Gu Congsi had a high probability of passing the exam.

If she ruins her future, the Gu family will hate her to the core.

During the following period, Gu Congsi secluded himself to read.

Even when I occasionally come out for some fresh air, it's always on my way to the government office.

During this period, more than a hundred qualified scholars from Nanjiang County lined up to register their names and obtain travel permits in advance.

He was even happier when he learned that the government would give him an additional two taels of silver.

There were even scholars from other places who wanted to get subsidies.

Fortunately, Instructor Gu was meticulous in his work, which prevented them from swindling him out of the money.

Although a year has passed since the war, the situation in many places is still bad, and life is even more difficult for poor scholars.

It wasn't until mid-August that the last group of scholars, led by Gu Congsi, left Nanjiang County.

Gu Congsi looked at the city gate, and a classmate asked, "Who is Scholar Gu waiting for?"

Someone in the know quickly gave him a meaningful look.

Don't ask anymore.

Who else could Gu Congsi wait for?

Instructor Gu and his wife changed the subject: "The journey must have been tiring, so don't skimp on food and drink. Everything is fine at home."

"I've already asked an old friend in the prefectural city for help. I can stay at his house when the time comes. Preparing for the exam is the priority."

After speaking for a while longer, Madam Gu reluctantly let them leave.

Gu Congsi hesitated to get into the carriage.

The coachman urged him a few times, and he had no choice but to get on. He looked at the book in his hand and the two taels of silver from the yamen, and remained silent for a long time.

Autumn examination.

He will definitely pass the exam.

Inside the city gate, Su Qing watched the carriage leave from afar and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

With the autumn imperial examinations over, many things can be settled.

Su Qing shook his head and said to the clerk, "Return to the yamen."

With so many things to do these days, being able to deliver goods within the city and over long distances is already a rare treat.

The autumn grain harvest in Nanjiang County has been completed, and the grain tax reports from various villages have been submitted.

Registrar Luo had been extremely busy lately. Upon seeing Magistrate Su return, he immediately said, "Sir, the grain tax statistics are in. Here are the detailed accounts."

Since Luo Hufang was promoted to Luo Zhubu, his capable subordinate Xiaofei clerk has also become the magistrate's right-hand man, so he has become even busier.

The young woman quickly brought over some tea, which Luo, the registrar, drank in one gulp without ceremony and continued, "This year's grain harvest is good; a total of 21 million catties of land tax have been paid."

"Most of them have already been collected, and the rest will be transported to the county town in batches."

Local production has increased compared to last year.

That's normal. Back then, we had just emerged from the shadow of war, and now that a year has passed, things are naturally better.

Su Qing listened to the report while looking at the account books.

Fei Kaiyu had already ground the ink and was waiting for her approval.

Su Qing said, "Bring me the medicinal herbs and the dock tax ledgers."

Registrar Luo hurried to find a new household, saying, "Sir, we need to find a new household as soon as possible, otherwise we really won't be able to handle it."

He was quite happy when he first took on the roles of both registrar and household manager.

Two key positions!

It took a long time to realize that this was truly unbearable.

Please, please find someone to take over.

Su Qing laughed: "I also want to find someone, but there aren't any suitable ones. No matter how you look at it, you, Registrar Luo, are the most capable."

However, some experienced officials and scholars came to take up the post.

But after looking at a few, they all seemed to have too many hidden agendas and weren't quite suitable.

Clerk Luo chuckled at the compliment, then asked, "Why is my lord looking at this?"

Su Qing had already seen the profits from medicinal herbs and the taxes from the docks, and sighed, "Let's see how much silver we have to pay to the government."

Luo, the registrar, and Fei Kaiyu exchanged a glance.

I'm so busy I'm dizzy.

I almost forgot about that.

Last autumn, when taxes were collected, the Guangyue Prefecture government office was without anyone in charge.

Everyone is paying taxes haphazardly.

The new prefect will undoubtedly make a strong first impression this year.

The fire of the imperial examination system has already been lit.

This autumn tax is even more important.

Among the seventeen counties of Guangyue Prefecture, Nanjiang County stands out.

Not only did he recover well, but he also found a new way to make a living.

Secondly, she was the first female county magistrate of Shunchang Kingdom, so even without her doing anything, she was the target of public criticism.

Filling in numbers haphazardly?

That's even more impossible.

The officials in the government office seemed to be meditating with their eyes closed, like Buddhas.

But to have reached this position, estimating local revenue is still a piece of cake.

Some seasoned officials, with a little calculation, can get the results pretty accurate.

Playing tricks with numbers is fine if you don't investigate.

If we were to take it seriously and investigate last year's taxes as well, making them pay the outstanding amount, it would be even more counterproductive.

In this situation, trying to cover it up will only result in being made an example of.

If you want to pay less, you have to find an excuse that no one can refuse.

However, let's see how much we need to pay first.

"The land tax is 126 million catties, which is equivalent to about 60,000 taels of silver at the current market price."

"The other taxes added up to seven thousand eight hundred taels."

In other words...

This year, Nanjiang County is going to pay 67,800 taels of tax to the prefectural government?!

Su Qing almost couldn't catch her breath.

How many? !

Let her live in a small county.

How much?!

Luo, the registrar, and Fei Kaiyu calculated and recalculated.

The numbers are correct.

Nearly 70,000 taels of silver.

to be honest.

Paying taxes is an obligation.

However, the government office last year did not help Nanjiang County.

If I absolutely have to say something.

On the contrary, the soldiers on the front lines are the biggest help here.

Fortunately, Su Qing was mentally prepared, and although she felt sorry for him at this moment.

However, there are ways to deal with it.

Su Qing took out the ledgers from the wounded soldiers' ward.

She will pay all the taxes owed to Nanjiang County.

However, we request that the government allocate funds for the additional expenses of Nanjiang County!

Everything else can be left aside.

The government should surely reimburse the expenses for caring for the wounded, right?

Otherwise, the General would definitely ask more questions.

From the beginning of March this year until mid-August.

For nearly six months, the wounded soldiers' ward in Nanjiang County received around 1,200 wounded soldiers every day.

Provide the wounded with food, clothing, shelter, medical care, medicine, and other necessities.

Any list you randomly put would be shockingly high.

Even when the Nanjiang County government didn't have the money to pay for the medicine, it still had to cover the expenses of the wounded soldiers.

This was the result of the extremely frugal efforts of Commander Zhou, who was assigned to the army.

Otherwise, why would Ye Shanming secretly think that if Su Qing stopped paying this portion of the money, their predicament in Nanjiang County would be immediately resolved?

"In five and a half months, the wounded soldiers' ward has spent a total of 37,629 taels of silver," said Registrar Luo. "This includes the repair of the ward's buildings, the expansion of new rooms, and the construction of several new stoves."

"That's too economical."

Su Qing nodded.

That's what she thinks too.

Aside from necessary expenses, Zhou Qianhu and his men avoided spending money whenever possible; they were extremely frugal.

Even considering the situation in Nanjiang County, the number of wounded soldiers was kept around 1,200, probably out of fear of dragging down the area.

“We don’t need to be so frugal in the future,” Su Qing said. “Commander Zhou has been worried about the winter. We’ve asked him to recruit people, repair the houses in the wounded soldiers’ ward, and buy winter quilts in advance.”

Magistrate Su, Registrar Luo, and Clerk Xiaofei were all engrossed in their calculations.

The final number is obtained.

Nanjiang County's total tax revenue this year is 67,800 taels.

I request an allocation of 37,629 yuan, which is the amount of money that Nanjiang County advanced for the wounded soldiers from March to the end of July.

They also requested an advance payment of 28,600 taels for the wounded soldiers from August to December.

The total amount is 66,229 taels.

"If we look at it this way, we only need to pay 1,571 taels of tax."

After seeing this number.

Su Qing even had to praise himself as a tax genius.

“Definitely not,” Registrar Luo said directly, “The difference is too great.”

Su Qing nodded: "That's right, but have you ever heard the saying?"

"If you want to open a window, you have to lift the roof first."

Registrar Luo, Fei Kaiyu, look over here.

Fei Kaiyu pondered for a moment: "Sir, do you mean that the total expenditure for the wounded soldiers is for the roof, and the expenditure already paid is for the windows?"

Indeed, Su Qing gave him an approving look.

Luo, the registrar, also realized that Magistrate Su would not think that the government office was so generous as to directly allocate all the money needed by the wounded soldiers' ward to her.

The tax that Magistrate Su was willing to pay was nearly 70,000 in total, minus the 3,700 he had already advanced.

That is, 30,000 in taxes.

That's quite a lot of money.

Among all the counties in Guangyue Prefecture, it would definitely be considered one of the best.

Su Qing said helplessly, "I don't want to stand out in this kind of thing."

The money was sent to the government office, which kept a portion of it before sending it to the capital for the national treasury.

She didn't know how much of it would be left.

But in her Nanjiang County, she could actually repair the docks, build the city walls, stabilize prices, and even fatten up the wounded soldiers.

It wasn't that Su Qing was overly suspicious.

Rather, it's if the imperial court is truly capable of getting things done.

How could Guangyue Prefecture have been left without a prefect for so long?

Even logistical supply has been consistently problematic?

Su Qing had already been filled with countless questions.

After several days of calculating the accounts, things finally started to look clear.

Su Qing instructed Wu, the head constable, to send someone to submit the tax revenue ledgers for Nanjiang County this year. Once the prefectural government approves, they can send someone else to collect the tax revenue.

It's highly unlikely that the constables will be able to make the trip.

The county government and the prefectural government usually have to negotiate.

We departed on August 19th.

The first time I sent the tax ledgers, they were immediately returned.

Your Nanjiang County has had a bumper harvest of grain, and the medicinal herbs are selling well, plus there are dock tax revenues.

In the end, they only paid a little over 1,500 taels?!

You're kidding me.

The second set of account books included a lot of miscellaneous expenses.

They were still rejected.

The third time, it was already August 26th.

The constables took turns running the errands, and they were all exhausted.

But as everyone knows, Magistrate Su was acting in the best interests of Nanjiang County, and given the generous subsidies he provided, they naturally had no complaints.

Fortunately, on August 29th...

The Guangyue Prefecture's Household Department finally nodded in agreement.

Nanjiang County, autumn tax of 30,171 taels.

Once confirmed, it needs to be delivered to the Guang Le Prefecture government office as soon as possible.

The officials of Nanjiang County government breathed a sigh of relief.

Very good.

It was totally worth the effort!

I paid more than 30,000 less.

Su Qingxiao, in reality, had no shortage of friends.

This money was originally intended for the wounded soldiers' ward, so the government should have given it to them.

After this incident, Fei Kaiyu's eyes shone like stars.

He was already handsome, but now he had a bit of a silly look about him, and he seemed to want to run around in circles with the adults.

That's amazing!

Your Excellency Magistrate!

That's really amazing.

If you ask him to do it, he'll never be able to.

Who would dare to bargain with the government?

Isn't it said that a higher-ranking official can crush you?

Seeing the admiration in his eyes, Su Qing was in a good mood and said with a smile, "Nanjiang County is indeed different."

“In the various counties of Guangyue Prefecture, more than 30,000 is already quite a lot.”

Not to mention, their accounts are clear and there is no ambiguity whatsoever.

Even if they were sent to the capital, they would still have a reason to argue their case.

Su Qing asked, "Is today the 29th of August?"

Fei Kaiyu nodded immediately.

Su Qing calculated the time.

On August 22nd, the autumn imperial examinations began, with three days of testing and five days of grading.

The results of the autumn imperial examinations will be released on August 30th, which is tomorrow.

Just as they were about to ask again, they saw Instructor Gu and his wife come hand in hand to ask for the discarded paper from the county government.

It is said that the government office has an official aura, and burning it will bless him to pass the imperial examination with top honors.

Of course, it's not about finding things Su Qing used, but rather items left behind by Su Qing's father, Magistrate Su.

Normally, these two would avoid her, but it's rare for them to do so for the sake of their son.

It seems that the results were indeed released today.

Su Qing definitely didn't have it here, so she sent her younger sister to the study to find a few pages and then sent the person away.

Fei Kaiyu looked on and felt unhappy.

When it comes to being an official, Magistrate Su is no less capable than anyone else!

Meanwhile, in the city of Guangle Prefecture.

The area in front of the examination hall was crowded with candidates looking at the results.

But this has nothing to do with Su Qing.

The tax payment for this year in Nanjiang County has been confirmed. I need to pay what I'm owed as soon as possible to feel at ease.

According to the details provided by the government office, grain, cloth, medicine, and cash were transported there in varying quantities.

Everyone in the government office was extremely busy.

On the second day of the ninth month, Gong, the clerk, personally escorted them to the prefectural city.

Su Qing was very confident in Gong Dianli's work.

The tax issue is settled.

Then look at the amount of silver in their accounts.

There's nothing else to say except that I'm happy.

Their main sources of income are land tax, medicinal herbs, and the dock.

All the supplies, converted into silver, amounted to approximately 83,000 taels.

Of course, half of these 83,000 taels of silver were to be left to the wounded soldiers' ward.

They had to advance the money until the government allocated a new batch of funds.

Of the remaining half, after deducting the various expenses and emergencies of the government, there was still 20,000 available for use.

This is when the three classes and six departments, as well as the official schools, are most active.

Although Instructor Gu wanted to leave, he still wanted to secure sufficient funding for the county school.

The county school has been vacant for a long time; we need to recruit teachers and students quickly.

Oh, right, we also need to prepare for next year's county-level examination.

Su Qing was quite clear about this; she had already said that the county school would be recruiting students in September.

Children like younger brother Su Cheng, cousin Su Xi, and Yunxi Liu Xiaomei all need to go to school.

Another measure was to recruit talented children from various villages and enroll them in the county school.

Now some people finally believed that Su Qing did not value the imperial examination.

It was just not suitable last year.

Su Qingxin thought to himself, "It's not that I don't value the imperial examinations; I value studying even more."

These are two different things.

In addition, the dock needs to be expanded to add at least two more berths.

This is a good time to find someone to be in charge of the Grand Canal Transport Office.

The newly established medical training department immediately allocated funds to train professional medical staff.

With more medical staff, the wounded can be accommodated in the wards, relieving pressure on the front lines.

Before Su Qing could even warm the money in her hand, she began to plan how to spend it.

Money is meant to be spent.

Even if you hoard it in a warehouse, it won't generate more money.

Oh, and we also need to build another warehouse.

The warehouses near the dock are clearly insufficient.

After all the calculations, how did she become poor again?

Is this reasonable?

The various departments of the government office are becoming increasingly busy.

He did everything according to Magistrate Su's instructions.

One of the villagers remarked, "Our land tax has actually been put to good use."

Yes.

Used to help wounded soldiers.

It was used for building docks and warehouses.

They've also started training medical staff.

Everything is a good thing.

If that's the case, it doesn't seem bad.

At least their county magistrate was doing things for the people.

The local people felt this way, and people in other counties were even more envious.

They were all starving to death, but their county magistrate disregarded their plight and insisted on collecting more taxes to curry favor with the new prefect.

They said the people wouldn't starve, and there was still grain left.

I heard they wanted to become rebels.

The people of Nanjiang County were naturally pleased to hear such words.

Unexpectedly, another thing added to the festive atmosphere.

Magistrate Su's fiancé passed the provincial examination and became a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination), ranking first in this year's provincial examination!

The government office at this time.

The messenger from the prefectural city beamed with joy: "Congratulations, Magistrate Su! Congratulations, Magistrate Su! Your fiancé has achieved the top score in this year's provincial examination! First place!"

Su Qing didn't know what to say for a moment, so she simply asked, "Are you referring to Scholar Gu?"

"It is him, of course. He is a handsome young man."

"Many wealthy and powerful families in the prefectural city are vying to find him a son-in-law because of his good looks and unmarried status!"

Listening to the officials, Su Qing became interested: "Did they catch them?"

"Of course, the head of the clerk's office in the prefectural government was the first to volunteer."

"But don't worry, Chief Gu flatly refused, saying he already has a fiancée he admires! He would never marry a second person!"

The messenger recounted the good news with great enthusiasm, as if afraid that no one would miss it.

Fortunately, Su Qing wasn't sitting in the courtroom at the moment; he was just in the courtyard giving instructions.

Otherwise it will only be more awkward.

Su Qing interrupted, "Let's go to the county school to announce the good news first. He is the son of Instructor Gu of this county."

"Yunxi, take him there."

Before the words were even finished, Instructor Gu and his wife couldn't wait any longer. They had heard that someone had come from the prefectural city to deliver good news, so they immediately came looking for them.

The messenger quickly repeated what he had just said, and continued, "The head of the clerk said that the marriage can be discussed again, and he should give it more thought."

“But Chief Gu said frankly that once it was decided, there was absolutely no possibility of changing it.”

Not to mention that Instructor Gu and his wife suddenly felt dizzy.

Su Qing was no different.

I thought that after passing the imperial examination and becoming a scholar, I would return and annul the engagement.

Who would have thought there would be a "marriage proposal contest"? He even directly said that he already had a fiancée.

"Later, after hearing from the candidates in Nanjiang County, everyone realized that Gu, the top candidate's fiancée, was none other than you, the first female county magistrate of Shunchang Kingdom!" The messenger felt he had told the good news very well, and Mei Niang, who had rushed over, was the happiest, giving her a generous reward.

But once the news got out, it couldn't be stopped.

No matter what Su Qing does, people always ask her questions.

Even the usually silent manager of the Ye family asked a few more questions, including, "When Scholar Gu returns, will you two be engaged?"

Su Qing waved her hands repeatedly.

That's not true.

No, there isn't.

The matter has escalated to this point, and it will probably be long before Gu Congsi returns.

His parents would then run away with him.

If it weren't for the fact that Instructor Gu was still handling official duties at the county school, he would most likely have already run away.

Thinking of this, Su Qing smiled instead, not taking these things to heart.

The autumn imperial examinations have now completely concluded.

Not only did news of the top candidate arrive, but good news from other candidates also kept coming to Nanjiang County.

To everyone's surprise...

Nanjiang County, which was little known before the war, has surprisingly achieved great success in this year's autumn imperial examinations.

Out of one or two thousand candidates from various regions, only the top eighty will be selected.

And their Nanjiang County alone accounted for sixteen of them, including the top scorer.

It should be noted that besides the three counties where war was still raging, Guangyue Prefecture had fourteen other places, including the prefectural city.

Their Nanjiang County alone produced so many successful candidates in the imperial examinations.

It would be a delightful surprise no matter where you put it.

Some say that the number of people from their county who passed the imperial examinations this year even exceeded the number of students from the prefectural school.

So much so that after the results of the provincial examination were announced, many people repeatedly read through the candidates' essays, trying to find loopholes in the essays of the candidates from Nanjiang County.

The result is self-evident.

The candidates from Nanjiang County all passed the exams based on their own merits!

Su Qing wasn't too surprised by this.

The success of academic examinations in a region was closely related to the local economic situation and the stability of life.

Compared to other places, this is quite normal.

It's not that she's too amazing, it's that she's terrible in other areas.

If Su Qing were to say these words aloud, it would probably attract a lot of hatred.

However, at this moment, the name of Magistrate Su Qing was being discussed by more people.

Their county.

No, if only the prefectural city had officials like that!

It can develop the economy, promote the imperial examination system, and help people build bridges and roads.

Who wouldn't want a county magistrate like that?!

Fei Kaiyu's eyes were filled with more admiration than anything else; he wished he could serve the county magistrate at his beck and call!

It is a great honor to be a clerk for an adult!

Before he takes the imperial examination to become a scholar, no one can compete with him!

Even the county magistrate's fiancé is out of the question!

Author's note: I'll update earlier tomorrow, love you all!