Xue Ren quickly replied, welcoming Qin Zhao and Jing Li to visit at any time, and that there was a vacant room in the house left by Ayi's parents where they could stay temporarily.

Note: All the houses in the county town have kangs, so it will definitely not be cold.

——After reading the letter, Jing Li wanted to rush to the county town immediately.

But no matter how anxious he was, there was nothing he could do. Qin Zhao had more than ten students in the village, and he couldn't just ignore them like that.

Jing Li could only wait patiently for Qin Zhao to finish explaining the "Sound and Rhythm Primer" and complete the handover with the village chief before he could leave.

As for the vegetable garden at home, Qin Zhao had actually planned to go to the county town for the winter a long time ago. The vegetables grown in the field had just been eaten up by now, and the rest were distributed to his neighbors as a reward for their help in taking care of the wheat in the field.

In fact, there is no need to take too much care of the wheat after winter. This is just to prevent any accidents.

By the time everything was arranged and Qin Zhao and Jing Li were about to set off for the county town, Laba Festival had already passed.

Before leaving, the village chief came to Qin Zhao's house to deliver something.

A document proving the native place and a written affidavit from the recommender.

These two items are the written materials that must be submitted when registering for the county examination.

The county exam was in early February, and registration would begin in January. Qin Zhao left the village at this time, intending to return after the exam. Therefore, before leaving, he had to bring all the necessary documents for registration.

The village chief said, "During the reign of the previous emperor, there was a law that required those who immigrated to the territory to pay taxes for twenty years before being allowed to take the imperial examinations. Fortunately, due to the border wars many years ago, many people migrated, and the authorities abolished this rule. Now all that is required is a certificate of origin signed by the local head of the township."

"I've already contacted the village head on your behalf. He's heard about your deeds a long time ago and is willing to sign a certificate for you."

Qin Zhao bowed to him and said, "Thank you, Village Chief."

"No need to thank me," the village chief said with a smile, stroking his beard. "The agreement has already been signed, and I'll be the guarantor. When I went to see the township headman two days ago, I mentioned to him that our town hasn't had a juren in years. Please don't let us down."

Not to mention Juren, even Xiucai are rare.

The fact that the village chief said this proved that he indeed had high expectations for Qin Zhao.

The village chief continued, "However, you still need to find five candidates to act as mutual guarantors. Candidates in our town usually recommend each other. I heard that you never attend scholar gatherings. Have you thought of someone to act as a guarantor?"

Qin Zhao hasn't considered this yet.

He didn't care about interpersonal communication, and apart from Chen Yan'an, he didn't know any other candidates who were going to take the county examination together.

Oh, there's another person.

Strict cultivation.

Since being rejected by Qin Zhao, that guy has come several times in the past few months under various pretexts, but was rejected by Qin Zhao every time. In anger, he began to spread rumors about Qin Zhao in the town, trying to ruin his reputation.

However, with Fang Tianying around, these rumors didn't take off.

This person is definitely unwilling to protect Qin Zhao.

"You don't have to worry about that," the village chief said. "There are more scholars in the county town. There's still more than a month left, so you can go get to know a few. I'll also ask Chen Yan'an to help you find someone. We can meet in the county town before you register."

With Qin Zhao's reputation in the town, there must be many people who want to protect each other with him.

However, mutual guarantee is not as simple as signing a document. If any of the mutually guaranteed candidates cheats, the other four will be punished collectively and disqualified from the exam.

Therefore, the mutual guarantor must be someone with good character and trustworthy.

Qin Zhao said, "I understand, don't worry, Village Chief."

"If it was that kid Chen Yan'an, I wouldn't put pressure on him, but it's different with you." The village chief stopped smiling and said seriously, "Bring back a first-place award, and I'll throw a big banquet in the village to welcome you!"

Qin Zhao also smiled and said, "Qin Zhao will remember this and do his best."

.

The day after the village chief delivered the documents, Qin Zhao and Jing Li set out to leave Linxi Village.

Afraid that Jing Li would be cold on the road, Qin Zhao specially rented a covered ox cart, put a charcoal basin and a quilt in the cart, and swayed towards the county town.

The mountain road was steep and the carriage canopy was not tightly covered, so it was always leaking air.