Chapter 195 [VIP]

As the imperial examinations approach, the atmosphere in Kyoto is growing increasingly intense. These days, if you go out for a walk, you can run into people discussing the exams.

These past few days, Chen Qingyan has been keeping Qingsong indoors, confining him to his study to read, practice calligraphy, and cultivate his patience.

"How boring." Chen Qingsong sighed, slumped in his chair.

Lately, his two older brothers have been cramming him with lessons, with the eldest brother in charge of policy essays and the second brother in charge of poetry, leaving him dizzy from the exhaustion.

A classmate had invited him out to dinner today, but his older brother turned it down. Although he knew it was for his own good, he still felt quite upset.

"Uncle, Uncle..." Yuanbao called quietly from outside the door.

Chen Qingsong opened the door. "Little Yuanbao, what brings you here? Didn't you go to school today?"

"Our teacher has taken leave due to typhoid fever and doesn't need to go for the next few days."

"Oh, I see." Chen Qingsong's eyes darted around. "How about your uncle takes you out to play?"

"Great! I'm going to ask my father for money!"

"No, Uncle has money in his pocket. Let's go quietly."

Yuanbao covered his mouth, smiled, and nodded.

The two quietly slipped out the door and went straight to Suzaku Street. The street was bustling with activity, and vendors selling all sorts of things could be seen everywhere.

"Selling steamed buns: unleavened, leavened, and cornmeal~"

"Selling candied hawthorns, sweet and delicious sesame candied hawthorns!"

"Uncle, I want to eat candied hawthorn."

"Come on, I'll take you shopping." Chen Qingsong led Yuanbao around, eating as they went. Around noon, he originally wanted to find his classmates for a small get-together, but then he thought better of it. He couldn't drink with Yuanbao, and his sister-in-law would definitely worry if they stayed out too long. He decided to wait until after the exams to get together.

At noon, the two ate a bowl of hot soup noodles with meat at a nearby foot restaurant, and they enjoyed it very much.

After eating and drinking his fill, Yuanbao still wanted to see some acrobatics, so Chen Qingsong took him to stroll around the market.

Back home, Chen Qingyan rushed back from the Hanlin Academy and called out as soon as he entered the house, "Qingsong, Chen Qingsong!"

Hearing the noise, Wang Ying came out and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Where's the third brother?"

"I took Yuanbao out this morning."

Chen Qingyan's heart skipped a beat, "Oh no!"

"What's wrong?"

"Something terrible has happened! We just received news that several restaurants and eateries in the city have been poisoned. Many people have been poisoned and taken to nearby clinics for treatment. Currently, hundreds of people are in critical condition at the clinics, and most of them are candidates preparing for the imperial examinations this year!"

"Ah?!" Wang Ying was also terrified when she heard this, and quickly told the servants in the mansion to go out and look for the person.

Before long, Chen Qinghuai and Bai Yanqing arrived. Seeing the expressions on Chen Qingyan and Wang Ying's faces, they knew something had happened. "Third brother isn't home?"

Wang Ying said, "No, it just so happens that Yuanbao's teacher took the day off today, so he took Yuanbao out to play."

Chen Qingyan said with a stern face, "These past few days I have specifically instructed him not to go out, not to go out! With the exam approaching, I am afraid that someone with ulterior motives will harm him. He has studied hard for more than ten years for this day. If something goes wrong, wouldn't all his previous efforts be in vain!"

"Don't worry, Third Brother and Yuanbao will definitely be alright..."

Kyoto is in complete chaos right now. All restaurants and eateries have been ordered to close, and people on the streets have been driven home and are forbidden from wandering around.

This incident shocked the court and the public. The emperor immediately ordered the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review to investigate the matter thoroughly and dispatched more than thirty imperial physicians to treat the poisoned individuals. Because the incident was sudden, many officials hurriedly asked for leave to go home and check if their children or nephews had been poisoned.

Chen Qingsong and Yuanbao only realized something was wrong when they returned from the market.

"Uncle, why is there no one on the street?"

"I don't know, but I have a feeling something big has happened. Let's hurry home." The two of them ran home in a hurry.

As soon as he entered, Chen Ju stopped him. "Oh, Third Master, you're finally back! Hurry up and go to the study. Master and Young Master have been looking for you like crazy!"

The two boys' faces changed upon hearing this, and Yuanbao whispered, "Father won't hit us, will he?"

Chen Qingsong swallowed hard. "I think... we just went out for a walk. Big brother won't get that angry. But if a fight really breaks out, you just hide behind me. Uncle can take a beating."

"Um!"

The two entered the study and saw their eldest brother and sister-in-law, as well as their second brother and sister-in-law. Chen Qingsong scratched his head awkwardly, "They're all here..."

"You good-for-nothing, you still know how to come back!" Chen Qingyan raised his head, his gaze shooting like an arrow into his younger brother's face.

Chen Qingsong was so frightened that his calves cramped, and he stammered, "I, I, I just took Yuanbao out for a walk to clear my head and get something to eat, that's all."

Yuanbao nodded in agreement from behind, his little face pale with fright. He had never seen his father so angry before.

Chen Qingyan slammed his fist on the table in anger, “Do you know that something big has happened in the city today!”

"No, I don't know, what happened?"

Chen Qinghuai said, "Today, someone poisoned restaurants and eateries in the city, and many people have been affected."

"Ah?!" Chen Qingsong was shocked and felt a chill run down his spine. Luckily, he hadn't gone to eat with his classmates, but instead took Yuanbao to a small foot restaurant. Otherwise, the two of them might have been poisoned as well.

Wang Ying said, "It's good that you're alright. Let's talk things out and don't lose your temper. These past few days have been quite turbulent, so Qingsong shouldn't go out. Yuanbao, come back to the backyard with me first."

"Okay." Yuanbao obediently followed his father out.

Bai also stood up and said, "If there's nothing else, I'll head back now."

Chen Qinghuai said, "Go ahead, drive carefully."

Bai Yanqing nodded with a slight blush on her cheeks. After the others left, the two of them took turns criticizing Chen Qingsong, continuing their lecture until late at night before letting him go back to wash up and rest.

The poisoning was a heinous crime, and with the Emperor's pressure, the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice quickly apprehended the culprit.

The murderer turned out to be a scholar from the capital. He poisoned others because he was jealous that they could pass the imperial examinations and become successful candidates, while he had studied hard for many years but failed repeatedly. His mind gradually became twisted, and he came up with this method to harm those successful candidates.

This poisoning incident resulted in the deaths of three candidates, sixteen others falling seriously ill and unable to participate in the imperial examinations, and the rest suffering from diarrhea for several days, including Chen Qingsong's classmate.

With the imperial examinations just around the corner, the emperor was furious at this serious incident and ordered the man to be cut in half at the waist, and his family members for three generations to be barred from participating in the examinations.

The scholar never imagined that his impulsive act would not only harm others but also himself and his family; he deserved to die.

This incident caused widespread panic, and for a period of time afterward, Chen Qingsong was too frightened to go out, and he waited until the day of the imperial examination.

The provincial examination, like the metropolitan examination, consisted of three sessions over nine days. Before he entered the examination hall, Wang Ying checked his examination basket again and again, afraid that he might have forgotten something.

After tidying up, Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai escorted him to the examination hall. The carriage stopped and the three of them got off. Chen Qingyan reached out and helped his younger brother straighten his clothes. "Go in and do your best on the exam. Don't feel pressured. Qinghuai and I will come to pick you up after the exam."

"Um."

Chen Qinghuai also said, "Relax and take the provincial examination the same way you would the metropolitan examination. As long as you can get into the second class, you've succeeded!"

Chen Qingsong nodded. "Then I'll go in."

"Go on." The two older brothers waved him in like two elderly fathers.

Chen Qingyan sighed, "I don't know if I can do well on the exam."

"Don't worry, even though I seem carefree on the surface, I'm actually quite capable when it comes to real exams."

"That brat almost scared me to death that day, thankfully he's alright."

Chen Qinghuai couldn't help but laugh, "Big brother, you look more and more like my father."

...

Since no one else could help Chen Qingsong with his participation in the imperial examinations, Wang Ying sent Chen Ju to guard the vicinity of the examination hall so that he could be there to provide timely assistance should anything happen.

After the Liu family's teacher recovered from his illness, Yuanbao went to study as usual, Chen Qingyan went to work every day, and Wang Ying continued to write books and handle the vegetable business. The days passed by slowly and orderly.

Before he knew it, the day of the final exam arrived, and his whole family came to pick him up from the exam hall.

As the gates of the examination hall opened, the candidates poured out. It was clear that the past nine days had been truly arduous; their hair was disheveled and their faces were haggard, as if they had fought a battle.

"Qingsong!" Chen Qinghuai saw his younger brother from afar and waved, calling his name.

Chen Qingsong stumbled over, saying, "I'm finally done with the exam. If I had taken it another day, I probably wouldn't have made it out."

Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai quickly stepped forward and helped him into the carriage. Hot ginger tea had already been prepared inside, and Chen Qingsong drank a large cup before he recovered.

"How did the exam go? Have you finished writing the policy essay?"

"I don't know if I did well on the test, but I answered all the questions."

Wang Ying said, "Don't ask now. Go home and get some rest. We'll talk about it when you're awake."

"Sigh." Chen Qingsong didn't force himself and leaned against the carriage, falling asleep almost immediately. He slept until the next morning. When he woke up, his whole body ached; sleeping on hard wooden planks in the examination hall these past few days had been truly unbearable.

With the imperial examination over, Chen Qingsong's journey in the civil service examination was complete. Regardless of whether he did well or poorly, there was no chance for regret.

On their day off, Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai took their younger brother to study the exam questions. Chen Qingsong recited all the questions he remembered, and although his performance was not outstanding, it was still decent.

Chen Qinghuai said, "If it were before, I might have passed the imperial examination and become a Jinshi, but after that incident, I might only be able to get into the second class..."

He was referring to the previous poisoning incident, which affected many candidates. Many of them took the exam while ill, so it was inevitable that they would underperform.

Chen Qingyan tapped his fingers on the table. “Luck is also a kind of strength. If I can pass the second-class exam, I can use my connections to return to Jizhou to take up a post. My mother’s health has not been good these past few years. As the eldest son, I cannot be by her side to fulfill my filial duties, so I have to ask my younger brother to stay in Jizhou to take care of her.”

Chen Qingsong nodded, "That's what I was thinking too. By the way, Aunt Liu wants to arrange a marriage for me. We'll probably meet after I finish this exam and go back."

"Oh, our Qingsong is going to grow up soon."

Chen Qingsong scratched his head sheepishly, "That person is Liu Changyi's maternal uncle's son, two years younger than me."

Liu Changyi's uncle was a military general. I wonder what his son is like. If he's a fierce younger brother, he'll inevitably get beaten up later.

However, it's good to be able to control his temper, so he won't always act like a child and be unreliable in his words and deeds.

A note from the author: