The imperial examinations in this dynasty, from lowest to highest level, were the county examination, the prefectural examination, the provincial examination, the metropolitan examination, and the palace examination.
Scholars had to pass both the county examination and the prefectural examination to be considered as scholars.
The county-level examination was the initial stage of the imperial examination system, primarily testing candidates' knowledge of classical texts, poems written on classical texts, and essays on classical texts. (This differed from the content of ancient examinations; the author defined it as such.)
The "Tiejing" exam is essentially a fill-in-the-blank question. The examiner will select any sentence from the Four Books and Five Classics and ask the candidate to write down the content before or after it.
The exam tests candidates' familiarity with the Four Books and Five Classics. As long as candidates can recite the examination texts fluently, this exam is not difficult.
If you can't even pass this subject, there's no need to waste money on the imperial examination.
The test poem is a poem written on a given topic. As long as the rhyme scheme and the content are relevant to the topic, it is generally easy to pass. The key is to be able to understand what the topic is about.
The examination on scriptures assesses the candidate's understanding of the classics.
When it comes to reading comprehension, those who know it understand.
Only those who pass the county examination can proceed to the prefectural examination, which is much more difficult than the county examination.
Only those who passed the county examination could be recognized by the government as "child scholars". Becoming a child scholar was only the first step on the path of the imperial examination. Child scholars did not actually obtain official titles, but only gained the qualification to strive for the title of Xiucai.
Even those who failed the imperial examinations to become scholars could open their own schools and teach, usually to give young children their first education.
For ordinary people, it is extremely difficult to support even one scholar to pass the imperial examinations.
It's not just the high price of books; consumables like writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones can deter most people from going out of their way.
Among ordinary people, very few could pass the imperial examination at the lowest level (xiucai) on their first attempt; most would go bankrupt trying to support a xiucai or juren degree.
The imperial examination system, from the lowest level (童生) to the next level (秀才, 举人, 贡士, 进士), was extremely difficult, comparable to a thousand troops crossing a single-plank bridge.
In today's world, those who can pass the imperial examinations all the way to the capital are basically from well-to-do families, and there are countless sons of officials.
Can a poor family produce a brilliant child? Yes, but they are extremely rare.
Even the term "humble family" refers to a small, low-ranking aristocratic family like the Li family.
One who obtains the title of Xiucai (秀才) can participate in the provincial examination held every three years. Only by passing the provincial examination can one become a Juren (举人).
Those who passed the imperial examinations were eligible to be selected as officials. This is the origin of the saying "poor scholar, rich scholar". Becoming a scholar meant entering the "scholar" class.
Countless scholars dedicate their entire lives to the pursuit of "passing the imperial examination," for once they achieve it, a completely different life awaits them.
Unfortunately, most people don't know that even if you become a successful candidate in the imperial examinations and are eligible to be selected for an official position, you still have to pay a huge price to secure even a minor official post.
Otherwise, there are newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) ahead of them, as well as Hanlin scholars who have graduated from the Imperial Academy. All of them have higher qualifications. Without money to pave the way, you'll just have to wait.
This led to the emergence of many county magistrates who ruined their families.
After decades of hard study, how can I not recoup my investment and live up to all my years of hard work?
In order to save money on bribing officials, most farm boys would choose to continue taking the imperial examinations.
The top scorer in the provincial examination is called the Jieyuan.
The next exam was the imperial examination, which would be held in Kyoto, with the emperor appointing the chief examiner.
Those who passed this examination were called Gongshi, and about three hundred people were admitted to the metropolitan examination, with the top scorer called Huiyuan.
Here comes the final palace examination.
The imperial examination was presided over by the emperor himself, so the candidates who participated in the imperial examination were also called the emperor's disciples.
The palace examination selected the top three scholars, with the top three being the Zhuangyuan (状元), Bangyan (榜眼), and Tanhua (探花).
Several people in the second class were granted the title of Jinshi, with the top scorer being named Chuanlu.
Several people who passed the third-class imperial examination were granted the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination).
The Li family has no financial problems; the only hurdle they need to overcome is getting the scholar's degree.
Before returning home for the Spring Festival, Master Liu left Li Qingyao a "Treasury of Imperial Examinations".
This book contains excerpts from county-level examination questions from the past ten years, as well as some exam-solving techniques summarized by Master Liu himself.
When Li Qingyao received it, he was overjoyed.
There's a reason why it was only given to Li Qingyao at this time.
When Master Liu saw Li Qingyao's appearance, he scolded him.
"There are no shortcuts to studying. Once you have a solid foundation, everything else will fall into place naturally. If you start by focusing on techniques and lose sight of your true self, becoming too utilitarian, it will not help you develop a good mindset for taking exams."
I urge you to remember your original intentions and not to act rashly.
Li Qingyao learned from the lesson and spent nearly a month cramming on practice problems.
After the New Year, Master Liu returned. After checking Li Qingyao's work, he forbade Li Qingyao to continue working on the problems.
At this point, you shouldn't be too tense. With the county examination just around the corner, and having accumulated knowledge and skills over time, you should relax and prepare for the exam.
Two days before the county examination, the Li family prepared Li Qingyao's luggage and sent him to the county.
Yan Min lives in a small courtyard that she bought herself. Last year, she found a quiet house in the county that was not far from the examination center.
Yan Min went to the county two days earlier than Li Qingyao, hired people to clean the room, and prepared everything before Li Qingyao arrived.
Li Qingduan and Li Qingyi also accompanied them. These two brothers had also registered for the county examination. Perhaps they felt that since they had studied so hard, they would not be satisfied if they did not take the exam.
Because Yan Min was taking care of her, Mo Qiaoniang didn't go with them. She gave the two brothers some silver and instructed Bai Sha to keep a close eye on the young masters.
She wanted to give Yan Min some money, but Yan Min refused, saying that giving it to her would be disrespectful.
That's the end of it.
Pan Jinhua and Li Qing also came, but they stayed at the shop under her own name. The Fang family had moved out long ago and only came during the day to do business.
Pan Jinhua was tired of staying at home, so she brought Li Qingjing out to see the excitement of the county examination.
The spring rain was continuous, and the wind was still biting.
As the date of the county examination drew closer, the county became more crowded and bustling with activity.
"You have to be careful. Check your clothes several times, and make sure there are no hidden compartments."
In Yan Min's courtyard, Pan Jinhua carefully explained things to Yan Min.
"Don't worry, Auntie. We've checked all the clothes for the three children. It's just that it's been raining every day, so they'll need to wear extra layers."
"There's no other way. If they catch a cold in the exam room, it would be a huge loss. These kids exercise every day, so they should be able to withstand it to some extent. What kind of food have you prepared?"
"I've prepared rice, so I might have to cook some porridge for myself later."
"That's too much trouble. You can just stir-fry the rice and make fried rice. Then they can boil water and soak it themselves to eat. It's simpler and filling."
They brought steamed buns and flatbreads, but they probably couldn't eat them all. The government was afraid scholars would smuggle these kinds of food, so the inspectors would usually break them into tiny pieces.
It's much more convenient to fry rice; it's convenient for both inspectors and consumers.
Upon hearing about the fried rice, Yan Min immediately asked Pan Jinhua how to make it, and promptly ordered the cook she had hired to make some.
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