By the afternoon, Li Qingyao could faintly smell the stench of urine and feces.
The smell was mild enough to be bearable, but I couldn't imagine how desperate I would feel if I were sitting in that stinky cell.
Perhaps it's also due to the weather; if it were the height of summer, the aroma would probably have already traveled for miles.
Li Qingyao answered the questions fairly smoothly this time; memorizing and reciting from memory were not difficult tasks for him.
After checking his exam paper one last time, Li Qingyao rang the bell and handed it in.
Two people arrived and sealed Li Qingyao's exam paper in front of him before letting him leave.
When Li Qingyao went out, he ran into the guy in the stinky cell. The student was vomiting violently, looking pale, which made Li Qingyao's face turn even paler, and he almost vomited as well.
After gagging twice, Li Qingyao quickly ran out.
Li Qingduan and Li Qingyi, along with their servants, waited at the entrance of the examination hall. When they saw that his face was pale, they were immediately worried. Could it be that he had caught a cold?
"Brother Yao, are you feeling unwell?"
"It's alright, it's alright. I just had too many questions and I'm a little tired. I'll take a shower and rest when I get back."
Li Qingyao was afraid they would worry, so he didn't tell them that he was sitting in the stinky cell and would go back to rest and take a shower, which would probably help him recover.
"Then Brother Yao, please rest. Let's not talk anymore and go back to the inn first."
Back at the inn, Li Qingyi asked the waiter to bring hot water, as Yao-ge said he wanted to take a bath.
Bai Sha also invited the doctor over. Although Li Qingyao said it was nothing serious, the two brothers were still worried and asked Bai Sha to go to the clinic.
Yan Min suddenly felt a bit useless. She was happy to see that her brothers got along well, so she went to the kitchen to prepare a meal.
Li Qingyao knew he was alright, but since the doctor had already been called over, he could only cooperate by taking his pulse; it was all out of goodwill.
As expected, nothing serious happened. I took a shower and finally felt better.
I didn't dare eat anything greasy for dinner, sticking to light meals. I had an exam the next day, and getting an upset stomach would be a real problem. (In ancient times, exams would be held with a one-day break before the results were released; this is the author's setting, with results released after all three subjects were completed.)
I slept well all night.
The next day, Li Qingyao went to the examination hall again.
Today's test was on essays, which was quite difficult. You need to extract useful information from the topic, pay attention to the rules of writing, and elevate the theme by focusing on the main idea. If you do this, you shouldn't go wrong. However, you need to have good writing skills and a clear point of view.
Li Qingyao thoroughly enjoyed the exam, completing it almost in one go.
He excels at this type of question, unlike the first exam where he was very methodical and had a predetermined answer.
He enjoyed the feeling of his thoughts flowing freely.
Perhaps he was too focused, because today's bad account didn't affect him.
It was still early when the exam papers were due, but some people had already handed them in. Li Qingyao was too lazy to sit there any longer, so he rang the bell to hand in his paper.
When they came out, as usual, Li Qingduan and his brothers were waiting at the entrance of the examination hall.
"Why are you here so early?"
Li Qingyao was surprised, as he had handed in his paper much earlier today than yesterday.
"We had nothing to do at home and didn't know when we could come out, so we came early to wait."
"Let's go back to the inn."
Li Qingyi took the examination basket from Li Qingyao and urged him to get into the carriage.
Tomorrow is the last game.
Policy discussion.
The exam will last for two days. There are three questions on policy essays, and each question has a fixed word count. Not a single word more or less is allowed. It is very strict.
The Art of War states, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated." If a nation wishes to become strong, how should it know its enemy?
In governing a country, why should education be the first priority?
How can one stand between heaven and earth by upholding loyalty and filial piety as fundamental principles?
After answering these three questions, Li Qingyao frowned; they were difficult.
The first question connects military strategy with national strength, requiring candidates to have some understanding of national affairs, not only their own country but also other countries. Ordinary students don't even know the situation in their own country, let alone other countries.
This one question alone is likely to defeat a large number of students.
Is this a show of force?
The last two questions are relatively simple. They mainly involve connecting moral education and loyalty and filial piety with governing the country and ensuring its stability. You just need to write two policy essays.
The first question was the most difficult.
Fortunately, Li Qingyao grew up in the capital and played with the sons of officials since childhood, discussing national affairs. This question was not too difficult for him.
He plans to finish the last two articles first, and then focus on tackling the first one, starting with the easier ones and moving on to the more difficult ones.
Regarding the word count issue, he had to refine his writing to the highest degree, and he also had to make sure that the last two essays showed different styles. Otherwise, if the two essays were based on the same material, the examiners would deduct points.
Policy essays accounted for a significant portion of these three exams, so Li Qingyao wasn't in a hurry and quietly began to ponder them.
Suddenly, a shout broke the silence of the examination room.
"Heaven is unjust! Heaven is unjust!"
"Silence!"
"All my decades of hard study have been for nothing, the art of war, the art of war, oh my god!"
"Silence! Focus on your exams!"
One student suddenly went berserk, clearly having lost all his guard after seeing the first question.
The constables patrolling inside the cell rushed over to subdue the student the moment he shouted.
The scholar writhed wildly and roared out in grief again, but the yamen runners covered his mouth and twisted him away like a livestock.
Then another constable shouted sternly.
“Take the exam properly. If you dare to cause trouble again, you will be expelled from the examination hall!”
The candidates remained silent, not daring to make a sound. Some looked dejected, as if they felt a sense of shared sorrow.
Some people were secretly pleased, thinking that one less competitor meant they would definitely fail the exam if they were kicked out at this time, and making noise in the exam room might even get them banned from taking the exam.
Li Qingyao just felt it was a bit of a pity; perhaps if he had put more effort into the last two papers, he might not have failed the exam.
He didn't think about it anymore; the most important thing now was to pass the exam.
Time passed slowly, and when the yamen runners came to deliver dinner, Li Qingyao finally put down his pen.
In the course of the day, he had already written one policy essay and copied the section on loyalty and filial piety onto the exam paper, and he also had ideas for another one.
He dared not be careless in copying, ensuring the paper was neat, without any mistakes or omissions, and with beautiful handwriting.
When I stop writing, my hand feels a little sore; I was gripping the pen too tightly.
Shaking his hand, Li Qingyao decided not to continue writing. He planned to finish his meal before going to the toilet.
He hadn't needed to use the restroom during the previous two days of exams, trying his best to avoid it. But today, with the exams requiring him to spend the night in the exam hall, there was no way to avoid it.
After the meal, the bailiffs collected the bowls and chopsticks, and another person led him to relieve himself.
As I approached the doorway, a stench filled the air.
Li Qingyao held his breath and opened the door.
I can only say that I'm glad I had already eaten; if I had gone back after relieving myself, I probably would have been too nauseous to eat.
Back in his cell, Li Qingyao calmed down for a long time before continuing to conceive his story.
Before we knew it, it was dark.
The candidates took out the candles brought by the yamen runners and lit them. The flickering candlelight illuminated the scholars as they wrote furiously.
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