Upon hearing her words, Shen Qinghe's expression faltered slightly. He had finally passed the imperial examination, but he could not share this joy with his father and elder brother. Thinking of the expectations his father and elder brother had for him before their deaths, he felt a pang of sorrow in his heart.
Seeing this, Aunt Suyun quickly patted Gu's shoulder and said, "Don't cry, this is such a wonderful thing! When has our Shenjia Village ever produced a scholar? If the father and son knew this in the afterlife, they would probably want to share your joy."
Meng Zhao chimed in, "That's right, Mother. Qinghe passing the imperial examination is a big deal. We should definitely hold a banquet in the village to celebrate. There are still many things to arrange, so please don't be sad, Mother."
Upon hearing this, Madam Gu wiped away her tears. "Yes, such wonderful news! I should be happy." She paused, then suddenly seemed to remember something and asked in confusion, "But how come passing the county exam makes you a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations)? Aren't there more exams to come?"
She wouldn't have been so surprised today if she hadn't been unprepared.
Meng Zhao answered at the right time: "Mother, according to the regulations, passing the county examination only makes one a candidate for the lowest level of education. One must pass the county examination, the prefectural examination, and the provincial examination to be called a scholar. However, there is an exception: the top scorer in the county and prefectural examinations can be exempted from the subsequent examinations and directly become a scholar. Qinghe was the top scorer in the county examination, so he is naturally a scholar."
This rule is ultimately derived from some unspoken rules in officialdom. Only by passing all three examinations can one become a Xiucai (a scholar who has passed all three examinations). However, the examiners for all three examinations are all officials. If the examiner of the first examination sets the top score, and the examiner of the second examination does not pass the candidate, isn't that disrespectful?
So gradually, a customary rule emerged: anyone who had achieved the highest score in the imperial examinations would also pass all subsequent exams.
Extending this further, it became that anyone who achieved the highest score in the imperial examinations could be exempted from subsequent exams and directly become a scholar (秀才).
Thinking of this, Meng Zhao turned to Shen Qinghe and asked, "Second brother, are you still going to the next two exams? If you get first place in both, that would be a triple crown!"
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