Early in the morning of March 10th, Wang Yu and the other two packed up and got on a carriage to go to the Imperial Examination Hall. Before leaving, Cheng Chen checked the book basket again and kept reminding Wang Yu to take good things with him and not to forget anything. He was even more nervous than Wang Yu.
Wang Yu hugged him and comforted him, "Don't worry, your husband is fine."
Cheng Chen nodded, thinking that there must be nothing wrong with her husband.
When the three of them arrived at the Imperial Examination Hall, there was already a long queue at the entrance. There were guards patrolling and checking. Wang Yu and his companions also lined up. At a glance, there were people of all ages in the queue. The youngest was in his teens and the oldest had a white beard.
Wang Yu sighed as he looked at the long line in front of him. It was not easy to become an official and make a name for oneself in ancient times. It was like a thousand troops trying to cross a single-plank bridge. There were at least hundreds of thousands of people taking the examination this time, but only the top fifty were selected. Some people took exams for their entire lives but still remained as students. It was not easy.
Wang Yu was just thinking about it when there was a sudden noise in front. He saw a scholar being dragged out by two guards. Some people said that he must have cheated. Cheating would result in a beating with a stick in court, at least ten sticks and at most fifty sticks. The beating would be half lifeless. The scholar who was dragged out turned pale.
When they arrived at Wang Yu's house, the guards opened Wang Yu's book basket and checked his writing brushes and ink. The paper provided by the Imperial Court was not necessary to bring, and the steamed buns were broken into small pieces. Wang Yu looked like he had no appetite at all, so he was taken into another room and asked to check his clothes, shoes and socks. Wang Yu was wearing two single pieces of clothing, so there was no interlayer, so it was easier to check.
After the inspection, Wang Yu took his number plate and found his room. It was neither too far nor too far away, and luckily it was far from the toilet. The weather was also good today, with no wind or rain.
The room was small and square, with two wooden boards, one high and one low, one for sitting and the other for writing. Wang Yu walked in, put the board down, sat down and took out the pen and ink, only to find that there was a hole in the board. He replaced the board he was sitting on, then checked it again to make sure there was no problem and waited for the test questions to be distributed.
At the beginning of the morning hour, the guards handed out the examination papers. Wang Yu took them and glanced through them. The first question required reciting the fifth and seventh articles of the "Sacred Edicts." The second question involved writing a poem on the theme of spring. The third question examined the meaning of the classics in the "Great Learning" of the Four Books. This year, an additional policy question was added.
Wang Yu first wrote down the answer to the first dictation question on a piece of scratch paper. When he saw the poem titled "Spring", he somehow thought of the scene when he first arrived here in March and walked into the village fields. He suddenly got inspiration and wrote a five-character regulated verse.
The third question was one he had reviewed, so Wang Yu had no problem writing it down. The last question was about virtuous governance and public opinion. Wang Yu took advantage of modern people and had studied virtuous governance and public opinion in history, especially the famous saying that could be quoted at the beginning of the question: "A man uses a copper mirror to adjust his clothes and hat..."
After finishing the four questions, Wang Yu rubbed his wrist and saw that it was already noon. No wonder he felt a little hungry. Wang Yu put away the test paper, took out the unbroken steamed buns from the space, and ate two of the dried meat made by Cheng Chen. The steamed buns were still a little dry, so he drank some water to smooth it out.
After a short rest, Wang Yu prepared to copy the answers. The first thing the examiner looks at to determine the quality of a test paper is the handwriting. Only if the handwriting is good will the examiner be interested in reading your answer sheet. If there are typos or ink spots, you have to rewrite them, so Wang Yu was particularly careful when copying.
After copying all the answers, Wang Yu looked at them and was quite satisfied. He put them aside to dry and waited for the time to leave the examination room. Sitting in his examination room, Wang Yu thought that he should have answered all the questions well this time and should be able to pass the exam.
After leaving the examination room, Wang Yu saw Cheng Chen waiting nearby. He quickly walked over and asked, "Why are you here?"
Cheng Chen: "I have nothing to do at home, so I just wanted to come and wait for my husband. Thank you for your hard work."
Wang Yu was happy that his husband came to the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall to wait for him. After Chen Yanwen and the others came out, the four of them got on the carriage and went back. They did not discuss the questions on the test paper. After eating, washing up, and resting, they took a rest.
Cheng Chen also tacitly did not ask them about their exam results, and the next day he prepared things and food for them for the re-examination.
The three of them gathered their strength to prepare for the re-examination. After a day's rest, they went to the Imperial Examination Hall early on the third day. Just like the first day, they finished the examination and sat in their own rooms to prepare for the exam. Maybe because some cheating was found on the first day, no cheating was seen today.
The main examination will screen out the next batch of people, and the re-examination will screen out the next batch of people, and finally only the top 50 will be selected. The questions in the re-examination are similar to those in the main examination, but the question types are different. Fortunately, Wang Yu has no problem with these.
After the retest, Wang Yu felt relieved. When he left the Imperial Examination Hall, the first thing he saw was Cheng Chen waiting outside. Cheng Chen also saw Wang Yu and walked over quickly to take Wang Yu's book basket. "Thank you for your hard work, husband."
Wang Yu shook his head, smiled and touched his hair. There were many men and women coming to the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall to pick people up. Wang Yu also saw a young woman throwing herself directly into the arms of her husband. She lamented that her husband was too reserved and shy, otherwise she could have hugged him.
After Chen Yanwen and the others came out, the three of them went home to review the test papers. Chen Yanwen felt that they all answered well, and Wang Yu's policy paper was particularly good.
Although all three of them felt they should be able to make the list, the results would be announced in four days, so it was impossible not to be nervous.
But Wang Yu knew how to adjust himself. Since he had already passed the exam, there was no point in thinking about it anymore. He might as well go for a good stroll in the city. After talking to Cheng Yanwen and the others, they also lamented that Wang Yu had a good attitude. However, there was no point in waiting any longer, so they listened to Wang Yu's advice and had a good time. It was spring and the scenery was beautiful.
Influenced by Wang Yu, the three of them toured the city these days. In addition to going to Nanjiang Yangui Tower, they also went to Shangyong Prefecture School to take a look. They couldn't get into the school, so they could only watch from the outside for a while.
The provincial school covers a large area. Although I can’t see inside, I think it must be well built. Thinking that I might study here in the future, my mood becomes even better.
We went to Qiwu Mountain for an outing and walked to the top of the mountain to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Phoenix Lake. The lake water was sparkling and extremely clear. We could also see a few white cranes playing in it, and ripples were forming on the water surface.
The scenery in spring is beautiful. In addition to the flowers, plants and trees that have grown on the mountain, you can occasionally see one or two pheasants and rabbits running by. However, few of us are good at hunting, otherwise we could hunt a few to take home as a snack.
Although we couldn't catch pheasants or rabbits, we could get some wild vegetables. Cheng Chen found a lot of leek, which was a perfect match with eggs. He picked a lot and tied them up with a piece of straw rope. "I'll cook it for you when we get home."
Chen Yanwen: "This thing tastes delicious. I'm in for a treat today."
On the way down the mountain, Chen Yanwen was still saying that if they were on the list, they could go to the provincial school to study, and they would be able to see such beautiful scenery often in the future. After hearing what he said, several people became even more excited.
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