After returning to the provincial capital on the twelfth day, Wang Yu went to school after the Lantern Festival. The days in the provincial school passed quickly. As the sun rose and set, the day of the provincial examination was approaching.
A few days ago, the Lord of the Palace came to the academy and said that the court had arranged a chief examiner, who was on the way. As for how the Lord of the Palace knew about it, he must have his own channels. He also told them that the chief examiner this time was a pragmatist and did not like overly flowery articles. In other words, the articles they wrote had to be meaningful and did not need flowery words.
The provincial examination, also known as the Autumn Examination, is held in August. It starts on the ninth day of August and there are three consecutive examinations, each lasting three days, for a total of nine days. Fortunately, August is autumn and the temperature is neither too cold nor too hot. As long as it doesn't rain, it will be much better. Candidates enter the Imperial Examination Hall one day in advance and have food and accommodation in the Imperial Examination Hall for three days.
Almost all the students in Wang Yu's class will take part in this provincial examination. But as the day approaches, Wang Yu becomes less nervous. He did not read any books for the next two days. He decided to take it easy. He has learned all he needs to learn in the past three years. It is useless to be nervous anymore. It is better to have a good rest for two days and save his energy for the examination.
When the other students saw Wang Yu so calm and composed, they thought that he was indeed a top student and that he was so confident that they could not compare to him.
The day before the exam, Cheng Chen had been preparing things for Wang Yu, mainly food. The Imperial Examination Hall provided paper, charcoal, candles, water, and quilts, but he had to stay there for three days, so the food couldn't be too complicated. The weather in August was still a bit hot during the day, so food couldn't be kept for a long time. Cheng Chen asked the kitchen to make some dried meat to go with steamed buns, and also made some meat patties for the first day.
In the afternoon, Chen Yanwen and his friends also arrived. They came to the Imperial Examination Hall with Wang Yu. Cheng Chen and Qin Wan also came to see them off, and of course there was also Chen Yanwen's servant.
Wang Yu held Cheng Chen's hand and told him not to worry. Cheng Chen nodded. He knew that his husband was very good at studying, but he was a little nervous, as if he was going to take the exam himself.
The inspection for the provincial examination was more stringent. In addition to checking whether there was any smuggling in the book basket, the examinees had to be taken to a small room and their clothes taken off one by one for inspection. Fortunately, it was not cold in August and the clothes were not thick. Wang Yu had moved the food in the basket to the space early in the morning, and there were only some broken steamed buns in the basket at this time.
There were rows of cells, each row guarded by guards. Wang Yu found his seat with his number badge. It was relatively close to the front and far from the toilet, which made Wang Yu feel relieved. He put his things on the table made of boards. The cell was still square, with two wooden boards that could be put together to form a table and a chair.
Wang Yu checked around and sat down when he found no problems. After all the candidates came in, the Imperial Examination Hall began to distribute things: a pot of water, a small stove, a small basket of charcoal, a candle, and a quilt. The quilt was not new and had some odor, probably because it had been used by previous candidates. Fortunately, Wang Yu could tolerate it.
As the weather got darker, Wang Yu put the broken buns in the basket into the space, and took out the meat patties and water he had prepared early in the morning to eat. The meat patties were relatively large, so he only needed one.
Wang Yu hadn't used the space for a long time, but the steamed buns in the basket had been broken by the guards, so he couldn't eat them. He didn't want to drink raw water at the moment, nor did he want to boil water on the stove, so he took the water from the space.
After packing up my things, I put down the board and lay down. I couldn't straighten my legs, but there was nothing I could do as we were all in the same situation. Then I covered myself with the quilt. I had been sleeping on the soft bed at home for a long time, so I felt a little uncomfortable lying on the hard board. I was thinking about the exam, then Cheng Chen and Dabao, and I didn't know when I fell asleep.
On the second day, Wang Yu opened his eyes when he heard a rustling sound. It was already dawn, which should be the hour of Mao. Wang Yu also followed the group to the toilet to solve his physiological problems. On the way, he also met Chen Yanwen and Song Boyan. Their room was a little further back, but fortunately it was some distance away from the toilet. The candidates who were close to the toilet would suffer. The smell would be emitted when the weather was hot during the day, and it would be really difficult to endure it for three days.
There were already guards patrolling at this moment. Chen Yanwen spoke to them quietly, "I didn't sleep well last night. The bed was too hard and the quilt smelled."
Wang Yu could only comfort him and tell him to bear with it. In fact, Wang Yu didn't sleep well either, but it was much better than sleeping next to the toilet. Chen Yanwen thought so too.
Back in the cell, Wang Yu wet his face with a handkerchief dipped in cold water to sober himself up. The test papers were handed out at noon.
Wang Yu first browsed through it. The test questions were one article from "The Analects of Confucius", one article from "The Doctrine of the Mean", one article from "Mencius", one five-character eight-rhyme poem, and four chapters on the classics. Each of the three questions on the Four Books required more than 200 words, and the four questions on the classics required more than 300 words.
The test questions were not difficult. Since Wang Yu knew that the examiner did not like flowery essays, he knew how to write. However, he was not very good at writing flowery essays, so this was also more advantageous for him.
Wang Yu calmed himself down and began to write on the draft paper. Although it was not difficult, he had to organize the language, delete, revise and rewrite it. It was already noon when he finished writing two essays on the Four Books. No wonder he felt a little hungry.
Wang Yu read the finished article again, cleaned up the desk and put the answers to the test paper aside, took out a piece of bread from the space and ate it. The space was static, so the food was the same as when he put it in at the beginning. He drank some water and ate two pieces of dried meat. He didn't drink much water, otherwise he was afraid that he would not be able to finish writing in the afternoon, and he would have to go to the toilet to meet his physiological needs.
Wang Yu rested for a while and began to write the remaining Four Books and poems. He looked up at the time and saw that it was getting dark, so he put the draft paper into the book basket, waiting for the last day to copy it. He picked up the board, stood up and walked outside, telling the guards that he was going to wash his hands.
There was already a queue for the toilet, and Wang Yu could already smell the odor. The candidates in the nearby rooms were also a bit unlucky. The smell would become stronger and stronger in the next two days, but they had to endure it and finish the test papers.
After finishing the job, Wang Yu returned to his cell, drank some water, lit the stove, baked two steamed buns and ate them with dried meat. The skin of the steamed buns was crispy and fragrant, and the taste was surprisingly good.
The task of writing four articles on the scriptures the next day was quite tight, so he had to get a good rest tonight so that he would have the energy to write the next day. Wang Yu lay down, covered himself with the quilt, closed his eyes, thought about how to write in his mind, and forced himself to sleep.
The next day, after Wang Yu finished his breakfast and took care of his physiological needs, he started writing the answer sheet. He had already had a general idea yesterday, and he was writing smoothly at this time. After finishing one article, Wang Yu looked at the time. It was not yet noon, so he started writing the next one. It was already past noon when he finished. After simply eating two steamed buns and meat slices, he started writing the third article.
After finishing writing, Wang Yu estimated that there was still some light in the sky at Youshi. He pinched his wrist and started to write the fourth article while there was still light. The sun set quickly, and Wang Yu had to light a candle, otherwise he could not see clearly. When he finished writing, it was completely dark, and there was only the dim candlelight in the room. Wang Yu checked one of the four articles in the candlelight, put them away and put them in the basket.
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