Chapter 149 [VIP]
The examination hall was located in the southeast of the city. Along the way, many candidates could be seen walking towards this direction, and soon a long queue formed.
Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai were getting anxious. "Why is the road ahead not moving? Will we be late?"
Having participated twice before, Li Bingchen was quite experienced and reassured the two, saying, "It won't be a delay. On the first day, we'll mainly be taking attendance, searching, finding our own cells, and checking if any cells have been missed."
August is a dry month, but special circumstances are inevitable. In the previous two provincial examinations, heavy rains caused half of the examination rooms to leak, resulting in half of the candidates' papers being soaked and ruined. Although the imperial court eventually allowed re-examinations, it was still advisable to check the papers beforehand as a precaution.
Chen Qingyan asked, "Aren't the test questions being distributed on the first day?"
Li Bingwen shook his head, "With six or seven hundred candidates, just searching them would take several hours. After settling them in, most of the day would be gone. There would be no time to distribute the exam papers and give the exams."
"Six or seven hundred people?" Chen Qinghuai was somewhat surprised.
"This is still a small number; there were more last year, about 800 people." The floods caused severe damage in many areas, so there were far fewer people taking the exams.
Liang Boqing did not go with them. He went to Old Lu's house first, and the two of them went to the examination hall together.
There was a teahouse near the examination hall, run by Master Lu's disciple. I reserved a room by the window in advance.
The two stood at the window, looking at the long queue outside. Lu Zhongqi stroked his beard and said, "Every time I see these candidates during the provincial examinations, it feels like I've gone back to those days..."
Liang Boqing waved his hand, "I don't want to go back."
He had only participated in the provincial examination once, and when his son was searched, he was driven out of the examination hall. He still vividly remembers that feeling even after more than 30 years.
Old Lu couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Let's not talk about it anymore, let's not talk about it anymore. But there are far fewer candidates taking the provincial examination this year than in previous years."
"There have always been fewer candidates from the north than from the south. The last provincial examination in Yangzhou had 2,100 candidates, and it is estimated that there will be even more this year." This is how prosperous times are: there are more and more talented people, and the competition is becoming more and more intense. Tens of thousands of candidates are only selected for the top two hundred.
Wang Ying and her group finally squeezed over at the end of the Yin hour. Madam Liu had booked a private room at the restaurant in advance, and the group went directly to the second floor.
When they arrived, Qin Furong and her two daughters were already there, standing by the window looking down.
This private room has a good location and a wide view; everyone can see the scholars queuing below from inside.
Wang Ying saw Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai, as well as her cousin Li and Liu Changyi, from a distance.
The four people huddled together, talking about something, and they all looked relaxed, without any of the tension before the exam.
The women upstairs were all very nervous. Li was the most nervous of the three, her body trembling slightly. She held Qingyun's hand and muttered, "Amitabha, may the Emperor Wenchang bless my son to pass the imperial examination with flying colors."
Qin Furong's situation is alright. Her son is only eighteen years old. If he doesn't pass the exam this time, it's not too late to wait three more years. They can get married after the exam, settle down first, and then focus on his career.
Fang Ling shared a similar thought: regardless of whether Qing Huai passed the exam or not, she would have to return to Shanzhou after the exam.
Ever since the last letter arrived, she hasn't been able to sleep well, constantly worrying about her daughter's cough, and wondering if Chen Guang has found a prescription to send back.
Wang Ying was also nervous, but she was a little better than the others. Her eyes were always on Chen Qingyan, afraid that something might happen.
Around 7:00 AM, the bell of the examination hall rang out. The deep, resonant sound of the bell startled the birds in the nearby trees, causing them to take flight.
The candidates standing in line outside also stopped talking and lined up in order according to their respective counties.
Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai were both from Longquan County. They found the queue in the county seat and saw many familiar faces, including several who were also studying at the prefectural school. They exchanged brief greetings and then silently waited in line to enter.
Li Bingwen returned to the group in Tianyang County, where many of his classmates were gathered. They whispered among themselves about the upcoming provincial examination.
"I've heard that the prefectural school has several outstanding candidates this year. I wonder which school will win the top prize?"
"You mean that Xiao Sanyuan? He's Liang Liufang's disciple, and he'll probably come out on top in this provincial examination."
"Yes, yes, that's him. I heard he also has a younger brother who is also extremely talented."
Li Bingwen stood silently to the side, secretly feeling quite proud that these two were his cousins.
On the other side, Liu Changyi stood with the scholars from the prefectural city. He knew almost all the younger ones, but he didn't recognize the older scholars next to him.
These people had all failed the exams several times, because the prefectural school only allowed students to study for six years, and if they failed twice, they could not continue studying there.
One of the elderly men had taken the exam no less than ten times; his hair was already gray, and he looked older than his father.
Liu Changyi sighed inwardly, wondering if he could even read the words on the exam paper at his age. His master, Old Master Lu, was already having poor eyesight and couldn't read even slightly small characters.
It wasn't until around 1:15 AM that the gates of the examination hall were opened.
The students from the prefectural city were the first to be called in, and more than three hundred people lined up in a long queue and walked toward the gate.
Because of the large number of people, searching them one by one would take until tomorrow morning, so three entrances were set up, and three students entered at the same time for body searches.
Liu Changyi called his name before he was ready. Qin Furong on the second floor nervously clutched her handkerchief, staring intently at her son.
Lord Liu in the next room was in the same boat. He had invited several colleagues to come with him today. Although he didn't show it on his face, his heart was in his throat, fearing that something might happen when his son searched the child.
Seeing that his son hadn't been kicked out after a long time, and that the official had called in the next candidate, the official finally felt relieved.
The search of the students at the prefectural school took nearly two hours. Two students were found to have cheat sheets on their persons and were expelled from the examination hall, never to participate in the imperial examinations again.
The candidates behind them turned pale with fright when they saw the two kneeling on the ground, weeping bitterly. Those who had hoped to get away with it quickly threw away or ate the cheat sheets they had hidden beforehand, lest they be caught and unable to take the exam again.
After all the scholars from the prefectural city had gone inside, it was the turn of the candidates from the various counties.
The entire Jizhou Prefecture has a total of seventeen counties. Among those who came to take the exam, the county with the most participants had about sixty people, while the county with the fewest had only seven people. This is far inferior to that of the prefectural city.
That's how education was in ancient times; most resources were concentrated in the hands of the wealthy and powerful. It was difficult for children from poor families to achieve success; even if someone was intelligent, without someone to guide them, they would never be able to leave that land for their entire lives.
Therefore, Chen Qingyan's gratitude towards his master was equivalent to that towards his parents. His parents gave him life, while Master Liang guided him all the way to the imperial examinations, asking for nothing in return, and benefiting him for life.
Around 9:00 AM, it was finally the turn of the candidates from Longquan County to enter the examination hall. As the examiner announced, "Longquan County, Qingshui Town, Chen Qingyan."
"Students have arrived!" Chen Qingyan's clear voice rang out as he walked confidently into the examination room, carrying his exam basket.
Unlike the county and prefectural examinations, the provincial examinations were subject to much stricter checks. Officials would take him into a simple hut surrounded by coarse cloth. He would first be ordered to take off his shoes and socks, loosen his hair, and then strip naked.
That's right, even underwear is not allowed. Behind every bizarre rule is an even more bizarre reason.
During the Tianwu era, there was a candidate who copied text on the inside of his thigh. He would have succeeded if the proctor hadn't discovered him while he was urinating.
From then on, all candidates in the provincial examinations had to strip naked for inspection to prevent anyone from writing cheat sheets on their clothes.
After checking his body and clothes, Chen Qingyan was allowed to put them on. He then continued to check the examination basket, carefully examining every corner of the writing brush, inkstone, and inkstone.
They didn't even spare the food; they tore each of the ten flatbreads apart, afraid that some might be mixed in.
After confirming there were no problems, Chen Qingyan was given a number and told to take it to his cell.
Chen Qingyan glanced at the number, 378. There were 30 rooms in a row, so it should be the 13th row. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he finally found his room.
Thank goodness, my room number wasn't next to the toilet, and it was actually quite far away. That was the luckiest thing!
Although the weather was no longer so hot in August, six or seven hundred people took the exam at the Gongyuan for nine days, and they had to take care of all their needs there.
Urinating can be tolerated with a commode, but defecating requires going to the outhouse. Over time, the accumulated feces become like a small mountain, and after fermentation, the smell is almost like a biological weapon—not only pungent but also irritating to the eyes.
Previously, many candidates were so overwhelmed by the smell of the stench that they had to stop taking the exam. Even if they didn't faint, it was difficult for them to perform at their normal level.
Chen Qingyan put down the examination basket and began to check his cell. Every cell was the same, about three or four square meters in size, with a two-foot-wide and six-foot-long wooden board in front of it.
This board has many uses. During the day, it can be placed in front as a table when taking exams, and at night, it can be placed in the back as a simple single bed.
There was a wooden stool nearby, and Chen Qingyan sat down to test it; it was quite stable.
There's a reason I mentioned this stool. My second cousin, Li Bingwen, used a stool with a limp when he took the provincial examination last time.
I didn't pay attention during the check-up, and as a result, it was incredibly uncomfortable to sit in during the exam. I had to use my lower back and legs to support myself and stay stable, so much so that by the sixth day I couldn't keep going and ultimately didn't do well on the exam.
After testing the stool, Chen Qingyan got up and checked the roof. He had heard that the examination hall had renovated the examination rooms this year, and the tiles on them were all newly replaced. It looked fine.
Chen Qinghuai entered after him. The room number was 382, which was four rooms apart. Just like his older brother, he carefully checked the room number as his cousin had instructed him beforehand.
After checking everything and confirming that everything was correct, I sat down quietly and waited for the next candidate to enter.
Longquan County is considered one of the earlier counties, and the candidates from the later counties probably won't get a number until the afternoon. Li Shi and Fang Ling were relieved to see that everyone had entered the examination hall.
The group had lunch at a restaurant, and then went home to wait.
The examinees suffered during those nine days, and their families outside also endured the same torment. Wang Ying left Er Shun to guard the examination hall so that they could be there to help if anything happened or if someone left the examination hall early.
A note from the author:
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