Chapter 221 – Admitted to the Provincial Academy

Chapter 221 - Admitted to the Provincial Academy

Sang Luo was exhausted, and Shen Lie had been studying late into the night for several days in a row. The next morning, the couple overslept.

Shen Lie managed to wake up after just a couple of hours, stirred by the slight dawn light. However, Sang Luo remained deeply asleep in her dreams. Winter was a season for slumber, and with Shen Lie's warm embrace, she clung to him entirely.

Hearing faint noises outside, Shen Lie guessed that An Ning had already arisen. Gazing at Sang Luo peacefully sleeping in his arms, he hesitated to disturb her. Instead, he drew her closer and closed his eyes, dozing off with her. It wasn't until he estimated it was almost dawn, around 5 am, that he softly roused her.

Sang Luo was far from fully rested and instinctively responded without opening her eyes, dozing back off immediately. Shen Lie chuckled softly and playfully teased her ear and neck. How could anyone resist such an awakening? Sang Luo's drowsiness turned to awareness, then nearly back to sleep again. Barely managing to push Shen Lie away, she irritably bit his shoulder.

Shen Lie chuckled. "You promised to accompany me to see the rankings this morning. Are you still up for it?"

Sang Luo instantly regained clarity. "Of course, let's go!"

Smiling, Shen Lie handed her the clothes he had tossed aside last night by the bed corner.

...

In Xizhou City, the exam papers, having been graded and reviewed by the provincial scholars, were delivered to the Prefect's desk the day before, just before the official closing of the government office.

The Xuzhou Prefect examined the scrolls meticulously under lamplight, arranging and rearranging them, deliberating over each one until well into the night. He didn't dare oversleep in the morning, rising at dawn to hurry to the provincial office. Upon reaching the entrance, he saw a dozen or so people approaching on horseback. Squinting for a clearer view, he let out a sigh of relief and decided to wait at the gate.

As the Governor dismounted, tossing his whip to an attendant, the Prefect approached, saying, "I was truly worried that Your Excellency might not return in time."

With hurried steps, the Governor asked while entering, "Have you compiled the rankings?"

"The rankings are ready, but the exams vary greatly in difficulty. It's been quite a challenge. I believe they still require Your Excellency's final judgment."

Arriving at his office, the night watchman rushed forward to unlock the door and open the series of windows, instantly brightening the room. The stack of examination scrolls, held down by paperweights on the desk, fluttered slightly with the incoming breeze. The Prefect took the topmost scroll and presented it to the Governor. "Your Excellency, this is the preliminary ranking. Please have a look."

The list was compiled with meticulous care, detailing each candidate's name, native place, age, and the specific canonical text they had studied for the examination. It even bore signs of emendations, clearly indicating that this was not the final, public version to be posted, but rather a convenient reference copy tailored for his perusal.

Scanning from top to bottom, several rows at a glance, he carefully observed the numerous Lin family members among the leading ranks. Nine of the top twenty were Lin clan descendants, followed by three from the Wang family. The rest, belonging to other surnames, didn't leave much of an impression. Glancing at the ages listed at the end, he noticed that three of them were already in their thirties.

Scanning further, what captured his attention was not the names themselves, but the places of origin listed beneath them. Among the sea of other names and hometowns, the three characters "Da Xing Village" stood out prominently due to their repetition amidst the multitude of similar entries.

"Daxing Village?"

He recalled the group of people he had seen through the window that day, dressed in rough hempen tunics.

Nine candidates?

No, one of them is from the Wang family.

So that leaves eight.

The governor's gaze swept over the list, and to his surprise, five of them had made the cut!

The Xizhou Wang family wasn't much different from the Great Prosperity Village, except that they ranked higher. The five from the Great Prosperity Village were placed in the last ten, with the lowest ranking at fortieth.

Seeing that the governor was indeed paying attention to the Great Prosperity Village, the chief secretary smiled. "Your Excellency should still remember them, right? They all wore rough cloth and brown robes. I didn't expect that out of the nine, six would pass, and moreover, apart from the young master of the Wang family and Wei Qinghe who chose 'Rites' and 'Zuo Zhuan,' the other seven all took 'Zuo Zhuan' and 'Gongyang.' It's quite consistent."

He had included Wang Yunzheng, who had come with them that day, in his count.

Their consistency in their choices suggested that they might have been taught by the same teacher.

"Fetch me their exam papers so I can take a look."

The chief secretary moved aside to search through the pile. After spending half the night comparing rankings, he knew these exam papers well. In no time, he sorted out several and handed them to the governor. "Your Excellency, please take a look. The exam papers from the Great Prosperity Village have a distinctive feature: there are few errors in their copied texts, but their understanding of the texts is weaker. If not for the small number of participants this year, they might have needed another two or three years of study before standing out."

In truth, it wouldn't be easy to predict the situation two or three years from now. Once Dahui Province stabilizes, the competition for these provincial school spots might not be limited to Xizhou City alone. Although he didn't know the exact rules, it was certain that students from the counties under Xizhou would also join in.

The governor quickly flipped through the documents, his eyes carrying a hint of amusement. "Knowing how to seize an opportunity is a sign of intelligence."

Among the forty candidates, half were commoners, while the other half were from modestly wealthy and peasant households. This was undoubtedly a scenario the emperor would be delighted to see. He placed the examination papers back on the table and said to the chancellor, "Let's finalize the rankings as they are. There's no need to look further."

The chancellor smiled in agreement. "Then I'll prepare the announcement and post the list accordingly."

...

As dawn broke, the crowd outside the provincial school gates grew increasingly dense, numbering well over one hundred fifty people. Amidst the chaos of Xizhou in recent years, such a lively scene was rarely seen. It attracted quite a number of local residents who came out to witness the spectacle, injecting vitality into the usually quiet provincial city.

Daxing Village was also well-represented today. Apart from the families with children taking the exam, even Chen Granny, Qin Fangniang, Zhou Ge, Ganyi, and Gan Erlang's wife had come to watch the excitement.

The candidates like Wang Yunzheng and Xu Wenbo grouped together, while Shen Ning, Xu Wenying, and the Shen brothers came to view the postings. Arriving early, they managed to secure positions near the front despite the crowd.

Shen Lie and Sang Luo stood together, waiting quietly.

Next to them were Elder Madam Xu and Lady Wei Lingzhen, along with Village Chief Zhou and his wife, who brought Zhou Changhe. Old Man Lu and Old Woman Lu accompanied Ah Xi, all displaying a mix of excitement and nervousness. In contrast, Wei Qing's expression was more subdued. The one who seemed truly relaxed was probably Xu Wenqing.

At the stroke of dawn, the gates of the provincial school swung open from within. The schoolmaster emerged, clutching a roll of red cloth. Two others followed him, carrying trays and a bronze gong.

With three resounding beats of the gong, the schoolmaster cleared his throat and began to speak. He announced that the Great Qi dynasty had ordered the establishment of provincial schools, and the results of the first enrollment examination for the Xizhou Provincial School were now available.

Out of seventy-three candidates, the top forty would be admitted. He would now read out the names and hometowns of the successful students in order of ranking.

Starting with the first place, he began to call out the names and origins.

A series of Lin's and Wang's from Xizhou sounded amidst the cheers and congratulations around them. But when the fifteenth name was called, Sangluo still hadn't heard any familiar names.

"The sixteenth place, Wang Yunzheng from Xizhou."

The crowd erupted into cheers. If not for waiting to hear the rest of the names, the children would have been ecstatic.

On the other side, the Wang family members glanced over. Some wore mixed expressions, while others seemed disdainful. One of them approached Wang Yunzheng and whispered something to him. Wang Yunzheng responded calmly with a smile, "Thank you, Uncle Six."

The seventeenth, twenty-second, thirtieth – as several more names were called, none from Daheng Village were mentioned. Sangluo quietly grasped Shen Lie's hand, and Shen Lie turned to her, intertwining their fingers.

Wei Qinghe's face had already paled. Hearing the schoolmaster announce, "Thirty-first place, Daheng Village, Xizhou, Wei Qinghe," only made it worse.

The villagers cheered once more, albeit briefly, mindful not to disrupt the reading of the names. Nevertheless, the commotion attracted many curious glances.

"It is Daxing Village from Xizhou, isn't it? Unlike the Lin or Wang clans with numerous candidates, how can this small village have so many people coming to view the rankings? Is an entire clan's fate tied to one person's examination?"

And soon after, the announcements continued:

"Thirty-third place, Daxing Village of Xizhou, Xu Wenbo."

"Thirty-fourth place, Daxing Village of Xizhou, Shen An."

"Thirty-seventh place, Xizhou Daxing Village, Shen Lie."

"Fortieth place, Xizhou Daxing Village, Xu Wenhong."

This time, not only the onlooking residents of Xizhou were stunned, but even the Lin and Wang clans' disciples were taken aback.

Where did this group of people come from?

The Lin clan's disciples looked at the group of children who were cheering wildly and the few elderly men whose faces were creased with laughter. They must be from a farming family, right?

The Wang family's children felt a mix of emotions. Daxing Village had once been their property, but now it was given to the imperial court. More importantly, that group seemed very familiar with Seventh Brother. It was said they had taken refuge in the mountains together during these recent years.

Weren't they just a bunch of mountain dwellers? How could there be so many scholars among them?

Some of the Wang family members who didn't pass the exam felt even more bitter, especially two of them, who were none other than Third Madam's legitimate sons.

They were unexpectedly outdone by a group of mountain villagers, including an illegitimate son and a servant.

Their once despised illegitimate son, servant, and mountain folk were now preoccupied with their own prospects and too ecstatic to ponder others' opinions.

Wei Qinghe was congratulating his former master, Sixth Lord Wang, while Wang Yunzheng was pulled aside by his aunt, Wei Lingzhen. She was so overjoyed that she was wiping away tears, rejoicing for her younger sister.

Sanluo had just heard about Shen An's success and was still basking in the joy when she heard Shen Lie's name. Before she could congratulate him, Shen Lie had already embraced her with a smile, holding her tightly, revealing both his previous anxiety and current delight.

But at this moment, who cared about the onlookers? Sanluo returned his embrace with a smile, holding him for six or seven breaths before they finally let go, stepping back and laughing into each other's eyes.

Jin and the others watched from the side, giggling secretly.

The village chief passed the list to someone behind him to post it and gestured for someone nearby to strike the gong. After three resounding beats, the crowd fell silent, and he announced, "The students who have passed the exam will enroll in the school next year. The government has granted a benevolent edict stating that students admitted to the provincial school will not need to pay tuition fees. They only need to prepare their own books and stationery for daily study. Additionally, there were seventy-three candidates who took the exam this time. All of their rankings are on the list. Those who did not pass can also check their positions and continue to study diligently. If there's another recruitment exam next year, they'll have a better chance than others."

As he finished speaking, the list had already been posted on the wall. Candidates who didn't pass and their families rushed over to examine it.

Village Chief Zhou, along with Zhou Changhe, Old Man Lu and Old Lady Lu with Ah Wei, as well as the Xu siblings, all went to see where their eldest brother ranked. Of course, Shen An and Shen Ning joined together, while Shen Lie and Sang Luo headed over too.

After squeezing through the crowd, they started scanning the list from the bottom up. Xu Wenqing was ranked sixty-third.

Old Man Lu and Old Lady Lu couldn't read, so they lifted Ah Wei up. "Ah Wei, find out which position you're in?"

Ah Wei didn't need his grandparents' reminder; he was already searching. In the next moment, he exclaimed, "Grandma, I'm ranked fifty-seventh, and Brother Changhe is fifty-fifth!"

Knowing that their grandson had achieved the fifty-seventh rank, Old Man Lu and Old Lady Lu were delighted. Their grandson's name was on the official list, even if he wasn't within the top forty. But Ah Wei was only eight years old!

The elderly couple felt that there was great potential in their grandson.

Village Chief Zhou and his wife shared the same sentiment. Turning to Shen Lie, who was walking beside them, they asked, "Ah Lie, did that school official say there would be another exam next year?"

Shen Lie smiled and nodded. "That's what he said."

Zhou Cun smiled and patted Zhou Changhe on the shoulder. "Did you hear that? We have a whole year to prepare. Let's give it another shot next year."

Zhou Changhe, at only ten years old, was filled with anticipation for the provincial school. He nodded eagerly with shining eyes.

Xu Wenqing, on the other hand, visibly relaxed and joked with Wei Lingzhen, "Mother, did you hear that? Father said he'll only let me come once."

Wei Lingzhen chuckled. "Then go learn business from your father."

Upon hearing this, Xu Wenqing's face fell. "We'll talk about that later."

Wei Lingzhen gently patted him on the back.

With the results in hand, the group began to make their way back. Wang Yunzheng naturally followed his uncle and aunt. As the Wang family members watched, they overheard whispers around them discussing the sudden emergence of a multitude of scholar-peasants from Xingxing Village. A peripheral member of the Wang family, who had similarly failed the examination just like the third branch's legitimate son this time, murmured to him, "Look at how arrogant he is."

The voice was soft, but King Lord Sixth had keen ears. He turned to glance at the young man, who immediately shrunk his neck, looking as meek as a quail.