Chapter 121

Chapter 121

Once the students had entered, the crowd couldn’t just wait outside the entire time—the county-level imperial exam would last a full day. So they all headed to a nearby teahouse to sit and wait, sipping hot tea while discussing the county exam.

Liang Boqing remarked, "The weather has been kind this year. With such clear skies, the three of them shouldn’t have too hard a time."

Fang Ling nodded, "Exactly. Two years ago, that heavy snow came at the worst time. My husband and I heard that it started snowing and the temperature dropped sharply on the exam day, and seventy percent of the examinees ended up withdrawing."

"Some even said fewer than twenty people made it to the end, and even they didn’t do well."

That was hardly surprising—it would have been a miracle to perform well under such conditions, especially since some even lost their lives in that storm.

This year, the temperature was generally warmer than in previous years, and with the clear weather, the sun had melted the snow on the ground, leaving mud and puddles everywhere.

Around mid-morning, Cao Kun arrived with Chen Rong. "Have they all entered the exam hall?"

"They’re in, everything went smoothly."

"That’s good." Chen Rong couldn’t help but sigh, recalling what had happened to Qing Yan in previous years. "Back when Qing Yan took the exam, I had no idea he was turned away. After seeing him off, I went home to take care of chores, never expecting such a mishap."

Li Shi comforted her, "Even if you had stayed, there wouldn’t have been much you could do. The officials at the gate were incredibly strict—they even inspected the food provisions, breaking them apart to check for hidden notes."

"Buddha be praised, I just hope my nephews can pass on their first attempt."

While those outside were worrying, the examinees inside were seated according to their assigned examination numbers.

Chen Qingyan was number twenty-one, Chen Qinghuai twenty-two, and Chen Qingsong twenty-three. Though their numbers were sequential, their seats were far apart. Moreover, eight proctors patrolled the hall continuously. Anyone caught cheating would be immediately expelled without exception.

At a quarter past 7 AM, the county magistrate and the chief examiner from the prefectural city began their opening remarks.

The speech was the same as in previous years—long and tedious. Repeat test-takers could almost recite it by heart, but everyone still listened attentively.

Next, the exam rules and schedule were announced: when the papers would be distributed, when they would be collected, and that any papers with stains would be disqualified.

This tested the students’ penmanship and precision to the extreme. They had to draft their answers on scratch paper first before carefully copying them onto the official exam paper to avoid errors or omissions.

It wasn’t until the end of 9 AM that the exam papers were finally distributed. These papers had been transported from the prefectural city and were wax-sealed to prevent leaks, requiring them to be opened on the spot.

Chen Qingyan took a deep breath and began preparing his ink. During his last county exam, he had been turned away before even seeing the paper. Now, five years later, he was finally back in this seat.

As the exam paper was placed on his desk, Chen Qingyan glanced at the questions and felt a sudden calm. Just as his teacher had said, the county exam was straightforward—even simpler than the practice questions they had been given.

Still, he couldn’t afford to be careless. After carefully reading through the questions, he began writing his answers on the blank rough draft paper.

Like him, Chen Qinghuai and Chen Qingsong also started writing as soon as they saw the questions. Compared to the other examinees around them who were frowning over the questions, the three brothers were noticeably different.

The county magistrate leaned over and whispered to the chief examiner beside him, "Those three examinees over there are brothers. I’ve heard they study under the highly respected Liang Liufang."

The examiner immediately straightened up. He had heard earlier in the prefectural city that Old Liang had taken on several students but hadn’t realized they were from Longquan County.

Watching the three of them answering the questions so intently, he felt a stir of curiosity and stood up to walk down among the examinees.

When he reached Chen Qingyan’s side, he was visibly impressed. Regardless of the content, the young man’s Nianhua-style calligraphy was exceptionally exquisite! (Nianhua - delicate flower-petal style calligraphy)

Chen Qingyan was writing in Nianhua-style calligraphy, though he would switch to the more formal and clear Taige style for the final transcription—a style favored by court officials for its neatness and readability. (Taige - standard bureaucratic script favored for exams)

Deep in concentration, Chen Qingyan didn’t even notice the examiner standing beside him. The chief examiner stroked his beard and nodded approvingly before moving on to Chen Qinghuai.

After reviewing Chen Qingsong’s paper as well, he thought to himself, the Chen family had not one, but three such talented sons—it seemed the family was on the verge of elevating their social standing.

The time passed quickly during the exam, and before they knew it, it was noon. The first session was completed.

Once the papers were collected, the examinees were allowed to move about freely—they could use the latrine or have a bite to eat.

Small groups of students gathered to discuss the morning’s questions. Some jumped for joy after comparing answers, while others lamented their performance, convinced they had performed poorly.

The Chen brothers, however, said nothing. They already knew their answers and had no need to compare.

Chen Qingyan only asked his younger brothers if they had finished their papers and whether they had made any mistakes in their writing.

Chen Qinghuai shook his head. "No, I followed the teacher’s instructions—drafted everything on scratch paper first, then copied it over carefully. I didn’t dare miss a single character."

Qing Song added, "Same here. I was just a bit slow—almost didn’t finish copying over in time."

After a half-hour break, the second session began. This one focused on classical text interpretation (moyi), which was Chen Qingyan’s strong suit. He glanced over the paper and began answering right away.

This session allowed for early submission. After copying over the final character, Chen Qingyan reviewed his paper from start to finish to ensure nothing was missing, then raised his hand to submit early.

By the afternoon, the sun had shifted, and it was growing colder. He needed to conserve his energy for the third and fourth sessions the next day.

An examination official came to collect his paper and draft. Chen Qingyan packed his brushes and inkstone back into his exam satchel and was escorted by a test proctor toward the exam hall’s main gate.

At the gate, he couldn’t leave immediately—he had to wait until ten examinees had gathered before the doors would open.

Chen Qingyan stamped his feet and rubbed his hands together to warm up slightly. Soon, other examinees who had finished early began to come out gradually. Once ten had gathered, the gates were opened.

Stepping out of the exam hall, Chen Qingyan’s legs felt wobbly. He had thought he wasn’t nervous, but it turned out he was more on edge than he realized.

Uncle Chen and Wang Ying were already waiting outside. "Qing Yan!"

"Here."

Wang Ying hurried over with a cloak, took his exam satchel, and helped him into the cloak to keep out the chill. "Quick, get in the carriage. We’ve prepared ginger-infused tea to warm you up."

Once inside the carriage, Chen Qingyan drank a large cup of ginger-infused tea before finally feeling better. "Whew... I didn’t feel cold this morning, but this afternoon was freezing."

Uncle Chen explained, "You started the day warm from home, but even with layers, the cold wears off after hours of sitting. Of course you’d feel cold by the afternoon."

Wang Ying asked, "What about Qing Huai and Qing Song?"

"When I left, they were still working on their papers. They should be out soon."

No sooner had he spoken than Chen Qing Huai emerged, his face pale from the cold. Uncle Chen quickly draped a cloak over him and helped him into the carriage.

"Ah, it’s so warm in here!" Wang Ying handed him a cup of hot ginger-infused tea. "Cold, weren’t you?"

"Definitely! It got colder as the day went on. The bench felt like ice—my stomach was cramping from the cold."

"You must have gotten chilled. Drink a couple more cups of ginger-infused tea."

Qing Huai held his cup and asked, "Where are Mother and the others?"

Wang Ying replied, "It’s too cold to wait outside for long, so I told them to return home first. We’ll head back as soon as Qing Song comes out."

Another half-hour passed before Chen Qingsong finally emerged, his small face turning blue from the cold.

Uncle Chen helped him directly into the carriage.

Chen Qingyan and Chen Qinghuai were worried sick and quickly helped him sit down. "Younger brother, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, just really cold," Chen Qingsong said, shivering.

"Why did it take you so long to hand in your paper?"

Chen Qingsong scratched his head. "I forgot we could turn in our papers early. I kept writing with my head down, and when I finally looked up, half the candidates had left. That’s when I remembered and hurried to turn in my paper."

"Quick, drink some ginger tea to warm up. There are two more exams tomorrow—don’t let yourself fall ill."

"Alright." Chen Qingsong chugged the tea eagerly while Uncle Chen drove the carriage home.

The family at home had long grown anxious. Li Shi and Fang Ling kept stepping out to look when they would return.

"Why aren’t they back yet? It’s already dark."

"Exactly, could something have happened?" The two mothers were on edge with worry.

Before long, the clip-clop of horse hooves was heard outside. Chen Guang opened the main gate and said, "The young gentlemen are home."

The whole family rushed out, and only when they saw the three descend from the carriage did everyone finally relax.

No one asked how the exams went, only whether they were cold. Hot bowls of noodle soup were already prepared indoors, and after a large bowl, the day's chill had vanished.

Once they had eaten their fill, the three went on their own to Old Liang’s room to discuss that day’s county exam questions.

The first exam was on "Tie Jing," where a passage from the Four Books and Five Classics was blanked out, and examinees had to fill in the blanks based on the surrounding text—similar to modern-day cloze tests.

This tested the candidates’ memorization and familiarity with the classics.

This part was pretty much a gift for the three, as they had the texts memorized cold and could write them out at a glance.

The second exam was "Mo Yi," testing their understanding of the classics. Ten questions were given, and all ten had to be answered correctly to pass.

This was also not difficult for them. Chen Qinghuai even memorized the questions and wrote them down afterward. The three discussed their answers, which were all based on what Liang Boqing had taught them, each with their own strengths.

"Alright, all of you should go back and rest early. Get ready for tomorrow’s two tests."

"Yes!" The three returned to their respective rooms.

Wang Ying, afraid that Yuanbao would disturb his rest, had taken the child to her mother-in-law’s room early. Calming incense was lit in the room, and after washing up, the two went to bed early.

The night passed without dreams, and the next day, before dawn, everyone got up, dressed, and hurried to the examination hall.

With the experience from the first day, the three felt much calmer on the second day.

However, while waiting in line to enter the exam hall, someone was caught with a cheat sheet hidden on their person. The person was so terrified they collapsed, kneeling and bowing repeatedly, begging for mercy, but they were still dragged out of the exam hall by the clerk.

Chen Qingyan’s heart pounded, and memories he had deliberately suppressed surged back, leaving him agitated and sweating buckets.

"Chen Qingyan? Chen Qingyan!"

"Yes, here! I’m here!" Only when the examiner called his name did he come to and step forward for the body search.

During the search, Chen Qingyan trembled all over, making the official suspect him. After a thorough search, he was finally allowed to enter.

Step by step, Chen Qingyan walked to his seat. He glanced at the empty seat ahead, put a hand over his heart, and forced himself to calm down.

But his mind kept replaying the scene from the last time he was caught with a cheat sheet, like a broken record.

His mind had gone blank then—from disbelief to despair, kneeling and begging, only to be dragged away by the officials...

"Cheater, immoral, deserved it, now you’ll never take the exam again..."

Harsh voices echoed in his ears, making him lightheaded and sick to his stomach.

Qing Huai, sitting not far away, noticed something was wrong but couldn’t speak up in the silent exam hall.

As the gong sounded, the proctors began distributing the day’s exam papers.

Chen Qingyan, sweating and clutching his head, only snapped back to reality when he saw the questions on the paper.

What was he doing?!

This was the county exam—perhaps his only chance in this lifetime. Why waste time on irrelevant thoughts instead of focusing on the exam?!

It hadn’t been easy for him to re-enter the exam hall. If he didn’t achieve something, how could he face A Ying’s years of support, his teacher’s earnest guidance, or his own hard work?

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and locked those chaotic memories away in a corner of his mind. He wouldn’t forget the hardship—he would use it as a warning to never stray down the wrong path again.

When he opened his eyes again, Chen Qingyan was no longer panicked or lost. In that moment, he had completely transformed.