Chapter 143

Chapter 143

The county exam, like the prefectural exam, consisted of five sessions and could be completed in two days.

Before entering the examination hall, candidates were thoroughly searched. Any student caught smuggling materials for cheating would not only have their results canceled but also lose the title of state-supported scholar. In severe cases, they could even be expelled. As a result, almost no one dared to cheat.

The morning session tested knowledge of classical texts and their meanings, while the afternoon session focused on poetry and rhapsody, as well as the interpretation of Confucian classics. The next day, the policy discussion session was held. Results were announced three days after all five sessions concluded.

The tests on classical texts and their meanings were based on foundational knowledge. The Chen brothers' greatest strength was their exceptional memory—the three of them had a near-photographic memory when it came to rote learning.

The poetry composition section differed slightly from the county and prefectural exams, which often used scenery as the theme. This time, the topic was "Thoughts Upon Hearing of Frontier Beacon Fires," a five-character, six-rhyme regulated verse.

Candidates were required to embody the loyalty and sincerity of Du Fu's "The Generals" and the earnestness of Bai Letian's "Songs of Qin." They could either depict the hardships of garrison soldiers, express compassion for the toils of farmers, reflect on the talents of renowned generals like Li Mu and Lian Po, or discuss court policies.

This topic tested whether the examinees cared about the livelihoods of the people and were devoted to the common people's wellbeing. The poem had to be structurally precise, but not at the expense of meaning—empty rhetoric and excessive embellishment were to be avoided.

Chen Qingyan excelled at writing such poetry grounded in real-world concerns, whereas he was only average when it came to scenic or lyrical poems.

Since the theme centered on the border regions, it naturally involved warfare.

The Wu Dynasty had been established for over a hundred years and had enjoyed relative peace, but border conflicts persisted.

For instance, in recent years, the Northern Qiang invaded and occupied Xizhou and Tingzhou.

Although most of the residents in these two prefectures were Hu people, the lands had been part of China since ancient times. Moreover, their locations were strategically important, lying directly on the strategic western trade routes.

The emperor ordered the Northwest Army to reclaim the lost territories. It was said that the campaign took over a year and cost the lives of thousands of soldiers, yet only two empty cities were recovered.

This was because some of the residents of Xizhou and Tingzhou had been killed by the Qiang people, half had fled to Loulan and Qiuci, and only a small number returned to their homes after the Wu Dynasty reclaimed the territories.

This battle sparked intense debate in the imperial court; many civil officials believed that spending money and grain on such a war was meaningless.

Xizhou was tens of thousands of miles away from the Central Plains, its land barren and mostly desert, making it truly not worth the effort to conquer.

However, the military officers had different thoughts. Beyond Tingzhou and Xizhou lay the Tian Shan Mountains, a natural barrier. If left to be occupied by foreign tribes, they could gather strength and easily invade the Central Plains later.

Despite the endless arguments, no conclusion was reached. However, it seemed the Emperor had no intention of giving up, continuing to allocate substantial military funds to the northwest army each year, with the sole purpose of defending Xizhou and Tingzhou.

Speaking of which, Chen Qingyan had learned about these current events from Old Liang, which made writing poetry much smoother for him.

After pondering for a while, he picked up his brush and began to write: "The autumn comes early beyond the frontier, dust clouds obscure the sun's yellow hue. The watchtower sounds the painted horn, sick horses lie under the setting sun. War bones have long been buried in the wilderness, distant letters are hurriedly sent to the soldiers. When will the beacon fires cease, and the horses return to the southern slopes of Mount Hua?"

To produce such a poem in such a short time was indeed outstanding.

In contrast, Fang Wenke, who was also the top scholar, was stumped. His usual poems were mostly about flowers, the moon, mountains, water, fish, and birds, rarely touching on current events.

For a moment, he scratched his head, unsure how to start.

As the incense burned shorter, there was less than half an hour left before the end. Reluctantly, Fang Wenke finally put pen to paper.

"Beacon fires light the cloud peaks, scholars shed deep tears. In the border city, the sound of flutes carries sorrow, the cold pestle grinds homesickness. The soldiers' clothes and food are meager, taxes are heavy in poor households. Who will present the strategy to secure the frontier? I can only recall the Marquis of Dingyuan."

The poem did rhyme, but it mentioned a person who should not have been mentioned—the Marquis of Dingyuan.

This man was a famous general of the previous dynasty, who had once led troops to drive out the Huns and was highly esteemed by the people.

But now it was the Wu Dynasty. What did it mean to mention a famous general of the previous dynasty, especially after asking, "Who will present the strategy to secure the frontier?"

Fortunately, this was just a minor examination at the prefectural school. If this poem had been written during the provincial examination, it would have been considered treasonous, and he would likely have been charged!

As soon as Fang Wenke finished copying his answers, time was up, and he had to hurriedly submit his messily written exam without a chance to revise it.

Due to his poor performance in this exam, even the essay questions the following day did not go well.

After the monthly exam concluded, Old Liang happened to return from his travels. Instead of going straight home, he went to the prefectural school to find Lu Zhongqi.

The two sat on wicker chairs outside the library, chatting while fanning themselves.

"You're quite free-spirited, going wherever you please. How was your trip this time? Did you encounter anything interesting?"

Liang Boqing took a sip of tea and said, "I didn’t come across anything particularly interesting, but I did run into quite a few bandits and highwaymen."

Due to last year’s floods, many severely affected areas faced hardships, and those who could no longer survive turned to crime, resorting to robbery and theft.

"When I reached Shanguang, I couldn’t even sleep at night. Bandits came in waves like locusts, one after another. They didn’t harm anyone but simply stole goods and carriages. Fortunately, Chen Guang was by my side for protection, so the journey was harrowing but we returned safely."

Mr. Lu teased, "Still planning to travel again?"

"I have to. If I don’t go out and see the world, it’s like being deaf and blind to the world—I’d know nothing. Only by traveling can I truly understand the affairs of the world."

"I envy you. As I’ve grown older these past few years, my health has declined day by day. I no longer have the energy to travel and can’t handle the hassle anymore."

"And I envy you—staying with your children and grandchildren, teaching at the prefectural school, living a leisurely and comfortable life."

"Why don’t you come teach as well? I’m sure the headmaster would welcome you with great ceremony."

Liang Boqing waved his hand with a laugh. "No, teaching those three blockheads is already exhausting enough. If I had to teach a whole group of logheads, I’d be so frustrated I’d meet my early demise."

"Ah, you can’t say that. The teachers at the prefectural school all praise those three for their exceptional intelligence and diligence."

"I wouldn’t dare call them intelligent, but they are certainly diligent. Ever since I started teaching them, these children have studied tirelessly every day, which is quite rare."

Lu Zhongqi said, "Let’s see how they perform in this monthly exam. Qing Yan and Qing Huai are sure to achieve good rankings."

As long as the top ten students in the prefectural school perform normally in the provincial-level exams, it is generally assumed they will pass as juren. Thus, both of them took this monthly exam very seriously.

"How about Chang Yi?"

Mr. Lu said with a sigh at the mention of his disciple. "He’s clever enough, but without any pressure, he never quite reaches his potential. I’m still unsure if he’ll perform well this time."

Liang Boqing chuckled. "Don’t worry, the pressure is coming soon."

"What do you mean?"

"The Liu and Chen families are about to become in-laws. With his future brothers-in-law working so hard, if he can’t match Chen Qingyan and the others, he’ll likely feel too ashamed to face his wife."

"Really? That’s wonderful news!"

The two old men laughed heartily, amused by the thought.

*

Three days later, the results of the monthly exam were announced. Chen Qingyan lived up to expectations and took first place!

His exam paper was posted on the wall for students from all four classes—A, B, C, and D—to study. Everyone who read it nodded in admiration, agreeing that his first-place ranking was well-deserved.

Lin Zhen came in second once again. Having been outperformed by Chen Qingyan three times in a row, he looked dejected as he carefully compared their papers, trying to identify his shortcomings.

The third-place winner was Yun Huainan, a candidate from the previous year who was several years older than the others, already twenty-eight. It was said that he only passed the Tongsheng exam at twenty-five, then persevered to become a county scholar. In the previous year’s prefectural exam, he achieved second place, making him a late bloomer.

Chen Qinghuai ranked tenth, a result he hadn’t expected, leaving him somewhat disheartened for a while.

But thinking it over, those who ranked ahead of him were all top students, so there was nothing to regret.

Chen Qinghuai clenched his fist and made a silent vow to work hard to catch up with his elder brother. In the next monthly exam, he must at least achieve a top-five ranking!

Liu Changyi ranked thirteenth, his best result in nearly two years. He was so excited when he saw the ranking that he jumped up excitedly. After all, in the last monthly exam, he had ranked thirty-sixth, almost dropped out of Class A!

Chen Qingsong ranked thirty-ninth, just barely securing one of the last two spots to enter Class A! This was something none of the three had expected.

Chen Qingyan ruffled his younger brother's hair and said, "Well done, kid! You've been working hard in secret!"

Chen Qingsong grinned widely. "Since both my brothers are in Class A, I had to keep up! Otherwise, everyone would forget that the Chen family has three brothers!"

The only one who did poorly in this monthly exam was likely Fang Wenke.

He knew he hadn't done well in the poetry assignment, so when checking the rankings, he skipped the top ten and started looking for his name in the middle. After searching for a long time, he still couldn't find it.

In disbelief, he looked through the list again. When he saw Chen Qingyan's name in first place, it made his eyes burn. He hurriedly scanned downward, but his name was still missing from the top forty.

"Impossible..." Fang Wenke muttered.

A friend standing beside him suddenly spoke up. "Wenke, how did you end up in Class B?"

Fang Wenke looked over at the Class B list, where his name was clearly listed in third place... Flushed with shame and anger, he turned and ran away.

No one else noticed him, only a few close friends followed to comfort him.

"Wenke, don't be upset. With your ability, you definitely belong in more than just Class B. This was just a bad day—maybe next time you'll make it back."

"Yeah, you'll surely make it back next time."

These words pierced Fang Wenke's ears. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. No matter how poorly he performed, he couldn't possibly fall out of Class A. Was he really worse than that youngest Chen scholar?

"There must be something wrong with this ranking. I'm going to ask the teachers!" Fang Wenke hurried toward the room where the teachers were resting.

Before he could knock, he overheard several people inside discussing him.

"Wasn't Fang Wenke the top scorer in the last exam? How did he fall to Class B?"

"He didn't perform well this time. Look at this poem he wrote."

Several teachers gathered to read it, and their expressions instantly changed. "Quick, put it away! Don't let anyone else see it!"

"He actually wrote about a general from the fallen dynasty! If this gets out, it could end his career!"

Standing outside the door, Fang Wenke felt as though a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, chilling him to the bone. As he recalled the lines he had written, his scalp went numb...

"What's happened to him? His performance in these monthly exams has been declining each time."

Instructor Du from Class A said with great concern, "This child doesn't focus on his studies. He prides himself on his talent and spends all his time comparing literary styles and phrases with others. I've warned him twice, but he pays no attention. I'm afraid the provincial exam will be difficult for him."

Fang Wenke left in despair. He knew his mindset had been off ever since that poetry gathering, where he couldn't help but compare himself to the Chen brothers and envy their access to renowned mentors.

To prove himself superior to the Chen brothers, he had befriended many so-called "talented scholars," spending time with them composing poetry, painting, and praising each other.

Over time, he fell behind in his studies. He had once ranked in the top three in monthly exams, but this year, he couldn't even maintain a spot in the top ten. This sudden fall to Class B felt like a heavy blow that jolted him awake.

He hadn't studied all these years to prove his talent but to pass the provincial exam and become an official.

Once he realized this, Fang Wenke was filled with renewed determination, vowing to return to Class A in the next monthly exam!

The Chen brothers were unaware of Fang Wenke's transformation, as they had taken some time off. Soon, it would be time for Qing Yun and Liu Changyi's betrothal.

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Author's note: Chen Qingyan: Test Ace.