Having a good background was basically equivalent to half of success. At this moment, Xu Xing was also glad to have enrolled in Weijing Academy instead of some other small private school. The invisible benefits of the Big Academy alone were enough to make ordinary people envious.
The Junior Clerk warned Xu Xing about some more examination room rules, then turned and left.
"Xuan-Geng Chou."
A small wooden board, three fingers wide, was nailed to the door beam of the examination room, listing the candidate number. Xu Xing glanced at it a few times and instantly understood the layout of the examination hall. The examination rooms in the examination hall were likely divided into several large areas according to "heaven, earth, xuan, and yellow." The large area he was in was the Xuan character area, and within the same large area, there was also a system of rows and columns. These row and column relationships were represented by heavenly stems and earthly branches. At this moment, he was located in the Geng row and Chou column of the Xuan character area.
The examination room was cramped, about two feet wide and seven feet long, with thick wooden partitions on both sides. The furnishings were simple; besides the two fire basins near the door, there was only a detachable desk.
After setting the desk horizontally and arranging his brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, Xu Xing took out a pancake from his prepared food basket and began to nibble on it.
Once he was about seventy percent full, a Clerk knocked on the door and distributed the test papers and draft paper to him. The test papers were specially made by the county government office, ruled with the Red cross-grain box pattern for answers. There were more than ten sheets in total, each with twelve lines, and each line accommodating twenty characters. There was nothing special about the draft paper, except that when writing on it, one had to ensure the answers were not written outside the sealed margin, and all characters, aside from titles and headings, had to be in regular script. Otherwise, it would be marked as zero points.
After washing the grease from his hands with water from a prepared bamboo tube and drying them, Xu Xing picked up his brush and waited.
Shaoqing. A Book Official approached, carrying a lantern on which the first question was written—a Four-Book Question: "A gentleman who is not dignified will not command respect, and his learning will not be solid. He should uphold loyalty and trustworthiness as his main principles, not make friends with those who are not of like integrity, and when he makes a mistake, not be afraid to correct it."
This sentence was from the Learning Section of The Analects. It was a sentence Confucius had once said. Its general meaning was: a gentleman, if not dignified, lacks authority, and even if he studies, what he learns will not be firmly grasped. His actions should be guided by the moral principles of loyalty and trustworthiness. He should not befriend those who are disloyal or untrustworthy. If he makes a mistake, he should not be afraid to correct it.
Seeing this question, Xu Xing breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, it wasn't one of the Multiple Choice Questions.
Multiple Choice Questions were the most difficult among the Four-Book Questions. The difficulty lay in that both sentences often embodied the Saint's profound principles. In writing the Eight-legged essay, one could not violate the Saint's sect or Zhu Xi's annotations on them. Multiple Choice Questions required splicing the meanings of two segments, and the Argument needed to expound on the question's meaning without violating the Saint's sect.
However, standard Four-Book Questions left no such worries. What was tested in the County Exam was more fundamental.
With a little thought, Xu Xing conceived his Argument.
He put brush to paper and wrote: "A Gentleman, in his learning, values its substance and must fully realize its principles."
This answer, balanced and steady, was a response to the question. A gentleman should place more emphasis on "substance" in his learning and practice the ethics he upholds. And "valuing substance" corresponded to the "dignity" mentioned by the Saint.
Not too conspicuous, not too reckless...
Thanks to his days of diligent study at Weijing Academy, coupled with the blessing of his White Destiny [Knowledgeable], his one day of reading surpassed what ordinary people achieved in ten. Therefore, writing an appropriate Argument was not a difficult task for him.
Next, Xu Xing recalled an Imperial Examination Sample and expounded on his Argument in the voice of a Saint. He wrote thousands of eloquent words, finishing in just over one hour.
As for the second question, the Five Scriptures question, he chose to answer the "Spring and Autumn" question. There were a total of five questions in the Five Scriptures test, one each from the Book of Documents, Book of Changes, Book of Songs, Book of Rites, and "Spring and Autumn." Examinees could choose to answer based on their primary scripture; there was no need to answer all of them. It was equivalent to a specialized subject.
The third question was a test poem. The test poem originated in the Tang Dynasty, and the most famous was Bai Juyi's "Ode to the Ancient Grass on the Plain in Farewell." Only after Wang Anshi's Xining educational reforms was the test poem abolished in the Imperial Examination. It was not until the Qianlong period that the test poem was reinstated. However, the Ming and Qing Dynasties did not place great emphasis on poetry. As long as the rhymes in the test poem were correct, there were no repeated characters, and taboo words were avoided, it was acceptable. This question was basically a formality and not difficult.
Speaking of taboo words, Xu Xing double-checked the Eight-legged essay he had written. Seeing no mistakes or omissions, he began to prepare to transcribe it onto the official test paper.
He calmed his mind and composed his spirit for a short while. In just that short while, some Examinees had already gone to the Public Hall to submit their papers, requesting County Lord Wu to review them, well before the official end of the examination.
Xu Xing did not feel flustered; he remained calm and composed. Handing it in early wouldn't earn extra points; there was no need for a moment's vanity.
Time slowly passed. The sky gradually darkened, and candles were lit in some examination rooms.
Candlelight flickered.
PHEW! His pen finally set down, Xu Xing carefully blew the Marks on the test paper dry, ensuring the ink didn't stain the paper. If the paper were stained, it would mean direct failure and disqualification; even if the essay were brilliant, there would be no chance.
As Shen Hour approached, the government runners gently struck gongs as a reminder. Seeing this, Xu Xing waited no longer; the County Exam concluded with the beating of a drum at Shen Hour.
He rose, took his test paper, and walked to the Public Hall, handing it to the Book Official who had been standing by. Although he was submitting his paper relatively early as well, there was an advantage to doing so at this time: he wouldn't need to queue when leaving. If he waited for the Book Official to collect the papers, at least four or five hundred people would be leaving the examination hall with him later. Not everyone was quick-witted. Even with an entire day for the exam, for most people, that amount of time was insufficient. Sometimes, a single sentence or paragraph required several hours of deep contemplation.
After submitting his test paper, Xu Xing did not rush to leave. He bowed respectfully to County Lord Wu as per etiquette. If he made it onto the list after this County Exam, County Lord Wu would be considered his mentoring teacher. This was also a link in his network of connections.
"Bring me his essay," County Lord Wu said.
Unexpectedly, County Lord Wu, who had been napping in the Public Hall, showed sudden interest when Xu Xing submitted his paper. He waved to the Book Official, instructing him to present the paper.
The Book Official, startled, hesitated for a moment. Normally, the County Lord would only be interested in the papers of the candidates who finished earliest, as these individuals were typically exceptionally talented and quick-witted. But Xu Xing was submitting his paper towards the end...
However, he didn't hesitate for long. He respectfully presented the test paper to County Lord Wu with both hands.
"This Eight-legged essay seems plain, but upon closer inspection, it has its merits." County Lord Wu smiled faintly and said, "Someone, fetch a Vermilion Brush."
He then drew a red O on the test paper.
To prevent cheating during the Imperial Examination, examiners did not use words to directly evaluate the papers but instead used certain symbols. There were generally five symbols: "circle" (O), "triangle" (△), "dot" (,), "vertical line" (|), and "cross" (X). A red circle meant the paper was accepted.
Connections! Background! Xu Xing was shocked once more. Although he was confident of passing this County Exam, to witness such blatant favoritism firsthand...