"Junior Brother, Miss Shi Yin has just recovered from her illness, why are you driving her away at this time?" Sun Youwei asked.
Lin Miao instantly understood that his senior sister's heart was still filled with a bit of empathy, overflowing with sympathy.
"Senior Sister, if she doesn't leave, we will certainly face trouble." Lin Miao sighed deeply and patiently explained to Sun Youwei.
Sun Youwei, having not seen the wickedness in people's hearts, immediately understood, after Lin Miao explained the causes and effects, the reason Shi Yin couldn't stay.
If Huaye Tower hadn't returned the selling contract to Shi Yin, after being cured, she would have simply gone back, which would be no problem.
The issue is, Shi Yin has now obtained her selling contract, she's free, but if the folks at Huaye Tower find out, they might feel they've been wronged.
They wouldn't see it as Shi Yin being fortunate. And could the owners of Qin Lou Chu Guan be good people?
They would surely think that Lin Miao conspired with Shi Yin, using her severe illness as an excuse, to trick them out of the selling contract. If Lin Miao took Shi Yin in, it would confirm this "conspiracy."
Though it isn't the actual situation, it's hard to guarantee that others wouldn't think this way, plus there's no way to explain it.
Originally without grievances, now leaving behind enmity.
Who knows if there'll be retaliation, but there's sure to be no good neighborly relations.
At the moment when you can't reveal your fangs, it's best to hide them, slowly sharpening them over time.
Lin Miao now only thinks about growing carefully and accumulating strength.
Who the heck enjoys fighting day in and day out for no reason? What if you accidentally "gah," who'd feel sorry for you then?
Before doing good deeds, first consider whether you have the ability.
The only one you can truly rely on is yourself—that's just how realistic it is.
"Senior Sister, I'm heading to Xinglin Institute alone today; you stay at home." Lin Miao directed, heading out by himself.
Although the "Physician Exam" written test covers material from the books, as long as you can memorize the contents of the medical texts being tested, you can basically pass.
However, this year there were many participants in the "Physician Exam" in Dongshan Prefecture, a total of more than four hundred. According to past situations, they select the top ten percent, which is the top forty candidates, to advance to the next round of "face diagnosis" tests.
Therefore, every written test will inevitably have questions that differentiate scores, some questions beyond the defined examination scope, which tests the candidates' personal ability.
Today is the day to announce the scope of the written test for the "Physician Exam," so naturally, he had to come.
It's mainly the added content which would be adjusted and announced, while the fixed examination content hasn't changed much in recent decades, and this session wouldn't alter that, not even across the entire Da Li Dynasty.
But the added parts or different sections are defined independently by respective localities, and that's where the scores vary.
When Lin Miao arrived at Xinglin Institute, the square in front of the Scripture Pavilion was already crowded with people, some aged four to five decades, but most were in their twenties or thirties.
He, practicing martial arts from a young age, wasn't short, so he looked about the same as everyone else, except for his face appearing slightly youthful.
Therefore, among the candidates, he wasn't particularly outstanding.
"Brother, do you know which three people are responsible for this year's Dongshan Prefecture Physician Exam questions?" Lin Miao squeezed towards the bulletin board when a hand suddenly slapped his shoulder.
He turned his head to see a square-faced, thick-browed and big-eyed guy sincerely bowing and asking him.
"Are you asking me?"
The guy blinked and nodded.
"I don't know, do you know?" Lin Miao retorted.
"Brother, I have a strategy guide here, featuring classic exam cases from this year's three question setters, just for ten silver, guaranteed to pass this session!" The man chuckled, pointing to a bulging package hanging from his shoulder.
"Are you serious?" Lin Miao asked sincerely. It seems there are people like this everywhere, exploiting candidates' desire to pass and cheat them out of money.
If he truly believed that, it'd be a significant loss.
Yet, he truly wanted to know if the so-called strategy guide the guy was selling had any substance. As he wouldn't buy it, but seeing it briefly would allow him to memorize it without any problem.
"You're also here for the Physician Exam. If I sell you the strategy, and you pass, wouldn't that occupy one of the spots?"
"No problem, only ten percent advance; at least forty people to qualify. I just felt a connection with you and want to give you this chance."
Lin Miao was surprised, does he have such a gullible look?
"Brother, can I inspect the goods first?"
"Of course." The thick-browed guy took out a "strategy guide," holding it with one hand while opening the cover with the other.
Slowly flipping three pages in front of Lin Miao, he then closed it: "Brother, you've inspected the goods, so hand over the silver, and the strategy guide is yours."
"How do I know if the rest is worth ten silver?" Lin Miao chuckled. The guy evidently had a plan, just showing him the first three pages.
"Brother isn't intending to buy, is he?" The thick-browed guy's expression changed instantly.
"I won't pay without seeing it all." Lin Miao said. If the content was indeed substantial, he wouldn't mind this ten silver, but if the person showed only a snippet to cheat him out of ten silver, he'd definitely be seen as a fool!
"Forget it, not buying then, a poor ghost destined to fail." The thick-browed guy flashed by, sliding out from the side. With the crowd, he dared not cause trouble. If this deal doesn't work out, there's always the next transaction,
The way this guy moves is pretty slick.
It was just a small episode, and Lin Miao didn't pay much attention to it. He hurriedly squeezed his way to the plaza's bulletin board, eager to see the content on it.
"Zhongjing's Emergency Treatment Essentials," "Jin's Secret Record," "Great Yellow Court Discussion"...
These are the supplementary content for this session's "Physician Exam."
The mandatory content is known to everyone, but the supplementary content is announced a month in advance, giving you only a month to study and memorize it.
However, if you have studied this supplementary content before, you have an advantage; if you haven't, then it's quite problematic.
Though the supplementary content only constitutes twenty percent of the exam, it is the crucial scoring part, significantly impacting the scores of the apprentices participating in the Physician Exam.
These medical books are naturally available in the Scripture Pavilion, but now that they've been announced, these books are probably already snatched up.
Didn't you see the crowd rush into the Scripture Pavilion?
"Don't panic, don't panic, fellow apprentices taking the Physician Exam. We have already prepared the medical books with supplementary content. They are all written on the blackboard for you to copy at your own discretion..."
This is quite considerate. Without printing technology, all books have to be copied by hand. It seems that moveable-type printing still has its merits.
But the paper currently available isn't suitable for printing; we need to first produce better, cheaper paper.
"Brother, why aren't you copying?"
"I left in a hurry and forgot to bring paper and a pen," Lin Miao said with an embarrassed expression. In fact, he had already memorized everything and could naturally write it down from memory when he got back.
"I have some here. Would you like some?"
"How could I impose? What is your honorable name?" Lin Miao, not wanting to appear too individualistic, declined slightly and reached out to accept it.
"My surname is Su, and my given name is Chen."
"Su Chen, nice name. I'm Lin Sanshui. You can call me Sanshui," Lin Miao introduced himself as well.
"How old are you this year, Brother Sanshui?"
"What do you think, Mr. Su?"
"I think you must be twenty by now?"
"No, I'm not even seventeen yet."
"Seventeen?" Su Chen almost exclaimed. To take the Physician Exam at only seventeen is quite rare in Dongshan Prefecture.
Though Dongshan Prefecture is a frontier area, it's a big prefecture and culturally vibrant, comparable to the inland prefectures, so the Physician Exam in Dongshan is always compared to those of other places like Wu Jiang in Jiangnan, Yu An, and the places around Yongzhou, where Li Jing is.
In every session of the Physician Exam, some extraordinarily talented individuals emerge. Official records show the youngest to pass was twelve, and the oldest was sixty-seven.
In the history of recorded exams of Dongshan Prefecture in the Da Li Dynasty, the youngest was twenty-one years old. (Not counting the previous dynasty)
"Brother Sanshui, are you really not even seventeen?" Su Chen asked in a lowered voice.
"As far as I can remember, that's correct. Whether my master got it wrong, I wouldn't know," Lin Miao said.
"How could that be mistaken?"
"I was taken in by my master from a young age, so I truly don't know my exact age. Whatever my master said, that's it."
"I see, my apologies," Su Chen said apologetically. "Brother Sanshui, who is your mentor, might you introduce me?"
"My mentor has passed away."
"I'm sorry." Su Chen realized that every time he spoke, he was being inconsiderate, and now he didn't know what to say next.
"Mr. Su must be wondering why I wasted my only chance like this?"
Su Chen smiled awkwardly. He indeed thought that. Since the teacher passed away, an apprentice only has one chance to register for the "Physician Exam." The next time, they would need a new teacher to gain apprentice status again.
Such an important opportunity seems wasted. It really doesn't seem worth it.
"Mr. Su, I'm fighting with my back against the wall. If I don't pass this time, I'll have to change careers and stop studying medicine," Lin Miao said, half-joking.
Bringing skills to a new mentor, the road ahead will be even tougher.
Su Chen could understand Lin Miao's thoughts, but why not wait a few more years? Maybe then he could pass.
However, without a master, without guidance, relying solely on self-study makes passing the written exam extremely difficult. Without any clinical experience, unless acting as a "Wild Physician," being discovered and reported to the "Medical Bureau" would result in disqualification from the exam.
"Brother Sanshui, I didn't want to become a physician, but my father forced me into it..." Su Chen said helplessly.
He felt a connection with Lin Miao standing there somewhat naively, their fates seemed similar, which is why he approached him.
Just then, Lin Miao's peripheral vision caught two familiar figures. He instinctively grabbed the paper and pen and darted away like a loach slipping through the water at lightning speed past Su Chen.
"Brother Sanshui..."