Martial Arts Examination (Seeking Collection, Seeking Follow-up Reads)

A few days later.

The Qingshan County Martial Arts Examination for the twenty-fourth year of Qing'an finally arrived.

Unlike the civil examination, which was held in temporary sheds set up in the market near the county yamen, the Martial Arts Examination was held outdoors.

The venue was the plaza in front of the main hall of the City God Temple on the west street of the county town.

On the high platform in front of the main hall sat a middle-aged official in a green robe, occupying the central position. Flanking him, according to their rank, were the County Lieutenant, County Assistant, Dian Shi, and other county yamen officials.

The different official ranks were easily distinguishable by the material of their robes.

On both sides of the plaza below, sat the gentry and wealthy merchants of Qingshan County, dressed in fine, colorful clothing.

These individuals cast their gazes upon the two to three hundred Martial Masters standing in the field, their eyes filled with anticipation.

"Poverty in scholarship, wealth in martial arts" – it had always been this way.

It was easy for ordinary wealthy households to save money and support one or two scholars who studied full-time, but difficult to support a Martial Artist who trained from childhood.

Therefore, over sixty percent of the nearly three hundred Martial Masters standing in the plaza today came from these gentry and wealthy merchant families.

Another twenty percent had some sort of connection to them, often their household guards.

Only the remaining twenty percent of the Martial Masters came from humble dwellings.

"What?"

"He's here too?"

In a corner of the plaza, a desk was set up specifically for verifying the Martial Masters' place of origin and guarantor letters.

Behind the desk sat the black-robed clerk that Wei Tu had met previously in the county yamen's Household Registry Office.

After verifying the guarantor letters piled on the desk one by one, the clerk suddenly saw Wei Tu's name among them.

His face showed surprise. He flipped to the last page of the household registry book from the Household Registry Office and, after comparing Wei Tu's hometown registration and age, couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment.

It had only been a little over half a year since Wei Tu's civilian status was redeemed the previous year. Wei Tu was the first servant he had encountered who redeemed himself since he became a clerk, inheriting his father's profession, so his impression of Wei Tu was undeniably deep.

"It's not easy to change one's fate by relying on the Martial Arts Examination. I hope he doesn't die on the examination stage..." the clerk thought silently.

Every three years, the county yamen would conduct a census of "hidden households." New registrants like Wei Tu were a measure of his performance.

He did not want Wei Tu to die here.

In the plaza.

The clerk was not the only one who recognized Wei Tu; there was also a beautiful woman sitting among the gentry.

This beautiful woman was Wei Hong. She sat behind Master Huang, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed as she looked at Wei Tu standing in the plaza.

Although it had been many years and she hadn't seen her distant nephew for a long time, due to their blood relation, she recognized Wei Tu immediately among the Martial Masters.

"What is he doing here? Is he trying to take the Martial Arts Examination? His physique has indeed become much stronger than three years ago..."

"But among these Martial Masters, he seems quite ordinary. Perhaps he's not even as capable as Yuan Shan..."

Wei Hong's feelings were complicated.

She hoped that Wei Tu would stand out among the Martial Masters and be able to help her family in the future. Yet, she had an intuitive feeling that Wei Tu wouldn't make it. Her distant nephew wouldn't make it.

In over three years, Wei Tu had only learned some superficial Health Cultivation Techniques. No matter how much he practiced, it couldn't compare to Martial Masters from prominent families.

These Martial Masters, who had trained since childhood, ate meat every day, were taught by famous masters, and occasionally had medicinal meals to nourish their bodies...

How could a commoner compare to them?

There was no comparison!

Soon.

Gongs and drums sounded.

The Martial Arts Examination began.

Wei Tu received his number plate, marked "C-13," and waited among the crowd.

Compared to the Prefectural Examination and the Dao Examination, the County Martial Arts Examination was simpler, with only five stages.

These were Skill and Courage, Stationary Archery, Mounted Archery, Sparring Match, and finally, Military Strategy.

Skill and Courage, in particular, was subdivided into Stone Lock Lifting, Drawing a Heavy Bow, and Wielding a Great Saber.

"Team C, fall in."

Suddenly, a gunshot sounded, and the martial official in charge of the examination shouted.

Hearing this, Wei Tu composed himself and followed the Martial Masters in front of him into the field, standing before several stone locks of varying sizes.

200 jin.

300 jin.

400 jin.

Five hundred jin.

There were four stone locks in total.

For the County Martial Arts Examination, the starting weight for the stone lock lifting event was 200 jin, a level of strength that was practically unattainable for ordinary people.

"Five hundred jin stone lock!"

Wei Tu's gaze fell upon the heaviest and largest stone lock. His expression grew serious as he drew his breath down to his dantian, spread his legs, and settled into a horse stance.

Then.

He mobilized all his strength, placed his right hand on the stone lock, and lifted.

The heavy stone lock immediately rose from the ground, pausing for half a breath at Wei Tu's knee, then at his elbow, and finally, it was lifted high above his head.

After hovering above his head for four to five breaths, Wei Tu finally couldn't hold on any longer and slowly lowered the 500 jin stone lock to the ground with his right arm.

As the 500 jin stone lock landed, a slight tremor could be heard throughout the entire square, as if the earth itself had shifted.

The entire square fell into a hushed silence, all eyes now fixed on Wei Tu, filled with astonishment.

To be able to lift a 500 jin stone lock with one arm in the stone lock lifting portion of the examination was something that appeared only once in several decades in all of Qingshan County.

In a century, it had only happened three times.

The Martial Masters from those three previous instances had, without exception, all achieved the top rank in the County Martial Arts Examination.

And... this was Wei Tu's fourth such feat.

This meant that the victor of this year's Martial Arts Examination had already been decided at this very moment.

As long as...

"It's difficult!"

Upon seeing Wei Tu's attire, the gentry members smiled and immediately drew their conclusions.

Wei Tu's clothes were shabby, his single garment washed to the point of being pale, clearly indicating he came from a humble dwelling.

Martial Masters like him would often falter in the Mounted Archery and Military Strategy sections, leading to their failure.

Mounted Archery required a good horse. Although the county provided horses for the examination, they were typically inferior.

Riding an inferior horse for archery, even with superb archery skills, made it difficult to hit the target due to the inability to maintain consistent strength.

The other section, Military Strategy, also had a high hidden barrier. Without the guidance of a good teacher, it was not easy to write brilliant essays.

"C-13."

"Stone Lock: Class A."

At this moment, the examiner in charge of the stone lock lifting event announced Wei Tu's result.

According to the rules, to achieve a Class A in stone lock lifting, one needed to lift a 300 jin stone lock with one arm and hold it above their head for thirty breaths.

Alternatively, lifting a 400 jin stone lock with both arms and holding it above the head for twenty breaths.

But Wei Tu was different. He had lifted a 500 jin stone lock with one arm and held it above his head for four breaths. This level of strength far surpassed the requirements for a regular Class A in stone lock lifting.

The gap between lifting 300 jin and 500 jin with one arm was like a chasm.

Everyone knew this.

Someone who could lift 500 jin with one arm even had a chance of obtaining the title of Recommended Man in the Provincial Examination.

In other words, at this moment, in the stone lock lifting event, Wei Tu had already reached the caliber required for the Martial Arts Examination.

"Even if he doesn't win the top prize, achieving Class A in stone lock lifting still grants him the qualification to be recommended for the Prefectural Examination..."

"Wei Tu isn't old, is he twenty? Twenty-two?"

"If he were to be tutored by a renowned teacher, he might be able to overcome his shortcomings in Mounted Archery and Military Strategy in the next examination..."

Among the gentry, Wei Hong's face showed a complex expression again as she saw Wei Tu's results, thinking to herself.