After coming ashore, Zhao Xing and Xu Laoba returned to the River Scavengers' stall.
After returning the token, Zhao Xing got back the one-tael deposit and rewarded it to Xu Laoba as well. One was one, two was two; that settled everything between them.
It was simply too late now. Otherwise, Xu Laoba would definitely have dragged someone off to boast about it.
Zhao Xing checked the time and headed back to Gucheng.
"Rising Wind~"
With Wind Beneath the Feet, his walking speed increased, each step carrying him two or three meters.
He made it home just before the end of the Hour of the Pig.
"Today's haul was pretty good. I only meant to make a small fortune, yet I ended up gaining so much."
"Looks like my Derivation Two fortune really is extraordinary."
If his fortune had only been at Derivation One, he probably would have passed right by that fourth-rank bead.
"With this harvest, I won't have to worry about food or drink for a while, and my Gathering Yuan cultivation won't be slow either." Zhao Xing packed up the bead, placed it in a chest, and locked it away.
He still had some spare money, so there was no rush to sell it. He had to sell it for a good price, at the very least.
An ordinary person who came into a windfall would be too excited to sleep, but Zhao Xing ate when he should eat and slept when he should sleep.
The next day, he went to the Ministry of Agriculture as usual to report for duty and study.
Once the Limit of Heat had passed, Old Sima Nong began placing greater emphasis on theory and less on practical work.
He directly informed everyone that the next solar term examination would test theory.
Reading became the top priority for the Ministry of Agriculture clerks.
"Old Sima Nong, could you give us a hint about which classics will be tested? Mark out some key points for us?" one clerk asked.
Xue Wenzhong smiled faintly. "Of course. Listen carefully. Grand View of Trees, Herbal Classic, Hundred Explanations of Celestial Timing, Four Farming Chapters, Monthly Decrees and Seasonal Phenomena, Earth Veins Three Lights, Ten Thousand Chapters of Beneficial Things..."
Well, asking had been the same as not asking. Everything was damn important!
Being well-read and having a strong memory were essential qualities for an Agriculture Official. The Nineteen Provinces were vast and abundant, with countless varieties of celestial timing and earthly advantages, not to mention all kinds of plants.
If the court assigned you to a post somewhere and you did not even know what could be planted there or when it should be planted, then what use were you?
That was still only the basic requirement, equivalent to kneeling and begging Heaven to provide a meal.
In many special environments, an Agriculture Official was required to cast spells, alter celestial timing, locate earth veins, and create a favorable environment before deciding what to plant.
"In Yuanling County in southern Guangling Province, Five Fine Grains can be planted in spring. Planted in spring and harvested in spring, a single ear can feed five people."
"Hundred Blood Vine can be planted in summer. Planted in summer and harvested in summer, its vine fruit can replenish a hundred types of blood."
"In autumn... Qian Dong, what was planted there in autumn again?" Chen Ziyu tilted his head toward Qian Dong.
The latter spread his hands. "Why are you memorizing something as obscure as Blessed Land Resources? Are you planning to get the chance to serve as an official in a Cave Heaven Blessed Land?"
"Fair point." Chen Ziyu was about to put the book down when Zhao Xing beside him drawled, "Golden Bean can be cultivated in autumn. Planted in autumn and harvested in autumn, it gathers yuan in three days and enters rank in a month. Its value rivals gold."
"Bone-Connecting Ginseng can be dug up in winter. It can set bones in ten days and regrow severed limbs in a hundred."
Chen Ziyu flipped open the book and looked at it, then sincerely praised him. "No wonder you're our big brother. Your foundation is truly solid."
Zhao Xing spoke with a trace of nostalgia. "Not entirely. If you lived there for a few years, you'd know it inside and out too."
"You make it sound as if you've been there yourself. Guangling Province is separated from our Pinghai Province by more than ten thousand li."
"Can't I have gone there in my dreams?" Zhao Xing smiled.
"Sure, of course you can. Who told you you're the big brother?"
"Hahaha."
Time passed, and before long, the White Dew solar term drew near.
Zhao Xing also studied day and night for the examination. Once he became a full official and entered rank, he would not only be able to enter the Dynasty of Fate system and gain blessings and longevity, but would also be able to attempt many things.
For instance, Great Dream Academy was a treasure mountain. After entering rank, he would likely be able to try obtaining benefits from it again.
Becoming a ranked, full Agriculture Official would also expand Zhao Xing's ability to act and allow him to learn more spells, laying a firmer foundation for the future Revival Version.
Zhao Xing was not working hard to become a full official. He was working hard for immortality. If he had been thrown into a Grand Ancestor Version that was any farther back, he would have given up entirely.
But having been thrown into the era of the Emperor Jing, he felt that he could still strive to hold on until the Revival Version.
This motivation was simple, yet powerful. Just imagine someone telling you that if you started working out now, maintained healthy habits, and lived another twenty years, technological breakthroughs would arrive and grant you immortality. Would you do it?
"If I don't marry or have children, the fortune and blessings of rank and bestowed longevity won't be divided. They'll all belong to me, the official."
"Besides, any treasure that extends one's lifespan is best used as early as possible. Otherwise, the restraints will only grow stronger later on, and the difficulty will increase."
"When I receive rank, my other aspects will improve as well. But if I have already reached the corresponding level by then, all of it will be used to increase my lifespan. So by the beginning of spring next year, it would be best for me to reach Gathering Yuan Ninth Level, so that all the benefits of receiving rank go toward my lifespan." Zhao Xing calculated silently.
There was another advantage to doing this: even if he lost his office and was demoted in rank, the impact would become minimal, perhaps even nonexistent.
It was equivalent to having the ability to jump aboard Great Zhou's high-speed train of fortune on his own. He did not need Great Zhou to pull him aboard; it only needed to open the door. And if it tried to kick him off later, he would be able to jump off without getting hurt.
"Heaven's mandate is my mandate, Heaven's fortune is my fortune, Heaven's lifespan is my lifespan. Return fortune to the court? Not a bit of it." After calculating for the future, Zhao Xing returned his attention to the matter at hand.
The seventh day of the ninth month: White Dew.
The Ministry of Agriculture welcomed its first theory examination of the year.
The entire examination lasted two days. Late entry was forbidden, but papers could be submitted early.
Xue Wenzhong was still the chief question setter, but the other Agriculture Officials had to review the questions together. They also had to conform to Nanyang County's examination principles, neither too unconventional nor too rigid.
After the papers were graded, they had to be archived and submitted to Nanyang County for review. The results of examinations during other solar terms also had to be archived and submitted, but Nanyang County generally did not inspect them closely, only conducting spot checks unless someone filed a report.
Theory examinations, however, were always reviewed in full.
After all, it was no great matter if a clerk's spells went astray, but if their theoretical thinking went astray, that would be dangerous.
During the Grand Ancestor era, there had once been an Agriculture Official clerk in Nanyang County who, Heaven knew where he had found some crooked book, wrote a theoretical doctrine called "Sever Heaven and Earth Connection" during an examination in order to flaunt his individuality. As a result, he offended both the Celestial Timing Faction and the Earthly Advantage Faction and was thrown straight into prison.
Even the True Self Faction did not reject the Celestial Timing Faction or the Earthly Advantage Faction; it merely distinguished between primary and secondary. But "Sever Heaven and Earth Connection" rejected the current calendar and even rejected the Dao itself. It was unmistakably heretical thinking. It was no longer merely departing from the classics—it was practically betraying and insulting the nation.
Great Zhou was relatively free in its speech. Later, after the man was investigated, he was released after half a year in prison. Nothing much happened to him, but the booksellers who had sold those heretical books suffered terribly. After a harsh crackdown and confiscation campaign, every one of their clans was exterminated.
"When I take the examination later, I need to hold back a little. I can't come up with ideas that are too far ahead of their time. Being even half a step ahead would be enough to earn a Grade A." Zhao Xing repeatedly reminded himself before entering the examination hall.
Before you continue