After seeing Ning Caichen off, Jiang Hao prepared to take the old man Zhuge back to Jinhua. He hired another carriage, and the driver set off. As for Lychee, she never appeared before Zhuge Wolong again.
The carriage creaked along as Jiang Hao and Zhuge Wolong chatted inside.
"Aren't you waiting for your servant?"
"No need. He'll come back on his own. Besides, I told him he had to get Brother Ning settled before returning, so he'll probably be delayed for a few days."
"Where are we going?"
"Jinhua Prefecture. I'm taking this year's Prefectural Examination. It begins in less than a month."
The old man Zhuge nodded. "It's mid-March now, and the Prefectural Examination is in April. It really is almost time. How did you do in the County Examination?"
"I was the Top Scholar."
"Did you pay for it?"
Jiang Hao rolled his eyes. Why would I need to pay? I forced that magistrate to give it to me.
"I earned it with my own ability," Jiang Hao said.
The old man Zhuge became interested. "Then let me test you and see how much learning you possess, and how far you can go on the Imperial Examination System path."
"Please!"
The old man Zhuge had been a genuine Zhuangyuan. He possessed Eidetic Memory and was versed in both ancient and modern knowledge. He had later served at the Hanlin Academy, read countless books, and spent many years as an official. He had even served as an examiner for the Provincial Examination and Metropolitan Examination, so he was extremely familiar with the path of the Imperial Examination System.
The old man Zhuge first posed several questions from the Prefectural Examination and Imperial Examination. By convention, as the Top Scholar of the County Examination, Jiang Hao would obtain scholar status