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"Banknote or silver ingot—which would you pick up?"
"I... I... As a man of honor, how could I bend down and pick up someone else's money? That would fly in the face of the sages' teachings. As the sages said..."
"The sages? Hmph." With a disdainful snort, Lord Li, the Chief Examiner, raised a hand without looking up from the register. "Enough. Go outside. Next."
He drew an X through the candidate's name. Another one struck from the list.
The same question kept coming, yet not one of the well-read scholars waiting outside could make it through.
"Silver ingot or banknote—which would you pick up?"
"The ten-tael banknote, of course!"
"...Next."
"..."
"Silver ingot or banknote—which would you pick up?"
"The five-tael silver ingot!"
"Next."
"The sil—"
"Next!"
Silver this, silver that. Were these the "talents" honed over brush, paper, ink, and inkstone, sifted through round after round of examinations, their bellies full of learning? Li Chenjing shook his head, set down the thick register, and took a small sip of tea. Then he rose and walked to the examination room's door. Leaning against the frame, he peered through the crack at the candidates thrown into chaos by his outrageous question.
"What does Li Chenjing's question have to do with governing a country, military strategy, or ingenious battle formations? I think he's just eccentric and trying to make things difficult for us!"
"I've long heard that the Prime Minister's Son resents talent and loves tormenting Academy Students at Dongxu Mansion. Seeing him today, I'd say the rumors were right!"
"I heard that despite being Dongxu Mansion's foremost Academy Student, he's never won the Holy Emperor's favor or been chosen for an appointment. He's spent years there without being appointed to court, while Academy Students who arrived after him are already officials. The Holy Emperor still leaves him out in the cold. He must be jealous of juniors like us who can take office straightaway!"
"Ha! If he resents talent, he should petition the Holy Emperor himself. Aren't they recruiting a new Warden for Qingzhou this year? Since he can't win the Holy Emperor's favor anyway, why not go somewhere far from the emperor's reach and satisfy his craving for office as a petty prison official?"
"Qingzhou is where demoted officials get sent! If he went to a miserable place like that, what career would he have left? He'd have to enter the cells, too. They'd call it supervising prisoners, but wouldn't he be shut up in prison himself? Not even a fool would petition to go there."
"Hard to say. If we still can't answer his damned question, who ends up a prisoner in Qingzhou is anyone's guess! One stroke of his brush, and he might send us lot off to that godforsaken backwater!"
"Um... sirs..." A faint voice drifted from the corner, too quiet to draw the attention of the candidates deep in discussion. "Might this humble student say something? I... think I know the answer to Lord Li's question."
"What?!"
The candidates whipped around. Even Li Chenjing, leaning by the door, raised an eyebrow and looked toward the inconspicuous boy huddled in the corner. A boy... was that a boy?
He was short and slight, his long robe nearly dragging on the floor. His fingers twisted together like little knots of green scallions, and he stood there as awkwardly as a young lady. Among the other candidates, he was easy to overlook. People blocked Li Chenjing's view of his face, yet an inexplicable sense of familiarity rose in him.
That little slip of a thing could barely stand steady, yet claimed to know the answer? Hmph. Interesting.
"What's the answer? Let's hear it."
"Yes! The banknote and the silver ingot—which would you pick up?"
He scratched his head, looking conflicted. "If it were me, I'd pick up both. Why leave either one lying there? Nobody said you're only allowed to pick up one piece of money from the ground."
"..." B-both? Was that allowed?
"Any normal person would pick up both, wouldn't they?"
"..." Hey, who are you calling abnormal?
"Heh." A soft laugh escaped Li Chenjing's throat. He gave a slight nod and raised an eyebrow at the boy outside.
Well said, kid. Give it to them.
Those fools had studied themselves stupid. They knew only how to follow rules, recite texts, and parrot other people's words. They couldn't adapt to circumstances or put what they'd learned to use. How were they any different from fake monks chanting sutras without grasping the Way?
He glanced over, wanting a clear look at the imp who had seen through his intentions, but the boy had somehow vanished into the crowd. Li Chenjing searched all around and found no trace of him.
Never mind. He had to be a candidate, or he wouldn't be here. Li Chenjing would see his face soon enough.
The boy had potential. What even trickier question should Li Chenjing use to test him?
Still pondering, Li Chenjing left the examination room by the side door and headed down the corridor, brow furrowed, toward the little dark room at the end—the privy.
He raised a hand and pushed open the door. As his black boot crossed the threshold, it struck something huddled beside the door with a thud. He looked down and saw a short, furtive figure squatting with his back to him, trembling. The fabric of his robe belonged to the young candidate who had just solved his tricky question.
"Who—who's there?! Can't you see someone's using the privy? Why did you barge in? Can't you queue up if you need to pee?"
"...You're using the privy?"
"Y-yes!! Confucius and Mencius might not have laid down any explicit rules about it, but people should queue to pee! You're a scholar. Don't you understand first come, first served? Haven't you heard how Kong Rong gave up the bigger pears? Get out, get out, get out!"
What did this have to do with Confucius, Mencius, or Kong Rong giving up pears? But that wasn't the point. The point was...
"You like to squat when you use the privy?"
"..."
"A man squats to use the privy?" A little cleverness was all well and good, but if this young scholar had some unspeakable peculiarity, Li Chenjing would not indulge him as Chief Examiner. Dongxu Mansion was no place for men with peculiar habits to pass themselves off as worthy candidates.