The county examination results

County Magistrate Pei Guangshen sat at his desk, solemnly reviewing the county examination papers submitted to him. There were two stacks, one marked "highly recommended" and the other "recommended." He focused mainly on the "highly recommended" papers and soon decided on the top scorer. Then he selected several "recommended" papers to check whether the examiners had made any oversights.

"Mm, very good. They really are seasoned examiners. Everyone largely agreed on which papers were good and which were not. I haven't found any errors."

He closed his eyes and massaged his temples with both hands. After reading papers all day, he was exhausted.

Then he put the papers away, ready to have someone handle the arrangements for posting the results. "Someone, ask Adviser Qian Shumian to come here."

"Yes, sir!"

Qian Shumian soon arrived. "My lord, what are your instructions?"

Pei Guangshen said, "The papers have all been graded. Take them and prepare to post the results!"

"Yes."

With official business concluded, the two began chatting about other matters.

Pei Guangshen sounded a little disappointed. "There weren't any particularly striking answers among this year's papers, either."

He had come from a poor family and understood the hardships of the lowest classes from childhood. After passing the imperial examinations, he had gained the opportunity to become a county magistrate. Devoted to speaking up for the people, he hoped to use his meager strength to do something practical for those under his jurisdiction.

The questions he had set for this county examination were closely tied to the people's everyday lives. Most candidates had followed very standard formats in their answers and could cite the classics to expound on ideas and principles. Yet they all spoke in generalities that barely scratched the surface, failing to get to the heart of the matter. Put into practice, their proposals would do nothing to solve the actual problems.

Still, it was understandable. These students were only at the preliminary stage of entering the imperial examination system, so naturally, they could not produce anything particularly profound, Pei Guangshen thought. Yet he could not hide his disappointment.

Qian Shumian had worked under Pei Guangshen for years and understood his longing for worthy talent.

But he found it a little strange. He had also served as an assistant examiner this year, and while grading, he had discovered an exceptionally outstanding paper. He had marked it "highly recommended," underlining and thickening the strokes to indicate that it deserved special attention.

From what he knew of the county magistrate, the candidate who had written that paper would most likely take first place. Why was His Lordship still sighing here, seemingly dissatisfied?

The answers on that paper truly were exceptional, and the beautiful handwriting in particular was unforgettable.

So Qian Shumian brought up that paper.

Pei Guangshen was puzzled. "I didn't see any handwriting among the 'highly recommended' papers that could be called unparalleled."

The two exchanged a glance, then began going through the papers on the desk. Qian Shumian picked up the paper currently ranked first and shook his head. "Not this one."

After going through the "highly recommended" papers, they moved on to the "recommended" stack and soon found it. The handwriting had the bearing of a master and stood out even among the many papers with fine penmanship.

"My lord, this is the one," Qian Shumian said, pulling out the paper and handing it over.

Pei Guangshen took it. The words "highly recommended" were marked on it in blue, but it lacked the education official's mark of "accepted." This meant that the education official did not consider the paper worthy of the highest grade.

His gaze moved farther down, and he could not help praising it. "The handwriting is strong yet beautiful, its natural forms full of variety. Wonderful! It rivals that of a master calligrapher. It certainly has what it takes to catch the eye!"

As he examined it closely, his eyes lit up. "The poetry is rooted in everyday life and brimming with inspiration; the answers on the classics are well substantiated, plain yet elegant, without ostentation. This belongs at the very top of the highest grade. It should rank first."

Beside him, Qian Shumian hesitated. "Why would the education official..."

Pei Guangshen found the paper previously ranked first, looked at the name on it, and read aloud, "Xu Qi." After a moment, he frowned. "The surname Xu. What a coincidence!"

Qian Shumian said, "I once visited the education official's home. Xu Qi seems to be his own nephew."

"Very good, very good! So that's how it is!" Pei Guangshen said angrily.

Both men were shrewd. How could they fail to understand the maneuvering behind this?

To ensure the education official had not tampered with other papers and caused further unfairness, Pei Guangshen stayed up that night roughly reviewing every "recommended" paper. Only after confirming there were no other errors did he leave the arrangements for posting the county examination results to his subordinates.

In the end, he awarded first place to the candidate who truly deserved it, while placing Xu Qi outside the top ten.

Originally, Xu Qi's paper could have earned second place. After his own uncle's flashy maneuvering, he ended up eleventh.

Pei Guangshen summoned the education official and flung the overlooked paper and Xu Qi's down in front of him. "You fool!" he snapped.

At the sight, the education official's vision went dark, and he fell to his knees, begging for mercy.

More than twenty days had passed since the county examination ended, and the day the results would be posted finally arrived.

During this time, Rong Zheng had concentrated on preparing for the upcoming prefectural examination. While answering the questions, he had already known that, barring any surprises, he would pass the county examination.

...Such was a top student's complete command of the situation.

Early that morning, Ye Yun accompanied Rong Zheng to town. Ye Chen had wanted to come along, but considering how crowded it would be around the results, they had him stay home and wait.

The county examination results would be posted in every town. By the time Rong Zheng and Ye Yun arrived, the bailiffs responsible had already put the list on the noticeboard, but red silk covered it, hiding the names.

People crowded around in ring after ring. Afraid Ye Yun would get jostled, Rong Zheng stood farther away on the outskirts.

Clang, clang, clang!

A bailiff struck a brass gong and called out, "The county examination results are now being announced!" He tugged, and the red silk fell away.

The crowd grew excited and pushed desperately forward. Some shouted along, "The results are out! The results are out!"

Ye Yun clenched his hands nervously and stood on tiptoe to look at the list, but there were too many tall people in front of him, completely blocking his view.

Rong Zheng was nervous too. He was confident he had passed, but he did not know where he would rank. He raised his eyes and looked down from the top, immediately spotting his name because it was simply too conspicuous.

At the very top of the list was written: First place, Rong Zheng, candidate number eighty;

He breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at his husband beside him, trying hard to jump up for a look, he chuckled, grasped him around the waist, and lifted him up. Ye Yun startled.

Then he heard Rong Zheng say, "Quick, look."

Ye Yun could no longer spare any thought for embarrassment at being seen by so many people. Seeing the list was what mattered most now. With an excellent view after being lifted up, he soon spotted Rong Zheng's name. He knew quite a few characters now and naturally recognized it.

Excited, he quickly lowered his head to tell Rong Zheng, but before he could speak, he heard Rong Zheng say, "Shh, we'll talk when we get home!"

Ye Yun hastily held his tongue, but his face was filled with smiles.

Rong Zheng set Ye Yun down and said, "Let's go home!"

Just then, someone in the crowd who could not read boldly asked, "Officer, who came first?"

The bailiff smiled. "Rong Zheng. He's the top scorer, and he's from our town!"

"What's a top scorer?" someone else asked.

The bailiff explained, "The person who came first in this county examination."

"Who's Rong Zheng? Is he here?" someone called out, and everyone looked around for him.

He had come first in the entire county. How remarkable must he be? Everyone was curious to see what he looked like.

Rong Zheng had already taken Ye Yun's hand and was walking farther and farther away, leaving everyone with only the sight of their retreating backs.