Shen Yuxi sighed. [Tomorrow or an accident-no one knows which will arrive first.]
Everything was decreed by fate; not the slightest bit lay in human hands.
"Lord Bao, have someone stay by his side. When he wakes up, his emotions will be rather out of control."
The vice minister of rites nodded and answered, "Yes."
By the time the unconscious examinee woke again, the sun was already sinking in the west.
He opened his eyes, still hazily remembering bending over his desk to answer the questions. His fingers instinctively searched for his brush, only to touch the cold surface of a table.
Once he saw the side room he was in and heard the clerk explain how he had fainted, his eyes instantly reddened, and he struggled to get up.
"My exam paper... can I still go back and finish it?"
The clerk looked troubled and said reluctantly, "You can, but there's only a quarter of an hour left. Going now won't do any good!"
The examinee lay stiffly on the bed, tears slipping down in silence, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
He gazed out the window toward the examination compound, listening to the faint sounds of brushes touching paper in the distance, his heart full of unwillingness and regret.
He knew how to answer most of the questions on the paper, but now he did not even have the chance to put brush to paper and finish.
Ten years of bitter study, a dream shattered in a single day-he had actually lost to an accident just as he was about to cross the threshold.
"..."
Shen Yuxi had not forgotten her main task this time.
Supervise the examinees and prevent cheating.
[Host, this person has a little slip of paper under his tongue. He's already copied half of it.]
The examinee who heard this turned as pale as paper and nearly lost his grip on his brush.
Shen Yuxi's gaze darkened, and she said coldly, "You, come with me."
The man knew he was surely finished, his heart reduced to dead ashes.
As a clerk led him away, his legs were like cotton, trembling back and forth.
Shen Yuxi continued patrolling the examination cubicles.
She came to another examinee. This time, even without the system saying anything, Shen Yuxi herself noticed something was wrong.
For some reason, the examinee was shaking like chaff in a sieve, guilt written all over his face.
The system let out a disgusted "Ew."
Its tone was contemptuous. [Host, you'll never guess. He... he actually stuffed his cheat sheet into his... chrysanthemum, planning to dig it out and sneak a look...]
Damn, that's just too...
Disgusting.
Shen Yuxi turned and waved to a clerk, pointing at the examinee. "Take him away."
The clerk nodded.
He knew how formidable the system was. Not one of those taken away had been falsely accused.
Afterward, the system caught several more people.
Their method of cheating was exactly the same as that of the examinee who had stuffed a slip of paper into his chrysanthemum.
Speechless, Shen Yuxi pressed a hand to her forehead. These people really stop at nothing to cheat.
They really could stuff things into their chrysanthemums.
The system said, [The inspections before entering the examination grounds are strict. Examinees have to strip completely naked. They aren't even allowed to keep their underpants on, to prevent them from carrying cheat sheets or writing on their bodies or clothes. Those examinees have very few opportunities to cheat, so they can only use this private method to evade inspection.]
Dusk deepened.
Some examinees had finished long ago and were repeatedly reviewing their papers, revising minor details. Others were still writing furiously, while some rubbed their sore, swollen wrists, rested briefly, then picked up their brushes again.
Finished writing?
No matter. Keep writing anyway; put down everything that came to mind.
The bells and drums sounded again, signaling the end of the examination.
Once the examination ended, anyone who continued answering would be treated as cheating.
The examinees all put down their brushes and arranged their papers, while the clerks collected them one by one.
Shen Yuxi, the vice minister of rites, and the others counted the papers again. Once they had checked that everything was correct, the names were sealed on the spot, and designated copyists transcribed the papers before they were sent to the Ministry of Rites.
"The examination is over. Get some rest, everyone. The food will be brought over shortly."
The examinees were too tired even to speak. They lay down on the crude beds provided in their cubicles and closed their eyes to rest.
The examinees who had cheated were placed in a side hall, together with the examinee who had fainted.
According to the rules, examinees who cheated would be blacklisted and barred from taking the imperial examinations for life.
Imperial guards carried meal boxes over and placed one on each examinee's desk.
The wooden lids were opened.
"Wow, that smells amazing! It's braised pork!"
"There are pastries too!"
The examinees froze at first, then their eyes went wide.
The court supplied all their meals during their days in the examination compound.
Whether to save on expenses or out of consideration for the examinees' health, the meals were all light, with scarcely any meat to be seen, much less delicate pastries.
Yet this time, the meal delivered actually contained more meat than vegetables.
The tempting aroma of meat made their throats tighten.
Everyone had long since grown hungry. Throwing decorum aside, they shoveled rice into their mouths.
Shen Yuxi had specified the menu for this meal.
The examinees had spent an entire day taxing their brains. How miserable would it be if they could not even get a piece of meat?
What damn use were greens and steamed buns?
Their bodies had suffered enough. There was nothing wrong with stuffing something tasty into their mouths and satisfying their appetites!