Arrangements
"Miss, Madam Cui from the Beining Women's Academy has arrived," Dianjiang rushed in from outside and reported. "She's in the inner hall; Madam wants to see you."
Zhao Ruxi stood up. "Why is Teacher Cui here?" She lifted her skirt and walked out.
Upon entering the inner hall, she indeed saw Madam Cui talking to Lady Zhu, both of them smiling.
Zhao Ruxi entered and bowed, saying, "Master."
"Come, have a seat." Madam Cui beckoned to her, looked her over carefully for a moment, then turned to Lady Zhu and smiled, "Your complexion is as good as ever, which puts my mind at ease."
Because of her status as a widow and her role as the academy's administrator, she was always serious and unsmiling in front of the students, who were somewhat afraid of her. However, in front of Zhao Ruxi, Madam Cui was always very kind.
"That's right. She's so carefree. When she was taking her exams, I couldn't eat or sleep, and I aged several years in those days. But she was fine. Despite all that hard work and pressure, she ate and slept as usual, and came back from the exams looking even more energetic than me," Lady Zhu said with a smile.
"That's good, that's wonderful," said Madam Cui.
After saying this, she explained to Zhao Ruxi, "I didn't come for anything. I was just worried and wanted to check on you."
As the provincial examination approached, the painting training class ended, and Zhao Ruxi stopped going to the Beining Women's Academy, choosing instead to study at home on her own.
Later, she participated in the prefectural examination and waited for the results to be released. After the results were released, she wanted to take a few days off to relax, so she did not go to the Beining Women's Academy during this period, but only sent Qingfeng to ask for leave on her behalf.
It had been more than half a month since Madam Cui had last seen her.
"I'm doing well, just like my mother said, I can eat and sleep well," Zhao Ruxi said. "I just feel a little lazy, I plan to rest at home for a few days before going to the academy."
"You need to rest properly! Working non-stop like this, who can stand it? You were so busy the other day that you lost weight," Lady Zhu said with concern.
Her words were also a subtle reminder to Madam Cui not to push her daughter too hard.
Zhao Ruxi took the county examination in February and the prefectural examination in April. In between, she also had to teach students in a painting training class, which made Lady Zhu feel very sorry for her. Now that she had finally finished the prefectural examination and the painting training class had ended, Zhao Ruxi was just about to take a break when Madam Cui came to her door.
Although she, as a mother, respected and appreciated Madam Cui, she couldn't help but harbor some resentment in her heart.
Madam Cui also understood the implication in Lady Zhu's words and couldn't help but feel apologetic—she had indeed been too impatient.
As a result, she couldn't bring herself to say what she was about to say.
Zhao Ruxi, however, saw through her intentions and said proactively, "Teacher, don't worry, I'll only rest for two days. I'll return to the academy the day after tomorrow. I plan to take the provincial examination at the end of May. I need to go back to the academy and ask the teachers to review my essays."
The timing of the imperial examinations in the Great Jin Dynasty differs from that in the ancient times Zhao Ruxi lived in. Whether it was originally the case or was reformed by Empress Shengyao, the provincial and metropolitan examinations were held every three years, while the preliminary examinations and the provincial examinations were held every year.
In other words, Zhao Ruxi obtained the qualification of a student after passing the county and prefectural examinations. If she wished to take the county-level examination for the title of Xiucai, she could participate in the provincial examination at the end of May.
Madam Cui came here to ask about this matter.
But when Zhao Ruxi offered, she hesitated and asked, "Isn't this too rushed? It's too tiring. You can postpone the exam until next year."
Although the three examinations were held every year, many people felt the pressure was too great and the exams were too tiring, so they often split them into two steps. They would take the preliminary examination for the first year and then the county-level examination for the second year. Rushing into the examinations without being properly prepared and failing would affect their confidence and lead to a poor performance the following year.
For example, Xu Chongwen, after passing the preliminary examination, chose to stop and study for another year before taking the county-level examination the following year.
Zhao Ruxi wasn't under any pressure to pass the imperial examinations to uphold the family's reputation, so Madam Cui felt embarrassed to make her take the exams repeatedly.
But she was also worried that Zhao Ruxi might give up halfway through.
You see, Zhao Ruxi will be of marriageable age this summer, and her marriage will soon be on the agenda. She won't participate in the academy examination this year, but if she gets engaged next year, she might change her mind and not take the exam.
"Miss Xi, if you really want to take the exam, why don't you just take it all at once this year?" Lady Zhu suddenly said.
Madam Cui looked at Lady Zhu with surprise.
She hadn't expected that Lady Zhu would both feel sorry for her daughter and encourage her to work non-stop. She really didn't understand what Lady Zhu was thinking.
Lady Zhu's idea was very simple.
Zhao Ruxi knew her personality well. Once she made up her mind to do something, nothing could sway her. Rather than dragging things out, she might as well finish the exam all at once. She didn't care how well she did. As long as she passed and had no regrets, Zhao Ruxi wouldn't dwell on it.
After she finishes the imperial examination, next year we'll honestly arrange her marriage.
Zhao Ruxi knew what Lady Zhu was thinking. However, she was too lazy to argue and nodded, saying, "Yes, I'll finish the exams this year. I'll take the preliminary exam in May, and if I pass it smoothly, I'll take the provincial exam in August."
She didn't say anything about next year.
Plans often go awry. She's making all the plans right now, but what if the battle this winter causes turmoil in the court and a dramatic change in the situation? Then her plans might have to change.
"Okay, okay." A bright smile appeared on Madam Cui's face.
"When I get back, I'll have the teachers compile all the past years' exam papers. You should rest for a few days first, and then go back to the academy to review and work through those papers. If there's anything you're weak in, take advantage of the time to work on it," she said.
"Yes, that's what I'm planning to do too." Zhao Ruxi nodded.
The two exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly.
"By the way, how's the newspaper going?" Zhao Ruxi asked.
She's been so busy lately that she hasn't had time to keep up with the newspapers.
The smile on Madam Cui's face vanished as soon as the newspaper was mentioned.
She sighed, "It's not as good as we imagined."
She then described the newspaper's sales figures.
They originally planned to publish a ten-day magazine, but later found that they were overwhelmed with tasks such as collecting manuscripts, typesetting, proofreading, printing, and sales, so they simply changed it to a monthly magazine.
Therefore, they have only published four issues of the newspaper since the end of the year.
The first issue was printed in 300 copies, but Grand Princess Shangde held a banquet and gave each attendee a copy of the newspaper, totaling about 100 copies. The remaining 200 copies were bought by the students and teachers of the Beining Women's Academy, each costing 30 coins.
She printed another 300 copies for the second issue, but no longer gave them away. Students of the Women's Academy could also purchase them freely. Those who wanted to buy them had to send someone to the Beining Women's Academy to buy them.
Only a little over 180 copies were sold, 100 of which were purchased by teachers and students of the Beining Women's Academy.