The Prefectural Examination

In ancient times, there was no urban heat island effect, and the capital city was located in the north, so the weather at the end of May was not hot and the temperature was quite pleasant.

As a seasoned test-taker, she knew that no matter what the exam was, as long as her family had a car to take her to the exam venue, she wouldn't need anyone to drive her. But her family was worried, so Zhao Yuanxun took leave from work to drive her to the entrance of the exam venue.

Zhao Ruxi still took the exam in a separate courtyard next to the examination hall. She was still supervised by four examiners, both chief and deputy.

The provincial examination consisted of two sessions, with questions similar in format to the prefectural examination.

This time, Zhao Ruxi did not hand in her paper early, but only put down her pen when the examiner announced "time is up." She also spent more time writing the essay than usual, trying to make it better.

When the results were posted, she was ranked sixth.

"Sixth place is quite good. Look at those old scholars with white hair; they've studied their whole lives and taken the exams their whole lives, but they still haven't passed the county-level exam. How easy is it to pass the provincial-level exam? Not to mention, we're in the capital, where there are so many talented people," Lady Zhu comforted her.

Ever since her daughter only came in second place in the last prefectural examination, she had been silent for two days. After that, she studied even harder, which told her that her daughter was still quite competitive. When she only came in sixth place in the provincial examination, she was afraid that her daughter would get stuck on it, so she specially comforted her.

Zhao Ruxi nodded. "Mother, I know."

The top scholars in each provincial and palace examinations stayed in the capital. These scholars were generally more intelligent than the average person, and the children they taught were unlikely to be bad. As a result, the capital had more talented people than other places.

How easy is it to come out on top in the imperial examinations in the capital?

Moreover, Zhao Ruxi only spent about half a year studying the Four Books and Five Classics. Others started reading them at the age of six or seven and studied them for at least ten years. Her ability to rank sixth was already due to a stroke of luck.

It's likely that her writing has a different perspective than that of the ancients, offering a refreshing perspective and enabling her to achieve such success.

Zhao Ruxi wasn't too concerned about her ranking; she was just disappointed that she hadn't earned more points in this exam.

Although the provincial examination was of a higher level than the prefectural examination, because I only ranked sixth, the points I earned were the same as those in the prefectural examination.

"Host, if you don't buy something from the mall soon, I'm going to start upgrading." The system started popping up incessantly in Zhao Ruxi's mind after she left the main courtyard, its tone tinged with annoyance.

It hadn't received any points in a long time. Even though the host had accumulated a huge pile of points, it could only look at them, not touch them. This really annoyed it.

What's even more frustrating is that the host barely pays any attention to it.

It sits in the corner drawing circles every day, and mushrooms are practically growing from it.

Alas, no system has ever fared more miserably than it.

Zhao Ruxi didn't speak, but pulled out the light screen and frowned slightly as she looked at the points displayed on it.

After accumulating points over this period, she reached 100,000, enough to buy the Recovery Pill she wanted. However, the effects of these pills were quite limited.

Since winter ended and the weather warmed up, Zhao Yuanxun's health improved. After he started working at the Court of Judicial Review, whether it was because of his daily exercise or because he had a career he loved, his mental state was excellent, his complexion gradually became rosy, his body was no longer as thin as before, and he looked energetic. He hadn't had a headache or fever for a long time.

The old lady was in pretty good health to begin with. Since the family divided their property, she had fewer worries, ate and slept well, and at Zhao Ruxi's urging, she walked back and forth in the mansion twice every morning and evening. Now she looks radiant and seems like she could easily live to be eighty or ninety.

Kang Shilin was even more remarkable; he walked with more energy than young people, was quick-witted, and had an excellent memory. You couldn't tell he was an elderly man nearing seventy.

She had accumulated her points with great difficulty, and she was reluctant to buy these pills unless absolutely necessary.

Leaving that aside, she wouldn't allow herself to be in danger, so she always had guards, maids, and servants with her wherever she went to avoid all danger and trouble. Therefore, the Agility Pill and Great Strength Pill she took had no effect.

After much thought, she decided to save her points for future emergencies and not waste them just because the system Gao Xing.

However, this system is becoming increasingly difficult to fool.

She asked, "While you're upgrading, can I still buy things from your store?"

"If I buy it and put it on the shelf, you can buy it. Otherwise, you'll have to wait until my upgrade is complete before you can buy it," the system said.

Because the system was afraid of being stuck with unsold stock, it didn't dare to stock up until Zhao Ruxi decided to buy. Ever since Zhao Ruxi bought the Great Strength Pill, the entire screen has been bare.

"What about the news?" Zhao Ruxi asked again.

"I will be asleep during the upgrade, so I won't be able to gather information for you." The system's voice was flat and emotionless, a far cry from its former enthusiasm and liveliness, clearly showing how much resentment it harbored towards Zhao Ruxi.

"How long will it take you to upgrade?"

The system paused for a moment, wondering if it should lie to its host to prevent her from getting cocky and taking it for granted that she was capable and smart and didn't need any cheat codes.

But before it could even finish, Zhao Ruxi said, "We're bound together. If I die, you'll disappear too. So the coup in winter is very important to us. If your leveling up takes a long time, I suggest you wait until I get to Jiangnan before you level up."

She sighed, "Don't think I don't need you or buy you things all the time. But baby, you need to know that you are extremely important to me. You are my golden finger, my lifeline. I will need you in the most critical moments, when my life is threatened. Baby, you can't abandon me."

The system originally wanted to be aloof and ignore its scumbag host.

Upon hearing Zhao Ruxi's words, the corners of its mouth couldn't help but turn up, and its voice carried a hint of barely suppressed joy and pride.

"Hmph, so you finally realize how important I am, huh? Let me tell you, if you ignore me, I won't talk to you anymore. When you're in danger and no one's there to help you, then you'll realize your mistake."

"Yes, yes. Actually, I've always known how important you are, and I can't live without you. But people say that good steel should be used on the blade. If I spend all my points recklessly, what will I do when I need life-saving medicine or information at a crucial moment? Am I just going to watch us both perish?"

The system fell silent.

After a long pause, it finally spoke, "Alright, alright. I forgive you. I'm not in a hurry to level up; I'll level up after you arrive in Jiangnan."

Zhao Ruxi breathed a sigh of relief. She had finally managed to fool... no, appease her leader again. Sigh, so tiring.