Rise From the Humble

Just before dawn, the sky went dark again.

The inn was brightly lit, and students and scholars got up to wash, pack their things, and prepare for a crucial battle in their lives.

"Brother Zhu, brother Zhu, have you washed up yet? Let's go..." Before the fat man Xue Chi arrived, the loud voice came from afar.

The fat man Xue Chi walked to the door of Zhu Ping'an's room, and just as he raised his hand to knock on the door, the door opened.

"Let's go." Zhu Pingan pushed open the door and said.

Zhu Pingan walked in front, and the fat man Xue Chi followed closely, panting heavily, and he couldn't walk fast when he was fat. Both of them were empty-handed and didn't bring anything, the fat man didn't even bring his golden lock and two fingers. The college exam is similar to the government exam. The materials used in the exam should be provided by the exam room, and the exam discipline should be strictly controlled to prevent cheating.

From time to time on the road, I met students and scholars who were going to the Jiangnan Gongyuan to take the exam. They were all serious in twos and threes, and few of them were relaxed and cheerful.

"Cough, cough, wait for us, pig." A call came from afar.

Zhu Pingan stopped and followed the prestige, and saw a few students and scholars who were panting on the bridge connecting the two sides of the Qinhuai River. They were all acquaintances, and the one who stopped Zhu Ping'an was Zhu Ping'an's uncle Zhu Shouren, and those who followed him were all Zhu Ping'an's villagers, including the uncle's fat friend.

Seeing his uncle and others coming across the bridge from the opposite side, Zhu Pingan didn't know what to say, he was about to take an exam, and he didn't forget about the many opportunities!

Due to time constraints, Zhu Pingan didn't introduce each other to Fatty Xue Chi and the others, so they went to Jiangnan Gongyuan together.

When we arrived in front of the gate of the Jiangnan Gongyuan, the rising sun in the eastern sky soaked half of the sky like blood, which seemed to indicate that today was an extremely bloody battle for the students and scholars.

At the gate of the Jiangnan Gongyuan, there were nearly a hundred yamen servants with serious expressions maintaining order, and dozens of sergeants in armor stood on both sides with swords, very serious. Candidates lined up separately according to the prefectures they came from, and candidates from each prefecture were divided into two teams under the command of the yamen servants.

There are several cases at the door, and behind each case, two officials in yamen uniforms are looking at the name book to screen candidates from various prefectures.

In the roll call book, each person’s birthplace, age, appearance, and three-generation resume are detailed, all of which have passed the life insurance stamp of the insurance company in advance, or have to sign in person. This is more cautious than the prefectural and county exams to prevent fake exams Substitution and other fraud.

The academic officer was sitting on a chair in the middle of the gate, and the two rows of students were all candidates.

The official called the candidates in the roll call book, and the candidates stepped forward to answer, loudly saying who was the guarantor. The academic officer will punish it on the spot as a fraudulent exam, and the consequences will be very serious; if the applicant finds out that he is indeed the applicant, he must loudly say that the applicant is so-and-so, so that the roll call is completed and the examinee can enter the hall .

"Zhu Ping'an, a native of Xiahe Village, is protected by Linsheng Sun Hongzhi, Liu Chuanwen, and Zhang Fangweng."

When it was Zhu Ping'an's turn, Zhu Ping'an bowed and sang aloud.

Soon, I heard my mentor, Mrs. Sun, and several mentors and friends should be guaranteed, "Lin gave birth to Sun Hongzhibao", "Lin gave birth to Liu Chuan Wenbao". "Gan Sheng Zhang Fang Weng Bao"

After the guarantee was completed, the officials nodded to signal Zhu Pingan to enter the arena. At this time, Zhu Pingan had time to communicate with his mentor Sun Laofuzi and others.

This time, Old Master Sun's eyes were quite appreciative.

After Zhu Pingan and Mrs. Sun finished looking at each other, they hurriedly glanced at Tixueguan, Tixueguan was a very authoritative man in his fifties, with a lot of aura, a square face and long beard, and he looked quite fair.

After only one glance, Zhu Ping'an was urged to move forward by the guide.

The gate of the Jiangnan Gongyuan is a three-que gate, a wooden structure, with pedestrians in the middle, and closed on both sides. The main entrance is five rooms in size, and on the middle gate is a plaque "Jiangnan Gongyuan". The left forehead is "Pimen" and the right forehead is "Yujun". There is a pair of stone lions more than one meter high at the main entrance, and there is a memorial archway on both sides. The book says: "Looking for scholars from Mingjing" and "Seeking talents for the country".

Zhu Pingan was led by a small official into the gate of the Jiangnan Gongyuan. After entering the gate and walking less than two meters forward, he saw two stele pavilions. One of the stones was engraved with the word "neat" in red, and the other was engraved with the word "serious". .

The little official led Zhu Ping'an to a short distance, and Zhu Ping'an was shocked by a magnificent building. It was a square three-storey building with a banner "Mingyuan Building" hanging on the gate. A gold character, the ground floor is surrounded by walls, each side has a circular door, four pillars are like golden cudgels reaching to the top, and each floor has countless windows to ensure that people in the building have sufficient vision. Obstacles to monitor the entire examination room, when the time comes, the academic officer and the invigilator will direct the entire examination room in this building.

This is worthy of being used as an examination room for the county examination, and it is really not comparable to the county examination in the dilapidated shed.

"Don't look, follow me to the dormitory, there are still people behind." The leader of the road is used to the surprise of the first-time candidates for the exam, but the habit is the habit, and what should be reminded still has to be reminded. Dare to delay the exam schedule.

"Oh." Zhu Ping'an came back to his senses, and followed the little official leading the way to the house.

The so-called number house is the examination room for students' examinations. Zhu Pingan followed the leading officials around Mingyuan Building to the west. Of course, there are also houses in the east, but the house where Zhu Pingan is located is in the west.

Nima

When Zhu Pingan saw the house, there were only these two words in his heart. The house was about 1.8 meters high, 1.2 meters deep, and 1 meter wide. The outer wall was more than 2 meters, and there was no door. There are nearly a hundred houses in a shop, all of which face south, and the two houses are separated by brick walls. The "character" number is written on the lintel wall of each lane, and the number is determined by the order of "Thousand Characters".

"What are you looking at, let's go in quickly." The guide led Zhu Pingan to a house and urged Zhu Pingan to go in quickly.

Zhu Pingan went in under the urging of the little official, and looked at the house. The two brick walls were between one and two feet above the ground, and two brick brackets were built, so that the upper and lower wooden boards could be placed on it. The wooden boards are staggered back and forth, the upper board is in the front, the lower board is in the back, the lower board is a bench, and the upper board is a table case, which is very simple.

"Your courtyard exam is okay. Each exam is only for one day. If it is a rural exam, you have to take the exam for several days. At night, take out the upper wooden board and put it on the lower wooden board to make a bed." After saying that, Ping An left.

Sitting in the dormitory, Zhu Pingan felt that there were only two words, one was aggrieved and the other was fair.

I say aggrieved because the house is too narrow, I can't stretch my legs, I can't stretch my waist, and I have to be careful when I stand up; I say fair because it doesn't matter whether you are a county magistrate or a poor person, whether you are rich or poor , as long as you come to take the exam, everything has to be kept here, which fully reflects the fairness.

Speaking of aggrieved, I can't help but think of the fat Xue Chi, hehe, that guy will peel off his skin after staying in the dormitory for a day.

Soon someone brought the test supplies in a basket, and Zhu Pingan thanked them, then began to arrange and tidy them up. Soon the pens, inks, papers and inkstones were ready one by one.

Everything is ready, just waiting for the east wind.