Rise From the Humble

Candidates are checked one by one, from the dark to the rising sun.

This kind of search is not ineffective. When a man in front of Zhu Ping'an was searched, he was found entrained. The way of entrainment is his quilt. The inside of the quilt is densely packed with small characters, which are perfectly matched with the elegant black flowers of the quilt. I don’t know how many eight-legged essays he copied, all of which are inscribed questions. However, he was still found out by the searching officers.

On the spot when he was found out, the examinee piled up on the ground like a lightning strike, trembling all over.

"Drag it out, send soldiers and horses to investigate, and deal with it strictly for one month!"

The middle-aged examiner waved his hand seriously, and then four soldiers came up, lifted the man who was piled on the ground, and roughly took the man into custody regardless of his cry for mercy. go out.

After the entrained man was released, Zhu Ping'an stepped forward to be searched.

Naturally, Zhu Ping'an would have no problem, passed the search and inspection smoothly, and entered the Gongyuan.

However, the two soldiers responsible for the inspection were a little unhappy. When they recalled this scene a few days later, they couldn't help but take a deep breath and looked at the sky with deep eyes:

I just remember that it was very cold that day and we were all sweating.

What actually happened that day was that they became artificial cutters of food. Zhu Ping'an carried large and small bags with a lot of food, including preserved fruits, dried meat, cooked food, etc., and even a lot of rolled noodles. The two soldiers used special food inspection knives to cut and cut. After cutting for a long time, their hands were sore. They had been exercising too much and it was so cold that they were sweating.

After Zhu Pingan passed the inspection, he entered the Gongyuan and found his seat according to the examination card.

Compared with Yingtian Gongyuan, the total area of ​​the Gongyuan in the capital is relatively smaller. The Gongyuan in the capital is built with rows of simple houses with civil structures, densely packed with hundreds of rows. Each row is numbered 100, and No. 1 is a house. , ranked according to "Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang" in "The Thousand-Character Classic", the so-called "No. 1 Tianzi" comes from here. This small room is called the field house, also called the examination number, and some are called the number room, which is based on the same idea as the cell numbering of the cells.

Zhu Pingan found his dormitory according to the test card. Zhu Pingan was very unlucky this time. He was in the "stinky dormitory" that everyone avoided, that is, the dormitory near the toilet.

The dormitory here is also different from the dormitory during the rural examination. There is no difference in size. It is five feet long, four feet wide and eight feet high. In other words, it is tall enough for a person to stand up without touching his head, and wide enough for you to stretch out an arm. Just touch the opposite wall, the deeper one is bigger. this house

The difference lies in the layout of the dormitory. This dormitory has a northern kang, which is used for sleeping. Although it is not very spacious, as long as the head is facing in, the legs can always be straightened, but it may have to be stretched as far as Go outside the kang; this kang doubles as a seat for answering papers, so it feels more comfortable than the Yingtian residence. The long wooden board on the kang serves as a desk and dining table. There are also a charcoal brazier and a few candles on the kang.

There was no door to this dormitory, so Zhu Pingan walked straight in, packed up the things, and after placing them, he took out the pot, added water, sprinkled some seasonings, added noodles, pieces of meat, and a few slices of cabbage. leaf.

Then, I used the simple stand that came with me to set up the pot and started cooking.

From the time he washed up and went out to the middle of the day, Zhu Ping'an hasn't had a drop of water, and he is in a bad house. He has just entered the Gongyuan and no one is using the toilet, so he quickly cooks something to eat. The province's bad house is worthy of its name. , there is no such environment.

gurgling

The meat porridge, cabbage and noodle soup in the small pot was sizzling, steaming and fragrant, spreading far and wide.

The soldier who was proctoring the exam next to him was about to collapse. After so many years of proctoring the exam, this was the first time he saw such a candidate who was assigned to a bad number. I've never seen such a fierce man before! I have never seen someone eager to cook something to eat as soon as they enter the stinky number!

The candidate who was assigned to the bad number in the past was not vomiting, his face was pale, and he was on the verge of collapse! Candidates like this who have just entered the stinky cell and can't wait to cook something before their stools are warmed are simply blinded by the soldiers who invigilate the exam.

The chief examiner, Xu Jie, accompanied by several fellow examiners, inspected the examination room. This was also the usual practice. From the beginning, he shocked the examination room and strictly enforced discipline. On the other hand, it also meant to encourage and mobilize the examination room staff.

When Xu Jie and others were strolling almost to the smelly horn, they heard a sound of sniffing.

When they heard this sound, Xu Jie and others all changed their expressions.

This is a stinky signal. Why is there such a sound? ! In the past, when the invigilator came here, he would always hear the candidates' plaintive voices. Why was there such a strange sound today.

It should be noted that the examination room at this time did not have any sanitary conditions. At the end of the laneway of the dormitory, there was a simple shed with a cesspool inside for candidates to relieve themselves. For three days, all the candidates taking exams were nearby. The smell was unpleasant and mosquitoes and flies were flying around. Not to mention the exam, even the stink was enough for the candidates.

The smelly number is close to the location of this simple toilet, and it is next door to it.

Out of curiosity, Xu Jie and others took two more steps forward.

Then, they saw a scene that overturned their three views: a simple and honest young man who looked about fifteen years old was holding a small iron pot in the smelly house, slurping and eating with chopsticks, and he was eating very much. Xiang was so immersed in it that his head was sweating.

On the contrary, the soldier who was proctoring the exam in front of the stinking bugle looked pale and almost collapsed. It seemed that there was something dark in his heart.

No

It would be nice if there were no mourners everywhere. How can you still eat so happily?

For a moment, the contrasting image made Xu Jie remember this young man who was eating deliciously and immersedly in the stinky house holding an iron pot.

Despite the stinking noise, his face did not change, he was calm and composed, and he drank as much as before.

This kind of person is definitely not an ordinary person! Either he is stupid, or he is an extraordinary genius! Interesting, very good, I, Xu Jie, remember this person.

Zhu Pingan was so engrossed in eating that by the time he reacted, Xu Jie and other examiners had already walked away.

Because I got up early in the morning, probably around two in the morning, I was seriously sleep deprived. Therefore, after Zhu Ping'an finished eating, he simply washed the pots, bowls and chopsticks, put the things aside and put away the kang. He spread a fur mat on the kang, lay down, and then took out a thick rabbit fur blanket to cover himself with, and fell asleep beautifully.

The soldier who was proctoring the exam outside looked at this scene and was speechless. He went to bed after eating. Is this on a bad call or in broad daylight? I have never seen such a candidate before.

After a round of inspection, Xu Jie and other examiners who returned from the original route passed by and immediately saw Zhu Pingan, who was sleeping high up on the bed and snoring too loudly.

Being assigned to a bad number and sleeping after eating, such candidates have given up on themselves.

When several examiners saw this, they couldn't help but shake their heads and chuckle. They looked at Zhu Ping'an, who was sleeping high, with a mocking look.

Uh, it seems that this candidate belongs to the former, and I was mistaken, Xu Jie shook his head slightly, a little disappointed.