It was already evening when they returned from the orphanage. After discussing with Director Wang Wei, Chen's mother, Xie Qinghuan, decided to invite three teachers: one to teach the children to read and write, one to teach them martial arts, and one female teacher to teach the little girls embroidery.
After some time, the children will be divided into classes based on their individual circumstances.
Of course, with everyone's arrival, they weren't doing nothing. The older children would still do odd jobs, as the Hou family's estates, shops, and hilltops needed people, and everyone could work there.
Everything is proceeding smoothly.
Soon, the Great Yan Dynasty ushered in a major event: a nine-day imperial examination.
"Brother, we're going to the examination hall tomorrow. Everything's ready, so you don't need to go out."
Shen Qinghong nodded in agreement as he listened to Shen Mingzhu's words.
Host, you're quite cautious!
"Guagua, absolutely! Haven't you heard about what's been happening in Shengjing lately? Some students have broken their hands and can't write anymore; some have been poisoned; some have been disfigured... If you say these things weren't deliberately done, who would believe it!"
Shen Changyuan listened to Shen Mingzhu's thoughts and sighed softly.
Emperor Jingyuan also heard about this.
Right now, Crown Prince Yan Beichen is dealing with this matter. The person who was arrested was caught red-handed but is still crying out that he is innocent!
...
The next day, before dawn, seeing the guards, servants, relatives, and students crowding densely at the entrance of the examination hall, Shen Mingzhu sighed inwardly and entered the examination hall without looking back.
She was the proctor.
Guagua, don't I look beautiful in my official uniform today?
My host is always beautiful!
When Prince An saw Shen Mingzhu holding a hand warmer, he greeted her happily.
It's already November, and the weather is getting cooler.
Good news: Wang Chuanzong, Xue Pengfei, Zhao Deren, Leng Lujie, Shen Qinghong, and Xiao Yanzhi are all in her exam room and haven't drawn any bad numbers yet.
Bad news: They're not far from getting a bad number!
Especially Wang Chuanzong, he was in the cell next to the stinking cell!
A faint, foul odour wafted into his nose.
At this moment, Shen Qinghong was fortunate that his sister gave him a "magic weapon"—a nose plug and a mask!
Besides, he wasn't that close by, so thankfully!
Looking at Wang Chuanzong's sour face, Shen Mingzhu felt a little smug.
Guagua, look at Young Master Wang's face! It's puffed up with anger, like a fat pufferfish!
Host, at least he gave you a mountain, a hot spring resort, and two shops!
Prince An: She's still a little girl!
However, looking at the Wang family's son, he still felt some sympathy for him.
Luckily, he didn't draw a bad number, so there won't be any shit stamps on the exam paper!
Look at that student who drew a bad number. Their face looks like they're constipated...
Life is full of different aspects, and success is fully demonstrated in this moment.
What made Prince particularly happy was that he was in the same examination room as Shen Mingzhu, as he was sure he would hear a lot of gossip, which pleased him greatly.
These nine days of joy belong solely to him!
Host, did you see the student who drew an unlucky number?
Looking at the student who seemed to be constipated, Shen Mingzhu asked in confusion.
Guagua, what happened to that unfortunate kid?
Host, he doesn't need your sympathy. He's an abusive husband! He beats his wife at home whenever things don't go his way. I feel it's not bad for him to have drawn such a bad number!
Prince An looked at the student sitting in the stinky cell. He was thin and handsome and did not look like someone who would commit domestic violence.
Prince An: Indeed, one can not judge a book by its cover, nor can one measure the depths of the sea!
No one has X-ray vision to see what kind of soul lies beneath that skin!
Watching the students cleaning up the exam number boards, Shen Mingzhu strolled leisurely around the entire exam hall, followed by Prince An.
Host, do you see that burly student?
Shen Mingzhu looked at the burly student; the examination cell was almost overflowing with him!
So strong!
So fat!
Guagua, does he beat his wife at home, too?
Host, not at all! He's incredibly good to his wife! She came to Shengjing with him on this imperial examination and has been taking excellent care of him ever since! He's of average appearance but quite learned, and his greatest wish is to return to his hometown, become a county magistrate, and bring prosperity to the people!
Okay, then we should keep a close eye on this student.
Host, he is Li Gang, a student from Pei County!
Um.
Prince An silently made a note of the man. If he passed the imperial examination, he would ask his elder brother to let him return to his hometown to serve as a county magistrate.
Prince An: This is just how good I am!
As if he had thought of something, he took out a small notebook and drew a few circles on it to write it down...
This was granted permission by the Emperor to be brought in, also to record the students' information and facilitate the selection of talent.
The main concern is that Prince An might not be sharp enough and might forget some things...
Prince An: Are you being polite?
Around noon, Crown Prince Yan Beichen came again.
Shen Qinghong glanced up, then looked down again and continued answering the questions.
The Crown Prince must have come to see his younger sister...
My younger sister said he would win, and he did win fifth place in the second division. He wants to work hard, and it's not impossible for him to make it into the first division.
The bolder you are, the greater your ranking will be; just keep striving!
Wasn't this the moment he had been studying so hard all these days?
As darkness approached, Crown Prince Yan Beichen brought Shen Mingzhu another hand warmer, and the air grew colder and colder.
Slowly, snowflakes began to fall.
It's snowing!
The students in the examination room were terrified.
Why is it suddenly snowing?!
The test paper!!!
Make sure it doesn't get wet!
The temperature is also slowly dropping.
Shen Qinghong quickly took out his fox fur cloak and another cloak to wrap around the front of his cell as an airtight curtain.
Xiao Yanzhi: Treacherous!!!
Hateful!
He only brought a cloak!
Without hesitation, he wrapped his cloak around his cell, just like Shen Qinghong had done.
The children of the powerful and wealthy are alright, but poor students are in a terrible situation!
The wind blows gently, and one can't attend to everything at once; it's true that man proposes, God disposes.
A sudden scream shocked the entire examination room.
A student accidentally spilt ink on his exam paper and was stunned on the spot, followed by deafening cries...
Inside the examination cell, Shen Qinghong lit a candle and quickly continued working on the questions.
Wang Chuanzong was furious at Shen Qinghong and Xiao Yanzhi's actions.
He grabbed his clothes and stuffed them into his nose, feeling like his head was about to explode!
He saw Shen Mingzhu walking back and forth and glared at her fiercely several times.
Guagua, is Wang Chuanzong crazy? Why is he glaring at me? He deserves to be so close to that stinky examination cell that it'll suffocate him!!!
Host, keep a low profile. You are the noble proctor. Keep a close eye on him, and deal with him immediately if he makes any moves.
Well, I won't stoop to his level!
Host is mighty, domineering, and absolutely awesome!!!
Prince An covered his mouth and chuckled softly from behind; how amusing.
Host, this Wang Chuanzong was actually quite lucky. Before the imperial examination, someone plotted against him, but the spiked drink was mistakenly consumed by someone else! He unintentionally escaped a disaster!
Guagua, he dodged the drugged wine, but he couldn't escape the stench of stinking cell~~~ "Hahaha~~~
Host, that's definitely true! He just doesn't know that the student he's on good terms with actually hates him!
Sigh... He treated people like brothers, but they treated him like an ATM.
Prince An: What?
Is the young master of the Langya Wang clan a cash cow?