The sun rose as usual from the east. It was another new day.
The second day in the examination hall.
Yu Qing, who had been sitting cross-legged meditating in his cubicle, was woken by some noisy sounds. He slowly finished his practice and opened his eyes.
It was still early. The sunlight had only just reached the roof, but the candidates were already busy with various activities.
Some were relieving themselves, some were washing up. There were sounds of people walking around, sounds of cooking, and sighs from those who had not rested well. Since they came from all over the country with different habits, all kinds of noises and smells filled the air.
The candidate next to Yu Qing was eating baked flatbread. The special smell of the sauce he dipped it in drifted straight over.
The rules in the cubicles forbade talking. If anything was needed, candidates could directly approach the invigilators standing outside, who were officials sent by the court.
After sensing the atmosphere around him, Yu Qing shook his head and sighed. He, the dignified leader of the Linglong Temple, had actually come to such a place. It was truly a sin.
He got up, washed briefly, and then cooked the spiritual rice he had brought.
This time he had found a proper excuse to get some benefits from the Zhong residence, ten catties of spiritual rice. Last night he had already eaten a full meal and refined the spiritual energy from it while meditating.
Outside there were large water jars full of clean water and prepared charcoal for fire.
After eating and drinking his fill, it was past mid morning. The exam papers were finally handed out.
Although the exam was said to have started yesterday, yesterday was only for entry. There were simply too many people to check.
The examination grounds were sealed last night, cutting off all contact with the outside. The questions were set inside that night, and carpenters printed them overnight on wooden blocks to ensure every candidate received exactly the same paper.
Along with the exam papers came blank answer sheets.
Once the papers were received, no candidate was allowed to bring any scrap of paper out of the cubicle, and contact between candidates was strictly forbidden.
Yu Qing, who had been feeling uneasy, became completely still the moment he saw the questions. His gaze fixed straight on the paper and did not move.
The bug had not lied to him. The questions delivered to the Zhong residence were indeed the ones for this imperial examination.
He did not know how he felt right now. He had thought he would be happy after confirming he had the questions in advance, but now that it was confirmed he felt no joy at all. Only now did he truly understand what A Jiezhan had desperately wanted to change before his death.
He was just a person from the martial world. This seemed to have nothing to do with him. With that thought, Yu Qing moved his body and began to take out his writing tools.
Everything was ready. Following the steps Mr Ming had taught him, he worked step by step and started with a draft.
He buried his head and wrote for half the morning. Fearing he might forget, he first drafted the content he had memorised, then sat cross-legged again to cultivate. Otherwise he did not know how he would endure these days.
Invigilators who passed by occasionally saw this and had no reaction. They thought he was deep in thought.
On the third day he did the same. First he cooked a meal of spiritual rice to eat his fill, then began to copy the answers carefully word by word, trying to make his handwriting beautiful.
After copying one question and confirming there were no problems, he stopped again and continued meditating to refine the spiritual energy he had eaten that day.
On the fourth day he followed the same routine.
People outside the examination grounds could not see what was happening inside, but many were concerned.
Sunset and sunrise passed. It was another day, the fifth and final day of the examination.
The weather changed without warning. Dark clouds covered the morning sun and a light drizzle began to fall.
By the window, Zhong Ruochen stood for a long time, staring at the dripping water from the eaves.
Wen Ruowei was behind her. She had rolled up her trouser legs. There was a bruise on her fair calf from secretly climbing the stairs and falling. She was rolling a boiled egg on the bruise, grimacing and sucking in a breath of cold air. Then she called out, “Sister, help me.”
Zhong Ruochen was distracted and did not hear her sister even after several calls.
Wen Ruowei observed for a while, gave up, and continued rolling the egg herself. She muttered, “Brother-in-law, brother-in-law, I hope you can pull yourself together.”
She was not stupid. She had heard her mother hinting at cancelling the engagement and trying to get her sister to speak up. But she also knew her sister kept pretending not to understand. She refused to open her mouth and go against their mother for a person she had never met.
In his cubicle, Yu Qing stared at the light rain outside and lost focus. He was wondering whether to create an accident and let the rain soak the exam paper.
When they went to the examination hall earlier, Mr Ming had warned him in the carriage that if it rained he must protect the paper carefully. Papers damaged or soaked by rain would not be accepted. A Shihueng had not told him this trick. He had not expected it to really rain.
At the time Mr Ming mentioned it, Yu Qing had thought it would be convenient, but later decided against it. Since he could pass honestly, there was no need for such underhanded methods. Soiling the paper would lead to automatic failure, and the examiners would still investigate. Pulling him, this “A Shihueng”, out separately would cause extra trouble.
What stirred his thoughts was that it had really started raining.
In the end he suppressed the wicked idea and picked up a piece of clothing to shield the paper from the wind and rain.
He carefully copied the last question, then copied the short poem. After checking there were no mistakes, he covered his name and gathered all the papers together for safekeeping.
All that remained was to wait to hand them in.
After noon, the drum sounded in the examination grounds. The candidates immediately protected their papers and handed them in under the rain.
The main gates opened at the appointed hour. Candidates came out one after another. Some looked high-spirited, some had solemn faces, some let the rain fall on them, and some covered their heads and ran quickly. Yu Qing mixed in among them and came out. He looked around for Xu Fei but still did not see him, so he left with the scattered crowd.
When he walked out of the military blockade, his clothes were already half soaked. Before he had gone far, an umbrella was handed to him. It was Du Fei who had come with an umbrella to pick him up.
“Uncle Du.” Yu Qing smiled and reached for the umbrella.
Du Fei did not give it to him. Instead he helped remove the basket on Yu Qing’s back. With most of his own body exposed to the rain, he held the umbrella for Yu Qing and asked as they walked, “How was the exam?”
He observed Yu Qing’s expression, hoping to read something from it.
Yu Qing shrugged and spread his hands, looking indifferent.
Du Fei thought he was pretending to be relaxed and asked no more questions. He did not realise that Yu Qing truly did not care.
The two walked to the carriage. When Yu Qing got in, he found Squire Zhong inside again. The man had come personally to pick him up. Yu Qing was startled and quickly bowed inside the carriage. “Uncle.”
Squire Zhong tossed him a towel to dry himself. “I heard the conditions and rest in the examination grounds are not good. I was afraid you would not rest well and then get caught in the rain. But Du Fei said you practise internal energy and this little rain would not make you ill.”
Yu Qing nodded. “It is fine.”
Only then did Squire Zhong ask, “How did the exam go?”
Although he knew asking now might not get the real result, he could not help it.
Yu Qing smiled. “I did my best.”
Squire Zhong nodded slightly and said no more. All the way he swayed gently with the carriage’s movement, staring out of the window. It was clear his mood was rather heavy.
When they were almost at the Zhong residence, Squire Zhong spoke again. “If you pass, that is good. If not, stay in the capital to study. Once the results are posted, I will arrange for someone to handle the documents for you to remain in the capital at the Liezhou Guild Hall.”
“Yes.” Yu Qing agreed.
This was exactly what he wanted. He really did not want to return to Liezhou with the escort team. It was not free, and wearing a mask all the time annoyed him too.
Besides, because he had been confined in the Zhong residence preparing for the exam earlier, he had not yet found a suitable buyer for the fire cricket. He might need to stay in the capital for some time. Otherwise it would be hard to sell it for a high price in the countryside.
But to remain in the capital he needed to complete the procedures at the Liezhou Guild Hall. Otherwise, after the escort team returned to Liezhou, losing a candidate would be impossible to explain. Without the documents he would have to return with the group.
For this reason, Yu Qing held back from revealing the truth today. Anyway, the marriage would only be arranged after the examination results came out. He could get more spiritual rice in the meantime. It would be bad to ruin the relationship and lose this benefit.
Arranging the marriage after the results also prevented A Jiezhan’s son’s identity from being exposed too early and someone interfering with the exam outcome.
When the carriage returned to the Zhong residence, Steward Li who came to welcome them asked again how the exam went.
The mistress of the Zhong residence, Wen Jianhui, did not show up at all.
The next day the rain cleared and the sky was sunny.
Now that he had gained some freedom, Yu Qing immediately wanted to wander around the capital. However Du Fei did not give him complete freedom and insisted on sending two people to follow him, saying it was Squire Zhong’s order in case he got into trouble in the capital.
This made Yu Qing, who planned to find a suitable buyer, feel restricted. Facing Du Fei’s firm stance, he could only drop it. Everything could wait until after he revealed the truth.
Still, he asked for a carriage and went out. He did not go anywhere else but headed straight for the Cao residence.
The gatekeeper at the Cao residence saw the carriage was decent and quickly went to announce him.
Before long, Chong’er ran out happily and said, “Young Master Shihueng.”
Yu Qing told the Zhong residence attendants to wait outside and followed Chong’er inside.
Chong’er, who was leading the way, actually wanted to ask how the exam went, but felt it was not his place to ask, so he kept quiet. Still, he reminded him, “Young Master Shihueng, my young master has guests. Those four people and Young Master Zhan Muchun have come.”
“Which four?” Yu Qing asked, then immediately realised. Who else would be with Zhan Muchun? He tried, “The four with the surname Su?”
Chong’er nodded.
Yu Qing felt puzzled. These guys really were persistent spirits. How could he run into them even here? He asked, “What did they come for?”
Chong’er replied, “To catch up on old times.”
Yu Qing was speechless. He had to admit one thing. Those four who wore the same trousers and Zhan Muchun, along with Xu Fei, really got along well. They always found ways to mix together. After travelling all the way to the capital, their relationship had grown even closer. The six of them were probably close to becoming sworn brothers.
Oh well. Yu Qing thought for a moment. It was also time to tell fortunes for those guys. This saved him the trouble of looking for them one by one. So he asked, “Do they know I am here?”
Chong’er nodded. “When the gatekeeper announced it, they were all with the young master and heard it.”
Yu Qing hesitated. “What was their reaction?”
Chong’er lowered his head and stayed silent. He had seen someone sneer, but he did not want to say it behind their backs.
Yu Qing understood without him saying and gave a cold snort. He changed the subject. “Is Big Head all right?”
Chong’er immediately showed a smiling face. “He gets bones to eat every day and is very well behaved.”