I have a fortune book

Chapter 18: Not Envy Is Mediocre

The sky was getting dark, and the county examination room was already crowded with people, vendors, servants waiting for the examination, relatives and friends receiving the examination, and of course there were more melon-eaters watching the excitement.

Even if a group of marching soldiers and servants separated a few meters away in front of the dragon gate, they could not stop the eyes of many people looking in.

Everywhere in this world pays attention to status and status, and taking the exam is no exception. No, the positions near the Longmen are all occupied by people from various big and small families.

"This time, there are more than ten young masters in your family who participated in the test, so they are really prosperous!"

"It's a pity that last year's county examination, my He family only produced three children, and even the business was a little bit worse."

"Hey, the ancestors of our family's self-promoters started the family, and there is no more juren. I only hope that in the past few years, there will be a scholar." Several rich people in bright clothes said with emotion.

"There's nothing for our family to discuss. If a small family doesn't come to the table, no matter how good the exam is, it's the same. It depends on whether the Xianhao family can produce a few good seedlings."

"The Zhou family, the Wu family and other powerful families can also talk about it. They have made a lot of noise over the years."

"If you don't raise people, build a few manors, and open a few shops, it's a big deal? You're not just a villager." As he spoke, people from several families actually started arguing over who was strong and who was not. .

Fortunately, the topic changed quickly, because the crowd in the rear suddenly gave way to three roads, and the people who came were the family stewards of Zhao, Qian, and Chen who were taking the exam.

"Hurry up and give way. These three families are the county magnates of our Pingcang. Don't cause trouble for the family." There are still many people with discerning eyes, and immediately reminded the companions in front to move out of the way.

The stewards of the Howe family in Sanjia County each followed a group of slaves, but they did not look above the top, but greeted and chatted with other stewards of the small clan with a smile.

There is no way, it is very difficult to raise the family status by one level, and if you want to overwhelm other county tyrants at the county level, you have to win the support of more small local families.

"I heard that Young Master Chen Yun knew a thousand characters at the age of three, recited ancient poems at the age of five, and read the Four Books and Five Classics by the age of seven. I think this time I will be able to get credit for taking the exam."

"Young Master Qian has postponed taking the county examination for a few years, and his savings will definitely be abundant this year. Maybe being a scholar is not the goal."

"Guard Zhao, Master Liangji is talented and intelligent, he must be the first one to leave the examination room."

The stewards of the county tycoons give face, and the members of other small families will of course mention it along the way. The information about the lineages of the major county tycoons is almost precious.

However, no matter how much they tout, there is a tit-for-tat meaning in the words of this family and its fans.

The county examination is really not difficult for young masters from a family like them, and it is a foregone conclusion that they will pass the examination.

It's nothing more than the young master who leaves the examination room first, that is, the first to press the head. There is a saying in previous years.

"Open the market, bet on which young master will leave the examination room first, and bet on how many children each family can win this time." In a corner, a well-informed businessman has already set the market.

Slowly, time passed, and everyone's eyes were already looking forward.

Zhou Bai didn't know that there was an argument outside, but he strode forward, and Shi Shi ran out of the side door.

Although the lunch in the examination room is full, it is not very hungry. It is all food without oil and water.

He found that since his body was transformed by Xiaocheng's bow skills, his health returned to health, and his digestion ability was really incomparable.

If you are hungry, you should find some snacks to satisfy your hunger.

"Come out, the first candidate has come out!"

"Huh? Which family is this young master? I consider myself Bai Xiaosheng. Why is there no record of this person?" The news dealer who opened the market was the most surprised.

The veteran of Zhou Rui's family widened his eyes, and immediately shouted excitedly: "Master Bai, here."

Seeing that everyone seemed to be talking about him, Zhou Bai was slightly taken aback, but he was not afraid, and walked out of the crowd calmly.

"From the Zhou family of the village?"

"It's not the son of Zhao Qian and Chen's family who came out first. This is a loss of points in the county's honor, and it may not be the top of the list."

"Who knows if this Zhou Bo is blind? Going out of the examination room first doesn't mean he can pass, let alone top?!"

"That's right, is his Zhou family lucky enough?"

People who challenged authority were always disliked by those in positions of power, but it had no effect on Zhou Bai, until he and Lao Bashi left the crowded crowd, their expression did not change at all.

"Master Bai, don't take what they say to heart. It's a mediocrity not to be envied by others." The old trick didn't ask Zhou Bai how he did in the exam, but tried to enlighten him with his own experience.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Bai only admired this old man's ability, and he didn't care about the ridicule of outsiders at all. He said calmly: "The Dragon Gate will not open until half an hour later. You continue to wait for Zhou Rui. I'll go find something to eat first."

Then, under the watchful eyes of everyone, this "genius" who was the first to leave the examination room actually ran to the street to buy a pack of fried chestnuts and ate them.

This kind of performance was noticed by the guard who sent him out, and he immediately reported to Ji Hongzhe.

"He is only 15 years old, and his heart is free from the influence of external words, which is commendable. He has been ordered to pay more attention." After hearing the report from his confidant, Ji Hongzhe became more satisfied with Zhou Bai, and confessed.

As for other families, the attention paid to Zhou Bai is still limited. The ranking in the imperial examination is not all based on literary talent, but also depends on luck.

Everything depends on the release of the rankings.

……

It was night, in the examination room lobby, all the candidates had dispersed, but the place was still brightly lit.

Because the marking officers need to check the papers overnight, from hundreds of candidates, select the children who can take the mid-term exam.

Several senior civil servants, the master book, the teaching order, the county magistrate, and the county magistrate all sat down solemnly, holding vermilion pens.

Article by article is graded in their hands. The clerks are mainly responsible for the dictation of scriptures and meanings. Together with the master book, there are a total of four high-ranking county officials. They focus on testing poems and policy theory.

In a flash, in the middle of the night, all the test papers were read by the four examiners.

Some answer sheets had a red circle drawn on them, while others had two or three answers, but it was very rare that all four county magistrates were optimistic about it, only five copies.

As can be seen from the arrangement on the table, these test papers are basically divided into four categories.

The first category is naturally five copies of the four-turn answer sheet, the second category is the slightly inferior three-turn two-turn answer sheet, there are more than 100 copies, and the third category is basically equivalent to giving up, only one county magistrate is optimistic.

However, I haven't read the luck attached to the questionnaire, so I can't conclude that the third category of essays is out. This part has the most answers, about [-] copies.

Only the fourth category, almost [-] answers, don't depend on luck, they will definitely be dismissed.

Literary talents are too poor, and no matter how good luck is, they cannot be selected. This is the bottom line for the imperial court to select scholars.

People with no talent become officials, making the place a mess, and the people complaining, which will also reduce the imperial court's absorption of local luck.

Everything was ready, the master got up and walked to a corner, cupped his hands and said: "The county lord is about to collect the seal to release the suppression of the luck of the answer sheet, please ask the Taoist officials to form an array to cover up the vision."

(End of this chapter)