Longevity from Liao Zhai

Chapter 139 Where is Zhou Ping's paper?
Zhou Ping was taking an open-book exam. His consciousness was immersed in the storage jade, trying to find the answer to the second question from it.

But an hour passed and Zhou Ping still hadn't found anything like that. But the exam was still an hour away, so he wasn't in a hurry. Zhou Ping was ready to take the exam until the last minute.

If you don’t have the ability, you can make up for it with attitude!
At this time, half of the people in the examination room had already left. Many people were stuck on the second question.

Zhou Ping was just about to send his consciousness to the storage jade to find the answer, but was interrupted by a voice.

"Zhou Ping, go to the secret realm and rescue people!" County Magistrate Lu said, grabbing Zhou Ping's hand.

Zhou Ping looked at the people in front of him in confusion.

County Magistrate Lu, an old man with triangular eyes, and the invigilator Meng Jiusheng. Secret realm? Rescue?

Zhou Ping didn't know what was going on: "Master Lu, I'm still taking the exam."

"Oh, what test is this?" County Magistrate Lu was even more anxious than Wu Laosan.

Wu Lao San said anxiously: "Zhou Ping, accompany Wu Da Ge and Yue Yunfeng into the secret realm to rescue people, five hundred, no, one thousand taels of silver!"

Zhou Ping then realized that the purpose was to let him enter the secret realm.

Zhou Ping shook his head like a rattle: "The secret realm is too dangerous, and my cultivation is too low, I won't go!"

Not to mention delaying his exam, even if he didn't take the exam now, he wouldn't enter the secret realm. The secret realm was too dangerous, Zhou Ping had no need to enter it at all, and he was not short of money.

After saying that, Zhou Ping closed his eyes and began to look for the answer in the storage jade.

"Zhou Ping, you can't read classical Chinese at all. You won't be able to do it even if you delay any longer. You might as well go and save people as soon as possible." Chen Chao continued, "You won't be able to pass the exam to become a Tongsheng."

Zhou Ping smiled and said, "Whether or not you pass the exam to become a Tongsheng student is not up to you."

"You little brat, you have to go!" Wu Lao San grabbed Zhou Ping directly. He was already a fourth-rank official.

Wu Laosan was very fast and caught Zhou Ping in the blink of an eye.

But just two fingers blocked Wu Laosan.

Zhou Ping's face changed slightly, but immediately returned to normal. Wu Laosan triggered Zhou Ping's telepathic finger.

Wu Laosan was slightly surprised. He didn't expect Zhou Ping to block his hand. You know, he is a fourth-rank official, while Zhou Ping is only an eighth-rank official.

"Lord Lu, this is an imperial examination. Someone wants to kidnap the candidates, and you don't care?" Zhou Ping said, suppressing his anger.

In such a serious occasion, Wu Lao San acted recklessly and even triggered Zhou Ping's telepathic finger. This is a year of life!

Magistrate Lu looked at the candidates who were watching the excitement and quickly stopped Wu Laosan. Delaying the rescue of Zhao Tiancheng was a big deal, but forcing the candidates to take the imperial examination was also a big deal.

The imperial examination was the face of the Wei Dynasty, and no one dared to cause trouble in the examination hall.

Wu Laosan also realized his own misconduct. Meng Jiusheng was still here. He forced Zhou Ping to leave, which was a slap in the face of Meng Jiusheng, the academy, and the Wei Dynasty.

Wu Laosan looked at County Magistrate Lu with anger. If he were somewhere else, he would have kidnapped Zhou Ping long ago. But Zhou Ping had just blocked Wu Laosan, and he thought it was Zhou Ping who did it by chance.

County Magistrate Lu was in a dilemma. He didn't expect that Zhou Ping was unwilling to go to the secret realm to rescue people.

"Why don't we wait another hour, and then Elder Wu can take him away." County Magistrate Lu said.

Wu Laosan immediately said, "No, saving lives is like putting out a fire. The secret realm is too dangerous. Who knows, Mr. Zhao might die in there just because of this hour. Who will be to blame then?"

County Magistrate Lu cursed Wu Laosan secretly. Wasn't this putting the blame for Zhao Tiancheng's death on him? They were all foxes with a thousand years of experience. How could he not understand what Wu Laosan said?

Once Zhao Tiancheng dies, Wu Laosan will pass the blame to County Magistrate Lu.

It was because of Magistrate Lu's incompetence that Zhou Ping failed to rescue people in time.

The situation suddenly became tense, and Zhou Ping calmed down and began to prepare for the exam. He was not worried that Wu Lao San would arrest him after the exam.

Fan Shiyi was just outside the examination room.

With Fan Shiyi and Xiaoqing around, they won't let Wu Laosan succeed.

County Magistrate Lu and Wu Laosan both looked at Meng Jiusheng. They wanted Zhou Ping to take a back door.

Isn't Zhou Ping just taking the exam to become a student? Meng Jiusheng is the examiner. If Meng Jiusheng nods, then Zhou Ping should be willing to enter the secret realm.

Meng Jiu had lived for two hundred years, so how could he not understand the chill in the two people's eyes? He thought for a moment, then returned to his invigilation desk.

"Mr. Meng, why don't you let him enter as a student with just one poem?" said Magistrate Lu.

Meng Jiusheng sighed. Although he was a third-rank Confucian scholar, he did not hold an official position. The academy had to rely on the government for many things on a daily basis.

During the Tongsheng examination, if someone greeted him, he would respond.

Meng Jiusheng is not an old stubborn person. He is the president of Qianzhou Academy. He has also helped many students get in through the back door, but these students had to at least finish two questions before he had room to manipulate them.

However, Zhou Ping left one important question blank, so he was appointed as a student. Meng Jiusheng had done such a thing before.

After all, there is no standard for judging the quality of an article. If he says it is good, it is good; if he says it is bad, it is bad. However, Zhou Ping did not finish answering the question.

Meng Jiusheng suddenly remembered that it was not uncommon for people to pass the examination by writing poetry. He had written a poem at the beginning, and was about to do the second question when the invigilator saw it.

Because the poem written by Meng Jiusheng was so good, the invigilator directly gave Meng Jiusheng the qualification of a Tongsheng and did not even let him write the second question.

The poem that Meng Jiusheng wrote during the Tongsheng examination was not only considered good by the invigilator at the time, but also by Fan Zhongfu.

Meng Jiusheng became a student just by writing a poem, and this was something he boasted about.

Meng Jiusheng breathed a sigh of relief. Well, this is not without precedent. I became a student based on a poem.

Wu Laosan had heard about Meng Jiusheng's exam and said, "Teacher, didn't you also pass the exam with a poem? There is a precedent for this."

Meng Jiusheng nodded and said in a low voice: "Okay, tell him that as long as he is willing to save people, I will give him the status of a student."

"By the way, when we tell this to others, we can say that I thought the poems he wrote were so good, so I gave him the status of a student and allowed him not to write the second question," Meng Jiusheng added.

This way, the matter is resolved!
Meng Jiusheng's method not only helped Zhao Tiancheng, but also remained decent.

With Meng Jiusheng's tacit consent, County Magistrate Lu and Wu Laosan came before Zhou Ping and discussed the conditions with him in low voices.

Zhou Ping heard the conditions, raised his eyebrows, and thought for a moment: "Really? I can pass the exam with just one poem? There won't be any trouble with this, right?"

"In the examination for Tongsheng, poetry writing accounts for 80% of the score, and the second question only has 20% of the score. Although there are few people who pass the examination with just one poem, there are some. Mr. Meng passed the examination with just one poem." County Magistrate Lu explained.

After hearing this, Zhou Ping was silent for a long time, then looked at Wu Lao San: "One thousand taels, no less!"

Wu Laosan saw Zhou Ping agreed and said, "Don't worry, after the matter is completed, you will definitely not lose one thousand taels."

Zhou Ping shook his head: "The secret realm is so dangerous, I might die in it, the one thousand taels must be paid now!"

Wu Laosan didn't expect that Zhou Ping, a junior, would dare to negotiate with him, but when he thought about needing help from others, he finally nodded heavily.

"Where is my test paper?" Zhou Ping said, holding the poem he had written.

County Magistrate Lu said, "You can hand in your papers now!"

Zhou Ping handed the paper to the yamen runner beside him, who put it away, and then he followed Wu Lao San. Zhou Ping passed the examination to become a student in order to get a chance to enter the Dawei Academy.

Originally, he thought that he would have no chance if he didn't do one big question, but he didn't expect to encounter the secret realm.

In that case, Zhou Ping simply went with the flow.

Chen Chao was beside Meng Jiusheng, looking at Zhou Ping's back with a gloomy face. He didn't expect Zhou Ping to become a student!

Chen Chao was not a fool who only knew how to read. He knew that some people could buy the title of Tongsheng with money.

It was an unspoken secret in the Wei Dynasty that wealthy families would use some money to bribe the people in the academy and then evaluate the qualifications of a student.

After all, the Tongsheng examination is held once a year.

No matter how many rich people there are, with only ten vacancies in a county, a truly talented person can pass the examination to become a student after two years of study.

Chen Chao also had two or three good friends who also paid for the qualification of Tongsheng. After passing the Tongsheng exam, if one does not pass the Xiucai exam, then the qualification of Tongsheng is of little use.

Tongsheng was just an entrance ticket to the imperial examination, equivalent to a primary school diploma.

"This Zhou Ping is so lucky that he actually got a tongsheng like this. However, it will be extremely difficult for him to pass the examination to become a scholar." Chen Chao felt much better when he remembered that he still had the status of a scholar.

The scholar examination is held every two years in Qianzhou City, which is relatively transparent and fair.

Moreover, for the scholar examination, the Dawei Academy would send people from the capital. To pass the scholar examination, one needed real talent and knowledge, because there was no evil practice in the Dawei Academy.

At this time, Zhou Ping was outside the examination room. He told Fan Shiyi that he was going to enter the secret realm.

"Aren't you unwilling to enter the secret realm?" Fan Shiyi knew that Zhou Ping was cautious and he didn't want to enter the secret realm at all.

Fan Shiyi looked at Wu Laosan and said, "If someone forces you, I will help you."

Wu Laosan didn't know Fan Shiyi's identity, so he snorted coldly: "How dare this androgynous thing say such nonsense?"

Fan Shiyi was immediately angry. She hated it most when people said she was not difficult or feminine.

Fan Shiyi is dressed in men's clothing, but he is still very handsome.

Those who can speak will say that beauty is indistinguishable between male and female, while those who cannot speak will say that he is talking nonsense.

"It seems that someone is forcing you." Fan Shiyi patted his waist, and a jade pendant flashed with light.

Zhou Ping quickly stood in front of Wu Laosan and said, "I was not forced to do this. I just wanted to save people. Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda."

Fan Shiyi looked at Wu Laosan coldly. Wu Laosan stared at Fan Shiyi cautiously. He could see that the jade pendant was of good quality and the snake demon beside Fan Shiyi was equally powerful.

"I'm from Qianzhou City, Wu family, and my ancestor is a third-rank official." Wu Laosan introduced himself. He could see that Fan Shiyi seemed to be of good character, but he didn't know his background.

Zhou Ping smiled and said, "Brother Fan, don't worry, I'm not forced to go. I just want to go."

Fan Shiyi looked at Wu Laosan coldly. She really had murderous intentions just now. No one dared to say that to her.

Wu Laosan said gloomily: "Zhou Ping, hurry up, saving lives is like putting out a fire. If you go a little later, the people inside may die."

Zhou Ping nodded and said to Fan Shiyi, "Brother Fan, you guys go back first. When I come back, I'll invite you to have a drink at the Jiaofangsi. I earned one thousand taels for this mission."

Fan Shiyi sneered: "Don't waste your life."

Zhou Ping grinned: "You know me. If I'm not sure, I won't go."

Fan Shiyi nodded slightly and stopped talking. The jade pendant around his waist no longer flickered.

Zhou Ping smiled faintly, then left with Wu Laosan.

"Master Fan, that secret realm must be very dangerous." Liu Ruyan said with some concern, "Why does Zhou Ping have to go? Can't we find someone else?"

"The secret realm only allows people of the eighth grade to enter. Zhou Ping happens to be of the eighth grade, and he also has a vajra, which should be helpful to these people in the secret realm." Fan Shiyi said.

Liu Ruyan was still a little worried: "It's just one thousand taels of silver. If Zhou Ping is short of money, he can tell us."

Fan Shiyi shook his head: "It's definitely not about money. I don't know what kind of deal Zhou Ping reached with them."

Liu Ruyan nodded, with worry in her eyes, and her hand speed of petting the cat increased a little.

Zhou Ping followed Wu Laosan and rushed through the tunnel.

"Who was that young man just now?" Wu Lao San asked. He wanted to say neither male nor female, but he didn't say it, and it became a young man.

Zhou Ping did not explain, but said: "You just saved your life. Her jade pendant can deliver a first-grade full-strength attack."

Wu Laosan was shocked. A full-strength attack from a top-rank master!
"Only those who can possess such a magical weapon are rich or noble. I don't even have one in Qianzhou City." Wu Laosan didn't believe it. He thought Zhou Ping was bragging.

Zhou Ping said: "Her name is Fan Shiyi."

Wu Laosan was a little confused, he didn't know this person.

Zhou Ping said calmly: "Fan Zhongfu's son."

When Wu Laosan heard the name Fan Zhongfu, he took a breath. He didn't know Fan Shiyi, but how could he not know Fan Zhongfu.

This is a first-class Confucian, the number one Confucian in the world.

"Hmph, what do you mean by saving my life? Even if I was rude to him, he wouldn't kill me for that. After all, he is a Confucian, and Confucians are reasonable." Wu Laosan touched his neck and said with a guilty conscience.

Qinghe County, county government office.

The poems and essays in front of Meng Jiusheng floated past him like a revolving lantern.

The Tongsheng examination had ended, and the yamen runners took the examination papers back to the Qinghe County Yamen.

"Oh." Meng Jiusheng sighed. In less than a cup of tea, he had finished reading all the poems.

The top ten candidates in the Tongsheng examination must be found.

But Meng Jiusheng really couldn't give a review because the poems and essays in it were so bad.

"Chen Chao, County Magistrate Lu, you two can choose one." Meng Jiusheng took a sip of tea. He didn't want to pick the tallest one among the short ones.

County Magistrate Lu and Chen Chao began to check the test papers, and then selected ten points after an entire afternoon.

"Meng Ru, these are the ten people we have selected," said County Magistrate Lu.

Meng Ru waved his hand without even looking at the paper: "You decide."

County Magistrate Lu nodded, he had the final say.

"Then let's choose these nine people, and then add Zhou Ping in." County Magistrate Lu selected nine people.

When Meng Jiusheng heard Zhou Ping's name, he suddenly realized that this guy was his "relative".

"Where's Zhou Ping's paper? Bring it to me."

(End of this chapter)