After the spiritual energy was restored: Goddess girlfriends came knocking.

Chapter 19 Top of the List

The examination hall was brightly lit, where the examination papers were being graded.

It was past midnight, and more than a dozen examiners were still working at their desks grading papers.

The rules for grading examination papers are very strict.

Each set of exam papers was graded by different examiners in turn, and each gave their own evaluation. If more than 80% of the officials thought it was qualified, they would write the word "recorded" at the beginning of the paper.

Those who received the "Record" title were called Gongshi.

On the third day of grading, an official named Qin Shi rubbed his eyes and opened another paper.

He looked at the poems and essays first.

After reading two sentences, I stopped rubbing my eyes.

"How majestic is Mount Tai? Its verdant peaks stretch endlessly across Qi and Lu."

He moved the paper closer to the candlestick and read it aloud, word by word.

"Nature's creation bestows its most wondrous beauty, dividing day and night with yin and yang—"

His fingers trembled slightly as he read the last sentence.

"I will climb to the summit and look down upon all the mountains below."

Qin Shi put down the paper and let out a heavy sigh.

"What a beautiful poem." His voice was a little hoarse. "It's been so many years since I've read a poem like this."

His colleague looked up at him and asked, "Lord Qin, what interesting article have you come across?"

"Come and take a look at this poem." Qin Shi handed over the paper.

His colleague took it, read a few lines, and was also stunned.

Just then, another official stood up at the other end of the room.

He held a policy document in his hand, his face full of excitement, and his beard was shaking.

"My lords," he said, waving the examination paper in his hand, "this policy essay—this policy essay is truly—"

Unable to find the right words, he simply slammed the test paper on the table: "Look at it yourselves!"

Several officials gathered around.

"Take a thorough survey of land, unify tax categories, abolish miscellaneous levies, and establish a tax register—" The person reciting it slowed down as they read on, "levy taxes according to the proportion of the harvest, more in bumper years, less in lean years, and no taxes in famine years..."

The room fell silent.

The tax system of the Great Zhou Dynasty had been in place for over a thousand years, and no one had ever proposed a reform plan so systematically.

This candidate not only proposed a plan, but also wrote down the specific steps, even detailing how to survey the land and how to establish tax registers.

Qin Shi suddenly asked, "What is the name of the candidate who wrote this essay?"

The official holding the policy essay turned to the beginning of the scroll and glanced at the name: "Lin Chu".

Qin Shi looked down at the scroll of poems in his hand, which also bore the same name at the beginning.

"Is it also Lin Chu?"

He placed the two papers together, one a poem and the other a policy essay, both with the same name and the same handwriting.

"Lord Qin, is this poem also his?"

Qin Shi did not answer.

He picked up the exam paper again, read "Looking at Mount Tai" once more, and then reviewed the policy essays again.

"Those who write good poetry and prose often have superficial policy essays," he muttered to himself. "Those who write solid policy essays often have mediocre poetry and prose. This person—excels in both, so much so that it seems like they were written by the same person."

The official holding the policy document had already begun analyzing Lin Chu's tax plan point by point.

"The proportional tax rate he wrote here, I think, could be reconsidered, but the direction is certainly novel—"

"His method for surveying and measuring land is concrete, not just empty talk—"

"And here, establishing a tax registry—something that's been mentioned but never implemented—"

The two talked more and more animatedly, their voices growing louder and louder.

The other examiners in the room put down their papers and gathered around.

Some people picked up the poetry and prose papers and read them quietly, some leaned close to the policy essays and squinted at them, and others were already flipping through other papers, trying to see if there were any better ones.

At that moment, a person who had been silent all along spoke up from behind the table at the very back of the room.

"What article is this that's causing such a commotion?"

The crowd immediately made way for them.

The person who spoke was surnamed Zhou, named Tingfu, and was the chief examiner for this imperial examination.

A veteran official in his fifties, who once served as prime minister and is now the head of the Hanlin Academy, can be said to be a pillar of the literary world of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Zhou Tingfu stood up and walked to the table.

He first picked up the scroll of poems and essays.

I didn't read it aloud, I just recited it silently.

After reading it aloud, he put down the test paper and said two words.

"A beautiful poem."

Then he picked up the policy essay again.

He read this article for a long time.

It took several times longer than reading poetry and prose.

After reading it, he put the paper back on the table.

No one spoke in the room.

Zhou Tingfu picked up his brush, dipped it in cinnabar, and wrote a single character at the beginning of the scroll.

录。

He put down his pen and looked around at the examiners.

"This year's imperial examination has finally produced an interesting candidate."

……

When the carriage left the capital, the willows along the roadside were already green.

Cang Yao sat on the edge of the carriage, swinging her legs back and forth, holding a candied hawthorn in her hand.

Of course, the candied hawthorn berries didn't break this time.

"Lin Chu, the exams are all over, when will the results be released?"

"It's still early, at least a month or so."

"Then why don't we wait in the capital?"

"Waiting in the village is just as good," Lin Chu said, pulling on the reins. "The county governments will receive the lists after the results are posted; it's just a matter of a few days' delay."

Cang Yao licked the candied hawthorn and glanced at him sideways.

Are you nervous?

"What's there to be nervous about?"

"You'll get nervous and fail the exam." Cang Yao held the candied hawthorn to his mouth. "Have a bite."

I'm not hungry.

"Take a bite. It's sweet, and it'll make you feel less nervous."

Lin Chu took a bite, chewed it, and pushed the candied hawthorn back.

"good."

Cang Yao finished eating the rest with a smile.

The journey back was much faster than the journey there.

After a long journey, the carriage finally entered the territory of Qinghe Village.

Lin Chu saw a large crowd gathered at the village entrance from afar.

There were even more people than during the Lunar New Year, blocking the roads.

"Why are there so many people?"

Cang Yao also stood up and looked in that direction: "It looks like someone is getting married? No, there's also a dragon dance."

The dragon dance team walked this way as they danced, followed by a long line of people.

Leading the group was Magistrate Liu of Yushan County.

Lord Liu is beaming with joy today, and he walks with a swagger.

The village chief and Mr. Chen were also in the crowd.

The village chief rubbed his hands together, his expression as if he were in a dream.

Mr. Chen, leaning on his bamboo cane, was no longer the lazy man he usually was. He stood ramrod straight, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to glow.

The carriage stopped at the village entrance, and Lin Chu jumped down.

Magistrate Liu rushed forward to greet him.

"Lin Chu! You're finally back!"

Before Lin Chu could even bow, Magistrate Sun had already grabbed his arm.

"Congratulations! Congratulations! You've passed the high school entrance exam! You've passed the high school entrance exam!"

Lin Chu was taken aback.

He had a feeling he should have done well on the exam, but the results were still a few days away, so why had the county magistrate arrived early?

Magistrate Liu noticed his confusion and laughed heartily.

"Before the results are released, all the major prefectures will receive the list in advance, and the county governments will also receive the roster a day in advance." He patted Lin Chu's shoulder hard, causing Lin Chu to lean forward.

Cang Yao jumped down from the carriage and ran to Lin Chu's side.

"You passed the exam? Did you pass?" Her voice was loud and urgent.

Magistrate Liu glanced at her, then at Lin Chu, his smile widening.

"Not only did he pass—he came in first!" He turned to the crowd and shouted, "Lin Chu from Qinghe Village, the top scorer in this imperial examination!"

The crowd erupted in chaos.

The sound of gongs and drums rang out again, even louder than before.

The young man performing the dragon dance held the dragon high and circled it around Lin Chu several times.

"What's number one?" Cang Yao tugged at Lin Chu's sleeve.

"He's number one." The village chief appeared at some point, his voice trembling slightly. "Number one in the provincial examination."

Cang Yao blinked, then her eyes widened suddenly.

Lin Chu hadn't spoken yet.

The old man's eyes were red, and he grabbed Lin Chu's hand.

"Young Master Lin—no, Master Lin—no, that's not right either—" He was so excited he didn't know what to call him, "Top of the list! Our Qinghe Village has produced a top scholar in the imperial examination!"

Aunt Wang squeezed out of the crowd, holding a basket of red eggs in her hand, and stuffed them into Lin Chu's arms without saying a word.

"I knew it! I knew Lin kid would do it! I've known he'd amount to something since he was little!"

Cang Yao, watching this scene unfold, could hardly contain her amusement.

Lin Chu looked at her expression and the corners of her mouth curved slightly.

Mr. Chen looked at the boy in front of him who was surrounded by the villagers—no, he could no longer be called a boy.

At sixteen, he topped the list in the imperial examination.

This child, whom he adopted out of pity, has already gone to places he had never been before.

……

After the excitement subsided, Cang Yao and Lin Chu exchanged a few words and quietly withdrew from the crowd.

Xiao Xiao wasn't sure if she had made it out of the country yet. She had been away for a while this time and was a little worried, so she was going back to check on her.

She walked along the familiar path towards the stream, and when she reached a secluded spot, she made a hand seal and transformed into a streak of red light, flying towards the East Sea.

Half an hour later.

The bustling crowd finally dispersed.

Magistrate Liu, the village head, Mr. Chen, and Lin Chu sat in Lin Chu's courtyard.

Magistrate Liu picked up his teacup, took a sip, and looked at Lin Chu.

"Scholar Lin, do you know who the chief examiner for this imperial examination is?"

"Master Zhou Tingfu?"

"Indeed." Magistrate Liu put down his teacup. "Lord Zhou has presided over the imperial examinations for twelve years, and the number of papers he personally reviewed can be counted on one hand. He read your paper from beginning to end, and graded both your poetry and policy essay as first-class. Especially your policy essay—I heard that the officials in the examination hall discussed your tax reform plan for a whole hour."

Lin Chu remained silent.

"You must prepare well for the upcoming palace examination." Magistrate Liu's tone became more serious. "Top of the provincial examination does not guarantee first place in the palace examination. The palace examination only determines rankings, not elimination, but the ranking directly affects your starting point after entering the court. The top three are: the first-class scholar, the second-class scholar, and the third-class scholar. Each one of these ranks represents a different future."

Lin Chu nodded.

Magistrate Liu looked into his eyes and suddenly asked a different question.

"Sir Lin, we've heard that you're an orphan, and were adopted by Mr. Chen when you were young?"

"Yes."

Magistrate Liu remained silent for a moment.

"You're not even from a poor family," he said softly, then stood up, straightened his clothes, and said, "Then I must congratulate you even more. From having nothing to ranking first in the imperial examination, there are very few throughout history. I've troubled you a lot today, so there's no need to see you off. You should rest well."

Lin Chu still escorted him to the door.

When I turned back, Mr. Chen was still sitting on the porch.

It was already dark, and the oil lamp on the table flickered with tiny flames.

Lin Chu sat down next to him.

The two remained silent for a while.

Mr. Chen glanced at him.

"You're at the top now, how does it feel?"

Lin Chu thought for a moment and said, "It's alright."

Mr. Chen was stunned for a moment, then laughed.

He laughed loudly, his beard shaking with laughter.

"Not bad—haha—alright, alright, go and rest. You must be tired from this journey."

Lin Chu stood up and walked towards her room.