Crossing the Unknown Country

Chapter 491 The 9-day and 6-night examination finally ended

Many of them are unmarried. If they can find a good husband, their daughter may become the wife of the housekeeper. Even if they fail the exam, they can at least be a scholar, which is much better than ordinary people. Those who have daughters of the right age should come and look for one. If they meet one, they will be lucky.

The candidates lined up in front of the entrance of the examination hall. There were old men with white hair, boys who were not yet adults, young scholars with high spirits, and middle-aged men in their prime. Regardless of their age, they all carried their examination baskets and stood in front of the door in a disciplined manner, waiting quietly for the inspection.

Su He and his family escorted Su Pei and the other two to take the exam. They came to the entrance of the examination hall, holding the exam basket filled with things that Su He had carefully selected, and lined up. The three of them stood in the line, moving forward little by little, following everyone without rushing or getting impatient.

The imperial examination is usually held three times, each lasting three days and two nights, which adds up to nine days and six nights.

The first test is about basic knowledge, mainly the "Four Books" and "Five Classics". Using the principles in the books to solve some practical problems in politics, economy and military requires not only a profound cultural background, but also foresight and extraordinary talent.

After the exam, candidates can leave the examination room, go home or to their accommodation to rest for the night, and then enter the examination hall again the next morning to start the exam.

The second exam was about various official document writing, judicial cases, and administrative adjudication. These did not require many words, and there were also past exam question formats to refer to, so the overall difficulty was lower than the first exam.

After the second three-day exam, you can still go out to rest for a night and then go back to the examination hall for the third exam the next morning.

The third exam also lasted three days and was about classics, history and current affairs, which was equivalent to the modern political exam. It also required the Thousand Characters Essay, which required not only a broad knowledge of history and modern times, but also unique insights. This exam was relatively difficult.

After the three exams, most of the candidates were exhausted. Many candidates did not persist and fell ill during the exam. This is why Su He always asked his brothers to be strong. Otherwise, no matter how good they are at studying, it would be difficult to survive the nine-day and six-night exam.

Su He and his friends endured three days of suffering at home. On the third day, they went to wait for Su Pei and his friends to come home early in the afternoon. Bath water and meals were already prepared at home, so they could wash up, change into clean clothes, and eat delicious meals when they got home.

But for the candidates in the examination hall, these three days were like the passing of days and months. They were so nervous that they didn't know whether it was day or night. They went to bed when they were sleepy and continued to write the examination papers when they woke up. They had no time to care about other things. Most of the time, they just ate something simple, took a short rest, and then started writing the examination papers.

When the bell rang to end the exam, they had to leave their dormitories and reluctantly walked out of the exam room. As soon as they walked out of the exam room, they felt extremely tired and wanted to go home and have a good sleep.

Su Pei and the other two came out one after another, and were found by their servants, taken back to their own carriages, and returned home along the flow of traffic. They were all drowsy while taking a bath, and the servants helped them put on their clothes.

The three of them wolfed down their dinner. Everyone in the family knew that there were two more games to come. Everyone urged them to rest. They slept through the night without any dreams until dawn. When they heard the book boy waking them up, they got up quickly. It was not time for them to relax yet. They still had to work hard.

The three of them lined up at the entrance of the examination hall again, and followed the team through the inspection and entered the examination hall. This time there were fewer people, some who were in poor health, and some who had temporary health problems, so they did not come to continue the examination. Many people failed the exam many times because of poor health.

Just like the college entrance examination every year in modern times, there are always people who are squeezed out in the middle of the exam. Only luck and strength can make it to the end and become the dazzling few.

Three days later, the three brothers were taken home to rest for a night. The next morning, they went for the third test.

After three days, every candidate came out exhausted and tired. I guess it was because they had tried their best and finally reached the end, and the tension finally relaxed.