Chapter 507 - 192: Provincial Examination (Part 1)
Chapter 507: Chapter 192: Provincial Examination (Part 1)
Among the examiners, the chief and deputy chief examiners were responsible for setting the questions and creating the list of successful candidates, while the associate examiners handled the specific task of grading the papers.
Nowadays, the requirements for examiners were extremely strict; all were required to be Advanced Scholars.
Furthermore, before an official could be appointed as an examiner, they had to pass an examination themselves—a process known as the "examiner’s test."
The results of this test were, to a large extent, the basis for selecting and appointing the chief and deputy chief examiners.
This approach both closed loopholes and increased the difficulty, while also raising the caliber of the examiners and enhancing their sense of responsibility and honor.
As for the dispatch of examiners, this was done on specific dates.
For the most distant regions, like the Southwest, examiners were sent out in the tenth month. For the prefectures closer to the Capital City, they were typically dispatched at the end of the seventh month. The examiners for the Capital City itself, however, were only appointed on the sixth day of the eighth month, just as the examiners for other regions were entering their sequestered compounds.
On the day of their appointment, the examiners received the imperial decree and immediately took their luggage and moved into the examination grounds.
This was the procedure for the Capital City. In other places, the examiners were appointed together and departed together.
This was intended to foster a spirit of unity and also for mutual supervision, preventing anyone from bribing the examiners or trying to obtain the exam questions en route.
Because the Provincial Examination was held in the eighth month, the examiners spent most of the seventh month traveling.
The weather at that time was scorching hot, as if fire were raining from the sky. Many officials lacked the stamina and fell ill on the journey; it was not uncommon. Some who forced themselves to reach the examination site would end up dying from illness during the proctoring or in the middle of grading papers.
Therefore, being an examiner was an extremely arduous duty.
But it was also profitable.
Official historical texts record that most chief examiners could earn several thousand gold pieces from a single examination. Even in the most arduous postings, such as the Lingnan region, they still received nine hundred. "If one obtains a position as an associate examiner for the Provincial or Imperial Examination," a text reads, "one then depends on the tribute paid by successful candidates. The amount varies with the candidates’ wealth, but it is generally around three hundred gold pieces."
Besides receiving generous gifts, this was also a form of training and capital for future promotions.
Thus, many officials below the Sixth Rank vied with one another to serve as examiners in various places.
But this is a digression. Let’s return to the chief and deputy chief examiners assigned to Xinghuai Prefecture.
The chief examiner, Mr. Gong, served in the Hanlin Academy. He had worked his way up step-by-step from the outer court of the Hanlin Academy to the inner court; one could say that every step of his journey had been arduous.
He was already forty years old this year, yet had only just reached the Sixth Rank.
Rumor had it that he was cynical and misanthropic, and difficult to get along with. In terms of literary style, he most admired a simple and unadorned approach, and he deeply loathed articles that were ornate, long-winded, or ostentatiously flaunted the writer’s skill...
By the time their conversation ended, the sky had grown dark.
Zhao Jing had Wang Chengde stay for dinner. After the meal, he personally escorted him to the inn where he was staying before returning home.
A crescent moon hung in the western sky, casting a hazy halo of light.
A lone figure walked slowly through the alley, the silence broken only by the light sound of his footsteps, echoing softly.
Zhao Jing listened to his own thumping heartbeat as his steps grew steadier and lighter with each pace.
When he returned to their room, Chen Wanqing had just finished washing up and was coming out of the bathing chamber.
A faint mist of steam rose from her body. She was breathtakingly beautiful and fresh, like a lotus bud just emerged from the water.
Chen Wanqing didn’t notice his gaze gradually deepening. She asked, "You’re back?"
Then, as she walked toward the vanity, she told Zhao Jing, "There’s still a bucket of warm water in the bathing chamber. You should go wash up quickly before it gets cold."
"The weather’s so hot, a cold bath wouldn’t be bad."
"Absolutely not. You’re entering the examination hall in another month. You must take care of your health this month. Don’t catch a cold or get a fever. What if it affects your performance in the exam?"
Zhao Jing didn’t reply.
Chen Wanqing applied some moisturizing balm to her hands and face. Still hearing no response, she turned back to look at him.
When she looked, she saw Zhao Jing unhurriedly undoing the knotted buttons on his outer robe, which he then casually took off and tossed aside.
Chen Wanqing froze for a second, then quickly turned her head away. "Jing, go to the bathing chamber to undress."
"Why must I be in the bathing chamber? Can’t I undress in my own room?"
"It’s not that you can’t, it’s just... it’s just..."
Before Chen Wanqing could say what it was, a scorching hot body pressed against her from behind.
Summer was already hot, and when his searing body pressed against hers, it was as if Chen Wanqing’s recent bath had been for nothing. Even the fragrant balms and creams she had applied to her skin seemed to melt like water, trickling onto the bed.
Chen Wanqing had come to realize that no matter what Zhao Jing did, he had his own rhythm.
At such a critical time, most people would have locked themselves in their study from morning till night, poring over books and writing tirelessly.
But Zhao Jing was different.
He drank tea when it was time for tea and practiced calligraphy when it was time to practice. Even their lovemaking followed a schedule: once every few days, several rounds each time. Not a single one could be skipped.