Rebirth: From being expelled from the imperial court to becoming a high-ranking official

The next few days will be spent preparing for the exam and waiting to enter.

It was also during these few days that Qin Yunhe and his companions learned from the candidates in the inn that there were more than 10,000 candidates taking the exam this year.

In his previous life, Qin Yunhe had heard that this year's Jinshi had more than 70 more candidates than in previous years, but he didn't know the reason. It was only now that he realized that it must be because there were thousands more candidates than in previous years, so the court had no choice but to increase the number of admissions.

The candidates speculated that in order to control the number of people this year, the entrance inspection would be stricter than in previous years, which made the students worried.

In such a worried and depressing atmosphere, time quickly arrived at the seventh day of February.

Because the first exam had to be held one day in advance, that is, on the eighth day of the second lunar month, Qin Yunhe and his companions agreed to go to the dry food store together on the seventh day of the second lunar month and bought enough dry food for nine days.

On the afternoon of February 8th, several people packed up their examination baskets and other items and rushed to the Imperial Examination Hall early. When they arrived near the Imperial Examination Hall, the streets were already full of candidates taking the exam.

A few people moved slowly with the crowd, and it was not until half an hour later that they could see the people entering the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall for inspection over the heavy crowd.

When they got closer, the team was divided into several teams and entered through different entrances. There were three people at each entrance, one was responsible for checking the knot and body, one was responsible for checking the examination basket, and the other was responsible for carefully checking the whole body of the examinee.

By looking at the speed at which the team enters the venue, you can guess how strict the inspection ahead is, and the candidates waiting in line can't help but become more nervous.

When it was almost Qin Yun's turn, there was a commotion at the inspection area ahead. It was probably the officers who were conducting a full-body search checking the candidate's clothes and shoes.

Not only do they take off their shoes, they also undress and search them.

After all, the candidates are scholars, especially those who pass the imperial examinations, who are often highly respected by the villagers in the countryside. They have never been insulted in this way and are bound to feel resistance.

That would have been fine, but they also checked the candidate's ears and nostrils. Suddenly, the candidate could no longer bear it and started questioning loudly.

"Who's making the noise?"

Amid the noise, a majestic voice was heard. The person was obviously an official, probably the examiner.

"Sir, this man resisted search."

The man was not to be outdone, and said in a high-pitched voice: "We are all scholars. We come here to take the exam to serve the court. Why are you insulting us like this? I, Fang Qingtang, have never been willing to cheat..."

The examiner interrupted him before he could finish, "This is the law of the court, the system set by the emperor. If you want to refer to it, just follow the rules. If you don't agree, just leave. Do you want to take the exam?"

The candidate was shocked by the laws of the court and the system set by the emperor. He was reluctant and unwilling to accept it. When the examiner said this, he choked for a long time and finally turned away angrily.

The voice was not loud but the attitude was clear: "Why suffer this insult? Just don't take the test."

The candidate walked through the crowd of candidates queuing up, and when he passed by Qin Yunhe, Qin Yunhe saw his face clearly. He was very young, and might not even have reached adulthood.

After all, he is young and energetic. Since he has come here to seek fame and fortune, he naturally has to abide by the examination rules.

To be able to pass the imperial examination at such a young age, he must be a very talented person. Qin Si and Lin Zhaotang couldn't help but show regret in their eyes.

Qin Yunhe had mixed feelings, thinking that no matter how difficult it was for him or how strict the inspection was, he would endure it.

He wanted to take the imperial examination and he would never give up halfway.

Before the situation here had subsided, suddenly shouts of cursing and pleas for mercy were heard in the distance.

Then there were the sounds of officials questioning something in a stern voice, and then there were the sounds of continuous crying and begging.

The candidates queuing fell silent for a moment. They just stretched their necks to look in the direction where the sound came from, and were in a panic for a moment.

"What's going on?" Qin Yunhe couldn't help feeling a little panicked, and asked his brother and Lin Zhaotang in a very low voice.

Both of them frowned and shook their heads slightly.

After a while, the noise in front died down, and the sound of low discussions gradually came from among the candidates.

"It seems like someone is smuggling it."

"What? You dare to smuggle things into the imperial examination? Isn't that courting death?"

"This year is already stricter than previous years, and I'm afraid it will be even stricter now, alas——"

Qin Yunhe and the others were also a little surprised. The laws of this dynasty severely punished cheating in the imperial examinations. Not only would the person be forced to become a clerk, but he would also be shackled at the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall for three days.

Although most people did not bring any smuggled materials, the atmosphere among the candidates became increasingly depressing after this incident.

Finally it was Qin Yunhe's turn.

Lin Zhaotang and Qin Si both went to the inspection area nearby, and Qin Yunhe walked forward carrying the examination basket.

He put down the examination basket, took out the knot and the photo and handed them over.

"Examinee, Qin asked Qin Yunhe, who was born in the year of Bingyin..."

The officer carefully compared the knot with the photo, while another officer took out the items in the examination basket one by one.

The candlesticks, brushes, and inkstones were all taken out and inspected, and the rice bags were opened and hands were put in to feel them several times.

The officer who searched him made him take off his shoes and socks, and untie his belt for inspection.

Qin Yunhe did everything as he was asked. Not to mention the cold weather, just the thought of being in untidy clothes in public was quite uncomfortable.

But since everyone was like this, Qin Yunhe didn't care whether to humiliate them or not.

The officer was okay. After checking the body, he checked the ears and nostrils and just gave a symbolic look before nodding.

Qin Yunhe quickly tied his belt and looked back to find that the thin quilt that Yuru had sewn had been opened, but fortunately the cotton had not fallen apart. The lining of the fox fur cushion that Yuger had given him had also been opened, but fortunately it did not affect its use.

Qin Yunhe hurriedly folded the thin quilt and cushion, and put the pens, ink, rice and other things into the examination basket.

On the other side, the person who had just finished the examination was also packing up his things, and as he was packing he said angrily: "What a disgrace, what a disgrace!"

Seeing the steamed bun being crushed, he raised his voice again and said, "I have already cut the steamed bun into pieces, why do you need to crush it so much? How can I eat it?"

The officer naturally ignored him.

When he looked up, he saw that Qin Yunhe's dry food was still intact: "Why didn't you crush that man's dry food for him!"

Qin Yunhe, who was quietly packing his things, was startled. He quickly picked up his dry food and broke it to show him: "I can't twist this."

Qin Yunhe took a look at the steamed bun that was broken into pieces and couldn't help feeling a little sympathetic. Fortunately, he listened to his senior brother and bought some dry food.

"Sir, these shoes?"

Qin Yunhe packed up his things and pointed at the shoes on the ground.

The man was busy checking the next person: "Carry it in and put it on inside."

Qin Yunhe breathed a sigh of relief, and quickly ran to the center of the field, carrying his shoes and socks and the exam basket.

The ground was unusually dry and cold in early spring. As soon as Qin Yunhe entered the Imperial Examination Hall, he quickly put down his examination basket and put on his shoes and socks. His feet finally felt a little warmer.

I looked up at the Imperial Examination Hall again. It was many times larger than the one in Zhending Prefecture. There were rows and rows of rooms stretching as far as the eye could see, and there were still candidates looking for their own rooms.

Qin Yunhe found his own room very quickly, which was similar to the one for the provincial examination.

Qin Yunhe put the things away skillfully, cleaned the room and hung up the curtain.

All the candidates did not enter the examination hall until it was completely dark.

The chief examiner announced the closure of the Imperial Examination Hall, and someone closed and locked the gate of the hall.

Then someone started handing out the first exam papers.

After running around for most of the day, Qin Yunhe was exhausted. He just lit a candle, glanced over the test paper and put it down.

It was already past dinner time, so Qin Yunhe boiled some water, ate some dry food, and went to bed early.

The next day, February 9th, the first exam officially began.

Qin Yunhe lifted the curtain and looked outside, only to see many officials patrolling outside the rows of cells. The situation was indeed much stricter than that of the provincial examination.