Madam, protect me!

Chang'an.

The first examination hall of the imperial examination.

The first examination hall has 2,000 people and is one of the examination halls with the best environment in the capital. Li Nuo and Song Yu entered the examination hall together, and then separated and came to their own rooms according to the examination guide.

Like the spring examination, the first subject of the imperial examination is also the calligraphy subject.

Compared with the spring examination, the imperial examination is much more difficult. Candidates must learn to make choices. Usually, they will put the subjects they are good at in front.

Li Nuo's goal is to be the champion, of course he can't make choices. He wants all four of calligraphy, painting, law, and articles.

He first opened the calligraphy test questions from an envelope.

This time the test is not about the content of the "Sixteen Classics", but a famous calligraphy post. The whole post has 62 characters. Candidates need to write this famous post in three different styles.

The three styles refer to the major categories of calligraphy styles. Choose three out of the five of seal script, official script, regular script, running script, and cursive script. It is not allowed to use three different regular scripts, and the other two will be counted as invalid.

If you are very confident in yourself, you can only write one paper to save time, but if you have the same score as others, you can only move to the back.

Fortunately, Li Nuo was well prepared.

If he still only knew the hairpin flower small regular script, calligraphy would reveal his true colors.

He picked up the pen and dipped it in ink, writing three pieces in regular script, running script, and cursive script, which are also the three most popular pen styles at present, but he used regular script instead of hairpin flower small regular script.

The examination room this time was extremely spacious, and there was a table at the back, which was specially used to dry calligraphy and paintings.

Li Nuo hung the three calligraphy test papers at the back and opened another envelope.

The birds chirped in the warm spring, and the shadows of flowers were heavy when the sun was high.

Glancing at the painting topic, Li Nuo was surprised. Li Anning's three thousand taels of silver were really not wasted. The old court painter may not have superb painting skills, but he was really good at predicting the topic.

This imperial examination was really about flowers and birds.

Candidates need to use both ink and color painting techniques to paint the scene described in this poem.

Compared with the spring exam a month ago, Li Nuo has more than a dozen masters of painting standing behind him.

Just a glance at the question, he has a picture in his mind.

When he finished this painting, it was not even time for lunch.

Li Nuo ate something, washed his hands with water from the bucket in the room, and opened the law exam questions after drying them.

There are still 20 law questions.

But the exam is more difficult and covers a wider range. The spring exam mainly tests "Name and Example Law", "Judgment Law", "Thief Law", "Fighting Law", etc.

The imperial examination also tests "Job System Law", "Household Marriage Law", "Arbitrary Expansion Law", "Defense Prohibition Law", and even the most complicated and disorderly "Miscellaneous Law".

The difficulty of the questions is not comparable to the spring exam. If he had not memorized the entire "Daxia Law", Li Nuo might not have been able to answer them perfectly.

When Li Nuo finished answering the law questions, in another room in the first examination hall.

Song Yu had just opened the law questions.

These questions were not unfamiliar, but they were not familiar.

He could write a few sentences for each question, but not many.

There was only one question that he remembered very clearly.

Those who beat others with their hands or feet in a fight shall be punished with 40 strokes of the cane; those who beat others with weapons shall be punished with 60 strokes of the cane; if more than three people fight and injure others, the crime shall be increased by one level, if more than five people fight, the crime shall be increased by two levels, and if more than ten people fight, the crime shall be increased by three levels.

According to the description of the question, this situation is a fight between seven people with weapons, and the punishment shall be 60 strokes of the cane. Because the number of people is more than five and less than ten, the punishment shall be increased by two levels, that is, 80 strokes of the cane...

Shortly before and after Song Yu confidently wrote, in the rooms of several students from Yunmeng Academy, they scratched their heads, and the expressions of thinking hard disappeared, and they also wrote on the paper with full confidence.

At this time, in another room.

Zhou Yu had finished answering the law and article.

The law is not difficult. As long as you memorize the "Daxia Law", it is not easy to get an excellent score, but it is easy to get an A-level.

However, essays, calligraphy, and painting are not his strengths. He has to do his best, otherwise, he will not even have the opportunity to show his performance in the imperial examination.

In Li Nuo's examination room, he has already started answering the last subject.

This year's essay test paper is a bit interesting.

In the imperial examination, the title of the opening poem is "Golden List", which implies the blessing of the examiner to the examinees. In the fierce and ruthless imperial examination, it gives people a faint warm feeling.

After writing the opening poem, looking at the title of the essay, Li Nuo even felt that it was easier than the spring exam.

Although he has read a lot of books during this period, the most important thing is the exam papers of the top scholars in the book category that Li An Ning stole for him.

He has naturally improved a lot after reading a lot of those classic articles.

After answering all the exam papers, Li Nuo asked the patrolling examiner about the time and learned that there was still half an hour before the end of today's exam.

Li Nuo was worried that he would be caught by Li An Ning if he handed in the paper early, so he sat in the examination room and waited.

For Li Nuo, time was plenty.

But for most people, it was not like that.

Calligraphy was better. Law was also good. If you knew it, you knew it. If you didn't, there was nothing you could do. But painting required conception, poetry required conception, and essays also required careful consideration of words and sentences, which would definitely take much more time than him.

This subject required candidates to make choices.

The calligraphy subject was calculated based on the total score. You should try to maximize your advantage subjects and narrow the gap in your disadvantaged subjects. How to allocate time should be thought out before the exam.

The time of the dog.

The first calligraphy subject of the imperial examination officially ended.

Three gongs sounded, and the examination room personnel responsible for maintaining order walked past the doors of each examination room, notifying the candidates one by one that they put down their pens and walked out of the examination room one after another.

In a short period of time, the entire examination hall went from extremely quiet to extremely noisy.

"Hey, time is too tight. There are two article questions that I didn't answer."

"Fortunately, I put calligraphy at the end. I only had time to write one. Fortunately, it didn't affect my grades..."

"I'm miserable. I only finished half of the painting, and I don't know if I can participate in the next one!"

At the entrance of the examination hall, some people held their heads high, while others were crestfallen.

Outside the examination room, martial law is enforced within a hundred feet.

Li Nuo walked a certain distance and saw several figures in the distance. He walked to the carriage. Song Yu's legs were numb as he stood, and said: "Brother-in-law, why did you come out? I have been waiting for you for an hour... …”

Li Nuo looked at Song Yu. He only had half an hour left to finish writing, but Song Yu was actually half an hour ahead of him.

Song Yu smiled and said: "In the imperial examination, if you can, you can, and if you can't, you can't. You can't think of it even if you sit there. It's better to come out early. The examination room is so cramped that I can't even stretch my legs when I lie down. I sleep very hard." uncomfortable……"

In fact, the examination room in the First Examination Hall was very spacious, and he could stretch out his legs when he lay down. However, because he slept too comfortably and snored, he was complained by the examinee next to him, and was kicked out by the examination room patrol personnel.

Seeing two other figures walking out of the examination hall, Song Yu waved his hand and said, "Pei Jun, Zhou Yu, here!"

Beside the carriage, Song Jiaren looked at Li Nuo. Before she could say anything, another figure couldn't wait to ask: "How was the test?"

Song Jiaren glanced at Li Anning, and Li Anning shrank behind Mu'er.

Li Nuo looked at them, smiled, and said, "It's not bad."

Song Yu asked: "Pei Jun, Zhou Yu, how did you do in the exam?"

Zhou Yu shook his head and said: "No, there are two questions in my article that I can't..."

Pei Jun also sighed and said: "I only had time to write one calligraphy painting, and I almost didn't finish the painting..."

Song Yu held their shoulders and said: "What's the point of sighing? Do you really want to be a Jinshi? If you fail the exam, you will fail. When the time comes, we will go to the army together to do something great... …”

After a while, the carriage drove slowly towards Song Mansion.

When we came, Li Nuo and Song Yu were together.

When going back, Song Yu consciously chose to walk.

In the carriage, Li Nuo and his wife sat in one row, while Li Anning and Mu'er sat opposite.

The two of them remained silent in a tacit understanding. Only Mu'er kept chattering and asking questions.

Song Jiaren looked out the car window, wondering what she was thinking.

Li Anning also looked at the empty space, feeling extremely uneasy.

Li Nuo's calligraphy is what she is most worried about, and it is also the first one. If she fails in calligraphy, all her previous efforts will be wasted, and she will not have to look at it again...

Compared to the two of them, Li Nuo was not worried at all.

Even if he called all the masters of calligraphy and painting in Daxia, gave them a copy of Daxia Rules, and laid out the Sixteen Classics for them to open, he wouldn't be afraid.

The second round of the imperial examination started five days later.

There are only more than 10,000 people in the spring examination, but there are nearly 100,000 candidates in the imperial examination, and the examination papers in the imperial examination are more stringent. There is no way to read the calligraphy examination papers in one day.

Before Li Nuo's carriage arrived at Song Mansion, all the examination papers in the First Examination Hall were sorted and sent to the marking place.

In Daxia, the imperial examination was the only way to become an official. Naturally, the imperial court treated the imperial examination much more strictly than the spring examination. The most obvious one was the marking.

Take the calligraphy volume as an example.

For the calligraphy paper of the Spring Examination, one examiner can determine the final score, which involves a certain amount of luck.

If the examiner is good at and likes regular script, but the candidate uses cursive script, it is possible that the grade of the exam paper will be lowered.

But this will not happen in the imperial examination. As far as calligraphy is concerned, each candidate's test paper will be cross-reviewed by five examiners and summarized at the end.

These five examiners are each good at different writing styles. The highest and lowest evaluations they gave will be removed, and the average of the three middle ones will be taken as the final score.

It is precisely because of this fair system that the possibility of fraud in the imperial examination is extremely small and it is highly trusted by candidates.

The first examination hall has fifteen examiners for calligraphy alone.

All the examiners are in their rooms, nervously grading papers.

Wei Xun put his hands behind his back and went in to take a look from time to time.

As the question maker and examiner of the calligraphy papers in this imperial examination, he does not have to personally mark the papers, but in some cases, he can overrule the examiners' evaluations.

Today is the last day for book marking.

Before noon tomorrow, the total scores of the calligraphy department need to be compiled and the list of candidates who will enter the next exam will be announced.

The results of the calligraphy subject have been summarized.

The first examination hall has 2,000 candidates and 6,000 calligraphy test papers.

Among them, there is no excellent one.

On A, there are eleven copies.

Nineteen first-class copies.

This year's calligraphy paper is different from the past. There are thirty exam papers for Grade A and above. This does not mean that thirty candidates have passed the Grade A exam. Among them, there may be two or more exam papers belonging to the same person.

But as examiners, they can only give ratings. Not to mention the name of the examinee, even the candidate's number is sealed, completely eliminating the possibility of examiner fraud.

According to the rules, all examination papers for Grade A and above must be handed over to the examiner for review.

During this process, the chief examiner can make the final adjustment.

Wei Xun glanced at it and was surprised.

There was no hairpin flower small regular script.

This is an imperial examination, and candidates cannot not use the handwriting they are best at.

The only possibility is that Li Xuanjing's son performed exceptionally well in the spring exam, but he did not perform at the highest level in the imperial examination, and his calligraphy score was below Grade A.

People are not machines, and it is impossible for them to be in the best state all the time. When Wei Xun himself was not in good condition, he did not even want to look at the words he wrote a second time...

In this case, he had no choice.

He could not find the hairpin flower small regular script test paper from the six thousand test papers and lower his rating by two...

The chief examiner could not do whatever he wanted. If such an obvious move was known by the inspector, his second half of life would be over.

According to his original idea, if a paper with hairpin flower small regular script was rated above Grade A, he could lower it to a rating below Grade A or above Grade B, but Li Xuanjing's son made a mistake himself, so he could not blame him.

It was originally aimed at you, but you yourself are not up to the task...

An examiner took out three papers from the A-grade test papers and said, "Mr. Wei, please take a look at these three papers. Do you want to upgrade them to excellent..."

All examiners gave A-grade evaluations to these three papers, but it does not mean that they are only worth A-grade.

The imperial examination is different from the spring examination. In the imperial examination, every excellent result must be discussed by many parties and finally finalized by the chief examiner before it can take effect. After that, the court will also ask about the excellent papers.

All examiners think that these three papers are qualified to be upgraded to excellent.

Wei Xun picked up the three papers one by one, stroked his beard, and his eyes were full of admiration.

He saw his own shadow in these three papers.

Even if the owners of these three papers were not his disciples, they should have copied his calligraphy for a long time and were considered his successors.

It is necessary to be cautious when judging the best, especially for calligraphy and painting, which require subjective judgment by examiners. Every excellent test paper will be checked again by the court. If there is a problem, the examiner will be held accountable.

Therefore, even if the examiners like the test paper very much, they will only be given an A at most.

But he really likes these three test papers, and even has the idea of ​​finding them and accepting them as his disciples after the imperial examination.

Wei Xun thought about it again and again, nodded and said: "These three test papers should be excellent!"

An examiner hesitated and said: "If the court asks..."

Wei Xun waved his hand and said: "If the court asks, I will take full responsibility for any problem!"