dressed as a scholar

The general examination was held on March [-]th, just like the rural examination, and the examination ended in three sessions.

These days Fang Yu devoted himself to studying in Qingyang Alley, Qiao Hezhi took care of him in daily life, and he didn't go out until the eleventh day, and this time he went out to take the exam.

The exam came to the exam room the day before, not as rushed as during the rural exam, Fang Yu got up slowly, ate breakfast, washed up and tidied up before leaving the door.

"Everything is readily available. I'm afraid you won't be used to the new ones. I still use the ones you use all the time. I never took the most expensive ones."

"Also, I have newly made a jacket and knee pads. The daytime has been sunny these past two days without feeling cold, but it's still cold at night. The Gongyuan is not like a house. Don't be greedy for the coolness at night. You must wear the jacket. Wear it inside, and it takes a little effort to put on the knee pads when you answer the test during the day, and your bones will get cold easily after sitting for a long time."

Fang Yu looked at the two big boxes that the boy was carrying. He didn't intend to touch Qiao's crane branches. The test is actually much stricter than the rural test. It is also very troublesome to test if you bring too many things, but in the end it is Xiao Qiao. Well-prepared, it doesn't hurt to trouble yourself a little bit.

"There are a few days before the exam. You have to take care of yourself. You haven't fully recovered your health since you came here. These days, you are busy taking care of me. When I take the exam, you don't need to worry too much. Take a good rest. "

Qiao Hezhi raised the corner of his mouth slightly: "I know, you can rest assured."

Fang Yu shook the palm of Qiao Hezhi's hand, slowly released it, and got into the carriage.

In the inner city of the Gongyuan, although the inner and outer cities are only separated by a wall, it still takes several kilometers to enter from the gate. The imperial capital is vast, so there is no way around it.

He watched from the carriage, and saw that the surrounding houses were even more magnificent after entering the inner city. They were all mansions, and there were many residences of princes and counts in the inner city, not to mention the hairpin families that ordinary people could not afford. It is a noble family that many officials can't curry favor with.

Fang Yu has seen these mansions in books, but when the real ones pass by, the shock is so shocking that people can't take their eyes off them.

After about a stick of incense, he saw one after another the scholars who were also going to the Gongyuan to prepare for the exam. Few of them were walking, and most of them were riding in luxurious and spacious carriages. Fang Yu also looked very ordinary and shabby among them.

In fact, most of the candidates who can enter the examination are from Kyoto, and there will be some from other places, but only a small part, and the people from Kyoto account for the majority.At the feet of the emperor, a brick could hit a sesame official. It can be seen that there are so many officials and eunuchs, and their sons and daughters must have been taught to read since childhood. No matter the educational environment or educational resources, they cannot be compared with other provinces.

Not only the descendants of officials, but also the students of the Royal Academy Guozijian have to be used as a reference. Scholars who come from other places can’t compare with their family background and qualifications. Many scholars who are full of ambitions will breed a strong sense of inferiority when they arrive in the capital. Feeling, sighing, and performing abnormally, it is also testing the mentality of foreign scholars.

Fang Yu rubbed his hands. He brought Qiao Hezhi from such a remote place as Yuncheng. Regardless of whether his family is rich or he has made some achievements in Yuncheng, he must be careful when he comes to the capital. It's hard to make a living.

About half an hour later, the coachman stopped his horse and said, "Master, the Tribute Court has arrived."

Fang Yu jumped out of the car, looked at the crowded gate of the Gongyuan, and felt that sending children to the exam is really a national unity, no matter whether they are high-ranking officials or ordinary people, it seems that this is the case in the treatment of future generations.He had expected that this side would be crowded and noisy, so he simply asked Qiao Hezhi to take him to the entrance of the alley.

"Son, you haven't been away from your mother for so long since you were born, you have to take good care of yourself in the Gongyuan."

"I wish my brother the title of the gold list, and he will pass the exam."

"If you answer indiscriminately again this time, you will lose all face of the old man."

Listening to the voices of the people around him, Fang Yu amplified his voice and said, "Go back and tell your husband that he's safe."

After all, he didn't procrastinate, and went to line up to enter the Gongyuan with his own luggage.

The royal examination room is really different. There are nearly ten people outside for the examination, but there is no need to queue up to enter the tribute courtyard. Fang Yu found his number room with his number plate, although it is about the same size as the examination room in Fucheng , but the environment at this end is much better. It seems to be renovated from time to time, but it doesn't seem that the walls of the city are mottled, and there is still a musty smell when entering.

The first time is raw and the second time is familiar, he quickly made the bed, arranged the number room, and waited for the exam with peace of mind.

The next day, early in the morning, there were invigilators singing the test rules outside, and the Ministry of Rites sent four people as the chief examiners, all of whom were university scholars with Jinshi backgrounds.

The general examination emphasizes classics and justice over poetry and prose. The basic content is all tested in the provincial examination and the examinations below the rural examination. Now that we have reached the stage of the national examination, we naturally have to take some more advanced examinations, and the focus of scoring is biased towards policy theory. .

Fang Yu spent more than three years as a precipitation, reading a lot of ancient books, reading the emperor's policies, and experiencing farming and mulberry farming. This year, he studied and progressed with the students.

The candidate who opened the window in the opposite room and faced Fang Yu saw the situation, and immediately felt a sense of crisis, and when he picked up the pen, he buried his head in writing.

As for Qiao Hezhi from Qingyang Lane, after sending Fang Yu away, he also had a good night's sleep at home, and when he got up, it was almost noon. Looking at the beautiful weather outside, he opened the window and willows swayed by the bed with the wind , a vibrant color, the wind is full of fresh green buds.

"Si Yu, you let the groom hitch up the car this afternoon, let's go burn a stick of incense and donate some sesame oil money."

"Hey." Si Yu said with a smile, "The weather outside is fine, so you should go out for a walk, exercise your muscles and bones, and pray for your lord."

Qiao Hezhi tidied himself up, the scenery was picturesque in spring, and he was in an open mood, so he changed into a lighter dress that was more brightly colored.

He went shopping at the door for the past two days, and he saw that the girls and brothers in the alley were all dressed very brightly, with green shirts and silk, with delicate hair buns, and the hairpins on the headdresses were replaced with flowers. …Whether it is holding a basket or passing by the arch bridge leisurely holding an umbrella, it will undoubtedly blend with the spring scenery.

Spring is sleepy, and he has been really lazy for a while. Except for buying vegetables and cooking for Fang Yu every day, he hardly does other things. Even this small job, he felt tired at night and went to bed early. Several times, they said that they were waiting for Fang Yu to finish the book and we would rest together, but he didn't expect that he would also doze off in front of others, and fell asleep on Fang Yu's body.

Thinking about it, he was a little ashamed, so he prepared to donate some more money to Fang Yu out of his own pocket, hoping that he would be named on the gold list, and it would not be in vain to study hard all these years.

There is everything in the capital, unlike Yuncheng where he has to go outside the city to burn incense, he only needs to take a carriage to the east of the city to find a big temple, the temple is big, and there are many people coming and going, but the monks in the temple listen Said that he was the husband's end, immediately took him to another place, offered incense, kowtowed, and donated money, all in one go, without being crowded at all.

Seeing that he had donated a lot of money, the monk told him that the temple was very lively when Chun Wei left, and many dignitaries in the city would come to pray for the children. In order to comfort these family members, a channel was specially opened to serve the children. The channel for children to pray for the gold list.

The monk introduced him to many ways and contents of praying for blessings. He listened with great interest, and without knowing it, he hung up the marriage line and prayed to Guanyin... In short, he spent dozens of taels of silver on the trip, and returned to the carriage. He suddenly came to his senses, his cheeks flushed slightly, but don't let Fang Yu know these things, it's no wonder he's a prodigal.

He sighed leisurely: "The monks in the capital are also very good at talking. When they see people ordering dishes, they all know what I want and what I want. If I fall into a trap, I will voluntarily sneak into it."

Si Yu chuckled lightly and said, "Young Master, how can you become so thrifty? Back then, even though you couldn't say you were spending money like water, you wouldn't blink with dozens of taels of silver. Now, on the contrary, your heart aches."

"Little girl doesn't know how expensive firewood, rice, oil and salt are if she is not in charge of the house. The capital is not like our Yuncheng. There are many kinds of things and the prices are also expensive. Even if I like it, I think about it and dare not waste money. Although my husband and I are rich, it is not bad. It's a small amount of money, but my husband is always frugal, how can I spend money recklessly, we will have to raise children in the future."

Qiao Hezhi said: "My husband also said that we come to the capital and don't know the place well. Even if we are rich, we shouldn't be too ostentatious. Although the security of the imperial city is not bad, don't be too conspicuous and be hated by others. , be careful, just spend money when you are bored."

Si Yu nodded: "Yes, the servant listened to the young master's words, and in the future we have to bargain when we buy vegetables, but we can't let people see that our family is rich."

When we returned to the main street near Qingyang Lane, the sky had already darkened. The shops beside the street were the first to light up their lanterns, and then the residential areas were also lit up. The night in the city was as bright as day. Curfew, can be happy all night, brightly lit is common.

Qiao Hezhi seldom went out at night, he was shocked by the lights in the city, he got off the carriage, there were still many young men and women in the market, he saw lanterns lit up on Qiyue Tower, the tallest building in the outer city, and there was even a Kongming lantern on Qiong Tower, slowly Float into the air with the wind.

"I don't know which family prince lit a lamp to pray for his young master again."

"It's really a big deal, it looks good, it's spectacular!"

"That's not true. All the lights in Qiyue Tower are on, even in the Gongyuan. This scene can be seen every time in the exam. I don't know what kind of people are in high school this year."

"Last time the No. [-] Scholar paraded through the streets, I didn't see much of it, and Tan Hua was really mediocre. I don't know if this year may be a feast for the eyes."

Qiao Hezhi heard the people talking about the lanterns in the market, he put his hands together quickly, and prayed to the bright lights of Qiyue Tower with flowers.