Chapter 52: Metropolitan Examination

At the end of the second month of the eighth year of Yifeng, there was no wind, just dry cold.

On the day of the metropolitan examination, the doors of the examination hall were wide open, with soldiers neatly lined up at the entrance.

All candidates entering had to undergo strict checks, and only those without any cheating materials were allowed to pass through the Dragon Gate.

The imperial examination of the Golden Phoenix Dynasty was similar to that of ancient China, with minor differences.

It was presided over by the Ministry of Rites, with the Empress personally appointing the chief and deputy invigilators. The preliminary checks, including body searches and numbering, were personally carried out by the Hanlin Academy scholars who assisted in the invigilation!!

The imperial court attached great importance to the imperial examination, and cheating behaviors would be severely punished. Before entering the Dragon Gate, all items brought by the students, including packed food, had to be thoroughly inspected one by one.

When Liu Changning arrived at the entrance of the examination hall, most candidates had already entered.

Jia Ziyun was pacing back and forth in front of the hall. Seeing her rushing over, the anxiety on his face finally subsided.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead and complained, “My dear, you finally came. If you were half an hour later, I’m afraid the Dragon Gate would have closed. Eh? I’m saying, on such an important day, how come you don’t show a bit of anxiety?”

Liu Changning raised her eyes, her soft apricot eyes softened a bit, and she comforted, “It’s only three days anyway, and all the subjects are what we’ve learned before. Ziyun, just relax.”

After being comforted by her cold words, Jia Ziyun’s eyes contained a hint of a smile, and the anxiety in his heart subsided a bit.

She handed the package in her hand to Liu Changning, patted her shoulder, and said with a smile, “Alright, alright, with a word of comfort from you, Liu Juanyuan, your elder sister will definitely perform normally. Take this bundle, my younger brother has prepared a large package of dry food for you.”

“Younger brother?” Liu Changning tilted her head, a flash of surprise in her eyes: “Has the junior brother arrived in the capital?”

Jia Ziyun stuffed the package into her arms, with a jealous look on her face: “Yes, yes, yes, he arrived in the capital with father five days ago. It’s the old master’s 80th birthday, and my younger brother was raised by the old master’s knees back then. Now that the old man is celebrating his birthday, how could he not come back to congratulate? Quickly accept it, my younger brother is already tired from the long journey, but in order to make pastries for you and me, he spent three whole days in the mansion’s kitchen.”

Liu Changning frowned slightly, she had prepared dry food in her package. And it’s not advisable to eat too much during these few days of the exam.

Too much dry food would be wasted if not finished. But it was her junior brother’s kind intentions, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to refuse.

She raised her eyes and scanned the surroundings.

At the corner of the street, there was a white-haired beggar kneeling. She took out the dry food she had prepared earlier and quickly went forward, stuffing the food into his arms.

The beggar thanked her profusely, and when he looked up, he saw that fairy-like lady standing still.

She raised her head, her gaze falling on the Zhuangyuan Building not far away. Her expressionless face suddenly curved into a smile, like an ice lotus blooming at the peak of a snowy mountain, the ice and snow melting.

The beggar was stunned for a moment, and the broken bowl in his hand fell to the ground, shattering. He hurriedly lowered his head.

When he looked up again, that lady in snow-white clothes had already disappeared without a trace.

In the Zhuangyuan Building, second floor private room.

Pei Yuanshao closed the wooden window tightly with a “bang”. He covered his chest with one hand, his round earlobe tinged with a faint red, spreading to the root of his ear.

Just now, why did that person suddenly look up? Could it be that she saw him here?

Long Diqing frowned, ignoring his heart beating like drums, for quite a while.

A heavy snort came from the empty private room.

Did Liu Cangyu think he came here specifically to see her?

Huh! Where did she get the face?

He just… recently his taste has been light, and he wanted to taste the famous dish of the Zhuangyuan Building, clear-stewed shark’s fin.

—

The metropolitan examination of the Golden Phoenix Dynasty was divided into three sessions, lasting nine days in total. Candidates entered the examination hall one day in advance, submitted their papers the next day, and were not allowed to leave the examination shed during the process. They ate and lived inside the examination shed.

Liu Changning and Jia Ziyun were among the last of the entering candidates. After the invigilator checked all the food and items, they were given their numbers and entered the examination hall.

The examination hall was heavily guarded, and candidates were not allowed to look around freely after entering the examination site.

After passing through the front gate of the examination hall, rows of wooden board houses came into view.

There was a narrow corridor between the wooden houses to prevent candidates from cheating.

After Liu Changning entered the examination shed according to her number, the invigilator following her locked the wooden door. This was called “locking the examination hall”.

Liu Changning had previously gone through the academy examination and provincial examination. She was quite familiar with all the procedures of the imperial examination.

For the next nine days, eating, drinking, and other bodily functions would all be done inside this examination shed.

The wooden examination shed was not large, only able to accommodate one person sitting at a wooden table, with no space to move around.

When tired and needing rest, one could only lie on the wooden table to make do for a few nights. Because of the harsh environment, many students would shed a layer of skin when leaving the examination hall.

The metropolitan examination process of the Golden Phoenix Dynasty was largely similar to that of ancient China, but there were still differences in some details.

The examination questions were not given one subject at a time, but all three subjects were given out at the beginning of the exam.

Candidates needed to complete the exam papers by the ninth day and leave the examination hall in order. They were not allowed to leave the examination shed even one step during the process. Eating, drinking, and relieving oneself were all done inside the shed, no different from being in a prison cell.

When the exam papers were handed out, Liu Changning was grinding ink.

She received the exam questions through the gap in the wooden door, roughly flipped through the contents of the three subjects, a casual smile hanging on her face.