Traveling through time and space to become a child, supporting the family by catching fish and shrim

Not everyone is willing to recommend something.

Because the end result is likely to be a thankless task.

Chen Lang's poems are indeed well written, but the college entrance examination does not only test poetry.

During the early years of the founding of the People's Republic of China, there were indeed students who became top scorers in the imperial examinations and became officials in the imperial court through a poem or an essay.

But that was because the imperial examination system was not perfect at the beginning of the founding of the country, and the country was in urgent need of talents, so the standards were relaxed.

Today, the Great Yan Dynasty has been established for more than 150 years, and the imperial examination system has become quite complete. It is impossible for students to pass the exam by just writing a poem or an essay.

According to Chen Lang himself, he never read books again after he passed the examination and became a second-rate person for a while. After he came to his senses, he spent his time making money and doing business.

There is only half a month left before the college entrance examination. Even if Chen Lang starts studying hard every night from now on, the probability of passing the exam is less than 10%!

As his recommender, I am doomed to be humiliated.

Mr. Pi is already over sixty years old. He values his reputation and family rank more than anything else. Naturally, he is unwilling to do something that would bring him no reward and would most likely damage his reputation.

The county magistrate obviously thought of this, so he asked Mr. Pi to be the recommender, because the county magistrate himself did not want to lose face.

Mr. Pi didn't say anything, and the situation suddenly became deadlocked.

The county magistrate was very dissatisfied. This old man always prided himself on being noble, but now he was reluctant to act as a recommender. If someone didn't know, they would think you were the number one scholar!

Seeing the county magistrate's dismay, the chief clerk immediately guessed his superior's thoughts and hurriedly asked, "Mr. Pi, do you think Chen Lang won't pass the county exam?"

Mr. Pi hummed without comment.

The chief clerk said, "If you ask me, the county exam and the prefectural exam are not difficult at all."

"Chen Lang is already a Tongsheng. He has experienced the first two rounds of exams. With a little guidance, he will have no problem passing these two rounds of exams."

"There's a little trouble, that's the final college entrance examination. But the examination is next year, and Chen Lang has plenty of time to review his studies. Someone who writes poetry so well should not be too bad in other areas."

"Even if I can't get the first place in the court, at least I can definitely get the title of scholar."

Mr. Pi twitched his lips, revealing a forced smile. He thought, "You've praised Chen Lang so much, why don't you be the recommender yourself? Why don't you leave it to me, an old man, to do it all by myself?"

The chief clerk was a little angry when he saw that Mr. Pi still refused to give in.

This old man doesn't know how to appreciate it!

At this moment, the scholar next to him, who had not said much, said calmly: "Let me do it."

The county magistrate immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

The chief clerk's face was also filled with joy. He said, "Mr. Sheng, are you serious?"

Mr. Sheng’s real name is Sheng Chuliang. He is fifty-three years old this year. He passed the imperial examination at the age of twenty-five, making him the youngest juren in the history of Nanhe County.

But Sheng Chuliang was a man of integrity and could not tolerate any injustice. During the palace examination, he reported his classmate for cheating and called another candidate a relative, which instantly stirred up a hornet's nest.

After the emperor learned about this, he ordered a thorough investigation and encouraged Sheng Chuliang, saying that he had done a good job and that this was what a scholar should do.

Sheng Chuliang originally thought that with the emperor's praise, his future would be smooth sailing.

After the palace examination, Sheng Chuliang's name appeared on the list of the top three. This result made him a little dissatisfied, because he felt that even if he could not make it into the first class, he should at least be in the upper second class.

But the result was only the last one in the top three.

On the night the list was announced, Sheng Chuliang received a transfer order asking him to serve as a county magistrate in a county in Shuozhou.

Shuozhou is the most dangerous state in Dayan, because it not only faces the threat from Northern Liao, but also the threat from Western Xia.

The county town where Sheng Chuliang worked happened to be at the intersection of the borders of three countries.

If Sheng Chuliang still doesn't understand what's going on, then all the time he's been reading sage books over the years will be in vain.

However, Sheng Chuliang did not refuse. He was young and energetic at that time. The more his superiors targeted him, the more he wanted to achieve results to prove himself.

However, the facts showed that a border county town that even an old bureaucrat could not handle was not something that a fledgling "Jinshi" could handle.

After serving as a county magistrate for three years, Sheng Chuliang's rank rose from Jinshi to Juren...

In the next ten years, Sheng Chuliang served as an official in many places, with the longest term of office not exceeding half a year, and he was always in poor and chaotic places.

For Sheng Chuliang, the best time of his life was wasted on the matter of "taking up the post".

Once he arrived at the place and had finally sorted out the complicated relationships, the superiors would immediately send someone to pick peaches, and then Sheng Chuliang would set out on the road to his new post again.

So, when he was over 40, he resigned from his official position and returned to his hometown, Nanhe County, to retire.

Mr. Pi would occasionally have dinner and tea with county officials, but Sheng Chuliang completely refused all official social interactions and stayed at home writing articles and raising birds and fish.

For this poetry meeting, the county magistrate came to visit three times. Sheng Chuliang was grateful for his sincerity and finally agreed to be a judge.

After reading Chen Lang's two poems, especially the latter one, Sheng Chuliang felt a desire to admire his talent, but he felt that even if someone like Chen Lang entered the officialdom, he would most likely end up like himself, so he did not take the initiative to step forward as the recommender.

Now that Mr. Pi refuses to agree, I should stand up and report to the county magistrate.

"Leave him to me." Sheng Chuliang said calmly, "But sir, I am only his recommender. I cannot guarantee that he will pass the examination and become a scholar."

The county magistrate nodded and said, "Whether he can pass the exam depends entirely on his own luck. No one else can help him."

"Chen Tongsheng, please come forward."

Chen Lang stepped forward quickly.

"This is the juren of this county, Mr. Sheng Chuliangsheng."

"He is willing to be your sponsor."

Chen Lang clasped his fists, bowed to Sheng Chuliang, and said, "Thank you, Master Sheng, for your kindness."

Sheng Chuliang said indifferently: "I am just your recommender. I can't say I am showing you any favor. Don't expect me to help you."

"Whether you can pass the exam depends on your luck."

Chen Lang said: "Student understands."

Sheng Chuliang turned to the county magistrate and said, "My Lord, I feel unwell and will be leaving now."

Before the county magistrate could say anything, Sheng Chuliang started walking away.

The county magistrate was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, but this old man had such a temper, like a stone in a pit, smelly and hard.

"Chen Tongsheng, although you write good poetry, the imperial examination is much more complicated than writing poetry. I hope you can make good use of the remaining half month to read more and strive to pass the examination and become a scholar."

“Making money is not that important. As long as the money you earn is enough to survive, that’s all that matters.”

"Studying for the imperial examinations and serving the imperial court are the most important things for scholars in the world."

"Work hard and don't let us down."

Chen Lang secretly complained in his heart, but he still had to force a look of gratitude on his face and said, "I will remember your teachings in my heart."