There is also spring for passers-by

Wen Wan did not attend the Ning Wang Mansion's family recognition banquet and continued to live her own life behind closed doors.

The affairs of the three young masters of the Han family were widely spread, and the events of the past were also spread.

Wen Wan thought it would be better to stay away for a while. After guiding her two sons in their cultivation and answering their questions, she said, "I'm going to travel and look for opportunities to advance. This trip will take three to five years at the fastest, or even ten years at the slowest."

Before leaving, she had a long talk with Mr. Gongsun and Nanny Lian. Aunt Tong could help Nanny Lian take care of the backyard until Han Siyuan got married and started a family.

Han Siyuan and Han Siqi are still young and it is not time for them to get married. She doesn't want to arrange marriages for them too early and just lets everything take its course.

Some people say that Wen Wan was heartbroken because the second young master was taken away by the royal family, while others say that Wen Wan was unwilling to face Prince Ning, Prince Xian, and the sad past.

Wen Wan was traveling outside and the emperor issued an edict, allowing talented women in the world to take the imperial examinations, and those who achieved fame could enter schools and academies as female teachers, or enter the palace as female officials.

When the news came out, the world was shocked.

The old pedants cursed the civil and military officials for not trying to help the emperor in doing such a ridiculous thing. They each tried to find ways to write letters to their old acquaintances and friends who were officials in Beijing to inquire about this matter. After getting the answers, they all fell silent.

In the first year of the provincial examination, there were indeed several daughters of officials and merchants who signed up to take the exam. The Imperial Examination Hall specially arranged female officials to supervise the examinations, and specially designated the rooms closest to the supervisors as women's rooms to facilitate their participation in the examinations. Even the best toilets were designated as women's toilets, with a large "female" character posted on the door.

Wen Wan was traveling in the southwest at that time. The household registration documents in the southwestern border were easy to obtain. She could get one from the county government for twenty taels of silver. She took the imperial examination under the name "Wen Wan", the sister of a scholar named Wen at that time, and passed the provincial examination to obtain the title of scholar.

When he was seeking fame and fortune, his cultivation, which had been at the third level of Wen Zong, advanced one level.

The following year, she took part in the Yizhou Prefecture Examination and passed the examination. Her cultivation level reached the fifth level of Wen Zong, and she then practiced in seclusion and advanced to the sixth level of Wen Zong.

As a juren, she entered Yizhou Academy as a female teacher. During this period, her cultivation level was at the tenth level of Jin Wenzong. While working as a female teacher, she took out a set of Confucian cultivation techniques that had been passed down earlier and guided the Yizhou scholars to embark on the path of Confucian cultivation.

Local noble ladies from Yizhou Prefecture came to the academy to study one after another. She worked as a female teacher in the academy for four years, and three of them passed the imperial examinations and became scholars.

When the first female scholar entered Yizhou Academy and became a teacher in the girls' school, she resigned from her position as a teacher at Yizhou Academy and prepared to go to Beijing for the examination.

After traveling around the world for six years and teaching in Yizhou for another four years, she has been away from Beijing for ten years.

In the imperial examination hall in the capital, besides her, there were four other ladies from noble families taking the imperial examination.

Li Wan, the daughter of a noble family in Luocheng, Princess Anle from the Xianwang Mansion, Xie Zhilan from a noble family in Beijing, and Dongfang Mingyue from the countryside.

When Wen Wan came in, she saw Li Wan and Xie Zhilan sitting together. Princess Anle and Dongfang Mingyue exchanged glances, neither of them giving in. The two were on the verge of a fight, as if they were about to start fighting at any time.

A curious young scholar gathered nearby and asked, "What's going on? Why did Dongfang Mingyue bump into Princess Anle?"

The women did not answer.

Someone in the audience who knew the situation said, "Tsk tsk, the sister-in-law can't stand her future sister-in-law."

After Wen Wan arrived, she sat cross-legged in her room with her eyes closed. She was dressed in a nun's robe, making herself look like a 28-year-old, dignified, elegant and beautiful.

"All candidates going to take the imperial examination must return to their own rooms. They are not allowed to watch, communicate, or whisper..." The examiner began to announce the rules of the imperial examination hall. Those who violated the rules would be expelled.

The exam officially starts at noon.

The first test is on the Four Books and Five Classics. There is a completion part, where you need to write the first name to complete the second sentence, or the second name to complete the first sentence. There is also an interpretation part, where you need to write a paragraph to analyze the meaning of the question. The time limit is two hours.

The second exam focused on mathematics. The common question was about chickens and rabbits in the same cage, as well as questions about growing lotus flowers and storing water. These questions would be asked after the scholar exam. Officialdom required involvement in economics, which is why the court included mathematics in the exam. The exam lasted two hours and consisted of ten major questions.

The third test is poetry, which lasts for two hours.

The fourth round is the essay writing on the third day. The test questions are set by the emperor on the spur of the moment. This is also the most difficult part of the examination. It needs to be completed within four days, during which you can write repeatedly.

Wen Wan finished the draft, folded it, pressed it down with a paperweight, and then closed her eyes to rest. The talent here was too rich, and it was a good time to advance in cultivation. It took her three days to advance to the eleventh level of Wen Zong. When she opened her eyes again, she took the draft and revised it over and over again, scribbled it, re-copied it, and revised it again. After finalizing it, she copied it again.

"Attention all tribute students, there is only one hour left to collect the papers, so hurry up."

In the Imperial Examination Hall, some people were cooking noodles, some were eating snacks, and some were brewing tea. The aroma of various foods filled the air. Wen Wan took out a snack and some fruits from her bag and started eating. She had finished her test paper and was just waiting to leave when the time came.

After entering the last hour, people began to hand in their answer sheets to the examiner.

Wen Wan looked at the dozen or so people who had already been interviewed, and handed in her answer sheet.

The examiner saw her calligraphy and asked, "Master, you are..."

"Yizhou is gentle!" She clasped her fists and bowed her head, using the etiquette of a civil official.

The examiner nodded.

Wen Wan went back to pack her things, and came out with a basket, looking refreshed. Xie Zhilan and Li Wan followed her out and wanted to say hello to Wen Wan, but they saw that Wen Wan had already walked far away.

Wen Wan's journey was like strolling around the city. She was not as tired as other people who had been in the examination hall for several days. She was indescribably energetic. She ate two bowls of wontons on the roadside, paid the money, and stood in front of her own house with her examination basket, looking at the signs hanging above: "Prince Wu's Mansion" and "Prince Wen's Mansion". Han Siyuan was moved to Prince Wu, and Han Siqi was promoted to Prince Wen.

She walked through the gate carrying the exam basket. A young doorman jumped out and shouted, "Where did you come from, Taoist nun? You just walked in directly. Can you see clearly? This is the Wenwu County Prince's Mansion..."

The doorman was hit on the back of the head, and the housekeeper scolded him, "This is the lady coming home! You have no manners, get out of here!"

The former butler Han had grown old and moved to a farm in the countryside to retire. The current butler is his eldest son.

Wen Wan nodded, "Where are Dabao and Sanbao?"

"Prince Wu went into seclusion not long ago, and Prince Wen went to the palace on official business and hasn't returned yet."

"I'm in seclusion practicing, don't disturb me."

"Do you need to prepare food for Madam?"

"No need to prepare. I will use the identity of Wen Wan from Yizhou to participate in the imperial examination. If I get a ranking, I will inform the higher-ups. If I cannot leave the country to participate in the palace examination, I hope they will understand. They can arrange my Jinshi ranking as they wish."