A peasant girl travels through time with a hospital, rising to become an empress.

The county examination consisted of five sessions, and papers had to be submitted on the same day for each session; taking the exam by candlelight at night was not allowed. The first session was the "main session," followed by the "initial review," "second review," and the last two sessions were the "continuous review."

On the day the exam officially began, before dawn, the air was still chilly and shrouded in a thin mist. Gu Xiao was followed by a large group of relatives and friends, heading towards the designated exam venue.

Needless to say, Nie Qianqian, Liu Yan, and Liu Xiong also insisted on coming along. Nie Qianqian carried Tuantuan, Huang Zhenzhu led Tiedan, and Da Ma, Xiao Ma, and Grandma Ma got up early. Jiang Wenxuan also changed into a neat long gown and wore a gold hairpin in his hair, making him stand out in the crowd.

In fact, Gu Xiao and Nie Qianqian had advised against it earlier, as the arrival time was too early and they didn't want everyone to get cold, but they couldn't resist everyone's enthusiasm.

Upon hearing that Gu Xiao was going to take the county examination, everyone said, "We must go." Grandma Ma even kept saying, "It's a big deal for scholars to take the imperial examination. We have to go and share in the good fortune." In the end, they still managed to gather a large farewell party.

When I arrived at the examination hall, it was already packed with people. There were quite a few candidates, but what was even more noticeable was that each candidate was accompanied by a relative who had come to see them off. Their breath was damp from their breathing as they whispered words of advice that drifted through the morning mist.

The candidates ranged in age from a wide range of young people, mostly young people in their early twenties like Gu Xiao, to children in their early teens who were just over the waist of adults, clutching exam baskets in their hands, but with serious eyes; there were also middle-aged people in their thirties and forties with graying temples, and elderly people nearing fifty with straight backs.

Each candidate carried an exam basket, and there were quite a few intricacies involved in handling these baskets.

It is said that some candidates had inkstones that were too thick, and the officials had to break them open for inspection, which delayed their entry time; others brought pastries that were too big, and the officials suspected that they would be inedible if they were broken into pieces on the spot, thus wasting their good intentions.

Nie Qianqian had already found out the details and personally prepared an exam basket for Gu Xiao: the writing materials were the ones Gu Xiao was used to, so that he wouldn't lose his feel for it if he changed pens on the spot; for food, she made filling multigrain buns and jujube paste cakes, which were easy to store and didn't take up much space; she also added rock sugar, lotus seeds, longan pulp, and a few slices of ginseng to refresh him; finally, she secretly added mints and mentholatum, all small items that could quickly wake him up.

As the time for roll call approached, Liu Yan was still worried. She took the examination basket, lifted the curtain layer by layer to check it, and kept muttering, "Check it again, don't forget the inkstone, or the ink stick..."

Seeing everyone's tense expressions, Jiang Wenxuan couldn't help but laugh. He stepped forward and patted Gu Xiao on the shoulder, deliberately giving him a "wise advice" with a hint of "experience": "Brother Gu, don't be nervous. Just perform normally. I've been through these kinds of situations before, so you'll be fine too."

He was secretly pleased: finally, there was something he had experience with that Gu Xiao hadn't...

Gu Xiao completely ignored him, only giving him a slightly contemptuous look.

Jiang Wenxuan was just trying to liven things up. When Gu Xiao rolled his eyes at him, he wasn't angry. He wisely shut his mouth and just followed the others to look towards the entrance of the examination hall.

Suddenly, three loud gong sounds pierced the morning mist, deep and urgent, instantly silencing most of the area outside the examination hall.

Liu Yan's hands clenched tightly at the hem of her clothes, the words she had just been saying stuck in her throat, her eyes fixed on Gu Xiao; Tuan Tuan in Nie Qianqian's arms shrank closer to her in fright at the sound of the gong, while the others stared intently at the entrance of the examination hall, the air itself seeming to tighten at the sound of the gong.

Only Gu Xiao remained standing ramrod straight.

He raised his hand and straightened the lapel of his long robe, his movements calm and unhurried.

He looked up at the examination hall gate, his gaze as calm as a lake reflecting the morning light. Before him lay the starting point of the imperial examination path, but as he looked inside from the gate, it seemed he wasn't looking at the typical path of a student-to-scholar-to-province graduate. Instead, his eyes seemed to be fixed on another long road.

"Candidates, take your places!"

Gu Xiao turned his head, his expression calm, and nodded slightly to the crowd. "I'm going in. You all should go back early and not get cold." After saying that, he picked up his exam basket, turned around and walked towards the line of candidates, his back straight and his steps steady.

After the candidates lined up, the yamen runners conducted a thorough inspection: their clothes were unbuttoned and examined, their shoes and socks were removed and inspected, and even the food in their examination baskets was carefully checked to prevent any smuggling.

In the hall, the county magistrate was taking attendance when Lord Tang's voice suddenly rang out, loud, deep, and resounding.

Upon hearing this voice, Liu Yan was jolted, her heart pounding wildly. This voice was completely different from the gentle whispers he used to use when chatting with her; it carried an air of authority and power that violently shook her mind, causing her to waver.

The crowd waited silently outside the examination hall until the name "Gu Xiao" came from Tang Jincheng's mouth. They watched him take the exam paper and enter the hall, and then waited for a long time before slowly dispersing.

The day seemed exceptionally long. Nie Qianqian didn't find it difficult to endure while seeing patients at Jishetang, but Liu Yan, Liu Xiong, and Huang Zhenzhu were restless. Even though others repeatedly reassured them that the county examination was just a preliminary test, their families had never produced a scholar before, and their anticipation and worry made every moment particularly agonizing.

After Gu Xiao finished his exams, his whole family went to pick him up. Although this grand ceremony seemed superfluous, it was full of heartfelt wishes. Gu Xiao couldn't refuse, so he had to accept it.

Fortunately, the ordeal didn't last long, and the results were released the following evening. The list was posted on the outer wall of the county government office in a group format, without ranking the names, only listing them.

The area beneath the wall was crowded with examinees and their relatives, a cacophony of voices filling the air. Liu Yan and her group squeezed to the front, more than a dozen pairs of eyes scanning the area. They immediately spotted the name "Gu Xiao," and beamed with joy, their cheers drowning out the surrounding noise.

That night, a celebratory banquet was held at Qiyue Tower, with the aroma of delicious food filling the air. Jiang Wenxuan naturally came to join in the fun.

He watched as everyone gathered around Gu Xiao to congratulate him, preparing for the ceremony and running around busily. He was happy for Gu Xiao, but couldn't help feeling envious.

When he passed the exam, Jiang Botao was busy with business and was far away. He only sent a letter and a generous red envelope. At that time, he was happy because of the money, but now, compared with the lively celebration that Gu Xiao was surrounded by genuine people, he felt that this celebration prepared by everyone was more precious than gold and silver.