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

It's no wonder that Dean Qiu and Master Jiang were so excited. The provincial examinations are held every three years, administered by each province and held in the provincial capital. Fulin County can only produce one or two successful candidates each year. In bad years, Tiande Academy has also experienced a shortage of qualified candidates, resulting in the complete failure of its students.

In three years, the academy could only produce one or two successful candidates in the imperial examinations. Each successful candidate was an extremely rare talent for Tiande Academy. Tiande Academy was the best academy in Fulin County, but in reality, among the academy's teachers, only Dean Qiu and Vice Dean Li were successful candidates in the imperial examinations; the rest were all scholars who had passed the county-level examinations.

Students who passed the provincial examination and became Juren were granted an academic title and received a plaque and 20 taels of silver from the Ministry of Revenue. Even if they failed the subsequent metropolitan examination, they still had the opportunity to become officials, serving as judges, prefects, or magistrates in various local governments. Passing the provincial examination meant officially entering the officialdom and achieving upward social mobility.

Dean Qiu was already in his fifties, and he had already achieved wealth, status, and education. He didn't ask for much in the rest of his life, except to cultivate a few more successful candidates for the imperial examinations in Fulin County. As for passing the metropolitan examination and becoming a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), Dean Qiu had never dared to dream of it. But now, looking at the examination papers on the table, a glimmer of hope ignited in his heart.

If Gu Xiao could one day pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi, he would have no regrets for the rest of his life.

Master Jiang also understood the significance of being a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, and his excitement was no less than that of Dean Qiu.

Dean Qiu: "Tell me more about this child's situation."

Master Jiang looked embarrassed. "Well, I don't know much about that. I only know that he was recommended by the county magistrate. He had never studied at the academy before and found a job copying books at our Tiande Academy."

Dean Qiu was immediately enraged, his beard bristling and eyes wide with fury. "Nonsense! How can someone with such talent belittle himself? He should be sent to the academy to study as soon as possible. What are his family members thinking?!"

Even people in the countryside understand the importance of a good student; the whole family will do everything in their power to support their education. Dean Qiu couldn't understand how this family could be so foolish!

Dean Qiu couldn't sit still any longer; he was eager to see Gu Xiao. What kind of person was he? Why hadn't he come to the academy to study before? And how did he manage to get a perfect score on the exam he set?

Dean Qiu carefully put the paper away. "Where is this student now?"

Master Jiang guessed, "He must be copying books at Tiande Bookstore."

Dean Qiu stood up. "Wait here for a moment while I tell your teacher's wife that you and I will go to Tiande Academy to find him."

Master Jiang understood Dean Qiu's personality; he was someone who valued reading and scholarship above all else, so he wasn't too surprised that Dean Qiu wanted to go find Gu Xiao immediately.

When Dean Qiu arrived at the backyard, he heard bursts of coughing coming from inside the bedroom before he even entered. The coughing became more and more frequent, indicating that the person inside must have heard Dean Qiu's footsteps. Then the noise inside gradually subsided, clearly because the person inside was trying their best to suppress it.

Dean Qiu sighed silently, pushed open the door and entered. The room was filled with a strong smell of medicine. A woman in her forties was reclining on the bed. When she saw Dean Qiu enter, she forced a smile.

The woman was old, but one could still tell that she had been a beauty in her youth, with a gentle and graceful demeanor. Due to a lung disease, her complexion was poor, with an unhealthy blush on her face. She looked at Dean Qiu with tender affection in her eyes.

Dean Qiu sat down by the bedside, took the woman's hand, and said gently, "Huixin, if you feel unwell and want to cough, don't hold it in."

Fang Huixin smiled and said, "I felt much better after coughing a few times. It's you who's been taking care of me every day, and you look so tired." As she spoke, she raised her hand and gently touched Dean Qiu's face.

Dean Qiu looked at his wife with infinite tenderness in his eyes, "The academy has recently enrolled a rare and promising student. His talent is truly exceptional. I need to go out for a while and will be back as soon as I've finished my business."

Fang Huixin knew her husband's temperament well and knew that he must be as anxious as an ant on a hot pan at this moment. "Go quickly. You don't need to stay with me. Don't delay important matters."

Fang Huixin was Dean Qiu's wife. Her family was a prominent family in Fulin County. She was more than ten years younger than Dean Qiu. She married Dean Qiu, who was still a scholar, when she was a teenager. The two had been devoted to each other for more than 20 years, showing mutual respect and love.

Three years ago, Fang Huixin caught a cold in the winter. Her body was already weak, and it took her nearly a month to recover. However, after recovering from the cold, she developed a persistent cough that would flare up from time to time. This year, before winter even arrived, she had already started coughing again, and the symptoms were getting worse every year.

Once Fang Huixin was sure Dean Qiu was far away, she couldn't help but cough again, coughing so hard she almost couldn't breathe. She pounded her chest with her hand, her face flushed. She knew her own body best; this year her illness had suddenly appeared and was much more severe than in previous years, so she feared the situation was not good.

Dean Qiu and Master Jiang drove their carriage to Tiande Academy. Because they spent a lot of time grading papers, it was getting late when they arrived. They did not get to see Gu Xiao as they had hoped. They learned from the curator of Tiande Academy that he had returned to the village with his wife.

Tiande Academy is an affiliated institution of the academy. Director Liu of the academy is equivalent to the dean's direct subordinate. When Dean Qiu arrived, he hurriedly entertained him. Dean Qiu inquired about Gu Xiao's situation, and Director Liu answered all his questions.

Director Liu: "Gu Xiao has been copying books at the library for two years now, rain or shine. He doesn't talk much and focuses on copying books. He is a serious and diligent person."

Director Liu had a very good impression of Gu Xiao; he was low-key, diligent in copying books, and produced high-quality works.

Unexpectedly, Dean Qiu frowned upon hearing this answer, feeling even more regretful. He had spent more than two years copying books; if he had used that time to study at the academy, he might have already achieved academic success.

Master Jiang wondered, "You've been copying books for over two years, you should have saved up some money by now, why aren't you studying at the academy?"

It was not uncommon for children from impoverished families to work part-time while studying; Mr. Jiang himself had gone through the same thing.

Director Liu sighed, “Gu Xiao had only been copying books for a short time when people came to inquire about how much money he earned each day. I heard that he is the son-in-law of the second son of the Nie family in Qinghe Village. He is probably married into the Nie family and has little say in the family. He probably has to hand over the money he earns from copying books. In addition, Nie Wenye, the eldest grandson of the Nie family, is studying in the academy. I suppose the Nie family can't afford to support two scholars. Of course, these are just my guesses.”

Director Liu runs the library, and compared to the scholars who spend all their time immersed in books, he has a clearer understanding of human relationships and worldly affairs, and he basically guessed most of the reasons. However, he was still unaware of Liu Yan's divorce from the Nie family and still thought that Gu Xiao was living in the Nie family's home.

Nie Wenye is acquainted with Dean Qiu and Master Jiang. He is talented and hardworking, a promising student with a good chance of passing the imperial examination. The college attaches great importance to him.

But Gu Xiao had more than just a glimmer of hope. Based on this perfect score on his exam paper alone, Dean Qiu was full of confidence that he would pass the imperial examination. At this moment, in his mind, the relative importance of the two had already been determined.

Making Gu Xiao copy books while sending Nie Wenye to study at the academy is like throwing away the watermelon for a sesame seed!

Dean Qiu sighed three times, "Foolish, foolish, foolish!"

"Let's go to Qinghe Village."

He didn't care that it was getting late; he was determined to see Gu Xiao and his family today and explain to them the importance of supporting Gu Xiao's studies.