After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

Yesterday's first exam consisted of two texts (the Four Books and a treatise on the Classic of Filial Piety) and one poem (a five-character, six-line poem).

Today's second exam, the policy essay, requires writing articles discussing current political issues and offering suggestions to the court, with the main argument as the core of the writing.

Policy discussion involves sharing your perspective on a particular issue, such as how you would handle it if you were in charge of it.

The essay topic for this year's imperial examination was about military affairs.

These barbarians are unruly and disturb our borders. Should we attack them? Or should we retreat?

It means that if a foreign tribe invades our territory and violates our borders, should we attack or reason with them and ask them to withdraw their troops?

Jiang Xiaoqi: My god, is that even a question? Of course, we should beat him up! To uphold our country's dignity and territorial integrity!!!

Isn't this ingrained in the genes of the Chinese people? Should we continue to attack? Or retreat?

Retreat? No retreat allowed! Our country may be broken, but our mountains and rivers remain. We must defeat these barbarians and make them run for their lives. We have no way out!

Before even starting to answer the questions, Jiang Xiaoqi felt incredibly excited and eager to try her hand at a "theoretical discussion."

He picked up his pen and wrote the first line:

A weak nation has no diplomacy. Without weapons in hand, surrounded by powerful enemies, it is no different from being a fish on a chopping block...

His Majesty is now diligent and hardworking, the world is at peace, the people live in peace and contentment, and the soldiers and generals are determined to defend the country. With the people's will gathered and ready to fight, what is the point of not going to war?

With the comrades-in-arms, we will surely drive out the wolves and tigers; with the joint efforts of the military and civilians, we will surely defeat the rabble and solidify the city's defenses...

It was written in a flowing, uninterrupted flow, without a single pause.

His mind was like a movie playing out: revolutionary martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of the country; the hardships of climbing snow-capped mountains and crossing grasslands while eating tree bark; the lives of nameless heroes who went deep behind enemy lines and faced death on the brink of death...

Countless figures overlapped, staining the curtain a deep crimson.

The hero's curtain falls, the young man lays down his pen.

Calmly copy it, let it dry, roll it up, put it into a second bamboo tube, seal the bamboo tube tightly, put it into an oilcloth bag with a drawstring, and hang it next to yesterday's oilcloth bag.

After drinking a glass of warm water, he finally came to his senses.

Sigh, haha, I got too caught up in the role. That prosperous era, 'she' Jiang Wenming can never go back to.

It wasn't dark yet, so there was no need to light candles. I drank some water, but I had no appetite and didn't want to eat anything.

My past life was terrible, no need to dwell on it...

She lay down fully clothed, curling up into a small ball.

He is Jiang Mingfei, the only son of the Jiang family who is taking the college entrance examination.

Grandpa and Dad are both here, in the examination room not far away... That's good.

As night deepened, Jiang Wenqing and Landlord Jiang sensed something and, after putting down their pens, both looked towards the direction of the cells ahead.

Jiang Wenqing: Oh dear, isn't that the right answer? We should fight back, we can't back down!

Landlord Jiang: Based on Mingfei's usual personality, how would he answer? He'd definitely be in favor of war. This kid, you'd better be careful.

Who knows if the examiner is really a warmonger as rumored? What if the rumors are wrong? War is necessary, but let's try to be more moderate in our wording...

The final day of the provincial examination arrived as scheduled. By this time, most candidates were already somewhat listless. There was no way they could be energetic; they were not eating or sleeping well, and they still had to use their brains to produce a lot of output.

Oh, of course there are exceptions. Jiang Xiaoqi rubbed her eyes, rested her chin on her hand, and her face looked like it hadn't been washed properly.

Tears still clung to her eyelashes, her nose was a little red, and her hair was a bit frizzy and slightly messy, but not much. Her face remained fair, flawless, and perfectly balanced in terms of moisture and oil.

The third exam tested mathematics and law, which tested calculation and logical abilities, as well as the ability to recite legal provisions.

Occasionally, you might be asked to judge who is right and who is wrong, and to convict and sentence the guilty party.

Jiang Xiaoqi secretly covered her mouth with her hand and yawned.

Finally, the last exam papers were distributed, and the same process as the previous two days was repeated. Sun Xuezheng had watched this process three times.

He picked up his teacup and took a sip of tea, wondering if his subordinates could find out the results before the list was released. He was really eager to take on disciples...

Jiang Xiaoqi was unaware that someone was eyeing him, and that the person eyeing him was a very important figure. All he wanted was to successfully help his grandfather and father pass the provincial examination.

Then he went south to find the great Confucian scholar recommended by the Liu family.

I won't be taking the provincial examination again for the next six years. As for the provincial exam… I'll wait until I'm twelve. After all, passing it too early is useless; who would let a mere child become an official?

He never thought that becoming a successful candidate in the imperial examinations would mean waiting to be appointed as an official; that path could be left to his father.

My goal is still to pass the provincial and imperial examinations, ride through the streets on horseback, and admire all the flowers of Chang'an.

The math problems are within an acceptable range of difficulty; I estimate that Grandpa will have to put in some effort to solve them.

The part about memorizing the laws wasn't too bad, but as for judging cases, I wonder if Father will become a 'muddled magistrate'~

After worrying about her two elders for a moment, Jiang Xiaoqi finally took out her draft paper and started working on the problems.

He is quick-witted and solves math problems extremely fast, but he never skips steps in order to be fast. Even people who don't know his algorithm will suddenly understand after seeing the steps.

The legal provisions were recited word for word, and the case analysis was thorough and insightful, fair and impartial, leaving no room for disagreement between the two parties in the litigation.

Including the time for copying, it only took half the time to finish answering all the questions.

After the rolls are dried, they are still packed into bamboo tubes, bags, and hung on the wall!

At noon, when the sky is bright, I'm not sleepy anymore, so I just eat something to pass the time.

He had already slowed down his movements as much as possible, but the water still boiled quickly. He made some oil tea noodles and ate a few bites with some hard flatbread.

I can leave now that I've handed in my paper. I don't need to eat too much; there's plenty of good food outside.

Tan Hao and Zhao Hongxuan's cooks are excellent; they've definitely prepared a huge feast for the five of them when they get back!

The two being nagged: Help! Is this math problem even made by a human?!

How much does an elephant weigh? Why bother weighing an elephant for no reason!

It's not like Cao Cao's son; he really did have elephants and boats to carry them, so he could test them little by little with stones!

Ahhhhh!

7: Is it difficult? It's alright~

Hmm... at least they didn't ask how many steps it takes to put an elephant in the refrigerator... ╮(╯-╰“)╭