Chapter 18 Ye Gehao, Taking Advantage of Youth

Chen Heng, who ranked first in the preliminary examination, took Chen Qi and hid in the room to read books at ease.

Only the innkeeper knew that the father and son lived in that room, and ordered the waiter to send two more dishes at dinner to congratulate them. The other students who lived there only knew that the first place in this case was in the inn, but they found out that no one was the first place after asking each other.

Among the four scholars in Lian Bao, there was a quick-talker who said some details about Chen Heng. When everyone heard that the first place in the case was a child of seven or eight years old, how could they bear it.

Since ancient times, scholars have looked down on each other. Who didn't study hard in the cold window? How could they tolerate a child climbing over their heads? Therefore, when taking the second exam, everyone waited in the lobby of the inn early to see who the first place in the case was.

As usual, it was a gray sky at four o'clock in the morning, and Chen Qi escorted Chen Heng down the wooden ladder. The former saw the full hall of scholars, and more than a dozen pairs of eyes were all looking at him, and he was panicked for a while.

"Dad, just keep walking."

"Ah... eh, yes, yes."

The voice of his son came from behind Chen Qi, bringing the nervous farmer back to his senses. He suppressed his discomfort, walked down the stairs, and subconsciously stepped aside to let Chen Heng's figure out. It would have been better if he didn't move, but his movement made the scholars see his son clearly.

Hey, what did you do, you fool? This is your son. Chen Qi just stepped aside and felt annoyed in his heart. He blamed his foolish behavior for making Chen Heng the "first bird to stand out".

What about Chen Heng himself?

He just smiled at everyone with a relaxed expression, as a return gift to them, and then strode out of the inn with his head held high. The second county exam was imminent, and these scholars didn't dare to do anything.

The first place in the case was obtained by his own real talent and learning, so why should he be afraid of the eyes of others.

Chen Heng walked on the street, and the cool breeze moved, blowing his green robe.

Seeing the case leader leave, the dozen students had no reason not to follow him. For some unknown reason, the group of people walked behind Chen Heng obediently, escorting him to the county government office like a group of stars surrounding the moon.

Such an appearance naturally attracted the attention of other students.

While waiting to enter, everyone whispered to each other, telling news about Chen Heng, and their eyes fell on Chen Heng who was surrounded by everyone from time to time.

"How could he be the case leader this time?"

"Shame on me, shame on me."

A candidate hugged his face and left, obviously not ready to take the exam.

"Humph, in two days, when his test paper is posted, I want to see how capable he is to be the case leader."

Chen Heng didn't care about the crowd's discussion. He waited for the signal to enter, and at this time, an official came out and shouted that he was allowed to enter.

Chen Heng took the opportunity to step forward. He was only the case leader and not the county magistrate, so he had no right to enter first. But for some reason, as soon as he took a step, the crowd in the front row dispersed to both sides like a tide, making way for him.

Chen Heng couldn't help but smile, but he didn't care. He calmly completed the process and walked into the county government office. Last time, his seat was "Yi Shisan", and this time his seat was "Jia Yi".

The position was even easier to find, right under the eyes of the county magistrate. A little behind his seat were the examination tables of "Jia Er" and "Jia San".

After all the candidates were seated, the process of distributing test papers and showing test questions was still going on, and there was no need to explain more. But when Chen Heng was answering the questions, he could feel that the county magistrate's steps often fell on his side. But he was focused on answering the questions, and he could ignore it.

County Magistrate Xu's behavior was naturally to check whether the students he personally selected were suspected of cheating. After reading Chen Heng's article several times, he finally nodded and felt relieved, and returned to his seat and began to be proud.

What was County Magistrate Xu proud of?

Haha, this has to start from the night of marking the papers.

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The thick test papers were stacked on the desk, and Xu Pingzhi took on the responsibility of marking the papers alone. According to the rules, the county teachers can also participate in marking the papers. Many county magistrates would also let the county magistrates participate in order to save trouble.

The world is so big, and there are so many county magistrates. As long as no one knows, no one will deliberately pursue anything. But Xu Pingzhi is such a cautious person, and the prefect of Yangzhou is Dong Weng who appreciates him.

Xu Pingzhi was afraid of causing trouble for the other party, so he naturally refused to let others do it. The student who wrote that Li Tang was exempted from the examination that Chen Heng knew was in the same provincial examination as Xu Pingzhi.

Xu Pingzhi, who marked the papers himself, kept saying "the first place in the case should be this person" until he saw Chen Heng's test paper, but when he looked at Chen Heng's hometown and life, he was a little embarrassed.

How come Chen Heng is only seven years old.

Do you really want him to be the first place in this case?

Xu Pingzhi was a little hesitant, so he called his master and ordered him to answer the question in the hall. After listening to the county magistrate's concerns, the master did not take it seriously and smiled: "Sir, this is not difficult. Other counties are not without ten-year-olds who have won the first place in the exam. The higher authorities have changed the reign title to Wenhe...

We have a seven-year-old who has won the first place in the exam, which shows that you have governed well in recent years and have made contributions to the court.

Besides, at his age, he can win the first place in the exam. He may have a better future. When he comes back to see us, everyone will say that you have a good eye for talent."

Xu Pingzhi couldn't help but feel happy when he heard this. That's right, this is a political achievement that comes to his door. Looking at the test paper in his hand again, the already excellent essay adds a bit of youthful spirit.

"Good."

Xu Pingzhi nodded slightly and picked it up.

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In the next three exams, each one was easier than the last. As expected, Chen Heng won the first place in all of them. As for the suspicions among the students, after Chen Heng's essay was posted in the county government, no one could say a word of "no".

Men of letters may look down on each other, but they also know the quality of the essay. Even if there are scholars who deliberately find fault, they will shake their heads and leave in disappointment after reading it.

When all the exams are over, Chen Heng will be the real champion of the county exam.

It's just a title. Chen Heng was happy for a few days, and then he put it aside and set off on his way home. However, on the day Chen Heng left, an interesting thing happened.

Some failed candidates blocked the way of the father and son, but did not make any move. They just asked: "I don't know where the champion is studying, so that we can also get some of your glory. We are dedicated to learning, but we just lack a famous teacher to guide us. We hope that the champion will help us."

Chen Heng, who didn't want to show off, stopped his steps immediately after hearing this. He knew that this was his chance to repay his teacher, so how could he miss it?

Chen Heng cleared his throat, raised his hands and bowed in the direction of Shanxi Village, and said loudly: "My teacher Wang Xianming used to teach in the county. He heard that there was a boy in Shanxi Village who was eager to learn, so he took the trouble to come here and teach him carefully for two years. This boy..."

Chen Heng showed his white teeth and pointed at himself, "It's me."

With the current top student personally endorsing the book, everyone was surprised for a while. Someone said: "He became the top student in two years? Does this teacher have the ability to turn stones into gold?"

"I seem to have heard of his reputation..."

"Ah, my parents have misled me!!" A student cried out in pain, and everyone asked a few questions when they saw it. The student then said that he had also studied under Wang Xianming.

Everyone sighed, and there were also mockers. Chen Heng saw it in his eyes, but didn't say much.

Someone else asked, "Will Master Wang still accept students?"

"My master is very strict in selecting students. If you are not willing to endure hardships, he will not even see you." Chen Heng seemed to be possessed by his second uncle and started to brag. He didn't know if Wang Xianming would slap him ten times when he saw it. "But if you meet someone who is really interested in learning, he will naturally teach you everything he knows, just like he taught me, day and night, but I am afraid that you can't endure this hardship."

"That's great."

"I have always been the most hard-working person in my life. Master Wang must like me very much when he sees me. Brother, please say a lot of good things for me when the time comes, so that we can complete our friendship as classmates."

There was no way to say everything, Chen Heng just smiled, clasped his hands, and indicated that he was going to leave.

When everyone saw it, they stood up and saluted, saying, "Send the first place."

After Chen Heng left, his words in the inn naturally began to spread in the county. When Li Gongming heard that the person who won the first place in the exam was the child brought by Wang Xianming, he was so angry that he didn't go out for several days.

When he recovered his spirit, he summoned the students who failed the county exam and prepared to work hard for the next time.

The number of people in the school has been reduced by half.

He was so angry that he fell ill again. It was really fate.

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After returning home, Chen Heng specifically told his family not to go out and spread the news. He will concentrate on preparing for the prefectural exam in April.

In the Yong Dynasty, the county exam and the prefectural exam were combined into a "Tongsheng exam". Only those who passed both exams could be considered as formal Tongsheng. As mentioned earlier, the top scorers in each county can be considered as having passed the prefectural exam. This is the unspoken rule in the officialdom, and basically no one breaks it.

But Chen Heng still hopes that he can do his best and test his limits.

Seeing that Chen Heng is becoming more and more motivated, his family began to pay attention to his opinions. They only planned to wait for the teacher to come back, close the door and set up a table of wine to celebrate.

But the Chen family was honest, and Chen Heng's boasting in the inn had an impact. Many students really rushed to Shanxi Village and sighed at Wang Xianming's closed door, hoping that their future mentor would come back soon.

The villagers were naturally surprised. This old man had been in peace for more than two years since he returned to the village. Why did so many people come to see him recently? After asking the scholars, I learned that the boy from the Chen family won the first place in this county exam.

Now, even the head of the village is sick.

Thank you for the recommendation votes and monthly tickets from the book friends. I am really grateful. I voted so much at once, hahahaha, and the rewards from the two book friends Hongfeng Xieyu and Hope to See. I will work hard to write.