Chapter 216 County Examination
After they registered, Hong Xiucai gave Sun Shan, Zheng Hongwen and Liang Can some private lessons.
In fact, it only takes about ten days, and the special class mainly focuses on explaining the county examination questions issued in recent years.
Since the county magistrate has been entrenched in Huangyang County for more than ten years, the teachers in the county have long known him very well.
I know his style of setting questions, it changes a lot, but actually it hasn’t changed at all.
By looking at the content of his previous questions, you can get a general idea of what questions he is going to ask.
Mr. Hong told Sun Shan that the county magistrate particularly liked good handwriting, and those who wrote beautiful handwriting would have a great advantage.
Sun Shan looked at his own handwriting. It was neat and square, without any special features, but it was clear to others.
Anyway, the characters he practiced were the same as the printed ones, stroke by stroke, and the same size.
After hearing what Mr. Hong said, Sun Shan suddenly felt that he had failed the exam because he could not write well.
As if knowing what Sun Shan was thinking, Mr. Hong said comfortingly, "It doesn't matter if your handwriting is not beautiful, as long as it is neat and tidy, the test paper should be clean and tidy, and it would be best if there is not a single wrong word."
After hearing this, Sun Shan instantly regained his confidence. Although he could not write a good piece of calligraphy, he was full of craftsmanship and had a "spiritual" writing style. He rarely made mistakes, let alone made a mess.
After explaining the requirements for writing, Hong Xiucai said to the students: "The county examination mainly tests the Four Books and Five Classics. If you can recite the Four Books and Five Classics, you have a great chance of passing."
At this point, Zheng Hongwen and Liang Can turned pale, while Sun Shan's face was flushed.
When it comes to endorsement, Sun Shan is very good!
Not only can you recite it, but you can also write it out.
Sun Shan had memorized the Four Books and Five Classics twice, and was preparing to give them to his eldest sister's little Guangzai.
The little guy is already 3 years old and will go to school in a few years. I gave him the Four Books and Five Classics that I had copied by heart to express my expectations for him and hope that he will live up to my expectations.
In a blink of an eye, it is already the end of February. The exam will start tomorrow.
Since he was taking the exam in the county, Sun Shan did not have to check into an inn in the county in advance like students from other towns and villages.
Hong Xiucai said to everyone: "Just treat it as a normal monthly exam. Come to the school on time, and go directly to the examination room to take the exam on the day of the exam."
So Sun Shan, Zheng Hongwen and Liang Can attended classes as usual until the day before the exam.
Sun Bomin and Su knew that Sun Shan was going to take the exam, but they didn't know the exact date. Sun Shan simply told them to pretend nothing had happened and continue farming at home, and they didn't need to come out to take the exam with him.
Sun Bomin and Su were not happy about it, but Sun Shan bluntly said that they would affect his performance. The couple had to suppress their nervousness and decided not to come to the county town to accompany him to take the exam.
The same was true for Guyu and Lixia in the county town. Sun Shan had already informed them in advance not to come over and just pretend that nothing had happened.
Mr. Hong asked Sun Shan and others to buy exam supplies in advance.
This is the time when “Golden List” bookstores are often bustling with business.
Second brother-in-law Zheng Hongyuan had already made preparations for Sun Shan and Zheng Hongwen.
The examination basket contained three pens, two inkstones, an inkstone, a pen holder, a paper pressing stone, and a bamboo tube for water.
The county examination was divided into four sessions, one per day. The examiner was the county magistrate and the examination venue was the county school.
Sun Shan went to the reception room two days in advance to get his candidate card and confirm his examination seat.
February 23rd is the day of the exam.
Sun Shan was woken up by Hong Jian at 2 a.m.: "Ashan, wake up. You have an exam today. If you don't wake up, you will be late."
Sun Shan woke up in a daze, rubbed his eyes, and looked out the window. It was pitch black.
Looking inside the room again, Hong Jian had already lit the candles, and the whole bedroom was brightly lit.
Hong Jian said with a smile: "Hurry up and get up, or the teacher will come."
The emperor is not anxious, but the eunuch is. Hong Jian truly admires Sun Shan's broad-mindedness.
Yesterday I knew he was going to take an exam, so I couldn't sleep all night. Ah Shan, on the other hand, finished reading and lay down on the bed, and fell asleep in a second, without any delay.
When Sun Shan heard that Mr. Hong was coming, he jumped up and ran to the yard to wash quickly. When he was done, it was still pitch black outside.
Mr. Hong didn't come, but Aunt Zhang did and brought breakfast to Sun Shan so that he could eat well and have strength for the exam.
After waiting for a while, there was a noise outside.
Sun Shan was stunned. How could someone set off firecrackers in the middle of the night?
Hong Jian explained: "Ashan, this is the first shot, fired by the county school, don't be afraid."
The so-called first shot is to remind the candidates to be ready. Those who are still asleep should get up quickly. The exam will be held today and you should not miss it.
Generally, the signal cannon is fired in the examination hall. The examination hall in Huangyang County is located in the county school. Hong's School is very close to the county school, so it can be heard clearly from here.
At this time, Mr. Hong arrived late. Seeing that Sun Shan was ready, he smiled and said, "Come out to the school and wait. They are already here."
Sun Shan said goodbye to Hong Jian and followed Hong Xiucai to the school.
At this time, Huang Xiucai had already arrived early with two students. Day students Zheng Hongwen and Liang Can were also there.
Huang Xiucai repeatedly warned: "When you get to the examination room, don't be nervous. The county exam is not difficult and you will definitely do it."
After Mr. Huang said this, the candidates who were not nervous at first became nervous. The teacher said it was not difficult, but why did so few people pass?
Hong Xiucai shook his head and said, "Brother Huang, what's the point of talking about this now? Those who can do it will do it, and those who can't do it won't do it. Everyone just needs to take the exam."
Huang Xiucai was about to refute when another cannon shot was heard outside.
Hong Xiucai said to the five students, "It's time to leave and go to the examination room."
The two teachers took their students out of the classroom and headed towards the county school.
At this time, quite a few people had gathered in front of the county school.
A closer look revealed that there were more parents than students. Several parents were crowding around one candidate.
Sun Shan asked curiously, "Master, how many candidates are there this year?"
I went in a hurry to get my exam card that day without asking how many candidates there were.
Hong Xiucai paid attention to the situation ahead and answered nonchalantly, "80 people."
Sun Shan knew that Huangyang County was an educationally poor county, but he didn't expect it to be so poor.
I used to hear people say that in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas, there were two to three thousand people taking the exam in one county, and I didn’t think it was a big deal.
But after comparing himself with the students in Huangyang County, Sun Shan finally understood why he had not been able to pass the examination to become a scholar for all these years.
How can these candidates compete with others? Unless a genius appears to lead the poor students, they will have a chance to pass the examinations and become a scholar, juren, or even jinshi.
Hong Xiucai explained: "80 people is too many this year. Usually 80 people are not enough."
Then he explained that candidates usually come from private schools and county schools. This time, there are many students from county schools applying for the exam, so the overall number of candidates has increased.
Sun Shan thought about it and decided that it was normal to have so few people. There were only five students in Hong's and Huang's schools combined, and at most 80 to students in the county school. Add in the students who dropped out of school and went home to study, and the students from the towns and villages, and students in total was considered a lot.
As for the number of admissions, it will fluctuate depending on the number of people, but it will not exceed a certain range. Whether it is a large county or a small county, the number of admissions will not differ too much.
However, Huangyang County generally admits the top 20 students.
This means that Sun Shan must rank in the top 20 to have a chance to take the provincial examination.
Being in the top 80 out of 20 people is not difficult, but it is not too easy either.
When I think of some places where literary culture is prevalent, there are thousands of people taking the exam in a county, but only thirty or forty are admitted.
No wonder “imperial examination immigration” appeared.
Huangyang County's admission rate is pretty amazing.
Sun Shan immediately became full of confidence.