The examinees passing by him cast several glances at Shen Linchuan. Although it was a bit chilly at night, surely there was no need to bring so much? Anything that could cover him while sleeping would suffice.

Before long, the exam papers were distributed. The first day consisted of two questions on the Four Books and one poem; the second day featured one question on the Four Books, one fu (prose poem), and one poem; the third day included one question on the Classics and one essay.

Upon receiving the exam papers, Shen Linchuan gave them a quick scan to get a general idea. He first jotted down an outline for each question on his scratch paper, then calculated his time: one question in the morning, and one question plus a poem in the afternoon. With the outlines already prepared, he would be able to work much faster in the afternoon.

Examiners in blue official robes moved back and forth in front of him from time to time. The chief examiner had come from Nanling Prefecture; he was a seventh-rank education official surnamed Yang, dressed in light green, who also came down occasionally to walk around and supervise the exam.

A deputy examiner, also from the prefectural government, was chatting quietly with Examiner Yang. “The candidates from Kaiping County are a bit strange this year,” he remarked.

The chief examiner’s interest was piqued. “What’s so strange about them?”

“Some candidates brought bags of quicklime, claiming it’s for heating their food. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but in all my years of supervising exams, this is the first time I’ve seen such a thing.” 

“Quicklime to heat food? Is the food even edible?” Mr. Yang was intrigued; it was the first time he’d heard that quicklime could be used to heat food.

Shen Linchuan put down his pen after finishing the first question and took out his portable stove; he was in the mood for some hot rice with soup.

He placed a handful of steamed and dried rice into his iron bowl, added some eggs, dried vegetables, and dried meat, then drizzled some rendered chicken fat over it. He called out softly, “Sir, I’d like some hot water.”

Before long, a low-ranking official arrived carrying a pot of hot water. Shen Linchuan said politely, “Sir, please add some water to this earthenware pot and these bowls for me.”

The clerk had never seen anyone eat like this before. Usually, examinees would just ask for some hot water to wash down their dry rations, but this man had actually ordered a bowl of rice noodles and was asking for water to be added. Puzzled, he asked, “Will that cook it?”

“It will, sir.”

The clerk added the water and left. Shen Linchuan stretched lazily as he waited for the food to heat up. He closed his eyes to rest for a moment, mentally reviewing the steps for solving the afternoon’s exam questions.

It was nearly noon now. Many candidates had finished the first question and were calling for hot water to eat. Most were having dry rations with hot water; those who wanted something with broth would soak their flatbreads and dried meat in the water, making do with another meal.

The proctors noticed that some examinees this year were actually cooking their own meals! They’d take a bag of quicklime, place an iron bowl on top, put rice and some prepared meat and vegetables inside, cover it, and leave it to cook.

Several proctors watched in amazement. Could this actually cook the food? Without even a fire, how could the rice possibly cook?

Shen Linchuan opened his eyes; he’d already gone through all the steps in his head. The chicken soup rice noodles beside him were hot and ready—since they’d been made with hot water and had a heating pack underneath, they were only slightly less good than if they’d been cooked in a pot.

With meat, vegetables, and an egg, Shen Linchuan sat down to a hot meal.

The proctors huddled together and whispered among themselves, saying they’d seen a candidate put raw rice in there, and in no time, the rice looked just like it had just come out of the steamer, which left them utterly amazed.

Chief proctor Yang Xuezheng heard about it too and came over to take a look. There was a student eating hot steamed rice and vegetables, with steam still rising from the bowl.

There were quite a few like this—about twenty in all. Some were eating rice, others were having noodle soup or rice noodle soup. It smelled pretty good, quite fragrant. Yang Xuezheng couldn’t help but ask, “How did this rice cook without fire?”

“Sir, you’re asking about this? It’s a method devised by a classmate of ours at the academy, specifically so we could eat comfortably during the exams.”

The man explained why the rice cooked so quickly when heated, as well as the formula for the lime pouches: “Using just quicklime won’t work; adding iron powder makes it much more effective…”

Yang Xuezheng stroked his beard. It was indeed a good method.

Shen Linchuan had also finished his chicken soup rice noodles, drinking every last drop of the broth. He rinsed his bowl with tea water and set it aside.

The examinee sitting next to him was swallowing hard at the aroma wafting over from the neighboring table. What on earth were they eating? He could even hear the sound of slurping—could they possibly be having hot rice and soup? Glancing at his own meager snacks and crumbly, dry biscuits, he felt a pang of envy. If only he could have a bite of that hot meal.

After finishing his meal, Shen Linchuan took a short nap before picking up his brush to write again. He feared that his brain might not be getting enough blood flow right after eating, so he figured a quick nap would help him clear his head.

Yang Xuezheng also sat down in the armchair for a nap after eating, but suddenly snapped his eyes open. This self-heating pouch made from quicklime might have other uses—perhaps it could come in handy during a military campaign!

Yang Xuezheng immediately picked up his brush and began writing on a piece of paper. Perhaps these self-heating packs had some ingenious use after all.

When the bell rang just before dawn, Shen Linchuan had already finished writing and was waiting for the papers to be collected. Before long, someone came by to collect the papers one by one. Once the papers were collected, the examinees were not allowed to move about and had to remain in their examination booths.

If they needed hot water or had to use the restroom, they had to call the proctor. There was a side room behind each row of examination booths. Shen Linchuan was glad he hadn’t been assigned to the last booth—not only because of the unpleasant odor, but also because people moving back and forth would disrupt the exam.

While it was still light out, Shen Linchuan started preparing his dinner. He mixed the meat sauce into the dry rice; the sauce contained dried tofu and shiitake mushrooms, so it would keep for at least three days.

After eating, Shen Linchuan prepared to rest. He took down the wooden board that had been serving as a desk, wedged it underneath to join it with the wooden seat, spread out his blanket—using half to lie on and half to cover himself—and folded the small square blanket meant for his legs into a pillow. Wrapped up in his blanket, Shen Linchuan fell asleep.

His feet had been swollen and numb from sitting all day; three days of this would be truly unbearable. Although the cell was tiny and he could only curl up inside, it was still better than sitting.

Zhou Youcheng, who was also in the examination hall, wasn’t faring nearly as well. He’d eaten dry rations all day, and in the evening he’d had some plain boiled pork with flatbreads—the greasy meal left his stomach churning.

When Zhou Youcheng received his exam paper, he discovered that one of the questions was one Shen Linchuan had mentioned. His mind instantly settled—it was as if heaven itself had come to his aid!

The night was bitterly cold. Zhou Youcheng had brought only a thin mattress, and he shivered uncontrollably as he slept. Compounded by the greasy boiled pork he’d eaten, his stomach began to ache. It was his first time taking the Xiucai exam; how was he to know what to eat or what to bring?

The next day, he was sneezing from the cold, and his stomach was so upset that he kept asking the proctor to let him use the restroom. Every time he went, a black stamp was placed on his exam paper. Some proctors, upon seeing too many stamps while grading, would look down on candidates for going to the restroom too often, leaving a poor impression.

Zhou Youcheng had no choice but to grit his teeth, clutching his stomach as he began to write.

The three days passed quickly. As soon as the exam papers were collected, Shen Linchuan let out a long sigh of relief. He packed up his things and waited to leave. Thankfully, he exercised every day; otherwise, after three days like this, it would have been hard to say how someone with a weaker constitution would have fared.

The candidates filed out one by one, while their families outside the examination hall waited with bated breath.

Zhou Ning and Zhou Da had even come by mule cart. Although their inn wasn’t far from the examination hall, they were worried that Shen Linchuan hadn’t eaten or slept well over the past three days, so they thought a ride in the mule cart would give him a chance to rest.

Zhou Da quit his job yesterday. After the examinees left the inn, the place was half-empty, with only a few family members from out of town accompanying the candidates remaining. If they had come alone, they certainly wouldn’t have spent the extra silver to stay there.

With business slowing down, the innkeeper—though stingy—had been reluctant to let Zhou Da go, knowing he was a hard worker. It was Zhou Da who took the initiative to resign, explaining that his son-in-law’s exams would be over tomorrow and he needed to go pick him up.

The innkeeper was a bit regretful. “Uncle Zhou, if your brother-in-law passes the exam this year and becomes a Xiucai, he’ll be able to enroll in the county academy. Who knows, you might have to come back then. If that happens, come back to me, and I’ll pay you forty copper coins!”

Zhou Da laughed heartily at this, “Then I’ll take the shopkeeper’s good wishes to heart.”

Candidates were already trickling out of the examination hall, and there were quite a few mule carts and ox carts parked nearby to pick them up. Fearing Shen Linchuan might not spot him, Zhou Ning deliberately stood on top of a mule cart, making himself particularly conspicuous.

When Xu Zhifan came out, he bumped into Shen Linchuan and patted him on the shoulder twice. “Brother Linchuan, thanks to you for always telling me to pay more attention to current affairs—it really paid off! I hope I can pass the exam this time and become a Xiucai! Please, I’m counting on you!”

Shen Linchuan patted him on the back. “Eight out of ten chances.”

Having studied together, Shen Linchuan knew exactly what Xu Zhifan was capable of. He was confident Xu Zhifan had an eighty percent chance of passing. If he did pass, he’d likely be among the bottom few; if he didn’t, he wouldn’t be far off.

Shen Linchuan was in a hurry to leave, so he didn’t linger, “We’ll talk more once we get to Qinghe Town. I’ve got to go find my husband!” 

“Oh, I knew you’d be in such a rush to see Zhou Fulang. Alright, let’s have a drink together when we get there!”

Zhou Ning scanned the crowd of Tongsheng leaving the examination hall, but couldn’t spot Shen Linchuan anywhere. Why hadn’t he come out yet? Some of the candidates for the junior scholar exam were barely out of their teens—and some even had gray hair. Is it really that hard to pass the Xiucai exam? Zhou Ning wondered to himself.

He could hear the candidates coming out, chatting animatedly. “Finally out! I’m going to treat myself to a hot meal. I have no idea what the guy next to me was eating—it smelled different every day. It was making me so hungry.”

“Don’t even mention it—the guy next to me stinks to high heaven. It’s absolutely disgusting.” 

“How did the exam go this time…”

With all sorts of chatter filling the air, Zhou Ning finally spotted Shen Linchuan and quickly jumped down from the mule cart. “Shen Linchuan, over here!”

Shen Linchuan’s eyes lit up the moment he saw his Fulang. After three days in that cramped cell, he’d been feeling rather listless, but seeing Zhou Ning instantly perked him up.

Zhou Da also spotted his son-in-law and broke into a cheerful smile, but he kept his eyes on the mule cart and didn’t go over.

Zhou Ning took the food box from Shen Linchuan’s hands and lifted the bundle off his shoulders. “Are you tired? Let me help you.”

Without a word, Zhou Ning hooked his arm around Shen Linchuan’s and supported him. He’d just seen someone collapse to the ground the moment they stepped out—Shen Linchuan was so frail; he must have suffered terribly in there. No wonder he’d never passed the Xiucai exam; that exam was just too difficult.

Shen Linchuan pretended to lean into Fulang’s embrace. He was actually a bit taller than Zhou Ning now. He lowered his head and nestled against Zhou Ning’s neck. “Oh my, I’m absolutely exhausted. After sitting for three days straight, my feet must be swollen.”

As soon as Zhou Ning heard this, he immediately said, “Then I’ll carry you over.”

Shen Linchuan stopped pretending and quickly stood up straight. He’d only wanted to coax his Fulang into feeling a little tender toward him—he certainly didn’t want his Fulang to carry him in front of everyone!

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ll just take a hot bath and rest when we get back.”

Classmates from the same school greeted him as they passed by. “Brother Linchuan, are you all right? Thanks for telling us about that self-heating pot—now we can all eat hot meals.”

Shen Linchuan stopped acting coy and returned their greeting. “We’re all from the same school; we should help each other out.”

Xu Zhifan also came over. “You ran all the way here. Alright, I won’t interrupt you and your Fulang’s sweet time. Let’s go have a drink together when we get back.” Just as Shen Linchuan was about to leave, a young man approached him. “Sir, would you like to have your good news announced?”

There were quite a few “good news messengers” at the entrance to the examination hall—idle men from the county who hoped to earn a few silver coins by delivering the news. After all, this was just the Xiucai exam; there were no official government messengers for such occasions. These were simply idle men running errands to deliver messages to students from the countryside, and for the sake of the celebration, they were called “good news messengers.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhifan replied, “Sure, we’re all from Qinghe Town—you might as well deliver the news for all of us.” 

“No problem, no problem. Thank you, gentlemen.”

“It’s not much—just twenty copper coins per person. If they don’t pass, the messenger won’t bother going out to the countryside, so he’ll pocket the coins for free. But if they do pass, the messenger will be happy to make the trip out there and earn an extra sum of celebratory money—far more than this.”

Qinghe Town is a three-day journey from Ping County. It wouldn’t be worth it for him to make the trip himself just to check the results, so he’d definitely need to hire someone to deliver the good news. Since Shen Linchuan and the others all attended the same academy, he had the young man deliver the news for all of them at once. The young man was overjoyed—it was a great deal, and he’d earn a lot.

Zhou Ning watched in amazement. “I never thought you could make a few coins this way.”

In just a short while, the man had earned over a hundred wen.

After wrapping things up and exchanging a few words with an acquaintance, Shen Linchuan set off. Zhou Ning was still supporting him, afraid that his frail husband might stumble. Shen Linchuan was more than happy to enjoy the attention, and the two walked along, clinging to each other.

“Father.”

“Yes? Hurry up and get in the cart. You’ll need a good rest when we get back.”

Shen Linchuan lifted his foot to step onto the mule cart. Zhou Ning had already stowed the bundles and food boxes and reached out to steady him. “If your legs give out, I’ll carry you up.”

Shen Linchuan’s lips twitched. Oh no, he’d played the weakling a bit too convincingly. Surely his fulang didn’t really think he was a scholar too weak to lift a finger? Those rose-colored glasses were a bit too thick, weren’t they?

But then Shen Linchuan had a change of heart. This was actually pretty good—it meant he could win a little favor from his Fulang. How wonderful.

As soon as Shen Linchuan was seated, Zhou Da set off with the mule cart. “Father said we’d go to the tavern for a meal once you were out. Ning-ger said you must be exhausted today, so we’ll go tomorrow instead.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

As soon as Shen Linchuan returned to the inn, he quickly took a bath and changed into clean clothes. He flopped comfortably onto the bed and rolled around a few times—there’s nothing like the comfort of a bed!

Zhou Ning called the waiter over and had him bring a bowl of hot wonton soup. After just getting out of prison, he needed something soft and easy to digest.

“Shen Linchuan, dinner’s ready.”

Shen Linchuan smiled as he took it from his. Without getting out of bed, he sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed in his undershirt. “Thank you, my fulang. You’ve worked hard accompanying me to the exam.”

“It’s no big deal. It’s not like we’re doing farm work on our own land that requires physical labor.”

Zhou Ning didn’t find it tiring; he just found it a bit boring.

Shen Linchuan took a bite of the hot wonton soup and finally felt at ease. He spoke as he ate, “Did you go to that hall to listen to the storyteller?” Zhou Ning nodded. “I did. I watched for a while and then came back.”

“Was the storyteller no good?”

“No, it’s just that I was thinking of you and couldn’t concentrate.”

Shen Linchuan froze mid-bite, then his mouth stretched into a grin that nearly reached the back of his head—this was the first time his fulang had ever said he was thinking of him!

After speaking, Zhou Ning belatedly realized the ambiguity in his words and hurriedly added, “I didn’t mean it that way…” 

“I know, I know. I’ve been thinking about you, too, Ning-ger.”

Shen Linchuan felt as if a jar of honey had been spilled inside him. He finished his meal in just a few bites. It wasn’t even dark yet, so after eating his fill, he teased Zhou Ning for fun, finding it quite amusing.

Shen Linchuan had already gone to bed when Zhou Youcheng finally emerged. Zhou Er had been waiting impatiently; as soon as he saw him come out, he hurried over. “Youcheng, what took you so long?”

As he approached, a foul odor hit him. Zhou Da didn’t think much of it, assuming the room might just be a bit dirty.

“Dad, give me a hand.”

Zhou Youcheng had had a rough time in there. It was all his mother’s fault for feeding him the wrong food; combined with the cold night, it had upset his stomach, and his legs were so weak he could barely walk.

Zhou Er supported him as they walked toward the inn. “How did the exam go? Do you think you’ll pass and become a Xiucai?”

Zhou Youcheng had no mind for such talk right now; he just wanted to hurry back to the inn to wash off the grime from his body.

Shen Linchuan and the others stayed in town for two more nights. The day after the exam, they went together to the county seat to buy some gifts to take home. After resting up, they were ready to head back early on the third morning.

Zhou Er and his companion left the very next day after the exam, feeling the lodging was too expensive; they decided it would be better to hire a carriage and head back early, so the two families went their separate ways.

As they were leaving, the waiter at the inn enthusiastically helped them carry their luggage downstairs. Although Zhou Da hadn’t worked at the inn for very long, he was cheerful and generous; even if a task wasn’t his responsibility, he’d still lend a hand, and the staff at the inn all liked him very much.

Zhou Da kept thanking him, “I’m so sorry to trouble you. Thank you, thank you.”

“Zhou Da, you’re too kind. It’s no big deal—just helping you carry a few things. If your son-in-law passes the exams, we might even meet again at the county seat.”

The waiter carried the items toward the animal shed in the backyard. Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning were both carrying bundles as well. Before they even got close, they saw someone petting a mule. The waiter, who was leading the way, snapped, “Who’s there? What are you doing, touching someone else’s mule?”

The man jumped in surprise. “It’s me, Xiao Shi. I was just feeding the mules some hay.”

Zhou Da chimed in, “That’s Xiao Shi. Thanks to him, he’s been looking after my mules these past few days. Look, my mules have even put on some weight.”

Shen Linchuan recognized the man as a familiar face—one of the inn’s waiters. The young man who’d helped them carry their belongings exchanged a few words with them before hurrying off to tend to his duties.

Zhou Da unhitched the mule and hitched it to the cart. The young lad took off running, but Zhou Da called him back and handed him a package of meat—it contained half a sliced roast duck. “Xiao Shi, thank you so much.”

Xiao Shi waved it off. “Zhou Da, I’ll pay you back those thirty copper coins!” 

“It’s fine. Just consider it payment for looking after my mule.”

Zhou Da forced the duck meat into Xiao Shi’s hands. “We’re off.” 

“Goodbye, Uncle Zhou.”