When the ancients participated in the imperial examination, they had to go through four major exams: tongshi, xiangshi, huishi and dianshi.

Among them, tongshi was divided into the county examination, prefectural examination and academy examination. Tang Shen would face the county exam in three months.

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There were five sessions in the county examination. The first session was the most important. It was called the main session of the county examination. Two eight-legged essays and one test poem in five characters and six rhymes were required. Ever since he made a bet with Tang Yun and decided to take the county exam, Tang Shen began to write two eight-legged essays and one test poem every day.

This was much more difficult to write than the compositions of the modern world. The eight-legged essay had strict requirements for contrast and structural patterns, and test poetry was even more hellish. Even the number of words, rhythm and rhyme of each sentence must be arranged neatly, and not a single word could be wrong.

After Liang Song read the two eight-legged essays, he stroked his beard and said with a smile: “I don’t understand a word!”

Tang Shen: “…”

“Sir, it’s at least better than half a month ago!”

“That’s all you’ve got? Let me ask you, there are only three months left before the county exam. Do you really plan to just barely pass the county exam and continue to take the prefectural exam in that exam hall?”

Tang Shen’s face turned green: “No way!” It was enough to suffer this kind of pain once in this life, and he would never do it a second time!

Liang Song said: “Then let’s look at the first question topic, ‘the great spirit can be exceedingly great.’ You also know that this sentence comes from “Mencius·Gongsun Chou”. How did you break the topic?” Before Tang Shen could answer, Liang Song answered his own question: “You break the topic——the great spirit can be exceedingly great, heaven and earth exude righteous energy; it commingles with objects and gives them forms.”

Tang Shen: “Is this not a good answer?”

Liang Song laughed angrily: “Great, great! But what do you write after? There is no problem in borrowing other people’s ideas to break the topic when writing an eight-legged essay. Nine out of ten candidates would do this. But you have to at least capture three out of ten of other people’s charm. Let me ask you, you little rascal, after being able to write something as brilliant as the line ‘heaven and earth exude righteous energy; it commingles with objects and gives them forms’, why is it that the next sentence flows down so vigorously!” (TN: expression used to describe a descent in quality)

Tang Shen was speechless.

He couldn’t say that, don’t mention a vigorous downward flow, ten thousand of him combined couldn’t compare to the great master Wen Tianxiang, let alone write an eight-legged essay worthy of “The Song of the Spirit of Righteousness”.

Liang Song: “You broke the topic so ground-breakingly that any examiner’s eyes would light up after seeing it. But then looking at the following, you could be considered diligent, careful and correct in your writing. Normally, you could get a third rank. But compared with the line you used to break the topic, it is simply worthless. What the eight-legged essay requires is echoing from beginning to end, the essay must be coherent…”

Tang Shen accepted the teachings earnestly.

When he first began to write the eight-legged essay, Liang Song thought his sentences were not smooth and uneven. After writing ten essays, Liang Song began to formally teach him the eight-legged essay format. So far, Tang Shen had made rapid progress. According to Liang Song, he had reached the level to pass the county examination. But if he wants to come out on top, he must work harder on breaking the topic. That was why today Tang Shen borrowed “The Song of the Spirit of Righteousness” to break the topic.

In webnovels, it was always written that when the protagonist traveled to the ancient times, they immediately showed great talent, simply casually plagiarizing the poems and songs of the ancients and becoming famous. Don’t mention the county exam, they didn’t even hold the palace exam in their sights.

However, after Tang Shen arrived, he could only wipe away a handful of bitter tears.

Everything in those webnovels was a lie!

Plagiarizing poems could only make you a talented person, but couldn’t help you take the imperial examination!

Yes, the imperial examination required poems to be written, but even if they wrote poems, they were all test poems, “composition poems”. Just like the eight-legged essay, it must follow a strict format! Not to mention the eight-legged essay itself. Tang Shen lived for more than 20 years and had a doctorate degree but he never read a single eight-legged essay. Even if he wanted to plagiarize, he couldn’t. Besides, the examiner wouldn’t give the exact same question topic!

While Tang Shen listened to Liang Song’s teachings, he took out his small pen and wrote down Liang Song’s words.

Voice pausing, Liang Song asked, “What are you writing?”

Little Tang Lang answered honestly: “Sir, although I have a super retentive memory, you speak too quickly. I am afraid that some words might not be remembered at the moment, so I am writing them down.” Taking notes was an essential skill for future generations of students.

Liang Song was stunned for a long time, and then said happily: “Ai, you kiddo, go back and write two more essays!”

Tang Shen’s expression collapsed.

However, it didn’t take long for him to escape from the sea of suffering. Xu Hui hurriedly entered the study with a letter and handed it to Liang Song. Liang Song opened it and took a look, his expression changed drastically, and he said to Tang Shen, “You go back first, you don’t have to come tomorrow.”

Tang Shen felt strange, but he did not ask, only asked: “When can this student come again?”

Liang Song thought for a while: “I will ask the steward to let you know one day in advance.”

Tang Shen accepted the order and left.

Tang Shen also didn’t expect that he and Liang Song would not see each other until after the New Year.

At the beginning of the first lunar month, Tang Shen got up before dawn and celebrated the New Year with Tang Huang, Yao San, and Aunt Yao.

“Happy New Year!”

“Happy New Year!”

Tang Shen and Tang Huang were both young, and though it was custom to stay up late to greet the New Year, Aunt Yao asked them to go to bed first and she would stay up instead. The next day, the four people posted Spring Festival couplets and worshiped the gods of heaven and earth. Tang Shen took Tang Huang to visit the graves of Tang xiucai and their mother, and worshiped together again.

In the afternoon, Accountant Lin came to check the accounts.

“Happy New Year, little boss!”

“Why be in such a hurry? It won’t hurt to come back to work in two days.”

“Last year, I checked the accounts at Zhenbao Pavilion. The scented soaps and essential oils were sold very well. I couldn’t help but want to come and tell the little boss this good news earlier.”

Although Accountant Lin was old, he could calculate accounts clearly. Madam Tang did not deliberately hide the account books either. Accountant Lin got the account books of Zhenbao Pavilion for this quarter just before the New Year and calculated the earnings of last year carefully for a day.

“The scented soaps are the best sellers and have made a lot of money. The essential oils are also selling well, but they are too expensive and few people are buying them.” Accountant Lin said, “Madam Tang said that last year’s dividends will be brought to you today.”

Before he finished speaking, people from the Tang Manor arrived, including Housekeeper Tang and Madam Tang’s personal maid Haitang. The two of them paid New Year’s greetings to Tang Shen and Tang Huang, gave them their New Year’s gifts, and handed Tang Shen the dividends he earned last year.

The housekeeper said: “Young Master, Madam has found some clues about what happened a month ago. Madam said that when the county examination results are released, she will definitely catch that person red handed. There are many guests over today for the Lunar New Year, so Madam cannot come in person. She asked if the young master and the young lady would come over for dinner at home tonight.”

Tang Shen had forgotten about this incident a long time ago. After recalling it, he realized that it was about Tang Yun coming to smash their courtyard, and Madam Tang felt that someone was instigating him behind the scenes. “No need, we have food to eat.”

The housekeeper said nothing more and left with Haitang.

The New Year atmosphere in Gusu City was very strong. Until the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, people everywhere were visiting relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings.

With money in hand, Tang Shen began pondering if he should sell something else. But he conducted an on-site investigation and found that although Gusu City was rich, it was precisely because it was so rich that it lacked almost nothing! He could sell scented soap and essential oils because they were “luxury goods”. At least essential oils were luxury goods and scented soaps were affordable luxury items. Tang Shen knew that without the strong financial support of the Tang family, it would not be easy to sell scented soap and essential oils.

On the seventeenth day of the first lunar month, there were fewer people visiting Tang juren’s home to pay New Year greetings, so Tang Shen and Tang Huang came to pay New Year’s greetings. Madam Tang personally received the siblings. Madam Tang did not ask what Tang Shen planned to do with the dividends from the sale of scented soap and essential oils, but said, “I want to sell soap after the new year. What do you think, nephew?”

Tang Shen: “Aunt and I think the same thing. It’s indeed time would not be good to delay it any longer.”

Madam Tang: “Good, then I’ll go prepare it. I hope this thing can sell as well as you said.”

Essential oils were luxury goods that ordinary people could not afford. Scented soap was an affordable luxury product. There were many people buying it, but the number of people buying it was limited.

From beginning to end, Tang Shen’s real trump card was regular soap.

He went to the workshop on the outskirts of the city again. The workers had all gone home for the New Year. He and Yao San made a pot of soap together. Tang Shen calculated the cost of making soap and checked with the hired workshop supervisor to confirm that the cost of production had been reduced to the limit.

Yao San said: “Little boss, this soap is too cheap. We are really losing money by setting such a low price. Why not set it a little higher.”

Before Tang Shen could explain, he heard the little girl beside him say abruptly: “Brother Yao, how is this still cheap? This is two copper coins more expensive than the old soap!”

Yao San was stunned: “Ah, I’m talking about this new soap, how come Ah Huang is bringing up the old soap.” (TN: the kind used by ancients which are made of pig pancreas and plant ash)

Tang Huang shook her head, looking very disappointed, very much like Tang Shen half a year ago: “Brother Yao, you have also used our soap. Is it similar to the old soap?”

“Yes. But our soap is much cleaner, and the effect of washing things is much better!”

“You’re right, but our soap is very similar to the old soap after all. Our soap is not sold to a few people, but to the majority of people, with small profits but quick turnover. If it is much more expensive than the old soap, the people of Gusu City are not fools, why not just buy the old soap?”

Yao San thought for a while and suddenly realized: “So that’s it.”

Tang Huang imitated a pedantic old scholar, shaking her head and saying, “The child is promising and worth teaching.”

Tang Shen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and flicked her forehead: “What the child is promising and worth teaching! Where did you hear these words?”

“Accountant Lin said so, the child is promising and worth teaching. Tang Shen, you are bullying me again!”

Tang Shen straightened his expression slightly: “Who is asking you about that? What I want to ask you is, who told you that our soap is intended to be sold to most people, with small profits but quick turnover.”

Tang Huang’s eyes wandered: “I guessed it!”

“You guessed it my foot!” Tang Shen grabbed the back of the little girl’s collar, “Don’t even think about running away. Tell me clearly when you heard these things.”

Tang Huang covered her eyes: “Bully, you are bullying a little girl, Tang Shen is not a human being!”

Tang Shen: “…”

What kind of an oddball family is this!

More than half of the first month had passed, and Liang Song still had not returned to Gusu City, but Ziyang Academy had already started classes again.

On the first day of school, Tang Huang and Aunt Yao prepared a food basket for Tang Shen. Tang Shen wanted to flick Tang Huang’s forehead, but she nimbly dodged it.

Tang Huang: “Tang Shen wants to bully me again, you baddie!”

Tang Shen sneered: “When I come back in the evening, you have to tell me what you are doing going to the Zhenbao Pavilion every day!”

The little girl made a face.

Aunt Yao brought another thick cotton coat out of the house: “Little boss, please wear more clothes. I didn’t expect that the weather would suddenly become so cold after the New Year. I heard that it snowed heavily in the south and the water froze. Even the roads are also blocked.”

Tang Shen also felt a little cold, so he took the cotton coat and put it on.

Yao San came out of the house: “It’s really strange. We used to see such heavy snow in Shanxi. But I have never heard of such heavy snow in Jiangnan.” After sighing, he said: “Let’s go, little boss, I’ll send you to the academy.”

During the Lunar New Year month, while Tang Shen was at home, Aunt Yao did a lot of cooking and fed him like crazy. Finally, Tang Shen gained some weight, but he was still very thin. He was wearing two thick cotton-padded coats and looked a bit bloated. From the back, he looked like a young master from a rich family. However, when he arrived at Ziyang Academy and saw Sun Yue, Tang Shen burst into laughter.

Fatty Sun was wrapped into the shape of a ball and let out a big sneeze when he saw Tang Shen.

Tang Shen: “Hey, if you catch the cold, don’t give it to me. You’re sick, and you still come to school? Are you not afraid that Principal Zheng will drive you back?”

Sun Yue grimaced: “The cold? I wish I had caught the cold, so I wouldn’t have to come to school.”

After entering the classroom, Tang Shen realized that nearly half of the people in the class were missing.

Tang Shen: “What’s going on?”

Sun Yue rubbed his hands that were red from the cold: “What else? They really caught the cold.”

Tang Shen smiled and said: “You are wearing more clothes than me, why are your hands so frozen? Isn’t it that chubby people are not afraid of the cold?”

Sun Yue glared: “Who told you this nonsense? We fat people are not allowed to be afraid of the cold?! You are obviously the strange one. Didn’t you see those people outside the city? Those are the real thin people. They are all nearly frozen to death, okay!”

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Tang Shen was suddenly stunned: “Who is outside the city?”

Sun Yue rubbed his hands, and as if he remembered something, his tone lowered: “Who else could it be? Refugees from the south. My mother and I went to set up a soup kitchen outside the city yesterday. There were so many people… really so many, that you can’t even see or count them all. It’s snowing heavily, and everywhere there are people.”

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The southeast corner of Zhenbao Pavilion was close to a small river. From the meandering river came the sound of rushing water, and the carved windows were actually open. The dazzling sunlight shone along the window edge and was reflected on a square of high stand made of Chinese cedar.

Chinese cedar was inherently expensive, and even someone from a family like Madam Wang’s found it extremely precious. Yet it was placed in the store. This Chinese cedar high stand was covered in brocade silk handkerchiefs embroidered by the top seamstresses in Gusu Prefecture hand by hand. They were stacked layer by layer and in the center of the handkerchiefs, there was a crystal clear jade bowl.

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Filling the jade bowl was the intoxicating essential oil.

Jewelry inlay and petal embellishment. Anyone who looked at the objects in this corner would feel that they were extremely expensive. Most of the ladies who entered the store stayed a distance away from it when they saw it, for fear of accidentally breaking anything. Many people didn’t know what it was and asked the shop assistant standing by.

“This is called Golden Wisp. It has a similar effect to aromatherapy, but it doesn’t need to be so complicated. Simply put a drop on your clothes or jewelry, and the scent will be fragrant and last for a day.”

The shopkeeper clapped his hands, and two shop assistants immediately came out from behind the counter. Each of them held one end of a scroll and slowly opened it.

Madam Wang read out the words on the scroll: “The moths are like golden wisps of snow and willows, and the laughter is full of hidden fragrance. Searching among the crowd for him a thousand times, but suddenly looking back, in the dim light there stands that person. Searching among the crowd for him a thousand times… What a wonderful ‘searching among the crowd for him a thousand times’! Oh, this signature is actually Liang Bowen, Liang daren!”

“It is actually Liang daren’s personal inscription.”

“Is this Liang daren‘s new work? Oh, no, it’s the work of a poet named Xin Qiji. ‘The moths are like golden wisps of snow and willows…’, this is referring to this Golden Wisp?”

The shopkeeper had the assistants mount the scroll right above the wall of the lobby. At the same time, the madams and ladies of Gusu Prefecture were already going crazy about this Golden Wisp.

Searching among the crowd for him a thousand times, but suddenly looking back, in the dim light there stands that person!

The young ladies recited this sentence with shy expressions on their faces. Customers who could afford the Golden Wisp were from wealthy families, which usually hired private teachers to teach their daughters how to read and write at home. As for this poem, even if you were only literate and have not read the Four Books, you would still feel intoxicated and charmed when reading it.

Instantly, the expensive Golden Wisp was snatched up by the ladies of Gusu City.

The shopkeeper was a little suspicious: “Did I mark the wrong price? The price of this Golden Wisp was written wrong?”

Of course he made no mistake.

A masterpiece of poetry that could be passed down through the ages, coupled with Liang Bowen’s inscription. If it didn’t sell well, then it would seriously be a disappointment to Tang Shen’s marketing campaign. What was more, he personally went to the Zhenbao Pavilion to design the packaging and presentation of the essential oils.

In the Zhenbao Pavilion, the madams and ladies from wealthy families were very fond of the Golden Wisp, while those from lower backgrounds could only look at the essential oil in the jade bowl and reluctantly stay away. However, soon, they discovered a light pink paste-like object placed next to the essential oil.

“Oh, what is this? It looks delicate and smooth, and it is also placed on the brocade. Is it also an object as good as the Golden Wisp?”

The shopkeeper came over immediately and said with an apologetic smile: “Madam, this is called scented soap…”

Zhenbao Pavilion was newly opened, and there was a huge flow of people.

Although the ladies in the boudoir were literate, their study of poetry was not that profound. They were simply intoxicated by the romance of the poem, but no one noticed that the poem was only half written.

Liang Manor, Tongde Lane, Gusu Prefecture. 

Tang Shen carried a box of scented soap and essential oils, and a bookcase on his back, and entered the gate of Liang Manor with a grimace.

Liang Song had been waiting for a long time.

Tang Shen handed the box of scented soap and essential oil to the steward.

Liang Song: “Tang juren‘s family powder shop opened again today?”

Tang Shen nodded: “That’s right. Sir, when I came here, I heard from Yao San that all the people in Gusu City had gone over. When they saw the calligraphy written by you, teacher, they were all dumbfounded. They passed it on word of mouth and simply could not forget it.”

Liang Song glanced at him: “If you hadn’t blackmailed me, insisting I write the words before you would tell me the author of the poem, I wouldn’t have inscribed it for you.”

Tang Shen blinked innocently.

That’s right, Liang Song was one of the four great Confucian scholars in the world and had an outstanding literary reputation. For ordinary people, even asking him to give some advice would be as difficult as climbing the sky, let alone asking him to write special inscriptions. The attitude of the Song Dynasty towards merchants was pretty good. Scholars could engage in business, and merchants could also take part in the imperial examinations. It was not as harsh as later generations. But that didn’t mean Liang Bowen would be willing to write an inscription for a makeup shop.

When Tang Shen shamelessly asked Liang Song to write an inscription, Liang Song almost kicked this young son (the only student he accepted after reaching old age), out of the study door, or preferably into the pond in the yard.

“Can’t you have some proper aspirations?!”

But Tang Shen was such a thick-skinned fellow. In his previous life, when his professor scolded him for submitting his paper late, he always said nice things to muddle his way past it. He directly took out Xin Qiji’s poem, and sure enough, Liang Song’s eyes lit up when he saw the poem.

“Did you write this?” Just as he finished asking this he said, “No, it’s impossible. You, a scoundrel, can’t create this kind of poetry.”

Tang Shen, who was just about to answer modestly and not be a plagiarizer: “…”

Liang Song carefully mulled over the poem and said: “This is only half of it, there is still another half. Where did you get this work?”

Tang Shen had already made up a lie, saying that this was a poem given to him by a down on his luck wandering scholar who accidentally came to Zhao Family Village and after drinking his fruit juice, used it as money to pay for the fruit juice.

Liang Chan: “‘Looking back suddenly, in the dim light…’ Only a great scholar who had experienced the vicissitudes of life and death could write such words and phrases. It’s a pity that Xin Qiji, that fellow scholar who sees through the ways of the world, is not known, and I have never heard of him either.”

In order to get the other half of the poem, Liang Song inscribed it for the Zhenbao Pavilion of the Tang family.

When Tang Shen came to Liang Manor, he was in a hurry. He didn’t get to take a look at Zhenbao Pavilion, but he was not worried about the sales of the essential oils and scented soaps. He took out the two articles he had just written yesterday from his bookcase and gave them to Liang Song for review.

The article was the eight-legged essay, which was indispensable in every exam in ancient times, from county level examinations to palace level examinations.

However, this eight-legged essay was not as easy to write as later generations thought. The structure alone was divided into eight parts: “breaking open the topic”, “receiving the topic”, “beginning discussion”, “initial leg”, “middle leg”, “later leg”, “final leg” and “big knot”. (TN: opening, amplification, preliminary exposition, initial argument, central argument, latter argument, final argument, conclusion—>more details can be found on Wikipedia)

The question topics for the eight-legged essay all come from the Four Books and Five Classics. It stood to reason that ao long as you were familiar with the Four Books and Five Classics, it should not be difficult to solve the questions. But it was never that simple. Among the questions in the eight-legged essay, there was a very difficult intersecting question, which was to disassemble two unrelated sentences and put them together and directly use it as the topic question.

In the previous dynasty, there was a county magistrate who gave a top-notch intersecting question in the tongshi (TN: exam taken by tongsheng), which stumped all the scholars in that test. The title of the topic was “Mi Zi’s Wife and Zi Lu”. This sentence was originally from “Mencius”: “Mi Zi’s wife and Zi Lu’s wife are sisters.” As a result, the last five characters were removed, and all the candidates were dumbfounded.

Mi Zi’s wife and Zi Lu…

No matter how you write it, it was about an extramarital affair, which must be punished with drowning in a wicker basket!

Tang Shen originally wanted to take the test casually. Gusu Prefecture was a place where talented people from all over the world gather, and it provided a large number of jinshi talents for each imperial examination. Other wild mountains and ridges dare to come up with such weird and bizarre questions, but Gusu Prefecture could not. Gusu Prefecture was similar to the major college entrance examination provinces of later generations. It was nothing to stump the scholars with the questions but they were afraid that these scholars would become high-ranking officials in the future and make trouble for those who set the questions back then.

Therefore, the test questions were destined not to be too biased, and Tang Shen had a golden finger for easily memorizing everything, so taking the tongshi would definitely not be a problem. With only three months left, he planned to study seriously, but he did not plan to study desperately.

Liang Song could tell at a glance that his apprentice was “pleasure seeking” and without saying a word, he took him directly to the examination hall for the next year’s tongshi.

This was a ten-foot-square courtyard, just behind the Gusu Prefecture County Office.

Tang Shen walked around and looked at his future examination venue, but didn’t feel anything was wrong.

Liang Song said: “Each county in Gusu Prefecture has set up its own examination venue. Now that you have arrived in the prefecture city, you will take the examination here. Last year, 150 people applied for the tongshi. Do you know what this means?”

Tang Shen was stunned for a moment, then he realized: “So many!”

This examination venue was only about 30 meters wide and 30 meters long. But it had to accommodate more than 100 people?

Liang Song looked at him and said mildly: “So many? What if I told you that these people will enter the examination venue before dawn and can not go out until dusk. There is no toilet in this examination venue, and everything must be done in the examination booth. Hehe, you little scoundrel, are you thinking of handing in the paper in advance?”

Tang Shen’s face had already turned green. When he heard the words “no toilet”, he realized the seriousness of the matter.

“You can indeed hand in the paper in advance, but after you hand it in, your paper will be put aside. No matter how good you are and have the talent to be zhuangyuan, it will be difficult for you to pass this exam.”

Tang Shen: “Then… where do we eat?”

Liang Song asked in surprise: “Eat?” Then, in a calm voice: “I heard that more than ten students fainted last year and failed to finish the exam.”

“Did they faint from hunger?”

“Some fainted from the odor. There were also people who fainted from hunger because of the odor.”

Tang Shen: “…”

Whoever wanted to take this exam could take it!

Think about it, a place the size of a small square would be used for square dances by aunties a thousand years later, but now it would be used for more than a hundred people to take exams. From morning to night, you had to eat, drink, and go to the toilet here. No matter how healthy your stomach was, you still had to go to the toilet at the end of the day, right? After all, you had to eat something.

Imagine that you were eating a dry flatbread that you brought with you. It was extremely unpalatable and difficult to swallow. At this time, the person next door suddenly took a pot and started shitting. This distance was closer than the squatting pits of later generations!

This was such a odorful sentence!

Tang Shen’s mind wandered too much, and he felt uncomfortable all over.

Liang Song suddenly said: “The tongshi is divided into three examinations, the county examination, the prefecture examination and the academy examination. I seem to have remembered something. The top ten in each examination will have special treatment. They can take the exam in the building. It is at least better inside than outside.” He pointed to the county office lobby.

Tang Shen’s eyes lit up.

Liang Song smiled and said: “Where you place in the exam, Little Tang Lang, it all depends on you.”

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TN1: Imperial Examination Ranks: tongsheng (county level)—>xiucai (prefecture level)—>gongsheng (all gongsheng are xiucai but not all xiucai can become gongsheng)—>juren (provincial level)—>gongshi (all gongshi are juren but not all juren are gongshi)—>jinshi (palace/highest level, divided by third rank, second rank, and first rank. First rank includes tanhua(3rd), bangyan(2nd), zhuangyuan(1st))

TN2: Examinations and their resulting rank: tongshi (divided into county exam=tongsheng, prefecture exam=xiucai, academy exam=gongsheng)—>xiucai/gongsheng, xiangshi—>juren, huishi—>gongshi, dianshi—>jinshi

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Tang Shen told the truth of why he was going to take the tongshi (TN: county level exam taken by tongsheng to become a xiucai) next year.

Liang Song glanced at him: “What else are you hiding?”

Tang Shen said righteously: “No more.”

“Why must you insist on taking the exam next year?”

Tang Shen was silent.

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“If you don’t tell the truth, I won’t care about you, you little rascal. I will see how you will pass the tongshi with your bad handwriting!”

Tang Shen thought to himself that there were still a few months left. At worst, he would just have to practice calligraphy and study at home every day. With his doctorate degree from one of the top 2 universities in China (although it was in science and engineering), and his photographic memory golden finger, he could easily pass the tongshi.

​…It shouldn’t be a problem, right?

Liang Song: “En?”

Seeing his teacher put on a serious face, Tang Shen thought for a while and had no choice but to tell of the boast he made.

Liang Song laughed: “So it was like this? It turned out that you were angered by your elder cousin. No matter how smart you are, you are only a thirteen-year-old child. It is normal to occasionally have a childish temper. Fortunately, what you said this time was the county examination. If you said the xiangshi (TN: the triennial provincial imperial exam), even if you are wenquxing’s reincarnation, you would only fail.” (TN: the constellation in charge of scholarship and exams, a term used to call those good at studying and academics)

Tang Shen: “I’m not that stupid.”

Liang Song glanced at him: “But you are arrogant.”

Tang Shen pretended to be deaf and dumb to muddle past the matter.

Tang Shen didn’t know that the reason why Liang Song was determined to ask him for the truth was not because he was overly curious, but because he was worried that Tang Shen had been influenced by something and decided to take the tongshi in advance. Tang Shen was still young and he was also talented. If someone learned that he was Liang Bowen’s student and became jealous, they might sow discord and provoke him to take the tongshi early. Once he failed, it was very likely that his confidence would be severely damaged, resulting in the outcome of a boy whose talent was lost for glories.

Liang Song: “You said before that the Four Books and Five Classics have been memorized by heart.”

“Yes.”

“With your ability, the tongshi shouldn’t be difficult. In that case, you go to the prefecture academy to report today. Steward Liang, go with him and let Yu Boyan know.”

The steward said: “Yes.”

Tang Shen came early. He already had breakfast at home, but Liang Song kept him for a bowl of hot porridge. After eating, Tang Shen and the steward went to Ziyang Academy. Before they went out, Liang Song said: “Wait a minute, I’m going to write a letter.” Soon, he wrote a letter in the study and gave it to the steward.

Ziyang Academy was in the south of the city. When Tang Shen and the steward entered the academy, the students had already started classes.

The main gate of the academy was a single door with double eaves. In front of the main entrance was a plaque with white words on a black background, “Ziyang Academy”. The literary couplet of Ziyang Academy was inscribed by Liang Bowen himself last year. On the right side of the pillar was the first couplet “The Immortal Bears the Dew Plate” and on the left was “Smile and Chat Among the Fragrance of Ink”.

After entering the academy, he heard the sound of students reading aloud. 

The ancients paid attention to reading aloud in order to memorize it by heart. Except for a few well-connected students like Tang Shen, and the children from wealthy families who bought school certificates to study, the only people who could study in the prefecture academy were at least xiucai. Every scholar who passed the county examination of tongshi becomes a tongsheng; then passes the prefecture examination of tongshi and becomes a xiucai. Only when you become a xiucai could you be qualified to study in the prefecture academy.

However, even if they were xiucai, they were just students in the prefecture academy.

Tang Shen followed the steward, bypassed the Sage Temple and the Lecture Hall, and found Yu Boyan, the principal of Ziyang Academy.

Yu Jing, courtesy name Boyan, was a jinshi in the 14th year of Kaiping. He was already over fifty when he became a jinshi. Three years ago, he was discharged from the army and returned to his hometown, becoming Ziyang Academy’s principal.

The steward met Yu Boyan and made salutations. Tang Shen also saluted.

Yu Boyan took the letter and read it, then looked up at Tang Shen. Then he read the letter carefully again and said, “I already know what Liang daren means, but now the entrance ceremony has passed, and there are only four months left before the county examination. So, your name is Tang Shen, correct?”

“Yes.”

“You may be a visiting student, and attend with other students every day.”

It was easier than Tang Shen thought to be admitted to the prefecture academy. The next day, he took his book bag to the prefecture academy to study. The ancients did not attach too much importance to transfer students or new faces. The fuzi who was teaching that day entered the Lecture Hall and caught a glimpse of Tang Shen out of the corner of his eye but he soon looked away and started lecturing without any such process as “introducing the new student”.

Not only the fuzi, but other students also didn’t care about Tang Shen. At first, some people were surprised at the sudden appearance of a new face. After the first class, several students gathered together and quietly observed Tang Shen.

After a while, a slightly rich looking little fatty was pushed over by everyone. The fatty wore a jade crown on his head and a Hetian white jade pendant at his waist. He walked to Tang Shen’s desk and said, “My name is Sun Yue, what is your name?”

The other didn’t have any malice, so Tang Shen said: “Tang Shen.” After a pause, he said again: “What character ‘yue’? The ‘yue’ in ‘a maiden of Yue gathers lotus’?”

Sun Yue was stunned: “No, it’s the ‘yue’ from ‘five marchmounts and four seas’.”

Tang Shen thought to himself: So it’s not Sun Yue. (TN: a Taiwanese actor)

Sun Yue didn’t know that Tang Shen had connected him in his heart with a well-known comedian actor in the future. He said: “You are a new face. I have never seen you before. Where are you from? Have you just arrived in Gusu City? Although you are tall, you are very thin. Are you fifteen years old at least?”

Tang Shen: “I am thirteen this year, and I am not a xiucai.”

“Eh, you’re not a xiucai?”

The students in the distance also heard Tang Shen’s words. They breathed a sigh of relief, and most of the hostility in their eyes disappeared.

But Sun Yue was very happy. He sat down on the seat next to Tang Shen and said, “Then you are like me, your family donated money to study at Ziyang Academy? Don’t be afraid, we are grasshoppers on the same rope.”

Tang Shen didn’t explain that he didn’t come in through donations, but through connections. He was a student of Liang daru, but there was no need to publicize this matter everywhere. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: “I’m not afraid. Besides, how are we grasshoppers on the same rope?”

Sun Yue: “Have you seen those classmates? They are all xiucai. You and I are the only ones in the classroom today who are not xiucai. They studied for ten years by the cold window (TN: expression for studying in hardship) and finally became a xiucai, but in order to pass the academy examination of tongshi and become a gongsheng, that is too difficult. If you don’t pass the academy examination, it would be as difficult as climbing the sky to take the xiangshi. They thought you were a xiucai from another place who had just moved to Gusu Prefecture, so you entered the academy now, and you would be taking the academy examination with them in the future. There are only around 20 spots in each county for the academy examination. You are so young and you must be extraordinarily intelligent to have become a xiucai, so of course you would be a strong enemy for them.”

There was some truth to that.

Sun Yue patted his chest: “Don’t be afraid, I will protect you from now on.”

With a slight twitch of his nose, Tang Shen leaned closer and sniffed the scent wafting from the little fatty: “Scent of osmanthus?”

Sun Yue smiled and said: “I didn’t expect your nose to be so sharp. Yes, this is the scented oil my mother brought back from Zhenbao Pavilion a few days ago. This thing seems to be called Golden Mist, and currently it cannot be bought in the entire Gusu Prefecture. But you got a chance to smell it today. If you like it, I will switch to another scent tomorrow and let you smell some more.”

“…You’ll only let me just smell it?”

Sun Yue said warily: “Why, this thing is very expensive. Do you still want me to give you a bottle?”

Tang Shen laughed, and the relationship between the two became closer.

Soon, a lecturer came to class, and everyone sat down.

On the other side, in front of the Tang family’s Zhenbao Pavilion shop on Sujin Street, Madam Tang, who was wearing brocade, got off the carriage and entered the shop. Not long after she entered the shop, she met an acquaintance. The other said casually: “Madam Tang, I haven’t seen you for a long time. I didn’t expect to bump into you today.”

Madam Tang smiled and said: “Madam Wang, you have time to come to my Zhenbao Pavilion today. Do you see anything you like?”

The maid accompanying Madam Wang said: “Answering Madam Tang, our Madam has already bought a lot of things.”

Madam Tang looked at the shopkeeper: “Bring a bottle of Golden Mist to Madam Wang.” She turned around and asked: “What scent does Madam Wang like?”

Before Madam Wang could speak, the shopkeeper said: “The two selections Madam Wang made before were all rose-scented Golden Mist.”

Madam Tang gestured, and the shopkeeper immediately took a bottle of rose-scented essential oil, put it into a box for Madam Wang, wrapped it in brocade, and handed it to the maid.

Madam Wang said: “This thing of yours smells good and lasts a long time, but it’s just not for sale. Are you never planning to sell it?”

Madam Tang said helplessly: “How could you know that it is very difficult for me to make this Golden Mist, and the first batch hasn’t even been made yet, so I can only use it as a gift to give to my good sisters. The cost is too high, and ordinary people can’t afford it. Each bottle of this stuff is no cheaper than a chi of brocade.” (TN: a Chinese foot, one-third of a meter)

Madam Wang was surprised: “So expensive?”

“That’s right! The entire Gusu Prefecture, only you, my good sister, Madam Sun and Madam Zhao in the west of the city, Madam Li in the east of the city, and the county magistrate’s wife have used it. Of all the good things in the Gusu Prefecture, which have not been used by us five sisters first.”

Madam Wang left with the maid, and Madam Tang asked the shopkeeper: “In the past half month, who has taken the Golden Mist?”

The shopkeeper counted the list.

The maid said: “Madam, this is more than just five people.”

“Don’t worry, Madam Wang is only familiar with these four ladies. The five of them have been good friends since they were children. They rarely interact with other ladies in Gusu Prefecture and would not mention this matter to others. Besides, even if they know that someone else has used the Golden Mist, we can just say it was sent after today.”

The shopkeeper said: “Madam, when will we start selling this Golden Mist? It won’t last to always just give it to distinguished guests like this.”

Madam Tang then carefully asked the shopkeeper about the gifting of essential oils and what these distinguished guests said about the essential oils. She said: “Wait a little longer.”

At the beginning of the twelfth lunar month, Tang Shen went to the workshop to inspect the first batch of goods.

This time he was selling soap and essential oils so a batch of soap was also made, but it was left untouched and packaged there.

Yao San: “Little boss, why not sell that soap together. Essential oils are extremely expensive and ordinary people can’t afford them. Scented soap is cheaper, but it’s not as good a deal as plain soap.”

Tang Shen: “Wait a little longer. Do you know what celebrity effect is?”

Yao San was stunned: “Celebrity effect?”

Tang Shen thought for a while and explained the ancient version of celebrity effect: “If I tell you now, Liang daru uses Hui ink every time he writes, and he loves Hui ink the most. As a scholar, would you also want to use Hui ink? “

“That’s natural!”

“But Hui ink is very expensive, and ordinary people can’t afford it. You can only think about it. But if I tell you after a while that while you can’t afford Hui ink, you could afford the Tang family brush that Liang daru likes to use, would you want to buy it.”

“What is the Tang family’s brush? Little boss, when did we ever make a brush?”

“Hai, it’s just an example. Just give me your answer.”

“Then of course I want to buy it!”

Tang Shen smiled and said: “Exactly so. Liang daru is the model for scholars in Gusu Prefecture, so what kind of person do you think is the model for all the madams and young ladies in Gusu Prefecture?” Knowing that Yao San didn’t know how to answer, Tang Shen said: “The wives and daughters from wealthy families are their models.”

Yao San nodded in understanding.

Tang Shen said helplessly: “Just wait some more!”

On the fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Tang family Zhenbao Pavilion was closed for renovation, and several madams and ladies who often came to buy makeup were very puzzled. The Tang family’s business was exquisite and meticulous. Even if the store was closed, a servant boy was sent to wait outside. While these madams and ladies were wondering, the servant boy immediately stepped forward and said: “We will open again on the sixth day of the lunar month.”

A maid asked: “What is this? Why is the store closed?”

Servant boy: “I don’t know either. I just heard from the shopkeeper that he has gotten some rare items to sell on the sixth day of the lunar month.”

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang said: “Could it be that expensive Golden Mist?”

“I don’t know.”

Madam Wang had some ideas in her mind and thought: I must come and see on the sixth day of the lunar month.

On the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, several wealthy madams and ladies from Gusu Prefecture came to Zhenbao Pavilion at the same time. When they saw each other, they were all surprised and entered the store together. The newly opened Zhenbao Pavilion was no different from usual. It was the same as several other famous powder shops in Gusu Prefecture. It was rich and luxurious, but it was only rich and luxurious.

It was just that today there were many wives from wealthy families.

Madam Wang entered the shop curiously. After taking two steps, her eyes were suddenly attracted by something by the window.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

TN1: Imperial Examination Ranks: tongsheng (county level)—>xiucai (prefecture level)—>gongsheng (all gongsheng are xiucai but not all xiucai can become gongsheng)—>juren (provincial level)—>gongshi (all gongshi are juren but not all juren are gongshi)—>jinshi (palace/highest level, divided by third rank, second rank, and first rank. First rank includes tanhua(3rd), bangyan(2nd), zhuangyuan(1st))

TN2: Examinations and their resulting rank: tongshi (divided into county exam=tongsheng, prefecture exam=xiucai, academy exam=gongsheng)—>xiucai/gongsheng, xiangshi—>juren, huishi—>gongshi, dianshi—>jinshi

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