With the passage of time, the candidates who participated in the prefectural examination in various counties basically gathered in the inns within a few miles around the Gongyuan, which was very lively.

At the beginning of April, the prefect He Gang, the Lin'an Mansion Xuezheng Lord Huang Long and a group of relevant officials visited the Zhuangyuanlou Inn in person to express their condolences and encourage the candidates.

The news was released in advance, and the owner of the Zhuangyuan Building Inn made a big deal about this matter, which can be described as a brilliant show.

The candidates who lived in the Zhuangyuanlou Inn were all preparing for it, and the candidates who lived in other inns also gathered.

On that day, the candidates who came from other inns arrived at the front hall of the inn first, and the candidates in the inn also gathered in the front hall of the inn to wait.

Fortunately, the front hall is very spacious, and the innkeeper and some of the officials who arrived in advance organize order together, so although there are many candidates, it is not too crowded, and a large open space is left from the door to the center of the front hall for officials such as the prefect He Gang to come in person.

"The top three in the county exams stand out." The leader of the officials who had arrived in advance to organize order shouted.

After a while, the top three candidates from the six counties under the jurisdiction of Lin'an Prefecture, a total of eighteen candidates, came out of the crowd and stood in the open space in the center of the front hall.

The leader of the government stood in front of Xu Xian and the others and said, "Lord He, Lord Huang and other adults are coming soon, as outstanding students from all counties, please come with me to the door to greet the adults." ”

"No." Xu Xian and other eighteen candidates responded in unison.

When the other candidates heard this, they were all envious, this is an honor, and it is an opportunity to be appreciated.

After waiting for about a stick of incense, a servant and an innkeeper rushed in from outside and shouted, "Lord He and Lord Huang are here!" ”

All the candidates couldn't help but be in a commotion, they all became excited and excited, and they all turned their heads to look at the door.

The leader of the government shouted to Xu Xian and the other eighteen candidates: "Follow me to the door to greet the adults!" ”

Xu Xian and the other eighteen candidates immediately walked out of the front hall of the inn with their heads held high, walked out of the door, walked three or four feet, and then stopped and waited.

Soon, the car of the prefect He Gang, Xuezheng Huang Long and others appeared, and when the car was near, Xu Xian bowed and shouted in unison with the others: "The students welcome Lord He, Lord Huang and all the adults, and thank you for your care for us." ”

The carriage stopped, and in his early fifties, the prefect He Gang, who had three strands of flowing long hair, lifted the curtain and stepped out of the carriage, and Xuezheng Huang Long and other officials also got down from the carriage behind him and walked behind He Gang.

"No need to be polite, you have worked hard to take the exam from your hometown to Fucheng." Prefect He Gang's gaze swept over the eighteen candidates who greeted him, satisfied with their spirits.

Next, the prefect He Gang did not return to re-board the car, and walked directly to the gate of the Zhuangyuanlou Inn with the officials behind him, while Xu Xian and other eighteen candidates gave way to both sides of the road, and then returned to the inn with the officials.

Entering the front hall of the inn, the prefect He Gang and other officials and the candidates met and finished the ceremony, He Gang and other officials walked to the tables and chairs that had been prepared and sat down, and the inn guys diligently served tea, snacks and fruits.

"Sit down." He Gang noticed Xu Xian and the other eighteen candidates, and said kindly.

He knew that these eighteen candidates were the top three candidates in the county and county examinations, and they were all talented people who had a good chance of passing the children's examination and becoming talents, so he naturally looked at them differently.

The inn guys and officials hurriedly brought chairs to Xu Xian and the other eighteen candidates.

"Master Xie." Xu Xian and other eighteen candidates then sat down and became the only candidates sitting in the audience.

Next, the prefect He Gang began to speak to the candidates, all of which were words of condolence and encouragement. After the prefect He Gang finished speaking, Xuezheng Huang Long continued.

After the prefect He Gang and Xuezheng Huang Long finished speaking, after the representative finished speaking on the formal scene, the prefect He Gang then said in a relaxed tone: "This is not a formal occasion, you don't have to be restrained. If there are any difficulties or problems, just raise them, and the government and the government will definitely find a way to solve them for you. ”

Having said that, none of the candidates raised any difficulties, and the audience was silent.

Because everyone knows that this is also a scene, if anyone is not interested in really raising their own difficulties, the prefect He Gang and the government will certainly help solve it, but they will end up with an impression of incompetence, and the consequences can be imagined.

After a moment of silence, Xuezheng Huang Long said loudly: "Everyone knows Lord He's love for talent. Do not have scruples, and speak out if you have any difficulties. ”

There was silence for a while, and a candidate raised his voice: "Thank you for your care, we have no difficulty." ”

Seeing this, other candidates also spoke out one after another saying that there was no difficulty.

"Really?" Prefect He Gang smiled, then pointed to one of the eighteen candidates sitting and asked, "What about you?" This official sees that although your clothes are neat, they seem to be a little old, and they are enough? ”

The named candidates stood up in the envious and jealous eyes of all the candidates, their faces were full of excitement and gratitude, and they bowed down and said, "Thank you, for your care." Student Zhang Lizi Zijian, from Tonglu County......"

This guy seized the opportunity to sell himself to the prefect He Gang.

The prefect He Gang had a smile on his face and patiently listened to the candidate's self-promotion.

Of course, this candidate named Zhang Li also knows how to measure and does not go on with a long speech.

After the candidate who asked Zhang Li to sit down, almost all the candidates cast expectant glances at the prefect He Gang.

Prefect He Gang naturally understood the desire of these candidates, and wondered if he hadn't come here like this back then. His gaze turned to the standing examinee and pointed to a examinee for questioning.

The candidate was so excited that he stumbled and couldn't speak.

The prefect He Gang was a little disappointed, so he asked the candidate to stop the questioning after saying two sentences.

He turned his gaze back to the eighteen candidates who were seated, and asked in a loud voice, "Is Xu Xian, the head of the Qiantang County County Examination, present?" ”

As soon as these words came out, all the candidates looked at Xu Xian with envy and jealousy. Unexpectedly, the prefect asked directly by name, and no one else had this honor.

When Xu Xian heard this, he was a little surprised, but immediately stood up calmly and calmly.

"Student Xu Hanwen meets Master He, Lord Huang and all the adults." Xu Xian bowed to the prefect He Gang and Huang Long.

The prefect He Gang looked at Xu Xian, and saw that Xu Xian was young and handsome, a talent, elegant temperament, calm and calm, and more perfect than the young heroes he imagined.

"No need to be polite." He couldn't help but smile and said, "This time you went to Fucheng to take the exam, did you encounter difficulties?" ”

Xu Xian arched his hand and said: "Back to the adults, before the students go out, the elders, teachers and classmates of the family take the trouble to advise them on the precautions, and after arriving in Fucheng, they are taken care of by their fellow villagers and friends, and they have not encountered any difficulties, and everything is going well." ”

"Hmm." The prefect He Gang bowed his head and said, "The song "When Will the Bright Moon Be There" you composed last year is very good. ”

Xu Xian said: "Thank you, adult, for your praise, the student is ashamed." ”

"Deserved, deserved." Prefect He Gang stroked his hair and smiled.

"Xu Xian, since Lord He appreciates you so much, why don't you compose a poem on the spot to dedicate to your lordship?"

Suddenly, a discordant voice rang out.

The voice was so sudden and so fast that most people didn't know who said it.

There was silence, and a moment later there was a buzzing whisper.

Xu Xian obtained the prefect He Gang looked at him so differently, it was indeed very jealous. The candidates from the same Qiantang County were fine, but the candidates from other counties were completely jealous.

The prefect He Gang smiled and asked Xu Xian, "Xu Xian, what do you think?" ”

"If you want to wear a crown, you must bear its weight." Xu Xian said calmly.

"It's a good sentence 'If you want to wear a crown, you must bear its weight'!" When the prefect He Gang heard this, his eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands and applauded, "This is just one sentence, and it is enough to live up to the name of a genius!" ”