It was dawn, about five o'clock in the modern morning.

Candidates have formed a long queue outside the county yamen.

At this time, it has only been a hundred years since the imperial examination was established in the previous dynasty, and there has not been a tribute academy dedicated to the imperial examination. Therefore, the examination room for this county examination was set up in the county office.

However, although the imperial examination is in its initial stage, there are still basic rules for the examination room.

On the day of the test, in addition to the necessary pen, ink, paper and inkstone, in view of the fact that the test lasts all day from morning to night, candidates can also bring their own cooked food or boiler cooking. Therefore, a group of candidates wearing white linen clothes are all carrying bags with food, clothing, utensils and other things.

In order to prevent cheating and miscellaneous people from entering and exiting the department, there are guards around to strictly guard it, and there are officials who search their bodies for inspection, and those who are not suspected of carrying cheat sheets and cheating can be allowed to enter.

The scene was solemn.

Maybe it was a little nervous, or maybe it was the cold spring in early spring and February, and the candidates all bowed their heads and lined up, and no one communicated.

At this time, someone shouted, "Look! Female candidates! ”

Everyone looked sideways when they heard this.

I saw a column of three or four people at the side door not far away.

The people in the queue were also dressed in sackcloth robes, black heads, and bags on their shoulders.

Now with the empress ascending the throne, women's men's clothes are no longer the fashion of Chang'an beauty, even in a small northern county like them, there are many girls who like men's clothes.

Everyone saw a lot, and immediately identified the line, which was a female Jiao'e in men's clothes.

The scene was in an uproar.

"I heard that the number of female candidates this year is the highest in recent years, as many as four!"

There are as many as four people......

Liu Chenxing glanced at the long line of male candidates, at least ten times as many as female candidates.

She had nothing to say and remained silent, waiting to enter.

The male examinee is still discussing:

"I heard that there is another girl who has signed up for reference!"

"What girl? Only girls under the age of ten are called girls, and they have to apply for the children's department! There was a more well-informed saying: "This female candidate is already thirteen!" ”

As soon as these words came out, there was an uproar.

"What!? Only thirteen!? Or a female candidate!? Is it really child's play to take the imperial examination!? ”

"It is estimated that which pampered little lady does not know the height of the sky! Don't run out crying when you don't answer the question! ”

"Hahaha! I think most of them are going to cry and go home to find Ye Niang! It's nice to be able to write your own name! ”

……

The female candidates were already looking at it as a surprise, and as soon as the laughter came, the female candidates waiting for the entrance couldn't help but look a little ugly.

Seeing this, Liu Bao'er quietly moved away from Liu Chenxing, and complained in a low voice: "You fought with me all the way when you were a child, and now you see me signing up for the county exam, and you also sign up!" It's okay now, what an ugly face! ”

Liu Chenxing was dumbfounded when he heard this, and felt that his cognition and his cousin's cognition had deviated greatly.

said that he was unhappy with Liu Chenxing's application, Liu Bao'er didn't know what was wrong with him, so he didn't care that he had to rub Liu Chenxing's room to live in the future, so he couldn't suppress the resentment in his heart, and without waiting for Liu Chenxing's words, he said in one go: "I am Bao'er, I should be the most proud daughter of the Liu family, and I am the only girl in the village who reads!" But you want to sabotage all this, the second aunt has been lifted, but I've never passed the state test so far......"

Probably the resentment is too deep, and when he said this, he took a deep breath before he said again: "There is also a school in the village, and your studies are also pressing me everywhere, now everyone knows you Liu Erniang, who knows that I am Liu Da Niang!?" This county exam is my only chance, but you still have-"

Before he finished speaking, a person suddenly walked out of the yamen and said solemnly: "Silence! Those who make noise will be deemed to have cheated and will be disqualified from the examination. ”

A sentence strangled everyone's throats.

There was an instant silence on the male candidate's side.

Liu Bao'er also calmed down, and noticed the strange eyes of the two female candidates in front of her, her face turned red, but she still looked back at Liu Chenxing, clenched her hands into fists, and said firmly: "I will definitely work hard to take the test this time and prove to everyone that I am the best girl in the Liu family!" ”

Liu Chenxing is not a wooden person, of course she knows Liu Baoer's hostility towards her.

I also guessed that Liu Baoer applied for the exam this time, and it was estimated that she was going through the motions and mixing up the reputation of participating in the imperial examination, in order to get married.

But before the exam, Liu Baoer became serious.

Liu Chenxing was a little surprised, he glanced at Liu Baoer's cousin, and remembered the difficulty of a woman in this world who wanted to study for the imperial examination, so he replied in a low voice: "Come on!" ”

The voice was almost inaudible, Liu Bao'er vaguely heard it, but thinking of her own unkindness, Liu Lexing probably didn't have any good words, and it was time for her to enter the side door to search herself, she was no longer distracted, and took a deep breath and walked in.

In the end, there is a difference between men and women, and male candidates are searched in public, and there is a side room after female candidates enter the side door, and there is a middle-aged woman in her thirties and forties who is responsible for searching her body, and only after checking that there are no mistakes can she officially enter the examination room.

Liu Chenxing was the last female candidate to be searched and checked, and after the patient examination, she finally entered the examination room.

A huge quadrangle.

On the steps of the main hall, there is a couch covered with a mattress, there is a case in front of the couch, and there is a stove next to the couch, which is for the examiner to sit at a glance.

The four lower corridors are the examination rooms, which are the rooms opposite and on both sides of the main hall.

Although there is no examination room for one person like the Gongyuan, there are desk mats in the room, and the distance between the front and back of each desk seat is at least three feet, that is, no less than one meter, so that even if the candidates look around, they cannot peep at the answer sheets on the adjacent table.

At this time, the candidates who entered the hall stood in the courtyard, and there was a clerk in charge of the book and the case with the roster in his hand, shouting the names of the candidates, and the candidates came out in a crowd and were led by people to sit down for the exam.

Both men and women are searched in separate rooms, so naturally they also have to be tested in separate rooms.

The houses on the left and right sides are five rooms wide, and because of the large number of male candidates, it is a men's examination room.

There are two rooms in the north house opposite the main hall, which are smaller, so the women's examination room is in the right room of the north house.

Under the guidance of a small official, Liu Lexing finally came to his examination seat and took a seat.

There were only four female candidates, including her, and the entire examination room seemed a little empty.

In addition, there is no fire in the room, and the doors and windows are wide open, and the cold wind blows from all directions, which really responds to the old saying "The north wind blows in shock, and the winter is from the beginning." ”

Liu Chenxing shivered when he sat down, so after taking out the pen, ink, paper and inkstone from the bamboo back basket first, he didn't read the examination papers on the long case, he took out a rabbit fur mattress and spread it on the straw mat, and then knelt down and sat down, feeling a lot softer, not as hard and icy as just now.

I couldn't help but nod in satisfaction.

It seems that their fur products are good, if you hunt more after the beginning of spring this year, you can try to make more styles, no longer limited to clothing, then you can't sell it, you can also use it for your own family.

After all, making a fortune is also to make life better, and you can't put the cart before the horse, like Ye Niang is reluctant to dress herself and eat well, so she uses it for money, and only she creates opportunities for them to eat better.

After finishing his thoughts, Liu Chenxing was distracted and looked at the test questions on the case.