After visiting Enzhou Zhizhou, Wu Zhi spent half a day to familiarize himself with the environment around Enzhou Fuxue, the examination venue, and continued with the store for seven days, preparing to slowly adapt to the environment, slowly review his homework, and quietly wait for the coming of the big exam.

Seeing that Wu Zhi and them had continued to live for seven days, the shopkeeper of the Victory Inn was no longer full of resentment this time, and his face blossomed with joy.

Gradually, the county seat of Qinghe County, the seat of Enzhou began to be lively, and the students of the three counties under the jurisdiction of Enzhou came to Qinghe County one after another, and those who had relatives went to relatives, those who had money lived in wine shops and inns, and those who had no money stayed in temples and Taoist temples, and the county seat of Qinghe County and its surroundings were crowded with surging tides, and it was very lively, and even beggars and thieves were more.

The victory inn was also full of guests before the exam, making it difficult to find a room, and the house price also rose to 300 wen a night. Wu Sik is complacent about his foresight.

Wu Zhi eats what he should eat, sleeps when he should sleep, sometimes reads a book in the room, teases Xiao'e to play, and sometimes takes Xiao'e out for a walk. When it comes to the meal, they no longer treat themselves badly, sometimes they eat in the inn, sometimes they go out to eat, they eat in different ways, the cost is not very large, the mutton is more expensive, they also eat pork, but the pork is not very delicious, because the ingredients are not enough, it tastes a little fishy.

Xiao'e is usually more frugal at home, at first, seeing him spend money like this, she still chattered, but then she ate happily, and found that it didn't cost much, so she left him alone, no longer silent, and followed him to enjoy. She was a little skinny, and Wu Zhi wanted to give her more nutrition.

At noon on August 13, Pan Weimin sent a servant to invite him and Xiao'e to the government. In confusion, when I arrived at the government office, I learned that Pan Weimin's two sons and Pan Weijun's son also came to participate in the examination this year, and came back from the county school to prepare for the exam.

Jin Lian's eldest brother is called Pan Wei, the word Xu Ming, twenty-one years old, seven feet tall, looks very much like Pan Weimin, and is more calm and introverted; The second brother's name is Pan Jie, nineteen years old, he hasn't taken a table word yet, he is taller than his brother, more strong, cheerful, and a little arrogant; Jin Lian's cousin's name is Pan Yang, the word is Wuji, twenty years old, medium build, a little fat, loves to laugh, but there is no lack of shrewdness.

These three brothers Wu Zhi have seen him before, but the communication is not deep, because the previous Wu Zhi is a bit dull and silent, they don't pay much attention to him, they are not close enough, and they don't know him deeply, they only know that he is okay to study, and he looks okay, and his own sister Jin Lian likes him, and he can't figure out how he can be worthy of his own sister's like.

Seeing that Wu Zhi also came to participate in the exam, Pan Wei, Pan Jie and Pan Yang didn't care, they took the test, they didn't think that Wu Zhi could pass the exam this time.

Pan Weimin left Wuzhi and Xiao'e to have lunch together, a relatively simple family banquet, it seems that this Lord Zhizhou is still relatively honest and thrifty.

Seven people sat at the table, the guests and hosts were suitable, and they ate happily, Wu Zhi changed his previous taciturn and silent appearance, and talked and laughed at the dinner table, humorous and witty, which made Jinlian's mother Tang like it more and more, and the three brothers Pan Weimin and Pan Wei also felt surprised, and began to reevaluate him in their hearts.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Wu Zhi asked Pan Weimin some questions and details about the solution to the test, and also consulted some matters related to the provincial examination and the palace examination. Lord Zhizhou appreciated his eagerness to learn and progress, so he taught him all his previous experiences and experiences in taking the big exam, and then gave him some suggestions. After hearing this, Wu Zhi benefited a lot, and he felt more confident.

On the 15th day of August in the third year of Shaosheng, this day was the day when the European crusades began their crusade to the east, at three o'clock (5:45 in the morning), Wu Zhi took the four treasures of the study, carried the food box, and slowly walked to the gate of Enzhou Mansion School, and embarked on the first stop of the journey of the Jinshi Kegongju examination: solving the exam!

After a rigorous body search by the officials, Wu Zhi slowly walked to his seat for the exam, and the order of the seats had been announced by the government in advance, and he needed to be seated in turn during the exam. After all the candidates were seated, the door of the school was slowly and completely closed.

During these three days, candidates cannot leave the examination room, eating, living and sleeping in it, which is called the locked hospital exam! Therefore, almost every student will carry a food box with some pastries and cooking cakes in their hands to prevent them from being too hungry, but they can't bring water, and they have to endure their thirst, which is a bit unreasonable.

The first test of the first test is the three ways of the Great Sutra and the righteousness, one of the Analects and one of the righteousness of Mencius. got the test paper, Wu Zhi looked at it, and there were three questions in the Great Classics, which were from "Yi Guanyi", "Book of Songs", and "Book of Rites"; There is one meaning in the Analects, and one in Mencius. The interpretation of the Confucian classics is not based on commentaries as the standard answer, and the language can be freely organized. Wu Zhi was not in a hurry to answer the question after seeing the question, and slowly conceived it, anyway, there is a lot of time for the exam, so he will write it after thinking about it.

From Wu Zhi's conversation with Zhizhou and Tongju a few days ago, he knew that these two were both new parties that supported the reform of the new law and were more enlightened, so his answer should focus on discovering the answer from the perspective of the new law, and try to get closer to society and life.

After thinking about it in this way, he typed the draft, and then he began to write and write slowly.

The five principles of righteousness were completed in one go, and it took Wu Zhi more than four hours to finish the draft, during which he also took a break. After writing, I checked for any typos and taboos, changed it a little, and felt that it was okay, so I transcribed it on the answer sheet. After transcribing and stopping his pen, Wu Zhi stopped looking at them, and after eating something, he buried his head in his sleep and quietly waited for the second exam to come.

In the second test, one poem or one poem is written, and the topic is to write a poem or a poem with the theme of the current autumn season. Wu Zhi has studied a lot of history and also studied poetry, after seeing this topic, he thought about it and wrote: "Tianjingsha • Autumn Thoughts": Ancient vines and old trees faint crows, small bridges and flowing water, ancient roads and west wind thin horses. The sun is setting, and the heartbroken man is at the end of the world. ”

This is a poem that has been widely circulated in later generations, from the pen of Ma Zhiyuan in the Yuan Dynasty, Wu Zhi wants to be a blockbuster, he can only borrow it, and he can't write such a good poem by himself. Anyway, no one can see through him now, and Wu Zhi is borrowing it with peace of mind.

After writing, he checked that there were no typos, and then slowly transcribed it onto the answer sheet. After transcribing, Wu Zhi put down his pen, rested peacefully, and quietly waited for the last exam.

The third is a sub-historical treatise, a discussion of current affairs, an exposition of a certain theme; The strategy is to put forward current political countermeasures. The sub-history theory originated from the Shang Dynasty Reform Law, extended to the Yuanfeng reform, and discussed the views on innovation; The current policy is to ask the local government how to quell the rebellion and bandits and how to reassure the people, which is a bit of a big topic.

Wu Zhi is in favor of reform and innovation, and he himself urgently needs to change the law and innovate, so it is not difficult to answer the question of the sub-history, and he wrote it after thinking for a while. He thought about the current affairs for a long time, and only wrote down after it matured, and wrote a lot, and there are five key points: First, the army and the people should unite and cooperate, improve the relationship between officers and soldiers and the people, and actively mobilize the people to participate; Second, there must be a strong commander, who can not only convince the public, but also have decision-making power and command properly; the third is to use both soft and hard against bandits, and combine offense with softness; Fourth, it is necessary to strengthen the propaganda offensive, focus on attacking the heart, disintegrate the bandits from within, and eliminate and reduce the soil for the formation of bandits from the outside; Fifth, it is necessary to restore people's livelihood as soon as possible after the war and improve their living standards. For this policy, he originally wanted to write it completely in the format of one, two, three, four, but after thinking about it, he still forgot it, and tried to write it in the style of the ancients, which was too alternative and not good.

After Wu Zhi slowly finished writing the draft, he checked and corrected some places, and felt that it was appropriate, so he unhurriedly transcribed it to the answer sheet. After the transcription was completed, it only took a few hours, and there was still half a day left, so he could only continue to rest and sleep, quietly waiting for the end of the exam. He didn't want to hand in the papers early, for fear of shooting the first bird.

The three-day locked exam was very difficult, and on the way, some students couldn't stand it, so they could only be carried out of the field by the officials in frustration and annoyance, and they were eliminated on the spot, which was really ugly. Wu Zhi couldn't help but smile bitterly and shook his head: Where is this? As for it?

After the invigilator gave instructions for the end of the exam, Wu Zhi handed in the test paper with everyone.

At that time, the examination was also to implement the name system and transcription, "name", also known as "seal" or "seal", that is, after the examination, the basic information such as the candidate's name and place of origin filled in the examination paper was pasted with paper to ensure the fairness of marking the paper and prevent cheating. "Transcription" means that after the test paper is sealed with a name, the transcription officer will make a transcription backup, and the pro-written examination paper of the person who lifts the child is called the real paper, and the transcription is sent to the seal official for archiving; The transcribed papers are called scratch rolls and are sent to the examiner for review, which is to prevent the examiner from cheating on the candidate's handwriting. Transcription and sealing are collectively referred to as mi-sealing transcription.

Wu Zhi waited for the officials or officials to seal and transcribe his name, and then walked out of the examination room quietly with the packed bookcase and food box. At this time, it was already dark, and the lights were on.

Seeing Pan Wei, Pan Jie, and Pan Yang coming over, he hurriedly stepped forward and greeted them one by one.

"How did the three brothers do in the exam?" Out of courtesy, Wu Zhi asked about their exams separately.

Pan Wei looked calm and said that it was okay; Pan Jie and Pan Yang looked depressed, and they couldn't even take the test.

They asked him how he did in the exam, and Wu Zhi could only reply with a smile: "It's okay!" ”

After breaking up, Pan Wei, Pan Jie and Pan Yang returned to the Zhizhou Mansion, while Wu Zhi returned to the Victory Inn alone with a bookcase and a food box.

Xiao'e didn't come to pick him up, because he confessed that he didn't give her to pick him up, the exam was too long, who knows when it will end?

Seeing him come back, Xiao'e breathed a sigh of relief. During these three days, she was also anxious.

For three days in a row, eating, drinking, and sleeping in the examination room, Wu Zhi was full of stink, he couldn't stand it, and hurriedly asked the shopkeeper to call the shopkeeper to bring a big wooden bucket, fill it with water, and he took a cold shower comfortably.

After taking a shower, changing into a new short shirt and gray robe, and waiting for the shopkeeper to clean up the big wooden barrel in the room, Wu Zhi took Xiao'e, who had been waiting outside the door, downstairs, ordered a small table of dishes in the inn hall, gobbled it up, and comforted his stomach. After the food was full, he returned to the room and chatted with Xiao'e about some interesting things in the examination room, and after eating a little, Wu Zhi fell asleep.

The next day, when it was dawn, Wu Zhi woke up, refreshed, and finally regained his spirit.

Wu Xiu had already arrived early and was waiting for him in the room. Seeing him wake up, he nodded to him with a smile, and Xiao'e also sat next to him obediently and waited.

After washing up and having breakfast, Wu Zhi and his entourage went to the Zhizhou Mansion to say goodbye to Pan Weimin. Unexpectedly, Lord Zhizhou was very busy and did not have time to meet them, so they had to say goodbye to Jin Lian's mother, two elder brothers and cousin, and returned to Wujiana Village in an ox cart.

It takes several days to go from marking to Zhang Bang, so he has to go home and wait, anyway, the Enzhou Mansion is not far from Wujia Village, it is convenient to go back and forth, and it is not too late to go to see the list when waiting for Zhang Bang, just wait patiently.

Time passed quickly, and in a blink of an eye, it was time for the list of admissions to be announced. It was a crisp autumn day, the sun was shining, and the weather was surprisingly good.

When they got up in the morning, Second Uncle Wu's family was busy, they were full of anticipation, and they urged Wu Zhi to hurry up and go to the list. Although Wu Zhi's face was calm, he was still looking forward to it in his heart, after all, this was the first step in his journey of thousands of miles!

Wu Xiu drove the ox cart and took Wu Zhi and Xiao'e to the county seat of Qinghe County, and Xiao'e also wanted to follow to have a look, so the two took her with them.

Entering the county seat, before I walked to the front of the government office, I saw from a distance that in front of the government office was a large group of people surrounded by three circles inside and three circles outside, bustling and full of people. The students couldn't wait to come to the scene of the Zhang Bang, hugging and looking forward to it. From time to time, the sound of names being read out of the crowd was heard, and then there was a burst of cheers, and at the same time some lamentations were heard.

Wu Xiu had no choice but to stop the ox cart in the distance. Wu Zhi hurriedly jumped out of the car, helped Xiao'e get out of the car, took her hand, walked forward quickly, and squeezed into the crowd with difficulty.

"Who is this Takeshi?" "I don't think I've heard of it?" There were constant sounds of inquiry and discussion in his ears, and Wu Zhi felt strange in his heart: what are these people talking about him?

Squeezing to the front of the crowd, Wu Zhi raised his head to look at the list carefully, and after only one glance, he found his vermilion name: "First place in the test: Wuzhi of Qinghe County." He was stunned for a moment, and then his heart was happy, and he finally understood why others were talking about him.

"Brother Da Lang is so good!" Xiao'e next to her jumped up happily.

"I'm Xie Yuan!" Wu Zhi seems to be calm on the surface, but in fact, he has already blossomed in his heart.

When everyone heard Xiao'e's cheers, they knew that the son in front of them was "Xie Yuan" Wu Zhi, seeing that he was young but "Xie Yuan" in high school, all kinds of envy, jealousy and hatred came to their hearts at once, and the eyes staring at him were extremely hot!

After settling down, Wu Zhi carefully checked the list again, and finally saw Pan Wei's name on it, a total of twenty people were admitted, he ranked tenth, and he was also shortlisted, but there was no name of Pan Jie and Pan Yang on the list, so he should have been defeated!

Because Enzhou is located on Hebei East Road, close to Liao, belongs to the border along the line, usually will often be harassed by the Liao army, there are many people who throw pen from Rong, the imperial court in order to take care of the public opinion on the northern border, more Enzhou is admitted to the examination, but it is only one out of twenty.

"Congratulations!" Pan Wei didn't know when he squeezed to his side, smiled happily, and congratulated him.

"Tongxi!" He arched his hand and smiled in response.

And Pan Jie and Pan Yang stood aside dejectedly, sighing, the taste of defeat was not good.

He is the first place in the solution test: Xie Yuan!

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and Wu Zhi finally took a solid first step in the Jinshi Gongju exam.