Go register

The New Year had already passed, making Wei Guangde thirteen years old this year.

Participating in the county examination at this age could hardly be called early. In fact, numerous scholars in their early teens took part in both the county and prefectural examinations. Even more remarkably, Zhang Juzheng, the illustrious Grand Secretary of the Great Ming dynasty, had already attained the status of a licentiate (Xiucai) by the age of twelve.

From this historical fact, one could deduce that Zhang Juzheng must have participated in and successfully passed the county-level examination at either eleven or twelve years of age.

Indeed, descendants of many gentry families embarked on the imperial examinations while still in their early teens.

Naturally, Wei Guangde was unaware of these precedents; all along the way, he remained rather smug and pleased with himself for being able to sit for the county examinations at such a tender age.

Calculating the timeline, when he was thirteen in his past life, he had just been a seventh-grader.

Extrapolating further, the prefectural examination would correspond to the eighth grade, the provincial-level qualifying examination to the senior high school entrance exam, and the provincial and metropolitan examinations to the eleventh and twelfth grades. No wonder posterity referred to the top scorer of the imperial palace examination as the *Zhuangyuan*; it seemed to align perfectly with his own academic trajectory.

Lost in these exhilarating musings, Wei Guangde felt a warm glow throughout his journey. With light steps, skipping and bounding, he soon returned to Pengshan Fortress.

From afar, he spotted two squads of soldiers drilling on the flat ground outside the fortress. His elder brother, Wei Wencai, and his cousin, Wu Dong, were both there.

For the past year or so, Wu Dong had been living directly at their household for the sake of convenience.

Pursuing scholarship and the imperial examinations had already become a distant, unattainable luxury for Wu Dong.

The turbulent events of the year before last and the previous year had exerted a profound impact on him. The political shifts at the imperial court had changed with such dizzying speed that he had found himself barely able to keep up. Through this trial, he finally realized that he could not rely on his father, Wu Zhankui, for the rest of his life.

It was time for him to wake up.

Consequently, over the past year, he had spent most of his time right here, drilling troops alongside Wei Wencai. Perhaps many of these men would eventually become his personal guards and retainers.

Since his was a hereditary military office, he still needed to cultivate capable men under his command.

The two cousins were currently gathered together in idle chatter, surrounded by a group of retainers. Catching sight of Wei Guangde jogging toward them from afar, they involuntarily glanced up at the sky, feeling that the time of day did not quite add up.

"Little Second, why are you back already? You only just left for your studies not long ago."

As Wei Guangde ran closer, his eldest brother, Wei Wencai, was the first to speak up.

"Something came up, Eldest Brother. The teacher told me to go register and participate in this year's county examination to gain some experience."

Reaching his brother's side, Wei Guangde gradually slowed to a halt, panting as he spoke.

"Really?"

It was Wu Dong who blurted this out. He had been fifteen when he took his own exams, and he had never imagined that his little cousin would go for the county examination at only thirteen—especially since, by his reckoning, his cousin was still two months shy of his thirteenth birthday.

"The teacher said registration closes in two days. I need to go tell Father immediately and head to the county seat either today or tomorrow."

Having caught his breath, Wei Guangde spoke much more fluently now.

"You didn't mention a word of this the last few days. Registration has been open for a month already; why would he suddenly tell you to take the county examination?"

Wu Dong remained thoroughly puzzled by the situation.

Who ever prepared for the examinations this way? No one waited until the registration deadline was looming to suddenly send a student off to sign up.

"Do you have a fellow student to vouch for you?"

"Yes. Originally, a classmate of mine was supposed to take the imperial examination this time, but his family encountered a period of mourning, so naturally, he couldn't go."

"So that's how it is. You're just going to familiarize yourself with the examination hall."

Hearing the explanation, Wu Dong understood. His little cousin had simply picked up a vacant slot. Presumably, his teacher did not harbor overly high hopes for him, but since a vacancy had opened up, he was being sent to try his luck. Even if he failed, he would at least accumulate some examination experience.

"In that case, you'd better hurry home and tell Father and Mother so they can arrange for you to go to the county magistrate's office and register as soon as possible."

Having listened to their exchange and grasped the situation, Wei Wencai chimed in.

Bidding farewell to the two of them, Wei Guangde resumed his run toward Pengshan Fortress. Within moments, he passed through the fortress gates and rushed straight down the main avenue into his family's courtyard.

Old Master Wei was currently sitting in the main hall, sipping tea. Over the past year, he had had virtually nothing to do. He merely held the nominal title of Superintendent of Troop Training, though the actual responsibilities were mostly handled through discussions between Wei Wencai and Wu Dong, with Wei Guangde occasionally chiming in.

Still, under the training of the eldest son and the nephew, those two hundred-odd men looked quite respectable, having been drilled strictly according to military manuals.

They practiced forming lines, arranging battle arrays, and mastering the handling of their weapons.

Old Master Wei would only occasionally go out to observe the training of the matchlock gunners. The saber and spear drills were fundamental domestic skills; if those common soldiers couldn't use them proficiently after a year of training, they deserved a beating with the paddle.

The matchlock gunners were a specialized unit requiring prolonged practice in reloading, firing, and rapid maneuvering.

Since the founding of the Great Ming dynasty, the military had developed the "three-stage firing technique," in which matchlockmen stood in three ranks, taking turns firing at the enemy. This required a soldier, immediately after discharging his weapon, to quickly retreat to the rear of the formation to reload and prepare for the next volley.

Furthermore, depending on tactical needs, the three-stage formation could instantly adapt into a higher-frequency four-stage or even five-stage firing sequence. All of this required the soldiers to be thoroughly versed in battlefield movement, completing tactical shifts in the shortest possible time.

For the most part, however, Old Master Wei simply sat in the main hall sipping tea. He had long grown accustomed to delegating all other matters to his eldest son, including the routine business of the Guard Battalion and the plot of land behind the mountain.

Today was no exception. Old Master Wei was seated in the hall with his tea when he suddenly heard a flurry of hurried footsteps outside.

Curious, he looked up toward the entrance and saw his youngest son, who should have been studying in town, come dashing in at a full run.

"Father, Father, I'm back!"

As soon as he crossed the threshold, Wei Guangde caught sight of Old Master Wei holding his teacup while gazing fixedly at him, and immediately shouted out.

Approaching his father, before Wei Guangde could even speak, Old Master Wei asked with a puzzled frown, "Why are you back? Did you make your teacher angry enough to throw you out?"

Despite saying this, Old Master Wei felt a deep sense of bewilderment.

During his final year of study, his eldest son had frequently been sent home with summons for his parents precisely because he refused to apply himself to his books.

But that was the eldest son; that boy had never intended to study seriously in the first place, so Old Master Wei had eventually resigned himself to it.

Initially, Old Master Wei had pinned his hopes on a dual insurance policy: with two sons, as long as one of them succeeded through scholarship, the family fortunes would be completely transformed.

After all, he only needed one son to enter a military career. Although regulations dictated that the eldest son inherit the office, rules were rigid while people were adaptable; with some maneuvering and greasing of palms, matters could usually be arranged.

Unless he were to suddenly pass away before his second son reached the age of sixteen and attained adulthood, the eldest son would be forced to take over the post.

However, since the eldest son had voluntarily abandoned his studies of his own accord, the younger son had no choice but to succeed academically. If he failed to achieve anything through scholarship...

"I'm thirsty, Father."

Having sprinted all the way home, Wei Guangde suddenly felt a parching thirst. Catching sight of the teacup in Old Master Wei's hand, the words slipped out instinctively.

"Here."

Old Master Wei set down his teacup and handed it over, though his eyes remained fixed on his son.

"The teacher told me to come home and let you know so we can hurry to the county ritual office to register and participate in this year's county examination."

Taking the teacup, Wei Guangde tested the water temperature. Finding it just right, he took a large, refreshing gulp before answering his father.