The Fifty-One Counties Examination

After returning from Pengze County, Wei Guangde began a busy period of study.

To prepare for the exams, even though Master Sun didn’t have high hopes for Wei Guangde and merely wanted him to study to broaden his horizons, the necessary practice still had to be done.

Previously, although Wei Guangde studied like many of his predecessors preparing for exams, there were still many things he hadn’t been exposed to — like the eight-legged essay he now held in his hands.

No one knew exactly how he had obtained it, but Wei Guangde was certain it wasn’t easy. It was a test paper from the current county magistrate of Pengze, Tang Yong, who had passed the provincial and metropolitan exams.

Tang Yong was from Guangdong and was not tall. When he first arrived, he was dark-skinned and thin, hardly the image of a successful candidate.

Yet, being directly assigned to serve as a county magistrate showed that his performance in the palace examination was probably mediocre.

After all, those who ranked at the top usually stayed in the capital as officials, with the highest entering the Hanlin Academy and others serving in the Six Ministries or central government agencies.

Though serving close to the emperor could be perilous, it offered greater chances of promotion.

So, which jinshi wouldn’t want to remain in the capital?

But Tang clearly did not, as he was assigned to Jiangxi.

Still, Wei Guangde didn’t underestimate him. Being sent to a remote and impoverished border area didn’t mean Jiangxi was a poor place; it indicated that Tang had some influence at court, enough to be appointed a county magistrate.

For a jinshi of modest reputation and ranking, obtaining his exam papers was naturally difficult.

Through this, Wei Guangde also gained insight into Master Sun’s character — he seemed to be an expert in exam-oriented education, perhaps having summarized methods for passing from the county to the provincial exams.

Collecting examiners’ essays, understanding their preferences, and adjusting one’s writing accordingly.

Many might think that the county exam, as the lowest level of the imperial examinations, should be easy and straightforward to pass. This is a misconception.

Strictly speaking, the county exam was not officially recognized by the court as part of the imperial exams.

The court regarded the provincial exam as the first with official supervision, while the county and prefectural exams were conducted by local officials and thus less valued.

However, in reality, many candidates were eliminated during the county, prefectural, and provincial exams.

For example, Master Sun had told Wei Guangde and several first-time county exam candidates that Pengze County held county exams twice every three years, skipping the exam only in the year of the metropolitan exam.

Nearly a thousand candidates, ranging from eager young scholars like Wei Guangde to gray-haired elderly repeat test-takers, competed each time.

How many passed each county exam?

Only fifty.

Only fifty slots were available.

The prefectural exam was similar: thousands of candidates vying for a few dozen places.

The provincial exam was even fiercer. Though it filtered candidates down to a smaller number of aspiring scholars, competition for places intensified.

Under the Ming system, counties were classified by fiscal revenue, determining the number of scholar slots allotted. Larger counties had more positions than smaller ones.

The number of county-level scholars directly influenced how many could pass the provincial exam.

For Pengze County, historically, about ten candidates passed the provincial exam each time, sometimes as few as nine, sometimes a dozen or so.

Even if one had exceptional talent surpassing candidates from other counties, without a slot in their own county, one had no chance of earning the title of scholar.

Candidates had to compete against local peers for limited places.

This year, according to what Master Sun had heard, over eight hundred candidates registered for the county exam. With only fifty slots, the pressure was immense, surpassing even the provincial exam’s elimination rate.

Wei Guangde had not yet contemplated the prefectural exam, choosing to take things one step at a time.

In recent days, Master Sun had increased their assignments sharply: two eight-legged essays and one classical text daily. There was little demand for trial poems or similar exercises.

In truth, Wei Guangde could manage to produce a trial poem when needed, since many elements overlapped with the eight-legged essay.

Moreover, for the county exam, the emphasis was on the eight-legged essay — writings on the Four Books and Five Classics — while other forms just needed to be passable.

Only at the provincial and metropolitan exams did policy essays gain importance, with the palace exam focusing purely on them.

Yet since metropolitan exam rankings heavily influenced palace exam outcomes, relying solely on the palace exam to produce an outstanding policy essay and secure a top rank was a faint hope.

In the meantime, Wei Guangde studied Tang Yong’s essays and tried revising his own writing style to resemble Tang’s, hoping to win favor.

As for his calligraphy, it was too late for last-minute improvements.

Fortunately, Master Sun thought Wei Guangde’s penmanship had improved enough to be presentable, making his elimination in the first round unlikely.

Five days before the exam, Wei Guangde and his mother traveled to Pengze County and moved into the Wu family’s residence in town.

Wu Mrs. Wei brought along an old maid, and the Wu family assigned two servants to assist.

Since she was a daughter married out from the Wu family, her uncle Wu Zhankui arranged familiar, if elderly, attendants to ensure matters ran smoothly and minimize mistakes.

The maid who had served Mrs. Wei since childhood was also summoned. Though she was meant to accompany her to the wedding, Mrs. Wei, being kind-hearted, knew the maid had found a sweetheart in the Wu household and allowed her to stay. This time, she was sent to serve Wei’s mother.

Following the old habit of relaxing before major exams, during the last two days, Wei Guangde set aside his books and stopped revising his essays or reviewing model papers.

Who knew what Tang Yong would set as the exam topic?

If luck favored him, it might be something familiar, allowing him to write a fine essay — that would be wonderful.

Days passed in a routine of eating and sleeping. Initially, Wu Mrs. Wei worried about her son’s indifference, but Wei Guangde assured her that he had already extensively studied the classics and that further reading would be futile.

He claimed that at this point, it was better to bathe, change clothes, and pray for divine favor than to keep studying.

This attitude was noted by uncle Wu Zhankui and aunt, who remembered that their elder son Wu Dong had also lost interest in studying before his exams, often going out to drink and chat.

Later, they learned from their son that nerves had made it impossible for him to focus on books.

Realizing Wei Guangde’s unusual behavior stemmed from exam anxiety, Mrs. Wei no longer pressured him to study, leaving the choice to him.

Time quietly passed until February 17th, when the first round of the county exam was about to begin.