Solfège 52

Page 1 of 3

It was pitch-black outside the window, but candles had already been lit inside the house.

Wei Guangde had been awakened by his mother. It was only the Mao hour, perhaps corresponding to five or six o’clock in the morning by the reckoning of later generations.

Dawn was still some time away, yet Wei Guangde had to rise, wash, eat breakfast, and prepare to leave for the county office to sit the examination being held this year.

While he ate, his mother, his uncle, and his aunt sat quietly nearby, watching him. None of them offered words of encouragement. Everything that needed saying had been said long ago, and at this moment they feared that saying more might only add to Little Wei Guangde’s pressure.

When Wei Guangde left the house carrying the examination basket his mother had prepared, the sky was still utterly dark, without even the faintest glimmer of light. Yet the day that would determine Wei Guangde’s fate in the Great Ming had already begun.

His uncle’s home was not far from the county office, but Wu Zhankui had nevertheless prepared a carriage to take him there.

As they drew closer to the county office, more and more candidates gathered along the roadside. With some distance still remaining before the yamen, the carriage could go no farther.

Several other carriages were stopped by the roadside as well. They had been sent by local gentry to convey their sons and nephews to the examination, but had likewise been forced to stop when the road became impassable.

Wu Zhankui climbed down first. Wei Guangde followed, carrying his examination basket, and then squeezed forward with his uncle.

Two household servants led the way, quickly forcing apart the candidates blocking their path. Even when some displeased examinees turned around to glare at them, Wei Guangde paid little attention. After all, there were already two other groups ahead of them doing much the same thing, their own strong and sturdy servants clearing a path through the crowd.

They soon reached the gate of the county office. Several groups were already standing there. Besides the candidates, a number of men dressed as household servants stood gathered outside.

Wei Guangde found an empty patch of ground and waited there. The servants kept the others at bay, preventing anyone from coming too close. His uncle, Wu Zhankui, stood beside him as well, though he seemed to recognize several acquaintances and repeatedly cupped his hands toward those groups. Some of them returned the gesture.

Although his uncle held an official position, he was, after all, merely a military officer. In this era, when civil officials were honored and military men despised, Wu Zhankui often had no choice but to bow his head slightly when dealing with others.

That was also why he had worked as busily as though it were his own son taking the examination. His uncle sincerely hoped that Wei Guangde would earn an official degree.

Forget the title of Presented Scholar—even becoming a Cultivated Talent would be enough. With that, Wu Zhankui would be able to hold his head high in Pengze County and fear no local power.

When the gates opened, a squad of yamen runners came out and blocked the candidates’ way. Before entering the examination hall, everyone first had to be searched. Only afterward could they enter and locate their assigned seats by the examination numbers issued at registration.

Pengze County could be considered a prosperous county. Though it could not compare with some of the largest counties, it still surpassed most counties throughout the Great Ming. Thus, desks and chairs for the examination could be prepared well in advance, and the candidates did not need to bring their own.

Page 1 of 3

Page 2 of 3

Once the searches began, Wu Zhankui escorted Wei Guangde only as far as the gate before slowly stepping back. Even so, it was enough for the searching yamen runner to notice him.

Wei Guangde’s search was completed quickly. At least, it seemed rather perfunctory to him. The runner merely gave his examination basket a cursory inspection before letting him through. Several others entered at the same time, all belonging to the groups that had previously been standing near the gate with Wei Guangde.

Whether the searchers at the gate would examine the remaining candidates so casually was no concern of Wei Guangde’s. What did it have to do with him? He had brought no concealed materials, so even a thorough search would not trouble him.

After entering, Wei Guangde was stopped by a minor clerk behind the gate. The clerk examined his admission certificate, then led him to an empty space nearby and quietly told him where he was to sit before leaving.

Wei Guangde now noticed that examination desks filled both sides of the passage ahead. Beside every few desks hung a paper-covered lantern bearing the corresponding examination numbers, allowing the candidates to find their places more quickly.

Wei Guangde already knew where his seat was: beneath the eaves of the main hall.

The county examination was held regularly throughout the realm, but no special examination halls or sheds had been built for it. Usually, the examination simply took place in the county office or on some larger open ground nearby.

In Pengze County, the examination had always been held in the open space before the main hall of the county office, because the area was large enough.

If the weather was fine, there was little to complain about. But if the wind blew or rain fell, the candidates seated in the open would suffer terribly.

For a county examination held in the second month, blazing summer heat could occur only in the empire’s far southern reaches. For most of the empire, that was impossible. The real concern was rain.

At least the space beneath the eaves was not bad, especially since Heaven appeared to be favoring them today and there would clearly be no rain.

The sky had begun to lighten.

Wei Guangde had stood there for quite some time. Behind him, the crowd had grown dense, nearly extending all the way back to the gate. It was then that the calling of names began.

Before the roll call, however, the long-renowned Tang County Magistrate appeared in his official robes, stirring some commotion among the waiting scholars.

The magistrate offered the candidates standing outside only a few words of encouragement before turning and returning to the main hall.

He said little, but Wei Guangde heard him clearly, having been standing near the front. This county examination would consist of five sessions.

In truth, the county examinations of the Ming dynasty were highly flexible. Each magistrate decided the format himself. Four sessions were acceptable, and five were acceptable as well.

Page 2 of 3

Page 3 of 3

Wei Guangde did not give much thought to the number of examination sessions. The magistrate could conduct as many as he pleased.

After Tang County Magistrate departed, the clerks began calling the names. Every candidate whose name was called had to step forward. Usually, five names were announced at a time, and the five candidates entered the main hall together.

Wei Guangde guessed that they were being called according to their mutual guarantee groups. Since five candidates guaranteed one another, they had to meet face-to-face. If one of them had hired a proxy, the others could expose him. Should they discover such a fraud and fail to report it, they would suffer when the matter was uncovered later, being punished through collective liability.

Only a few groups had entered when Wei Guangde heard his own name.

Although Wei Guangde might have been the last person to register for the examination, his uncle had connections. Wei Guangde did not know that Wu Zhankui had also spent money behind the scenes, and naturally his uncle had no intention of telling him.

Many things were matters of personal favor, but when the time came, one still had to show the proper appreciation.

“Ma Dang Town’s Wei Guangde, Lin Tian­ti, Liu Shizhen…”

Hearing his name, Wei Guangde took several steps forward and entered the examination grounds. Four more people soon stepped out behind him. They had been classmates for many years. When Wei Guangde saw them come forward, he slightly bowed and cupped his hands in greeting. The others responded with the same gesture.

“You five have guaranteed one another. Do you have anything to say now?”

The clerk calling the names addressed the group. In fact, this was merely a confirmation that the identities of those bound by mutual guarantee were in order, something that had already been repeated several times.

If a problem was discovered later, there would naturally be no room for excuses.

In response to the clerk’s question, all five bent at the waist and cupped their hands, saying, “Nothing.”

“You may enter.”

The official glanced at them, then turned his body slightly and gestured for them to walk into the main hall.

Page 3 of 3