Handing in the exam paper at minute 55

Carefully copying his answers onto the final sheet, Wei Guangde noted that the hour was still quite early—around the *Shen* period, which meant it was not yet three in the afternoon. Having finished today's examination, he naturally began to weigh whether he should hand in his paper.

Repeated checking was out of the question. Once something was copied onto the official sheet, there was no altering it unless one were to recopy the entire document. Unlike later generations, where mistakes on an exam paper or answer sheet could simply be crossed out or erased, this was a permanent record.

Glancing around at the others, he saw that a few candidates had already submitted their papers. However, judging by the dejected looks on their faces as they emerged, they had likely been eager to secure top honors, only to receive a harsh reception from Magistrate Tang.

He reviewed what he had written one last time. There were no character errors, and the handwriting maintained his usual high standard.

Speaking of the traditional characters currently in use, Wei Guangde sometimes accidentally slipped into writing the simplified characters of later generations. It was inevitable after more than a decade of ingrained habit, which was why the very first thing he checked for was incorrect characters.

As for today's script, if he were to hand this brushwork over to Master Sun, the old scholar would surely stroke his beard and nod in satisfaction.

Wei Guangde did not want to wait any longer.

He wanted to submit his paper.

Continuing to sit rigidly in the examination hall felt like a form of torture.

After making doubly sure that no simplified characters had slipped in, Wei Guangde gritted his teeth, stood up, held the stack of test papers respectfully in both hands, nodded to a bailiff who had been keeping a watchful eye on him, and walked toward the main hall.

Wei Guangde did not know whether Magistrate Tang remained seated there the entire time, but the official was indeed present at the moment—after all, it was already afternoon, and candidates were beginning to hand in their work.

Yet when Wei Guangde stepped inside, he saw Magistrate Tang resting his left hand on the desk, appearing to doze off. Not a single test paper lay before him, though a bulky stack was piled far off to the side.

Hearing footsteps, Magistrate Tang immediately straightened his posture. When Wei Guangde placed the papers before him, the magistrate merely offered a brief nod.

"You may leave."

It was a perfunctory dismissal. Clearly, he held no fondness for a candidate who handed in his paper so early.

Wei Guangde had originally wondered if he should linger below to see how Magistrate Tang would react upon reading his work.

He remembered reading web novels in his past life where the protagonist traveled back in time, finished the exam paper, and the examiner took one look at it before bowing deeply and shouting, "A top-scholar's essay!"

Well, even without such exaggeration, the examiner could at least draw a circle of approval on his paper, couldn't he? He could have singled him out directly. After all, he was a time traveler—the protagonist!

Wei Guangde shouted inwardly.

Naturally, though, he could not continue lingering in the main hall now that the county magistrate had told him he could leave.

He felt a tiny ripple of disappointment.

Wei Guangde turned around and slowly walked step by step out of the main hall, straining his ears to catch any sound from behind. If Magistrate Tang made even the slightest noise, Wei Guangde was prepared to spin right back around.

Unfortunately, he walked all the way from inside the examination hall to the entrance of the county yamen without hearing a single sound from the magistrate, let alone being asked to stay for a few words.

Upon stepping out the grand gates of the yamen, Wei Guangde felt a strong urge to emulate the plots of the novels he had read and roar out a bold declaration like "This examination shall surely be won!" or some other grand proclamation. Yet, taking in the desolate scene outside the yamen, he wisely refrained from uttering a single superfluous word or making any meaningless gestures.

Damn it, there wasn't even a single soul outside the county yamen at this hour. Who was he supposed to perform for, and who was supposed to hear it?

If he actually shouted that out, the guards inside the gates would probably take him for a mad candidate.

Still, it was rather strange, Wei Guangde mused to himself.

His uncle had explicitly said he would come to pick him up, so why was there not a single person outside?

Even in later generations, people accompanied examinees to the test sites and waited to receive them; had such customs been forbidden by the Ming Dynasty?

Not even the few candidates who had emerged earlier were anywhere to be seen.

Usually, after an exam finished, shouldn't examinees gather outside the examination grounds to compare answers?

It was utterly desolate.

He stretched his arms out to either side, performed a quick chest-expansion exercise, and prepared to walk home with his hands clasped behind his back. The moment he lowered his arms, however, he froze.

Damn it, he had left his test basket behind in the examination hall.

By the time Wei Guangde fetched his test basket and walked the short distance to his front door, he spotted the stableman busy tending to the carriage outside.

Since the carriage was still here, his uncle should still be at home. Why hadn't he gone to pick him up?

Even though the examination hall was quite close to home, he was a man with a carriage; why should he rely entirely on his own two legs?

The driver spotted Wei Guangde as well. As the young man drew near, the driver hastily bowed and greeted him, calling out, "Greetings, Young Master Biao! May Young Master Biao surely capture the top rank..."

In truth, it was just a casual greeting; all the rest was purely Wei Guangde's imagination.

Yet as he walked past the driver, Wei Guangde could still detect a faint trace of that exact sentiment in the man's eyes.

He knew that along the way home, he had already encountered quite a few people looking at him with that very expression.

Although there was hardly anyone right outside the gates of the county yamen, they were right in the heart of the county town, just a few steps away from the bustling commercial district with its constant stream of pedestrians.

Perhaps, had it not been for the county examination today, people would still be wandering outside the yamen, and street vendors would be peddling their wares in the vicinity. The yamen's retainers enjoyed decent incomes and high purchasing power—at least in Pengze County.

"Uncle, I have returned."

Approaching the front entrance, he saw his uncle standing just outside the main parlor, while his mother and aunt stood within the doorway, looking as though they were just about to head out.

"Mother, Aunt, I have finished the exam and returned."

Wei Guangde immediately walked inside with a cheerful grin, holding his test basket.

"The exam is already over? You didn't even check your work thoroughly."

Madam Wei was startled the moment her son crossed the threshold, and she immediately began to mutter fretfully.

"Finishing the exam is what matters. Today's questions must have been quite simple since Guangde is back so early."

His uncle, Wu Zhangui, was momentarily taken aback, but a smile soon bloomed across his face as he spoke.

"They were indeed quite simple; I had already practiced similar ones back at the private school," Wei Guangde replied as he walked up to them.

"Come, come inside to talk. Guangde has been testing all day and must be tired. Get some good rest these next two days, and wait for the county examination results to be posted..."

Reaching out, his uncle snatched the test basket right out of Wei Guangde's hands and pulled him inside.

Wei Guangde naturally hadn't intended to let his uncle carry the basket for him, but his uncle's movement had been far too swift, swiping it away in a flash.

It made Wei Guangde inwardly marvel at how fast officials moved.

This joyful atmosphere remained unbroken until nighttime when it was time for bed.

By then, his uncle and aunt had already retired to their chambers, but Madam Wei followed Wei Guangde to the door of his bedroom and suddenly asked just as he was stepping inside: "Guangde, did you perform poorly on this examination?"

Right, Wei Guangde had sensed it earlier: his mother and uncle had both seemed to be forcing smiles.

After all, he was such a young boy participating in the county examination. Didn't they see white-haired candidates carrying test baskets into the exam halls every year, supported by their sons or grandsons?

Earlier, Wei Guangde had only mentioned the positive aspects, and he had been speaking the truth—the exam questions genuinely weren't difficult.

Unfortunately, no one believed him.

And now, Madam Wei had finally voiced her inner anxiety.