County magistrates were often holders of the jinshi degree, and their mastery of the eight-legged essay was naturally superb. This made him uninterested in handling these exam papers; the essays from the children's exam were often of mixed quality, and some were so poor as to be outrageous. Out of so many essays, only a few were barely passable. Among them, one by James Carter with the opening line ‘One should not lightly seek office through study, but only strive for excellence’ was somewhat refreshing. However, in the eyes of Mr. Walker, himself a jinshi, this could only be considered above average at best—barely enough to pass the prefectural exam, but not much more.

Although Ningbo Prefecture was located in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region, its people favored commerce and were rather mercantile, so the literary atmosphere was not particularly flourishing. Thus, Mr. Walker was like a general among dwarfs.

“It seems this year will be about the same,” Mr. Walker thought to himself. The last few essays landed on his desk. He casually picked one up; just looking at the calligraphy, it did not seem particularly outstanding. But then, Mr. Walker was drawn in, his eyes lit up, and he found himself unable to put the paper down, his lips moving as he unconsciously recited the essay softly.

It was only after quite some time that all the essays were more or less reviewed. This year, there were 309 candidates in the children's exam, and over fifty were selected as tongsheng. After Mr. Walker made his final decisions, a Clerk gathered all the exam papers to be sealed away. Not long after, the Clerk returned to report, and Mr. Walker simply nodded: “The results will be posted the day after tomorrow, the third day of the third month. Those at the top of the list will be summoned to the main hall.”

This was all according to old custom, and the Clerk nodded in agreement.

As soon as the Clerk left the office, he saw a Constable secretly waiting under the corridor.

This Constable wore a fawning smile and said, “Mr. Brooks, how did it go?”

The Clerk scolded him angrily, “You rascal, what’s your hurry?”

The Constable replied with a wry smile, “If I’m not quick, how can I be the first to bring the good news?”

It turned out there was an unwritten rule in the county: when the results were posted, someone would go to each family to deliver the good news, and those who passed would usually give a generous reward. But in Ningbo, where people were more mercantile, there were as many messengers as fish in the river. If everyone came to deliver the news, there wouldn’t be enough money to go around, so naturally, whoever arrived first got the big reward, while those who came later would be sent away with a coin or two.

The Constable in the county had come up with a way to get ahead—they would deliver the news before the results were officially posted.

The Clerk didn’t bother with more small talk, but stroked his beard and said slowly, “One from the Zhao family of Qingtang; four from the Ye family of Hexi. Strangely enough, the top scorer is also from their family…” The Clerk only mentioned how many passed, without naming the top scorers, which allowed him to deliver the news without risking the magistrate’s displeasure.

Hearing that the Ye family had four pass, and even produced the top scorer, the Constable’s eyes lit up: “What’s going on with the Ye family this year, such incredible luck.”

……

At this time, William Carter was no longer thinking much about the county exam. As usual, he still got up early to practice calligraphy. Practicing calligraphy was no easy task; it required great physical strength and perseverance. So he searched his AI assistant for the best morning exercise routine, and every day after exercising in the courtyard and working up a sweat, he would take a bath before picking up his brush, feeling refreshed.

This morning was different from usual, though. He saw several servants hanging lanterns everywhere. William Carter found it odd—even Charles Carter had been called to help. Watching Charles Carter climb a tree to decorate the osmanthus tree, William Carter stood below and curiously asked, “Charles Carter, what are you doing?”

Charles Carter was tying red ribbons to the branches, saying, “Young master, today the old master is hosting a grand banquet—oh, it’s called a teacher appreciation banquet. Didn’t you know? Early this morning, someone from the yamen came to deliver the good news: our Ye family had four people pass the county exam, and even the top scorer is from our family! Many people have come to congratulate us. The old master is overjoyed, saying that James the eldest young master has brought honor to the family, and that the other sons have done well too, so he’s hosting a banquet for friends and relatives, and to thank Mr. Harris. It’s been a long time since our Ye family was this lively. The last time was when the old master passed the xiucai exam and there was a big celebration. Tsk tsk, even us servants got to eat pork head meat.” Charles Carter swallowed, reminiscing about the days of eating pork head meat.

But the results haven’t even been posted yet—how could the outcome already be known?

William Carter was suspicious and couldn’t help but ask, “Is the top scorer James Carter? Who are the others?”

“That I don’t know. I just know four passed, and the top scorer must be The Carter Family’s Eldest Young Master. After the eldest young master came back, he copied out his county exam essay for the old master and Mr. Harris to see. They both said it was an excellent essay, sure to be among the top. Now they say the top scorer is from our family, so who else could it be but the eldest young master? The old master was so happy, he immediately rewarded the second madam with a set of gold jewelry inlaid with gems, saying she raised her son well. The eldest young master is so proud now, and the second master is also delighted, sending people everywhere with invitations. Young master, when will you take the tongsheng exam? If you pass, I’ll get to bask in your glory too.”

William Carter immediately felt a surge of anger in his gut. This guy was biting the hand that fed him, blatantly boosting others’ morale while putting him down.

William Carter said angrily, “Didn’t I already take the exam?”