Chapter 133

The floating ticket, which served as the entrance exam pass in this era, described the appearance of the examinee to prevent impersonation during exams.

However, due to limited space, it usually only mentioned the examinee’s most prominent features in a few words.

Looking closely at it now, Shen Cui saw that Mu Er Pang’s floating ticket described him as “short, fair-skinned, and without moles.”

Shen Cui couldn’t help but recall many jokes she had seen in modern times about men being overly concerned about their height.

At that time, she was single and hadn’t interacted much with the opposite sex, so she thought they were exaggerated.

But now, her thirteen-year-old son was genuinely worried because someone had described him as “short”.

Half a year ago, Mu Er Pang had held an umbrella for Shen Cui, and she realized that he was only slightly shorter than her. With a little lift of his hand, he could hold the umbrella for her without much effort.

In the past half year, he had grown a bit more, with the system’s clear measurement showing he was 161cm tall.

Shen Cui had seen a statistic stating that the average height of men in ancient times was not over 1.7 meters. Mu Er Pang, at thirteen and still in his developmental stage, was not considered short for his age at 1.6 meters.

However, in Yongning County, which was in the northern region, the height advantage of northern people was already evident.

Shen Cui herself was certified by the system as 165cm tall, and it was indeed rare to see men shorter than her in their daily lives here.

Shen Cui said, “I think it’s like this. Although the county exam is the first step for candidates, people of all ages must have registered. At your age, you’re actually in the minority. Compared to the older ones, you’re just a little shorter. Of course, among your peers, you’re not considered short. But the clerks who register see so many people every day. They can’t meticulously distinguish which age group you belong to, so they compare you uniformly with the others… And you have to believe in genetics, simply put, like father, like son. Whether it’s the Shen family or the Mu family, the men are not short, so you won’t be short in the future either.”

Mu Er Pang didn’t quite understand genetics, but he knew his mother wouldn’t deceive him.

Then he thought about it and realized it was true.

Taking today’s five students who formed bonds as an example, except for him, the youngest, even Huang Junping, who was the youngest, was fifteen years old.

And when they went to register, they also saw many scholars in their twenties, thirties, and even with graying hair, still participating in this first round of the county exam.

At thirteen, among such a group of people, wasn’t he considered short?

After realizing this, he chuckled self-deprecatingly, “Well, I am indeed a bit shorter than them. The clerk didn’t make a mistake. It’s fortunate it’s this year’s exam. If it were two years ago, I’m afraid they would have written ‘short and chubby’ about me.”

He didn’t dwell on it any longer. He rolled up his sleeves, spread out the paper, and began to write poetry again—As Master Lao said, poetry is not just about literary talent; it also emphasizes genuine emotions.

If the emotions are in place, they can compensate for any deficiencies in literary talent.

Today, because of the “short” incident, he felt emotionally inspired, making it the perfect opportunity to write poetry!

Shen Cui was a bit stunned by his attitude, not because she had seen people lamenting the aging of beauty or heroes in their twilight years, but because she had never seen anyone lamenting their own height and composing poetry about it.

But since he had come to ‘feel’ this way, Shen Cui didn’t bother him. She quietly closed the door behind her and left.

After going out, he explained to Old Man Shen that it was a misunderstanding. Mu Er Pang didn’t take Huang Junping’s words seriously, and Old Man Shen was relieved.

Turning back, Shen Cui searched the house but couldn’t find Zheng Shi. It wasn’t until dusk that Zheng Shi returned, explaining that she had gone out to inquire about Huang Junping.

This time, because Huang Junping had needlessly taunted Mu Er Pang, Zheng Shi inquired very carefully.

She spent quite a bit of money, bought some snacks, and invited the old neighbors of the Huang family to eat.

Those old neighbors knew that Shen’s grandson was going to be bonded with Huang Junping, so they spoke mainly about his character.

This time, Zheng Shi not only inquired about this matter but also about other things.

She found out that Huang Junping was a nephew of Huang Juren.

After studying under Huang Juren for a few years, Huang Junping wanted to enter Qingzhu School.

Others wouldn’t easily change their mentor like he did, but because he shared the same last name, Huang Juren allowed it.

After failing to enter Qingzhu for two consecutive years, last year when Cui Wei’s reputation rose, their family wanted him to enter Cui Wei.

So Huang Junping could accurately say that Mu Er Pang started learning at the age of ten; he had learned this beforehand!

At that time, many people wanted to enter Cui Wei, but Shen Cui refused them, and later, he even moved the academy away. Naturally, he had no dealings with the Huang family.

Those old neighbors were not scholars, so they didn’t know about the relationship between Shen’s family and Cui Wei Academy – although Cui Wei Academy was famous in this small place, it was only known in scholarly circles, not widely known among ordinary people.

Zheng Shi was there to gather information, not to sell her family’s secrets, so she naturally wouldn’t talk about their academy.

This time, she was willing to spend more money and send many things, so others were willing to recall every detail for her.

“The crux of the matter lies here,” Shen Cui couldn’t help but sigh after listening. “This person must have misunderstood, thinking that because he started learning at four or five and studied for ten years but couldn’t enter Cuiwei Academy, while Mu Er Pang, who started learning at ten, could have famous teachers and occupy a seat in Cuiwei Academy. In fact, he got the cause and effect reversed. I established Cuiwei Academy to cultivate our Mu Er Pang. I invited famous teachers for him, selected classmates, and opened the academy. Later, we even accepted several students. If it weren’t for Mu Er Pang, there would be no Cuiwei Academy.”

However, Mu Er Pang didn’t care about such a person at all.

Huang Junping was resentful and complained a few words, but Mu Er Pang, who was at a higher level, simply wrote a document that made him feel small and tangled.

So Shen Cui didn’t mention this to Mu Er Pang.

In the following days, Mu Er Pang continued to study hard at home, while the other members of the Shen family, under Zheng Shi’s instructions, deliberately relaxed and lived as usual.

That night, after going to bed, Shen Cui vaguely heard noises in the room.

When she opened her eyes, she saw Zheng Shi holding a candlestick and rummaging through boxes and baskets.

“What are you looking for so late, Mom?” she asked, blinking in confusion.

Zheng Shi said it was nothing and added, “Just go to sleep,” continuing to search.

Shen Cui couldn’t just lie down on the kang, so she put on her clothes and got up to help.

After rummaging for a while, Zheng Shi took out an old pair of pants from the box, with several patches on the cuffs.

“What’s this?”

“This is the pair of cotton pants I made for your second brother when he went to the city that year. He was only twelve or thirteen at the time, not as lucky as your eldest brother — he followed Master Chen, who was a good master, but also liked to work his apprentices hard. That master took a lot of gifts from our family but didn’t treat him well. Even in the dead of winter, he would make him pick and wash vegetables until midnight, then go outside the city to pick vegetables before dawn, just to buy vegetables a penny cheaper per pound, so he could take a cut from the middlemen… At that time, our family wasn’t well-off, so I couldn’t afford to buy him a big coat, I just made him a good pair of cotton pants. Later, he grew taller quickly, and these pants were extended every year until he was sixteen or seventeen when they couldn’t be extended anymore, so I kept them. The cotton inside had been taken out early, but the outer layer of cloth was still there. Originally, I planned to use it as diapers for future children, but in the past few years, our family’s situation improved, so this pair of pants also had some meaning, and I kept it… But I kept it for too long. I just remembered it before I went to bed.”

It wasn’t that late, but Zheng Shi wasn’t reminiscing in the middle of the night.

She then took out another pair of small cotton pants — the ones Mu Er Pang had taken off today, which Zheng Shi eagerly offered to help wash.

Comparing the two pairs of pants, Zheng Shi smiled happily, “Our Mu Er Pang isn’t short! He’s even taller than his second uncle was at thirteen!”

Apparently, she had been busy all night just for this. Shen Cui couldn’t help but feel both helpless and amused.

…

In early February, Mu Er Pang made his debut.

Shen Cui had sent several students off the stage before, but this time it felt different.

Blood ties were one aspect, but the other students who entered Cuiwei Academy had decent literary talents and only faced slight obstacles on the path of imperial examinations due to other issues.

Shen Cui gave them a boost, and they could rise with the wind.

But Mu Er Pang had grown from scratch under her watchful eye, completely from nothing to something.

The system still issued the task of participating in the county examination, and it would be completed by participating, but it also stated that, because Mu Er Pang made his debut, there would be additional physical rewards for the same task this time.

It’s evident that Mu Er Pang’s status as the number one training object in the system is very special.

Shen Cui felt a bit anxious, but in order not to affect her son’s performance, she remained calm on the surface.

However, it was a different story for the Shen family. The night before the county exam, Zheng Shi spent half the night baking pancakes on the kang, Old Man Shen didn’t sleep much either, and Shen Da and Shen Er went to work with panda eyes in the morning.

Shen Cui knew the elderly were worried, and she originally wanted them to accompany her to the examination, but they were afraid that their nervous emotions would affect Mu Er Pang, so they insisted on staying at home.

Since they hadn’t slept all night, Shen Cui let them rest at home.

When mother and son arrived outside the examination room, many people had already arrived early, and the scene was bustling.

Outside the examination room, candles were lit, and by the candlelight, Shen Cui and Mu Er Pang found Zhao Linsheng, He Qing, and He Yan, the two brothers.

After standing for a while, Huang Junping and Zhang Zian, were also sent over by their families.

When the bailiffs came over, the surrounding area suddenly quieted down, and the parents who had come to send their children to the examination had to step back.

He Qing and He Yan had already made their debuts, but their faces were still serious, holding each other’s hands tightly.

Huang Junping and Zhang Zian had made their debuts the previous year.

When their families were about to leave, the two couldn’t help but look back.

The adults of the two families quickly stopped and said a few words to reassure them.

Mu Er Pang was the calmest among them. Although he had made his debut the previous year, Shen Cui had taken him to the examination several times before, allowing him to adapt to the atmosphere here in advance.

“I’m going now, you can do it,” Shen Cui encouraged Mu Er Pang before preparing to step back.

Mu Er Pang reached out and stopped her, saying, “Mom, wait.”

Shen Cui paused, listening to his instructions, “Mom, remember to have breakfast, and then go back home to persuade Grandma and Grandpa to rest for a while. When they wake up in the afternoon, I’ll be back.”

What a thoughtful little steward! Shen Cui’s heart softened.

Seeing that the other parents had all stepped back, she agreed and stepped back too.

Not long after, the singing of guarantees and recognitions began outside the examination room.

The examinees who had formed pairs for the guarantees were standing together, and after completing the procedures, it was time for the body search.

Originally, they were standing casually, but Mu Er Pang noticed that He Qing’s legs were trembling slightly, so he took the initiative to stand in the front and began the body search.

His calm reaction inadvertently reassured the others. If the youngest among them could remain composed, then they could too.

After the body search, they were allowed to enter the examination room.

Earlier, during the mock exams at Mu Er Pang’s academy, Mei Ruochu helped with poetry and prose guidance, and Wei Shu and Wei Xi also provided a lot of assistance.

Because they were all taking the county exam in the same place and had recently taken it themselves, their memories were still fresh.

The brothers even drew a map of the examination room from memory for him.

Although there might have been some changes in the tables and chairs in the examination room this year, the overall layout was no different from the map they had drawn.

Mu Er Pang quickly found his seat.

After a while, all the examinees settled down quietly, and the gong sounded, signaling the distribution of examination papers.

The first session of the county exam was the classical Chinese examination.