Before leaving Linnan Prefecture, Mu Er Pang and the others followed proper etiquette and visited Liu Xuezeng with gifts.

Despite having served under Liu Xuezeng for so long, Mu Er Pang and the others had never met him.

When they personally delivered their modest gifts to the study, they hoped to meet Liu Xuezeng before he stepped down from his position.

After all, having seen Minister Wang’s kind demeanor, they couldn’t help but wonder if Liu Xuezeng would be as amiable.

However, the gatekeeper didn’t let them in. He only accepted the tea leaves and snacks, saying, “Our master is currently busy organizing his affairs and preparing to hand over his duties to the newly appointed scholar. He is not seeing any visitors at the moment. Please don’t take offense, esteemed scholars.”

Naturally, Mu Er Pang and the others assured him that they understood.

The gatekeeper then gave them some return gifts, which were prepared specifically by Liu Xuezeng.

The return gifts were equally simple, consisting of a square handkerchief that almost every scholar carried nowadays. Both the material and embroidery were quite common.

It seemed that Liu Xuezeng had ordered them in bulk to give to all the visitors seeking an audience with him.

On the way back to Qingzhou Prefecture, the group discussed this matter. Wei Xi commented, “It seems that Liu Xuezeng, like Minister Wang, is also avoiding unnecessary contact.”

At that time, Minister Wang had said he would immediately return to his hometown after presiding over the provincial examination, but he had actually left Linnan Prefecture overnight.

In fact, the Emperor had specially appointed him to preside over the provincial examination in Linnan Prefecture, surely allowing him some time to return home and console his homesickness.

It wouldn’t be right to say that he couldn’t wait even a night and had to rush home in the dark.

So, while it was true that he was eager to return home, another layer of meaning was that Minister Wang didn’t want any private contact with the candidates of this year.

After all, while he was no longer the chief examiner for the upcoming examinations, the overall examinations in the capital, including the Spring Examination, were all managed by the Ministry of Rites.

During the provincial examination when rumors were rampant, others might come forward to say that someone of his status wouldn’t meddle in an exam at the provincial level.

But in the case of the Spring Examination and the Palace Examination?

The candidates who passed these exams would generally be directly appointed to official positions.

This was a much more serious matter than the provincial examination.

Moreover, being in the capital, any rumors there would be a headache even for Minister Wang.

After Liu Xuezeng stepped down, he would also return to his position at the Ministry of Rites.

The issues that Minister Wang needed to consider were naturally the same as those Liu Xuezeng needed to consider.

Therefore, Mei Ruochu also agreed, “Liu Xuezeng’s actions are actually for our own good.”

A few days later, the group returned to Qingzhou Prefecture.

After enduring hardships in the examination hall and traveling for so long, the young men were quite tired and needed some rest and recuperation.

However, now that they were back at the academy, their condition improved considerably compared to before.

It was time to celebrate. While Cuiwei preferred simple celebrations, when the young men passed the county examination, they needed to observe certain formalities.

First, they had to present thank-you gifts at the Prefectural School to the professors and instructors.

Once this round of gift-giving was done, news spread among their classmates at the Prefectural School, and they were invited to various gatherings.

Although the group had been close in the Prefectural School, they had limited close relationships with their classmates. However, refusing invitations could still make them seem arrogant.

As for local gentry and wealthy households, they also extended invitations. Fortunately, with the support of the Cui family in Qingzhou Prefecture, the young men did not have to endure attending gatherings with impure motives.

Finally, Mei Ruochu and Wei Shu, who had studied at other academies in their early years, also had to make a trip back.

In Wei Shu’s case, Shen Cui was quite relieved.

The influence of the rule on him was to make him an supporting tool for Mu Yunchuan.

Compared to other students at the academy, it was not severe.

Moreover, when he returned to Yongning County, he wouldn’t run into Mu Yunchuan, who was far away in the capital.

Furthermore, with Lao Buyu’s eagerness to visit Ling Qingming, especially after hearing that Wei Shu would go back to see him, Lao Buyu was more enthusiastic.

Lao Buyu even took out the new clothes that Cui Fei had prepared for him in Linnan Prefecture, volunteering to accompany Wei Shu back and asking if Shen Cui and Mu Er Pang wanted to join them.

Shen Cui and Mu Er Pang also had concerns about their families in the Shen family.

They wanted to share this good news with them in person.

However, Shen Cui was neither as young and strong as the young men nor as experienced in traveling as Lao Buyu.

She still felt a bit unwell and thought that if she rushed back to the county town now, her complexion would probably worsen, causing worries for the Zheng family and Shen’s elderly.

What she could think of, Mu Er Pang also thought of.

He cared more about his biological mother, who was in good health, than his grandparents.

He said he would stay with Shen Cui to take care of her health. In another half year at most, they could return to their hometown for a reunion.

……

But for Mei Ruochu it different.

Old Headmaster Hongle Academy treated him much better than Qingming treated Wei Shu, being kind and sincere.

Even if it wasn’t out of propriety, Mei Ruochu really wanted to personally report the good news to the old Headmaster Hongle at this time.

But as the provincial exam approached, Shen Cui became more and more worried about him, always afraid that the laws might strike at him at any time.

…..

Old headmaster from Hongle hesitate for long and decides to came to Qingzhou Prefecture in person to visit.

He guessed that after Mei Ruochu finished the rural exam, no matter how well he did, he would definitely hurry back to Hongle to report to him.

Instead of letting Mei Ruochu run around, it was better for him to take a few days traveling’ carriage ride and listen to the news himself.

Besides, he had not personally thanked Shen Cui yet.

He couldn’t just rely on his old age and wait for Shen Cui, who had helped him so much, to find time to visit him.

When he learned that Mei Ruochu had not only passed the exam but also miraculously achieved the top spot, the usually reserved Elder Shanzhang was also quite excited.

His excitement was similar to Shen Cui’s when she saw Mu Er Pang take the Top spot in County Examination.

It wasn’t because he did well in the exam, but because he was excited that Mei Ruochu had obtained something that should have belonged to him.

After knowing that the young men would have to take another exam in a few months, Elder Shanzhang stayed in Cuiwei Academy for a few days as a temporary teacher and gave them a good lesson.

After all these things were done, Shen Cui set the time to go to the capital.

Just like Mu Yunchuan before, she planned to leave before winter, as getting used to the environment and climate was no longer the most important thing.

The most important thing was to find a wider place to live in advance and move the academy there.

It was not like the rural exam, where the small house was not enough to be recognized as a “academy” by the system, exposing the young men to the laws.

She felt that according to the nature of the laws of the plane, the more important the exam was, the more likely it would play tricks.

Without an academy, which was similar to a signal jammer, she couldn’t be at ease.

Shen Cui set the time to go to the capital in mid-October, and Elder Shanzhang stayed until now before returning to Hongle.

Finally, it was time to go to the government office to handle the road guide document.

Ancient people always needed a road guide when they went out.

For example, during the Ming Dynasty, people needed to obtain this document if they were leaving their hometown more than a hundred miles away.

However, perhaps this world is a fictional book, and the imperial examination system is quite strict.

In this aspect, the fictional setting is quite impressive, as the law stipulates that only those from the province of origin need a road guide.

For Cuiwei’s group to go to the capital for the imperial examination was a very serious matter, and there was no need for connections or arrangements.

The government office issued the document on the same day, and the attitude of the officials was enthusiastic and eager.

For the first time, Shen Cui directly felt the convenience after a class leap.

Before leaving Qingzhou Prefecture, Shen Cui tidied up the house and returned the keys to Cui Wuniang.

This might be the last chance for the two to meet for a moment —after all, everyone in Cuiwei had performed very well in the exam, and Mu Er Pang’s ranking was second only to Mei Ruochu, who had been famous since childhood as a child prodigy.

It was very likely that he would also pass smoothly next year, and Shen Cui would naturally stay in the capital with her son and would not come back.

So Cui Wuniang was particularly attentive.

She came over to take the keys in person and held Shen Cui’s hand to talk for a long time.

Finally, she said with heartache, “I see the children seem to have recovered, but you seem to have lost weight compared to before?”

Shen Cui shook her head helplessly and said, “Maybe I’m just fated to worry blindly. Although I haven’t suffered any setbacks myself and don’t have the talent to guide them, I just think too much. And unlike them, I’m not young anymore, so I haven’t recovered yet.”

In fact, Shen Cui had complained several times about this aspect recently.

Now, even at this point, most of the items in the system store could only be used for companionship, and her privileges as an Elder were still not high.

After the rural exam ended, she received a five-figure reward in shopping points.

She had bought some medicine for herself when buying medicine for Wei Xi earlier, so she wouldn’t have to slowly recover her strength.

The system was also helpless, only advising her to endure a little longer.

Once Mu Er Pang passed the exam smoothly next year, all the privileges would be unlocked.

Although Shen Cui didn’t show it on the surface, she actually cursed the system in her mind, and the system didn’t dare to make a sound.

Cui Wuniang was full of heartache. “It’s right for you to go to the capital early. Winter is the best time for nourishment. Go earlier, and you can start recuperating earlier. When I have someone pack Ah Fei’s luggage, I’ll put more tonic medicine in it. You can also take it with the children to prevent them from falling ill before they recover.”

After chatting about these things, Shen Cui asked, “How many people from your family are going to send Cui Fei off for the exam?”

Cui Wuniang had been worried when sending Cui Fei to the rural exam before, but now with Shen Cui accompanying him, she was completely at ease.

She replied, “If there will be many servants going, which might not be convenient for you. If the maids go, it might not be convenient for the students. So I have discussed with Grandfather, and we decided to send only the coachman and a few accompanying servants.”

After the arrangements were made, in mid-October, the group from Cuiwei Academy left Qingzhou Prefecture.

The journey was quite arduous, first by carriage, then by boat, and finally by land, lasting nearly a month.

During this time, Shen Cui, in order to prevent the young men from getting sick, not only felt exhausted herself but also bought tonics and did needlework for them without stopping.

In early November, the group finally arrived in the outskirts of the capital.

Although they could enter the city overnight, Shen Cui felt it was not necessary after the arduous journey.

She decided to rest with everyone at the post station in the outskirts of the capital for a night.