Chapter 42: The Child Prodigy Examination

Sixth Master Huang departed with a look of complete satisfaction, and Magistrate Wang was also grinning from ear to ear.

Witnessing the entire process, Chen Ping was deeply shocked.

Although this took place in a small and remote county, it was a clash between a magistrate who had remained unpromoted for seven or eight years and a merchant destined to spend half his life confined to his hometown.

Yet their initial confrontation turned out to be brilliant to such an extent.

This was far more than just sophisticated worldly wisdom, and far more than merely playing the fool; it was practically a mastery of the human heart!

Seeing his closed-door disciple looking utterly absent-minded, Elder Ye suddenly gave Chen Ping a sharp slap on the back.

"Hey! What are you daydreaming about?"

Startled, Chen Ping jumped on the spot like a frightened wild bird.

Looking pitiful and aggrieved, Chen Ping complained, "Teacher, you are getting on in years, and you are supposed to be a respected elder. Yet your temperament is even more erratic and mischievous than Ye Chongwen's."

Elder Ye remained completely unfazed by his youngest disciple's minor grievance.

Instead, he smiled and said, "What I desire most right now is for you not to be so overly steadied and composed; it would be best if you were even more high-spirited and unrestrained than an old man like me."

These words were essentially a form of gentle mockery directed at Chen Ping.

For a seven-year-old child to act even more world-weary and on the verge of senility than an old man like himself was quite something.

"Carrying too many heavy thoughts will not only cause you to suffer from sleepless nights, but it will also stunt your growth!"

Chen Ping understood Elder Ye's reminders and worries.

However, to truly live like an ordinary child oblivious to worldly affairs and completely deaf to everything happening around him was something he simply could not manage.

Instead of dwelling on this aspect, Chen Ping continued along his previous train of thought.

He asked with curiosity, "It might seem plausible to say that Sixth Master Huang, being a merchant, is naturally afraid of officials and therefore repeatedly conceded to Magistrate Wang."

"But why do I still feel there is something fishy about all this?"

"If he were truly that terrified of officials, how did he manage to start from scratch in the past and accumulate such a massive family fortune? Surely he cannot have never been troubled by the authorities before?"

Elder Ye had originally intended to interrupt his train of thought, hoping to prevent him from investing too much mental energy into such matters, as this was neither something a child of his age could comprehend nor something he should be worrying about.

That was precisely why he had acted playfully earlier, hoping to stimulate his natural childish instincts, never expecting the boy to be so remarkably composed.

Yet seeing the situation now, if he failed to resolve Chen Ping's doubts, the boy would likely lose sleep tonight.

Consequently, Elder Ye led Chen Ping to the inner courtyard's back garden, analyzing the situation while strolling among the flowers.

"In reality, this Sixth Master Huang is not afraid of officials in the slightest!"

Elder Ye's statement instantly left Chen Ping dumbfounded and speechless for a moment.

Sixth Master Huang was not afraid of officials!

Not to mention how, just moments ago before Magistrate Wang, he had practically behaved as submissively and obsequiously as a fawning dog.

Let alone the fact that after rising to prominence, Sixth Master Huang had built up a colossal estate.

Yet he had still taken the initiative to approach them, shamelessly trying to attach himself to the main branch of the Huang family, not even daring to rank himself according to age among the same generation of the main branch.

With all these various actions, what else could possibly be the reason?

Was it not simply because the main branch of the Huang family boasted a Third Master Huang who served as the county vice-magistrate?

Unable to figure it out for a moment, Chen Ping cast a pleading and inquiring look toward Elder Ye.

Elder Ye smiled with satisfaction; having a disciple eager to learn was inherently the greatest blessing for any teacher.

"This man is deeply astute and cunning, to the point that even I cannot fully fathom him. Yet, by observing the leopard through a bamboo tube from his words and actions, I can firmly conclude that he is not afraid of officials."

"If he were truly afraid of officials, how would he ever dare to offend County Vice-Magistrate Huang?"

"Could Magistrate Wang possibly remain the magistrate of Yongshun County for the rest of his life?"

In the past, although he had associated with County Vice-Magistrate Huang, he had never offended Magistrate Wang, meaning that if Magistrate Wang were to fall from power, he could still remain detached and unaffected.

Yet now that he had established ties with Magistrate Wang, the nature of the situation had fundamentally changed; should Magistrate Wang suffer any misfortune, he would inevitably share the fate of cold lips and freezing teeth.

Elder Ye had not fully grasped the underlying reason either; he merely raised his head to look at the churning dark clouds in the sky and sighed softly, "May everything remain as it is; it would be best if tiny Yongshun County is spared from weathering any storms!"

With that, without waiting for Chen Ping to continue questioning, his demeanor shifted instantly as he put on a stern face and reprimanded, "Where on earth do you find the time to ponder such idle matters? Level of affairs like this are not something you ought to be fretting over."

"Calculate it yourself: having been out here for so many days, how many lessons have you fallen behind on?"

"These are poems and essays written by child prodigies who passed the imperial child examinations through the generations, specifically gathered for you by Magistrate Wang. Go and study them carefully."

As he spoke, Elder Ye picked up a book from the stone table in the courtyard and handed it to Chen Ping.

Abruptly scolded, Chen Ping felt extremely wronged.

Over the past few days, he had considered himself quite industrious in handling official business, helping Elder Ye and County Vice-Magistrate Huang devise strategies and resolve numerous urgent crises. Not only did he receive no reward, but he had instead ended up being scolded.

Though he knew full well that Elder Ye acted this way to prevent him from spending mental energy on extraneous matters and to keep him focused on preparing for the child examinations,

Chen Ping still could not help muttering grievances, "Teacher misunderstands me. Ever since Chongwen mailed the academy's lecture notes over, I have been studying diligently every day."

Despite the fact that Chen Ping had spent these past few days helping Elder Ye check and archive account books, occasionally rushing to the county office to assist with donation preparations,

he had truly never neglected his reading for even a single day.

Aside from having a teacher right by his side who lectured him daily to ensure he wasted not a single moment of leisure,

even Magistrate Wang would come over to subject Chen Ping to cram-style tutoring whenever he found a free moment.

Under the pincer attacks of these two elders, Chen Ping had actually completed far more coursework over the past half-month than he ever did while staying at the academy.

Blowing his beard and staring in feigned anger, Elder Ye reprimanded, "The coursework you did previously was meant to prepare for the county examinations and to earn the status of a certified scholar."

"Right now, you are no longer preparing for the ordinary scholar exams; you are going to take the child prodigy examinations directly!"

"The child prodigy examinations require competing against gifted prodigies from all across the realm. The pressure is no less intense than the metropolitan examinations. Simply reading books is far from sufficient. Facing countless scions of illustrious families and offspring of high-ranking officials, have you truly prepared yourself?"

Hearing this, Chen Ping's eyes glazed over slightly as he truly felt the weight of a thousand catties pressing down upon his shoulders.

Magistrate Wang had previously mentioned the matter of the child prodigy examinations, but Chen Ping had not taken it to heart.

This was because he felt the matter was still too distant from him, and his chances of successfully passing the selection process were not particularly high.

As everyone knew, the child prodigy examinations served as a shortcut into the imperial civil service, and they had long been regarded as prized meat by aristocratic clans and influential families.

For a poor kid from a rural background like him, merely getting a chance to participate would already be nothing short of a miracle.

Those influential families barely had enough quotas to divide among themselves internally; how could they possibly permit a country child of ordinary lineage to muscle his way in?

Could it be that this matter had already made progress?

As far as he knew, the utmost Magistrate Wang could achieve was to submit the initial list of candidates to the prefecture.

After screening the list once more, the prefecture would submit it further upwards,

ultimately summoning child prodigies from all prefectures to gather in the capital for preliminary and secondary examinations held by the Directorate of Education.

Finally, one still had to undergo a palace examination in the presence of the Emperor himself in order to attain the official degree of a presented scholar.

Magistrate Wang's recommendation at best only allowed Chen Ping to enter the preliminary selection list, which could only be considered a very faint glimmer of hope.

Chen Ping had never pinned any real hopes on such a minuscule chance, yet now Elder Ye suddenly brought it up. Could it be...

In truth, Elder Ye had harbored the exact same doubts earlier.

According to his original intentions, he had not planned to let Chen Ping participate in the child prodigy examinations.

This was because the reputation of a prodigy was inherently a form of burden. Although Chen Ping was exceptionally intelligent, he did not hail from an illustrious lineage and possessed no foundation of influence.

Any scholar burdened with the reputation of a prodigy would fare well enough if they enjoyed smooth sailing throughout their imperial examination career.

Yet should they encounter any setbacks, they would inevitably bear far heavier blows and pressures than other peers of the same age.

Studying peacefully at the academy and then following the conventional path alongside Ye Chongwen and the others to take the county and prefectural examinations step-by-step—

though this path was somewhat slower, it had the advantage of stability, allowing him to keep a watchful eye and offer guidance.

However, during these past two days at the county office, after having detailed discussions with Magistrate Wang, Elder Ye's attitude had undergone a subtle shift.