Food gives me an entry, I will be invincible if I stay alive

Chapter 317 He picked up his pen and wrote, his strokes like the wind through the pines.

The night finally came to an end.

The next morning, Chen Xu heard the sounds of soldiers carrying corpses.

A clerk whispered a tally:

"A total of three people died, and six others suffered heatstroke last night and are in very bad condition. However, only one of them is willing to give up the exam, while the other five insist on continuing the exam."

Even if someone abandons the exam or dies, whether alive or dead, they can only be temporarily kept in the examination hall until the provincial examination ends.

One of the proctors, annoyed, said:

"These bookworms are really too ignorant. They can't hold on any longer but they still insist on taking the exam. If a few more of them die, we won't have enough ice-condensing talismans."

There are still eight days left. If we don't have enough freezing talismans to keep the corpses warm, won't they all start to rot?

This year's quota for those who die in the line of duty will also be exceeded, and we'll all be left watching the drama unfold..."

"Pah! Stop talking nonsense." The other soldiers quickly stopped him. "Those are matters for the higher-ups, what does it have to do with us?"
"Pah, pah, pah! Shut up! We'll just focus on carrying them. Let's go, let's go, don't do anything foolish!"

The soldiers carried the body away.

To be honest, they spoke in extremely low voices, almost like the hum of a mosquito.

If Chen Xu's three elemental attributes had not reached the mortal realm and his physique had not transformed to another level, he would not have been able to hear their conversation at all.

In addition, Chen Xu also noticed that the cold-faced young man diagonally opposite him had a flushed face and an unusually excited expression today.

This person was naturally Luo Wenhuan.

Chen Xu glanced at the other person indifferently, still not caring much.

In Luo Wenhuan's view, this attitude was undoubtedly arrogant and disdainful.

Luo Wenhuan gritted his teeth, his blood rushing to his head, but he forced himself to suppress it.

In the examination hall, the invisible sword of fame and fortune seemed to transform into a tangible blade of blood.

Despite the undercurrents, the exams on the second day proceeded as scheduled.

On this day, the test did not only cover the Four Books and Five Classics; the content was expanded to include many questions on laws, agricultural seasons, and numerology.

The exam questions were no longer about interpreting the classics in calligraphy, but rather about answering questions in essays and explaining the meaning of the classics.

The good news is that the number of questions is not as huge as it was yesterday.

The bad news is that the questions are more obscure and more difficult.

Luo Wenhuan, who was diagonally opposite Chen Xu, breathed a sigh of relief. He gave Chen Xu another provocative look, then snorted and buried himself in answering the questions.

Chen Xu remained unmoved by the eight winds.

He wasn't actually oblivious; he was completely unaware of the other person's unusual behavior.

In fact, Chen Xu was extremely perceptive.

Not to mention Luo Wenhuan's repeated open provocations, he was already well aware of the various subtle observations from other people in the examination hall.

A significant portion of this gaze even came from the high and mighty Star-Observation Platform ahead.

Perhaps the examiners on the Star Appraisal Platform already knew of Chen Xu's existence, which is why they paid extra attention to him.

Chen Xu didn't react, but he knew that all his little actions in the examination room were meaningless.

The only right path is to suppress everyone with absolute power!
When he picked up his brush, his ink flowed like clouds and water, like the wind rustling through pine trees.

If ink and brush could make a sound, the sound of Chen Xu putting pen to paper at this moment would surely be exceptionally pleasant.

A dazzling array of treasures, the culmination of years of hard work finally yielding a powerful result.

When writing about legal matters, there is a case concerning the division of property.

Question: Three brothers, A, B, and C, are dividing their ancestral land, which comprises thirty mu. A is the eldest son and will carry on the family line, B is a son born out of wedlock, and C is the youngest son. How should the land be divided to ensure fairness?
Based on this, the question has been extended as follows:
B, unwilling to accept only a small share of the family property, broke into A's room at night, intending to kill him, but was killed by A in self-defense. How should this be judged?

Chen Xu wrote:
According to the "Da Li Law".

First, those who attempt to murder their elders but fail will be exiled three thousand miles away;
Second, the crime of an elder killing a younger person is punishable by imprisonment for three years.
Third, the offender loses the right to inheritance.

He didn't elaborate much, but simply listed the laws and regulations. However, he then wrote: According to the "Li Law: Litigation," it states: "If anyone enters another's house at night without cause, the homeowner shall not be held liable if he kills him on the spot."

Further supplementary provisions to the criminal law state: "If a relative commits an offense and the younger person initiates the attack with a weapon, the death of the elder in self-defense is not considered a crime."

In conclusion: "Why is it not a crime to cause death by injury? This is because in the dead of winter, when one is weak and restrained, the kick is not a last resort... Therefore, it is in accordance with the law, the sentiment, and the reason."

After one of the legal decrees was written, the inspecting soldiers walked over again, carrying their insignia.

All around were anxious gasps.

Of course, after yesterday's ordeal, many test takers now know that when the soldiers raise the question cards, the most important thing they should do is to copy down the questions first.

As for answering, there's absolutely no need to rush.

It's best to wait until you've copied all the questions before calmly answering them; this will prevent you from getting flustered and making mistakes.

But the truth is, many people know it's better this way, yet they still find it hard to control themselves.

I always feel uneasy and hesitant, and I can't help but look at the questions and answer them first.

The second day of the exam proved to be even more difficult than the first.

At night, Chen Xu still slept soundly, fully clothed.

A thin crescent moon appeared in the sky.

The moonlight hung upside down in the dark blue sky, like a delicately crafted willow-leaf eyebrow, with a fine, sharp edge, hanging coldly on the horizon.

On the second day of the seventh lunar month, the crescent moon is barely visible, which is a common sight.

The dim lanterns in the cells were lit again, sometimes swaying in the wind and creating a halo of light.

Chen Xu closed his eyes, switched to internal breathing, and shut down his sense of smell.

To be honest, the smell inside the examination hall started to become rather unpleasant that day.

It wasn't the smell from the outhouse that was coming out—

There are odor-repelling talismans inside the outhouse, so even if there is a foul smell, it cannot actually be detected.

Unfortunately, the weather was hot, and the candidates ate, drank, and slept in their cells. There wasn't enough clean water for them to wash, so after two days, some of them naturally smelled sour, which was hard to describe.

It was clearly impossible for the imperial court to issue talismans such as dust-removing talismans or deodorizing talismans to every candidate.

The examination hall, though filled with scholars who spouted Confucian wisdom, was usually incredibly clean and elegant.

But who could have imagined that the filth inside the examination hall would be so thick and difficult to conceal?

And this was only the second day.

If we wait until the ninth day, it would be a disgrace to civilization, perhaps even dirtier than the garbage dump outside the city.

One high, one low; one clean, one filthy.

It also seems to reflect the state of the world, carrying a unique meaning.

That night, perhaps because his sense of smell was blocked, Chen Xu had no dreams and passed the night peacefully.

The exam questions were distributed on the third day.

The morning session consisted of ten questions on the interpretation of scriptures, while the afternoon session consisted of only one question on poetry.

Across from Chen Xu, Luo Wenhuan spoke in a soft, hissing voice.

He wasn't afraid of writing poetry, but he knew Chen Xu was renowned for his poetry and was afraid that Chen Xu would write another poem about green smoke in the examination hall.

Luo Wenhuan couldn't help but look at Chen Xu.

He hoped that Chen Xu would pause his writing, stumped by the poem's title.

I also fear that the other party might come up with a masterpiece after careful consideration.

But if Chen Xu were to pick up his pen and write it down in one go, wouldn't that be even more terrifying?

Luo Wenhuan was suddenly filled with torment.

(End of this chapter)