Free Web NovelChapter 28: Chapter 26: Military Examination
A few days later, the Qingshan County Military Examination of the 24th year of Qing’an finally arrived.
Unlike the Literary Examination, where temporary sheds were set up in the market near the County Yamen for the candidates, the Military Examination was held directly outdoors in the open air.
The location was set in the square in front of the main hall of the Chenghuang Temple on the County Town’s West Main Street.
On the high platform before the main hall, a middle-aged official in a green robe sat in the center. On either side, arranged by rank, sat the Assistant Officers of the County Yamen, including the County Captain, County Magistrate, and Director of Qingshan County.
The material of their official robes differed according to their rank, making them very easy to distinguish.
On both sides of the square below the platform, the Gentry and wealthy merchants of Qingshan County were seated, all dressed in fine, vibrant clothing.
They fixed their gazes on the two to three hundred Martial Artists standing in the center of the field, their eyes filled with anticipation.
The poor pursue literature, the rich pursue martial arts—it has been this way since ancient times.
An ordinary wealthy family could pinch pennies to support one or two full-time scholars, but it was difficult to support a Martial Artist who had trained since childhood.
Therefore, of the nearly three hundred Martial Artists standing in the square, more than sixty percent came from these Gentry and wealthy merchant families.
Another twenty percent were intricately connected to them, mostly serving as their outer residence Hospital Guards.
Only the remaining twenty percent of the Martial Artists came from humble backgrounds.
’What?’
’He’s here too?’
In a corner of the square, a desk had been set up specifically for verifying the Martial Artists’ origins and letters of guarantee.
Behind the desk sat the same Black Clerk Wei Tu had seen last time in the household division of the County Yamen.
After this Black Clerk had checked all the guarantee letters piled on his desk, he suddenly saw Wei Tu’s name among them.
A look of astonishment crossed his face. He flipped to the last page of the Civil Registry from the household division, and after comparing Wei Tu’s hometown and age, he couldn’t help but be surprised.
It had only been a little over half a year since Wei Tu had been freed from servitude. The clerk’s impression of him was incredibly deep, as Wei Tu was the first Servant he had ever seen buy his freedom since inheriting his father’s post as a clerk.
’Changing one’s fate through the Military Examination is no simple matter. I hope he doesn’t die on the stage...’
The Black Clerk thought to himself.
Every three years, the County Yamen had to clear out the "hidden households." People like Wei Tu, newly added to the Civil Registry, were a mark of his achievement.
He certainly didn’t want Wei Tu to die here.
In the square, the Black Clerk wasn’t the only one who recognized Wei Tu. A beautiful woman sitting in the Gentry section did as well.
This beautiful woman was none other than Wei Hong. She sat behind Master Huang, her fine brows slightly knitted as she glanced a few times at Wei Tu standing in the square.
Although many years had passed and she hadn’t seen this nephew from her clan in a long time, she still recognized Wei Tu among the crowd of Martial Artists at a single glance, thanks to their blood relation.
’What is he doing here? Is he trying to take the Military Examination? He’s definitely built much stronger than he was three years ago...’
’But among all these Martial Artists, he looks so ordinary. He might not even be as impressive as Yuan Shan...’
Wei Hong’s feelings were complicated.
Part of her hoped Wei Tu would stand out among the Martial Artists, so that he could support her in the future as a kinsman from her family’s side. But another part of her intuitively felt that he wouldn’t make it—that this nephew of hers was simply not good enough.
In over three years, Wei Tu had only learned some rudimentary Health Cultivation Technique. No matter what, he couldn’t compare to the Martial Artists who came from prominent families.
These Martial Artists from prominent families had trained since childhood, eating meat at every meal, taught by famous masters, and their bodies were periodically nourished with medicinal cuisine...
How could a mud-legged peasant compare to them?
There was no comparison at all!
...
Soon.
Gongs and drums rang out.
The Military Examination had begun.
Wei Tu received a token marked "C13" and waited in the crowd.
Compared to the Prefecture Examination and the Daoist Examination, the County Examination for the military track was the simplest, with only five tests.
These were: Strength and Skill, Step Shooting, Horseback Shooting, Competition, and finally, Military Strategy.
The Strength and Skill portion was further divided into stone lifting, hard bow drawing, and wielding the great blade.
"Group C, fall in."
Suddenly, the crack of a firearm sounded. The Military Officer in charge of the assessment bellowed the command.
Hearing this, Wei Tu composed himself and followed the Martial Artists in the front row into the field, taking his place before several Stone Locks of varying sizes.
Two hundred jin.
Three hundred jin.
Four hundred jin.
Five hundred jin.
There were four Stone Locks in total.
The stone lifting test for the County Military Examination started at two hundred jin—a weight that an ordinary person could never hope to lift.
’The five-hundred-jin Stone Lock!’
Wei Tu fixed his gaze on the heaviest and largest Stone Lock. His expression was grave. He sank his qi to his Dantian, spread his feet, and settled into a horse stance.
Then, he summoned all the strength in his body, placed his right hand on the Stone Lock, and lifted with all his might.
The heavy Stone Lock immediately rose from the ground. It paused for half a breath at Wei Tu’s knee, then his elbow, and was finally raised high above his head.
After holding it suspended above his head for four or five breaths, Wei Tu could no longer hold on and slowly lowered the five-hundred-jin Stone Lock to the ground with his right arm.
As the five-hundred-jin Stone Lock landed, a faint tremor ran through the square, as if an earth dragon had turned over in its sleep.
The entire square fell into a hush. All eyes converged on Wei Tu, filled with utter astonishment.
Someone who could single-handedly lift a five-hundred-jin Stone Lock in the stone lifting test only appeared in Qingshan County once every few decades.
In the last century, there had only been three.
The Martial Artists who had accomplished this feat on the previous three occasions had, without exception, all taken the top spot in the County Military Examination.
And... Wei Tu was the fourth.
This also meant that the champion of this year’s Military Examination had, at this very moment, already been decided.
Provided...
"Unlikely!"
The Gentry smiled upon seeing Wei Tu’s clothing, having instantly reached their conclusion.
Wei Tu’s clothes were shabby; his single-layered robe was washed so many times it had faded to white. He was clearly from a humble background.
Martial Artists like him often failed the Horseback Shooting and Military Strategy sections, and thus were eliminated from the rankings.
Horseback Shooting required a good horse. Although the County Examination provided mounts, they were often inferior.
When performing archery on an inferior horse, one’s strength cannot be unified. Even with the most exquisite archery skills, it is difficult to hit the target.
The other section, Military Strategy, also had a high, invisible barrier to entry. Without a good mentor’s guidance, it was no easy task to write a brilliant essay.
"C13."
"Stone Lifting: A+."
At that moment, the examiner in charge of the stone lifting event announced Wei Tu’s result.
According to the rules, to earn a Grade A in stone lifting, one needed to lift a three-hundred-jin Stone Lock single-handedly, raise it above the head, and hold it for thirty breaths.
Or, lift a four-hundred-jin Stone Lock with both arms and hold it above the head for twenty breaths.
But Wei Tu was different. He had lifted a five-hundred-jin Stone Lock single-handedly and held it over his head for over four breaths. Such strength far surpassed the standard for a Martial Artist’s Grade A.
The difference between lifting three hundred jin and five hundred jin with one arm was like a Celestial Chasm.
This was a well-known fact.
With the strength to lift five hundred jin single-handedly, one could even hope to earn the rank of Provincial Graduate in the provincial examinations.
In other words, in the stone lifting event, Wei Tu had already demonstrated the strength of a military graduate.
’Even if it’s difficult for him to take first place, with an A+ in stone lifting, he’s still qualified to be recommended for the Prefecture Examination...’
’Wei Tu isn’t old. Is he only twenty? Or twenty-two?’
’If he were to hire a famous master, he should be able to overcome his weaknesses in Horseback Shooting and Military Strategy by the next examination...’
In the Gentry section, Wei Hong’s face once again showed a complex expression as she saw Wei Tu’s performance, thinking to herself.
