Zhao Jing chuckled. "I’ll do my best on the exam. Just don’t be too reluctant to part with your money when the time comes, Sister."

Chen Wanqing waved a hand. "By the time you take the Provincial Examination, I definitely won’t be the person I am now. I’ll have some savings by then. I’ll gladly buy you a fox-fur coat."

"Well then, I wish you a swift and massive fortune, Sister..."

After a few more playful remarks, the group left the house.

Chen Wanqing and Xu Su Ying didn’t have to see them off, but waiting at home would have been even more nerve-wracking. Since they were already up, they decided to tag along.

Even Yao’an was coming. Because the tutor at his private school was serving as a guarantor for students taking the exam, the remaining pupils had been given a few days off. Yao’an came home and had been bustling about, helping everyone. He got up as soon as he heard stirring in the courtyard and now wanted to go to the examination grounds, too.

If he wanted to go, he could go. It wasn’t far, after all.

It was now the fifth watch, long before dawn, and you could see the white puffs of your breath in the air.

Walking down the street, one could see a fiery dragon of lanterns winding its way toward the county government building.

The Chen family, of course, was part of this fiery dragon.

Carrying lanterns, they flanked the two candidates, keeping them protected in the middle.

Fortunately, the Chen family lived quite close to the county government, so they reached the main street after only a short walk.

Once there, they could clearly hear the din of the crowd and see the jostling throngs of scholars and townspeople.

Constables from the county government were maintaining order. "All family members, stay back! Candidates, proceed alone for the body search."

"This is the security line! No one but candidates may cross!"

"Quiet down! You’re flustering the candidates. Don’t come crying to us if they fail because of all the noise!"

At the constables’ shouts, the parents who had been anxiously trying to shove their children forward finally stopped.

They clutched their children’s hands, giving them last-minute words of advice. Some of the mothers straightened their sons’ robes and stroked their hair and faces, their eyes gleaming with anticipation.

The Chen family stopped as well, simply urging Chen De’an and Zhao Jing to go get searched quickly.

It was better to go now, while it was still early. The constables would have more patience; they would search thoroughly but gently, without putting any extra stress on the candidates. If they waited, the constables would be tired, their expressions would sour, and their voices would grow louder. It wasn’t worth letting that affect the candidates’ mindset before the exam.

Chen De’an and Zhao Jing formally bowed to Xu Su Ying and Chen Song. Zhao Jing stole an extra glance or two at Chen Wanqing, and then the pair stepped across the security line together, heading toward the search point.

With over four hundred people registered for the county examination this year—more than a hundred over the usual number—the body search process was under a great deal of strain.

To cope, they had to assign more constables to the searches and divide the candidates into queues of fifty to speed things up.

By the time Zhao Jing and Chen De’an got there, many people were already lined up.

The constable directing the queues happened to be Qi Lan. He raised an eyebrow and smiled when he saw the two young men. Looking into the distance, he saw that, sure enough, the whole Chen family was there. He gave a slight lift of his chin toward Chen Song, a look that said, ’Don’t you worry.’

"You two, go line up over there," Qi Lan said, pointing to a newly formed line where only a few people were waiting. If they went now, it would be their turn in no time.

Chen De’an and Zhao Jing knew, of course, that this was Uncle Qi doing them a favor. However, they couldn’t act too familiar with him right now, lest other scholars complain to the County Magistrate and accuse Qi Lan of playing favorites.

So, the two simply gave a slight smile, said, "Thank you, sir," and headed where Qi Lan had indicated.

The two people conducting the search in this line were also familiar faces...

One could say there was hardly anyone in the entire Qingshui County government whom Chen De’an didn’t know.

Even with the old clerk managing the warehouse, Chen De’an could strike up a conversation and learn all about him: his elderly wife was bedridden, his eldest son had passed away young, and his second son was a good-for-nothing who kept taking new wives. Only his eldest grandson was respectable, and the old man planned to have the boy eventually take over his post...

When Chen De’an saw these two men, who were his father’s colleagues, he almost called out to them but caught himself just in time.

When the two constables saw the pair step forward, they couldn’t help but smile. But not daring to let it show, they quickly cleared their throats and said in a mock-serious tone, "Set down your baskets. Step forward for the search."

Chen Song had already spoken to these colleagues, his sworn brothers. He’d told them that when it came to the exam, no one was to go easy on the two boys. Whether it was the body search or the basket inspection, they were to follow procedure to the letter—and even be a little stricter than they were with the other scholars, just to preempt any gossip.