The Martial Doctor-Chapter 52: Third Place in the Written Exam

"Excuse me, excuse me..."

"Sanshui!"

"Mr. Su, what a coincidence..."

"Yes, indeed. Last time you left too quickly, I forgot to ask where you live. I was thinking of visiting you after the exam," Su Chen said with a cupped fist.

"Oh, I live in Xiuyue Square, right next to Huaye Tower."

"You live in that haunted house?" Su Chen blurted out.

"You know about that too, Mr. Su?" Lin Miao couldn’t help but suspect that Su Chen had already found out where he lived and was just looking for an excuse to ask.

"That ’haunted house’ is quite famous, especially being next to Huaye Tower, so that’s how I know," Su Chen explained with a chuckle.

"The so-called ’haunted house’ is just psychological. I’ve been living there for almost three months without any issues, right?" Lin Miao laughed heartily.

"This gentleman has rosy lips and white teeth, with a unique medicinal fragrance on him. No, there’s also a distinct feminine scent..." Su Chen sniffed and spoke as he noticed Sun Youwei, who was dressed as a man and standing beside Lin Miao.

"This is my wife," Lin Miao could see that Su Chen was not one of those intentionally offensive scoundrels; he just spoke his mind honestly.

Some people are just like that, straightforward by nature, with emotions displayed openly, not good at hiding them.

If they were of humble backgrounds, such a personality could be a disadvantage, as they might lack the sophistication and adaptability needed to climb the social ladder and make a name for themselves.

But for someone like Su Chen, who comes from a good family, he doesn’t need to compromise himself or curry favor with others; he can naturally be himself.

In this regard, Su Chen truly enjoys a lot of freedom within the Su Family, without a hint of arrogance or hypocrisy.

Of course, if it was all an act, then it would be impressive, as it would mean Lin Miao’s decades of Observing People Skill would have been seriously off.

"What, Sanshui, you’re already married?"

Su Chen was taken aback; marrying at such a young age is not unheard of, but indeed rare.

"Not married yet, but we are already engaged," Lin Miao said as he held Sun Youwei’s delicate hand and exchanged glances.

"Oh my, you gave me a fright. I thought you were already married," Su Chen said, patting his chest. "Marrying at your age seems a bit early... Ahem, may I ask, which family does your sister-in-law belong to?"

"She’s my senior sister, Sun Youwei, and the only daughter of my master."

"That’s great. You’ve known each other since childhood, familiar with each other, with a deep bond. Unlike me, who can’t even decide my own marriage," Su Chen exclaimed in admiration.

"Mr. Su, you don’t have to feel that way. In this world, most of those who grow old together are still in arranged marriages dictated by their parents,"

"How did you come to such a realization at such a young age, Sanshui?"

"Oh, I was just speaking casually," Lin Miao replied with an embarrassed smile, having seen too much in his past life.

Meanwhile, Sun Youwei’s heart was filled with a secret joy as she glanced at Lin Miao’s side profile, knowing that his awakening of "past life wisdom" was a secret only she knew—a secret between the two of them.

"Look quickly, the written exam list is out!"

Someone shouted.

Four staff members from the Medical Bureau emerged from Jinxian Tower, carrying a scroll made of silk cloth. That scroll contained the list and rankings for this year’s "Medical Official Exam" written test.

It would have everyone’s names, rankings, scores, and origins. Without indicating their origin, there could indeed be confusion with those with the same names.

Once posted, it represented the finalization of the written exam list and rankings for the current "Medical Official Exam," which would also be filed with the Imperial Pharmacy.

Once the list was finalized, it could not be changed.

Over four hundred names would appear on the silk scroll, indicating how gigantic the scroll was.

It required four people to unfurl and post it properly.

A team of government soldiers stepped forward, forming a circle in front of the bulletin board to separate the examinees and their families from the public.

Forming a human wall.

To ensure the smooth completion of the posting.

Everyone stood outside the human wall formed by the soldiers, watching expectantly, with silence falling among the crowd.

Quietly awaiting the completion of the posting.

Once posted, the list would be publicly available for three days. If there were no objections or unexpected issues, according to the first round of admission rules, the top forty candidates on this year’s list would automatically proceed to the second-round oral examination.

Was there room for manipulation here?

Yes. If someone on the first-round list voluntarily gave up the second round, then others would be moved up into the second round.

Is such a situation common?

Not really. Anyone who made it into the top forty wouldn’t likely give up the chance for the second-round oral examination. Once they became a medical official...

It represented a bright future, something that couldn’t be exchanged for any amount of gold or silver.

And even if someone was moved up, passing the second round oral examination wasn’t guaranteed. Although it was a scoring mechanism by a review panel, there were also strict regulations.

Unless you bribed all ten reviewing doctors, passing would be impossible.

After all, as long as an examination is devised by humans, there are always loopholes, and during the exam process, whether rules are strictly enforced can be manipulated by humans.

So, there is no absolute fairness, only relative fairness.

"It’s out, it’s out..."

The list is already up, posted on the bulletin board, and the cover on top has been removed. As the four Medical Bureau staff departed, the soldiers in the human wall split in the middle, retracting to both sides.

The examinees surged to the bulletin board, and Lin Miao, protecting Sun Youwei, was also swept up by the crowd toward the board.

"Ding Shouzhong, first place!"

Someone shouted out.

"Second place: Zhong Yu, from Mr. Zhong’s family..."

"Third place, Lin Miao, from Qingping Town, Baihe County, I’ve never heard of him, where did this guy come from..."

"He’s only sixteen years old!"

"Which family secretly trained this genius..."

"Dear brother, you actually ranked, ranked third!" Su Chen looked even more excited than Lin Miao.

Unfortunately, among the people present, those who knew Lin Miao were very few.

"Junior brother, you’re in third place!" Sun Youwei was also thrilled and proactively reached out to grab Lin Miao’s hand, the softness of which almost made his heart float away.

The crowd erupted with a series of exclamations. Indeed, there were some younger candidates in this round of the medical examination, but these were from well-established families, just taking the exam to get accustomed early.

Those who could really pass were extremely rare.

Lin Miao, coming from the countryside, actually passed in third place at sixteen years old. If this wasn’t a true dragon emerging in shallow water, then there might be suspicions of cheating.

But with such rankings posted, it was unlikely they feared scrutiny, definitely confirmed after repeated verification.

Su Chen turned his head and looked at Lin Miao: "Dear brother, you’re only sixteen years old?"

"Over that, not yet seventeen." Lin Miao replied sheepishly, lowering his voice. He didn’t want to be surrounded by people, becoming a spectacle like a zoo monkey.

Skipping over the third place, Su Chen was surprisingly fourth, only 0.5 points lower than him. Fifth place was Ye Xizhao, who had the capability to be the young prodigy doctor of the Ye Family, naturally with certain skills.

The written test for the "Medical Examination" was only to filter people. What truly determined whether one could become a "medical officer" was the diagnostic stage.

Even with good test scores, without a high diagnostic ranking, one could not obtain the "medical officer" qualification. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

The sixth place went to Xu Yao from Baoan Hall.

The seventh to tenth places were Fu Shan, Xia Zhu, Cui Yanru, and Mei Zihe, respectively.

"Mr. Su, this Xia Zhu?"

"She’s the daughter of Dr. Xia Yuan, the deputy seat of Benefit People Pharmacy. She’s one of the few female medical apprentices in this medical examination. Allegedly, this was her fifth attempt, approaching thirty years of age and still unmarried, alas!"

Lin Miao didn’t feel much about it. In his original world, being unmarried at thirty was perfectly normal.

"With her scores, she should have passed the written test more than once. She’s also the daughter of Deputy Xia, which doesn’t make sense." Sun Youwei whispered a question.

"Sister-in-law might not know. The written test is relatively easier. Not making it into the top forty once, twice, thrice, unless one truly didn’t study seriously, there’s no chance. This diagnostic drawing is purely out of luck, and Xia Zhu’s luck wasn’t great. She drew a patient with an unmentionable ailment. As an unmarried woman, she was entirely inexperienced in this area..." Su Chen explained. His information channels were much broader than those of Sun Youwei, who stayed at home daily.

Though Sun Youwei at home didn’t lack channels either. She didn’t go out, but Liuli often came over. This place, Qinlou, was a gathering point for various pieces of news. Thus, Sun Youwei learned quite a bit about the medical examination through Liuli’s words.

Possibly even more than what Lin Miao, the participant, knew.

"Regarding this, Deputy Xia tried several times to persuade her to marry. Some things are indeed not suitable for a father to guide personally, but a husband can..."

"What did she choose?"

"She didn’t marry but did something outrageous, opened a special diagnosis room at Benefit People Pharmacy, specifically seeing men’s problems, which made Deputy Xia sick at home for half a month, unable to go to Benefit People Pharmacy for consultations." Su Chen said.

"How can she prescribe medicine without a medical officer qualification?"

"Using her father’s credentials."

"This works, no one reported her?"

"Who’s going to report, would you?"

"How does Mr. Su know so much?" Lin Miao was startled; for some people, certain things aren’t an issue, which is how the world works.

"Me, I have loved these odd and peculiar stories my entire life, always thought of writing a collection of stories, incorporating these characters in." Su Chen said.

"You want to write novels? Become a writer?"

"What is a novel?" Su Chen inquired, puzzled.

"A novel is a literary form, a narrative prose text centered around the narrator’s intent, in simpler terms, telling stories in written form," Lin Miao explained after a brief silence.

Su Chen’s eyes lit up abruptly after hearing it; the words sounded so sophisticated.

Thus.

This was evidently a literature enthusiast caught in the wrong profession.

"Dear brother from Sanshui, do you know how to write novels?" Su Chen humbly asked for guidance.

"I don’t really understand either." Lin Miao quickly replied. He didn’t have the habit of being a self-appointed teacher. Su Chen looked exactly like a wealthy, idle young master; being entangled with such people would not lead to anything good.

"Dear brother, our ranks are out, there’s no need to look at the rest. Why don’t I host, find us a quiet place, and invite you and the sister-in-law for a drink?"

"Sure, but since I’m ranked before you, I should be the one treating today, alright?" Lin Miao said, disliking owing favors for no reason.

"Fair enough, fair enough, hahaha!"