Yongchang Town is within the jurisdiction of Anping County, and the Luo family's sideyard is about a ten-minute walk from the examination venue, offering both tranquility and convenience.

Instead of letting the four continue studying, Yang Mengchen brought them to the construction site of Fairy Lake, playing around while sharing examination coping strategies, naturally aiming to help them relax.

The following day, at the second quarter of the Chen hour (around 7-9 am), Yang Mengchen and his elder brother and cousins escorted Yang Chengyou and the others to the examination site. According to the regulations, candidates were only allowed to enter the examination hall at the fourth quarter of the Chen hour.

Many candidates were already waiting outside the venue, some full of confidence, some with furrowed brows and distressed faces, and others visibly anxious.

The imperial examination for youngsters comprised three stages: the county exam, the preliminary exam, and the academy exam; the first two were overseen by the County Magistrate and a Confucianism Professor sent by the Magistrate, while the academy exam was presided over by a Xuezheng directly appointed by the Emperor. Only those who passed the academy exam could be considered Scholars.

Spanning nine continuous days, the exams required candidates to stay within a cramped space for answering papers, eating, drinking, relieving themselves, and sleeping without leaving. They could only drink water and eat dry food. Many candidates were carried out horizontally before even finishing the exam.

Not only had Yang Mengchen prepared bedding for the four, but he also supplied them with easily digestible foods, water, and homemade herbal tea, as well as some medicines for internal and external use. After all, sitting there for nine days straight without time to move or space to do so could easily lead to illness due to undigested food.

When Yang Chengyou and the others entered the examination hall, Yang Mengchen and Yang Chengrong stayed around, either visiting the Drunken Immortal Tavern, checking the progress of the construction on the commercial street, or strolling by Fairy Lake.

The craftsmen constructing Fairy Lake were arranged by Xiao Hongtao. Knowing Yang Mengchen's close relationship with Xiao Hongtao, they naturally did not dare to neglect or underestimate him.

Most importantly, Yang Mengchen was courteous to the craftsmen and respected their opinions, sometimes offering suggestions. The craftsmen learned a lot about construction knowledge and skills from him, and they were extremely grateful to Yang Mengchen.

Of course, regarding the project's quality, Yang Mengchen insisted that the craftsmen ensure both quality and quantity, forbidding any shoddy work or fraudulent substitution of materials. If any issues were found, he would immediately report it to Xiao Hongtao for severe punishment.

An accident in the future could lead to not only Xiao Hongtao being held responsible, but it could also endanger innocent lives, a situation Yang Mengchen would never allow.

On the ninth day around Shen Hour (about 4 pm), the candidates started coming out of the examination venue one after another.

The entrance was crowded with family members and servants who came to pick up the candidates, each of them anxiously looking around.

Seeing the candidates' pale faces and obvious lack of energy, Shi Qing, the servant attending to Yang Chengyou, muttered, "So the exams are this grueling, almost like undergoing torture." He silently rejoiced that he never aspired to be an official; truth be told, he wasn't cut out for it. Otherwise, he might have gone mad if not dead.

Hearing Shi Qing's mutterings, Yang Mengchen felt a strong sense of agreement.

In his previous life, the college entrance exam in most provinces lasted two days, three for a few others, but candidates could go home or back to the hotel to rest each noon and evening.

However, in this ancient imperial examination, nine consecutive days were spent in a cramped space with inadequate food and sleep.

As a result, candidates were continually carried out over the days, either due to physical exhaustion, gastrointestinal discomfort, sudden illness, and there were even instances where someone was bitten by a poisonous snake hidden in the roof, leading to quick death from the poison, truly as if they were undergoing torture.

Before long, Yang Chengyou and his companions came out together, standing out among the group of candidates who looked as if they had shed a layer of skin.

The four were not beaming but compared to the other candidates, they were worlds apart.

Especially Yang Chengyou, who appeared relaxed with not a hair out of place, his eyes clear and spirited. Apart from some wrinkles on his light blue outer robe, one would never know he had just undergone nine days of examinations—it looked as if he was about to go in and take the test.

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