Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

A hint of disdain appeared at the corner of Fang Zheng's mouth.

The so-called suspicion of cheating, as long as one went to the privy, they were bound to be suspected!

The papers under suspicion were naturally discarded without review.

Even murderers were judged by evidence, yet the most just place in the world could ruin a person without even needing evidence!

Based on this alone, the decades of hard study for many people could be destroyed in an instant. These people really dared to speak.

"Gentlemen, don't be anxious, why not listen to me finish speaking before making a decision?" Fang Zheng swept his gaze across the examiners, and the sound of discussion quickly disappeared wherever his eyes landed.

Many examiners felt their skin crawl under his gaze and dared not ask more questions.

This guy is a rogue, not playing by the rules! He even wanted to hit old Zhang Gong... What if he picks on me later?

Hitting back would be shameful, not hitting back would also be shameful, and besides, Fang Zheng is young and strong, I probably couldn't beat him....

"Gentlemen, please tell me, what is the most important thing in the examination hall of the Gongyuan?" Fang Zheng said loudly.

No one responded below... Everyone just silently looked at him.

Fang Zheng reached out and pointed to the crowd: "You speak!"

In the crowd, Cen Wense looked at Fang Zheng, pointing at himself in confusion.

"Yes, you! Tell me loudly, what is the most important thing in the examination hall!"

Having witnessed Fang Zheng's style of doing things, Cen Wense regretted talking to him immensely, but since he had been designated to answer, he couldn't refuse, so he could only answer loudly: "Naturally, it is fairness."

"That's right! For examinations, there is nothing more important than fairness! Even if the imperial court cannot achieve absolute fairness, it must try to minimize the external differences between candidates!"

"Those from wealthy families can bring dried meat, eggs, and other food into the examination hall, which can provide long-lasting satiety without taking up too much stomach space."

"Those from poor families can only eat rice and noodles, and they will definitely feel hungry and uncomfortable in less than three hours, affecting the examination. Moreover, the amount of food consumed far exceeds that of meat. If they eat more, they will naturally excrete more. In this case, can the imperial examination still be considered fair?" Fang Zheng spoke eloquently.

As soon as these words came out, an examiner immediately sneered: "Lord Fang, before the doors were sealed, I heard from outside that reporters from your Banshan Newspaper Office also came to participate in the examination, and you even prepared abalone for them!"

"This is the first time I've heard of eating abalone during an examination! It's a bit ridiculous to hear the word 'fairness' coming from your mouth!"

The examiners began to discuss again, mainly to ridicule Fang Zheng.

"Examinations even have abalone? Why not bring a cook?"

"I saw it, there were indeed candidates eating abalone noodle soup in the examination hall. Heh, I thought it was the son of some high-ranking official in the court, but I didn't expect it to be Lord Fang's man."

"Lord Fang! You are truly lenient with yourself and strict with others, I admire you!"

Fang Zheng remained calm and said lightly: "How is it ridiculous? What is wrong with me trying my best to prepare them fully within the rules?"

"The so-called fairness is not to weaken reasonable advantages, but to help those with innate shortcomings."

"Could it be that if there is a lame candidate in the Gongyuan, we should break the legs of all the other candidates?"

The examiners remained silent again, appearing indifferent.

What you said makes some sense, but so what? This is how every session has been, why do you, the supervisor, have so many things to say?

Fang Zheng also began to feel helpless.

It seems that reasoning is useless. Many people have rigid thinking and cannot listen to reason at all, so I can only change my approach!

Fang Zheng began to rack his brains. Fortunately, he had read many inspirational stories, and soon he came up with a suitable speech.

Quickly sorting out his emotions, Fang Zheng's voice began to become deep.

"Let me tell you a story about someone close to me."

Upon hearing that he was going to tell a story, many people became interested, after all, people of all ages like to listen to stories.

"I have a friend."

"His surname is Ke, and his given name is Kobe. He was born in a remote mountain village thousands of miles away from the capital, called Los Angeles Chicken Village."

"Because his family's life was extremely difficult, Kobe never had the opportunity to study. A family of five lived on only ten acres of land."

"But by chance, he came into contact with a teaching gentleman. From that day on, someone explained the books of sages to him for the first time, and Kobe fell in love with reading! From then on, he made a grand ambition to change his destiny through reading!"

"Have you seen the sun in Los Angeles Chicken Village at the hour of Yin!? Kobe has seen it! Every day at the hour of Yin, he would walk dozens of miles to the nearest county to study, eating only one meal a day. If he couldn't afford tuition, he could only hide outside the house and learn secretly. If he couldn't afford pen, ink, paper, and inkstone, he would practice writing with branches and mud."

"When he was engrossed in studying at night, he would not go home, chiseling a hole in the wall to steal light..."

"In this way, ten years passed! Finally, he passed the examination to become a student."

Fang Zheng's storytelling skills were already excellent, narrating each sentence slowly and in detail.

Many people were fascinated, and this kind of story of arduous study was obviously the most marketable in this era!

Many people even had the idea of making friends with Kobe.

Fang Zheng also looked lost as he spoke.

I died and could travel through time, Kobe should be playing basketball in another world, right.....

"Although he passed the examination to become a student, Kobe's family conditions did not improve. Fortunately, he was favored by a local Juren and taken as a disciple."

"His fellow students were all dressed in silk and fine clothes, while Kobe was still wearing old clothes full of patches."

"His fellow students ate big fish and big meat, but what about Kobe? He could only boil a pot of thick porridge, and after the porridge cooled, cut it into four portions, and eat it with wild vegetable soup every day to fill his stomach!"

"Under such conditions, Kobe waited for the opportunity of the provincial examination! He carried the hopes of the entire village and seventy-six eggs and five taels of silver donated by the villagers, and traveled thousands of miles to the capital! By the time he arrived in the capital, he had almost exhausted all his travel expenses, and only had dry food in his hand."

The examiners' eyes showed anticipation.

"Finally! Kobe sat in the examination booth of the Gongyuan with excitement, and all the examination questions he saw were easy to handle."

"His outstanding talent and years of hard work allowed him to be inspired, and he answered the questions wholeheartedly. He completed the exam that ordinary people could only complete in a day in just two hours!"

"Although he answered the questions extremely quickly, he did not relax. He still insisted on checking the answers for two hours. During the checking process, Kobe could not help but feel hungry, so he took out dry food to eat while reading. Because he was too engrossed, he actually ate the dry food with ink!"

"Not long after eating, Kobe felt a sharp pain in his stomach. Because he didn't understand the rules, he directly told the examiner that he wanted to go to the privy. The examiner saw that his mouth was full of ink and felt that this person's behavior was improper and must be suspected of plagiarism!"

The examiners lowered their heads, feeling a little uncomfortable in their hearts.

How could this be... Such a diligent candidate suffered such unfair treatment, it's really outrageous!

"Unsurprisingly, your stamp was printed on Kobe's paper."

"Heh heh, decades of hard study, turned to ashes in one day after entering the Gongyuan...."

"When I saw him again, it was on the day of the results announcement. I was fifteen years old that year... Kobe had disheveled hair, a haggard appearance, and no light in his eyes." Fang Zheng's eyes showed tears. "He told me this story, and it ends here."

"I have always regarded him as an idol. As for what happened to Kobe later... I don't know, but he has exhausted everything for this examination. Like a torch, although it only shone for a moment, it still left this story to warn future generations."

Tears finally squeezed out of the corners of Fang Zheng's eyes, and then he began to pace, showing his red eyes to the examiners, 360 degrees around.

The examiners who were looked at all lowered their heads in shame, some sighed, some regretted, and more were thoughtful.

"Gentlemen, the supervision inside and outside the examination hall has been strict to the point of being impeccable! Candidates are even accompanied by examiners when they go to the privy. If there is suspicion of plagiarism, you can directly check or discuss it further! But if the candidate's future is completely denied because of this small stamp, do you think it is reasonable!!" Fang Zheng's voice was loud but full of sorrow!

After saying that, he took out a stamp that he had privately kept before from his arms and threw it violently on the ground, shattering it into two pieces with a snap!

All the examiners were shocked and stared blankly at the broken stamp on the ground.

"I will definitely return the things I borrowed from you! If you want it, come and ask me!"

"But... I only hope that the tragedy will not happen again! I... I have said everything!"

After saying that, Fang Zheng covered his face and walked away.....