The Marquis' Wife
Fu-shih Tests

Lu Xiang glanced at the security guard who was busy examining the candidate then took the piece of paper with trembling hands, lowered his head while pretending to cough and ate the paper without a trace.

Lu Xiang forced his body to swallow the paper and re-examined the luggage in the bamboo basket in as much detail as possible until he was completely convinced that no foreign items were visible in the new bamboo basket he was breathing relieved.

After Lu Xiang's turn, the security guard grew suspicious of the man's pale face and began to examine more thoroughly than the other candidates. He even told Lu Xiang to take off his clothes and check every inch of his clothes.

It made people stare curiously, even the friends of Lu Xiang's group were shocked and thought something was wrong with their friend.

"You may leave" The security guard did not find anything suspicious and removed Lu Xiang.

The fast-paced heartbeat left Lu Xiang's body still limp, he slightly bowed to the security guard and took his shirt and wore it not far from the officer.

Knowing to bring cheat even if it does not belong to a candidate, the consequences that will be obtained by candidates who are caught carrying cheat is very large, in the Fu-shih exam the candidate will lose the opportunity to take the exam for life.

Although their undergraduate degrees were not revoked, their ruined reputations were no different from the revoked degrees.

At the level of the shen-shih exam will be more severe consequences, not real opportunity to take the exam revoked but also the title. The most severe level of punishment from carrying a cheat can even kill the entire family of the candidate, it happens if caught in the royal exam led directly by the Emperor.

"Next!".

The officer shouted and continued the examination. Not paying any more attention to Lu Xiang who was not far away from him.

"You're fine scholar Hsien, your face is very pale. Do you want to withdraw from this exam?" An officer who led Lu Xiang into the examination room asked doubtfully at how pale his face was.

"I'm fine sir". Lu Xiang inhaled a deep breath so many times that his heart was beating quietly. He tried to focus on the test he was going to do and left his mind about who put the cheat paper on him.

One by one the examinees walked into the room and bowed their heads greeting the Fucheng prefect before the exam began.

Fu's exam room was larger than Hsien's exam room which could accommodate 1000 examinees. The Fu exam is divided into three separate sections 3 days per session.

Lu Xiang and the other examinees drank bone soup before entering their respective rooms according to the exam number. Inside the doorless room was a rectangular table and a thin blanket provided by officers as well as a small pitcher to urinate giving off an unpleasant aroma.

Many candidates frowned at the pitcher made of soil, they refrained from breathing too much because of the pungent aroma of the jug.

Lu Xiang recalled that Adelia put a therapeutic fragrance perfume inside the upper brush hole and breathed a sigh of relief. He sat down waiting for the test sheet to be spread out and dripped a little perfume on his finger and rubbed it on his sleeve.

"Hey. What is this smell so good?" The examinees who were to the left and right of Lu Xiang smelled the foreign fragrance and gasped.

Lu Xiang was startled and immediately closed the top of the brush and started writing the name, residence and number of the exam before reading the exam questions written on paper instead of on a wooden board like the Hsien exam, which was the case in the past, that was because the examinees were so many that they reached over 500 people.

The first session of the examination on the explanation of Confucian analects, Lu Xiang explained the keywords given by the Zhong prefect in detail and then added his opinion.

In the afternoon, Lu Xiang ate the steamed bread that had been torn during the examination and drank a little water to quench his thirst. He then tried to focus without hearing the sound of participants urinating next to the room.

Sitting all day made his back hurt and his butt felt numb, he closed his eyes for a moment but woke up again to smell the unpleasant smell of socks belonging to participants when removing shoes.

Although outside the scholars dressed neatly and elegantly but some scholars do not take care of their bodies to make the body emit unpleasant aroma. At the Hsien exam Lu Xiang did not smell the socks because the cold weather made the examinees wear more shoes to warm their feet but in the newly arrived spring was not the case.

Lu Xiang let out a long sigh and returned dripping a bit of perfume onto his sleeves then covering his nose. The smell of peeing in the earthen jug and the smell of socks almost made some participants want to retreat, they complained to make the officer come to calm down.

Lu Xiang slept poorly all night and woke up early in the morning blind, changed the new candle and began to read his answer back before nodding in satisfaction. He put the answers on the table, packed ink stones and brushes so as not to hit the answer paper and wait for the exam time to end.

Lu Xiang waited for up to two hours before officers came to collect the answer papers and drafts and let him out. One by one the examinees came out with pale faces and eye bags that made their appearance far from elegant.

The servants who had been waiting swiftly helped their master without caring about the unpleasant body odor from not taking a bath all day.

Lu Xiang walked slowly, his forehead frowning at the sunlight that made his drowsy eyes ache. He saw Shao Yunan vomit under the tree, his lips turning blue making Lu Xiang become worried.

"Are you okay Yunan?". Lu Xiang patted the back of his limp companion.

"I guess I'll die from that stench, how could there be such a foul sock? What brand..hoeekkk!!" Shao Yunan regained his vomit, he even vomited gall from eating only a little yesterday.

"Yunan, are you okay?" Zhang Yunlei who had just come out saw his friend who was vomiting and immediately approached.

"Lu... Lu Xiang, help me" Chen Xirang walked on with his legs still numb and reached out to his friend.

Lu Xiang chuckled funnyly. "Do you want to give birth?".

"Shut your mouth. Please come back to me, where is my goddamn servant, his master suffering he doesn't even exist".

"You smell so bad" The sour body smell made Lu Xiang cover his nose in disgust.

"Like you don't. uh!! Why don't you smell?" Chen Xirang sniffed at Lu Xiang's body and found no unpleasant body odor.

"Fright from me! I already have a wife". Lu Xiang pushed his friend's head in annoyance, knowing that he did not have body odor because he always drank lotus well water that released toxins in his body.

"Eh, don't be my dear friend. Don't you feel sorry for sitting on the street like a bum?" Chen Xirang immediately apologized.

Lu Xiang returned to his friend but because he was still curious Chen Xirang again sniffed his body making him even more annoyed and pushing the man to fall to the ground, luckily his friend's servant found Chen Xirang and replaced him.

Lu Xiang and his friend took a break from the interrupted sleep the next day waiting for the announcement of the results of the first session.

All the members of the group led by Zhao Fan passed to the next examination session.