Shennong Dao Master
Chapter 44: Five Elements Natural Disaster Scenario

Chapter 44: Chapter 44: Five Elements Natural Disaster Scenario

The examination took place at the county government, as the Minister of Agriculture Supervision did not have enough tables and chairs.

The County Venerable also handled the literary affairs, so any theoretical examinations were usually held in the examination rooms of the county government.

County Venerable Li Wenzheng was not seen; the chief examiner and proctors were still acquaintances from the Minister of Agriculture Supervision, but the number of invigilators from the county government increased to fifty, along with clerks delivering meals and water.

This time, endurance was not being tested, so meals would be delivered to the examination rooms midway through.

The examination spanned two days, so naturally, there was no shortage of test papers.

After Zhao Xing found his designated examination room and took his seat, he waited for the test papers to be distributed. When they arrived, there were forty sheets in total!

Thirty of these were question sheets, and ten were blank.

Zhao Xing did not rush to start writing. He first roughly glanced through the questions and requirements, also checking for any errors or omissions.

The first fifteen sheets were bonus questions, where rote memorization would ensure points.

For example, "The ’Seventy-Two Phenological Phases,’ from which ancient book does it originate? Who compiled it and when?"

Zhao Xing did not even need to think and directly wrote down the answer, "It originates from the ’Shixun Interpretation,’ compiled by Grand Minister of Agriculture Wu Cheng in the ninth year of Kaiping."

Or they might extract a sentence from a work and ask to complete the previous or next sentence.

For example, "Upon cloudy resentment, new complaints will surface. ______"

Answer: "The collared dove will not ruffle its feathers, and the state shall not wield swords; the hoopoe shall not descend to mulberry, and governance shall not be remiss."

This question was about ’Yin-Yang Phenological Phases,’ stating that if the yin atmosphere was too heavy, some anomalous phenomenons would occur. At such times, it would be best for the state not to engage in warfare or issue new decrees, as the effectiveness would be poor.

Zhao Xing answered smoothly, quickly finishing the bonus questions.

He then moved on to the scenario-based questions that would filter out candidates.

"There is wind in the south of the city, raging fiercely. In spring and autumn, droughts are common. There is a river to the east of the city, with overabundant rainfall. In summer and winter, floods are frequent, making it difficult for the Five Grains to survive. How do you resolve this?"

For an official with weak foundational theory, the answer would likely be, ’Use the spell for harmonizing wind and rain, then the Five Grains will flourish.’

If answered this way, you might only get 2 out of 10 points, or perhaps none at all.

That’s because there is only an answer, but no process, which is not acceptable for a theoretical exam.

Moreover, the answer misses the point as it fails to correctly identify the problem or demonstrates insufficient knowledge of spell theory.

"A small town has been subjected to a fierce south wind, blowing away the spring and autumn rain clouds, causing drought. However, there is a river to the east where clouds rise, resulting in summer and winter floods. Therefore, this is not a Heavenly Time question, but an Earth Advantage question. Using any spells from the Heavenly Time Sect would be incorrect." After discerning the hidden pitfalls in the question, Zhao Xing began to answer.

In fact, the solution was quite simple, something that Caoxi True Monarch had done before.

"Nurture the earth veins to the south; higher ground will regulate the wind. Construct channels to the east, diverting water around the city, and create a reservoir to the east; use the Guiyuan Water Wheel to balance rainfall throughout the four seasons. Supplement with the Seasonal Order, and in three years, the wind and rain will be harmonized."

After Zhao Xing finished writing, confident of scoring full marks, he proceeded to the next question.

The difficulty only increased with the final question.

This was a scenario-based question involving the appropriate uses and taboos of the Five Elements and the Four Seasons:

"The earth is cold in spring, making wood unusable. The summer heat is scorched, causing locust outbreaks. How do you resolve this?"

The fewer the words, the harder the question.

Moreover, it was a linked question.

Since it described seasonal disruptions and natural disasters, the question linked the two, so the answer must also integrate both aspects rather than address them separately.

The standard answer had to start from the perspectives of the Five Elements and the Four Seasons. Ideally, it should reference classical texts; otherwise, using the examinee’s own words would lack authority and persuasiveness.

Without such authority, even if the answer addressed the issue, points would be deducted.

Understanding this, Zhao Xing began to ponder, reviewing various texts to find a perfect answer.

After fifteen minutes, Zhao Xing picked up his pen to answer.

"In spring’s residual cold, the earth turns yin, and trees do not grow. One must use the Bing Fire from the earth veins to harmonize the situation. If Bing Fire is absent, use Ding Fire. If both Bing and Ding are absent, extend the Heavenly Time."

"Summer’s excessive heat is due to a truncated spring, causing locust plagues. Directly alter this, restore the Heavenly Time to spring, supplement the earth with Ding Fire, restore one phase of spring, then restore it to summer. Shorten the summer by one phase to align the four seasons correctly."

The standard answer referenced content from the "Four Seasons and Five Elements" regarding Earth Advantage and Heavenly Time.

This question addressed how, under the jurisdiction of the Minister of Agriculture Official, one would solve problems of unusable spring wood, earth’s yin cold, and scorching summer resulting in locust plagues.

The question involved the Five Elements, the Four Seasons, and natural disasters.

The answer had to employ the Five Elements, Heavenly Stems, and Earthly Branches and provide a relatively perfect solution.

First, using the Earth Advantage Sect’s methods, regulate the earth vein power. Different properties exist within the earth veins; Bing Fire is the strongest and can be used to counter the yin cold, with Ding Fire being a secondary option, though less effective.

If the environmental conditions are too harsh and neither Bing nor Ding Fire can be channeled, one must alter the Heavenly Time, quickly moving through spring to the next season, hence ’extending the Heavenly Time.’

Summer’s excessive heat, contributing to pestilence, stems from a truncated spring, which is the cause and effect.

At this point, directly changing the Heavenly Time is necessary because pests have already emerged; summer is the most suitable time for pest outbreaks, and lingering in summer won’t solve the issue.

Hence, restore ’Heavenly Time to spring.’ But can it convert to autumn or winter?

No, because spring had originally used ’the Bing Fire of earth veins’ to resolve the yin cold, shortening spring. Now, it needs to replenish a phase of spring.

The earth’s veins with Ding Fire are milder, avoiding the return of the yin cold and not straying too far from summer. After resolving the pestilence, returning to summer is necessary, aligning with the concept of ’align correctly with the Four Seasons.’

While answering, Zhao Xing considered the potential recurrence of pestilence, so when restoring the seasons, he wrote that summer should be shortened by one phase.

There’s little difference between summer and autumn heat, so shortening summer by one phase and extending autumn by one won’t pose significant issues; however, shortening spring and extending summer would cause major problems.

"If the examiner isn’t blind, this answer should surely earn full marks," Zhao Xing checked his work, turned over the sheet, and continued answering.

.......

Time passed slowly to night, and many candidates began to stop writing as most officials lacked the ability of Bright Eyes Night Vision.

Zhao Xing did not want to waste time idling, so he planned to finish early and submit his paper.

Thus, even as the light dimmed, he continued writing.

After completing all previous types of questions, he began to review, seeking better answers and identifying where marks might be lost.

Only after meticulous checking did he proceed to the next category of questions.

By nightfall, Zhao Xing had only one type of question left:

This type of question had only one sheet, but it was the most challenging, dealing with scholarly thought:

"Please match the Five Elements, Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches with the Four Seasons, and expound on the matching philosophy."