A Reborn County Magistrate’s Path Through the Imperial Exams

In his previous life, Zhao Yuan was a graduate student in history. He stayed up late writing his thesis and died suddenly, only to open his eyes in the body of a poor scholar in the Great Zhou dynasty. His family can barely afford to eat, and the original owner was such a terrible student that he never even passed the lowest level of the examinations. To make matters worse, Qian Sihai, the richest man in the county, has his eye on the family's few acres of land and is using threats and inducements to force a sale. Fortunately, Zhao Yuan activates an imperial-examination deduction System that can predict exam questions and exchange for skill cards. He applies Zhang Juzheng's reform ideas to farming and uses Su Shi's literary talent to write essays on statecraft, advancing all the way from the lowest examination to the provincial level. But Qian Sihai has the prefect on his side, while Wu Dayong, a young man from a great clan, keeps tripping him up on the road to success. Worst of all, using the System too much brings down Heaven's punishment, and before every crucial exam he falls so ill that he cannot get out of bed. As Zhao Yuan matches wits with Qian Sihai, he also builds waterworks and opens schools in the county, winning the people's support completely. When he finally passes the metropolitan examination and becomes a jinshi, he uncovers an even greater conspiracy: Qian Sihai is trafficking in military grain, with powerful figures at court involved. And Zheng Xiaodie, the woman who is always singing for her supper at the tavern, has a far more complicated identity than it seems...