Imperial-Examination Stories About Scholars From Poor Families 寒门科举文
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- 51 A Farmer's Son, the Imperial Exams, and Officialdom 农家子，科举，做官 [Born into the womb + imperial examinations + farming + daily life + public works and infrastructure, with a couple, little romance] [No pocket dimension, no System, no golden finger] [He starts looking for a teacher in Chapter 38. If you’re short on patience, you can start reading there.] Shen Huai is born into an ancient world and becomes the only boy in his family. The good news: he can take the imperial examinations. The bad news: they’re poor, very poor, desperately poor. Born into a 5.1kReads8.5Score390Shelves
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52
A Stick in the Tang Dynasty 大唐一根棍
[Comedy + Suspense + Brainy Wish Fulfillment + Historically Grounded Tang Dynasty] A farm boy with a serious lack of virtue gradually grows into the Tang dynasty's number-one troublemaker (no, wait, strike that). He grows into a pillar that holds up the sky, a beam that spans the sea. If I'm having a good time and you're not, I'll beat you until you are. If I can't reform you, I'll cremate you. I crush foreign kingdoms, dissect the aristocratic clans, discipline princes, and slap emperors I can'
3kReads8.7Score235Shelves
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- 53 The Imperial Exam's Oxherd Class: A Young Scholar's Teacher Produces Three Thousand Successful Candidates 科举放牛班，童生夫子教出进士三千 A paradise for exam failures, and a graveyard for renowned scholars. A group of spoiled officials’ sons has become the century-old academy’s newest headache. The old scholar was so furious he suffered a stroke. Chen Fan, a licentiate serving as an assistant instructor, activated the god-tier imperial exam teaching System and was appointed head of the academy in its hour of need. The mischievous magistrate’s son mastered the Five Classics in four months. The unruly prefect’s son became the top sc 1.9kReads8.9Score172Shelves
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54
With the Notable Ministers System in Hand, I Disguise Myself as a Man in Ancient Times 手拿名臣系统，我在古代女扮男装
Xu Yue transmigrates into a book. She becomes the delicate, vulnerable cousin of the male lead in an examination-themed novel: her mother died young, she has no brothers and no one to rely on, and her family won't take her in, so she is awkwardly forced to live in the male lead's home. In her previous life, Xu Yue rose from being an orphan to earning a doctorate. She never believed in fate, and even though it was hard for women to get by in ancient times, she never stopped thinking about how to
118.2kReads9.6Score11.4kShelves
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55
I Transmigrated to Ancient Times, but My Brother Seems Even More Like a Transmigrator Than I Do 穿越古代我哥比我还像穿越者
Alternate World / Ancient Era / Farming / Imperial Exams After a plane crash, Chen Jingming transmigrates to ancient times and becomes a farmer's son. His family is split up because they need to pay for his medical treatment, and his older brother goes missing. Later, the eldest brother returns from a long journey and sends him to school. Eldest Brother: “Little brother, our family's honor rests entirely on you!” But later, as he watches the family estate grow, Chen Jingming realizes that the
15.2kReads9.0Score1.9kShelves
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56
Reborn, I Study for the Imperial Exams in Another World 重生后，我在异世界读书科举
(Transmigration) + (farming) + (daily life) + (imperial examinations) (no System) + (court politics) Chen Chuyi was reborn into a poor family in Beishui Village, carrying the memories of his past life. At first, he only wanted to earn a little money to improve his family's life. But in this unfamiliar ancient world, he was always afraid someone would take his family's money and eat their food. In the end, he embarked on the path of study and the imperial examinations. He knew that only by changi
6.9kReads8.3Score538Shelves
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57
I, San Mao, Will Take the Imperial Exams 我，三毛，要科举
[Alternate world + farming + imperial examinations + everyday family life] One brick was all it took to turn Chen Ping'an into a poor farmer’s son. Farm the land? The taxes are too high. He shakes his head and gives up. Go into business? He’d still be stuck with corvee labor. No, that won’t work either. That leaves only one path. Fortunately, as he pursues his studies, he has the support of a teacher and several like-minded friends by his side. Along the way, Chen Sanmao overcomes one challenge
1.1kReads7.4Score100Shelves
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58
Executed from the Start? One Poem Made Me a God! Defying Heaven to Change My Fate! 斩首开局？一诗封神！逆天改命！
In the Great Qian Dynasty, the literary path reigns supreme, and poetry can manifest the divine! From condemned prisoner to supreme Literary Sage, Lin Fan uses modern knowledge to reshape the literary path! “Let the literary path serve the people, and let all under heaven live as one! I will change this world with my poetry!”
1.7kReads—Score—Shelves
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59
The Poor Scholar 寒门文星
Chen Yan, a six-year-old farmer’s son, beats the powerful minister’s son in the county exam and takes first place. Overnight, he goes from a poor country boy to the literary prodigy everyone in town is talking about. But he knows that being first is a poisoned chalice. The Vice Minister of Personnel’s son hates him to the core, the county magistrate is plotting to ruin him, and even his uncle’s family is eager to take a bite out of him. In his previous life, he was a master of classical studies.
49Reads9.2Score—Shelves
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60
Transmigrate to a Farming Family, Aim for the Imperial Exams 穿越农家，科举为上
Wang Xi had a heart condition as a child and was abandoned at an orphanage. He worked odd jobs to put himself through college and finally landed a pretty good job. After three years of working diligently, just as he was finally able to give something back to the orphanage where he grew up, he suddenly died while working overtime one night. Reborn into a farming family, Wang Xi is now a little boy named Li Shuanzi. He knows all too well that if he wants a better life, passing the imperial exams i
3.6kReads8.9Score224Shelves
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61
The Imperial Exams? Just Another Way to Take the Civil Service Exam! 科举？不过是换个地方考公罢了！
[Civil Service + Imperial Exams + Humble Origins + Transmigration + Slow-Paced + Historical + No System + Not Brain-Dead] Lin Shuheng spent years grinding away at an entry-level civil service job. He had just passed his evaluation and was about to be promoted to deputy section chief. While imagining how he’d climb the ranks step by step, he died suddenly from overwork and transmigrated into the body of a poor scholar in ancient times. With the imperial exams looming, the original owner had been
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- 62 The Imperial Examinations: Rising to the First Rank of Officialdom 科举之官居一品 Synopsis: A scholar in the morning, admitted to the imperial court by night. The protagonist begins as a young scholar from a farming family and rises step by step through the imperial examination system. In the end, he earns a place on the honors list, becomes a jinshi, and enters the ranks of officials. After becoming an official, he works his way up through the bureaucracy until he reaches the highest rank and governs the realm as chief minister, guiding Chinese civilization to become the mos 2kReads7.6Score101Shelves
- 63 On the Imperial Exams, Who Knows Who'll Be the One Sweating? 论科举，谁卷谁还不知道呢 In his previous life, he was visiting Dujiangyan with his mentor to draw up reinforcement plans when one misstep cost him everything. When Zhang Shi’an opened his eyes again, he was holding a little stick, facing a golden field of rice. The rice looked unusually small, though. Before he could figure out what he was doing, he spotted several sparrows feasting on the rice. His hands reacted even faster than his mind. He raised the stick and swung it at them. The thieving sparrows soon flew up into 489Reads7.7Score—Shelves
- 64 The Imperial Exams: A Farmer’s Son Has His Day in the Sun 科举，农家子也有春天 One day, Fang Ping’an, a left-behind child, transmigrates to ancient times. He has no extraordinary opportunities and no influential benefactors. How can he turn his life around? The medicine shop has no one he knows. Who would buy the herbs you gather? He knows no one in the world of the imperial examinations. Who would teach you to read? He has no connections in officialdom. Who would help you get your foot in the door? This is the story of a farmer’s son who, in the midst of a confused and ai 43Reads—Score—Shelves
- 65 You Abandoned Me When I Failed the Imperial Exam, So Who Are You Now That I’ve Swept the Boards? 名落孙山你不陪，连中六元你是谁 [The short drama is now available, and the print edition is in publication.][Slow-burn, warm, and humorous][Alternate history + business + imperial examinations + one female lead + no System] Su Run transmigrates into the body of a disgraced scholar who has lost both his parents, failed the imperial exams, and earned a notorious reputation as a lovesick doormat. When he opens his eyes, his fiancée is publicly putting him down and emotionally manipulating him, even threatening to break off their 18.3kReads8.8Score1.6kShelves
- 66 Transmigration: The Daily Life of an Ancient Imperial Exam Candidate, Son of a Peddler 穿越：商贩之子的古代科举日常 [Imperial Examinations + Alternate History + Everyday Life in Ancient Times + Building Wealth + Slow-Burn + Coming of Age] In his previous life, Lin Xiang’an lost his parents at a young age and grew up dependent on others. After getting into college, he took a leave of absence to serve as a conscript. When he returned from the military and resumed his studies, he started a few businesses and gradually made his fortune. He achieved success at a young age, and his business kept growing. Then, one 2.5kReads7.9Score182Shelves
- 67 The Number One Son-in-Law: From Child Bridegroom to Powerful Minister 第一赘婿：从童养夫到权臣 [Farming and imperial examinations + warm and relaxing + alternate ancient setting] [The male lead seems sweet and simple but is actually cunning and doting toward his wife; a story of growth × the female lead seems frail but is actually domineering and cold-hearted] Villagers: “That little fool from the Fang family carries Pear Girl around everywhere all day. What a bargain that child bride turned out to be!” Song Zhun: “Do you think I want to carry her? If I don’t humor that lazy girl, she say 737Reads8.4Score103Shelves
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I Enlisted in My Brother’s Place, but After My Triumph, They Called Me Illegitimate? 替弟从军，功成归来说我是庶出？
(Historical power fantasy + decisive and ruthless + transmigration to ancient times + modern technology) Su Qin transmigrates to an ancient world and becomes the eldest son born to a concubine in the Marquis of Yan's household in the State of Ning. Because his mother was born a slave, he has endured nothing but hardship. Just as Ning is at war, the marquis orders him to enlist in place of his younger brother. Su Qin expects to die on the battlefield, but instead he uses modern knowledge to defea
317Reads7.6Score106Shelves
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- 69 I Transmigrated, and They Made Me Emperor! 一朝穿越，我被黄袍加身了！ Also known as The Finest Young Master from a Humble Family One month after transmigrating, a woman I've never even met wants to be my wife? And she wants to have my babies! What does it matter if the dynasty is in chaos and the times are turbulent, even if I'm out in the countryside, far from the centers of power? Foreign enemies are invading and want to take my money? Dream on! 837Reads8.6Score102Shelves
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A Woman in a Man's Body: The Concubine-Born Heir's Rise to Power 女穿男，庶房嫡子的逆袭
Now available as an audiobook with a full cast. [Alternate history] + [Woman transmigrates as a man] + [Born into this world] + [Imperial exams and business in the early story] + [Court politics later on] + [One female lead, with a relatively small role] + [A touch of ensemble cast] + [No golden finger] Xie Chengxi was born into another world as the sixth son of the Xie family, a minor family in Bianjing's Grain Transport Guild. His father was the clan's rejected son, kept under pressure for yea
33.9kReads8.3Score3.7kShelves
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Reborn: The Hermit from a Humble Family 寒门隐士之重生
At the end of the Liang dynasty's Southern Court, Luo Song, a poor-born scholar, died unjustly in a civil service exam fraud scandal. Reborn three years earlier, he remembered how Xu Xiaolin, a scion of an aristocratic clan, had befriended him for his talent in his previous life. He had never known Xu was the mastermind behind his downfall, and was ultimately poisoned on the eve of the palace exam, his prospects ruined. Back with the memories of his previous life, Luo Song swears revenge on ever
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72
My Ancestors’ Graves Started Smoking from the Start: Disguised as a Man, I Take the Imperial Exams 开局祖坟冒青烟，女扮男装科举忙
Xie Yuheng transmigrates from the Apocalypse to a farming household, where a tyrant rules the land. With no other choice, she disguises herself as a boy. As she grows older, everyone in the surrounding villages comes to know that the Xie family's prodigy has an exceptionally clever mind. Too bad he's a sickly weakling who can't lift a finger or carry a load. Bystander: “You're so noble, so impressive! Your sickly family member just kicked someone through a wall!” The Xie family: “Does the head o
12.1kReads9.2Score1.7kShelves
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- 73 A Farm Boy's Imperial Exams: My Dad Turns Out to Be the Ultimate Study Machine 农家考科举：我爹竟是最强卷王 [Farming + imperial examinations + building wealth] A gifted student who hated studying transmigrates into the son of a peasant family in ancient times. As he chases chickens and dogs around the village, gathering friends and preparing to make a fortune so he can afford meat, someone calls out, “Ergouzi, your dad passed the provincial exam and became the top graduate! The county magistrate awarded him fifty taels of silver!” When he resolves to study so he can avoid going bald before turning ten 62.4kReads9.2Score7.9kShelves
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74
The Flames of War in the Wanli Era 万历烽火
A detailed portrayal of the imperial examinations; the brutal Battle of Sarhu! A grand war brought vividly to life; thunderous horns and drums, whistling arrows and keen points; stinging sand in every face, skin torn and bones broken; corpses strewn along the banks of Jugang, blood filling the passes in the Great Wall! A tender, heartrending love, like a song that lingers through the years! Emotions as poetic as a lover’s warm hand, gently stroking eyes clouded by rain; a quiet parting, soft as
103Reads—Score—Shelves
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75
Famine in Ancient Times: Hunting, Taking the Exams, and Eight Wives! 古代饥荒年：打猎科举一妻八妾！
[Historical Fantasy + Feel-Good Power Trip + Relaxed Hunting + Multiple Heroines + Imperial Examinations + Conquest + Daily Life Spoiling His Wife + Adorable Kids + Doting Dad] Wu Hao transmigrates to an ancient era plagued by famine, into the body of a young scholar who has failed the provincial examination three times. His hardworking parents were murdered by malicious people, and his eldest brother was beaten to death that very day! Wu Hao has barely arrived when he is faced with his parents’
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76
Eunuch Su's Road to the Imperial Exams 苏公公的科举之路
Chief eunuch Su Weisheng had finally endured his way to retirement, only to die unexpectedly. When he opened his eyes again, he had become a five-year-old child a century later, and all his enemies were dead! His relatives were unkind, and his parents were weak. Su Weisheng consoled himself: At least in this life, I won't have to be a eunuch. I can live with that! He takes on the worst of the family, manages the household, and studies for the imperial examinations. Only after achieving fame and
9kReads9.0Score1.1kShelves
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- 77 Great Ming: The Village's Little Top Scholar, Whom Old Zhu Absolutely Adores 大明：乡村小状元，老朱贼稀罕我 During the Hongwu era of the Ming dynasty, Zhu Qiniu, an ordinary four-year-old farm boy, accidentally comes across a silver bell. From then on, he dreams every night of entering a room filled with books: the Thousand Character Classic, the Hundred Family Surnames, the Four Books and Five Classics, collections of successful candidates’ exam essays from every dynasty, and more. With his golden finger and relentless effort, he becomes the top scholar before the age of ten. Beloved by Old Zhu, Litt 18.8kReads8.9Score1.5kShelves
- 78 The First Duke of the Great Ming 大明第一公 I am Li Jinglong. This is my story, and the story of the Great Ming. 130.1kReads9.2Score14.2kShelves
- 79 Reborn in Dream of the Red Chamber as Jia Huan, the Concubine’s Son 重生红楼之庶子贾环 A doctor transmigrates into the Jia household of the Jia family in Dream of the Red Chamber, becoming Jia Huan, the most useless son born to a concubine. Follow his efforts as he rises step by step, blooms like a lotus, escapes his predicament, and makes up for the story's many regrets. 69.1kReads9.1Score4.8kShelves
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The Top Scholar Is Real, and So Is the Beggar 状元是真的，乞丐也是真的
Shen Mo, a Peking University history professor, wakes up one day as a nameless beggar. No household registration, no food, no shoes, and only a yellow dog so thin its skin clings to its bones. He spent thirty years studying the imperial examinations in his previous life, yet in this one he cannot even get near an exam hall. From a ruined temple to the Golden Throne Hall, from eating tree bark to earning top honors. The top scholar is real, and so is the beggar.
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81
Transmigrated: My Soul Swap with the Empress 穿越之我和女帝灵魂互换
Transmigrating: My Soul Swap with the Female Emperor
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- 82 Reborn: The Empress, Me, and Cultivation 重生之我、女帝、修炼 Reborn: Me, the Female Emperor, and Cultivation 7Reads—Score—Shelves
- 83 The Ninth Door 第九扇门 The Ninth Door 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 84 The Twin Mirror Era 双镜纪元 The Twin-Mirror Era 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 85 I Restore Cultural Relics in the Immortal Realm 我在仙界修文物 I Restore Cultural Relics in the Immortal Realm —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 86 Heaven's Secrets 天道玄机 Heavenly Secrets 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 87 A Land Without a Trace 山河无痕 The protagonist, Lin Wuhen, is the only son of Lin Zhentian, a great general of the Donghuang Dynasty. He seems like a dissolute playboy, but in truth, he is exceptionally gifted. After powerful court officials frame his family, Lin Wuhen is forced to flee into the martial world, setting out on a path of revenge and growth. In the martial world, Lin Wuhen befriends heroes from all walks of life and learns peerless martial arts, gradually uncovering the truth behind his family’s downfall. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 88 After I Transmigrated, My System Started Acting Strange 穿越后，我的系统不太对劲 An Unexpected Transmigration: After a car accident, modern young man Qin Mo transmigrates to the cultivation world of the Xuanxiao Continent and obtains the mysterious Heavenly Dao Correction System. The System promises to help him reach the pinnacle of cultivation, but its true purpose is unknown. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 89 A Taoist's Ghost-Hunting Chronicles 道士捉鬼录 A Daoist’s Ghost-Hunting Chronicles 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 90 The Poison Doctor's Red Phoenix Tribulation 毒医红鸾劫 The Poison Doctor’s Red-Luan Tribulation —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 91 Reborn in Guixu: I Am the Sword Keeper 重生归墟之我是饲剑人 Reborn in the Ruins: I Am the Sword Tender —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 92 Defying Fate, Destined for Greatness 逆命不凡 Defying Fate, Unordinary —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 93 Defying Fate Beneath the Heavens 逆命苍穹 Defying Fate, Beneath the Vast Sky 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 94 The Tale of Ice Soul Burning the Heavens 冰魄焚天记 The Tale of the Ice Soul That Scorched the Heavens —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 95 The Day My Cultivation Was Destroyed, the System Rewarded Me with a Godslayer Physique 修为被废当天，系统奖励杀戮神体 The Day His Cultivation Was Destroyed, the System Rewarded Him with a Godly Slaughter Physique 3Reads—Score—Shelves
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96
I Sing the Song of Mortals for You 吾为君吟凡人歌
[Male-Oriented, Transmigration, Fictional Setting, Farming, Everyday Life, Imperial Examinations, No System, No Golden Finger, Rural Life, Rustic Setting, One Heroine, Not a Power Fantasy] Lin Zezu, an ordinary nobody from Blue Star, transmigrates to the fictional Wu Kingdom. He arrives just as the original body's father, a scholar, dies of illness. Since the original body's birth mother was a brothel girl, his stepmother and eldest half-brother in the Lin family never treated him well. After Ma
2Reads6.4Score—Shelves
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97
The Nameless Boy in Black, Retaking the Imperial Exams to Restore His Family’s Glory 乌衣少年今无名，重考科举振门庭
[Alternate setting + imperial examinations + court politics + detective work + multiple heroines + no System] Born into a prestigious family whose numbers had dwindled, with no hope of a career in government. But they were rich. Xie Guan transmigrated to the Great Li Dynasty: “Brothers, this is exactly my kind of thing!” But why had he already lived through an entire lifetime? At twenty, a licentiate. At twenty-eight, a provincial graduate. At twenty-nine, a successful candidate in the imperial
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98
The Poor Call Me Master, While the Righteous Condemn My Heresy 寒门尊我为师，清流怒斥邪说误人
[Transmigration + Imperial Exams + Business + Court Intrigue + Daily Life + Rise from Humble Beginnings] Transmigrating is hell from the start: my mother died young, my father ran off, our family property was seized, and my sick grandmother and I were driven into a shack by our wicked relatives. How could I put up with that?! From the start, I split from the family, found powerful allies, and offered business plans that made us a fortune. I used a modern perspective to interpret the classics, an
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99
The Ming Dynasty’s Literary Champion 大明文魁
In the third year of the Xuande reign, Lin Wenyuan, a top history student, unexpectedly transmigrated into the body of a poor scholar in Kunshan County, South Zhili, Ming China. When he woke, he found himself in a home stripped bare, with a frail body left behind by the original owner's high fever after being caught in the rain. In an era when the imperial examinations were the only path to success, he had neither an illustrious family nor exceptional talent. All he could rely on was knowledge f
136Reads—Score—Shelves
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- 100 After My Engagement Was Broken, I Turned to the Imperial Exams and Became the Top Scholar 被退婚后，我转头科举当状元 [Transmigration + no System + imperial examinations + feel-good power fantasy] Ma Chengji, a top scorer in the national college entrance exam with a photographic memory, transmigrated into the body of an eight-year-old poor boy in the Great Qian Kingdom. He started off in dire straits: his family had nothing, they lived on bran and wild greens, and the villagers mocked and ridiculed him. Su Jiuyuan, the daughter of a powerful minister, came with her mother to break off their engagement. “People —Reads—Score—Shelves
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