Linshan Town is located within the prefecture town on the border of the Central Plains, which is the administrative province where the capital of the 'Great Qian Empire' lies.
According to the traditional imperial examination customs of Da Qian, the palace examination would commence in the fifth year after the Juren exams, calling scholars from all over to the Capital City to take the final test administered by the Emperor himself.
At that time, the top three scholars—the champion, the runner-up, and the second runner-up—would emerge, joining the bureaucratic system as a new force.
Li Ming was eighteen this year, but he had passed the Juren examination when he was sixteen; thus, he only needed to wait three more years for the palace examination to begin, and then he could travel to the Capital City to take the last stage of the examination path.
