“Guess the exam questions?”
Second Young Master Xu asked in confusion, but being clever, he immediately understood Xu Qi’an’s intention.
Calmly pouring a cup of hot water for his elder brother and putting on an outer garment for himself, Xu Xinnian sat down in a chair and said, “No need. The great scholars at the academy have already helped us predict the topics.”
After the establishment of the Imperial Academy, students’ thoughts were confined to the Four Books and Five Classics, losing the spirit of their predecessors. The lack of poetry in Great Feng was one of the aftereffects.
But there was also an advantage: it became easier to predict exam questions.
So-called “question prediction” was actually similar to teachers in Xu Qi’an’s previous life highlighting key points on the blackboard. Due to the limited scope and answer format, imperial examination papers could be “predicted” to a certain extent.
Besides predicting questions, there was another trick – buying questions.
And even more audacious than buying questions was “pre-arrangement.”
Pre-arrangement meant that even if someone wrote nonsense, they could still pass smoothly and become a tribute student.
The specific operation was to bribe the chief examiner and agree on how to use “code words” in advance. For example, if the end of the first line was “old,” the end of the second line was “iron,” and the fourth, fifth, and sixth lines were “666.”
When the chief examiner saw this, he would know it was one of their own.
Anonymous marking and transcription couldn’t prevent such cheating methods.
Xu Qi’an had heard about these tricks from Wei Yuan, and after hearing them, he marveled at the wisdom of the ancients.
Unfortunately, bribing examiners wasn’t an option. Xu Xinnian was a student of the Cloud Deer Academy, which meant he had no chance of becoming the top graduate, second graduate, or third graduate, and might not even make it into the top tier.
Before meeting Zhong Li, Xu Qi’an had only thought about how to help Second Young Master cheat and avoid detection by the examination supervisors. After racking his brains, he came up with an idea: to write the essay on his penis.
This method was inspired by ridiculous netizens from his previous life. He remembered someone boasting online that his girlfriend saw two characters carved on him: “Jun Chou” (Your Sorrow).
When asked what these two characters meant, the netizen smiled faintly, took a deep breath, and revealed: “Do you not see the waters of the Yellow River come from heaven? They flow into the sea and never return. Do you not see the sorrows of the frontier mirror in the bright moon? The moon has seen the parting of many loved ones.” (A famous poem by Li Bai)
Although it was an unreliable boast, Xu Qi’an could relate… But that’s not important. What’s important is that Second Young Master could definitely do this.
With his Body Cultivation Realm cultivation, he could just say, “My Diao Chan…” and then write a 500-word essay on it.
The examiners would never discover it.
However, given Second Young Master’s pride, he would never do such a thing even if it killed him… Xu Qi’an nodded slowly, “Then what about poetry?”
Xu Xinnian frowned and replied, “Poetry isn’t a consideration. I’m not particularly skilled in poetry.”
His focus for exam preparation was on policy questions and classical interpretation. Of course, other students were the same. Poetry was just left to chance.
“It’s better to be prepared. I came over specifically to predict poetry topics,” said Xu Qi’an.
“Then how does Elder Brother plan to predict?”
“By drawing lots,” Xu Qi’an smiled mysteriously.
…
“Mother, I want to eat tangerines.”
In the connected inner room, the little tot came out wearing a loose single garment.
“What tangerines at night? Do you still want your teeth? The tangerines are in the hall, go get them yourself.” Aunt was worried about her son’s future prospects.
The little tot left without a word. She ate the tangerines in the outer corridor and returned to her room, satisfied and sleepy.
Uncle and Aunt continued to discuss Xu Xinnian’s future prospects. As they talked, Aunt regretted why she had sent Xu Xinnian to the Cloud Deer Academy in the first place.
Second Son had been a genius since childhood, with an excellent memory. When the Cloud Deer Academy was recruiting students, Second Uncle Xu took his son to Qingyun Mountain for the exam, and he passed on the first try.
“If only we had sent him to the Imperial Academy back then,” Aunt lamented.
“Women’s views. The Cloud Deer Academy is the orthodox Confucian school,” Second Uncle Xu snorted.
…
Xu Xinnian cut a piece of calligraphy paper into more than a dozen small squares, writing themes like “flowers, birds, fish, insects” on them, then shuffled them randomly.
“Elder Brother, it’s your turn.”
Xu Xinnian thought his elder brother was just fooling around, but seeing his enthusiasm, he couldn’t refuse. He just wanted to quickly send away his annoying elder brother so he could sleep.
Also, he wanted to see if his elder brother could compose poetry on the spot, to satisfy his curiosity.
Xu Qi’an closed his eyes and grabbed randomly.
“Two?”
Xu Xinnian found that his elder brother had grabbed two slips of paper at once.
“Two it is then. We can use the extra one as a backup.”
Xu Qi’an said as he unfolded the slips of paper. They were “Expressing Aspirations” and “Patriotism.”
Xu Xinnian looked at his elder brother with some anticipation.
“Um… Let me think about it. I’ll give them to you tomorrow,” Xu Qi’an scratched his head.
After bidding farewell to Xu Xinnian and returning to his own room, Xu Qi’an lit a candle, sat by the table, looked up at the ceiling beam, and said:
“Aren’t you a prophet? Can’t you directly predict the topics for the spring imperial examination?”
A woman with disheveled hair lay on the ceiling beam, wearing a simple linen robe. She replied, “A prophet must know how to keep secrets. I’m not someone with great luck. If I were to leak the spring examination topics, I might perish tomorrow.”
“I can protect you. Didn’t the Controller say I’m someone with great luck?” Xu Qi’an encouraged.
“If you’re someone with great luck, then the topics you drew must be the spring examination topics,” Zhong Li said flatly. “Why should I take the risk?”
That makes sense… Xu Qi’an asked again, “Then why not let me guess the policy questions and classical interpretation topics?”
“The more specific, the easier it is to guess correctly,” Zhong Li said.
Xu Qi’an didn’t speak further. He racked his brains, thinking of the poems he had learned in junior and senior high school. Even after so many years, some poems were still clearly imprinted in his mind.
Of course, he couldn’t remember the classical Chinese and longer poems completely, or only remembered parts of them. For example, he only remembered a few lines from Li Bai’s “Bring in the Wine,” like “The waters of the Yellow River come from heaven.”
But poems like “Spring Dawn,” he probably wouldn’t forget until he died.
“The most famous poem about expressing aspirations should be Cao Cao’s ‘Though the Tortoise Lives Long,’ but considering Emperor Yuanjing’s longing for longevity, writing this poem might displease him.
“There are quite a few patriotic poems, but the ones I remember were all born in times of national crisis. Like ‘Iron horses and icy rivers enter dreams,’ ‘The country is broken, but mountains and rivers remain,’ ‘The singing girl knows not the sorrow of a lost nation’… This is tough.”
In the latter half of the night, Xu Qi’an was sleeping soundly when he suddenly heard a muffled “thud,” followed by the groaning of an unfortunate woman.
He woke up with a start, instinctively grabbing the sword by his bed.
“Sorry, I tripped…” Zhong Li said, enduring the pain.
You can even trip? You’re a Fifth-Grade Sorcerer after all… Xu Qi’an’s mouth twitched as he let out a long sigh, “It’s fine. Is this part of the misfortune too?”
“This is actually not bad. If I wasn’t by your side, I might have broken my leg,” the Controller’s fifth disciple said in a flat tone that made one’s heart ache: “It’s fine. I’m used to it anyway.”
After saying this, she quietly got up and walked towards the door: “I’ll meditate outside. I won’t disturb your sleep.”
“…” Xu Qi’an watched her leave and close the door.
He turned over and continued sleeping, but the door opened again, and Zhong Li came back.
“Hm?”
Xu Qi’an grunted, expressing his confusion and dissatisfaction.
Zhong Li said in a low voice, “Some inconsiderate person threw tangerine peels in the corridor. I accidentally stepped on them and fell, hitting my head. I think it’s safer inside the room.”
You can slip on tangerine peels too? How pitiful… Xu Qi’an was immediately filled with sympathy.
…
The next day, before dawn.
The Xu mansion was brightly lit. Aunt, with dark circles under her eyes, personally helped Second Young Master Xu pack exam materials like brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone, as well as snacks for the exam, including pastries, steamed buns, dried meat, and water.
“Mother, there’s no need to bring so much food. Each session only lasts one day, and we’ll be out by dusk,” Xu Xinnian hurriedly stopped his mother as she kept stuffing in food.
The metropolitan examination had three sessions, each lasting one day, with a three-day interval between sessions, lasting nine days in total.
After preparations were complete, Xu Pingzhi led his wife, daughter, and nephew to send Xu Xinnian to the examination hall.
Xu Qi’an and Xu Pingzhi carried lanterns, one in front and one behind. Soon, the family arrived at the examination hall. Outside the hall, a crowd of candidates had gathered, with dozens of officials maintaining order on both sides of the street, holding up torches.
“Second Young Master, these are the poems Elder Brother wrote. Read and destroy,” Xu Qi’an handed over two slips of paper.
Xu Xinnian took them nonchalantly, unfolded them casually, and looked for a while, almost unable to understand… Elder Brother’s handwriting, especially the small characters, was quite unique.
Good poems!
But Xu Xinnian still inwardly praised them.
If the topics were indeed guessed correctly, he might shine brilliantly.
After memorizing them, Xu Xinnian tore up the paper slips. Just as he was about to bid farewell to his family, he suddenly heard someone chanting Buddhist sutras nearby.
Looking back, he saw a burly bald man with his palms together, giving him a mysterious smile.
Do I know him?… Xu Xinnian felt puzzled but returned a polite smile.
The bald man nodded slightly and turned to leave.
…
After watching Second Young Master queue up to enter the examination hall, Aunt and Ling Yue suggested going back to the mansion to catch up on sleep, while Xu Ling’yin proposed going to Guiyue Tower for breakfast.
Xu Ling’yin’s proposal was unanimously ignored by everyone.
Xu Qi’an was concerned about Zhong Li back at the mansion, fearing that if he returned late, she might have already departed from this world.
When they returned to the mansion, the eastern sky was just beginning to brighten.
Xu Qi’an pushed open the door and saw Zhong Li sitting cross-legged on the ground, her hair disheveled, her features unclear.
“Why does this woman always have her hair down? I wonder what she looks like… The Controller’s disciples all seem a bit strange, while the foodie girl is the most normal…” Xu Qi’an cleared his throat and said:
“You don’t need to hide. I can introduce you to my family.”
“That would bring misfortune to your family. There won’t be big troubles, but small ones will be constant,” Zhong Li said. “Misfortune affects those around me all the time, but if they don’t know of my existence, it can be avoided.”
Never mind then.
It was still far from the Mao hour (5-7 AM), and Xu Qi’an planned to meditate for a moment when he suddenly felt a palpitation. Someone had popped up in the Earth Book chat group.
“Can you turn around?” Xu Qi’an asked.
“Alright.” Zhong Li obediently turned her back to him and sat in meditation.
Having another person around really is inconvenient… Xu Qi’an then took out the Earth Book fragment and read the message by candlelight.
[Two: I plan to go to the capital.]
Surprisingly, the first to respond to Li Miaozhen was the rarely active Daoist Jin Lian: [Nine: Is the bandit suppression over?]
The bandit suppression is over? Then Spring Brother and the others should be coming back soon… Xu Qi’an was delighted.
[Two: Yes, Daoist. Number One, you still haven’t given me the information about the young generation of Human Sect disciples.]
Back then, she had exchanged information about the Yun Province case with Number One, hoping to get information about the outstanding disciples of this generation of the Human Sect, but Number One had mysteriously gone silent for a long time.
To this day, he still hadn’t fulfilled his promise.
A few minutes later, Number One’s message came through, in large chunks: [The disciples of this generation of the Human Sect are not strong in cultivation. The highest, “Jing Chen,” is only at the Seventh Grade Realm, but there is one person, I’m not sure if he counts as the young generation.]
[Two: What kind of person is he? How’s his cultivation?]
[One: This person comes from a scholarly background, the top graduate of the imperial examination in the 27th year of Yuanjing. In the 29th year of Yuanjing, he suddenly resigned from his official position and became a commoner. He is both a student and a friend of Daoist Ling Yun, the senior brother of Luo Yuheng, and learned the Human Sect’s sword techniques and mind sutras from Daoist Ling Yun.
[This person is extremely talented. After abandoning his scholarly pursuits to cultivate the sword for three years, he reached the realm of Sword Heart Transparency. He then challenged the Golden Gong Zhang Kaitai, was badly defeated, and then went wandering. Wei Yuan praised him as the number one swordsman in the capital.
[He doesn’t have the title of master and disciple with Daoist Ling Yun, but they have the reality of it. I’m not sure if he counts as a Human Sect disciple.]
A scholar who abandoned his studies to cultivate the sword, the number one swordsman in the capital, with a de facto master-disciple relationship with a Human Sect Daoist… What’s with this strong sense of déjà vu? Xu Qi’an was stunned. After pondering, he thought of someone but felt it was too absurd.
At this moment…
[Four: Heh, I’ve already returned to the capital.]
“It really is him. Daoist Jin Lian is stirring up trouble. Knowing that the Heaven and Human Sects are incompatible, he still wants to bring them both into the Earth Book fragments,” Xu Qi’an muttered to himself.
This is getting interesting. Number Four and Number Two are coming to the capital to fight… Wait, if it was just Li Miaozhen coming to the capital, I’m confident I could handle it. After all, coming back from the dead can be explained by the Rebirth Pill.
Moreover, Li Miaozhen and I have both experienced social death, so we won’t dwell on it too much.
But if Number Four is also coming to the capital…
Xu Qi’an’s expression changed.
Just then, Number Five also popped up: [What a coincidence! I’m leaving the Southern Borderlands tomorrow to travel to the capital. When I get there, let’s all drink together!]
Xu Qi’an: “???”
What’s going on? Why is Number Five also coming to the capital? With Number Five’s intelligence, Number Four and Number Two definitely won’t feel comfortable letting her travel alone. They’ll inevitably have an offline meetup.
And I’m also in the capital, and Li Miaozhen knows my true identity…
This won’t do. I must make Second Young Master take the blame for this.
[One: What is Number Five coming to the capital for?]
[Five: To travel and see the world!]
Li Miaozhen suppressed her shock and joined the conversation: [Two: Number Five, remember not to reveal your Gu Clan identity. People in Great Feng dislike the Gu Clan. The jianghu is treacherous. Even if you’re wronged, if the authorities know you’re from the Gu Clan, they’ll likely turn a blind eye.
[And in the eyes of many lowly jianghu people, using any means against Gu Clan members is considered justified.]
During the Battle of Shanhai Pass years ago, the Southern Borderlands barbarians and Northern barbarians allied, opposing Great Feng. Additionally, in recent years, the Southern Borderlands barbarians have often harassed Great Feng’s borders to reclaim lost territory.
Both sides have long-standing grudges.
The Gu Clan of the Southern Borderlands is also included in the category of “Southern Borderlands barbarians.”
Li Na thought for a moment and felt that since she wasn’t afraid of poison or physical force, there was nothing to fear. But since Number Two was so enthusiastic in her warning, she sent a message of thanks:
[Okay, I’ll be careful.]
Then, Li Miaozhen sent a message: [Number Four, although we’re both members of the Heaven and Earth Society, sect grudges take precedence. When we meet, I won’t show mercy.]
[Four: I’ll take responsibility for my own life and death.]
This… We’re all group members, is this really necessary? Xu Qi’an thought to himself.
As the group chat ended, Xu Qi’an put away the Earth Book fragment and looked up at Zhong Li, who was sitting with her back to him.
Is it this woman bringing me misfortune? Maybe I should ask the Controller for a refund…