Meng Tinghui had barely pushed open her door when Yan Fuzhi grabbed her and pulled her inside. She heard the door being kicked shut behind her, and before she could react, she was pushed down onto a chair.

She frowned and asked in surprise: “What are you doing in my room?”

Yan Fuzhi remained standing, looking down at her. After a long moment, she finally said: “Yesterday at Bofeng Tower, when you saw that black-robed man go downstairs, why did you follow him?”

Meng Tinghui rubbed her arm, stood up to drive her visitor away, and said expressionlessly: “What business is it of yours?”

Yan Fuzhi was pushed to the doorway by her, but she refused to leave, holding onto the doorframe. Suddenly, she smiled mysteriously: “Meng Tinghui, don’t you want to know who he is?”

Meng Tinghui glanced at her, saying nothing, but increased the force of her push.

Yan Fuzhi still wouldn’t give up, exclaiming: “Tell me your secrets, and I’ll tell you who he is!”

Meng Tinghui’s face remained cold: “I already know his surname and given name. I don’t need you to tell me.”

Yan Fuzhi was astonished: “You… you know his name?”

Meng Tinghui pushed her forcefully toward the door, her expression increasingly displeased: “I want to read now.”

She wasn’t accustomed to being pressured like this since childhood, and… he was a seed planted in the softest part of her heart. She had been hoping and longing for the day when that seed would sprout and blossom, but she didn’t want others to touch it casually.

“Wait… wait!” Yan Fuzhi wedged herself in the doorway and said irritably: “I truly have good intentions that are being treated like garbage! If you don’t want to talk about him, fine, but surely you want to hear about the imperial examinations?”

Meng Tinghui’s hand paused, and she raised an eyebrow.

Yan Fuzhi’s face was flushed as she complained: “With such strength, why don’t you take the military exams instead?” Seeing Meng Tinghui’s face darken again as if to drive her away, she hurriedly continued: “You don’t know, today the academy supervisor announced that according to rumors from the court, this year’s top female candidate in the imperial examinations will be allowed to enter the Hanlin Academy!”

Meng Tinghui was stunned upon hearing this. After a long moment, she asked: “Really?”

Seeing that she had relaxed her grip, Yan Fuzhi squeezed back into the room and continued: “Would I lie to you about this? An official from the capital visited the academy supervisor this morning and spoke of this matter.”

Meng Tinghui frowned but said nothing.

Yan Fuzhi glanced at her obliquely. “They say the Crown Prince recently suggested to the Empress that in the twenty years since, no female official has held an important position, which doesn’t align with the original purpose of establishing women’s academies. Therefore, he specially ordered the Hanlin Academy to set aside one position this year for female candidates, allowing the top female graduate to enter the Hanlin Academy as an editor.”

Hanlin…

Meng Tinghui bit her lip and looked up toward the window.

She certainly knew what it meant to enter the Hanlin Academy.

Since the eighth year of Qiande when the Empress promoted Hanlin Academy Scholar Gu Qin to Deputy Minister of the Right, over the years, six or seven out of ten officials participating in government administration and heading the Six Ministries had come from the Hanlin Academy.

This time, allowing a female candidate to enter the Hanlin Academy, even if only as a minor editor, was enough to indicate that a major change in the court’s official system was coming.

Yan Fuzhi watched her expression and knew what she was thinking. She moved closer as if to comfort her: “Don’t worry, you study so well, it will be no problem…”

Meng Tinghui composed herself and finally said softly: “Let’s not talk about whether I could be fortunate enough to participate in the palace examination in the future. Even the current provincial examination—North Chao’an Road is full of talented people—how could it be easy?”

Yan Fuzhi stared at her: “That doesn’t sound like something Meng Tinghui would say! Where is that person with the best essays and the most arrogance in Chongzhou Women’s Academy? If you can’t pass the provincial examination, who in Chongzhou could?” She blinked, then suddenly smiled again: “Besides, think about your black-robed man…”

Meng Tinghui’s eyelid twitched, and she raised her hand as if to strike Yan Fuzhi, saying angrily: “How dare you talk such nonsense all day!”

Yan Fuzhi dodged while laughing: “Though I don’t know what secrets you have in your heart, that man is clearly from a wealthy and noble background. If you don’t become the top scholar, how could you ever reach his level?”

Meng Tinghui’s face reddened slightly as she grabbed a stack of papers from the table and threw them at Yan Fuzhi.

Yan Fuzhi nimbly dodged to the side, smiled at her again, then turned to leave. As she closed the latch, she added: “When you achieve fame and success in the future, let’s see if you still hit people!”

The door closed abruptly, the double thump making her ears itch.

She stood where she was, her chest rising and falling slightly. After a long while, she bent down to pick up the scattered paper, then turned to look at the books messily spread across the table.

The capital…

She closed her eyes briefly.

Only by reaching the capital would she have a chance to see him again.

Becoming the top scholar… though a distant dream, it wasn’t impossible, was it?