442: Chapter 442 Unable to Get Drunk After a Thousand Cups

"Ah!?"

Both of them panicked.

"Teacher, are you abandoning us?"

"Are you going to expel us from the school!?"

"We know we were wrong, we only want to follow you, Teacher..."

Master Li Jingyi couldn't help but laugh and cry, "Don't let your imaginations run wild. I mean, I want you to enter the New Northern Academy as students of the academy for two years of advanced study."

"As long as you complete all the examinations at the New Northern Academy, you won't need to take the imperial examinations to qualify for an official position, and you can directly take up a post in the Northern Territory."

"Furthermore, there is no need to wait; upon graduation, you can immediately take office."

Upon hearing this, both were stunned, looking at each other in disbelief.

"No... no imperial examinations? And we can still become officials?"

"And no waiting? Teacher, is this for real?"

Master Xu Huaian chuckled, "I wouldn't dare guarantee it elsewhere, but in the Northern Territory, the Prince of Zhenbei's word is final. Would he deceive you?"

Hearing this, both students were tempted.

"Don't get too happy too soon. Studying at the New Northern Academy is not just about reading books."

Master Li Jingyi reminded them, "Things like pulling weeds in the fields today will likely be frequent. You need to consider this carefully."

Upon hearing this, Qu Yi began to have second thoughts, but Zhang Heng still wanted to give it a try.

"Teacher, even if it means farming in the fields, this student is willing!"

"Oh? Why? Do you feel that you have no way to make it onto the Golden List?"

Zhang Heng said sheepishly, "This student is indeed of mediocre aptitude. It would be difficult to pass the jinshi examination."

"However... I want to try the New Northern Academy, mainly because... it feels very grounded."

"Grounded?" Master Li Jingyi frowned.

"Yes, today I understood a bit more about why one should study..."

Zhang Heng scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Master Li Jingyi and Master Xu Huaian exchanged glances, both falling into deep thought.

The next day.

The Worlds Number One Wine Festival opened as scheduled.

Carriages traveled along the official road, following the signs towards Xinghua Village.

For the few days before the opening, Xinghua Village had been under the control of government soldiers, with entry and exit strictly monitored, which really whetted the appetites of all the guests.

Inside a new model Hongqi car from the Northern Carriage Company, Emperor Hong was yawning, feeling so comfortable he was about to fall asleep.

"Old Zheng, aren't we there yet?"

"Master Hong, almost there. Looking at the sign, it says ten li left," Zheng Yangwei said with a smile.

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong leaned against the side, looking comfortable, and said, "Since switching to this car, my back has felt much better. I didn't expect that carriage companies nowadays would have this 'trade-in' service. It really is convenient."

"Indeed. This servant also saw the notice board and thought to give it a try. It turned out I could trade for a new car on the same day, and didn't even have to add much silver."

Zheng Yangwei said excitedly, "Sitting in this car, it's even more... than the Imperial Carriage."

Halfway through his sentence, he hurriedly shut his mouth, glancing timidly at Emperor Hong.

Emperor Hong sighed, "It is indeed more comfortable than the Imperial Carriage. This Lin Xiao really knows how to enjoy life."

Just then, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky.

"Oh my, why is it raining? And this is a newly bought car!" Zheng Yangwei said, feeling depressed.

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong teased, "Old Zheng, have you gone senile? It's a cement road; what are you afraid of?"

"Heh, look at my brain. It really is! This cement road truly has many benefits!"

While they were chatting, an "Xinghua Village" service area appeared on the side of the road ahead.

Many people were parking their carriages and horses, taking shelter from the rain in the service area, eating, drinking, and using the restrooms.

Emperor Hong and his entourage had gotten used to stopping at service areas to relieve themselves along the way, so they parked and got out.

Not long after walking, they were surprised to see a stone sculpture, surrounded by many scholars who were shaking their heads and reciting.

Emperor Hong and his group were quite puzzled. They walked over and saw that it was a stone sculpture of a shepherd boy riding a cow, with the shepherd boy pointing in the direction of Xinghua Village.

"Master, look, there is a stone tablet next to it with a poem on it?"

Zheng Yangwei read it out: "During the Qingming Festival, the rain falls in a drizzle; the travelers on the road are heartbroken. I ask where a tavern can be found, and the shepherd boy points to Xinghua Village in the distance..."

"What a good poem. In just a few short lines, it makes one feel as if they are there. It is worthy of being passed down through the ages!"

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong exclaimed in admiration, "No wonder so many people stop here. Erecting a stone statue for this poem is not an exaggeration at all..."

"Who is this author, Du Mu?" Emperor Hong frowned, "Why haven't I heard of him?"

Zheng Yangwei walked around and found that there was a detailed introduction on the back:

"Master Hong, it is written here that Du Mu was a person from the capital. He left this poem when passing through this place, but that was hundreds of years ago."

Emperor Hong looked surprised, "Hundreds of years? Is the history of Xinghua Village that long?"

As soon as he finished speaking, they heard an old man with a red nose, who was sitting and drinking not far away, laugh and say:

"Xinghua Village was discovered in the first year of the Zheng Dynasty, but its history is likely more than a thousand years old."

A young scholar at the next table said, quite disbelievingly, "Old man, don't speak so absolutely. How many mountain villages in this world can exist for a thousand years?"

"Exactly. The first year of the Zheng Dynasty was four or five hundred years ago. That is too long!" Another chubby scholar also disagreed.

The red-nosed old man stood up and poured a pot of wine into his large gourd.

"When truth becomes falsehood, falsehood becomes truth; when falsehood becomes truth, truth becomes falsehood..."

The old man looked sarcastic, then picked up his large wine gourd and, swaying, walked out of the service area into the rain.

Several scholars looked on with disdain.

"This old man must be drunk!"

"I think he's a wine lunatic..."

"Hey? Wait, why didn't that old man pay?! Waiter, he didn't pay!"

Several nosy guests shouted.

The waiter at the tavern heard them but smiled and said, "It's fine. When the Old Immortal comes to drink, we never charge him."

"What? This old man? An immortal?"

"You must have been deceived. This old man is just a drunkard!"

A group of guests were speechless. The key was that the staff at the service area all seemed to take it for granted.

Emperor Hong and Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong exchanged glances, both feeling puzzled. Why were the people in this place all acting so mysterious?

Just when the group of people thought it was ridiculous, they heard the old man loudly chant:

"One drink drains the rivers, another drink swallows the sun and moon. A thousand cups without getting drunk, only I, the Wine Sword Immortal!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the old man suddenly leaped into the air, summoned a flying sword, and stepped onto it!

He tilted his head back for a sip of wine, and the flying sword beneath his feet carried him towards the distant Cang River!

Before long, the old man had vanished from sight!

Everyone in the service area saw this scene clearly!

"Im... Immortal?!"

"We really met an immortal?!"

Large numbers of scholars and merchants rushed outside to kowtow and bow!

The scholars who had just been mocking the old man were scared pale and begged for mercy.

The tavern waiter looked disdainful, "I told you, he is an Old Immortal, but you wouldn't believe it!"

"Young man, do you see immortals often?" a scholar asked tremblingly.

"I don't know about other places, but the Old Immortal likes the wine from Xinghua Village," the waiter said.

The service area was instantly in an uproar.

Immortals coming down to earth to drink Xinghua Village wine—this must be nectar!

"Zheng Yangwei, just now... what was going on with that person?"

Emperor Hong's expression was uncertain. He didn't believe in immortals, but how could he explain what just happened?

"This... I also don't understand. Perhaps only the 'Sword Control Technique' of the Sword Forest could achieve this, but that person is not the Sword Saint."

Zheng Yangwei said with a solemn expression, "Master, that might... really be a reclusive Sword Immortal."

Emperor Hong and Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong both gasped. They hadn't even entered Xinghua Village yet, and they had already encountered a Sword Immortal?

Could this small Lincang Prefecture actually have immortals?

Could it be that the Prince of Zhenbei, Lin Xiao, was taught by immortals!?

Emperor Hong's mind was racing, and he was instantly in disarray!

Meanwhile.

On a pleasure boat on the Cang River.

Lin Xiao landed gracefully, transforming from the disheveled old man back to his own appearance.

For him, even if he didn't know the Sword Control Technique, he could force the sword to fly using his cultivation, though it was quite draining on his true qi.

"Husband, it's really something that you could come up with using this method to promote Xinghua Village. In the whole world, only you could pull this off."

Xiao Qingxuan said with a radiant smile, walking up to help the man change his clothes.

"Haha, it's also thanks to the Sword Forest's Sword Control Technique, which gave me a little inspiration."

"Honestly, the performance by the opera troupe in the service area was truly spectacular. It's a pity you didn't see it with your own eyes, my lady."

The opera troupe Lin Xiao spoke of was the group that had followed the Zhenbei Army since the beginning in Baishui City.

"What opera troupe? They are now the Zhenbei Army Cultural Troupe and receive military pay," Xiao Qingxuan corrected.

"Oh, right, right, right. I'll give them a bonus later. The performance was indeed excellent; not a single one broke character!"

"Yes, I will give the order later."

Lin Xiao said happily, "Alright, my performance is over. Next, it's up to Hua Nongying and the others."

When Xiao Qingxuan thought about the situation in Xinghua Village, she couldn't help but chuckle, her face full of anticipation.