74: Old Friends

The imperial examination concluded.

Now, all that was left was to wait.

Thanks to the efficiency of the Great Zhou's extraordinary world, the list of successful candidates for the imperial examination would be released in just three days.

However, the subsequent palace examination would require a month's wait.

Qin Chuan had no intention of wasting this period.

—There was a glimmer of hope regarding a shortcut to completing Wang Xuan's life goal.

The following evening.

The results of this imperial examination were presented before the Empress.

Although there had always been a rule of anonymous grading in the imperial examinations, this rule depended on who it was applied to.

As the ruler of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Empress was clearly not subject to this restriction.

She was currently looking at the rankings and her expression was surprised.

"Is this Chen Wenyuan, ranked seventh?"

The official from the Ministry of Personnel, who was in charge in the Ming Hall, immediately protested and assured the Empress when she inquired.

"Your Majesty, it is not due to our favoritism. Chen Jie Yuan's examination paper, a disciple of Minister Wang, is certainly worthy of being among the top ten, but compared to the few students before him, he still lacks a bit."

"A bit?" the Empress asked calmly.

"Yes, yes. Of course, it's also possible that we made a mistake. After all, this year's questions were simple; it was just based on the various examiners'—"

The head of the Ministry of Personnel broke out in a cold sweat. He wasn't lying.

For example, for a 100-point exam, some people score a perfect score because they are capable of doing so.

But some people score a hundred points because the exam only has a hundred points.

However, if they all score a hundred points, the criteria for ranking become more subjective.

The Empress: "Move everyone else's rank back one position, and appoint Chen Wenyuan as the Huiyuan. Is that acceptable?"

Although the emperor usually adjusted the rankings of the imperial examinations during the palace examination, at this moment, the head of the Ministry of Personnel dared not utter a single word of dissent.

"Your Majesty is brilliant; it should be so."

"Oh, Young Master, you passed! You passed, you're the Huiyuan!"

Qing Mo was as excited as Fan Jin, as if she were the one who had passed the examination.

Qin Chuan smiled and ruffled her hair, saying,

"Don't be silly, quickly give them some reward money."

To be honest, Qin Chuan was quite surprised by this result.

Although he felt he had performed well, he hadn't really—cough, well, he had thought about being the 'Huiyuan'.

But now that it really was him, he could certainly be happy for a while.

"Oh, oh, here you go."

Qing Mo responded, quickly taking out the silver she had been warming on her person for several days; she had been preparing for a long time.

After sending off the joyous messenger, Qin Chuan saw the Wang Manor's steward again.

In an instant, Qin Chuan's expression immediately froze.

"Alright, alright, I get it. I'll move out in the next two days, and I'll come back after I've formally acknowledged my master. Why is this like a daughter getting married, not allowed to live here before entering the family?"

The steward smiled and said, "Taking a master is even more important than marriage, Little Master. I didn't come this time because Lord Wang told you to leave, but because someone is visiting."

Qin Chuan frowned; "Did those clowns from the National Academy come again? I'm not seeing them."

The steward shook his head; "This time, it's not them who are visiting."

"Hmm? Do I have other acquaintances in the capital?"

A moment later, Qin Chuan looked at the person before him, and a smile finally appeared on his face.

"Haha, I wondered who it was, turns out it's Senior Brother Liu."

Liu Yu at the doorway was still dressed in his usual attire, but his complexion was much rosier.

Seeing Qin Chuan's appearance, a genuine smile appeared on his face.

"Wen Yuan, I should have visited earlier, but the imperial examination was not yet decided. Firstly, I was worried about disturbing you, and secondly—"

Before Liu Yu could finish his sentence, he suddenly saw Qing Mo smiling sweetly beside Qin Chuan, and the latter half of his sentence got stuck.

Not only that, he even took a large step back, still clearly shaken.

Qin Chuan: ...

Qing Mo: ...

It seems this child's psychological trauma is quite severe.

"Qing Mo, go prepare some tea. It's been a long time since I've seen Senior Brother Liu. This time, we must have a good chat, haha. Three great joys in life, and I've encountered two today."

Qing Mo shot Liu Yu a displeased glance before turning to prepare the tea.

Qin Chuan led Liu Yu to the main hall, and they took their seats as host and guest.

"Senior Brother Liu, when did you arrive in the capital? Since our farewell in Qiao City..."

After some conversation, Qin Chuan roughly understood Liu Yu's experiences.

To sum it up in one sentence: A scholar traveling to the capital for the imperial examination.

Simple as those few words were, the process, while not necessarily evoking great joy or sorrow, held a flavor that outsiders could not comprehend.

As for why Liu Yu didn't seek out Qin Chuan upon arriving in the capital, Qin Chuan could vaguely guess from his words.

Firstly, it was precisely because he said he was worried about affecting the imperial examination.

Secondly, it was probably... fear of being scolded.

Or rather, fear of being called a sycophant.

He did not wish to be looked down upon.

Qin Chuan expressed his full understanding of this.

During the subsequent time, old friends reunited, and naturally, they conversed happily.

Until...

"Oh? Wen Yuan, your friend has arrived. You must entertain him well."

"Teacher, I know."

"Greetings, Minister Wang."

Wang Zhongshu was leading a person beside him, seemingly discussing something.

Seeing Qin Chuan entertaining a friend, he smiled, greeted them, and then led the person to the back residence.

After they had gone far, Qin Chuan looked at Liu Yu and teased,

"You're quite unfazed by honor or disgrace. Do you need me to introduce you to my teacher?"

Liu Yu shook his head: "There's no need to trouble Lord Wang."

Qin Chuan: "Oh? Why, because of reputation?"

Liu Yu said earnestly: "Of course not! Although many people in the world misunderstand Lord Wang, he is still one of the people I admire most on the path of Confucianism—"

"You flattered him too late, he's already gone."

"I, I'm not... I didn't..."

Behind the main hall, Wang Zhongshu and the other person walked and chatted.

The person smiled and said, "This disciple of yours is not like you. I thought you would raise a solitary minister."

Wang Zhongshu looked back at the main hall: "Why should my disciple be like me? He has his own life."

Qin Chuan and Liu Yu chatted for a long time.

If Qing Mo hadn't brought tea, he would have wanted to talk with him all night.

However, after seeing Liu Yu off, Qin Chuan was in high spirits.

Seizing this momentum, he prepared to begin helping Wang Xuan achieve his life goal.

First step—

Turn him into the top celebrity of the entire Great Zhou!

The next day, Qin Chuan uncharacteristically agreed to the invitation from the Guozijian Students.

A group of people gathered at a restaurant to congratulate Qin Chuan on becoming the Huiyuan.

Qin Chuan dealt with them while patiently waiting.

Until Wang Xuan arrived in the restaurant's main hall, drinking large gulps of wine and eating large chunks of meat.

By 'accident,' the two met and had a very pleasant conversation.

Then, to the stunned gazes of the Guozijian Students and the onlookers in the restaurant, the two became more and more engrossed in their conversation.

Our new Huiyuan seemed to be in high spirits and composed a poem on the spot.

"The guest of Zhao, with a flowing beard and a foreign cap, his Wu hook gleams like frost and snow."

"Silver saddle illuminates the white horse, swift as a shooting star."

"He kills a man in ten steps, and travels a thousand li without leaving a trace."

"Who can write the Taixuan Sutra under the pavilion, with white hair?"

Upon the completion of the poem, the entire hall was astonished!

From then on, the name 'Wang Xuan' spread like wildfire.

And this was just the beginning.