Some boys were still writing feverishly, but one was reported by someone beside him.
"You can go home now. You broke the academy exam rules—your score is void."
"Huh? Mr. Luu, my father is..."
But before he could finish, Luu Hong picked up his pen and drew a thick stroke across his exam paper, rendering it ruined.
"It doesn't matter who your father is—no one can break the rules set by the Great Qin Dynasty!"
His words were loud enough for everyone in the outer hall to hear; even Feng Yuan in the small courtyard could catch them.
"Go home." Luu Hong didn't bother with the boy on the verge of a meltdown, and continued collecting papers.
This kind of thing happened almost every monthly exam. As long as it wasn't too excessive, he usually looked the other way.
But it was different this time—a lord was sitting inside the courtyard, testing him earlier, and now that he'd caught an opportunity, he had to perform well.
He gathered all thirty-something papers and said in a calm, deep voice, "Marking the papers will take around two hours. You can go home, or wait here."
When he finished speaking, he left the outer hall.
As soon as Luu Hong's figure disappeared, the outer hall burst to life.
Chix Lin and Guan Chong sat together, surrounded by over a dozen boys.
"Brother Chix, how was it?" Guan Chong asked with a smile.
Chix Lin shook his head lightly, "Didn't do well."
But anyone with eyes could see he was pretending—his lips could hardly hide the smile, and he claimed he did poorly? Who was he fooling?
"Heh, I didn't do well either," Guan Chong pulled a book from under the desk, "Still need to work hard."
Damn!
Someone was truly disgusted.
The boys who had been gathered suddenly felt as if they'd swallowed a fly.
The two of you can be falsely modest, but why drag us down with you?
The boys dispersed, seeking others of similar academic level to chat in threes and fours.
They all knew it was unlikely they'd make the top three in this exam, but before the scores were out, there was always hope wasn't there?
Maybe the three—Chix Lin, Guan Chong, and Luu Xian—would have an off day.
Chix Lin glanced at the seriously reading Guan Chong, and got goosebumps. How could someone pretend so much?
"Tonight my father is holding a banquet at Cyan Bamboo Pavilion to celebrate my imminent entry into Baiyuan Academy. If you're free, you're all welcome to come."
"Going, absolutely, Cyan Bamboo Pavilion, I've never eaten there."
"What could possibly be more important than Brother Chix's invitation? Of course we'll go."
"Yeah, Brother Chix is about to enter Baiyuan Academy—he'll definitely become an official someday."
The boys who'd been disgusted quickly flocked over, all taking turns to lavish praise on Chix Lin as if he hung the moon.
Chix Lin looked smugly at Guan Chong.
When it comes to acting, you're not on my level.
"Brother Luu, Brother Guan, how about joining?" Chix Lin asked confidently.
His family were small wealthy merchants in Liuu Town, and Cyan Bamboo Pavilion belonged to them.
The group glanced at Guan Chong, then at Luu Xian.
Guan Chong clenched his hand under the desk—he couldn't compete with Chix Lin's family, nor with Luu Xian, whose father was a private tutor.
So all he could do was study desperately.
If he failed this exam...
"Alright, I'll be there."
No way he'd fail—even if Luu Xian and Chix Lin took the top two spots, he'd be third, which also got him into Baiyuan Academy.
In other words, they'd still be classmates in the future, so the relationship had to be maintained.
"What about Brother Luu?" Chix Lin looked at the boy seated alone near the front.
Luu Xian paused, then nodded gently, "Okay."
"Haha, Brother Luu, Brother Guan, we all come from Liuu Town. We should stick together, so we don't get bullied once we're at Baiyuan Academy."
Truth be told, Chix Lin really only wanted to invite Guan Chong and Luu Xian—the others were just there to cheer them on.
"Uh...can I go?"
Just as everyone was singing the praises of the trio, a timid voice sounded.
"Of course. Today, everyone's invited. Including you, Huang Lu, and your friend...what's his name again?" Chix Lin looked both disdainful and proud.
"Chu Ming, his name is Chu Ming."
Huang Lu hurriedly replied.
But no one cared about him, let alone his answer.
Chix Lin just glanced over, then ignored him.
"Heh heh, Brother Chu, we scored big—it's rare to get a meal at Cyan Bamboo Pavilion. Do you know, it's the fanciest restaurant in Liuu Town..."
Huang Lu seemed long used to being overlooked. After confirming they could go to Cyan Bamboo Pavilion, he excitedly started rambling to Chu Ming.
Chu Ming sat at the last row's desk, his gaze calm, only nodding occasionally, as a token show of interest.
...
Inner hall.
Luu Hong was quickly grading the papers when Feng Yuan entered with his attendants.
"Lord Feng." Luu Hong quickly bowed.
"Mm." Feng Yuan nodded slightly, picked up the exam papers on the desk, and leafed through them, sometimes shaking his head, sometimes nodding.
Suddenly, his eyes brightened, pausing on one paper.
"This boy, Guan Chong, answered quite well." He paused, then looked at another, smiling wider, "Mr. Luu, your teaching is excellent."
Luu Xian's exam paper had very few errors.
"Thank you for your praise, Lord Feng. My son does have some talent," Luu Hong said, not at all modest when it came to his son.
"And what about one named Chix Lin?"
"I'm grading it now, please hold on." Luu Hong immediately read through the paper in his hands.
Soon, he finished grading.
"Compared to Luu Xian and Guan Chong, he's a bit behind..." Feng Yuan picked up the paper, his face expressionless.
Although Chix Lin's answers were solid and he'd almost surely make the top three, it just wasn't much of a surprise.
He put the paper down and looked at the stack still ungraded, "Which paper is from that boy in the far corner? Has it been graded yet?"
"The far corner?"
Luu Hong was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized whom Feng Yuan meant.
He sifted through the papers under the inkstone still ungraded, "Lord Feng, you mean the boy named Chu Ming?"
When collecting papers earlier, he'd checked everyone's name. Chu Ming had caught his attention, since Feng Yuan had mentioned him but he hadn't had time to mark it yet.
However, when Feng Yuan heard this name, his brow furrowed slightly: "Chu Ming?"
The third son of the Chu Family, Baiyuan County's wealthy merchants—ordinary people didn't know, but as a Senior Eighth Grade Official, he'd heard about the illegitimate son.
Loves travelogues, brothels, never studies; after his mother died over a year ago, he was sent to a small town under Baiyuan County.
He'd never paid attention to which town exactly.
But seeing the name, and hearing the earlier chatter—travelogues, brothels...
It couldn't be just coincidence; it was probably the same person.
But...is it really him?
Such calm eyes—could they belong to someone who only seeks pleasure?
And, if he went by the habits of Chu Family's illegitimate child, it hardly made sense for him to show up for the academy exam.
While he pondered, Luu Hong found Chu Ming's exam paper and began marking it.
The more he graded, the more animated his expression became.
His brows would occasionally relax, only to furrow again in the next instant.
When he finished marking the final essay question, he stared at the paper, scrutinizing it over and over.
"Impossible!" No matter how many times he checked, the answers were almost textbook-perfect.
Just a handful of mistakes, and those mistakes made him want to laugh and cry.
Of the five wrong spots, three were originally correct, but then crossed out, overwritten—ending up wrong after repeated edits.
The impression was...he knew the answer but doubted it, and eventually wrote it wrong!
But looking at it, there was something almost deliberate about it...
"Intentionally answered wrong?" he murmured again.