Unparalleled

Their arrival at Langyue Tower was quite unfortunate, as it coincided with the release of the results of the Dragon Gate Examination. Those who passed the exam had their parents bring them directly to Langyue Tower to treat them to a meal; those who failed did not have their parents scold them, but instead brought them to Langyue Tower for a meal to comfort them, saying, "Keep trying, don't be discouraged."

If it were just people from the capital, they would naturally not be a threat. However, the candidates for the Longmen Examination come from all over the country, and many of them come from remote border towns. These people have long heard of the reputation of "Langyue Tower". They happen to be accompanying their children to take the exam. The wealthy families naturally think that the trip should not be in vain. Regardless of whether they pass the exam or not, they must have a meal at Langyue Tower.

The students from Gezhong Middle School had just pushed open the door of Langyue Tower when they saw the scene inside and gasped in shock, speechless with astonishment. Leaving aside the people sitting at the tables eating, and the strangers sharing tables and chatting happily, the queue alone filled every available space in the tower, and some were even standing on the steps to queue.

One person stands on each step, which is quite neat.

Ning Xunxu said with relief, "Fortunately, Langyue Tower is owned by Brother Jusheng. Otherwise, we probably would have been waiting in line for ages and would have starved to death."

"Indeed, indeed."

Everyone nodded in agreement and looked at Yi Shen.

Yi Shen glanced at Wu Qi, and seeing her nod with a smile, he said, "Come with me."

The room the students from the pavilion visited last time was prepared by Yi Wo for his wife, Song Lingshu. This time, the room they visited was prepared by Yi Wo for Yi Shen. One of them asked curiously, "Could it be that Brother Jusheng also prepared a room for Brother Jingqing?"

Yi Shen said, "Hmm."

Lin Kuo said, "That room was supposedly prepared by Brother Jusheng for Brother Jingqing, but the screens, cups, bed curtains, tables and chairs in the room are all things my sister likes. Brother Jingqing decorated everything according to my sister's preferences. Take this room, for example. It was said to be prepared for Weichong, but look at the furnishings in the room, isn't everything Xiaoqi likes?"

Everyone looked and realized it was true.

This room was completely out of Yi Shen's style. Everyone knew he usually wore light-colored clothes with dark patterns, but this room was decorated with peach blossom colors everywhere, echoing Wu Qi's floral patterns. Moreover, the fresh flowers in the corner, the red plum blossoms on the screen, and the easel set up beside the table... all clearly indicated who the owner of the room was.

Unlike Yi Ru, Yi Shen didn't spend time decorating the room. He simply brought Wu Qi here so many times that the two of them gradually added these things. If the room were a tree, the branches would represent Yi Shen's preferences, while the leaves and flowers would represent Wu Qi's favorite colors.

Just by looking at this room, everyone could glean some insight into how much Yi Shen cared for Wu Qi.

Standing in the room, He Qi suddenly felt an urge to rush out and leave, to escape this suffocating place. Everyone else had already picked up the menus and started ordering, while he remained standing there, pondering—in what way did he fall short of Yi Shen?

He thought and thought, but he couldn't find an answer.

He didn't want to admit that Yi Shen was better than him in any way. He was already struggling to hold on, and if he admitted that Yi Shen was better than him, then the strength that supported him to continue to love Wu Qi would really collapse.

Since everyone was prepared to rip off Li Jian, they naturally didn't hold back. They ordered a few dishes, and that wasn't enough; they even held the menu up to Li Jian and deliberately asked, "Can I order this?"

Li Jiandao exclaimed, "Yes, yes, yes!"

"What about this one?"

Li Jian cried out in anguish, "Dot, dot, dot!"

"I want to eat this too!"

Li Jian rubbed his forehead and said, "Order! Don't ask me anymore! Order!"

Everyone burst into laughter. Wu Qi leaned against Yi Shen, his eyes brimming with amusement. However, when he heard Yi Shen say, "Your injury hasn't healed yet, so you need to watch what you eat," the amusement in his eyes vanished by half.

Wu Qi's shock was too obvious, and Yi Shen smiled slightly, twirling her hair ribbon with his index finger, and said, "We'll eat again when you're healed."

Wu Qi said dejectedly, "Well... that's fine too."

After all, it's your own body.

Langyue Tower was crowded today, and everyone waited a while for their food to arrive. They nodded to each other as a greeting and then picked up their chopsticks to eat. Seeing that Wu Qi was only eating those few dishes, someone asked, "What's wrong with Xiao Qi? Why is he only eating those few dishes?"

Wu Qi said, "You're injured..."

Everyone paused, looked at Wu Qi, and couldn't help but ask, "How did you get injured?"

Wu Qi replied, "The injury I sustained a few days ago while working with the cannon unicorn is not serious, but I need to avoid certain foods for the next few days."

Wu Qi had already entered the Moonfall Camp, so the others couldn't ask any more questions. They could only tell him to rest well. Wu Qi picked up a piece of green vegetable, chewed it twice, and swallowed it directly, saying, "Thank you, but I still want to say that 'Pao Lin' is really impressive."

Everyone said, "Yes, Weifeng, let's focus on healing your injuries first!"

The meal was finished amidst laughter and playful banter.

When everyone finished eating and came downstairs, there were still many people queuing at Langyue Tower, but there were far fewer people standing on the steps. As soon as Wu Qi stepped out of Langyue Tower, he saw several women wearing headscarves surrounding a woman and heading towards Langyue Tower.

This woman...

Wu Qi rubbed his eyes and said, "Zhou...Zhou Liuhu?"

Yi Shen said, "She came to participate in the Dragon Gate Examination."

Zhou Liuhu naturally saw them as well. She turned back and said a few words to the woman, then ran a few steps to the front of the crowd. Without any fear, she glanced at everyone and said to Wu Qi, "I was thinking about when I could see you. I've missed you a bit since we parted ways in Pingwu City."

As she spoke, she couldn't hide her excitement and exclaimed, "Oh, I passed the exam!"

One of the students from the middle school asked, "What did I pass the exam for?"

Zhou Liuhu straightened his back and announced loudly, "The Dragon Gate Examination."

The man sincerely praised, "You're really amazing! I've heard the Dragon Gate Exam is incredibly difficult! What place did you get?"

Zhou Liuhu replied: "Third place!"

The results were just released today, and she came in third.

The women wearing headscarves behind Zhou Liuhu were actually the same people from the market. They came up to greet Yi Shen and Lin Kuo as well.

Yi Shen and Lin Kuo bowed to him, and Lin Kuo asked, "Where are you two going so late?"

"Didn't this young lady pass the Dragon Gate Examination? We thought we'd treat her to a meal at Langyue Tower, since we got a half-price discount and it would cost less. But..." A woman tilted her head and looked at Langyue Tower, saying, "I didn't expect there to be so many people here so late."

Lin Kuo said, "There are quite a lot of people coming to eat today."

Yi Shen glanced at Wu Qi, who smiled and nodded. He said, "If you don't mind, why don't you come with me?"

Before Ning Xunxu could turn around, he saw that all the students from the pavilion school had turned around with Yi Shen. He asked in confusion, "Didn't you just finish eating? Why are you following us again?"

One of them put his arm around Ning Xunxu's shoulder and said, "Just joining in the fun. We've got nothing to do tonight anyway, so let's chat, have some tea, and catch up!"

"Yeah, yeah, let's go!"

So the group that had just come out followed Wu Qi and the others back to that room. The servant who was clearing away the dishes paused when he saw them and asked, "Third Young Master, do...do you still want to eat?"

Yi Shen said, "Give the menu to those people."

Although the women in the market said that dining at Langyue Tower was half price, they rarely came because Langyue Tower was expensive. Now that they knew that Zhou Liuhu had come alone from Pingwu and had passed the imperial examination, they felt sorry for her and happy for her. So they decided to invite her to dine at Langyue Tower.

When they received the menu, the women's eyes widened in surprise at the prices.

Wu Qi said, "She and I are old acquaintances. Consider this meal my treat to you all, as a way of thanking you for taking care of her in the capital."

Several women said, "Lady, we can't accept this!"

Song Yinxing said, "It's nothing, it's what we should do."

Actually, there was no question of "should" or "shouldn't"; they simply didn't want the women and Zhou Liuhu to spend too much money. The students of Cizige Middle School naturally understood this and changed the subject to chat with them.

At first, the women were hesitant to chat much with the students, fearing they might say something wrong and offend someone. However, the students were incredibly knowledgeable, ranging from astronomy to geography, and were always very witty, never asking too many questions. Whenever a topic was about to end, someone would always come up with a new one.

As they chatted longer, the women found it quite easy to talk to them.

Zhou Liuhu passed the Dragon Gate Examination, which naturally earned her praise and admiration from everyone. However, she also knew that the twenty people in front of her, who were not showing off, were indeed talented and knowledgeable, and knew more than her, certainly not less.

After the meal, just as the women were about to pay, the waiter said, "The ladies have already paid." Zhou Liuhu walked behind the women, handed the money pouch to Wu Qi, and said, "I checked the order when we ordered. If it's half price, this is enough! I'm not one to eat for free! Tonight, you've come to celebrate for me, how could I let you spend money!"

Wu Qi took the money bag, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Zhou Liuhu then asked, "Where do you live? Where should I go to find you to play?"

Wu Qi quietly placed the money pouch into the cloth bag on her back and said, "The Wu family and the Yi family."

Zhou Liuhu glanced at Wu Qi, then at Yi Shen, and said, "Okay, I'll remember."

As Wu Qi watched Zhou Liuhu's departing figure, for some reason, she found herself thinking of Li Shuying, a thought she hadn't had in a long time. She had never met Li Shuying in her previous life, but looking at the ecstatic Zhou Liuhu, she could imagine how Li Shuying must have felt back then, and how happy she must have been.

There are only so many places available for the Longmen Examination. If someone takes the exam for someone else and cheats, there will be one less person like Zhou Liuhu and Li Shuying. Those in high positions of power go to great lengths to ensure their children pass the Longmen Examination so that they can be promoted and transferred a few years later. Little do they know that it is their actions that bury a person's life.

Yi Shen and Lin Kuo's actions offended many powerful figures, but they also protected ordinary people like Zhou Liuhu from entering officialdom.

Wu Qi looked at Yi Shen with admiration, and couldn't help but circle around Yi Shen, praising, "How can our Yi Shen be so amazing! He is absolutely unique in heaven and earth!"

Once she stood still, Yi Shen put his arm around her waist.

Amidst the comings and goings of people, he took her hand and said, "You too."

It is absolutely unique in heaven and on earth.