The Birth of the Top Scholar

Time quickly came to the time for the palace examination. Xiao Liunian was the chief examiner for this palace examination, Grand Tutor Wen Heng and Minister Liu Fuyuan were the deputy chief examiners, and the system cat was the proctor specially appointed by Xiao Liunian. The written examination was scheduled for the morning and lasted for about two hours, with about two hundred people participating.

As the chief examiner, Xiao Liunian only needed to make a brief appearance at the beginning, offer a few words of encouragement, and then leave after the formal examination began.

After the written test, Xiao Liunian, Wen Heng, and Liu Fuyuan discussed selecting five people to enter the final interview stage, where the rankings of Zhuangyuan, Tanhua, Jieyuan, etc., would be determined.

"Mumu, there really was a Wu Yan in the written test that day, but I went to check, and his name is Wu Yan, Wu Yan!" There are people in this world who play with puns too.

"Mumu, how did Wu Yan do on the exam? Which one is his paper?" the system asked curiously.

“I can’t see it. I had the names completely covered up. It will be opened on the spot tomorrow,” Xiao Liunian said.

"I want to go again tomorrow," the cat insisted.

"Alright, alright, go, go." Xiao Liunian yawned. These past few days he had to read memorials and grade papers, so he hadn't had enough sleep and needed to catch up.

"A disciple of the Emperor! We have a disciple now! Hehehe!" Although I am not the Emperor, the host is, so let's round it up and count.

Seeing the system's boundless energy, Xiao Liunian forced the use of the "bed" function to wrap the cat up and forcibly mute it.

Adding one day to the time, on the second day, when Xiao Liunian arrived, the two hundred students who had come to participate in the written examination of the palace examination were already in place. The two deputy examiners, Wen Heng and Liu Fuyuan, also entered the hall before Xiao Liunian to make arrangements.

"His Majesty has arrived!" With the palace attendants' chanting, Xiao Liunian and the examiners made a grand entrance.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

Wen Heng and Liu Fuyuan led two hundred students to line up on both sides and bow in reverence.

"Grand Tutor Wen, Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, please dispense with the formalities. All students, please dispense with the formalities as well." Xiao Liunian walked to the front of the main hall and sat down.

"You have all gone through numerous selections to reach this stage of the imperial examination. Regardless of your ranking today, you will all be assigned to various departments of the court. In the future, you will all be pillars of the nation. The future of Jinling is in your hands. I hope that after entering the court, you will be conscientious in your duties, benefit the people, and make Jinling prosperous!" Xiao Liunian gave a brief speech.

The cat next to it also sat up straight, also infected by these words. The host's impromptu performance was excellent!

The two hundred students below also recalled their years of school life as Xiao Liunian spoke, and according to the reporter's record, some students even burst into tears on the spot.

"Now, let's officially announce the list. The five people who are not on the list can proceed to the interview stage for the final exam." Xiao Liunian announced the start, and Wen Heng and Liu Fuyuan led the way, with the relevant personnel announcing the list one by one.

Since the exam papers were unpacked in front of all the students, the process took almost half an hour. Xiao Liunian sighed inwardly, "China is so much better. The machine can scan and rank the results so quickly, it doesn't take this long at all."

After the final list was announced, 195 students were taken away by the Ministry of Personnel. These students would be assigned to different places. The remaining five were the best performers in this exam, and Maomao saw that Wu Yan was among these five.

"Mumu, is Wu Yan really that good at studying?" A killer leader who is both literate and skilled in martial arts.

"He passed the imperial examination at the county level in thirteen years. Isn't that amazing? If it weren't for the unexpected events that forced him to abandon his studies for revenge, he would have achieved this much sooner!" Xiao Liunian praised.

"I think Wu Yan will definitely be the top scholar!" Even his own host praised him, so it seems that this time the top scholar title can only be won by Wu Yan.

"Here are five test questions that I have just written. Each of you will randomly draw one and think about it for half an incense stick's time before answering. The answering time is one incense stick's time."

About two hours later, all five candidates finished answering the questions, and Xiao Liunian arranged for palace servants to take them to a side hall to rest.

"Both of you gentlemen, please rest for a while. We will discuss the rankings later." More than two hours had passed without a break. This was truly physically demanding. After giving his instructions, Xiao Liunian left the main hall.

Xiao Liunian touched the furry belly, which was indeed flat. It was time to eat. He would have to adjust the time for the next exam, otherwise the cat would go hungry again.

The palace servants then brought over several plates of pastries and a pot of tea. Xiao Liunian quickly picked up a pastry and handed it to the cat.

"Meow!" The system was so hungry that it ate without even looking up.

After having some snacks with the cat and resting for a while, Xiao Liunian returned to the main hall and discussed with Wen Heng and Liu Fuyuan to determine the rankings of the five people: Wu Yan, the top scholar, was 23 years old; Liu Jin, the second-ranked scholar, was 35 years old; and Li Xiang, the third-ranked scholar, was 29 years old.

"Wu Yan!"

"The students are here."

"There are currently vacancies in the Ministry of Justice. You will be assigned to the Ministry of Justice within a month."

"yes."

"Liu Jin, go to work at the Hanlin Academy."

"Li Xiang, go to the Ministry of Works."

"The other two are also future pillars of the court and national talents. Wang Jian will go to the Ministry of Works, and Wei Hai will go to the Ministry of Rites."

"Specific position will be announced later!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The students bowed deeply.

Xiao Liunian took the cat and left the main hall, quickly returning to Chang Le Palace. The furry child was finally able to eat a proper meal.

"There will be a parade of the top scholar tomorrow, as is customary. Would you like to go and watch?" Xiao Liunian asked. It had been almost a year since he seized the throne, and he hadn't taken the cat out for a proper stroll or any fun.

"Meow!" I want it! The real-life version, of course I have to see it.

The next day, Xiao Liunian took his pet to a teahouse, chose a private room, opened the window, and waited for the new top scholar to appear while eating snacks.

"Here he comes!" Amidst the shouts of the crowd, the protagonist of today's street rode a tall horse, with a big red flower tied around his chest, making him look exceptionally majestic.

Wu Yan smiled, but felt a slight bitterness in his heart. If his family were still alive, they would be so proud to know that he had become the top scholar!

As Wu Yan rode on his horse, he suddenly looked up and saw a large cat's head sticking out, waving its claws at him. Behind him, someone was holding the cat's hind paw with one hand, afraid that the cat would make him fall off.

"That cat? Could it be His Majesty!" Wu Yan was startled and secretly memorized the name of the teahouse.

"Mumu, here, the one riding a white horse isn't necessarily a prince; he could also be a top scholar!" This statement reveals that back on Earth, this cat was definitely addicted to the internet.

It wasn't until the newly crowned champion had been gone for quite some time that the system finally snapped back to its old ways and resumed its work of devouring snacks.

These are the two things that have made the system happiest in a long time.

First, you can be bound to a powerful host, so you don't have to worry about anything, and the task progress will be rapid.

Secondly, you can eat anywhere.

The two of them ordered all the dim sum at the teahouse. After that, the cat was in charge of eating, while Xiao Liunian was in charge of feeding it.

"Thirteen, Tongzi, why don't you think about pooping when you eat so much?"

"Your structure is so amazing?" Xiao Liunian asked a question that really annoyed him.

"No, food is completely broken down into energy during the system's chewing process, leaving no residue. It's completely different from animal digestion." The cat continued eating, and this problem didn't affect its eating at all. Xiao Liunian's attempt to amuse the cat failed.

"And I can eat even more! A lot more!" The system stared at Xiao Liunian smugly and said, "Hmph, host's prank failed. This system has won against the host today."

About half an hour later, someone knocked on the door.

"Sir, your guest has arrived!" The waiter led a man in; it was none other than Wu Yan, the top scholar who had hurriedly changed his clothes after the parade and came here.

"Meow!" the cat said first.

"Waiter, bring another pot of tea and a few plates of snacks," Xiao Liunian said to the waiter.

"Okay, sir, please wait a moment, it'll be right there!" The waiter then left, but in his heart he was thinking, "Wow, she can eat a lot at such a young age. She finished all these snacks. Is she a reincarnation of a glutton?"

After the waiter left, Wu Yan closed the door.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Wu Yan prepared to bow.

"No need for formalities, please sit!" Xiao Liunian unleashed a burst of energy, stopping Wu Yan from bowing.

“Just call me Miss Liu outside the palace!” Xiao Liunian said.

"Miss Liu!"

"Meow!" Why didn't you greet me?

"Master Cat!" After not seeing him for a while, Wu Yan's cat language skills had also improved.

"Meow!" You're amazing! You even pushed over a plate of pastries, or rather, just one piece, since there was only one pastry left on the table.

"Master Cat, please have some." Wu Yan pushed the snack back.

“It’s alright, there are others,” Xiao Liunian said.

As they were talking, the waiter shouted from outside:

"Sir, your snacks and tea are served!"

New snacks and tea were ready, and the system generously presented Wu Yan with a plate full of snacks.

Meow! Eat!

As a result, a new member joined the snack-eating group, which grew to three-half the original size.

Xiao Liunian poured three cups of tea and pushed one cup to each of the two people eating snacks. The cat was used to being fed by Xiao Liunian, while Wu Yan immediately stood up from his chair, picked up the teacup, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Thank you, Miss Liu!"

Seeing this, Xiao Liunian had no choice but to put down the teapot and dare not pour a second cup. Fortunately, the tea was still at a suitable temperature. If it had been scalding hot, he would have earned a reputation for being vicious.

"sit!"

"Once you're in the Ministry of Justice, do a good job! If you have any questions, you can take this token to Lord Liu for help."

"I will be busy with official duties in the future, but I still need to continue practicing martial arts."

Xiao Liunian handed Wu Yan a token and a secret manual.

"Your subordinate, your student, I will certainly!" One could hear the excitement in Wu Yan's voice.

"We'll take our leave now, Lord Wu, please enjoy your meal!" Xiao Liunian picked up the cat and left the teahouse.

"Mumu, what was Wu Yan like in your previous world?" The system asked its host in reverse, since most of the world plots in the system's own book did not match the current situation.

"I didn't have the power to unlock the seal so quickly before, so I didn't participate in the Yama Palace incident. Although the Yama Palace was eventually destroyed, Yan Li managed to fake his death and escape, and later continued to be a tool in Xiao Jin's hands."

"As for Wu Yan, I haven't looked into him in detail. I've only heard that there's such a Jianghu assassin. I don't know anything else about him. But later, someone broke into the palace and killed Yan Li. I think it must have been him. Xiao Jin even sent people to investigate, but this person seems to have vanished from the world without a trace."

"I speculate that he must have sacrificed his life to achieve mastery of martial arts, killed Yan Li, and then died himself!"

Xiao Liunian speculated.

"Mumu, you must not overdraw your life force to improve your cultivation!" the system said worriedly.

"Don't worry, it won't happen!" Xiao Liunian promised.

Xiao Liunian had tried it once before, but even if it cost him his life, the results were not good at all. The cost was huge and the effect was minimal. The plan was a high-investment, low-return one, so it was rejected!

"Let's go. We've been eating and drinking at teahouses ever since we left the palace. Now it's time to go shopping and have some fun." Xiao Liunian and the cat walked together into a bustling street lined with stalls.