Three days passed quickly. On the day Tong Xuewen came out, Tong Cheng'er and Shu Mulu waited for him in the carriage at the entrance of the examination hall.

Before Tong Xuewen arrived, the two of them saw that the candidates leaving the examination hall were all pale-faced and unsteady on their feet. Some of the more seriously ill candidates even had to be carried out. This sight made the two of them feel worried.

It seems that staying in this room is not easy. Everyone says that the college entrance examination is like a thousand troops crossing a single-plank bridge, but if you ask Tong Cheng'er, the imperial examination is the real deal. What is the college entrance examination?

In order to promote humanistic care, Tong Cheng'er was required to install air conditioning in the modern college entrance examination room before she traveled back in time.

Nowadays, those who can achieve top honors in the imperial examinations are truly one in a million, possessing both excellent academic and physical abilities. However, they tend to be somewhat unbalanced in their studies, which is not a good thing.

Tong Cheng'er and Shu Mulu waited anxiously, and then they saw the servant leading Tong Xuewen over.

As they approached, the two observed his complexion and noticed that while it wasn't exactly rosy, it was certainly not as deathly pale as the examinee they had seen earlier, who looked as if he had accidentally stayed up all night. Considering that he was not only not eating or sleeping well inside, they could understand why.

In conclusion, Tong Xuewen felt that it was one of the better-looking ones.

The servant helped him into the carriage, and Shumulu began to inquire about his well-being. Tong Xuewen seemed to be doing quite well, and even had the energy to joke around.

After returning home, Tong Xuewen rested well for a day before continuing the exam. In this tense atmosphere, the imperial examination passed by.

Tong Xuewen passed the imperial examination without any unexpected incidents. When asked by Alhatu, he even said that he performed better than expected, since eating better would make his thoughts clearer when he was writing.

In contrast to Tong Xuewen's feeling that he had performed exceptionally well, the other candidates who were assigned to cells near him were all in similar conditions, not eating or sleeping well. However, there was one special case who was different from the others and ate food with particular relish.

Holding the cold snacks with lukewarm water, and smelling the aroma wafting from Tong Xuewen's cell, I couldn't eat at all. So, while I wouldn't say I performed terribly, my performance was definitely not great.

There were quite a few, if not too many, of the scholars in the cell near Tong Xuewen's residence.

After the exams, there were bound to be some parties organized by the organizers. Tong Xuewen wasn't very interested in these, so he didn't go much. Little did he know that he had already become a "famous" figure among the candidates of this year.

It wasn't because of his "talent" that he was famous, but because his act of eating instant noodles in the cell aroused "public outrage".

Inside a private room in Wangyue Tower.

"How did you feel this time, Brother Chen?"

Brother Chen said, "Not bad, just a normal performance."

The person who spoke first couldn't help but start complaining: "Speaking of which, the difficulty of this exam was just right, but I was unlucky. The guy sitting next to me was cooking in his cubicle. The aroma of his food would waft up at mealtimes, making even the decent snacks that the pageboy prepared unpalatable."

Brother Chen was a little skeptical: "Cooking in the cell? How is that possible?"

It is said that a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen, and it sounds absurd that a scholar with official rank would cook in his cell.

"Why is it impossible? I'm not the only one who can prove it, and I don't need to joke about it."

Brother Chen was starting to believe it: "Really?"

"Of course it's true."

Similar conversations frequently occurred in restaurants and inns of all sizes in the capital. Then, without Tong Xuewen's knowledge, he gained an additional "special skill" in cooking.

Although Tong Xuewen doesn't go out much, some of his classmates and friends will visit him. When they get together, it's inevitable that someone will bring up this matter as a joke.

At first, Tong Xuewen laughed along, but as he laughed, he felt something was off. Why did this sound so familiar? It seemed to be describing him.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that De'er was referring to himself; it was quite amusing to hear his own jokes.

However, since it was ultimately the instant noodles that made the dish, he couldn't take credit for it, and there was no need to keep it a secret. So Tong Xuewen told everyone about the instant noodles. At first, no one believed him, since the aroma was supposedly very strong. How could someone who couldn't cook have made it?

Having no other choice, Tong Xuewen had his servant bring over some instant noodles and personally demonstrated how to make them. Only after smelling the aroma did everyone have to believe him.

Those who passed the provincial examination and became successful candidates were generally not stupid. They naturally thought of many things. This kind of instant noodles could be used in both the provincial and metropolitan examinations, truly living up to its name of "convenience".

Those who had a good chance of passing the exam regretted not being able to benefit from it, while those who had no chance of passing but planned to continue taking the exam wished they could buy this instant noodle. The provincial exam was alright, as it was in autumn, but the metropolitan exam was in February, when the weather was cold! Who wouldn't want something hot to eat?

As a result, instant noodles became "popular," but only Tong Xuewen demonstrated how to make them; nobody else knew how.

Tong Xuewen told his family about this. After hearing it, Shumulu had some thoughts, but since it involved food that was being consumed, and it was something that was being consumed by someone with official rank.

Even if Shumulushi saw the potential in instant noodles, she wouldn't be willing to make money from them.

So we didn't mention it.

She didn't mention it, but someone wanted her to.

No, it should be said that someone wants Tong Cheng'er to bring it up.

"Princess, the manager of Wangyuelou has handed over an invitation."

"I don't remember having any dealings with Wangyuelou. Why would their manager send me an invitation out of the blue?"

"This servant is also unsure. Why don't you take a look at the contents of the post first?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!