Chapter 7 The Ancient Scholar Used as Cannon Fodder (Part 7) Although it's not crowded...

Although it was impossible to squeeze in, the sounds from inside could still be heard, and many people who had come to join in the fun also spread the news outwards.

"Zhang Cheng from Qingyang County, ranked eighty-ninth. Congratulations, Master Zhang!!"

A middle-aged scholar was overjoyed and quickly grabbed a handful of copper coins, scattering them into the crowd.

"Zhao Chengye from Lihua County, ranked sixty-fifth, congratulations..."

An elderly man with gray hair, well past fifty, clutched his chest in excitement, trembling for a long time before he could recover.

"Li Lei from Qinghua City, ranked forty-seventh..."

Shouts grew louder and louder, some in the crowd were overjoyed, others were dejected. As the rankings improved, the people waiting in the teahouse grew increasingly anxious.

Lin You floated in mid-air, watching the officials posting the notices slowly from bottom to top. Every now and then, a gasp would come from the crowd, some people were pushing in, some were rushing out, and in an instant, chaos ensued.

Fortunately, the constables were all experienced and had arranged for people to maintain order, which prevented a stampede or similar incident from happening.

Once the list was finally posted, Chu Nanfeng's name was in second place. After confirming that the place of origin information was correct and that it wasn't someone else with the same name, Lin You immediately floated back. She didn't need to squeeze in; she ran even faster than the group of people who wanted to ask for tips.

"Chu Nanfeng, you got second place!" Lin You excitedly added, "Han Qige didn't pass! That's fantastic!"

"Yes, that's great!" Chu Nanfeng's eyes also brimmed with smiles. The procession bringing good news quickly arrived at the door. When Chu Nanfeng heard his name being called, he went out to greet them and distributed several hundred copper coins that he had prepared in advance to everyone.

When he turned his head, he met a pair of fierce, jealous eyes.

When the scholar in blue saw him turn around, he quickly composed himself and approached with a smile: "Congratulations, Brother Chu, on passing the imperial examination! There's a poetry gathering at Hefeng Tower tonight. Would you be so kind as to come and give us some pointers? We've known each other for a while now, so you wouldn't refuse to give us face just because you passed the preliminary round, would you?"

This person had a gentle demeanor, but his favorability rating was already -5. This was the first time Chu Nanfeng had ever seen a negative favorability rating. Even Han Qige had a favorability rating of 3 for him.

"This guy's talking weirdly. Is he trying to use moral blackmail?" Lin You asked, frowning. "Where did he come from?"

"Ignore him, he's insignificant." Chu Nanfeng ignored what the scholar in blue said and refused outright.

The scholar in blue was about to persuade him again when the scholar in yellow spoke up sarcastically: "Tomorrow is the Deer Cry Banquet for the newly appointed scholars. You yourself are incapable of attending, yet you're preventing others from preparing?"

The scholar in blue stiffened for a moment, but quickly composed himself and said with a look of shame, "It was my oversight, Brother Chu, please don't take offense. I'll invite you to a gathering in a few days."

"It's alright, no need. I'm not acquainted with you," Chu Nanfeng replied indifferently, making it very clear that he didn't want to associate with him.

He turned his head and nodded slightly to the scholar in yellow, revealing a kind smile. The scholar in yellow was taken aback and returned a stiff smile with pursed lips.

On the still-open cheat screen, the yellow-robed scholar's favorability rating jumped directly from 5 to 6, which is quite obvious.

Chu Nanfeng turned off his cheat system and ignored the scholar in blue. He only exchanged pleasantries with the other scholars who had gathered around him. The scholar in blue was pushed aside, his expression changing constantly, but unfortunately, no one cared about him having failed the exam.

The scholar in blue tried to strike up a conversation with other successful candidates, but there were just too many like him, and no one noticed him. The scholar in blue grew increasingly resentful, and his once square face became almost distorted.

The yellow-robed scholar, taking the opportunity, added fuel to the fire, making a lot of sarcastic remarks that made the blue-robed scholar want to slap him to death.

After exchanging compliments with a group of students for more than an hour, the crowd slowly dispersed, and Chu Nanfeng was finally able to escape and return to his rented courtyard.

"Brother Chu, congratulations on winning the Central Asian Yuan!" Han Qige's voice came from outside shortly after he returned, followed by a series of light footsteps.

Han Qige came running in, beads of sweat on his forehead and a big smile on his face, as if he had happily run over after hearing the news.

Upon seeing him enter, Lin You, who had been utterly bored after listening to two hours of mutual flattery, immediately perked up, her eyes gleaming with a desire to see more.

Chu Nanfeng poured Han Qige a cup of warm tea and said with a sigh, "It was just a lucky pass. Although a Juren title can exempt you from some land taxes, it doesn't make it easy to get an official position. You should continue to take the exams."

Han Qige paused noticeably, and after a long while, she said somewhat awkwardly, "Brother Chu is too modest. It's already very impressive to pass the imperial examination and become a Juren, let alone a runner-up."

Chu Nanfeng waved his hand, indicating that a mere sub-yuan was nothing to worry about. Only when Han Qige's smile was almost gone did he speak:

"Qige, I paid special attention to your name when I was looking at the list. Although you are not on the list this time, you came here to broaden your horizons. Don't be discouraged by this. You should work even harder in the future."

Lin You found his feigned humility, coupled with a hint of ostentation, quite amusing. If she weren't worried about affecting Chu Nanfeng's performance, she probably would have burst out laughing.

"I won't need to go to the academy anymore. You'll have to do your homework well on your own. It's best to get up at dawn every day to study and stay up until midnight before going to sleep. Don't go running around too much. If you study diligently for ten or twenty years at your current level, you might have a chance to pass the imperial examination."

Chu Nanfeng spoke with a kind and gentle gaze, patting the boy's shoulder reassuringly, as if to say, "I'm doing this all for your own good."

Lin You translated the time chart she had just become familiar with. It roughly meant that she had to get up at five o'clock every morning to study and could only go to bed at eleven o'clock at night. She had to persist in this for twenty years, and the result was still uncertain whether she would pass the exam.

Let alone Han Qige, even any modern person would think there's something wrong with doing this!

Han Qige genuinely felt that doing this was insane. In ancient times, people who passed the imperial examinations at the age of thirty or forty were considered to be young and promising.

But he is a time traveler, a person with modern thinking. In modern times, who would spend twenty years in their final year of high school just to get into a university with little hope of success?

This imperial examination should have been his best opportunity, but such a huge accident happened!

After having Chu Nanfeng's answer, Han Qige planned to prepare another answer just in case, but even if he knew the question, he couldn't write an article with his level of ability.

Policy essays are much harder than regular essays; there are no fixed answers, so there's nowhere for him to copy from.

As for having someone else write it, his family has no power or influence; they are merely landlords and gentry with some assets, and they simply cannot find a suitable person.

Cheating in the imperial examinations was a serious crime. Anyone capable of writing such brilliant articles already held official titles and positions; who would get involved in something that would ruin their future?

If you conceal the reason and have someone else write it down, you can hide it for a while, but not forever. After the exam, the truth will naturally come out.

Han Qige thought that with Chu Nanfeng's article as a safety net, the additional test paper she prepared would only be icing on the cake. Not wanting to give others any fatal leverage, she ultimately didn't dare to leak the test questions.

To everyone's surprise, Chu Nanfeng successfully entered the examination hall.

I wonder if those people searching for smuggled items were blind. How could they not see something so obvious? Could it be that the brush was placed too conspicuously and was simply overlooked by them?

Han Qige knew his own level. If he wrote Chu Nanfeng's answer and submitted it, he would definitely be the one to find the problem in the end. So he gritted his teeth and wrote it himself, and sure enough, he failed.

Now, listening to Chu Nanfeng's words, which were clearly meant to comfort and encourage, yet each one seemed to pierce her heart, Han Qige couldn't help but suspect that he knew about her scheme.

He observed Chu Nanfeng discreetly, but the man still acted like a kind older brother, and he couldn't see anything amiss.

"Brother Chu, I came here to celebrate with you, but on this wonderful day you have to lecture me." Han Qige pretended to be sulking, snorted, and then took her leave.

"Hahaha! Chu Nanfeng, so you can make fun of people too. It's a pity you didn't see his expression after he left. No wonder he's an actor, his face changes so fast."

Taking advantage of her invisibility, Lin You deliberately chased Han Qige to the door and clearly saw the twisted expression on his face as he turned around.

"It's alright, I can imagine it. He left a little faster than usual." Hearing Lin You's laughter, Chu Nanfeng's eyes also smiled.

For the sake of her reputation, she couldn't afford to break ties with this person right now, so she would take it slow. Han Qige was never one to compromise herself.

Chu Nanfeng used to lecture him, and he would deliberately pretend to be in a bad mood and not come to visit for several days. As Chu Nanfeng visited less often, the distance between the two of them naturally widened.

"Let's go, let's go have a big meal to celebrate! And then we'll buy a new outfit for tomorrow's Deer Cry Banquet." Lin You's voice was filled with excitement, making everyone's lips involuntarily curl up.

Chu Nanfeng took the wallet and went out. Following her directions, he found a wonton shop in an alley.

The restaurant wasn't big, but the aroma wafting out was incredibly tempting. Chu Nanfeng ordered a small bowl of meat wontons and a small bowl of three-delicacy wontons. It wasn't lunchtime yet, so there weren't many people in the restaurant, and the wontons were quickly made and served.

The tender white wontons, each with a thin wrapper and generous filling, float round and plump in the bowl, topped with dried shrimp and finely shredded egg crepe, making them incredibly tempting.

Chu Nanfeng picked up a spoon and ate one. Immediately, his mouth was filled with fragrance. He didn't know how the meat filling was prepared, but it was salty, juicy, and chewy.

He then tried the three-delicacy filling, which included shrimp and eggs. It was also fresh, sweet, and delicious.

The soup wasn't clear broth either; it tasted like it had been seasoned with chicken broth, making it incredibly delicious. He elegantly and quickly finished both bowls, leaving not a drop of broth behind.

Lin You couldn't help but swallow hard. She really wanted to eat it too, but to regain her five senses, she would probably have to level up several more times. Forget about this world, and it was probably unlikely in the next world either!

After eating and drinking his fill, Chu Nanfeng followed Lin You's description and found a tailor shop with good skills and reasonable prices.

Lin You chose a bamboo-green long gown made of fine cotton for him. Chu Nanfeng tried it on, and although it was a little loose, it suited his refined and elegant temperament perfectly.

The proprietress immediately offered to alter the size for free. After glancing at Chu Nanfeng's fitting, she didn't even need to measure with a ruler; she simply threaded a needle and quickly began sewing.

"Now that the exam results are out, when are we going home?" Lin You asked while watching the embroiderer alter clothes.

She'd almost had enough of this town and was really looking forward to a different map.

Chu Nanfeng replied via mental link: "Eight of us from the academy came for this exam. We had already made arrangements beforehand, and we can go back the day after tomorrow."

"How about we buy some clothes or fabric for your mother and little sister? This store has pretty good value for money. Let me help you pick some out."

Having spent so much time together, Chu Nanfeng had learned a bit about her interests and hobbies. His older sister liked shopping, but she was very thrifty and wouldn't spend money recklessly.

Of course, he wouldn't refuse Lin You on such a small matter, and even cooperated with her to look through and select. Most of the ready-made clothes hanging outside the tailor shop were samples made for display, and the price was more cost-effective than buying the fabric.

Finally, in addition to the set of clothes he planned to buy, Chu Nanfeng also bought two sets of simple and elegant women's clothing, two sets of bright and bright children's clothing, three pieces of fabric that were said to be out of fashion but of good quality and reasonably priced, and he also bought an extra set of duck egg blue clothes for himself.

All things considered, it only cost a little over four hundred coins, which is about the price of one and a half bolts of fine cotton cloth, which was indeed a great deal.

Seeing that they had bought a lot, the proprietress smiled and carefully wrapped them up for them, and also gave them a large bag of scraps of fabric and needles and thread.

After returning the items to their lodgings, Chu Nanfeng followed Lin You out again. They saw dried fruits and candied fruits, cakes and sweets from the East Gate, carved wooden hairpins and colorful hair ties from the North Street, cosmetics and silk flowers from the South Building, and pickled vegetables and dried meat from the West River.

These were all the things Lin You heard while wandering the streets and alleys. The items were very affordable, and the total cost was only a little over three hundred coins, yet Chu Nanfeng delivered the items to his residence three times.

They strolled around until dusk, and Chu Nanfeng ate a bowl of sweet, hot fermented rice balls by the roadside before finally returning home satisfied.

A note from the author:

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