Chapter 127 The Top Scholar and Third Scholar Parade Through the Streets
Soon it was time for the girls of Luming Academy to graduate.
The girls' schoolmates and teachers held a banquet as usual in a separate courtyard near Luming Academy.
All ten or so of my classmates were merchants, and most of them stayed in the capital afterward, so we would occasionally run into each other.
Therefore, everyone wasn't too worried. They toasted each other and soon Xu Chumian's face showed signs of drunkenness.
Recalling the last gathering at the plum garden, Xu Chumian didn't drink much this time, but the alcohol was strong, and her face quickly turned red.
After lunch, Xu Chumian bid farewell to everyone, left the restaurant, and her carriage departed from the capital.
It's early March now, and she's come to visit the Li family.
Madam Li's grave has always been guarded by people from the Li family. Since her rebirth, scenes of her time with Xiao Qingyan have been playing out in her mind.
Like a dream.
She sat down in front of Madam Li's grave, then went down the mountain and strolled around the farmland near the Li residence.
Seeing the villagers working in the fields, she remembered when Xiao Qingyan took her and Mu Mu out to play before, but that was in winter, and now it was spring.
Xu Chumian took a deep breath, suppressing the bitterness in her heart.
Xiao Tao couldn't help but ask, "Miss, are you alright?"
Xu Chumian shook her head.
The river flows slowly in the distance, and the mountain peaks stretch endlessly in the distance.
With the vast sky and open land, Xu Chumian's worries had finally subsided somewhat these past few days.
With some free time these days, Xu Chumian couldn't help but think of Zhao Yu's departing figure that night.
Last night was even worse; in my dream, Zhao Yu was filled with malevolence, his eyes bloodshot…
If I remember the scene in the dream correctly.
It should be at the Duke's Mansion.
In her dream, it was raining heavily everywhere. She watched Zhao Yu return alone to the small courtyard where the two of them used to live. He was soaked to the bone and dripping with water.
Xu Chumian saw him enter a secret room.
Only a few oil lamps were lit in the secret room.
A stone bed was placed in the very center.
The person up there is her.
Zhao Yu meticulously copied the woman's face again and again, almost obsessively.
His lips moved slightly, but Xu Chumian couldn't hear anything.
In the dream, the man's broad back appeared much thinner, and he held the woman's pale wrist, his body trembling.
A mournful sob echoed throughout the secret chamber.
When Xu Chumian woke up this morning, her face was wet.
So, this happened after she died in her previous life?
Xu Chumian took a deep breath, suppressed the stinging in her eyes, and boarded the carriage.
On the return trip, another check is required at the city gate.
Wen Yi's carriages were also lined up. She closed her eyes to rest and heard pedestrians outside talking about what case the Dali Temple had solved recently.
"It had been piling up in the neighboring county for five years, but I never expected that once it was submitted to the Dali Temple, Lord Xie would break it in just three months."
"You're talking about these things, but Lord Xie was a top scholar in the imperial examination."
"The results will be released in three days. I wonder who managed to buy the winning tickets this time?"
Xu Chumian opened her eyes, her expression calm and expressionless.
Xu Chumian first went to a branch of the Kapok Incense Shop.
In just a few days since its opening, it has made a profit of nearly five hundred taels of silver.
The workers in the shop were all very happy, saying that the opening of the next branch was just around the corner.
Xu Chumian had a smile on her lips and rarely spoke.
Before she returned to the princess's residence, her carriage passed by a restaurant.
Xu Chumian was in the carriage. She asked Xiao Tao to order meals for the staff in both shops.
Xu Chumian felt depressed. She got off the carriage and went into a jewelry shop, with Zhao Nai following her.
Unexpectedly, I saw Qin Ruoyu on the second floor.
Qin Ruoyu was also startled, and her gaze inadvertently swept over Xu Chumian.
Xu Chumian was dressed in casual clothes, and her appearance was no different from before. She only had a white jade hairpin and a few pearl flowers in her hair, but her temperament was indescribably lively and refined.
It's as if no matter how well others dress up, they would pale in comparison to Xu Chuming.
Xu Chumian didn't think that much about it. She was going to visit Madam Li today, so she was dressed very simply.
She quickly concealed the jealousy in her eyes and smiled, saying, "Ruoyu greets the Princess."
Xu Chumian smiled faintly, "No need for formalities."
If Zhao Lingyao is not around, the two rarely have a chance to talk alone.
Xu Chumian glanced around but didn't see anything she liked, so she was about to leave. Behind her, Qin Ruoyu was paying the bill, and her gaze on Xu Chumian's back was full of malice.
She was curious to know who Xu Chuming would marry in the future!
After leaving the shop, Xiao Tao also came out of the restaurant.
Just as the two were about to board the carriage, Xu Chumian caught a glimpse of a familiar profile out of the corner of her eye.
Zhao Yu sat atop a tall horse, his face cold and deep, as if keeping strangers at bay; his expression was not pleasant.
Guan Yan also rode behind. When he saw Xu Chumian, his face lit up with joy, but when he saw the young master's back without stopping, Guan Yan's face fell again.
The sound of horses' hooves clattered past.
Xu Chumian withdrew her gaze and boarded the carriage.
Ahead, Zhao Yu's wrist, gripping the reins, was bulging with veins; his face was ashen, and his jaw was taut.
We arrived outside the Dali Temple government office.
Zhao Yu dismounted, his face extremely grim.
The clerks in the yamen were all on high alert, afraid of being scolded by Lord Zhao.
-
Late at night, outside the Princess's mansion.
It was extremely late when Zhao Yu left Dali Temple.
He didn't return to Wenju, nor did he want to return to the empty Songchi Courtyard.
At this hour, Xu Chumian must have already gone to bed.
During these days, Zhao Yu has spent countless nights here, desperately wanting to see Xu Chumian.
The longing and pain seemed to have seeped into his very bones. The person he yearned for was right here, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He didn't even have the right to hold her in his arms.
But he and Xu Chumian were once the closest people to each other.
Zhao Yu's eyes were churning with emotions like thick ink. He closed his eyes, could no longer bear it, and jumped over the wall.
The room was pitch black.
The woman on the bed slept peacefully and obediently, her small face and delicate features were beautiful.
Zhao Yu sat by the bed for a long time, his hand, which had been about to touch her face countless times, suddenly stopped.
But the next moment, Xu Chumian's lips moved slightly, and a name that Zhao Yu was extremely unwilling to hear came out of her mouth.
"Qingyan...you must live."
Zhao Yu's face was extremely cold, and his eyes were sharp beyond words.
He stared intently at the person on the bed. If there were a drug in the world that could make someone lose their memory, he would definitely give it to Xu Chumian without hesitation, then take Chumian to the Wenju residence and have her wait obediently for him to come and marry her back to the Duke's mansion.
Xiao Qingyan had only known her for a short time, yet he had already captured so much of Xu Chumian's heart and soul.
Zhao Yu's fists clenched so tightly they turned white.
After daybreak, Xu Chumian sat on the edge of the bed for a long time.
A faint scent of ink wafted through the room...
Xu Chumian's expression changed. She got out of bed and took two steps, but her body stiffened. If he didn't want her to know, then Xiao Tao and the others would be even more unaware.
Xu Chumian stood inside the room, her lips pressed tightly together.
-
On the day the results of the imperial examinations were announced, the streets were packed with people.
As expected, Qin Zhitong won the top scholar title.
Neither the second nor third place winners were from Beijing; they were students from other places.
Zhao Lingyao, Xu Chumian, and Qin Ruoyu, who was with them, went to a restaurant where they were parading horses through the streets.
"I wonder what the third-ranked scholar looks like? He must be handsome and quite extraordinary."
Qin Ruoyu can finally hold her head high.
She thought to herself that she definitely couldn't compare to her brother.
The three waited for a long time before the commotion below grew louder.
Zhao Lingyao quickly perked up. She peeked out and the first thing she saw was the figure of the third-ranked scholar.
Why was he named the third-ranked scholar?
Because among the runners-up, only that person had an extraordinary temperament, as sturdy as a pine tree and as graceful as bamboo, which completely attracted Zhao Lingyao's attention.
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