Upon seeing the other person's face clearly, the young masters from noble families were all stunned.
Isn't this Pang You, who passed both the autumn and metropolitan examinations? Although Pang You came from a poor family, he was extremely talented and passed every examination he took. He was also good at business and interpersonal relationships, and he was clearly suited for officialdom. Therefore, they had high expectations for him and hoped that he would take them with him in the future.
During this time, Pang You kept to himself and refused visitors. They thought he was focusing on preparing for the palace examination. They never expected him to appear on the street in such a disheveled state. They wondered what had happened to him.
"Young Master Pang, what's wrong with you?" Young Master Liu asked in surprise after recognizing the man several times.
Young Master Zhang and Young Master Li helped Song Ruier up, both of them looking puzzled.
"I... I don't know how I got here. I only remember going to a restaurant to drink last night. I must have gotten drunk and been tricked by someone." Song Ruier made up a lie on the spot.
He then hid his right hand inside his sleeve.
This is the hand that holds the pen, the hand that allows him to manipulate events in officialdom.
However, the sharp-eyed Young Master Liu noticed that when he stepped on it, he found that the right hand was a little strange.
He pointed the folding fan in his hand towards Song Ruier's right hand.
"Young Master Pang, your hand doesn't seem to be in good condition. Your wrist is swollen and black. Is it serious?"
Song Ruier felt a sudden chill run down his spine, but he forced himself to remain calm on the surface.
"It's okay, I just got hit by a rock by accident, it'll be fine in a couple of days."
“But I think it looks like he’s been poisoned,” Young Master Li said, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
"Why don't we find a doctor to take a look? The imperial examination is in about a month, and we need to use our right hand to hold the pen and write. If anything goes wrong, it could ruin our lives."
“Brother Pang, the physician in my household is highly skilled. He served in the Imperial Medical Academy for forty years. Why don’t you come to my house and have the physician examine and treat you?” said Young Master Zhang.
Song Ruier certainly hoped that the imperial physician would treat him, but he knew Qiao Lian'er too well. He was afraid that even the imperial physician would be helpless against the poison she had used. In that case, others would know the specific details of his condition and lose faith in him.
He can't take that risk!
So he pretended to be relaxed.
"I'm really fine. I was just hit quite badly. I'll use some medicine to reduce the swelling and wash it for a few days, and I'll be back to normal. Thank you all for your concern. I need to go back and prepare for the imperial examination."
After finishing her sentence, Song Ruier hurriedly left.
Young Master Liu frowned as he watched his retreating figure.
"It seems that Brother Pang has really encountered some misfortune, and has something he can't talk about."
“Yes, his wrist is black and swollen, it doesn’t look like he was hit by something. If he was really poisoned and his right hand was ruined, how could he participate in the palace examination?” Young Master Zhang also shook his head.
During the palace examination, in addition to asking questions in person to test a person's ability to perform on the spot, the emperor would also set questions, and the candidates would have to write down their answers on paper within a specified time and then present them to the emperor.
It's absolutely unacceptable to be clumsy with your hands.
In the palace examination, the lowest-ranking three were granted the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), which was considered a sign of adequate answering ability. If the performance was too poor, there were instances where the candidate was relegated to the level of Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination) and had to take the exam again after three years. This would be a black mark on their examination career.
Young Master Li snorted: "Brother Pang comes from a humble background. The reason we approached him was because we thought he had a bright future. If he doesn't cherish this opportunity to take the imperial examination, there's no need for us to treat him well."
"Is he short-sighted, thinking that passing the imperial examination means he can rest easy? He wouldn't even come to the mansion to watch his hand. He's playing with his future like this," said Young Master Zhang.
"We can't speak so soon. Let's wait for his palace examination results before making a decision. If he's a useless person, we shouldn't place too much hope in him," said Young Master Liu.
Fearing that the young masters from wealthy families would catch up with her, Song Ruier hurriedly turned into a small alley, her steps unsteady.
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