As the gates of the examination hall opened, the tense brothers finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Zheng Ruqian joked first, "I don't know if Big Brother was covered in ink or fell flat on his face."
“It could also be a stumble, or being falsely accused of cheating,” Chang Yan added.
The techniques they had encountered five years ago when they were trembling during the preliminary examinations for the imperial examinations were now being spoken of so easily.
Only Wen Zhiyun, whose face was slightly pale, remained silent, searching the crowd with her eyes.
They saw Qi Huai, they saw An Jun, they saw countless students passing by, and finally found Xu Mo standing straight in the surging crowd.
The young man remained composed, showing neither the embarrassment of being deliberately made difficult for nor the panic of being schemed against. Instead, he exuded an indescribable sense of solemnity.
Behind him were two constables, carrying knives and maneuvering to avoid the crowd, carrying out their protection duties to the end.
“We weren’t made things difficult for him.” Jiang Sheng was happy. “Father’s advice worked. The Fang family didn’t make things difficult for my eldest brother.”
To be precise, Fang Yuan's overt scheme failed, and the Fang family did not resort to any other underhanded tactics.
But is this really a good thing?
The brothers, who had been relaxed, all became serious as they watched Xu Mo, equally somber, bid farewell to the yamen runners and slowly walk over.
"Big brother." Jiang Sheng was about to rush over when she was held down.
Chang Yan took her hand with one hand, looked around, and simply said, "Let's go home first."
The siblings boarded the carriage one after another, and Zheng Ruqian picked up the whip and tapped the red-maned horse's rump.
One person sat outside catching the train, while five people sat inside discussing matters—this became their unusual way of getting along.
"What's wrong with you all?" Jiang Sheng sensed something was amiss. "Shouldn't you be happy that Big Brother is alright?"
Chang Yan shook his head.
No, no.
When dealing with prominent families, one cannot focus on the superficial aspects of things, but must think deeply and thoroughly.
Everyone in Fengjing City knew that the Fang family and Xu Mo had a grudge against each other. Both sides were determined to win first place in the provincial examination, and that friction occurred before the examination.
Logically speaking, the Fang family would not let Xu Mo off the hook and would definitely rack their brains to cause trouble and try every means to sabotage the imperial examination.
But they didn't.
The fact that the Fang family remained completely inactive after merely laying out an open scheme with no known outcome before the exam, allowing Xu Mo to do as he pleased, suggests that they might be preparing a major move.
Once released, it could destroy the world and crush Xu Mo and his sister.
"Could it be the same as last time, using the copyist to tamper with the papers and secretly switch my brother's and Fang Yuan's papers?" Chang Yan murmured, then quickly shook his head. "Using the same trick twice is too simplistic."
The siblings weren't stupid; they had already taken precautions against similar handwriting.
For example, in the past six months, Xu Mo has been diligently practicing a different handwriting style. Every time he finishes writing, he puts the paper under Aunt Zhang's pot, so it will never end up in the ashes.
While new handwriting may not convey the spirit of the essay, it is perfectly fine to complete the essay neatly and legibly.
No matter how many scribes the Fang family bribed, they couldn't pick out Xu Mo's essay from the anonymous exam papers.
"Could it be that they want to kill my elder brother?" Fang Heng clenched his fists, having survived the chase. "Back then, they tried to kill me to silence me, and now they want to use this trick again?"
But they are no longer the naive children they were when they were around ten years old.
Xu Mo has the Dou, Qi, and Zhao families behind him, Jiang Sheng has the Jiang and Yao families behind him, Fang Heng is also a squad leader with three hundred soldiers, Wen Zhiyun's female healer is gradually infiltrating the major families, and Zheng Ruqian has also taken on the job of supplying lychees.
They don't indulge in extravagance, but they will never tolerate being bullied.
Moreover, countless people in Fengjing were watching this imperial examination and every move the Fang family made.
“It’s unlikely to be a matter of taking my life.” Xu Mo finally spoke, his voice cold and indifferent. “If the Fang family really persecutes me before the results of the imperial examination are out, it would be tantamount to confirming cheating in the imperial examination.”
That statement has a flaw.
When Jiang Sheng finally had the wit to get ahead of her brothers, she asked, "After the imperial examination is over, can I start tormenting my eldest brother?"
She grinned, much like a puppy that had done something right once in a while and was hoping its owner would pat its head.
Long Yan couldn't bear to discourage them, so he could only nod ambiguously.
"Idiot Jiang Sheng, how could that be?" Zheng Ruqian shouted from outside, trying to sabotage the situation. "Big Brother already got first place in the provincial examination, what are they still doing persecuting him for?"
Yes, the two sides are competing back and forth, all for the sake of being number one.
Jiang Sheng wilted again, looking like a frostbitten eggplant, dejected.
Although she thought she was quite smart, she was always a little bit worse than her brothers, just a tiny bit.
"Alright, alright, the imperial examination ends in six days. Even if the Fang family wants to persecute us, it won't happen until six days later. Let's not rush to discuss countermeasures." Xu Mo interrupted with a smile. "But Xiao Si, why are you looking so listless? Did something happen?"
Wen Zhiyun didn't speak after leaving Famen Temple, and he didn't say anything when he saw Xu Mo either, as if he had a lot on his mind or was suppressing something.
"Little Si, did your brothers bully you?" Xu Mo patted his head. "If there's anything that's bothering you, tell your eldest brother."
Wen Zhiyun pursed her lips, her chin was white and pointed, and she exuded a pitiful and weak aura.
"Big brother, let me tell you," Jiang Sheng volunteered. "Fourth brother is tired. We went to Famen Temple today, and so many things happened..."
She recounted the story of the three families in Liaolujiang exchanging children in a dramatic and thrilling manner, no less so than the old storyteller at the teahouse.
The little girl spoke clearly and eloquently, completely unaware that she was talking about her own affairs, which left Xu Mo stunned.
"Later, the third young lady twisted her ankle. Fourth Brother was probably exhausted from saving her." Jiang Sheng scratched his head. "But aren't sprains easy to treat? Fourth Brother was so tired, is he just too weak?"
Wen Zhiyun couldn't give an answer, so she lowered her head and looked away.
Xu Mo sensed something was wrong and subtly changed the subject again, "So you haven't had lunch yet? You must be starving."
"Yes, we're starving, but we want to wait for you to eat together," someone with a chubby belly chimed in. "We hope Auntie has already prepared the food so we can start eating as soon as we get home."
As they were talking, the carriage stopped.
Zheng Ruqian, who was on the carriage shaft, got up to tie the rope. Hearing the noise, Zhang Xianglian rushed over to open the door.
"You're finally back! Have you eaten? There's chicken stew with mushrooms on the stove." She asked loudly.
"I'm starving! Auntie, quickly bring me two big bowls of rice!" Jiang Sheng shouted back, and was the first to jump off the carriage.
Fang Heng and Zheng Ruqian followed closely behind, both starving.
Xu Mowen and Zhiyun were a step behind, inquiring about the true situation of Jiang San's injury.
As Chang Yan walked at the end of the banquet, the words of his siblings kept flashing through his mind.
"After the imperial examination is over, does that mean I can start persecuting my older brother?"
"My eldest brother got first place in the provincial examination, so what are they still doing to persecute him?"
Everyone seemed certain that once they topped the list in the provincial examination, it would be over.
No, that's not the case. After the provincial examination, there is the palace examination. The top scholar is the ultimate goal of the imperial examination!
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