The two leisurely strolled the streets, attracting only occasional glances from passersby, hardly drawing any remarkable attention.
Su Rong stepped out with a curtain hat, which, although thoroughly covering her, did not make her seem strange in Capital City. After all, many great ladies wore curtain hats or veil hats when going out to preserve their appearances. In some cases, individuals such as Duanhua Princess, attracted attention not for wearing such hats but for being surrounded by a large troop of guards whenever she went out.
After strolling down a street, they passed a bustling restaurant. Observing the lively crowd inside, Fen Ling struggled to move on, "My lord, the restaurant is packed. The food must be delicious."
Su Rong glanced at the signboard of the restaurant where she saw the characters for Zhuangyuan Building, she smiled, "Deliciousness is yet to be seen, but it certainly has a good reputation."
At this point, Fen Ling also saw the signboard, "Shall we dine here tonight?"
Su Rong nodded, "Sure."
With that, they entered Zhuangyuan Building.
A welcoming shop assistant at the entrance greeted them, "I’m sorry, honored guests, there are no seats available at the moment. Would you prefer to wait or go to another restaurant?"
Fen Ling made up her mind straightaway, "Wait."
Su Rong did not object, "Shall we wait here?"
The shop assistant hastily responded, "If you don’t mind waiting, please follow me. There are stools in front of the counter that you could rest on."
Su Rong stepped into the threshold and, guided by the shop assistant, spotted a row of stools and a group of waiting customers. The last two stools were vacant, conveniently just enough for her and Fen Ling.
Su Rong knowingly asked the shop assistant, "Little brother, is Zhuangyuan Building always this busy?"
The shop assistant chuckled, "It’s like this for three months before and after the triennial examination. It’s a bit less hectic during normal times, but we still have many customers. Zhuangyuan Building is not famous because it suggests a good meaning – number one scholar, but because of its exceptional private dishes."
The shop assistant didn’t find Su Rong’s question peculiar, considering that many out-of-town examinees would be amazed by the lively atmosphere. He had answered such queries hundreds of times.
Su Rong nodded, and she and Fen Ling took a seat on the stools.
As they sat down, the people waiting in front cast their eyes at them.
Su Rong turned to look and saw eight young men lined up in front of them. She turned her gaze towards the restaurant filled with customers, noticing that they were mostly men, with a few scattered women.
She thought to herself, rightfully so for Zhuangyuan Building. Presumably, most of these patrons are examinees hoping for good luck.
A young man sitting next to Fen Ling saluted, "I am Zhao Shu from Chuanxi. May I ask your esteemed name? Did you also come to the Capital City for the examination?"
At his words, Fen Ling turned and saluted, "So, it’s Brother Zhao. I’m Fen Ling from Jiangzhou. I’m not taking part in the exam this year. I’m here in the capital accompanying my sister to visit friends. Seeing the bustling Zhuangyuan Building, we decided to join in the fun."
Zhao Shu expressed surprise, "Your surname is quite rare. Since you’re from Jiangzhou, do you know Su Xingze?"
Fen Ling blinked, "We’ve met once before."
Zhao Shu immediately asked, "Begging your pardon, but could you tell me if Su Xingze truly possesses the tremendous talent as rumored?"
"Indeed," Fen Ling nodded, "In our Jiangzhou, everyone knows of his reputation and talent. His poetry manuscripts are hard to come by even if you’d pay a fortune."
This was primarily because his lord’s sister had spent years creating hype while selling the elder brother’s poetry. Starting at fifty taels of silver, the price increased to several hundred taels. After discovering his poetry was being sold, the elder brother strictly put a stop to his sister’s moneymaking scheme–leaking his poetry–and no longer allowed his manuscripts to circulate. As a result, the price of his poetry soared to a small fortune over the past few years, but still remained unavailable.
Similarly, Jiang Xing’s talent originally went unnoticed, but due to the promotion of selling his poetry, he didn’t want his own poetry to make his sister little profit. Therefore, he took his studies seriously, worked hard on his articles, and composed his poetry, until he obtained good karma. He had now become the second-best talent in Jiangzhou under Su Xingze.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shu turned to his companion, "Brother Lu, it appears the rumors are trustworthy. This Su Xingze indeed poses a formidable competition for your place in the golden list."
Hearing this, Fen Ling immediately turned his gaze towards the man next to Zhao Shu.
Su Rong followed Fen Ling’s gaze, and noticed a young man standing next to Zhao Shu. Although he wasn’t stunningly handsome, he was an attractive and elegant young gentleman.
Zhao Shu hastily introduced them, "This is Lu Fengyan, he is one of our brilliant scholars from Chuānxī."
Fen Ling realized, and greeted him, "So you are Brother Lu, I’ve heard so much about you."
This greeting was a bit more respectful than his introduction to Zhao Shu. Lu Fengyan was renowned in Capital City these days and one-third of the people in the gambling houses had placed their bets on him.
Lu Fengyan had been quietly observing from the sidelines. Now that Zhao Shu had introduced him, he stepped forward and greeted, "I am Lu Fengyan. I’ve always heard about Su Xingze from Jiangzhou, but I never had the chance to meet the gentleman even though I have been in the Capital for over a month. My friends and I were always curious about him."
Fen Ling laughed and said, "We don’t associate much with him. Is it possible that he has been in seclusion since he arrived in the capital?"
"It’s said that he came out once." Lu Fengyan had taken great interest in information about Su Xingze, as they were both presumed to be top contenders in the upcoming scholastic examination, "A few days ago, he went to Juxian Building accompanied by Master Zhou from Duke Residence and the youngest prince from Rui’an King Residence. They dined in a private room but left quietly. Even we didn’t know he had been there until after he left. After that, it’s said that he moved into the residence of the Minister of Personnel and hasn’t been seen out since, he’s been keeping a low profile."
Zhao Shu remarked with curiosity, "We have asked many people, but none of them know Su Xingze. Even the scholars from Jiangzhou seem in the dark. Apparently, they rented a courtyard in the south of the city when they arrived, and are immersing themselves in their studies. They have been avoiding socializing or networking much, making it hard for us to even meet anyone from Jiangzhou. We’re honored to have met you two from Jiangzhou today."
Fen Ling chuckled inwardly, "Is that so?"
The scholars from Jiangzhou were clever. Taking into account the attention drawn to them due to the upheaval of the Jiang Family, they adopted a low-key strategy—which saved them from a lot of unnecessary trouble.
Zhao Shu nodded, "Indeed, what’s going on with Su Xingze and the scholars from Jiangzhou? The landlord told me that in previous years, students from all over would socialize and share knowledge with each other. None of them were as elusive as this year’s Jiangzhou scholars."
Su Rong thought to herself that this was because the scholars from Jiangzhou were acquainted with her elder brother. During the days when Zhou Gu was seeking friendships through literature, he had interacted with any Jiangzhou scholar with a bit of reputation. All of them were aware that as long as they passed the exam in late autumn, they would most likely join the Eastern Palace party. The Crown Prince was fond of talent and had a good reputation among his people. Thus, they didn’t need to form alliances elsewhere, they focused on their studies instead, aiming only for good results in the exam. As for networking, that would only be necessary after the exam, to strengthen their connections with people from the Eastern Palace faction.
Outsiders naturally wouldn’t know these private matters. Thus, it appeared that the scholars from Jiangzhou were behaving peculiarly compared to scholars from other places.
Fen Ling also realized this and said with a smile: "Don’t rush, brother Zhao. You’ll meet him sooner or later."
Zhao Shu nodded, no matter how curious they were, there was nothing they could do if the other party chose to remain in seclusion.
At this point, some customers started to leave and several tables were vacated.
It was now the turn of Lu Fengyan and Zhao Shu, but there was no place for Fen Ling and Su Rong, so they had to keep waiting. Zhao Shu stood up and offered an invitation: "Fen Ling, why don’t you and your sister join our table with Brother Lu, so we don’t have to wait longer?"
Fen Ling was a bit hesitant, "Are you sure? Would it be inconvenient for you two?"
"Not at all. There’s only two of us after all, if we join forces, we’re only four." Zhao Shu was quite outgoing and eagerly extended the invitation, "Right? What do you think, Brother Lu?"
Lu Fengyan nodded, "Why not join us?"
Fen Ling looked at Su Rong for her opinion. As soon as Su Rong nodded in agreement, Fen Ling accepted the offer, "Then, thank you both."
So, the four of them sat at an empty table together.
Fen Ling, who was now able to start eating earlier, was more generous, "Dear gentlemen, this meal is on me and my sister. We have brought enough money, so just order anything you like."
Zhao Shu immediately objected, "How can that be?"
Lu Fengyan also shook his head, "It’s not necessary, Fen Ling..."
"Hey?" Fen Ling stopped them, "We’ll be in the Capital City for a while, so there’s a chance we’ll meet again. Let’s make friends. Next time, you two can treat my sister and me."
"This..." Zhao Shu and Lu Fengyan were left speechless.
Su Rong smiled and intervened: "Let it be! Don’t be so polite."
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