A literary gathering was underway on the south bank of the Jinshui River, while the north bank was bustling with people, with many officials and city dwellers coming to watch the fun.
There is a pavilion every hundred steps on the north bank. The pavilion is not for people to rest, but for "publishing news".
There is a dedicated person in each pavilion to inform everyone of the news transmitted from the South Bank Wenbi site.
There was a pavilion with the largest number of people gathered around it. Inside the pavilion, a young scholar who was a little fat, short, and had a few pockmarks on his face was preaching loudly.
If Song Chi were here, he would recognize that this young man was the one he met when he entered the city gate. His name was Zhang Qing, and he was known as the gossipmonger.
What he is talking about now is very exciting and attracts a lot of people.
"I'm sure there are some newcomers who don't know me. My name is Zhang Qing, known as the All-Knowing Scholar of the Literary Society. I know the rules of the entire Literary Society and the resumes of every top contender. Therefore, I've been invited by the Literary Society's editorial office to give a lecture here."
Zhang Qing would introduce himself every once in a while. Afterwards, he pointed to the south bank and said, "The literary competition only truly begins at the third level, because those who can reach the third level will be among the top 100."
"You have to know that there are thousands of students participating in the literary gathering. To be able to reach the third level is already an absolute leader."
"The third round uses a ten-in-one elimination rule, meaning only one person can remain out of ten. Ultimately, only ten people will be able to enter Wangjiang Tower and compete for the top spot!"
Zhang Qing was speaking the rules loudly, and the people watching around him were listening in fascination. At the same time, they couldn't help but be shocked in their hearts. The difficulty was really extraordinary.
But it's more exciting this way.
"I already have the list of people who have entered the third level. People we are familiar with, such as Duan Yunzhou, Tang Yan, Song Ming, Fang Yingwu, and Li Zhibai, are all on the list."
At this time, someone asked, "Has Song Chi reached the third level?"
"Yeah, didn't he say he would win the championship?"
Zhang Qing took out the list and took another look at it, then said loudly: "Song Chi is not on the list yet."
"I told you it's not possible. This is in Jiangzhou, not Ji County."
"Yes, a nobody dares to speak so arrogantly."
The people around him looked at him with disdain. At this moment, a servant ran to the pavilion and handed a piece of thin paper to Zhang Qing. He picked it up and took a look at it. Then he shouted, "Song Chi has reached the third level. He has reached the third level."
"What?"
"Can he really reach the third level?"
"There are over a thousand people participating in the literary gathering, but less than 10% can reach the third level. Does this mean Song Chi is truly talented?"
"Humph, if he hadn't been so arrogant and aggressive earlier, it wouldn't have been a big deal, but he said he wanted to win the championship. He didn't want to end up not even being able to enter Wangjiang Tower."
"Those who can enter Wangjiang Tower are all true geniuses. Who is he?"
There was a lot of ridicule here, and Song Chi had already stepped into the arena.
Compared to before, there were fewer people seen, only about dozens of people gathered together.
There was a long desk in the middle, and behind the desk sat four people, who were from the four major academies in Jiangzhou. They were the examiners of this test.
Nandu Academy ranks first, followed by Huating Academy, Moxiang Academy, and Wenyao Academy, collectively known as the Four Major Academies.
Each of the four colleges sent a supervisor to serve as the chief examiner. Song Chi saw Liu Feng from Nandu Academy at a glance. He was the one who had made things difficult for him that day.
Supervisors are positions in the academy. They are all talented and knowledgeable Confucian scholars who have the ability to judge and ensure fairness.
"Ji County student Song Chi, enter!"
When Song Chi walked over, a loud shout was heard.
Being able to come here means that one is already a leader among the students in Jiangzhou. Shouting this is intended to bring fame to the students.
Others did not react much, but when they arrived here, everyone turned around in unison, simply because Song Chi's reputation was so great that he was on par with the beauties in other academies.
"He actually came here?" Lu Chengju frowned.
When Song Chi had just entered the academy, he admired his talent and wanted to select him into the Qingke Pavilion. Later, Han Yuanzheng came and learned about Song Chi's background.
He almost made a big mistake. He thought Song Chi would be eliminated in the first two rounds, but he didn't expect to actually come here.
"He is Song Chi?"
"Having come this far is quite a feat, but this is where I must stop."
"Only Tianjiao can enter Wangjiang Tower. We all have no hope, so what does he count for?"
Everyone was talking about it.
"Interesting, he's even more popular than me." At the edge of the crowd, Fang Yingwu, dressed in white, withdrew his gaze.
"Is he Song Chi? He's not as bad as I imagined."
Duan Yunzhou, the most talented scholar in Nandu Academy, moved his lips slightly and murmured.
At this time, a scholar in a green robe walked up to him and said, "Yunzhou, you and that kid will go on stage at the same time in a while."
Duan Yunzhou subconsciously looked at a figure in front of the evaluation platform. That person was Song Ming, the son of the Prime Minister.
He knew that this was arranged by Song Ming. The literary gathering seemed fair, but in fact it was manipulated by an invisible hand. Most of the Confucian scholars at the gathering were from Nandu Academy and were his own people.
This way the entire literary meeting can be controlled.
Duan Yunzhou also knew that there was a mechanism in the box where each person drew a topic, allowing people to draw topics of varying difficulty levels. There was only one purpose for doing all this, and that was to ensure that the son of the Prime Minister won the first prize.
Song Chi had just entered the scene when the arrangements came over.
"Are you so afraid of him? Why did you arrange for me to enter at the same time as him?" Duan Yunzhou nodded expressionlessly, but his heart was full of contempt.
"He is Song Chi who wants to compete with me for the top spot?"
On the other side, Tang Yan, wearing a reddish-brown gown, was also staring at Song Chi.
"Brother Tang, didn't you say that if Song Chi wins the championship, we will have to worship him as our master?" Tang Yan's friend teased.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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