The dean chuckled and shook his head, saying, "No, the main purpose is to bring them here to broaden their horizons and teach them not to be complacent. There are far more talented people out there than they imagine!"
The old man said: "The dean really has good intentions!"
The dean said, "Our academy only has two candidates taking the exam this year, one for Wenwu and the other for Xuedong. It seems that there are more people coming from the big academies. Huamen Town is still too small."
The old man said, "Don't be so modest, Dean. I think these students are all very good. They are so modest. This is all thanks to the Dean and the teacher!"
The dean smiled and said, "Thank you for your praise, old man. If you could have a few more students like Wenwu, I would have nothing else to ask for."
"No, it's because the dean and the teacher taught me well, otherwise I wouldn't have made such rapid progress in both literature and martial arts."
The dean said, "Old man, although hard work can make up for lack of talent, there is another very important point, which is talent. Besides Wenwu, your other children are not bad either. What makes me sad is that their hearts are not on the imperial examinations."
The old man said, "Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. As long as they don't go astray, I am an open-minded old man and they can do whatever they like."
The dean said, "The old man is absolutely right. It's me who's obsessed with appearances! Teaching children to know propriety, righteousness, integrity, and honor, and to distinguish right from wrong, is the meaning of our existence as teachers."
The two chatted for a while.
At this time, Xu Wenwu and Qian Xuedong came over with several classmates.
"I want to take them out for a walk. Would the dean and the teacher like to go with us?" Xu Wenwu asked.
"I won't go. You young people can go and relax." said the dean.
The old man said, "Shall I let the second one go with you?"
Xu Wenwu said, "No need, Grandpa. Second Uncle has his own things to do. I have memorized the route and can find it back."
The old man nodded and said, "Then you should come back early."
"I understand, Grandpa."
Qibao said, "Grandpa, I'll go with my elder brother and the others."
The old man nodded and said, "Go, go, be careful."
So, a total of eight people, including Fuqiu, walked out of the hot pot restaurant together.
"Brother Xu, I told you that it would be better if you talked to the dean. Am I right?" One of the classmates laughed and said, looking like a completely different person from the respectful person who had just been in front of the dean.
Xu Wenwu smiled and shook his head.
"Qingyun City is really huge! There are so many people, it's really lively. When I came here, I heard passersby talking about someone offering 500 taels as a prize, inviting knowledgeable people from all over to participate in a talent competition. The first place will get the 500 taels."
Qian Xuedong said, "That's quite a lot. Wenwu, how about we join in the fun?"
Xu Wenwu said: "Okay, let's go and take a look!"
A few people asked someone for directions, but they didn't expect that this matter was already known to everyone. Anyone they asked would know about it, so they quickly found the location of the arena.
When they arrived, a large crowd had already gathered. A middle-aged man stood on the bleachers and said, "First of all, I welcome all the talented people from all over the world to Qingyun City. I wish you all success in the examinations."
Someone below started shouting.
Qibao knew at a glance that this was the atmosphere group arranged by this person in the crowd, trying to mobilize everyone's emotions.
The middle-aged man smiled and pressed his hand, saying, "To ease everyone's pre-exam nervousness, I'd like to select ten talented people to challenge me to set a question. Just treat it as a fun experience. Anyone here who would like to sign up? Feel free to step up to the stage!"
The people below were talking in low voices.
"Then I'll be the first to sign up!" A young man in brocade clothes walked onto the stage holding a folding fan.
"Hey! Master Wen, why are you here to join in the fun?" The middle-aged man said with a respectful bow.
"Since there is this arena, does it mean that only those who have passed the imperial examination can participate?" asked Master Wen.
"That's not the case. Anyone who thinks they are knowledgeable can participate," said the middle-aged man.
"Cousin, you can definitely get first place! You are not comparable to those cats and dogs!"
At this moment, an extremely arrogant voice came from the crowd.
"Boy! Who are you calling a cat or a dog?"
"Exactly! Where are you from? Which school do you attend? Is this how your teacher taught you?"
"If you're brave enough, come up and compete. Why are you shouting so proudly down there?"
"Since you said your cousin is no match for me, then I'm going to compete with him today!"
"That's right! Anyone who can come here must have some ability, who are you looking down on?"
For a moment, the field was filled with accusations against the person who spoke.
"Hmph! Just because I said you can't compete with me, you can't. My cousin is the eldest son of Magistrate Wen. How can you compare with him?" The voice said arrogantly again.
Qian Xuedong and Xu Wenwu felt the voice was more and more familiar to them, but there were so many people around that they couldn't see the speaker's face clearly. They only knew that the voice came from their right.
"What? This young man is the prefect's son?"
"How could the son of the prefect be with someone like this?"
The lowly ones whispered.
"Miss, this person is so annoying. Not only does he live in our Wen Mansion, but now he's saying such things in public. Isn't this just making the young master hate him?"
"Yuan'er, big brother will find a way to solve it."
"Gao Yuan, stop talking nonsense here! I've told you many times, don't call me cousin! I'm not your cousin!" Master Wen on the stage said with a frown and disgust.
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