Chen Yu's heart skipped a beat, and her fingertips felt slightly cold.
Picking up the note that appeared out of nowhere, unfolding it, the instant my eyes met it...
His legs suddenly went weak, as if all his bones had been removed, and he staggered, barely managing to stand by holding onto the edge of the table.
The color drained from her delicate face like a receding tide, leaving only a deathly pale expression of fear, and even her lips were trembling.
Here it comes... it really did come; in the end, they didn't let her go!
Overwhelming fear and precarious panic were vividly displayed in her.
However, her vulnerability at this moment was an illusion she had painstakingly crafted by repeatedly contemplating and practicing imagined threats in bed for several nights in a row.
She even deliberately held her breath, her nails digging into her palms.
She didn't know if she could fool those eyes that might be lurking in the shadows, but this was the best she could do.
She slumped down on the stool, her eyes vacant and lifeless.
It was as if his soul had been ripped away, leaving only his body, staring blankly and intently at the sheet of Xuan paper.
At the entrance of the pharmacy, the aggrieved parties who had caused the disturbance got nothing and dispersed dejectedly under the "escort" of the neighborhood official and the military commander.
In the crowd, a hunched-over middle-aged man in a tattered jacket staggered away with the flow of people.
His back looked desolate, and he coughed occasionally.
As he left Qinggefang and turned into a quiet alley, his heavy, hunched posture vanished as if melting away snow.
With the swiftness of a cat, it darted into the shadows of a woodshed.
A few strands of fake beard were pasted onto his lips and chin, and then a special ointment was applied to his face and kneaded a few times.
The deep wrinkles that had been etched with sorrow seemed to have been smoothed out, and a subtle change had occurred in the person's overall demeanor and features.
A moment later, when he came out again, the tattered jacket he was wearing was gone, replaced by a half-new, half-old indigo cotton long gown, and he was also wearing a straw hat that covered most of his face.
He was like a drop of water merging into a river, silently flowing into the crowd.
On the edge of the bustling market, he once again disappeared into the deeper alleys, using porters, vendors and pedestrians as cover, his figure flashing by several times.
Finally, he stepped into Anyefang and pushed open the door of a small shop with an old sign that read "Zhou's Grocery Store".
A moment later, a sign that read "New Dates Arrived" was hung at the door.
As if nothing had happened, all was calm and peaceful, and the doors were open to guests as usual.
...
Qin Zhaoyue led the three nervous children through the gates of Qingyun Academy and breathed a long sigh of relief.
The man was handsome, but he was so trying to maintain his composure that he was incredibly uncomfortable even while eating breakfast.
Despite being starving, I could only sip the food in tiny bites, unable to taste it.
She had been maintaining an elegant and dignified demeanor for half an hour, which was already the limit of her endurance.
No matter how beautiful her appearance is, it's not worth the suffering Qin Zhaoyue has endured.
Fortunately, she still had the task of "coordinating the provincial examination" to perform, so the guards at the gate did not stop her.
Just as Qin Zhaoyue stepped across the threshold, her composed expression finally relaxed as if ice and snow were melting away.
Now, having reached the fifth rank of cultivation, his perception far surpasses that of ordinary people.
She keenly sensed that the burning gaze behind her had been following her every step of the way since she stood up.
You rascal~~~
Qin Zhaoyue snorted smugly to herself, maintaining her complete control once again!
However, before her smugness could dissipate, a cold and abrupt voice transmission pierced her ear like a needle:
"Sixth Prince, you must not use your inner energy."
Qin Zhaoyue's expression hardened, and she immediately became solemn.
With a slight thought, he instantly gathered all the true energy flowing within his body, leaving not a single drop leaking out.
Damn, I almost forgot about that!
Among the candidates were many with cultivation, especially daughters from families with military merit; many were skilled in both literature and martial arts.
Once one reaches the sixth rank and generates true qi, one can perceive subtle movements around them, a skill that can be considered cheating.
The imperial court naturally took strict precautions against this, issuing repeated orders before the examination even began.
Inside the examination room, whether it is a candidate or an invigilator, using even a trace of internal energy will be considered cheating and will be severely punished.
It is easy to imagine that at this moment, the entire Qingyun Academy seemed to be shrouded in an invisible giant net.
There must be a powerful expert at the third-grade Divine Martial Realm secretly overseeing everything, monitoring all fluctuations of true energy.
Of course, this method is not foolproof.
If a powerful expert at the second rank were to infiltrate and cheat, and manage to deceive the imperial court, then the court would likely have no choice but to accept defeat.
The three children behind her dared not breathe, their little faces tense, following closely behind Qin Zhaoyue step by step.
The imperial guards passing by didn't even glance at the four princes, demonstrating the strict rules of the examination hall.
The examination area was set up in the spacious classrooms of the academy.
Each classroom was set up with eight candidates, each accompanied by two invigilators, one in front and one behind.
One was an official dispatched by the Six Ministries, and the other was an instructor at the Imperial Academy.
The candidates have complex backgrounds and intricate networks of relationships that are difficult to unravel completely.
Even if every effort is made to avoid problems when assigning invigilators, it is impossible to guarantee that there will be no issues whatsoever.
Therefore, in addition to the two fixed examiners, there were several inspection teams composed of the heads of each academy and specially selected representatives of the people.
They split into several groups, moving slowly back and forth in the examination area corridors, constantly passing by open windows, their eyes scanning every corner of the room.
The constant footsteps of the patrolling officers and the subtle rustling of clothes were amplified in the excessively quiet environment, posing a severe test to the candidates' concentration.
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