Chapter 29 A Person of Talent and Virtue
"Li Huaigu, courtesy name Fanggui, was the third-ranked scholar in this imperial examination. He came from a family of doctors."
"A renowned scholar in Shuzhou City, he studied under Mr. Yue Ming of Guiyun Academy. He was well-versed in classics and history from a young age and possessed extraordinary talent."
"At the age of sixteen, he passed the county-level examination and became a Xiucai. At nineteen, he passed the provincial-level examination and became a Juren. At twenty, he went to the capital city and first became the top scholar in the metropolitan examination, and then became the first-class scholar and was granted the title of Jinshi by the emperor, ranking third as the Tanhua."
"Now that he's back in Shu Prefecture, we're truly envious..."
Hearing envious voices from others, Chen Yi looked at Li Huaigu riding on a white horse and could see his high spirits.
After all, he achieved the highest rank in the imperial examinations and was awarded the title of Tan Hua (third-place scholar) in just four years, which is something that ordinary scholars cannot do.
Most students are like Huang Chao, failing the exam once, failing twice... and then giving up, with only the thought of "When autumn comes on the ninth day of the ninth month, I will make all the flowers bloom and kill them all" left in their minds, only wanting to take a knife and kill that beast that is the Ministry of Rites.
However, is Li Huaigu returning to Shu Prefecture to take up a post?
Chen Yi thought carefully for a moment, then frowned to himself. In a previous letter, Chen's eldest wife, Cui Yu, had said, "My elder brother, Chen Yunfan, has achieved the highest rank in the imperial examination and will soon be taking up his post in Shu Prefecture."
That's strange.
As far as he knew, in every imperial examination of the Great Wei Dynasty, the top scholar was appointed as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy and kept in the capital for intensive training. Only after at least three years would he be sent out to serve as an official.
Even if a compiler in the Hanlin Academy like Li Huaigu was assigned to a prefecture, he would avoid the area to prevent them from colluding with local relatives and causing trouble.
"Why are they all flocking to Shu Prefecture? Are the officials in the imperial court planning to play a game of chess here?"
Chen Yi had no idea.
He doesn't know much about the current situation of the Great Wei Dynasty, and he only relies on his memories and common sense to deduce things, some of which don't make sense.
After thinking for a moment, he lifted the front curtain of the car. "Fourth Brother, please pull over."
Without thinking twice, Liu Si'er grabbed the reins and whispered a reminder: "Young Master, Son-in-law, there are many people here, please be careful."
Chen Yi glanced at him, smiled and nodded, then stepped down from the carriage first and carried Xiao Wuge down.
Xiao Wuge looked up at Li Huaigu and said, "Brother-in-law, that man is so imposing."
After Xiaodie, Wang Lixing, and the others arrived, Chen Yi smiled and said, "Among the hundreds of thousands of students taking the same exam in the Great Wei Dynasty, it's normal for him to be ranked third, so it's quite impressive."
Xiao Wuge withdrew his gaze and looked at him confidently, saying, "If my brother-in-law participates in this imperial examination, his results will definitely be better than his."
Before Chen Yi could speak, the students next to him laughed without turning their heads.
"What a joke! Who has the audacity to say something like that?"
"That's right, Brother Huaigu is extremely talented. If it weren't for the emperor's bias, he would have been the top scholar in the imperial examination."
"you……"
Two students with mocking expressions looked over, and when they saw the Xiao family's red flag hanging on the carriage, they were speechless. Their faces turned from red to green, like crayfish going from raw to cooked in a pot.
Chen Yi found it amusing and patted Xiao Wuge, who was about to speak, on the shoulder, "Let's go, or we won't be able to get a good spot."
Xiao Wuge glared at the students, then obediently followed Chen Yi to his side.
Xiaodie pouted and followed along, her little face sullen.
Wang Lixing and his group walked past them from their elevated position, their eyes flashing with a cold light.
"Look carefully before you speak next time."
The cold voice frightened the two students into silence, and they were unable to recover for a long time.
A handsome student in a blue robe, standing nearby, watched Chen Yi and the others walk away before speaking:
"Gentlemen, we won't dare to be so outspoken next time."
One of them smiled wryly: "Brother Xu, you flatter me. Who knew they were from the Xiao family? I thought they were some wild scholars from the mountains."
The other person nodded, but stubbornly said, "Xu Nian, we are not wrong either. With Brother Huai Gu's talent, even those from the Marquis's family would find it hard to compare with him."
The student named Xu Nian shook his head. "Others may not be able to, but that person's reputation is in no way inferior to Brother Huai Gu's."
"That one?"
"Have you forgotten that birthday poem that was famous throughout Shu Prefecture a few days ago?"
The two quickly looked at Chen Yi, who had already blended into the crowd, but only saw the backs of the heads of several tall and burly servants.
Seeing that they had reacted, Xu Nian sighed: "Chen Yi, Chen Qingzhou, is still quite famous in Jiangnan Prefecture. If he hadn't married into the Xiao family, he probably would have been able to secure a place in this year's imperial examination."
As he walked forward, he softly sang: "Why lament with white hair, for the stars are my emblems... Beautiful words, beautiful words."
The other two looked embarrassed, stood there stunned for a moment, and then spoke at the same time.
"Based on this poem alone, I admit my inferiority."
"In the end, he's just a son-in-law who lives with his wife's family; he'll never amount to anything in his life."
As soon as they finished speaking, the two looked at each other and both saw the other's surprise.
"You're not saying that!"
"That's not quite right either..."
Chen Yi, on the other hand, naturally didn't care about the gossip of others.
But young Xiao Wuge was somewhat unhappy, as it was the first time he had been ridiculed by outsiders like this.
"Brother-in-law, the way they talk is really unbecoming of a scholar."
Chen Yi smiled and pulled him forward, saying, "A person who has studied for a few years cannot be called a 'talented person,' he can only be considered to know a few words."
Xiao Wuge was taken aback. "Then what is a talented scholar?"
"Of course, it's a student with both talent and virtue."
Xiao Wuge understood and couldn't help but grin. This was a veiled insult to the two people from before, calling them incompetent and immoral.
"Brother-in-law, then you must be a talented man."
"I am not, I am just your second sister's husband."
"And stop using the excuse of helping me to go to Grandpa and your sister. If you really send me to the army, who will go fishing with you?"
"oh……"
Seeing Chen Yi say this, Xiao Die also put the two scholars behind her and followed them with a smile.
Liu Si'er's expression changed slightly. Did this fledgling really not want to go to the military camp, or was it hiding its talents and biding its time?
...
Li Huaigu rode his white horse all the way, feeling quite pleased with himself.
The other students followed behind with an air of pride and boundless excitement.
Some girls, whether prepared in advance or spontaneously, scattered flower petals on both sides, looking at Li Huaigu with shy expressions.
If it weren't for the yamen runners accompanying them, they probably would have pounced on them directly.
But this is just the beginning.
After walking ten miles and circling halfway around the north of Shuzhou City, the talented men and beautiful women who had come to join the fun were no longer so comfortable.
They all struggled to maintain their upright posture and affectedly coy demeanor, practically ready to unleash a torrent of profanities.
Fortunately, they remembered their identities and managed to follow the whole way, still managing to force a smile and congratulate Li Huaigu as he jumped off the white horse.
"Congratulations, Brother Huaigu."
"The third-highest scorer in the imperial examination, truly worthy of being the top student of Guiyun Academy in Shuzhou."
"..."
Li Huaigu's face was stiff from smiling, but he still forced himself to return the greeting.
However, during the brief moment of returning the greeting, his gaze intentionally or unintentionally drifted towards a willow tree in the distance.
There was a simply dressed but affectionate girl looking at him. Even when they met each other's eyes, she only blushed and did not look away.
Chen Yi saw all of this and subconsciously took a handful of melon seeds from Xiao Die's hand.
It's clear that the girl who had a secret crush on Li Huaigu came from an ordinary background, no wonder the matriarch of the Li family wanted to break them up.
There are probably only two reasons—they are not a good match in terms of social status, and Li Huaigu's future prospects.
"On one hand, there's his parents' arrangement; on the other, there's his childhood sweetheart, his ideal love. I wonder what he will choose."
(End of this chapter)
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