Chapter 15

At this moment, someone brought in a thick stack of white paper and began to distribute a few sheets to each table.

Others poured water into the inkwells on each table for everyone to use to moisten their brushes and grind ink.

After the items were distributed, everyone waited quietly for a while before Lu Jikui, accompanied by Di Cang and Yu Qi, appeared with smiles on their faces, indicating that the riddles had been prepared.

Everyone stood up, clasped their hands, and bowed, "Your Excellency, the Prefect."

"There's no need for such formalities, please sit down," Lu Jikui said with a good mood, repeatedly gesturing for them to sit. He also extended his hands to invite the two masters to sit down, and he himself sat down first, nodding to the official in charge to indicate that the event could begin.

The official in charge bowed and accepted the order, then waved his hand toward the door. Immediately, someone carried a large bag into the room, opened it, and poured its contents onto a table—hundreds of specially made small bags.

Yu Qing craned his neck to stare, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.

Other candidates might not understand, but he immediately knew that the small cloth bags contained spirit rice, each bag precisely weighing ten taels.

Sure enough, after the person who brought the items left, the official in charge announced loudly to everyone, "This is the additional prize added by Master Di Cang—100 pounds of spirit rice. It was urgently brought in by Master Di Cang just now, and it is this year's new harvest, picked from spirit crops less than a month ago, showing Master Di Cang's deep affection for everyone."

Zhan Muchun immediately stood up and bowed, "Thank you, Master Di Cang."

This made the other candidates also stand up and bow together, "Thank you, Master Di Cang."

Yu Qing was no exception, but he cursed inwardly, thinking that this guy was just causing trouble, making everyone bend and straighten their backs, as if he could get the reward.

Master Di Cang was already smiling, waving his hands to indicate that there was no need for such formalities.

After everyone sat down, the official in charge continued, "100 pounds of spirit rice, divided into exactly 100 bags, each bag containing exactly the same amount. The reward rules are as follows: the top six will receive rewards. The first place gets 30 bags, the second and third places each get 20 bags, and the fourth, fifth, and sixth places each get 10 bags. Of course, the first place will also receive a special grand prize."

He flipped his hand to reveal a small metal bottle carved with wave patterns, slightly larger than a goose egg, "This is the additional prize added by Master Yu Qi—Mystic Level Exorcism Dew, which is worth about the same as the 100 bags of spirit rice. Considering that this Exorcism Dew is not suitable for distribution, the Prefect and the two masters have decided that this bottle of Exorcism Dew will be the grand prize for the first place. In other words, the first place not only gets 30 bags of spirit rice but also this Mystic Level Exorcism Dew, which will surely become a fine story in our state. It should be noted that this bottle of Mystic Level Exorcism Dew was personally refined by Master Yu Qi!"

Upon hearing this, the candidates were immediately stirred. They didn't expect the rewards to be distributed this way, heavily favoring the first place. Indeed, it would be a fine story if it were to be known.

Yu Qing's eyes gleamed as he stared at the small metal bottle, his lips involuntarily licking, feeling an uncontrollable excitement.

If he could really get the first place, it would be a substantial amount of money. However, could he really get the first place? Xu Fei couldn't help but turn his head to look at Yu Qing. Seeing Yu Qing's reaction, he was stunned. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but it seemed that this guy was quite excited. Could he really have the confidence?

To say that he could get the first place just like that, to be honest, he found it hard to believe. But since Brother Shiheng had said it, it seemed possible. He wouldn't say such things without confidence, right?

"Thank you, Master Yu Qi." Zhan Muchun stood up again and led the bow.

So, a group of people had to stand up and thank together, "Thank you, Master Yu Qi."

Yu Qi had a slight smile on his face and gestured for them to sit down.

After the candidates sat down, the official in charge waved his hand toward the door again. Three people came in, unfolded three pieces of calligraphy, and hung them on the beams. The beams already had designated spots for hanging calligraphy and paintings during the academy's lectures.

The three pieces of calligraphy were the riddles, each with a different style and handwriting, clearly written by Lu Jikui, Di Cang, and Yu Qi, but no one could tell which one was written by whom. The candidates had almost never seen the calligraphy of these three.

Each piece contained ten riddles, making a total of thirty riddles.

The official in charge then lit an incense stick and placed it in a temporary incense burner, announcing loudly, "Copy the riddles, one answer per riddle, and do not mix them up, otherwise the answers will be considered invalid. The time limit is one incense stick. If multiple people submit their answers at the same time, the one with the most correct answers wins. If the number of correct answers is the same, the one who submits first wins. If the incense stick burns out and the answer is not submitted, it will be considered a forfeit and will not be graded. As scholars, you should understand the rules, so I don't need to explain further."

After saying this, he waved his hand and shouted, "Begin!"

The candidates immediately got busy, dripping water into their inkwells and grinding ink, while also scrutinizing the riddles hanging on the beams.

Even the six top candidates from the county examination, who were sitting in the front, no longer paid attention to the Prefect's expression but focused on solving the riddles.

Relatively speaking, they were under more pressure, as their reputations would be tarnished if they performed poorly in this quick-witted competition.

Lu Jikui, Di Cang, and Yu Qi, on the other hand, were whispering and laughing softly on the stage.

Xu Fei, who was grinding ink, kept glancing at Yu Qing. They had agreed on a signal, and he wanted to see how the so-called "Brother Shiheng," who was good at riddles, would solve them one by one. However, he noticed something odd. Yu Qing seemed distracted, looking around, which was different from the reactions of others.

Xu Fei suddenly felt unsure.

Yu Qing was also grinding ink. When he saw the smoke from the incense burner, the wavy and erratic movement made him tense. He couldn't help but look around and occasionally glance out the window where a gentle breeze occasionally blew in.

When he noticed that some candidates had already picked up their brushes and started writing, he became anxious.

Seeing the pile of spirit rice and the bottle of Exorcism Dew on the table, he finally made a bold move.

He put down the inkstone, took advantage of the gentle breeze, and suddenly pulled out a sheet of white paper, secretly using his skills to flick it out.

The white paper fluttered up, and Yu Qing, pretending to be in a hurry, stood up and made a series of movements to catch the paper, using subtle techniques to make it look like the wind had blown it away.

Xu Fei, who had been observing Yu Qing, was stunned. He was sitting at the table next to Yu Qing and had felt the gentle breeze, but was it really that strong?

He couldn't help but suspect that this "Brother Shiheng" might be trying to peek at others' answers to claim the first place.

However, he quickly dismissed this thought. It was just the beginning, and the nearby candidates were still thinking about the riddles. There shouldn't be any answers to copy yet.

He felt he was being too suspicious and that such a low-level cheating method wouldn't be used.

Among the seated students, someone suddenly stood up and made a big fuss, catching the attention of Lu Jikui, Di Cang, and Yu Qi, who were sitting on the stage.

Yu Qing took two steps to catch the flying paper and awkwardly bowed and apologized before sitting back down.

The candidate at the table in front almost bumped into him, and nearby candidates, even those with paperweights, instinctively pressed down on their papers, fearing that the wind would blow them away, although it was just a gentle breeze.

Yu Qing, back in his seat, was tense, unsure if his impromptu move would be effective.

Without much delay, Lu Jikui frowned and gave a silent gesture, pointing to the doors and windows.

Someone immediately understood and silently followed the order, quickly closing the doors and windows around the hall. The hall became dimmer, but the lighting was still adequate for normal vision.

The candidates sitting in the front didn't see Yu Qing's actions, as they were too focused on the riddles. They only noticed the dimming light and realized the doors and windows were closed, but they didn't think much of it.

Success! Yu Qing, continuing to grind ink, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that the smoke in the hall was no longer easily disturbed, he felt that he had succeeded halfway, feeling a bit excited. This was his first time cheating in front of someone of Lu Jikui's level and getting away with it, which felt quite thrilling.

At that moment, he completely forgot about the heavy responsibility given to him by Ah Shiheng, risking it all for ten thousand taels of silver. If Lu Jikui or his subordinates noticed something amiss, it would be a big trouble.

The incense smoke gradually spread throughout the hall. Yu Qing, holding his brush and pretending to think, kept his eyes darting around, constantly observing the movements of the candidates.

Suddenly, he saw someone writing, and his sharp eyes immediately focused on the subtle changes in the smoke around that person.

When the person stopped writing and looked up at the riddles again, the smoke patterns during the writing had already been deduced by Yu Qing into a line of text.

The riddle was "Spring and Autumn are cool," and the answer was the character "Qin."

Yu Qing's brush also moved, quickly writing down "Spring Qin," just to indicate which of the thirty riddles it was and the corresponding answer.

He then noticed someone else writing and quickly focused his gaze, obtaining the content. The riddle was a single character "Zhong," and the answer was the character "Chi."

With over three hundred people, the writing activities began to rise and fall. Yu Qing, trying to handle so many people, was a bit busy. Moreover, his observations couldn't be too obvious, and he had to act, which was tiring. To save time, he skipped over repeated content and focused on others.

In short, he was planning to use the collective quick-wittedness of all the candidates to win the first place in this riddle-solving competition.

He didn't believe that anyone here could outsmart the collective intelligence of everyone. If there was such a genius, he would accept his defeat.

The reason for closing the doors and windows was to reduce the interference from the wind, as observing the subtle changes in the smoke with so many people was too much for his limited cultivation. The mental strain of the Word Observation Technique would be too much for him.

This wasn't just about observing; it was about deducing the characters