Chapter 99

At the Zhong family residence, deep within the inner quarters, a graceful figure was wandering between the pavilions and terraces, none other than the eldest daughter of the Zhong family.

A bit at a loss, she wandered around the pavilions and terraces, her heart already with the person she longed for, who was now in the imperial palace.

Her family had already told her that the auspicious day had been chosen, and in one month, she would officially be married. The other party had also agreed, which meant that in one month, she would truly become a wife.

"Sister!" A figure suddenly jumped out, shouting loudly.

"Ah!" Zhong Ruochen was startled, clutching her chest in shock. Seeing it was her younger sister, she immediately became angry and punched her a few times.

Wen Ruowei quickly fled, escaping to the outside of the railing, wiggling her hips, and waving a few sheets of paper at her sister inside the corridor, "Sister, I've got something good. If you hit me again, I won't show it to you."

Zhong Ruochen, not wanting to be as shameless as her, knew she couldn't catch up, so she gave up and asked, "What do you have in your hand?"

Wen Ruowei chuckled, "Father and Mother didn't let me go to watch the imperial examination, but I had someone copy down Brother-in-law's answers from the metropolitan examination." She shook the papers in her hand, "Sister, do you want to see?"

Zhong Ruochen's bright eyes lit up.

These days, she had heard all sorts of people praising her future husband's unparalleled talent, and the sweetness in her heart was indescribable.

Even she felt that waiting for so many years had been worth it, as her destined person was so outstanding. After all, people were praising him as "unparalleled in the world"!

Unparalleled in the world, what kind of talent must that be?

She was also a woman who loved literature, and she had long wanted to see her future husband's perfect metropolitan examination answer, and she was eager to do so.

That feeling was something outsiders couldn't understand, like "seeing the person through their words," which could avoid the awkwardness of actually meeting. She wanted to understand what kind of person her future husband was and how his talent was truly unparalleled.

But she had to maintain the dignity of a well-bred lady, and since she wasn't officially married yet, she didn't feel right asking for something written by a man, especially since she was about to marry him.

Hearing that her sister had it, her heart warmed, and she reached out, "Weiwai, let me see."

In front of her sister, she didn't need to hide anything.

Wen Ruowei, with a knowing look, shook the papers in her hand and said proudly, "I'll give it to you, but you have to give me something in return, Sister."

Zhong Ruochen was a bit anxious, "Don't play around, Weiwai, give it to me quickly, or I'll get angry."

Wen Ruowei immediately put the papers behind her back, "Hey, you're asking me for something and you're threatening me? No benefits, no papers."

Zhong Ruochen, annoyed, immediately came out of the corridor to take it herself.

Wen Ruowei immediately bit the papers with her mouth and climbed up the artificial hill, not caring that she was wearing a skirt.

Finally, she stood on the hill, looking down proudly.

Zhong Ruochen, a lady, couldn't climb a hill in a skirt, so she had no choice but to give in, "What do you want?"

Wen Ruowei, clearly having planned this for a while, immediately said, "Have Brother-in-law write a poem for me!"

Zhong Ruochen immediately turned and walked away; she herself didn't dare to meet him, let alone ask for a poem.

Wen Ruowei immediately shouted, "Not now, in the future. You're getting married in a month, right? After you marry him, you can ask Brother-in-law for a poem, okay?"

If that was the case, Zhong Ruochen stopped, hesitated, and turned back, "How do I know if he'll agree?"

Wen Ruowei said, "Sister, as long as you ask for me, if Brother-in-law refuses, I won't say anything."

Zhong Ruochen was puzzled, "Why do you want his poem?"

Wen Ruowei immediately squatted on the hill, looking down, "Sister, you don't know? Many people are trying to get Brother-in-law to write poems for them. Every day, people come to Father and Mother, hoping to get a poem from Brother-in-law. You don't know, someone offered Father 30,000 taels just for a poem from Brother-in-law.

Now, many people take pride in getting a poem from the once-in-a-century perfect metropolitan examination winner. It can be sold for a high price. Mother is already smiling from ear to ear, saying that Brother-in-law can easily buy a large mansion in the capital just by selling poems, but Father refused all of them. Father said the imperial examination is more important and not to let these things interfere with Brother-in-law's preparation. If I can get a poem from Brother-in-law and show it off, it would be so prestigious."

Zhong Ruochen reached out, "Give it to me."

Wen Ruowei's eyes lit up, "Sister, you agree?"

"Never mind." Zhong Ruochen turned and walked away.

"Here, here, I'll take that as a yes." Wen Ruowei quickly climbed down, already dirty, and ran to her sister, offering the papers.

As soon as she got the papers, Zhong Ruochen immediately turned and returned to the corridor, sitting in a chair by the railing. She straightened out the papers, smoothed out the wrinkles, and saw the poem. She read it once and was captivated, repeating it to herself, "To the imperial palace... one day entering the emperor's hall, completing the fame of a lifetime. One day... completing the fame of a lifetime... To the imperial palace..."

"Oh, Sister, I heard this poem caused a sensation in the entire capital. I heard many people cried outside the examination hall. Many say Brother-in-law will become famous throughout the world..."

Inside the imperial examination hall, the four chief examiners occasionally glanced at Yu Qing, who was sitting in the first seat.

Most candidates had already started writing, and some had been writing for a while, but the metropolitan examination winner was still sitting there motionless, eyes closed, as if meditating.

The chief examiners all had the impulse to remind him, to tell him that this was the imperial examination, a single question to determine the winner, with only one hour, not like the metropolitan examination where you could take several days. They wanted to remind him to consider the time.

Yu Qing was also anxious inside, but he had no choice. His junior master hadn't responded, so he could only wait. To avoid looking awkward, he pretended to be meditating.

He had already decided that if something unexpected happened and his junior master didn't send the answers in time, he would rather submit a blank paper than write something embarrassing. His reason was that he felt his knowledge was limited, and he would try again next year.

As for the impact of a perfect metropolitan examination winner submitting a blank paper, he couldn't care less at the moment. He would deal with it later...

In a quiet courtyard near the imperial city, Zhou Xinyuan hurriedly came out of the study, went to the courtyard, and found the place where he had left footprints. He put his feet back in place, looked at the nearly thousand-character essay in his hand, thought about what he had to do, and couldn't help but sigh.

The reason Linglong Temple remained hidden was because of the special cultivation techniques they practiced. The main concern wasn't that people would try to exploit them, but that it could easily offend taboos and provoke anger, leading to a siege. Therefore, the temple rules strictly prohibited certain actions, and if exposed, the consequences would be unimaginable. Using Linglong Temple's techniques to cheat in the imperial examination was absolutely forbidden.

However, now, neither the abbot of Linglong Temple nor his junior master mentioned the rules. They both knew it was against the rules but still did it, as if the rules didn't exist.

But, to be fair, the rules that now constrained the inner disciples were decided by him and Yu Qing.

He silently apologized to his deceased master and senior brother, then, with a focused expression, his ears slightly trembling, he confirmed Yu Qing's location and began to whisper, "The answers are here, get ready to write. I will repeat them until the examination ends..."

Yu Qing, who had been meditating, suddenly opened his eyes, quickly picked up a brush, dipped it in ink, and started writing a draft.

The chief examiners noticed his actions and, considering the time, were worried he wouldn't finish in time.

However, as they watched, they realized their concerns were unfounded.

Yu Qing demonstrated what it meant to write without stopping, not even pausing for a draft.

After observing for a while, the chief examiners exchanged glances, realizing that extraordinary people indeed had extraordinary abilities. They guessed that his previous deep contemplation had transformed into a divine touch in his writing...

At the end of the third hour, a loud crack of a whip echoed within the palace gates.

The Zhong family couple, who had been hiding from the sun in a carriage outside the examination grounds, came out to watch.

The crowd was no longer as dense, as those who were just there for the spectacle had left. Those remaining were either waiting for someone, had some regrets, or were there just to see the excitement.

As expected, after the whip crack, the candidates who had taken the imperial examination came out, with Yu Qing leading the way.

The old eunuch led them out of the palace gates and bowed to them.

Once they were out of the restricted area, the candidates, regardless of how they had performed, felt a great sense of relief.

Xu Fei and Zhan Muchun both wanted to approach Yu Qing to greet him, but Yu Qing didn't want to stay and chat, so he quickly left.

Seeing him come, the Zhong family people immediately waved from outside the examination grounds, indicating they were there.

As Yu Qing approached the grounds, someone outside suddenly shouted loudly, "Is the metropolitan examination winner married? My family has some wealth, and my daughter is of marriageable age and very beautiful. I wish to offer her to the metropolitan examination winner!"

This shout caused a burst of laughter and immediately made Wen Jianhui, who was waiting for her future son-in-law, very hostile. As soon as Yu Qing arrived, she hurriedly made him get into the carriage, not wanting him to be seen outside any longer.

Inside the carriage, Wen Jianhui asked with concern, "Shiheng, the imperial examination must have been tiring, right?"

Yu Qing replied, "Not really."

Zhong Su then asked, "How do you feel about your performance?"

Yu Qing didn't know how he had done. He had carefully read Mr. Ming's answers this time, and, well, he could understand them, so he had copied them. At this moment, he could only sigh, "It doesn't matter, it's just about becoming the top scholar!"

For him, there was nothing worse than being a perfect metropolitan examination winner.

He was speaking from the heart, but Wen Jianhui couldn't help but laugh, finding that people with real talent spoke differently. To them, becoming the top scholar was just a matter of course, as if they didn't even care about it. Such words could only be said by her future son-in-law; if anyone else said it, it would sound like boasting.

Zhong Su also smiled and stroked his beard.