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S T E L L A R C L O U D
[Azurixa] [Celeste S.] [Christine G.-L.]
O R A N G E S T A R
[J Jean] [K.Rom] [Manon] [Smurfinbatik] [Tori D.]
Y E L L O W S T A R
[Fav Akira] [Leticia P.] [Maria P.] [Mel Melz] [Nicole] [Passerby]
G O L D S T A R
[Cindy] [Nanashi D. Y.] [Reece P.]
R A I N B O W S T A R
[Amanda] [Book W.] [Britnae M] [Caroline] [Christigale M.] [DetectiveGeek421] [Haruka N.]
[Hong] [Kiiayame] [kuroneko_chan] [Lily J.] [Liznel M.] [Michelle K.] [onepiece]
[Quae] [Ray] [Victoria]
After breakfast, Xiao Liulang would send Little Jing Kong to school, and then go to the yamen to get a household register—— after becoming a Zhuangyuan, his household register would be transferred to Hanlin Academy. From now on, he was also a person with a household register in the capital. It was said that only the top three Jinshi received this kind of privilege.
At noon, Old Chief would take him out to meet a friend, and he wouldn’t return home in the afternoon, as he would be going to attend the Lu Ming Banquet directly.
Gu Jiao asked him about his itinerary without explaining anything. After watching him leave, she also went out and made her way to the medical hall.
Xiao Liulang got a household register, met a senior court official, and entered the imperial palace in the afternoon.
It was still early, but many scholars had already arrived in the Hall of Supreme Harmony and were chatting with each other. Some of them might become colleagues in the future, so it was just right to establish a good relationship in advance.
Feng Lin, Lin Chengye and Du Ruohan didn't leave early last night and enjoyed themselves to the fullest, just like romantic scholars. Today, all three people got up late, but they were still one step earlier than Xiao Liulang.
“Liulang!” Feng Lin was about to step into the Hall of Supreme Harmony when he saw Xiao Liulang at a glance.
Among the three people, Feng Lin had known Xiao Liulang the longest, owed him the most, and spent the most time with Xiao Liulang, so he was always the first to discover Xiao Liulang.
“Liulang.” Lin Chengye also turned into a little fanboy and came forward to greet him.
Only Du Ruohan curled his lips and let out a humph.
"You drank too much yesterday, are you alright?" Feng Lin asked with concern, then the feeling of shame suddenly struck him, "I should have sent you back yesterday."
"En, I’m fine." Xiao Liulang replied with a straight face.
Du Ruohan grunted, "I told you he was okay, didn’t I? He is a married man, with a wife and children, and a warm bed waiting for him at home. What is there to worry about?"
Xiao Liulang’s face slightly heated up and he cleared his throat, "Let’s go in."
Four people entered the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
Yesterday, Xiao Liulang left early, which made some people unhappy. The world was like this. If you were too clean, you would make others appear unclean.
"What's the big deal about him anyway? It’s suspicious how he became the Zhuangyuan when you think about it!"
"Keep your voice down. Be careful of others hearing you."
In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, several Jinshi were talking with their backs to the entrance.
The one who displayed such scorn was Wang Yuan, the scholar who came from a famous scholarly family in Jiangnan. Like Lin Chengye, he was an illegitimate child in the family, but he was more well-known and promising than Lin Chengye. In the metropolitan exam, he entered the top ten. Imperial Concubine Shu bet on him to be the Tanhua, but his article in the palace exam didn’t get the favor of the Emperor.
His exam paper got into the top twenty but was weeded out by the Emperor.
In the end, he ranked 75th, hanging at the tail of the second-class Jinshi.
Hearing the scholars around him advising him, not only did he refuse to listen, but said even more disdainfully, "Why are you afraid of being heard? I didn't say anything wrong! He’s allowed to do it, but no one can say anything about it? Isn't it because he looks like Marquis Xuanping's dead little son that he got some pity points from Marquis Xuanping? Now he really thinks he's Little Marquis!"
He was in the palace after all, so Wang Yuan dared not say it too explicitly, otherwise it would be openly questioning the Emperor's unfairness.
But just because he didn't say it frankly here didn’t mean he didn't elsewhere. In fact, as soon as Xiao Liulang and Ning Zhiyuan left last night, rumors about Xiao Liulang suddenly spread like wildfire in the building.
It was said that there was a reason why Marquis Xuanping came to fix Xiao Liulang’s attire on the day of the palace exam.
Not only that, but Xiao Liulang's past records had also been dug up.
"He was admitted to Tianxiang Academy with the worst result, and has been second from the bottom in rankings ever since. Then, he actually became the top scorer in the county exam a few months later. Can you believe that?"
"How is that possible?"
"How else? The Dean of Tianxiang Academy is the first disciple of Old Chief and the senior brother of the Little Marquis! Since he looks like Little Marquis, Dean Li naturally looked after him and bribed the county magistrate to make him the top scorer."
"What about... the prefectural exam?"
"The prefectural exam is more needless to say. The examiner of the prefectural exam is Provincial Governor Zhuang. You’ve all heard of Provincial Governor Zhuang, right? He was the Crown Princess’s teacher. The Little Marquis grew up with the Crown Princess, so he also attended the class of Provincial Governor Zhuang. He can be considered half a student of Provincial Governor Zhuang. You say, can Provincial Governor Zhuang not be reminded of the Little Marquis when he sees this face?"
"Then... why didn’t he become the top scorer in the college exam?"
"Because the top scorer of the college exam is the Luo Family's relative, He Jinghong! Who dares touch him?"
This statement was totally illogical.
Not to mention that Xiao Liulang was the real top scorer in the college exam in the first place, it was actually He Jinghong who corruptly replaced Xiao Liulang's exam paper with a blank one. Even if Xiao Liulang really did become the top scorer by unscrupulous means, for what reason would he lose to He Jinghong in the college exam just to win against him in the provincial exam?
The trifling college exam made him afraid, but the major provincial exam didn’t?
This conversation was spread last night. Feng Lin and Lin Chengye were too drunk at that time, so they didn’t remember clearly, but now hearing Wang Yuan’s mockery, they recalled everything.
The two people were furious and wanted to rush up and argue with Wang Yuan, but were stopped by Xiao Liulang, "Don't stir up trouble in the palace."
Feng Lin gritted his teeth, "But…"
Du Ruohan looked at Xiao Liulang and said to Feng Lin and Lin Chengye, "He himself is not angry, what are you both so angry about? Besides, it’s other people’s mouths, could it be you’re going to sew their mouths shut?"
The fact that the Zhuangyuan was a scholar of a poor background was like a mockery to many people’s status. Criticism and defamation were only the most insignificant harm he could receive, and the real act of exclusion was yet to come.
The Lu Ming Banquet was about to begin, and everyone went to find their own seats.
There was no explicit rule about the seating order, but it was customary to sit according to their results, such as the Zhuangyuan, Bangyan and Tanhua should sit in the first three seats at the lower left, while the first place among the second-class and third-class Jinshi should sit at the lower right.
However, after An Junwang entered the hall with the pace of an injured, he didn't sit in the head seats at the lower left side with Xiao Liulang, but went to the opposite side and sat himself down in the seat that originally belonged to the second-class Jinshi.
His actions were so clear and evident, he was just short of writing on his face: the Zhuangyuan and I go our own separate ways.
He didn't sit beside Xiao Liulang, and no one else dared to, so the seat next to Xiao Liulang was empty.
The Tanhua's seat was also empty because Ning Zhiyuan hadn't arrived yet.
Ning Zhiyuan, who came late, found that both seats for Bangyan and Tanhua were vacant. He looked at An Junwang, who was already sitting at the opposite side, said nothing, and sat silently beside Xiao Liulang.
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