Do you know: I am Xu Jiazi

Chapter 763 Sixth Sister, Slow Down! [Thank you! Bow again! 26k words owed]

On the morning of the fifth day after the palace examination.

The morning has dispersed.

The Great Zhou Imperial Palace

In the corridors between the palaces,

A chief examiner of the imperial examinations, dressed in a purple robe with gray hair and beard, walked slowly with two subordinates in red robes.

The two officials in red robes each held several scrolls in their arms.

At this moment, Zhao Fang, accompanied by his eunuch, strode towards the high-ranking officials in purple robes and others.

Upon seeing Zhao Fang, the high-ranking official in purple robes bowed and said, "This old minister greets Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Zhao Fang smiled and returned the greeting with a cupped hand: "You're too kind, Grand Chancellor! My father just gave me an order! It's perfect to run into you here; I don't need to go to the government office now!"

"Your Highness, what is the matter?" the high-ranking official in purple robes asked with a smile.

"My lord, are those the two people behind you holding the imperial examination papers to show the Emperor?"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Is there a name on the answer sheet?"

"some!"

Zhao Fang smiled and said, "Father said that the order of names should follow the order of the Grand Chancellors! But the names must be pasted on paper first!"

The high-ranking official in purple robes hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your Highness, then we can only go to His Majesty's palace and use whatever materials are available to cover up the truth."

"Very well!" Zhao Fang nodded with a smile, stepped aside, and gestured for him to enter, saying, "My lord, please!"

"This old minister dares not; Your Highness, please proceed!"

We arrived at the palace where the emperor was located.

In one of the cubicles, with the help of eunuchs, the officials quickly covered their names on the answer sheets with thick paper.

Afterwards, everyone left the separate room and entered the main hall.

Upon seeing the crowd, the chief eunuch hurriedly announced, "Your Majesty! The chief examiner for this year's imperial examination has arrived."

As the imperial eunuch announced the arrival of the emperor, who was standing intently in front of a huge sand table, turned around and smiled, "Good!"

After speaking, the emperor strode toward his desk.

The chief eunuch hurriedly took the tray containing the answer sheets and placed it on one side of the large imperial desk.

After the emperor took his seat, the high-ranking official in purple robes looked at the emperor behind the imperial desk, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, these are the top ten candidates selected by us in the palace examination! They are marked on the answer sheets."

The emperor smiled and nodded, picking up the answer sheet that read 'Draft of the tenth place' and waving his hand, saying, "Bring me a seat!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Afterward, the emperor stopped looking at the officials in the hall, opened the answer sheet, took a deep breath, and began to read it attentively.

While the emperor was reviewing the examination papers, an imperial eunuch brought warm tea to the three officials.

"My lords, please moisten your throats," the eunuch said in a low voice.

"Thank you."

Zhao Fang was also sitting below the emperor, sipping his drink while watching the emperor's expression.

The emperor sat behind his desk, holding a brush dipped in vermilion ink.

His gaze swept rapidly up and down the answer sheet, while the emperor's vermilion brush occasionally made dots and strokes on it.

After dozens of breaths.

"Not bad!"

As the emperor nodded in approval, he reached out and peeled off the thick paper covering the name.

Upon seeing the name on the answer sheet, the emperor smiled and exclaimed, "Good lad!"

Seeing that the emperor had finished reading a scroll of answers, the chief eunuch beside him shrewdly reached out and took it, preparing to roll it up again.

"Ahem, Father, I wish to..." Zhao Fang looked at the emperor with a hint of anxiety in his eyes.

"Hmm!" the emperor nodded. "You can take a look too."

The chief eunuch then handed the answer sheet to Zhao Fang.

"Please block the area where your name is written, sir," Zhao Fang said with a smile.

"Yes, Your Highness!" the chief eunuch replied with a smile.

After reading it from beginning to end, nodding occasionally, Zhao Fang slowly opened the place where his name was written, as if he were drawing a lottery ticket.

Upon seeing the words above, Zhao Fang's expression immediately relaxed.

Just now, when Zhao Fang heard the emperor shout "Good lad," he thought it was Xu Zaijing's answer sheet.

And so, after the emperor finished reading Zhao Fang's answers, only the last three scrolls remained out of the ten scrolls.

Zhao Fang's expression changed from relaxed at the beginning to mixed feelings of joy and worry.

The reason was simple: seeing that only three volumes remained, Zhao Fang feared that Xu Zaijing's name was not among them.

"Hoo—" Zhao Fang took a deep breath and reached out to take the third-to-last volume handed to him by the chief eunuch.

Then comes the penultimate volume.

After reading the names in the penultimate volume, Zhao Fang looked at the emperor with a mixture of curiosity and nervousness.

After the emperor finished reading the last volume, he handed it to the chief eunuch and looked at the high-ranking officials in purple and scarlet robes sitting not far away, saying, "Very good! Let's draw up the list according to the rankings you made."

The official sitting on the embroidered stool hurriedly stood up, bowed, and said, "Your subject obeys the decree!"

While the emperor was speaking, Zhao Fang quickly opened the answer sheet, not looking at the contents, and immediately focused his gaze on the blank space where the names were hidden.

When the high-ranking official in purple robes answered the imperial decree, Zhao Fang also saw the name on the answer sheet.

Seeing Zhao Fang breathe a sigh of relief, the emperor chuckled softly and instructed, "Do not let this get out beforehand!"

Zhao Fang smiled and nodded: "Father, rest assured! Your son understands!"

The next day.

The sun rises in the east,

Xu Yizhou, a former fierce soldier of the Western Army and now a captain of the Imperial Guards, stood on the palace wall.

Under the sunlight, Xu Yizhou's armor gleamed with a metallic sheen. Below the parapet in front of him was the place where the name of the palace gate was written, with three large characters: Donghua Gate!

Donghua Gate is the east gate, and Xu Yizhou, standing on the palace wall, was facing the sun, where the sunlight was quite dazzling.

Xu Yizhou narrowed his eyes and looked down at the palace gate.

Xu Yizhou had seen this scenery outside the palace gate countless times, but today's scenery was different from the past.

The reason was that before dawn, some of the Imperial Guards had placed rows of barricades and deer antlers on the moat bridge.

As soon as it got light, passersby began to gather outside the moat bridge.

At this time, many people had already gathered along the moat outside Donghua Gate, some sitting and some standing.

With so many people, the noise naturally became quite loud.

Beside the bridge over the palace moat, beyond the antler-shaped barricades, a servant of a powerful family stood, looking at the imperial guards on the bridge, and bowed, asking, "Commander Tu, may I ask what stage the palace's situation is at now?"

The military officer, dressed as a captain of the Imperial Guard, wearing leather armor and holding the hilt of a sword, looked at the servants of the wealthy family outside and said, "No news has come out yet! Let's wait a little longer!"

"Alright! Thanks for the explanation, Commander Tu!"

Hearing the conversation, the people standing in front of the bridge began to pass it around to those behind them.

The content mostly describes how the sages and high-ranking officials are still attending court and that we have to wait a little longer.

Upon receiving the news, some idlers or servants from various households hurriedly left to report the situation to their respective homes.

As the wealthy and common people gathered outside the bridge chattered amongst themselves, the servant of the wealthy family who had just asked the question suddenly shouted, "Quiet down! There's a commotion in the palace!"

The fact that the servants of the wealthy family could speak with the officers of the Imperial Guards inside the barricades and even get some answers from them prompted the surrounding crowd to quickly and consciously tell those around them to be quiet when they heard the servants' shouts.

After a moment of silence.

Sure enough, even though there were high palace walls between them, loud shouts could still be faintly heard.

Someone in the crowd outside the bridge looked up at the sky and said, "Judging by the sky, the court must have ended!"

“That’s right! It’s about this time.” someone echoed.

About fifteen minutes later.

As everyone was talking, a group of imperial guards walked towards them from inside the Donghua Gate.

Upon closer inspection, everyone realized that they had come to relieve the imperial guards on the bridge.

Looking at the servants of the wealthy families outside the barricades and antlers, Commander Tu asked his comrades, "How far has the situation progressed in the palace?"

"His Majesty has moved to the Jiying Hall," the Imperial Guard officer who came to change shifts announced loudly.

As a result, the news also reached outside the crowd.

royal palace,

Outside the Hall of Gathering Heroes,

On either side of the main gate, Sheng Hong, dressed in official robes, stood among the officials, looking at the newly appointed scholars standing solemnly at the gate not far away.

Looking at the expressions of the newly appointed scholars, Sheng Hong was momentarily reminded of his own past.

Sheng Hong tried to recall how he felt standing outside the palace back then, but found that he had no recollection of it.

Back then, although Sheng Hong was a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), his ranking was not high; he was ranked in the middle of the third class.

"I wonder what rankings Bai'er and her son-in-law achieved today!" Sheng Hong thought to himself.

Afterwards, Sheng Hong continued to observe the newly appointed scholars.

With over four hundred newly appointed scholars, it was quite difficult to find Changbai's figure.

Just then, a voice came: "Brother Sheng, congratulations!"

Upon hearing this, Sheng Hong quickly turned his head to look and discovered that the speaker was his friend and fellow student, Lord Liu.

At this moment, Lord Liu's face was full of envy.

"Your eldest son and son-in-law have both passed the imperial examination with flying colors; Brother Sheng, you are truly blessed!" Lord Liu continued.

Sheng Hong glanced at the Censorate officials who were also speaking in hushed tones not far away, and said in a low voice, "Brother Liu, you flatter me! Those two were just lucky!"

Upon hearing this, Lord Liu shook his head with a somewhat disappointed expression.

Looking at his friend's expression, Sheng Hong said in a low voice, "Nephew Liu simply didn't pass the exam, Brother Liu, why are you making such a fuss!"

Lord Liu sighed softly, "He's taken the exam twice now! Failing twice in a row, I'm afraid he'll feel...

Sheng Hong nodded and said, "This time, very few will be able to hit the target! Even so, Brother Liu, we must not let him get discouraged! One failure, two failures, aren't they all a test for him?"

"Brother Sheng is absolutely right!" Lord Liu said, "By the way, does Brother Sheng know what plans Scholar Zhuang has for the future?"

Sheng Hong said in a low voice, "I know! Scholar Zhuang will probably stay in Bianjing!"

Lord Liu's eyes widened in surprise as he asked, "Really?"

"Maybe!" Sheng Hong quickly replied. At the same time, he added to himself: It all depends on how well my youngest son does in school.

Lord Liu glanced around and whispered, "Brother Sheng, of the six students in your school, four have become Jinshi this year. If Scholar Zhuang were to stay in the capital, I'm afraid the most powerful and wealthy families there would be scrambling to hire him!"

"I earnestly hope that Brother Sheng will spread this message later! So that my son may have the opportunity to receive instruction from Scholar Zhuang!"

Sheng Hong nodded: "No problem! No problem!"

As he spoke, Sheng Hong smiled at his other colleagues. Lord Liu whispered, "Luckily, we both spoke in low voices, otherwise..."

At this time.

"Your Majesty is here!"

The high-pitched voice of the chief eunuch rang out.

The officials outside the hall quickly straightened their clothes and hats and stood respectfully at attention.

A moment later, a shout rang out again from inside the hall: "Bow—"

Officials and examinees inside and outside the Hall of Heroes knelt down and shouted, "Long live the Emperor!"

"prosper--"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" the officials said in unison.

After everyone stood up and stood properly.

The chief eunuch shouted again, "Summon the candidates for this year's imperial examination to the palace!"

Xu Zaijing and the others, who had been standing solemnly outside the hall, filed in one after another.

Since most of the officials, except for the high-ranking officials in purple robes, were standing outside the Jiying Hall, the hall was quite spacious at this time.

Xu Zaijing and other candidates for this year's examination lined up on both sides, leaving a space more than ten feet wide in the middle.

The chief eunuch stood beside the emperor and Zhao Fang, and after watching everyone in the hall take their positions, he turned back to look at the emperor.

The emperor nodded: "Let's begin!"

The chief eunuch bowed in agreement, then picked up the scroll from the tray held by a fellow eunuch, unfurled it, and began to read aloud.

The gist of the message is: Today is a good day. You have studied hard for many years. After the emperor's decision and the evaluation of the senior officials in the court, your rankings in the palace examination have been announced.

"The names of candidates for the Imperial Examination will be announced today. Please listen attentively!"

After the chief eunuch finished reading, he looked at the high-ranking official in purple robes standing to the side and said with a smile, "Grand Chancellor, please!"

The high-ranking official in purple robes beside him smiled and nodded, then stepped forward to a spot a short distance from the emperor, bowing respectfully with his hands clasped in greeting.
The emperor smiled and said, "Summon them."

"As you command!" The high-ranking official in purple robes straightened up and turned to pick up the scroll of yellow silk from the tray held by the eunuch beside him.

After taking a deep breath, the high-ranking official in purple robes unfurled the scroll: "First place in this year's imperial examination—"

As the high-ranking official read the announcement, the candidates standing solemnly in the hall held their breath.

Xu Zaijing was no exception.

"First place."

The Grand Chancellor's voice echoed in the hall.

The candidates' hearts were gradually racing, and some even had their faces flushed with nervousness.

Not only the examinees, but also the imperial guards standing solemnly inside the hall listened attentively.

"First place—Xu Zaijing!"

"The top scholar of this imperial examination—Xu Zaijing!"

"The top scholar of this imperial examination—Xu Zaijing!"

The Grand Chancellor, standing below the steps in front of the Emperor, shouted three times!

Standing next to Xu Zaijing, Gu Tingye watched Xu Zaijing walk away, his eyes filled with envy!
After leaving the crowd, Xu Zaijing went to the carpeted open space in the middle, and with a graceful movement, he knelt down, shouting, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

The eldest son asked in a gentle voice:
Where is your ancestral home?

"My ancestral home is Daizhou!"

"What's your father's name?"

"Grandfather Xu Dayou! Father Xu Minghua!"

Xu Zaijing finished answering while kneeling.

The eldest son smiled and nodded, saying, "Scholar, thank the emperor!"

When Xu Zaijing knelt down and loudly expressed his gratitude.

The imperial guards standing solemnly inside the hall began to shout loudly: "The first place winner of this year's imperial examination—Xu Zaijing!"

Hearing the shouts from inside the hall, Sheng Hong, who was standing solemnly outside the hall, suddenly widened his eyes.

Gu Tingyu, who was not far away, nodded with a smile, his eyes filled with anticipation as he continued to watch the hall.

After the imperial guards inside the hall finished shouting, the imperial guards not far outside the hall took turns shouting loudly: "First place in the first class of this year's imperial examination—Xu Zaijing!"

"."

"The top scholar of this imperial examination—Xu Zaijing!"

"."

Starting from the Jiying Hall, shouts of "Xu Zaijing, the top scholar in this imperial examination!" echoed throughout the palace, gradually moving towards the Donghua Gate!

Soon, the shouts reached the vicinity of Donghua Gate!

"Xu Zaijing, the top scholar in this imperial examination!" A loud shout came from the gate of Donghua Gate.

On the bridge over the moat outside Donghua Gate, the imperial guards officers and soldiers maintaining order shouted in unison: "Xu Zaijing, the first-place winner of this year's imperial examination!"

"Whoa!!!"

A gasp of surprise rippled through the crowd gathered along the moat.

outside the crowd,
Upon hearing this, the richly dressed servant immediately turned around and shouted outside, "Quick! Quick! Go and inform them!!"

"It's our young master!"

Qingyun shouted from not far away.

Upon hearing this, Alan, who was outside the crowd, replied, "Understood!" He then mounted his horse and shouted, "Make way! Make way!"

Alan shouted and urged his horse to gallop to the side.

The people of Bianjing were used to this once-every-three-years spectacle. The onlookers nearby, watching the galloping horses leave from time to time, consciously made way for them.

"drive!"

After revving his mount, Alan prepared to speed back to his residence along the moat to deliver the good news.

But then, Alan suddenly noticed a figure rapidly approaching him from not far away.

Alan turned his head in surprise and saw a richly dressed young servant running frantically.

The horse hadn't picked up any speed yet, and Alan watched as someone overtook him.

"You rascal, running like that, do you have a death wish!" Alan shouted.

The servant, who was running frantically, glanced back at Alan and laughed, "My friend, you're overthinking it!"

As he spoke, the servant turned a corner not far from Alan and ran towards the gate on the side.

Alan glanced to the side and saw the words "Chai Residence" on the plaque above the door!
Seeing this, Alan said dejectedly, "No wonder! It's so close."

With that, Alan rode away.

Inside the Chai family residence,
The servant who had been running frantically was now running towards the wooden building in the northwest corner.

The maid on the second floor asked urgently, "Gecko, is he really the fifth young master of the Xu family?!"

The servant boy, panting heavily, said, "Yes, Sister Yunmu! I heard it clearly. The first place winner in the first division is indeed Young Master Xu!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than a purse was thrown down from upstairs.

"It's your reward!"

"Thank you, sister!"

The servant, Gecko, shouted loudly.

After he finished speaking, the servant opened his purse and saw a handful of gold coins inside. His eyes instantly lit up with surprise!
Outside Donghua Gate,

Shouts could still be heard coming from inside the doorway.

"Third place in the first division—Sheng Changbai!"

"."

"Second place, tenth – Gu Tingye!"

Jiying Lane,
At the gate of the Sheng family,
"Shut up!"

Qingyun leaped off his horse and shouted loudly at the gatekeeper of the Sheng family, "Great joy to your household! Great joy to your household!"

"Brother Qingyun! Please come in! How many ranks does my young master have?" the gatekeeper of the Sheng family asked with a smile.

"Hahahaha!" Qingyun laughed and ran into the courtyard.

Outside the main hall of the outer courtyard,

Wang Ruofu supported Liu Mama's arm, with Wei Shuyi standing on the other side, and Rulan and Minglan on the outer side.

"Why hasn't anyone come back to report the news yet!" Wang Ruofu said, turning to go inside, and Rulan quickly followed.

Minglan, who was left behind, glanced back at the gate and then pointed to it, shouting, "Madam! Look! Someone's coming!"

"Great news!"

Qingyun's shout came!
"Great joy?" Wang Ruofu glanced at Liu Mama and Wei Shuyi beside him and then shouted, "Quickly, go and get the reward pouch."

"Yes, Madam!" Caihuan replied and hurriedly ran into the house.

At this moment, Qingyun also came forward, bowed and cupped his hands, saying, "Madam, great news! Great news! Brother Bai has achieved first place and third place in the first class of the imperial examination today!"

"Third place? That's second place!" Wang Ruofu asked hurriedly.

"Uh, Madam, that's..."

"Ha! Reward! Reward quickly!" Wang Ruofu instantly became energetic, pacing back and forth excitedly: "Second place! Hahaha, my Bai'er is the second place!"

With that, Wang Ruofu completely disregarded her appearance and ran straight to the backyard, saying, "I'm going to tell Mother!"

"Second Brother is the runner-up?! I'm going to tell that girl Mo Lan!" Ru Lan said, then pulled Ming Lan toward the backyard.

Minglan stumbled as Rulan pulled her: "Fourth Sister, slow down! Slow down!"

After smiling and waving to Caihuan, Liu's mother hurriedly followed with Wei Shuyi, who looked puzzled.

At this moment, Wang Ruofu turned around and ran back quickly, looking at Qingyun and saying, "Where is my son-in-law Zaizhang? Your third young master!"

Rulan was taken aback when she heard this, but Minglan pulled her back.

Qingyun looked troubled: "Madam, when I arrived, the Third Young Master's ranking hadn't been announced yet!"

"Oh!"

Wang Ruofu nodded, her joy subsiding slightly.

Minglan glanced at her mother and quickly asked, "Brother Qingyun, where is Brother Xu Wu? Tell me, and I'll go tell Grandmother!"

"Right, right, right! We forgot about Jing-ge and Ye-ge!" Wang Ruofu said.

Qingyun smiled and said, "Brother Ye, you don't know, but my young master is the number one in the first class!"

"Ah?!" Minglan was instantly overjoyed: "The top scholar?! I know! I'll go tell Grandmother!"

As she spoke, Minglan ran towards the backyard, forgetting that Rulan was still holding her hand.

After being pulled by Minglan, Rulan stumbled and quickly caught up, saying, "Sixth Sister, slow down!"

(End of this chapter)