Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 131 Chapter 130 Tasting
Everyone drank the broth slowly and leisurely, their faces flushed and their bodies steaming.

Zhang Bo couldn't help but say, "The meat of this monster is extraordinary. I'm afraid it's worth some elixirs."

The others also had some knowledge and could sense that this meat was unusual and was actually strengthening their physiques.

Li Zhao licked his lips, still feeling a little unsatisfied.

The others were the same, but everyone knew that this meat was precious and that one couldn't eat too much, so they were too embarrassed to ask Lu Zheng for some more.

Because of the Mingyue Tower incident, they thought Lu Zheng was aloof and difficult to get along with.

At this moment, Lu Zheng took out the precious monster meat to share, which made them feel inexplicably moved.

I can't help but feel that everyone's relationship is actually quite good, and Lu Zheng really treats them as friends.

Zhang Bo suddenly stood up and said to a guard, "Bring me your sword! I want to practice sword fighting!"

The guard hurried over and respectfully presented the sword.

Zhang Bo drew his sword from its sheath, holding the long sword in his hand, and said excitedly: "I just ate the monster meat given by Brother Lu, and my blood and energy are surging. Let me dance with the sword for you all!"

Zhang Bo strode to the open space next to him and swung his sword. The sword energy was everywhere and the sword light was sharp.

He has a graceful figure and steady steps, and it is obvious at first glance that he is good at using a sword.

Li Zhao sat beside Lu Zheng, pulling at his clothes to let in some air, and said leisurely, "Brother Zhang comes from a family of martial scholars. Some of his family members are generals in the court, and some are Confucian scholars. He has learned a lot of skills and is better than me."

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "It sounds like you have a very good family background. Why are you in Changchuan County?"

Li Zhao said, "This is his hometown. He used to study in the provincial capital, but he didn't like the atmosphere there, so he returned here... Speaking of which, he's already become quite talented and is preparing to take part in this year's Autumn Examination. If he's lucky enough to pass, he'll have to travel a lot less."

If you can pass the imperial examination, the remaining three feet of literary aura will be supplemented by the imperial court, which can indeed save you a lot of trouble.

Of course, the selection for the provincial examination was also extremely strict. Confucian and Taoist scholars were in charge of reviewing the papers. Only if they felt that you really had the talent to become a juren would they select and promote you to the position of juren.

Sometimes, it is better to have no candidates than to have unqualified ones, and the number of successful candidates may even be lower than the required number of places, but such cases are rare.

If that happens, the provincial government will hold another provincial examination at the end of the same year to fill the vacancies.

If there is still a shortage of places, the quota will be added later to the next provincial examination.

Li Zhao looked at Zhang Bo dancing with a sword with envy. In his current situation, he would have to wait until the next provincial examination, which would be three years later at the earliest.

Li Zhao took a few deep breaths, asked a guard for a sword, and went to play with it nearby.

The other students were in high spirits, jumping around happily.

Lu Zheng thought that it was a good thing that he didn't cook more meat, otherwise these people would get impulsive and even swim back and forth in Hongjiang River several times.

"thump……"

A student took off his coat, jumped into the Hongjiang River, and swam happily nearby.

On the shore, the guards and servants could only watch helplessly, not daring to stop it, but they were also afraid that something might happen.

After a while of commotion, Li Zhao and his companions finally calmed down, but they were still full of energy.

Zhang Bo came up to Lu Zheng, sword in hand, and said, "Brother Lu, you've eaten so much, yet you've managed to stay calm."

"This is not the first time I've eaten this meat..." Lu Zheng explained with a smile.

Zhang Bo added, "Brother Lu has been able to kill so many demons, so he must be quite capable. Shall we practice?"

Lu Zheng stood up and said, "Okay, but use a stick to avoid hurting anyone."

Zhang Bo threw the sword to the guard and then took two sticks nearby.

Li Zhao said, "Stop it now, don't ruin the atmosphere!"

Lu Zheng and Zhang Bo both smiled and nodded.

Zhang Bo clasped his fists and said, "Brother Lu, please make your move!"

Lu Zheng did not refuse. It was just an ordinary sparring match. If he were to judge by who attacked first and then give way to the other party, it would be a bit pedantic.

Lu Zheng raised his stick and suddenly pointed it towards Zhang Bo.

Zhang Bo's eyes fixed, and then he reacted, dodging sideways and turning to chop Lu Zheng's arm with a stick.

Lu Zheng moved lightly and dodged.

The two men flashed and attacked back and forth, their attacks so fast that the sticks in their hands became blurred.

After more than ten moves, a broken wooden stick flew to the side.

The two men stopped and saw that the stick in Zhang Bo's hand was missing a piece.

Zhang Bo dropped his stick and said, "Brother Lu is very capable. I am ashamed to say I am not as good as him."

He could feel that Lu Zheng didn't use much strength and he was no match for Lu Zheng at all.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Brother Zhang, you are too kind. Brother Zhang's swordsmanship is not bad either."

Li Zhaoxing approached anxiously, asking suspiciously, "Didn't father say you didn't know any martial arts skills, and he was worried about you... Have you been hiding your abilities, waiting for a big splash?"

Lu Zheng smiled and explained, "I've been practicing recently. Fighting those monsters has given me a lot of experience and skills." Zhang Bo couldn't help but say, "It seems I need to learn from Brother Lu and kill some monsters... My grandfather also said that true skills are gained through fighting."

Li Zhao patted Zhang Bo on the shoulder and couldn't help but say, "You all have great abilities. When you become rich and powerful in the future, don't forget us friends."

Zhang Bo said, "I, Zhang, am not an ungrateful person... Everyone's sweating, let's go to my house to take a bath. We have to attend the meeting tonight!"

Zhang Bo walked towards Lu Zheng again, "Brother Lu, come with us! My parents are out visiting relatives, leaving me home alone. Brother Li and the others are staying at my house, so you don't have to feel uncomfortable!"

"Thank you for bothering me." Lu Zheng smiled and nodded.

The group then took a boat to Changchuan County. After only a few miles of water, they arrived outside the city.

Everyone got off the boat and entered the city. There were people coming and going along the way, and many people were setting up stalls. It was very lively.

Zhang Bo pointed outside the city and said to Lu Zheng, "From here to the riverbank over there, it's several miles long. It's going to be very lively tonight, with various markets and lantern festivals, and ladies from nearby counties and even the state capital coming here. That big ship over there came from Fengzhou. I haven't asked who is on it yet..."

Li Zhao winked and said, "Brother Lu's appearance tonight might attract the attention of many young ladies, hehe..."

Zhang Bo smiled and said, "Brother Lu's deeds have spread a lot among us, but no one else knew you were here today. Your appearance will indeed surprise some people."

Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "If you say that, I don't dare to go with you."

"Oh, don't," Li Zhao said hurriedly. "Brother Lu, don't worry. We won't ask you to do anything. Just show up and give our Kaiyang County some face! If anyone makes things difficult for us, they'll have to get through to us first...Brother Zhang, you'll help, right? You can't refuse to join us just because of the students from your county."

"Well, that's natural." Zhang Bo nodded.

To be honest, the students in this county are not very close to Zhang Bo, but people like Li Zhao can play together because they have had dealings with each other in the past.

The group entered the city happily and soon arrived at Zhang's mansion.

As Zhang Bo said, there were no elders in the family, and they were received by the housekeeper and some servants.

Everyone went to take a shower and change clothes, and then rested for a while in the mansion.

Several people gathered in Zhang Bo's study and made some preparations for the evening meeting.

Zhang Bo took out an invitation and handed it to Lu Zheng. "We need invitations for the gathering on board tonight. I have an extra one, and it's perfect for Brother Lu. Just add your name."

Li Zhao took the pen and said excitedly: "Come on, Brother Lu, I will help you write!"

Li Zhao added a few words to the signature section of the invitation: Kaiyang County, Lu Zheng, scholar of heaven and earth.

Lu Zheng looked at Li Zhao, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

Zhang Bo was sorting through some papers at his desk. "We have a gathering tonight, so we have to write some poems. I've prepared a few. If you guys want to think of some poems, we can discuss them together now."

For poetry and literary gatherings like this, everyone basically prepares their articles early on.

Few people can write a good poem on the spot in a flash of inspiration.

It is not an exaggeration to call such a person a genius.

A genius is a genius after all, and it is not easy to meet one.

I don't have the ability to do that, and if I insist on composing a poem in seven steps on the spot, I will only make myself a laughing stock.

Li Zhao waved his hand upon hearing this and said, "Forget it. I don't have the talent. I'm just going to join in the fun. You guys figure it out slowly."

The other students also shook their heads. They knew their own strengths and weaknesses, and there was no need to waste their time and energy on writing a bad poem and embarrassing themselves.

Seeing this, Zhang Bo couldn't help but look at Lu Zheng.

Lu Zheng blinked. He had read some books recently, especially poetry and prose, and had barely gotten started.

But he had so many famous works in his mind that he felt embarrassed to start writing anything. What he wrote would just be a waste of paper and would not be presentable. Naturally, it would not bring shame to himself.

"I'm not good at this, Brother Li and the others know it." Lu Zheng said.

Zhang Bo said, "I heard that Brother Lu brought out an ancient poem before. I think Brother Lu has read a lot of poetry. I would like to ask Brother Lu to comment on these few humble works of mine. Even if you can't write, you can still give comments."

As he spoke, Zhang Bo took out a few poems from the desk and handed them to Lu Zheng.

"Uh……"

Seeing Zhang Bo's eager gaze, Lu Zheng had no choice but to take it and taste it.

None of the poems are outstanding, but they are not bad either, and should be considered at an average level.

If you ask him to find some flaws, he seems unable to find any, it just feels ordinary.

Lu Zheng looked at it for a long time and could only comment: "I don't quite understand it, but it feels good."

Zhang Bo couldn't help but smile when he heard this and said, "Whether it's a good poem or not, anyone who understands it can tell right away. Brother Lu, it seems that my writing is not good enough. I need to work harder."

"Well, this is my problem. I really don't understand and I just said it casually." Lu Zheng couldn't help but say.

Zhang Bo waved his hand and said, "Brother Lu, there's no need to comfort me like that. It's my own fault for not being talented enough."

Lu Zheng thought, this is really not your problem.

The articles Lu Zheng had read before were all masterpieces, so he naturally had a very high taste. Ordinary poems would never make him express any praise.

(End of this chapter)