I proved immortality through the imperial examination.

Chapter 13 Promotion
Afternoon, Plum Blossom Hall, East Warm Pavilion.

Outside, the wind howls and snow dances; inside, smoke rises from the bronze incense burner.

Xie Haiya, wrapped in a snow-white fur coat, savored the beauty's tongue, completely ignoring Xue Xiang, who had been standing to the side for over a hundred breaths.

After finishing his cup of tea, Xue Xiang seized the opportunity and quickly reached for the copper kettle to pour more tea.

"Put it there."

Xie Haiya raised an eyebrow. "It seems you haven't grasped the deeper meaning behind my words."

"This humble servant is of dull and dull talent, and humbly requests the guidance of the academy esteemed master."

Xue bowed.

Xie Haiya said, "You did a good job setting up Jiang Kun's scheme, but the essence of it is to win by cunning and deceit, which is not in line with the principle of benevolence and forgiveness."

However, there are always exceptions to the rule, and it's not wrong for you to adapt to the situation as it arises.

However, one must not lose one's true nature. As the sages said, repay evil with good, and you will find benevolence and forgiveness close to being a person.

This is fundamental; it cannot be forgotten. Reflect upon it carefully and contemplate it deeply.

"The words of a sage are truly enlightening and thought-provoking."

Xue Xiang said, "But if you repay evil with kindness, how will you repay kindness?"

Xie Haiya frowned. His original intention was to give Xue Xiang a warning, worried that the guy would get cocky. He never expected that the guy would even dare to contradict the words of a sage.

Then Xue Xiang said, "It is better to repay evil with justice and kindness with kindness."

Upon hearing this, Xie Haiya was stunned. Suddenly, a burst of inspiration struck him, and his mind was filled with brilliant insights.

"Repay injustice with justice, repay kindness with kindness, hahaha..."

Xie Haiya roared to the sky, then vanished in a flash.

Xue Xiang was baffled. He waited for a long time but Xie Haiya didn't show up. He had no choice but to return to the left room, finish dealing with the official documents, and continue reading Xie Haiya's annotated articles.

For the next few days, Xue Xiang followed his usual routine of cultivation, writing, staying at home, and working, without any major ups and downs.

If there is any change, it is that his presence in Jiufenshan has become much more noticeable. When the heads of various departments see him, they will greet him and say a few words, no longer treating him as a nobody.

As for the Seventh Academy, he was treated as Xie Haiya's personal secretary and became a favorite in the Plum Blossom Hall.

The heads of the three major departments of the Seventh Academy, whether they secretly sided with Su Suiran or not, all smiled when facing Xue Xiang.

On the tenth day, earth-shattering news came from the Second Court: the Second Court had begun the background check process for Xue Xiang, causing a sensation throughout the Plum Blossom Hall.

Because there is only one situation in which a background check will be conducted, and that is promotion.

On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the dust settled down. Xue Xiang was rewarded with a silver flying fish badge for his meritorious service in retaining Jiahe Trading Company and in re-recording the general ledger. He was allowed to remain in the Plum Blossom Hall and concurrently serve as the deputy director of the Third Office.

On the day the appointment letter was issued, Xue Xiang suddenly discovered that he was surprisingly popular in Jiufen Mountain. Countless people, both acquaintances and strangers, came to congratulate him.

Xue Xiang responded perfunctorily to everyone, his smile becoming so stiff it was almost unnatural.

He originally thought that since he was concurrently serving as the deputy director vacated by Zhu Yuanrang, he wouldn't have any specific tasks.

Unexpectedly, the Third Office is currently holding a meeting to discuss the annual budget allocations for major public schools in the district for next year.

The head of the department, Song Kui, was a chubby man who seemed amiable. Although Xue Xiang had indicated his intention to remain neutral, he still personally sent his personal secretary to invite him to every meeting.

Since Xue Xiang didn't show up, the meeting simply didn't start.

At every meeting, Xue Xiang was insisted to speak, and the final meeting minutes were also made to be taken by Xue Xiang and forwarded to Xie Haiya.

However, even as a minor official, Xue Xiang was overwhelmed with countless tasks. He lamented the difficulty of being an official, yet he also found joy in it.

Before he knew it, it was the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, the Little New Year, a day of rest. At 1:15 a.m., Xue Xiang opened his eyes.

He took out a portrait of Kang Guangling from under his pillow, picked up the Nebula Box from the windowsill, twisted in hundreds of strands of spiritual silk, and silently recited "sacrifice oneself for righteousness." A hazy field began to appear on the portrait, quickly surrounding Xue Xiang.

As Xue Xiang activated the Spirit Guiding Technique, the spiritual threads in the Nebula Box transformed into crystalline light and slowly entered Xue Xiang's body.

Suddenly, a surge of heat flowed three inches below his navel, and a blue spot the size of a sesame seed ignited half an inch below his navel.

In an instant, the heat flow started from the blue light spot, traveled upwards along the navel, and stopped about an inch above the navel.

After a hundred breaths, a blue spot of light ignited about an inch above the navel.

Xue Xiang emitted a faint ringing sound, and then, as if an electric current was passing through his body, all the pores on his body opened up.

Before long, his body was covered with fine, sticky gray dust.

"You've reached the second level of Qi Refining."

Xue Xiang couldn't contain his excitement.

Ever since he discovered the extraordinary power of the portrait of Kang Guangling, he had been drawing spiritual energy into his body twice a day for no more than twenty days. After consuming more than one spirit stone, he finally broke through to the second level of Qi Refining.

He knew that this speed was nothing compared to the geniuses from powerful families; after all, he had heard of the legends of breaking through three cultivation barriers in a single day.

But for him, the fact that he could achieve such a speed of cultivation with such poor talent could only prove that this portrait of Kang Guangling from the Holy Temple was truly extraordinary.

He often wondered, given his past relationship with Xie Haiya, what reason would Xie Haiya have to give him a treasure that had been passed down for three generations and had such miraculous effects?

After much thought, he concluded that there was only one possibility: Xie Haiya and his three generations of disciples had failed to truly unleash the power of this portrait.

If it weren't for my words "sacrifice myself for righteousness" completely shaking the field of the portrait, I probably wouldn't have had this encounter.

In high spirits, he got out of bed, pushed open the door, and went out.

In the main room, Xue's mother and Liu Mei were making dumplings. A wooden basin next to them was soaking cured meat in hot water. On the stove in the center of the room, a large pot of hot water was steaming.

"It's just the Little New Year, but judging from the commotion, it's almost like the Lunar New Year."

Xue Xiang, wearing his clothes, approached and offered to help, but Xue's mother and Liu Mei both covered their noses.

"My lord, it's time for you to take a bath."

Liu Mei got up, twisted her waist, and swayed her round buttocks as she hurried to get the bath tub.

"Since I need to take a bath anyway, I'll chop up the firewood in the corner of the yard first."

Xue Xiang lifted the curtain and slipped out. Behind him came his mother's voice, "Don't get cold. It's the New Year, don't catch a cold."

Your uncle sent Xiaoyuan to tell you that we're having lunch at his house today, and we'll reciprocate by treating everyone to dinner tonight.

Xue Xiang agreed, picked up his axe, and began chopping wood.

In less than half an incense stick's time, he chopped up nearly 500 catties of firewood without blushing or his heart skipping a beat, something he would never have been able to do before.

After washing up and eating a bowl of hot pork and scallion dumplings, Xue Xiang hurried to Beifang.

Seven days ago, the signboard of the "Yunmeng Newspaper" was put up. The president, Zhou Mengyu, was a failed scholar recruited by Xue Xiang. He was twenty-three years old, with brilliant writing skills and a mature and steady demeanor.

The thirteen editors were recruited through a public notice process; most of them were graduates of various universities in Yunmeng City who had not passed the imperial examinations.

The printing workshop for the printing has also been agreed upon.

Currently, the main tasks of the "Yunmeng Newspaper" are to design the "Inaugural Address" and finalize the various columns.

Xue Xiang held a meeting at the Yunmeng Newspaper Office for an hour. Seeing that Zhou Mengyu was handling the meeting with ease, he felt relieved.

(End of this chapter)