I proved immortality through the imperial examination.

Chapter 3 Confucianism as the Foundation of the Nation
"Xiao Shi, go to sleep."

Liu Mei pinched her chubby little face.

"No, I want to watch my elder brother eat."

The little girl rested her chubby chin on her hand and wiggled her pigtails.

Xue Xiang got up, grabbed a large bowl, divided the red rice in the bowl in half, then used a spatula to scoop up a large scoop of stewed, oily, and trembling chicken, put it in the large bowl, and then handed the bowl to Xiao Shi.

"My mouth is watering, let's eat!"

Xue Xiang rubbed her little head.

Xiao Shi was stunned, and suddenly burst into tears.

A wave of intense shame washed over Xue Xiang, who cursed his ex-wife inwardly, "What a wonderful family you made such a mess of. Now that I'm here, you can rest assured."

It turns out that in this family, he was indeed given too much hope and too many privileges by Xue's mother.

His mother hoped he would become a dragon among men, so she sold off the family's permanent land and spiritual fields one after another to make a living for him.

The second sister, Xue Wan; the third brother, Xue Yi; and the youngest sister, Xue Shi, were all second-class citizens in the family.

Two years ago, Xue Wan was married off to a merchant in the south of the city.

At the beginning of this year, Xue Yi, who was forced to drop out of school, was sent to a warehouse in Yong'an City, where the county seat was located, to learn accounting, so that he could find a job at the warehouse in the future.

My younger sister, Xue Shi, only attended a private school for two years before learning needlework at home at a young age.

All the family's resources were tilted towards Xue, including food, clothing, and daily necessities.

For example, the red rice in his bowl was made from spirit rice. Over the years, apart from him, no one else in his family had ever tasted spirit rice.

All of this was taken for granted by Xue Xiang, the former CEO.

That's why his sudden act of sharing the food startled the little guy.

"I bet you can't eat as fast as me. Dare to compete?"

Xue Xiang rubbed the little guy's head.

Xue Shi immediately stopped crying, wiped her little face, and said, "I'm definitely faster than my older brother. I can eat spirit rice now, and I used to steal it..."

The little guy quickly stopped talking, buried his head in the bowl, and started shoveling food into his mouth.

After the meal, Liu Mei scooped up some hot water and used it to wipe his body and wash his feet.

With her willow-leaf eyebrows and ethereal beauty, and her voluptuous and sexy figure, she busied herself on him, making him blush and feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Sister Mei, this is for you."

Xue Xiang took out four spirit tablets and handed them to Liu Mei.

"It's not time for expenses yet, is it?"

"The Lunar New Year is approaching, so we're spending money in advance, with the majority going towards New Year's gifts."

His monthly salary is only 3,800 spirit threads, and these four spirit pieces are exactly 4,000 spirit threads.

Ten strands of spiritual silk form a strand, ten strands form a bundle, ten bundles form a sheet, and ten sheets form a stone.

Because it is easy to disassemble and combine, has widespread demand, and ample supply, it is the world's universal currency.

Liu Mei put away the spirit tablet and went into her room to hide it.

At three-quarters past midnight, Xue Xiang finally lay down on the bed and waited for his mother and Liu Mei to leave. Then he got out of bed and dragged a large nanmu wood box out from under the bed.

The box was filled with books, and on top of it was a small square box, about the size of a palm, engraved with talismans.

This item is called the Nebula Box. It has the ability to break down spirit stones and is a commonly used aid for Qi cultivation.

Xue Xiang sat cross-legged on the ground, took out the spirit fragment he had saved, and gently pinched it, and ten spirit threads fell into the square box.

He could no longer contain the throbbing in his heart.

This world would be without cell phones, televisions, and the vast online world.

But the fundamental reason that still filled him with hope was that this world allowed for cultivation.

The entire cultivation world also has two systems coexisting.

One path that all cultivators must take: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation.

The other is the system of literary style.

The first path is open to everyone.

The latter path is only available to Confucian scholars who participate in the imperial examinations.

It is worth mentioning that the two paths are not parallel or contradictory; Confucian scholars who participated in the imperial examinations also had to follow the path of cultivating qi.

However, on this basis, if one participates in the imperial examination and passes, one will receive the literary talent bestowed by the sage.

The thought of literature stirred Xue Xiang's heart again. As a seasoned enthusiast of traditional Chinese culture, he had devoted half his life to studying and was determined to shine.

Possessing a collection of timeless poems and masterpieces from a particular era will be his greatest advantage.

With the added advantage of his photographic memory, he really wanted to shout, "Don't call me a cheat!"

"Time waits for no one!" He immediately activated the Spirit Guiding Technique, and the spiritual threads in the Nebula Box immediately emitted faint light spots, slowly disappearing into his body.

In an instant, it felt as if needles were piercing his body. Xue Xiang clenched his teeth in pain, and the veins on his body bulged.

The entire process took almost half a cup of tea before the ten spirit threads in the square box were completely refined.

Xue Xiang collapsed to the ground in pain, his body soaked in sweat, but he felt incredibly happy inside.

His ex-girlfriend, however, was afraid of this kind of pain.

If he hadn't entered the public service, reaching the first level of Qi Refining would have been the bare minimum, and his predecessor would never have cultivated.

After using all his strength to cultivate to the first level of Qi Refining, the Nebula Box was left to gather dust in the cabinet.

The current Xue Xiang has experienced both great fortune and great hardship. His philosophy of life is: as long as you can keep moving forward, you are not afraid of any suffering.

He lay sprawled on the ground for about ten minutes before finally recovering. He was soaking wet, but dared not go out to fetch water to wash himself.

He knew that if he made a move, he would disturb his mother and Liu Mei, who had just finished resting after a long day.

He had no choice but to take off his soaked clothes, wipe himself with dry clothes, go to bed naked, take a copy of "Zhengyan" from the box, and quickly flip through it by the light of an oil lamp.

The books in the box were all his father's belongings, consisting of Confucian classics and his father's annotations.

The former Xue Xiang could never get into reading them, and the current Xue Xiang has no interest in these Confucian classics of this world either.

But he knew that if he wanted to make a name for himself in this world full of literary talent, he had to study Confucian classics and take the imperial examination.

Xue Xiang was invigorated, and his photographic memory once again proved remarkably effective.

In just one hour, Xue Xiang had memorized the entire box of Confucian classics and their interpretations.

But simply taking notes is one thing; to truly understand and master it requires time.

When he put down the book, it was already 1:15 AM. Xue Xiang dared not waste any more time and forced himself to sleep.

The next morning, Xue Xiang got up, took a shower, ate breakfast, and hurriedly went to work.

Just as I stepped out the door, my neighbor Liu Er was returning from outside, his body reeking of rouge and powder, clearly having just escaped from a brothel.

Xue Xiang retrieved Liu Er's information from his memory. His ex-girlfriend didn't like him, so Xue Xiang didn't bother to greet her.

Unexpectedly, Liu Er spat out a mouthful of phlegm and went into his house without looking back.

Xue Xiang dodged the thick phlegm, about to unleash a torrent of abuse, but immediately calmed down.

In an era where everyone can cultivate, his meager skills might not be enough to defeat Liu Er.

If you can't force it, you're just asking for trouble.

"Just you wait."

Xue Xiang made a harsh statement and hurried off to Jiufen Mountain to make his plans.

For the next few days, Xue Xiang worked in the Plum Blossom Hall, focusing on sorting out Xie Haiya's accounts.

After all, this was the only way to win Xie Haiya's favor for the time being.

With the assistance of numerous clerks and the blessing of his photographic memory, Xue Xiang completed the general accounts in just five days.

Xie Haiya summoned the old clerks and asked them to look for any omissions or errors based on the old records, but they found none.

That morning, Xie Haiya rewarded and dismissed the clerks who were involved in the general accounting, leaving only Xue Xiang to speak.

"You have done a good job in transcribing the accounts and deserve a reward. What do you want?"

Xie Haiya got straight to the point.

Xue Xiang, with his extensive workplace experience, is far too good at answering this kind of question. Being arrogant and demanding money and gifts is suicidal.

"This humble servant dares not take credit. The fact that the accounts were sorted out so quickly is truly due to Your Excellency's skillful coordination."

Xue Xiang cupped his hands and said, "If Your Excellency insists on rewarding me, I have no other request. May I borrow the Confucian classics in Your Excellency's bookcase to read?"

He was subtly reminding Xie Haiya that he was also a scholar.

Xie Haiya, who was lying on the soft chair, paused for a moment. "I've taken notes on all the books in the bookcase, so it's inconvenient for others to read them."

If you wish to read books, I will give you a pass. Go to Tianyi Pavilion in the East City and borrow them as you please.

Xue Xiang said, "This humble servant dares to ask what Your Excellency's annotations are."

I dare not conceal this from Your Excellency, but I have been reading Confucian classics at night, and many of them are unaware of their true meaning.

I have long admired Your Excellency's profound understanding of the classics, your family's rich scholarly tradition, and your ninth place on the Imperial Examination List. I deeply admire Your Excellency's talent and learning.

Xie Haiya chuckled, "Are you perhaps so desperate to emulate Wang Taikang? This official is not so easily flattered."

Very well, you have made a great contribution, so I will not refuse to give you face.

If you want to see my annotations, I need to see if you're up to the task.

Tell me, what is benevolence?

(End of this chapter)