After the spiritual energy was restored: Goddess girlfriends came knocking.

In the side hall.

An examiner opened a paper.

I stopped reading after only a few lines.

Then the papers were passed to the right, and the examiners began to whisper among themselves.

Zhou Tingfu sat at the very end of the examination table.

He frowned when he saw the examiners whispering to each other. Just as he was about to ask a question, an examiner carrying a paper in both hands walked quickly to him.

"Lord Zhou, please take a look at this."

Zhou Tingfu took the exam paper and glanced down at it.

To establish a moral compass for heaven and earth.

To establish a life for the people.

To continue the lost learning of the sages.

To usher in an era of peace for all generations.

His hand holding the exam paper trembled slightly.

I reviewed the test paper from beginning to end again.

He had already seen Lin Chu's poems on the examination paper, and he could still recite the four lines of "Looking at Mount Tai" from memory.

But this time—this time it's not poetry, it's the opening statement of a policy essay.

Twenty-three characters, not a single wasted word, not a single superfluous character, perfectly encapsulate the aspirations of a scholar.

He never imagined that the problem could be solved in this way.

"Presented to His Majesty." His voice was somewhat hoarse.

The exam paper was handed to Zhou Shiyan.

Zhou Shiyan looked down at it once, but didn't say anything.

He looked at it again, then placed the scroll on the imperial desk in front of him, tapping the tabletop lightly with his fingers.

"Minister Zhou." His voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the side hall heard him clearly. "Your student is even better than you describe."

Zhou Tingfu took a deep breath and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty flatters me."

Zhou Shiyan waved his hand, his gaze returning to the exam paper.

Meanwhile, the grading of the second question also entered a heated phase.

Regarding the policy proposals for governing Yujing, the examiners were divided into two factions, each holding their own opinion.

One faction believes that Lin Chu's proposed "separation of powers and responsibilities" is too radical, as it involves too many areas around the capital, and any action taken could have far-reaching consequences.

Another faction argues that it is precisely because the capital region is so complex that clear responsibilities are even more necessary; otherwise, the mutual buck-passing will only lead to deeper and more difficult problems.

Both sides cited classical texts, but neither could convince the other.

The argument grew louder and louder, finally alarming the Emperor.

Zhou Shiyan took the exam paper and read it from beginning to end.

The side hall fell silent as everyone waited.

"Good." He placed the scroll back on the imperial desk and said only one word.

The examiners looked at each other in bewilderment.

The Emperor's word was law, and the weight of that one word, "good," was far greater than any argument they could have had for an hour.

An hour later, the rankings of all the exam papers were determined.

Zhou Tingfu stood beside the imperial desk, pen in hand, finalizing the list.

……

When the emperor returned to the Wenhua Hall with his officials, it was nearly noon.

Upon seeing the Emperor return, everyone stood up.

Even Lin Chu, who had been calm all along, was quite nervous at this moment.

"The Imperial Examination for Undergraduate Students—"

Yu Zhiyuan clenched his fist.

"First place in the top division—"

The servant's voice was drawn out.

"The top scholar—Lin Chu from Qinghe."

The hall was quiet for about three breaths before all eyes turned to it.

Some people were bowing in greeting, some were sighing softly, and some were still in a daze.

Yu Zhiyuan turned to look at Lin Chu, opened his mouth, and then smiled. There was a hint of resentment in his smile, but more of it was admiration.

"I knew it," he muttered to himself, then joined the others in bowing and saying, "Congratulations, Brother Lin."

"Second place in the first class, runner-up—Yu Zhiyuan," the eunuch continued reading.

Yu Zhiyuan didn't seem too surprised. He blinked hard, bowed deeply, and then leaned close to Lin Chu's ear again to say, "This doesn't count. We'll compete again next time."

Lin Chu glanced at him and said, "Okay."

"Third place in the first class, the third-place winner—Fang Zhongming." A middle-aged man nearing forty, with a beard that was already somewhat gray.

He straightened his clothes and bowed deeply.

His movements were composed, but his slightly trembling fingertips revealed that he had been waiting for this day for a long time.

The eunuch put away the list of successful candidates.

Everyone in the hall bowed to the throne.

Zhou Shiyan stood up from the throne.

He didn't utter those formulaic instructions; he simply glanced at Lin Chu and then randomly addressed everyone with a single sentence.

"Excellent! We have gained another group of capable ministers. Heaven blesses our dynasty."

These last four words are both light and heavy.

Zhou Tingfu stood in the ranks, watching his students receive the imperial edict in the center of the hall, his eyes narrowing with a smile.

Several ministers gathered around to congratulate him, and he waved his hands repeatedly, but he couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

After the attendant finished reading the final decree, he listened to it.

Lin Chu looked up and saw the person on the throne looking at him with a mixture of scrutiny, expectation, and—inquiry.

"Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty."

His voice was steady and clear, without trembling or wavering.

……

As Lin Chu stepped out of the palace gate, a night breeze rushed towards him, making him shiver.

As soon as I stepped down the stairs, I heard a series of hurried footsteps behind me.

"Brother Lin! Brother Lin, please wait!"

Yu Zhiyuan jogged up to catch up, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, his face still carrying the lingering excitement from inside the hall.

"Congratulations!" He cupped his hands in a gesture of respect again. "I knew it was you."

"Brother Yu is too modest. Even the second-place winner is one in a million."

"Come on," Yu Zhiyuan waved his hand. "I was impressed the moment I heard your ridiculous question." He sighed, then grinned. "But it's good, having an opponent like you means there will be plenty of opportunities to compete again in the future."

Lin Chu smiled and said, "I'm always ready."

"Okay, I'll be going now. You'll be so busy right now."

"Anyway, when you're free, I'll treat you to drinks. I've already thought of a place: Zuixianlou. Their Daughter's Red wine is the best in Yujing City."

"it is good."

Yu Zhiyuan cupped his hands in a respectful bow again, turned and took a few steps, then turned back and called out, "Don't forget!"

Lin Chu nodded.

Two guards were already waiting nearby, a special arrangement by the Emperor.

Lin Chu walked towards the palace gate, and lanterns were already lighting up one after another along the way.

The carriage rumbled back to the Zhou residence.

From a distance, Lin Chu could see a person standing at the door.

Today, Zhou Caiwei was wearing a light yellow padded jacket and carrying a lantern. She was standing on tiptoe, looking towards the street corner.

The lantern light shone on her face, making her big eyes sparkle.

Before the carriage had even come to a complete stop, she had already run over.

"Young Master Lin—no, Scholar Lin!" She looked up at him, her voice a beat higher than usual, "Congratulations! The news has already come back. My father sent someone with a fast horse to deliver the message. Scholar! I knew you could do it!"

Lin Chu alighted from the carriage and cupped her hands in thanks: "Thank you, Miss Zhou."

"What are you thanking me for? It's not my doing." Zhou Caiwei chuckled and followed him into the mansion. "My father is still in the palace and hasn't returned yet. Are you hungry? I asked the kitchen to save some food for you."

Thank you for your trouble.

"Then you rest first, I'll have someone bring the food to your courtyard." Zhou Caiwei glanced at him again, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end she just smiled, picked up her lantern, and turned to leave.

Lin Chu returned to the courtyard and closed the door.

He sat down on the edge of the bed and reached out to touch the small "初" character inside his collar.

……

The next day, the news spread like wildfire throughout Yujing City.

In the teahouse, the storyteller struck his gavel: "Do you all know who this year's top scholar is? He's only seventeen! He topped the provincial examination and then won first place in the palace examination. Even the Emperor himself praised his four lines by Zhang Zai."

"And that's not all—he's also the last disciple of Lord Zhou Tingfu!"

There was an uproar below.

"Seventeen? That's so young?"

"A student of Lord Zhou? His future looks incredibly bright."

"I heard that his essay for the palace examination was so well-received that even the examiners argued about it, and in the end, the emperor himself wrote a 'good' comment."

"Not only that, not only that, I heard from the palace that he wrote four sentences at the beginning of his policy essay that stunned all the ministers present. It was something like, 'To establish a heart for Heaven and Earth, and to establish a destiny for the people—'"

An old man at the next table chimed in: "To continue the lost learning of the sages, and to usher in an era of peace for all generations." He picked up his teacup, sipped it with a shake of his head, and said, "I've been studying all my life, and I've never seen anyone express the ambition of learning so clearly. Twenty-three characters sum it all up."

Similar words could be heard in every teahouse and tavern in the capital.

On the streets and alleys, from peddlers to literati, everyone was talking about the same person.

As evening approached, several unassuming sedan chairs with blue curtains stopped one after another at the side gate of the Zhou residence.

The guests were stewards sent by several prominent families in the capital. Each was impeccably dressed and spoke with perfect tact, but their meaning was the same—

"My master would like to invite Scholar Lin to visit our home for a chat."

Some, even more impatient, skipped the formalities altogether: "May I ask if Scholar Lin is married?" The person asking this was tugged at by his companion, who lowered his voice: "What's the rush? It's only the first day of the results announcement. Aren't you afraid of scaring people away?"

"What's wrong with the first day? These things are first come, first served. If you wait two more days, the door will be worn down by the crowds."

His companion was speechless for a moment.

Of course, Zhou Tingfu sent people to reject all of these offers.

As darkness fell completely, Lin Chu sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, flipping through the map she had bought from the Mountain and Sea Pavilion.

The noise outside seemed far away from him.

His finger slowly moved along the winding blue lines on the map—the Yellow River, the Huai River, the Yangtze River, and the Ji River.

The location of every bridge and the markings of every pass were re-marked with a vermilion pen.