I'm not a fortune teller.

Chapter 39 Something is wrong.
Cold wind in the twelfth month, auspicious snow means a good harvest. The snow in the north this year is particularly heavy. Many houses will collapse if they don't sweep the snow in just one night. Such heavy snow is a rare blessing for many local old farmers. Last year was a good year, and this year the auspicious snow moistened the land. Next year is expected to be a good year as well.

But it was not very friendly to the students who went to Beijing to take the imperial examinations.

The spring examination is in March. It takes about a month to travel from the north, especially to the Youyun area, to the capital. In addition, heavy snow blocked the roads. Many people were afraid of delaying the examination, so they set out before the New Year. They slept in the open air in the cold wind all the way, which was a sin.

It would be fine if they could make it to the post station every time, but if not, they would have to sleep in the wild or in mountain temples. It was common for those with weak health to die on the way.

For example, this time, several scholars who were traveling together were trapped in the wilderness. It was almost midnight before they barely saw a temple, and they drove over excitedly.

Those who could take part in the Spring Examination were all successful candidates. Even if they came from poor families, they would be sponsored by local gentry and would have a carriage. However, in the north, there was no fire for warmth, and sleeping in a carriage would most likely lead to accidents. Fortunately, there was an older candidate among the companions who had participated in three imperial examinations. He remembered that there was a temple on this barren mountain.

"Thanks to Brother Yang for remembering such a place, otherwise we would be in danger tonight." One of the scholars shook off the snowflakes on his body with lingering fear. The snow was so heavy that he almost turned into a snowman in just a few steps. If there was no place to shelter from the wind and snow, something might really happen.

"That's not the case." Several other men dressed as scholars responded and expressed their gratitude to the middle-aged man who led the team.

"We are all classmates, why are you being so polite? Let's go, let's go into the temple quickly, light the fire, heat up some soup, and heat up some water for the horses. This is a long journey, and we can't let anything happen to the horses if the people get sick."

"Brother Yang is right."

Several scholars hurriedly ordered their coachmen to lead the horses into the temple. They could not bear to leave the horses there in the snow and wind outside.

As soon as I got closer, I found several carriages unloading outside the temple, and I was immediately delighted.

"Someone?"

The scholars suddenly felt a lot more relaxed. Living in a temple in such a remote place would be a bit uncomfortable, so the more people there were, the better.

The middle-aged scholar who led the group was stunned and muttered, "This is quite rare. Not many people know about this place. Huh?"

"What's wrong, Brother Yang?"

"It's still an official carriage." The scholar surnamed Yang pointed at the carriageway outside and said, "This is a jade plaque specially used by the imperial court to ward off evil spirits. It has a mandarin duck engraved on it. Only county magistrates of the seventh rank can be given this. I guess it's the county magistrate who is returning to Beijing to report on his work."

"Oh, this is really a coincidence. I wonder if it's a classmate from the previous year?"

"No matter what, let's go in and pay our respects first, and try to absorb the luck of the senior Jinshi."

"Haha, Brother Du is right."

The mood of several people was obviously much better. If they were officials returning to Beijing, they could just accompany them. Such officials would be escorted by local officials along the way, and ordinary bandits would also avoid them wisely, so they could avoid a lot of trouble along the way. Moreover, this kind of fate was rare, and maybe they could make friends with people who would have a connection in the officialdom in the future.

Of course, the most important thing is the sense of security in one's heart. For some reason, when several scholars saw the abrupt temple for the first time, they always felt uneasy. The horsemen on the road said that the horses seemed unwilling to approach here, which made people feel that something was weird.

If it weren't for the strong wind and snow, they would not have been willing to come here to rest even if they had to travel all night. Now that there were official officials from the court inside, the uneasiness in the group's hearts was suddenly reduced a lot.

"who?"

From a distance, a voice was heard at the temple gate, the voice was full of energy and not very polite, but it made the scholars feel more secure.

Normally they don't like these crude warriors, but in this environment, these tall warriors are pleasing to the eye.

"Sir, we are students going to Beijing to take the imperial examination. We came from Qi County. It is snowing heavily outside, so we passed by here and wanted to rest for a night."

The official at the door relaxed his frown upon hearing this. As a warrior, he naturally had good eyesight and saw that they were indeed scholars in long gowns, each with a carriage and a driver. So he nodded and said, "It turns out to be the scholar who is going to the capital to take the imperial examination. Excuse me, please come in quickly, it's snowing hard outside."

Upon hearing this, several people responded with greetings: "You are too polite, sir."

A fire had been lit in the temple early, and as soon as they entered the house, they felt a warm air rushing towards them. They shivered all over instantly and almost moaned in comfort.

Looking closely, in addition to several guards, there were also women, children and the elderly in the temple. It was obvious that a large family was coming to Beijing.

Several people immediately understood that this was not a return to Beijing to report on work but a return to Beijing for promotion.

It's a rare opportunity to get to know each other.
"Young man Qi Xuan, nice to meet you, sir."

"Young man Luo Yi, nice to meet you, sir."

Several people bowed, and even the oldest scholar named Yang followed suit and said, "Young man Yang Jie greets you, sir."

As they exchanged greetings, they all looked at each other. The man in the official uniform looked like he was only in his early twenties. He was going to be an official in Beijing at such a young age. It was really enviable. Yang Jie, the oldest among them, was already thirty-five this year. Whether he could pass the examination this time was a big deal. Many people were taking the examination for the first time, so they were only 30% sure. The young official did not act pretentiously, and quickly stood up to return the greeting: "Everyone, you don't have to be polite. Come, come and warm yourself up by the fire. Uncle Liu, serve them a bowl of ginger soup to get rid of the cold. Don't let the future Jinshi get sick."

The mood of several people suddenly brightened after hearing this, and they bowed again and said with a smile: "Thank you for your good words, sir!"

"Which academy are you from?"

Zhang Rui's family were inside the temple. Zhang Rui was in a much better mood when he met a group of scholars taking the imperial examination. After all, he felt uneasy when a temple suddenly appeared in this desolate mountain. The fact that scholars taking the imperial examination were sleeping here meant that this should be a place often rented out by scholars, so there shouldn't be any problem.

"Your Excellency, we are all from Yuzhang Academy in the north."

“So you are a junior from Yuzhang Academy.” Zhang Rui smiled and nodded when he heard that. He had naturally heard of the reputation of Yuzhang Academy, which was as famous as Bailu Academy in the south. Most of the talented children in the north would study in this academy.

"Your accent doesn't sound like you're from the north."

"Well, I'm from Jiangnan. I was working in Fuchuan before. Now that I've completed three years, I'm back in Beijing to report on my work."

"Fuchuan?" Yang Jie seemed to have thought of something and asked quickly, "But Lord Zhang?"

"Do you recognize me?" Zhang Rui looked over with some curiosity.

"Oh, I just heard about it from the teacher." Yang Jie smiled and said, "Fuchuan was involved in a big incident. It is said that the county magistrate saved the prince and was recommended to go to the capital."

The other scholars' faces suddenly changed when they heard this. A few days ago, they heard that a big incident happened in a county town on the edge of Youzhou, and it involved His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. They didn't expect that it was the county magistrate in front of them.

"It was just luck." Zhang Rui smiled and looked at the scholar named Yang, with a strange look flashing in the depths of his eyes.

"You are too polite, sir. It is no fluke that I could make a contribution in such a matter. I would like to ask, are you from that place?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions on the faces of several scholars became noticeably stiff. "People over there" is a common term in the academy, used to divide people.

There are two kinds of people in the academy. One kind is the students from decent families who only study literature and make a living by studying classics. The other kind is different. Although they also study classics, they do not make a living by studying them. They are all literati, but that group of people and they are from two different worlds from the beginning!
No wonder a mere seventh-rank county magistrate was escorted by a whole team of officials. It turned out that he was a sorcerer!
"I guess so." Zhang Rui picked up the hot tea beside him and took a sip, saying nonchalantly.

After hearing this, the scholars looked at each other and stopped talking, obviously no longer having the enthusiasm they had just now.

Most of the noble scholars disliked these classmates with evil intentions, even though they knew that the power in the court was in the hands of these evil people.

Especially now, in the wilderness, if I meet a sorcerer who has some unknown weird stuff on him, I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep well.

"This temple is located in a remote area. I just discovered it by accident. How did you find it?" Zhang Rui asked slowly while drinking tea.

Seeing that the other party was willing to take the initiative to talk, they didn't want to refuse and just wanted to speak, but Yang Jie said first: "We also discovered it by accident."

Several scholars were stunned when they heard this, and looked at each other, but none of them refuted Yang Jie's words.

Although they didn't know why Yang Jie lied, they naturally didn't want to expose him because of a sorcerer official.

"Is that so?" Zhang Rui nodded slightly, lowered his head and shook the teacup in his hand, a cold light flashed in the depths of his eyes.

"Your name is Yang Jie, right? How many times have you participated in the imperial examination this year?"

"I am ashamed to say that this is my third time participating in the competition. If I fail this time, I will go back to my hometown and open an academy."

Zhang Rui nodded when he heard this, and suddenly looked at the others: "Except for him, you are all taking the imperial examination for the first time, right?"

As soon as these words came out, Yang Jie's face changed. He was about to speak but was choked by Zhang Rui's cold eyes. Several scholars beside him didn't understand and could only answer cautiously: "How would the adults know?"

"Guessed." Zhang Rui replied casually, but his eyes were colder.

Yang Jie was lying. He deliberately brought this group of classmates to this temple. This was not his first time here. He had probably been here many times. He might even have brought his classmates here more than once.

In the situation just now, he deliberately brought up the topic and made others distance themselves from him because of his identity as a warlock. This was obviously not right.

In the wilderness, knowing that he was a sorcerer, he deliberately offended me. This behavior must be either a sign of mental illness or a sign of motive problems.

This is also the reason why I just assumed that they had misunderstood my identity as a warlock. With this identity, this guy with strange behavior should be afraid of him.

Sure enough, my feeling when I first entered this temple was right. This place... is not right.
　I updated late, sorry, I accompanied my wife to choose a dressing table and curtains during the day. It's too much to do as we're getting married soon, so the update time is a bit unstable. I'm really sorry.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)