Top Scholar

Chapter 367 Family Glory
The next day at dawn, the streets of Luzhou were filled with the smoke of incense and bustling with people.

The results of the provincial examinations were announced in the provincial capital on the 29th, but good news began to be reported on the 28th. The prefectural government would also send back the good news to the officials as soon as possible.

The speedboat is sailing down the river and, barring any unforeseen circumstances, will arrive in Luzhou this morning.

In Luzhou, every family with a scholar taking the imperial examinations wanted to know the results as soon as possible. So they would go to the dock early to wait for news. Later, they found it too slow at the dock, so they climbed the city wall to look out.

Waiting is just waiting anyway. I wonder which family will start to engage in superstition, carrying an incense table to the city wall and setting up a devout altar to worship the river god, hoping for good news.

When bystanders saw that others were making offerings but they weren't, wouldn't that offend the river god? So they also put up their incense tables to worship, and that's how it got rolled up!

Over time, this custom was formed...

Su Youcai took the news very seriously and had Youma come a day in advance to reserve a spot. Today, he and Xiaotiantian also arrived early, set out offerings, lit incense and candles, and knelt down to worship devoutly.

As for the proprietress, she was in postpartum confinement at home and couldn't go out...

Later that evening, Huang E also arrived. Although the entire city of Luzhou knew that she was a daughter-in-law of the Su family, this was the first time she had ever publicly joined the Su family in paying respects.

The Zhu family set up an incense table right next to the Su family's. Old Master Zhu and his brothers, along with the younger members of the clan, made it all to the top of the city wall.

Although Zhu Liu's demotion brought great fame to the Zhu family, it also caused them considerable loss of vitality. They urgently needed their descendants to achieve new academic success and revitalize the family.

Therefore, the Zhu family members worshipped very seriously. Even Zhu Zigeng, who was usually quite unserious, kowtowed and prayed with a solemn expression.

Although Athena Chu was not required to participate in the sacrificial ceremony, she still came. She stood at the intersection of the two families' incense tables and silently prayed that her senior brother would pass the imperial examination and come back happily to marry her.

As the sun gradually rose, everyone gazed at the shimmering river and prayed devoutly, hoping that the fast ship carrying good news would arrive.

After a long wait, when the sun was high in the sky, someone suddenly pointed at the river and shouted, "They're here!"

Everyone turned to look in the direction of the sound and saw a striking red dot at the horizon where the water met the sky!

With the wind and current in a smooth manner, the red dot arrived quickly and in the blink of an eye transformed into a red sail, riding the wind and waves as it approached the city of Luzhou!
"Who has good eyesight? Quickly count how many red flags there are!" the old folks said impatiently.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine..." The young men began to count in unison.

"What? You must be mistaken?" The first reaction of the people on the city wall was disbelief.

"Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, Luzhou has only ever had a maximum of seven winners!"

"Indeed, nine is an exaggeration." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"There are more than nine!" someone suddenly shouted. "Isn't there a big apricot-yellow flag on the bow of the ship?"

"The apricot-yellow flag belongs to the top scholar in the provincial examination..." The crowd on the city wall stared in disbelief: "Could it be that Luzhou has produced a top scholar in the provincial examination, above the nine successful candidates in the provincial examination?"

"Hahaha, Luzhou has finally produced a top scholar!" The impatient ones were already getting ready to set off firecrackers.

"Don't be too happy yet!" But the wise and prudent gentry stopped him, saying, "It's not too late to celebrate after it's confirmed."

"Hmm." Because the results were so outrageous, the people of Luzhou dared not believe it easily, so they held their breath and watched the ship slow down and approach the dock.

"Isn't Yang Shen the only one who can win the title of Jieyuan?" someone muttered to themselves while waiting.

"Who said that?" Someone shook their head and said, "If his father were still in power, he would definitely be the one to take the position. But his father has retired to Nanjing, so everyone has to rely on their own abilities."

"That's right, they're all top scholars, are we from Luzhou worse than those from Chengdu?" The man felt guilty after saying that. Chengdu had ten times more scholars than Luzhou, so their top scholars were definitely more valuable.

Under the impatient gaze of the crowd, the official ship carrying the news of victory finally docked at the pier.

Before the ship had even come to a complete stop, the messenger pulled up the apricot-yellow flag and started waving it vigorously!
Once the flag was unfurled, the two large characters "解元" (Jieyuan, meaning top scholar in the imperial examination) were clearly visible to people both on and off the city walls.

"It's our top scholar! It's really ours!" The city walls and surrounding areas erupted in cheers, and the long-suppressed shouts soared into the sky!

People cheered and surged towards the dock, shouting, "They really won ten places?!"

"Look for yourself! The names are all on them!" the messenger pointed to the nine red flags at the bow of the ship. But there was no wind at the moment, and the flags were drooping, so how could anyone see what was written on them?
She did it on purpose.

"Quick news! Quick news!" Copper coins and silver coins rained down on the boat.

The other two reporters then pulled up a red flag and unfurled it to show it to everyone.

The crowd at the dock loudly proclaimed, "Good news! Master Deng Dengying has passed the imperial examination, ranking sixty-ninth among all successful candidates!"

Cheers resounded through the sky.

On the city wall, the Deng family members were overjoyed, and those around them offered their congratulations. Master Deng was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling: "Good, good, good! A generous reward awaits!"

The Deng family desperately needed this honor to stop their decline.

"Thank you for the reward, Lord Deng!" The messenger on the boat, carrying the apricot-yellow flag, clasped his hands in thanks and then ordered, "Next!"

"Good news—Master Xu Chengye has passed the imperial examination, ranking fifty-third among all candidates!" "Excellent! A generous reward will be given!" Although the Xu family was from Jiang'an County, Xu Chengye's father had come to Luzhou yesterday to await the news.

Although few people in Luzhou City knew him, from this moment on, the Xu family became famous in Luzhou!

The messenger then reported Lei Jun's victory, ranking forty-fifth. People both inside and outside the city walls naturally offered their congratulations to Master Lei. Master Lei laughed heartily and ordered a generous reward. Although his family had produced two Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), the younger generation continuing the family line was equally important.

Next up, Lin Zhihong, ranked thirty-first!

Lin Zhenfu also came all the way from Linzhou and has been staying at Jin Guiyuan for the past two days. Even the incense table for the sacrificial ceremony was arranged by Su Youma.

Although he was a fifth-rank military officer, he felt quite awkward among the gentlemen and officials on the city wall, and no one really paid him any attention. Only Su Youcai kept talking to him…

But when the good news came that his son had come in 31st place in high school, the world changed instantly.

Congratulations! You are accomplished in both literary and martial arts!

"I'm truly impressed! Lord Lin has done an excellent job raising his son!"

"Amazing! Amazing!" People, whether they knew each other or not, all crowded around enthusiastically, vying to offer their congratulations.

Even the heads of the various families put aside their reserve and said to Su Youcai, "Brother Yunwen, please help introduce me to Lord Lin later."

Lin Zhihong's performance in the exam was even better than Lei Jun's, who was one of the top students at Heshan Academy, which shows that he is a very good student. He might even become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the future, so it's only natural to maintain good relations with his family.

Then, the messenger unfurled the fifth flag, which prominently displayed Zhu Zigong's name!
The congratulations then turned to Zhu Jie. Zhu Jie politely greeted everyone with clasped hands, while letting out a long sigh of relief.

The changes in status within the gentry group all revolved around the imperial examinations. After his ninth brother was demoted, the pressure on him as the head of the family was immense; now that his son had passed the examinations, he could finally stabilize the family's morale…

"Congratulations, brother." Su Youcai also came over to offer his congratulations.

That year, Su Youcai became very close to Zhu Jie and saw all the hardships he had endured.

"Thank you so much, my dear brother." Zhu Jie gripped his hand tightly, his voice choked with emotion. "We'll be at your house soon..."

When it was about time, the sixth flag was unfurled on the ship—

"Good news! Master Su Man has passed the imperial examination, ranking twentieth among all candidates!"

"Wow! The Su family's luck is too good!" Exclamations arose from both inside and outside the city. No one expected that in addition to Su Lu, the Su family would also have another person who had won!
"Hahaha, what did I tell you?" Zhu Jie's laughter suddenly rose several times, and he shook Su Youcai's hand vigorously. "Congratulations, little brother!"

"Thank you so much! Congratulations to you, my dear father-in-law!" Su Youcai laughed and shook Zhu Jie's hand vigorously.

"Hahaha, congratulations to you all!" Zhu Jie was in high spirits, all his gloom completely swept away. Pointing to his eyes, he laughed loudly at the congratulatory crowd, "Just tell me, aren't my eyes sharp?!"

"Poisonous, you're so poisonous!" Everyone was full of admiration. Back when Master Zhu insisted on marrying his daughter to Su Man, Su Man was still a student.

They gossiped behind his back, thinking that Master Zhu spoiled his daughter too much, and that a pretty face couldn't feed her.
It turns out it really works! Su Man isn't just a pretty face; she's beautiful and talented!

"Miss Zhu has really kept us waiting..." Everyone exclaimed in admiration.

Looking at Athena Chu, she was already crying her eyes out while hugging Huang E, and said in her ear with tears of joy:
"I'm getting married! I'm finally getting married..."

Miss Zhu doesn't care about anything else; as long as she has that lovely Su Man, she's perfectly content...

~~
After Xiao Tingjie at Baiyun Mountain, the ninth flag was unfurled—

"Good news! Master Zhu Zihe has achieved seventh place in the high school entrance examination!"

Congratulations once again drowned out Zhu Jie, and Su Youcai exclaimed excitedly, "Congratulations, brother! This time, the Zhu family is the biggest winner!"

"Hard to say." Zhu Jie shook his head, pointed to the apricot-yellow flag, and laughed, "Brother, guess who the top scholar is?"

"How could I possibly guess that?" Su Youcai's heart pounded, filled with both anticipation and trepidation.

"Hahaha! My dear brother, you're not being honest!" Zhu Jie and the others burst into laughter. The top students from Luzhou are all here; there won't be any more surprises!
"No one but your son is suitable!" Master Lei and Master Bai exclaimed in unison.

Su Youcai, however, kept a tense expression and insisted on waiting for the person announcing the good news to say it out loud before he would feel at ease.

The next moment, a deafening chorus of good news erupted from the dock:
"Good news! Master Su has achieved the highest rank in the imperial examination!"

"Haha, how about that? No surprises, right?" the gentlemen laughed loudly. "Congratulations, Scholar Jieyuan! Congratulations, Scholar Jieyuan!"

No one else had a chance to offer their congratulations. Su Youcai felt his mind go blank, unsure whether to laugh or cry. He could only weep uncontrollably, saying, "Good, good! My son has finally gotten his wish..."

On the other hand, Huang E also became the object of everyone's flattery, and everyone called her "the lady of the top scholar" without saying a word. No one thought that Su Lu was out of his league with her anymore.

The envy in her girlfriends' eyes was so great it almost overwhelmed her.

(End of this chapter)