After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasties?

Ning Jiexiao?

The air inside the school was filled with the fragrance of ink.

Ning Nan frowned as he ground ink, listening to his classmates chattering and boasting.

The students, whose writing was mediocre but whose boasting was remarkable, pounded on the table, their faces flushed with excitement, and said things like how Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasties knew all the characters in the world at the age of three, had read all the books in the world at the age of seven, became famous in his hometown at the age of eight, and his Lantern Festival poem at the age of nine shocked all the editors in the Hanlin Academy! It was all very mysterious!

He then launched into a rambling, boastful tale about how Emperor Wenzong passed the imperial examination at the age of thirteen, initially ranking first, but was ultimately outshone by Zhang Tingyu, a high-ranking official from the Northern Dynasties. Zhang Tingyu argued that early fame inevitably leads to the downfall of prodigies, so Emperor Wenzong was placed at the bottom of the list, relegated to the bottom of the list of mediocre talents, and ridiculed by his contemporaries.

At sixteen, the young and ambitious Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasty went to the capital to take the imperial examinations. He passed with flying colors, becoming the top scholar in the provincial examination, the metropolitan examination, and finally the palace examination—achieving the highest honor in all three! He was truly a brilliant success! The newly crowned top scholar, adorned with official hat and flowers, rode his horse to Zhang Tingyu, smiling and thanking the chief minister of the Grand Council… The boastful scholar squinted and tilted his chin, mimicking Zhang Tingyu's words: “This junior thanks Lord Zhang for suppressing me back then. If I had taken the metropolitan examination three years ago, I would have been grateful to my ancestors if I had even achieved a 17th place in the second class!”

Fatty Chu frowned and asked, "Why is it 2nd Class, 17th?"

The student snorted, tilted his chin back, and laughed, "Because of Military Governor Zhang... he was ranked 18th in the second class back then!"

Excuse!

"Hahahaha!" The youngest of the group, Zuo Yong, burst into laughter after understanding the explanation.

Chu the Fat Man laughed so hard his fat jiggled, shouting "That's awesome!" "That's awesome!"

The others chuckled softly, wondering why the man with the braid hadn't died of anger. Even Zhao Jing, the most rigid and proper man who was always diligently studying the eight-legged essay, couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

The boastful student sighed again and said that last Mid-Autumn Festival, Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasties did not come, but his poems did. His poem "Pipa Fairy: The Blue Sea Year After Year" made us feel suffocated.

This Mid-Autumn Festival, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, the Director of Studies, the probationary officials of the Hanlin Academy, the Five Classics Doctors, the editors, even the headmaster of Bailu Academy and a group of great scholars, as well as He Weng, Grand Scholar Liu... the entire officialdom was fully prepared to curb the arrogance of the Qing dynasty this year! As a result... now that the Qing dynasty has come in person, it seems there is a real contest going on.

Chu Pangzi chuckled and said smugly, "This time, Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasty is nothing. The most troublesome one is actually Ning Jiexiao!"

"My family owns a money exchange with branches in the Northern Dynasty. You have no idea how ridiculously high the price has risen for Ning Jiexiao's calligraphy!"

The students' curious gazes immediately turned to him.

Looking at those ignorant eyes, Chu Feixiong sighed and said, "Let me tell you, Ning Jiexiao's oldest piece of calligraphy, the 'Epitaph for Yuan Huai,' sold for 26,000 taels of silver three months ago!"

"Hmm!"

"hiss!"

Everyone's pupils shrank immediately, and they gasped!

Chu the Fatty sneered, "This is only because Ning Jiexiao is still alive. If it's confirmed that this talented man is dead one day, his calligraphy will probably fetch more than ten times the price!"

Zuo Yong gave a wry smile. He had heard that the calligraphy scroll that Emperor Wenzong of the Northern Dynasty brought this time was Ning Jiexiao's new work—Wenzong's "Pipa Fairy," which was a pinnacle of Northern Dynasty literature in both its characters and lyrics, and was intended as a congratulatory gift to celebrate Prince Xin's ascension to the throne.

"Oh? That's thoughtful of you." Zou Tianju nodded in agreement.

Tang Lianbin shook his head and said, "This isn't intentional at all; it's clearly saying that their Northern Dynasty has literary masters, Ning Jiexiao, and a wealth of talent, both old and young, far surpassing our Southern Dynasty... Ha, a bunch of ambitious wolves with braids, they want to debate with us about the orthodoxy of the literary world!!" Tang Lianbin sneered.

Hmm...that makes sense...the students felt a slight unease.

The talented scholars of the Southern Dynasties, such as Xu Yang and Shang Duo, were also quite good, but the Northern Dynasties also had Nalan Que, Hong Ming, and Lu Jing, who is currently at the Imperial Academy of the Southern Dynasties. They were all outstanding talents of their time and were not inferior to others.

Zuo Yong grinned, raising an eyebrow at Zhao Jing with ill intent, and said with a smile, "Brother Juncai, the Northern Dynasty has Lu Jing, and you are also a 'Jing,' both are fine jade. Why don't you compose a Mid-Autumn Festival poem this time, Brother Juncai, to outshine Lu Jing of the Northern Dynasty?"

Zhao Jing remained unmoved, dipped his brush in ink, and laughed, "When it comes to composing lyrics, who am I... You're all just worrying unnecessarily!" He then pointed to Ning Nan in the back row, who was diligently writing his eight-legged essay, and chuckled, "Look! Lord Guan Yu is watching you all wielding your swords!"

Ok?

"yes!"

Everyone's eyes lit up, and they slapped their foreheads in delight, exclaiming, "We still have Leng Leng Qing!"

Everyone clapped their hands in annoyance and complained to Ning Nan, "Brother Bai Xuan! You're so unassuming! We've all forgotten about you! Xu Yang and the others are attending poetry gatherings every day, coming up with new poems all the time, while you, the talented scholar from both the North and South who surpasses them, are still buried in your books?!"

Ning Nan shrugged with a wry smile, saying that he also wanted to go, but he had run out of ideas and might as well write some essays instead. He would not go out to join the fun during the Mid-Autumn Festival and would stay home to study.

Everyone's faces fell, and they immediately looked at him with resentful eyes that said, "You're such a disappointment!"... Ugh... If I had even one of your poems, or rather, half of one, I would never leave the brothel for the rest of my life!

One student shook his head and said regretfully, "Brother Bai Xuan, you are not fortunate. This year's Mid-Autumn Festival will be the grandest poetry gathering, which will be the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet hosted by His Highness Prince Xin, who is about to ascend the throne!"

At that time, high-ranking officials, ladies, scholars, talented men, and even nobles and envoys from various countries will gather together to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival all night long!

Given Brother Bai Xuan's aloof reputation, if he were to spread the word that he has a new work to write for the Mid-Autumn Festival, he might just get a chance to visit the capital and see the wealthy and elegant Prince Xin's mansion!

Eh?

Chu Feixiong, Zuo Yong, Tang Lianbin and the others froze for a moment, then looked at the student who was completely absorbed in his study as if he were a fool.

The man, puzzled, widened his eyes and looked confused.

Chu the Fat Man sneered, "Brother Baofeng, you probably don't know where Brother Ning lives."

"Huh? Where?" the student asked, bewildered.

Tang Lianbin sighed, "Brother Bai Xuan... he lives right next to the Prince Xin's Mansion, the place you just mentioned, nestled at the foot of the capital, a place of wealth and elegance." Seeing the unsuspecting students staring in disbelief, Tang Lianbin's bitter smile deepened, "Yes, you're not mistaken, it's right next to... mansions one after another, pavilions one after another, just over a wall and you're at the Prince Xin's Mansion... they're neighbors..."

"Haha..." Zuo Yong chuckled softly.

Chu the Fat Man, on the other hand, laughed heartily, disregarding his image.

The students, who had been boasting, blushed and then turned pale, but fortunately, they got along well. When Ning Nan clasped his hands in a fist salute, too shy to say, "When will you all come to my mansion for a feast?", their embarrassment vanished. They laughed self-deprecatingly and said that Brother Bai Xuan was being unfair, seeing how he had wielded his broadsword twice...

Ning Nan smiled and agreed.

But in my heart I was lamenting.

Is the Prince Xin's Mansion going to hold a Mid-Autumn Festival banquet?

That would be incredibly noisy!

……

The wind in August gradually turned cool.

I saw many wild chrysanthemums by the roadside, their golden flowers blooming in the warm sunshine.

Ning Nan, who was holding a plate of side dishes, never expected that when everyone was joking around yesterday morning, he had confidently said that he would not write any poems for the Mid-Autumn Festival, but now, only this afternoon, he had broken his promise.