The Many Faces Before the List

Zheng Zhongsen was Qiu Yan's best friend. The two were inseparable. After the incident in Zuoqu Village, Qiu Yan's fate was unknown, and Zheng Zhongsen even paid his respects from afar.

Two years ago, the new emperor ascended the Special Grace Examination and held a special imperial examination. Zheng Zhongsen packed his bags and came to Jiannan City to participate in the Provincial Examination, but after that, he disappeared without a trace. Qiu Yan searched for him several times, and even used the divine spirit itself, but still to no avail.

I never expected that they would appear in front of me so suddenly.

Qiu Yan scrutinized the other person, feeling both amazed and puzzled, but also catching a hint of panic in their eyes. He then unleashed a small amount of Yao Qi upon them.

Compared to two years ago, Zheng Zhongsen appeared somber, but his complexion was pale, his cheekbones were prominent, and he had lost a lot of weight.

Qiu Yan's heart stirred, and he extended his senses to investigate. He immediately discovered that Zheng Zhongsen's emotions and thoughts were scattered, his Qi and Blood energy was depleted, and his Yang Qi was weak.

Narrowing his eyes, he realized that the other party had probably experienced some significant changes, but since Zheng Zhongsen was unwilling to talk about it, he didn't ask. He simply said, "We're friends, so if there's anything I can help you with, just say so."

Zheng Zhongsen nodded. "Actually, I was thinking..."

Before he could finish speaking, the crowd not far away suddenly erupted in commotion.

With a shout of "The results are out!", the crowd surged with emotion, and the overwhelming People's Wishes almost exploded, sweeping across the land like a whirlwind, even shaking Qiu Yan.

"What a raging People's Wishes! What a powerful idea!"

The clerks in the Examination Hall are about to start posting the results!

Suddenly, a loud rumbling sound came from all around. Qiu Yan looked in the direction of the sound and found that a large number of soldiers were rushing over. The sound was made by the sound of military boots stomping on the ground.

Posting the results was no small matter, so it naturally required soldiers to guard the area, maintain Order, and protect the people inside and out—more than two hundred people in total.

Even Zheng Zhongsen stopped speaking, looking longingly towards the direction of the Examination Hall, his body trembling slightly.

This commotion caught Qiu Yan's attention. The latter sighed slightly and then said, "Since Brother Zheng still aspires to Imperial Examinations, why not give it a try?"

Unexpectedly, Zheng Zhongsen shook his head with a wry smile after hearing this, saying, "I've studied hard for over a decade, all for the sake of making it onto the Dragon-Tiger Ranking one day. How can I easily let go of it? But now, I have no choice... Alas."

While the two were talking, people across the Examination Hall started calling out names.

The name was first called out by the clerk beside the list, and then repeated by the loud-voiced official. As soon as he spoke, the surroundings fell silent, and the previous noise disappeared. There were too many people here, and those who were far away could not see the names on the list at all, so they could only rely on hearing them.

In that moment of silence, the words spoken became clear: the ranking and the name of the successful candidate.

One name after another came out of the clerk's mouth, and the quiet crowd gradually boiled over again, with someone shouting every now and then, "I passed! I passed!" and then dancing with joy.

Among them were many elderly people. Upon hearing the name, memories flooded back, and thinking of their hard-working lives and graying hair, they were overwhelmed with emotion, couldn't catch their breath, and fainted, causing chaos in the crowd.

Standing far away and with excellent eyesight, Qiu Yan took in all these scenes. Moreover, he could clearly sense the turbulent and changing Human Thoughts above the crowd, which were undergoing dramatic changes.

Most of them were tense, frozen, brewing, and uneasy, clearly waiting for the results. But as the officials announced the list, a few Daoist priests 'Human Thoughts soared into the sky, bursting out with intense joy, faintly Qi Manifestation of the dynasty!

Among them, some suffered from excessive and almost exhaustive outbursts, such as the old Xiucai fainted.

"A list is like a mirror, reflecting the myriad aspects of human nature—no, the myriad complexities of the human heart..."

As Qiu Yan was reconsidering, the clerk continued calling out names, but the crowd grew increasingly agitated, their voices growing louder and louder until they gradually drowned out his.

"Fourteenth place, Yuan Ning Fang Ziyan!"

At that moment, a name popped out of his mouth, and Qiu Yan was slightly taken aback upon hearing it.

Fang Ziyan was certainly no stranger to him, and he had long sensed the other party's hostility. However, since they were not mortal enemies and there was no life-or-death struggle involved, he did not take it to heart. Nevertheless, he knew of this person's talent. Although it was somewhat superficial, the foundation was very good. When he was in Wuxin City, he had written poems and essays. His articles were splendid and his ideas were superior. The reputation of him as a talented scholar was well-deserved.

Moreover, judging from his demeanor and attitude before the exam, he clearly had the ambition and ambition to compete for the top spot. Even if he underperformed in the exam, it was impossible for him to be ranked outside the top ten.

Qiu Yan is not the only one with similar thoughts.

When the rankings were announced, many people were taken aback and searched for Fang Ziyan in the crowd, but he did not come. Unable to find him, they had to give up.

This was just a brief interlude, and everyone quickly returned to their anxious wait.

Not long after, Zhou Guan and Luo Jiayun squeezed out of the crowd, their faces beaming with joy. They were almost unable to contain themselves, muttering to themselves that they had won. But compared to the others, they were much calmer.

The charts continued to be played amidst the crowd.

"Third place, Gu Yanzhi from Yuan Ning..."

"Second place, Gao Jing of Xingyuan..."

Zhou Guan glanced around and spotted Qiu Yan. His face immediately lit up with joy as he ran over. "Brother Qiu! You passed too, and you even..."

Just as he ran over, the official announcing the list read out the last name—

"First place goes to Qiu Yan from Yuan Ning!"

The top scorer in the Provincial Examination is called the Jieyuan!

This is an extraordinary achievement. Don't think that only the Jinshi (进士) and Zhuangyuan (状元) are glorious in the Imperial Examinations. The Jieyuan (解元) is no less impressive. The entire Great Rui is divided into ten provinces. In each Imperial Examinations, only the first place in each province is the Jieyuan. There are ten such people every three years!

Ten people!

How vast is the land of Great Rui?

How many cities can there be in the world?

Ten people out of hundreds of millions of ordinary people—such an achievement is worthy of our utmost respect!

However, Qiu Yan seemed to have already guessed the outcome and showed little emotional fluctuation. It was understandable, though. His military strategy was not a simple examination essay; it had been invited out by the governor and circulated among the officials. Based on it, he had formulated a counter-offensive strategy and quelled the unrest in the southwest. Such an essay, if it didn't earn him the top score in the provincial examination and was later revealed, would implicate the entire officialdom of Jiannan Circuit, along with many examiners and graders!

Thinking about it this way, Qiu Yan knew that becoming a top scholar was inevitable, and no matter what others said, it would be difficult to shake his position.

The moment the top scorers were announced, the rankings ended. Among the crowd, countless candidates experienced a range of emotions: a few were overjoyed, the rest were dejected, and some who had gambled everything were plunged into despair.

Above, the rising Human Thoughts also underwent drastic changes. A few dozen soared into the sky and merged into the Dragon Qi. The rest slowly sank down, with several of them showing signs of erupting with various negative emotions.

"Hmm? These people seem to have planned this all along."

The changes in Human Thoughts were precisely the focus of the scholar's alter ego. Using this to comprehend the Human Path, he easily discovered the subtleties within.

Just then, Zheng Zhongsen's voice came from behind Qiu Yan—

"This is not the time to talk. I will visit your inn at a later time. I won't disturb you any longer. Congratulations, congratulations..." Zheng Zhongsen clasped his hands in congratulations. His voice was a little hoarse, and he forced a smile before turning and leaving.

"Huh?" Qiu Yan realized what was happening, and then Zhou Guan and Luo Jiayun's congratulatory voices reached him. He had no choice but to turn around and talk to his two friends.

He had only said two sentences when his Human Thoughts suddenly began to churn.

Qiu Yan immediately realized what had happened, and at the same time remembered something, so he asked, "How is Brother Zhang?"

When the charts were announced, he did not hear Zhang Zhen's name.

Just as Zhang Zhen Zhang Zhen mentioned, his voice came from the side, trembling slightly, revealing that the owner of the voice was not at peace, but was trying his best to remain calm.

"Shen Zhi, Brother Luo, Brother Zhou, congratulations to the three of you." Zhang Zhen had a smile on his face, but there was a look of disappointment in his eyes.

Seeing his appearance, the other three could no longer laugh and all tried to comfort him.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhen lowered his voice and said, "Shen Zhi, you should leave here first. After the announcement was posted, people were restless. Many were unwilling to accept the outcome and were hoping for the best. They are easily provoked. When I came over just now, someone was spreading rumors that were bad for you. If you stay here any longer, something bad might happen."

As if to prove his words, one of the failed candidates suddenly shouted—

"That's right! During the exam, all three examiners, including the chief examiner, went to Qiu Yan's side; they must have been giving him pointers!"

"Not only that, I've heard that even the Inspector General is pulling strings behind the scenes!"

"That's not fair! Maybe it's because of this person that I lost my spot!"

Once someone started it, the others immediately got excited. Regardless of whether the story was true or false, they just wanted to make a scene. They were hoping that if things escalated, there would be a turning point. They didn't care whether they were being used.

The Imperial Examinations affected one's entire life, and failing was naturally difficult to accept. If someone instigated such an event, it could immediately cause a major uproar. There are many precedents in history. That's why the government sends so many soldiers when the results are announced, both to maintain Order and to prevent riots.

At this moment, seeing that the crowd was about to riot, the soldiers around immediately stepped forward to quell the disturbance and shouted loudly.

As the saying goes, "When Xiucai encounters a soldier, reason is useless." Many candidates were not stupid and did not intend to clash with the officers and soldiers, but they kept questioning and speculating, cooperating with each other, and showing a tendency to confirm the rumors. Many who noticed Qiu Yan rushed over, while those who were far away just glared at him.

For a time, a sense of public resentment arose.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Zhen and the others felt uneasy and urged Qiu Yan to leave.

Qiu Yan shook his head and said, "I'm not afraid. I earned my title of Jieyuan through the real exam. Do you think I can just fly away because of what others say or glare at me? It's precisely at times like this that we can't show weakness. If we leave, we'll only leave ourselves open to criticism. On the other hand, as long as we wait a while, someone will come and prove it."

Zhang Zhen and the others exchanged bewildered glances, puzzled by Qiu Yan's words. Amidst the bustling crowd, a few people looked thoughtfully at the composed Qiu Yan.

In the distance, the sound of rapid hoofbeats suddenly rang out; the sound came before the horses arrived.

"The imperial edict has arrived!" (To be continued)

ps: Thanks to "yg21" and "kaite" for their monthly votes!

Speaking of "kaite's" urging for updates, I really have the will but not the ability...