The Summons

After getting out of the sedan chair, Zhao Ruxi saw that there were already some people in Gate of Heavenly Peace. However, it was the darkness before dawn, and even with lanterns, people were only vaguely visible, and it was impossible to tell who was who.

"Zhiwei, wait here for me. I'll go with my men to look for you and then come back to find you," Zhu Hehuai said.

"Okay," Zhao Ruxi replied.

It's only because they weren't aware of the situation that things got so complicated. The other officials were familiar with the situation; they knew exactly where to stand and where to wait.

However, there were more than a hundred newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), and they were all wearing official Jinshi robes, which were completely different from the court robes of princes and officials. They were gathered in one place, making them easy targets and easy to find.

But before Zhu Hehuai could take a step, they heard several voices coming from different directions. "Zhiwei."

"Zhiwei."

"Layperson Zhiwei"

She looked in surprise toward the sound and immediately saw Wu Zong, dressed in court attire, hurrying toward her.

Not far from them was a young, unfamiliar man; it was he who had just uttered the words "Layperson Zhiwei."

Seeing her looking at him, the man quickly cupped his hands and said, "I am from Lu Shanchu, and I have met the Layperson Zhiwei."

Zhao Ruxi first greeted, "Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother," before returning the greeting to the man. "A pleasure to meet you."

Zhu Hehuai, Gong Cheng, and Wu Zong all glanced at Lu Shanchu and saw a young man of about seventeen or eighteen. The three of them became wary, like an old father afraid that his little cabbage would be eaten by a pig, their faces full of hostility.

Lu Shanchu was clearly startled by the three people and quickly explained, "I was just passing by and was afraid that Layperson Zhiwei wouldn't know the location, so I wanted to say hello. Since Scholar Zhu and the two gentlemen are here as well, I won't bother you any longer. I'll go ahead and take my leave."

After saying that, he ran away in a flash.

As his figure disappeared into the darkness, the three of them turned around and looked at Zhao Ruxi, as if they were about to give her a serious warning.

Zhao Ruxi took a step back, waving her hands like a fan. "I don't know him."

This wasn't a place for class, so the three of them exchanged glances and had no choice but to give up.

"Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, were you worried I wouldn't find a seat, so you waited here for me? Thank you both." Zhao Ruxi's ingratiating smile was exceptionally sweet, completely opposite to her aloof and indifferent demeanor when greeting Lu Shanchu earlier.

Seeing this, Wu Zong and Gong Cheng finally felt a little relieved.

Wu Zong said, "Yes, it's so dark here, we're worried you might get hurt."

Gong Cheng then said, "We had our attendants look around; you newly appointed scholars are over there." He pointed to the northwest of the square and added, "I'll have my attendants lead you there."

Zhu Hehuai was about the same age as Wu Zong, and both were from prominent families, so they were somewhat familiar with each other. Because of Zhao Ruxi, Zhu Hehuai had a very good impression of the two of them.

He smiled and said, "Thank you Lord Gong and Lord Wu. It's getting late, and they'll probably be taking attendance over there. Since you know the place, I'll take Zhiwei there first."

"Okay, go ahead."

Wu Zong nodded, then explained to Zhao Ruxi, "Our eldest brother was originally going to come too, but the Emperor sent someone to summon him at the last minute."

Zhao Ruxi cupped her hands in thanks. "Thank you for your concern, three senior brothers. I'll go with my uncle now."

She waved her hand, and she and Zhu Hehuai followed Gong Cheng's entourage northwestward.

After walking for a while, she saw a group of people dressed in the official robes of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) gathered in twos and threes, talking in hushed tones.

"Thank you, you can go back now." Zhu Hehuai stuffed a handful of copper coins into Gong Cheng's attendant's hand and said with a smile, "Thank you for your trouble."

After Gong Cheng's entourage left, Zhao Ruxi pressed the lantern in Lady Luo's hand down, casting her upper body in the shadow, and continued walking forward with Zhu Hehuai through the crowd.

Although the rankings are not yet known, the rankings for the palace examination are similar to those for the provincial examination and will not change much. Everyone is positioning themselves according to their palace examination rankings.

Zhu Hehuai walked to an open space and said to Zhao Ruxi, "The Ministry of Ministry of Rites will come to call someone in a little while, so you can stand here."

Zhao Ruxi nodded, about to speak, when she saw Zhu Hehuai say to Ma Sheng and Lady Luo, "You two go out, take the lanterns out too, and wait by the sedan chair."

Ma Sheng quickly agreed and left with Lady Luo.

Zhao Ruxi understood Zhu Hehuai's meaning: he wanted her to stay silent to prevent these people from crowding around and saying irrelevant things.

She stood there quietly, without saying another word.

Zhu Hehuai clearly intended to stay with her there until she was summoned away by the Ministry of Ministry of Rites.

Those who rank in the top ten will have to go in again. The emperor will summon them, have a perfunctory talk with the top few, and finalize the top three.

The uncle and nephew were determined to keep quiet, but this peace was destined to last long, as soon as someone said, "Hey, why hasn't Layperson Zhiwei arrived yet?"

At his voice, everyone else turned around and looked around.

It would be impolite to remain silent at this point. Besides, Lu Shanchu knows she has arrived.

Zhao Ruxi could only say, "Zhiwei is here."

Zhu Hehuai quickly spoke up and exchanged a few pleasantries with the man.

Duan Chen was talking with that person when he saw Zhao Ruxi, his eyes lit up, and he was about to come over when he heard Lord Mo's voice. "The following ten people, please follow me."

He then read out the names of ten people.

The order of these names corresponds to their ranking in the imperial examination: Duan Chen was first, and Zhao Ruxi was second.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Lord Mo, "Please follow me."

When Zhao Ruxi saw Duan Chen walk over and stand in front, she quickly went over and stood behind him, following Lord Mo into the palace gate.

It was still dark, and although there were lanterns, you could only see what was under your feet; the surrounding scenery was still shrouded in darkness.

No one dared to make a sound, and they stopped after walking for a while.

Lord Mo exchanged a few words with the people in front of him, then invited them into a main hall.

The main hall was very large, and many lights were lit, making the already magnificent palace even more resplendent.

They were all standing not far from the door, waiting for Xiao Ge to arrive.

After a while, Xiao Ge entered, surrounded by a group of eunuchs and guards, and went straight to his seat in the main hall.

The ten newly appointed scholars, led by Lord Mo, had already knelt down to pay their respects.

"Rise." A eunuch came forward to convey Xiao Ge's decree.

Seeing that everyone had gotten up, he shouted again at the top of his lungs, "The Emperor summons Duan Chen in the provincial examination, to an audience."

"Duan Chen is here." Duan Chen quickly stepped forward.

"Come with me," the eunuch said, leading Duan Chen over.

The remaining people dared not raise their heads, but they were all filled with envy.

The results of the palace examination had not yet been announced, and the emperor was summoning people in order of their rankings from the provincial examination. This gave everyone the illusion that Duan Chen was still in first place.