Snatching a Groom Beneath the Examination List

Ding Lianjin may appear to be a burly man, but he is actually an extremely meticulous person. When he saw Duan Chen chasing after Zhao Ruxi, he deliberately slowed down to give Duan Chen and Zhao Ruxi some space to talk. Although he was chatting and laughing with others, his eyes were always on the group ahead.

Seeing Zhao Ruxi stop, exchange a few words with Duan Chen, and then leave, leaving Duan Chen standing there blankly, he quickly stepped forward, patted Duan Chen on the shoulder, and said, "Brother Duan, we were discussing going to Taibai Tower. What do you think of that place?"

Duan Chen was already feeling down after being rejected, so he had no interest in drinking.

He shook his head, forcing a smile at Ding Lianjin, "No, thank you. I caught a chill while riding the horse and have a bit of a headache. I'd like to go back and rest. Please explain this to everyone for me."

As he spoke, he quickly walked in a direction different from Zhao Ruxi's.

Besides Ding Lianjin, Lu Shanchu, who had also sent a visiting card to Zhao Ruxi, was also among the group following behind the main group who were watching Zhao Ruxi and Duan Chen's movements.

As an unmarried man, Lu Shanchu harbored the same feelings for Zhao Ruxi as Duan Chen.

Duan Chen simply admired Zhao Ruxi's talent, but Lu Shanchu valued Zhao Ruxi's background and connections more.

Lu Shanchu's background was somewhat inferior to Duan Chen's, and his family lived further away from the capital, in the Lingnan region. Compared to Duan Chen, who had an uncle serving as an official in the capital, Lu Shanchu the capital.

He was still unmarried at the age of seventeen. Both his family and he himself planned to find him a wife in the capital after he passed the imperial examination, hoping to gain some help in terms of connections in officialdom. Otherwise, no matter how talented and capable he was, without a background and connections, he would be at a disadvantage compared to those with connections, both in terms of initial appointments and later promotions.

He achieved early success, and naturally, he was arrogant and proud, believing himself to be a pillar of the state with no problem becoming a high-ranking official. What he lacked was connections and a solid foundation in the capital.

Zhao Zhiwei's senior brother is the Minister of Ministry of Personnel, which is an invaluable connection. Even if Zhao Zhiwei lacked talent and was ugly, Lu Shanchu would still consider him, not to mention that Zhao Zhiwei was dazzling in both appearance and talent.

Therefore, after finding out Zhao Ruxi's background, he harbored the idea of marrying her.

But he was also aware of his own limitations.

Yesterday he learned that Duan Chen had sent a visiting card to Zhao Zhiwei, and from Duan Chen's behavior just now, it was clear that he had unusual feelings for Zhao Zhiwei. However, it seemed that Zhao Zhiwei Duan Chen not reciprocate those feelings.

Thinking that his ranking was not Duan Chen's, his family background was not as good as Duan Chen's, and he was not as good-looking as Duan Chen, and that Zhao Zhiwei was even colder to him than to Duan Chen at the Qionglin Banquet, Lu Shanchu was disheartened.

If they continue to pester her, Zhao Zhiwei angry and provoke her senior brother to use underhanded tactics regarding official appointments, which would be counterproductive.

Thinking of this, he wisely refrained from going forward to speak.

He had heard that some people would try to find a son-in-law by following the list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations.

Zhao Zhiwei doesn't like him, then someone else will.

"Brother Duan caught a chill and has a headache. He asked me to apologize to everyone and say we should get together another day," Ding Lianjin to everyone. "Then let's get together. Let's go to Taibai Tower."

The group of people walked out, and as they reached the outside of the square, intending to find their sedan chairs and servants, or simply return to their lodgings, they saw a crowd surrounding Duan Chen, who had left earlier. The crowd called out, "Young Master Duan, I am the steward of Lord Peng of the Hanlin Academy. My master invites you to his home as a guest."

"Young Master Duan, I am the steward of Lord Li, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. My master would like to invite you to his home as a guest."

"..."

Everyone stared in disbelief, then looked at each other in bewilderment.

One of them pointed at the group and stammered, "Is this... a marriage proposal contest?"

"Absolutely." The other one's eyes were full of envy. "No matter which family you marry into, this means you'll have a foothold in the capital. Even if you're sent to a post outside the capital, you can ask your in-laws to pull some strings and smooth things over. It's so much better than us, who are completely clueless."

Everyone nodded.

They had no choice. They were already in their thirties or forties, and they had only just passed the imperial examinations. They couldn't possibly wait until now to get married, could they? What if they failed the exams again?

In addition, they have received some assistance from Yue's family to get to where they are today.

So, seeing this scene before them, all they could do was envy them.

To achieve fame at such a young age certainly indicates a bright future.

Someone remembered Lu Shanchu, turned to look at him, and laughed, "Young Master Lu isn't married yet, is he? If these people knew you were here, they would definitely come and pester you too."

Seeing that Lu Shanchu seemed interested, someone else immediately gave him a push. "Go quickly, go quickly!"

By this time, some people had already noticed their group.

These people were all dressed in the official robes of scholars who had passed the imperial examinations; it was hard not to notice them.

Lu Shanchu as particularly young among the group. When someone pushed him forward, they immediately recognized him and rushed forward to stop him. "Young Master Lu, I am the steward of the household of the Assistant Minister of Ministry of Rites..."

Upon hearing this, those who were trying to entangle Duan Chen but couldn't squeeze in immediately changed direction and headed towards Lu Shanchu.

Anyway, the old master and master of the family have both said that Duan Chen and Lu Shanchu are both excellent son-in-law candidates. As long as they bring one back and get married, they will receive a generous reward.

The family has many daughters, both legitimate and illegitimate. They can choose one to marry into the family. Once the daughter rises to prominence and becomes a high-ranking official, the family will also benefit. It's an extremely worthwhile deal.

These people swarmed in, pushing Ding Lianjin and the others to the outside.

Ding Lianjin and his group were also startled, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire, and quickly took a few steps back.

They're already married; if you drag them into marriage without any explanation, their backyard will surely be in chaos.

Seeing that Duan Chen was refusing to cooperate, his hat was askew, and his clothes were almost torn, and Lu Shanchu the same situation, one of them suddenly thought of Zhao Ruxi and said, "I wonder if Miss Zhiwei is engaged. If not, in my humble opinion, it would be better for Young Master Duan and Young Master Lu to marry her."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

They were all in the top ten, and they had thoroughly investigated the backgrounds of everyone in the top ten to determine who would be chosen as the top scholar and who had the most promising future, so that they could make connections in advance and gain an advantage.

Among them, Zhao Zhiwei was someone they wanted to befriend but couldn't.

Of the two people being fought over by various families, Lu Shanchu was actually quite interested in them.

But he wasn't stupid; he knew that anyone who came here to find a husband was probably not looking for a good match.

Otherwise, the family lacks background or capital, or the girl has various problems, such as her mother's poor birth, being born out of wedlock and not being favored, or having some kind of personal ailment.