A-Xu Was a Science Student
"Had you never studied before?"
Ox-Head's words left Lu Ziyou's face turning pale, then red.
If someone else had said it, that would have been one thing. But this Ox-Head had a face full of pure, innocent stupidity, white foam hanging from the corner of his mouth, and was looking at Lu Ziyou with an expression of disdain and pity.
For an Yin-Yang Saint Son who thought highly of himself, those words hit a little too hard.
But Lu Ziyou couldn't do a thing about it. The ox had only taken a breath, yet scorching, dark-red fire-breath had already blown from its nostrils.
What could Lu Ziyou do against an Ox-Head who was at least in the Saint Realm?
He could only keep his mouth shut and swallow his anger, his face dark as thunder, as he strode ahead toward the black stone path.
The reason he chose this path was simple.
Before he'd crossed over in his previous life, he had been a science student.
"See? I told you I wasn't wrong."
Ox-Head grinned broadly, looking rather pleased with himself. Then he twisted the knife: "You don't look like you've studied much, and you still chose the other path, didn't you?"
Lu Ziyou stiffened, but didn't dare talk back. He swallowed his anger and stepped onto the black stone path.
"You don't just stand there, either. There's still the Literary Dao. Go in and give it a try."
At Horse-Face's urging, Gu Baishui nodded helplessly, then walked along the white stone path into the main hall.
There were two low tables in the main hall of the courtyard, one white and one black.
In front of each table was a cushion of the corresponding color, and a sheet of dark yellow Xuan Paper lay flat across each tabletop.
The two young men sat properly on their own cushions, like candidates waiting to take an exam.
A lazy Horse-Face sat beside Gu Baishui, while a guileless, earnest Ox-Head squatted beside Lu Ziyou.
The two of them opened the exam papers before them, still not quite believing what they were seeing.
At the top of Gu Baishui's paper was a neat, square "wen" character, and there was only a single question on the page.
--
[In the autumn of the 355th year of the Tang calendar, A-Xu had already been cultivating at Weiyang Palace for more than two years.
A letter from Chang'an City said that A-Xu had left Listening Wind Pavilion with an old gentleman from Weiyang Palace.
They had ridden a crane south to attend a banquet in the water towns of Jiangnan.
Jiangnan was home to numerous prominent Aristocratic Clans, and its Literary Dao Fortune had endured for ages. It was the place most revered by the scholars and literati of the Tang Kingdom.
Nearly all the outstanding young scions of the Aristocratic Clans had gathered at this banquet, carrying the Dao through literature and crossing brushes in a battle of words.
Simply put, it was a grand banquet where the young scions of the Aristocratic Clans who lived in seclusion in Yunmeng Marsh could meet and test their skills together. The Old Scholars deep within the clans would also appear as judges, lending their support to the flourishing of the Literary Dao.
The banquet never turned away outsiders, either. Any truly gifted scholar or talented young woman had the chance to become famous overnight at this grand gathering. It was just that, most of the time, those who ultimately took first place at the banquet were the prodigies of the Aristocratic Clans. One could even say there were no exceptions.]
[This time, a young woman in white had come from the distant city of Chang'an and made it to the final Palace Examination at the banquet.
The young men of the Aristocratic Clans were on high alert, staring intently at the young woman in white who had once won all ten rounds of a Dao of Chess match.
A-Xu felt uncomfortable under their gazes, so she turned around and glared at them fiercely.
Some of the young scions of the Aristocratic Clans froze. Thinking they had been impolite, they awkwardly turned their heads away. Some young men simply blushed and lowered their heads, not daring to look at the girl again.
A-Xu really was beautiful.]
[At that day's Palace Examination, the Old Scholars set an exceptionally strange question: beyond the stars, and loneliness.]
[The young scions of the Aristocratic Clans either pondered hard or sat in silence. At last, as the candles burned down, these talented young men still produced many poems and lyrics of exquisite elegance.
But when the young people and the Old Scholars saw the Xuan Paper submitted by the young woman in white, they were still stunned for a long time.
The title of the lyric was "Prelude to Water Melody: When Will the Bright Moon Appear?"
An Old Scholar rose to his feet and recited the entire lyric before everyone.
The great hall fell silent. Some wore complicated, wistful expressions; others let out long, slow sighs.
More than anything, their hearts were filled with indescribable shock and admiration.
The young scions of the Aristocratic Clans watched the girl stand on high and gaze into the distance. A breeze brushed past the tips of her hair, and the white hem of her dress fluttered lightly, as cool and clean as the autumn wind.
That sight was deeply etched in many people's hearts.]
[The lyric A-Xu had written was stored away by the Old Scholars of the Aristocratic Clans in a lofty tower, and they rarely brought it out for outsiders to admire.
Although many copies had circulated beyond its walls, many people, like me, were still curious about the original left at that day's Palace Examination.]
[I wrote to A-Xu in Chang'an City to ask her about it. A-Xu said that this had actually been her request, and there were two main reasons.
First, she hadn't written that lyric herself. It was the work of a gentleman named Su Shi; she had only copied it down.
She had explained this clearly to the Old Scholars on the day of her Palace Examination, but not a single one of them believed her.]
[I asked her whether she would write poems and lyrics in the future. A-Xu replied with certainty that she wouldn't write them again, and couldn't write them, either.]
I didn't understand, so I asked why.
A-Xu said that first of all, using the words of the sages to deceive the world and steal a false reputation wasn't right. Besides, she could only recite this one.]
[She said she was a... science student?]
[Oh, right. A-Xu also told me the second reason she didn't want anyone to see the original from the Palace Examination. It was a very practical reason, and she stated it with perfect confidence.]
[That young woman in white, whose fame filled the Capital and whose talent surpassed Jiangnan-her calligraphy... was rather ugly.]
After Gu Baishui finished reading the exam paper in his hand, his gaze lingered on the final page.
There was a lyric written only halfway:
[People have sorrow and joy, parting and reunion; the moon waxes and wanes, grows dim and bright... ]
This was the question the exam paper had left for Gu Baishui: to complete the final line.
Almost at the same moment, an enraged and extremely irritable voice came from the black table next door.
"What the hell is a science-student exam question? Higher-Order Linear Differential Equations? Infinite Series Solution? I crossed over to another world, and I still have to do this shit?!"
"Ah?!! Fuck!"
A self-important young man completely lost it in an old courtyard-one could even say he was hysterical.
The burly Ox-Head couldn't bear to watch. Without a word, he pressed the young man back down as he tried to flip the table.
Miss had said that no one was allowed to leave until they finished the questions.
Horse-Face's face was drawn long. His gaze wandered over the examinee beside him, and no one knew what he was thinking.
After remaining silent for a long while, Gu Baishui reached out with his right hand and gently took hold of the pen.
On the neat Xuan Paper, he completed the final lines of the lyric.
"People have sorrow and joy, parting and reunion; the moon waxes and wanes, grows dim and bright-these things have been hard to make complete since ancient times.
"May we all be blessed with longevity, sharing the beautiful moon across a thousand miles."
When he finished writing, Horse-Face narrowed his eyes and looked at the green-robed youth. "Have you heard this lyric before?"
"Yeah." Gu Baishui smiled indifferently. "I'm a poet."