Heading to the Marquis of Pingyang's Residence for Shefu (Happy Spring Festival!)

"Brother Kong, you are so learned and talented. You say there is such a skill, that someone can tamper with things right in front of you, and even if your cultivation is several levels higher than theirs, it's difficult for them to see through it. What kind of sect has this skill!"

"There aren't many people who can cheat openly, but the thieves are the most skilled. Even if you hold onto your money tightly, they have the ability to steal it!"

Zhang Xuezhou searched the camp for a while and found Kong Anguo sitting upright, reading a book.

Kong Anguo was a warm-hearted person, but only to those he knew; he was not keen on making friends with whom he had no common ground.

Although Zhang Xuezhou and Kong Anguo seemed to be interacting back and forth, they kept a distance of several meters when they first met, and Kong Anguo had no intention of getting to know Zhang Xuezhou.

He glanced at Rong Tianding and Sang Hongyang, then turned his attention to Zhang Xuezhou.

"Is it possible to catch someone in the act using burglary techniques?" Zhang Xuezhou asked with interest.

"They make a living by hanging their heads on the edge of a knife. It's common for them to be beaten to death for stealing in the streets, and those who don't get caught just get more and more capable," Kong Anguo said. "Even if these people stood right in front of you, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart!"

"What if he doesn't steal, but instead uses this ability openly and honestly?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"If they don't use their skills for theft, but rather openly and honestly, then they might be from the Miscellaneous School," Kong Anguo said. "The Miscellaneous School doesn't excel in any particular area, and they even enjoy doing business, but their skills are similar to the Confucian School's inclusiveness and versatility. Their abilities are very diverse, and they might have even learned some of the thief's methods."

"In other words, whether he belongs to the eclectic school or the thieving school, he uses the same skill," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"That should be the case, but the miscellaneous school has made certain modifications to make it less likely to be used for theft," Kong Anguo agreed. "This ability isn't really a skill, but a kind of Fake Technique, purely relying on trickery. When using this ability, there's no fluctuation of magical Law Power, making it difficult to be affected by cultivation level!"

"It was all Fake Technique!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded, understanding Guo Sheren's methods.

Zhang Xuezhou was also skilled in Fake Technique, such as threading a strand of hair through cowhide.

However, the Yin-Yang School's silk-pulling technique emphasizes the skillful manipulation of silk threads, not theft, and is therefore far inferior to the Thieves' School in terms of stealth and misuse.

If it were a matter of tying something to a thread and then pulling it out, or threading it through a tiny hole, Zhang Xuezhou could certainly do it with great skill.

From Kong Anguo, Zhang Xuezhou gained a basic understanding of Guo Sheren's archery skills.

He didn't necessarily want to beat Guo Sheren, but Zhang Xuezhou wanted to obtain the position of Attendant Censor through a playmate, a very easy way to achieve his goal, which would inevitably lead to competition with Guo Sheren in the future.

He had some prior knowledge of the situation, so he wouldn't fall into the other party's trap later.

"I've learned a great deal from Brother Kong during this trip," Zhang Xuezhou nodded and said, "I also came to introduce a promising young talent to Brother Kong!"

"Sang Hongyang greets Brother Kong," Sang Hongyang said respectfully, bowing deeply.

"Judging from the way you greet me, you must come from a merchant Lineage," Kong Anguo said. "I have no expertise in business, so if you want to discuss business with me, I'm truly at a loss!"

Kong Anguo immediately recognized Sang Hongyang's background and subtly declined to back down.

Confucian School scholars do not reject contact with merchants, and there were also great merchants among Sage Kong's disciples, but it is quite difficult for the two to find common ground in their conversations.

"Brother Sang is His Majesty's personal attendant," Zhang Xuezhou reminded him, "And he's also a very generous and forthright person!"

"I see. Since you've become his study companions, please encourage His Majesty to read the Book of Poetry and the Book of Documents more often," Kong Anguo said. "Only by reading the books of the sages can one cultivate oneself, refine one's character, and govern the world!"

"I studied the Mathematical Classic under His Majesty," Sang Hongyang said, "Which is about arithmetic!"

"Arithmetic, you're quite talented!"

Kong Anguo nodded repeatedly, then glanced helplessly at Zhang Xuezhou.

Zhang Xuezhou brought a decent man with him, but Sang Hongyang was not well-versed in Confucian classics, and Kong Anguo was not well-versed in mathematics.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, the two will never cross paths in their lives.

Without Zhang Xuezhou's intervention, their interactions would undoubtedly be awkward in various ways.

Since they have different goals and values, this is destined to be a rather perfunctory social interaction.

In more modern terms, this is basically useless socializing.

Even though Sang Hongyang served as a study companion to the new emperor, if anything happened, the Kong family could still enter the palace to request an audience with the Sage Kong.

There's no need to consult Sang Hongyang for important matters, nor is it worth bothering him with trivial ones.

Kong Anguo's awkward pleasantries eventually became apparent even to Sang Hongyang.

Zhang Xuezhou had no choice but to give up on trying to bring together the small group.

When everyone left, Sang Hongyang felt a sense of relief.

"This man is extremely arrogant. It's truly rare that you, Brother Dongfang, have become good friends with him," Sang Hongyang said helplessly. "I'm no match for him!"

"Brother Kong is a descendant of Confucian School, the Sage Kong, and possesses a vast amount of knowledge," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I thought you two would appreciate each other, but I didn't expect you to be unable to get along!"

"I'm alright with the math, but I really can't handle the classical Chinese," Sang Hongyang said. "Only Brother Dongfang can hold his own!"

"I can't either. Just thinking about His Majesty's fondness for poetry gives me a headache!"

"His Majesty often seeks out excellent poems and has entrusted this task to Han Yan, who is also troubled by the matter of composing poems!"

After resolving the matter with Kong Anguo, Sang Hongyang and Zhang Xuezhou got along quite well.

Just as the group was about to find their camp, they saw someone riding a horse galloping towards them in the distance.

Who was Dongfang Shuo, the master archer?

Knights holding up a token passed directly, while others shouted and asked where they were looking.

"Me! Me! Me!"

Zhang Xuezhou reached out and shook his hand erratically before agreeing repeatedly.

"Musician Li Yannian mentioned that Dongfang Shuo is skilled in archery. I am here on His Majesty's orders to invite Lord Dongfang to the Marquis of Pingyang's residence to perform the archery contest," the knight announced loudly.

"Li Yannian?"

"That's the one who lost to Guo Sheren before!"

Zhang Xuezhou hesitated for a second, but when Sang Hongyang mentioned the name of the young man in blue from before, Zhang Xuezhou was speechless.

He had always wanted Sang Hongyang to recommend him to the new emperor, but unexpectedly, Li Yannian made a direct recommendation.

This was probably because Li Yannian had lost to Guo Sheren too many times, and he was filled with resentment, so he regarded Zhang Xuezhou, who had defeated Guo Sheren, as an accomplice.

This recommendation caught Zhang Xuezhou completely off guard.

However, they did achieve their initial goal of getting close to the new emperor through archery.

If he plays archery well, the new emperor will often invite him to play together.

Playing together inevitably leads to entering the palace, and since entering the palace is unavoidable, a convenient way to do so must be provided, such as becoming a "governor".

The events unfolded in a series of interconnected steps, and Zhang Xuezhou felt that the chances of achieving his goal after success were quite good.

The only problem is that his accuracy in shooting is mostly based on guesswork, making it quite difficult to demonstrate a high level of skill.