Chapter 137

After Huang Junping was carried away by his family, the onlookers gradually dispersed since there was no more excitement to watch.

Mu Er Pang informed Shen Cui that he would treat them and was given a small silver ingot by Shen Cui to cover the expenses.

She let the boys go on their own.

Originally, among the four of them, three had passed the exam, and the only one who didn’t, He Yan, had no hard feelings.

The atmosphere was quite pleasant.

However, with the interruption caused by Huang Junping’s incident, everyone felt a bit disheartened and couldn’t laugh anymore.

Zhang Zian sighed the most for him, “Brother Huang’s way of speaking… is somewhat unpleasant. The teacher has reminded him to be humble and cautious, otherwise, it’s easy to run into big problems. But over the past few years, he has been studying diligently… I didn’t expect him to stumble like this.”

A single failure in the county exam wasn’t a big deal. Considering Huang Junping’s abilities, as long as he didn’t become arrogant and complacent next year and clarified his understanding of the topics, passing wouldn’t be a problem.

Although the county magistrate in charge of the county exam now knew about Huang Junping’s character, he was known for his fairness and strictness.

As long as Huang Junping sincerely changed his ways, the magistrate wouldn’t make things difficult for him in the future.

But the difficulty lay in the phrase “sincerely change his ways.” With Huang Junping’s proud personality and such a humiliating public display today, it might be difficult for him in the future…

If Huang Junping hadn’t been so competitive from the start and hadn’t been affected by seeing his hall name not as prominent as Mu Er Pang’s, his mentality wouldn’t have been affected.

No wonder he wrote so quickly. Writing a poem describing a woman’s beauty is much easier than tackling the profound themes hinted at in the actual topic.

Huang Junping’s stumble precisely occurred in what he considered unimportant on the road of the imperial examination!

And if his mindset had been better, today wouldn’t have caused such a commotion or led to such embarrassment.

Today should have been a good day for the three of them, not a gloomy one because of someone else’s troubles.

He Yan initiated a conversation, saying, “Didn’t we agree to exchange insights today? Let’s not dwell on the unhappy things. Mu, why don’t you share some of your experiences with us?”

Mu Er Pang was naturally generous, otherwise, he wouldn’t have gotten along so well with the people in the academy.

He started by discussing his performance in the final exam, “In the final exam, I was really lucky. I suddenly had a flash of inspiration in the exam room…”

Later, He Yan, Zhang Zian, and Mu Er Pang all talked about their respective poems.

He Yan wasn’t particularly talented in poetry, but perhaps due to his older age and accumulated experiences, and his keen observation of everyday matters, his poem was slightly better than his brother.

Zhang Zian was more talented than them, and his poem followed a conventional theme, but overall, it wasn’t much inferior to Mu Er Pang’s unique one.

Mu Er Pang quietly ranked the poems in his mind. Among the poems they discussed, the one he eventually submitted was better than Zhang Zian’s because of its originality, but the one he discarded as a rough draft wasn’t as good as Zhang Zian’s, just slightly better than He Yan’s.

In other words, if not for that moment of inspiration, disregarding the results of the previous four exams, solely considering his poetry in this exam, he wouldn’t have ranked in the top five in the county exam.

This was the benefit of exchanging insights with fellow examinees. After all, many things couldn’t be understood just from a ranking on a list.

After discussing this exam, they moved on to the others.

There was no need to discuss the standard topics of copying classics verbatim, so they focused on the interpretations of the Confucian classics they had been tested on that day.

Mu Er Pang excelled in this area. The others first talked about their answers, then let Mu Er Pang speak.

As he spoke, He Yan and Zhang Zian were fascinated, forgetting even to commiserate with Huang Junping.

They listened intently, as in poetry, they hadn’t felt a particularly noticeable difference, but in Confucian classics…

Mu Er Pang’s level far surpassed theirs.

They truly admired him, and privately, Zhang Zian even felt that Mu Er Pang’s interpretation of the classics wasn’t inferior to that of their teacher, Huang Juren!

Later, they asked some questions, and Mu Er Pang answered them one by one.

They had breakfast until almost noon, thanks to the warm-hearted stall owner who, seeing how earnestly they were discussing, didn’t chase them away.

When they were about to part ways, Zhang Zian asked He Yan how he planned to go to the capital city later.

Top of Form

He Qing hesitated a bit before saying, “Well… actually, I didn’t expect to pass this time, so I didn’t tell my family. I’ll have to discuss it with them.”

Zhang Zian nodded and said, “My family plans to follow the caravan. It’s safer to travel in a group. If your family doesn’t know how to go, you can join us.”

He Qing immediately expressed his gratitude. People from their village might be somewhat familiar with the county town, but once they left the county, they would be completely lost.

Although Zhang Zian usually didn’t talk much and dressed better than the average person, it was evident that he didn’t look down on them, the children of farmers.

After they agreed on the plan, Mu Er Pang also spoke up, “I’ll give you the address of our academy. Three of our elder brothers there are licentiates. It will save us the trouble of finding someone to vouch for us elsewhere.”

Before Zhao, Licentiate, and others told He Qing and He Yan about Mu Er Pang’s background, they didn’t know much about Cuiwei Academy.

As for Zhang Zian, although he was active in the county town and knew about Cuiwei Academy, he only knew about its past, not knowing how well the students had developed after Cuiwei moved to the capital.

The three of them were amazed and astonished.

If they hadn’t gotten to know Mu Er Pang and appreciated his character, and known his true level, they might have felt sour like Huang Junping.

What a stroke of luck it was to be able to study at Cuiwei Academy!

After parting ways, Mu Er Pang returned to Teapot Alley.

At this time, the door of the Shen family was wide open, and Da Ya and Er Ya were distributing red eggs to the neighbors, each carrying a basket.

Although there were only two eggs per household, it was the symbolism that mattered!

The neighbors were observant.

Seeing Mu Er Pang return, they didn’t dare to stop him as before to chat.

They made way for him, saying things like, “The little top scorer is back!” and “Mu Er Pang, I’ve seen since he was little, always seemed different from others. Sure enough, he’s made something of himself now!”

There were heaps of congratulatory words. Mu Er Pang politely greeted everyone and went into his house.

Zheng Shi was busy in the kitchen with Chen Shi and Li Shi.

Mu Er Pang found Shen Cui to ask, “Where did all these red eggs come from?”

Shen Cui explained, “After we came back from seeing the exam results, your grandmother took out a large jar of red eggs, saying she secretly prepared them and hid them in the jar where the pickled vegetables are stored.

Even your grandfather didn’t know. I guess your grandmother didn’t want to put pressure on you before the results came out and was confident you would do well.”

Thinking back to the scene when they returned just now, Shen Cui’s expression softened a bit.

When the neighbors saw them come back and asked what they had been up to so early in the morning,

Zheng Shi proudly said they went to see the results of the county exam. She deliberately kept them guessing before revealing the results.

After everyone’s curiosity was piqued, Zheng Shi finally announced that Mu Er Pang had passed the exam and even ranked first!

The position of the top scorer was quite prestigious, as there was hardly ever a case where the top scorer didn’t pass the provincial exam.

So, the title of top scorer almost guaranteed success.

The neighbors exclaimed in admiration and congratulated them.

Zheng Shi then magically produced several red eggs from inside the house and had Da Ya and Er Ya distribute them to everyone.

“Just now, your grandma asked me if we should set up a few tables to celebrate. I thought it wasn’t necessary to make a big fuss since it’s only the first exam,” Mu Er Pang agreed with a nod.

Afterwards, Zheng Shi urged them to go inside and rest, warning them not to stand outside the kitchen inhaling the cooking fumes like fools.

Now, with one being the respected head of a reputable academy and the other being the newly acclaimed top scorer of the county exam, they couldn’t afford to argue with Zheng Shi.

They quickly acknowledged her words and returned to the house.

With the county exam results out, the provincial exam would take place in April, meaning they would soon be leaving the capital.

Shen Cui didn’t have much to pack. At her maternal home, Zheng Shi didn’t even let her wash clothes.

The clothes she changed out of were all washed and neatly folded. The most precious items among their belongings were the few books that Mu Er Pang often looked at.

Since the house Mu Er Pang lived in was previously occupied by Shan Zi, Zhu Zi, and they were about to leave in a couple of days, it was time to tidy up and pack in advance.

She didn’t return to her own room but followed Mu Er Pang to his.

Seeing him lying on the kang after returning to the room and still flipping through a book without much talking, she thought he might be tired.

As she tidied up the things on the table, she said, “Just now, your grandma mentioned something. She said now that you’re thirteen and on your way to fame, you’ll continue taking exams in the future, so maybe we should start using your full name instead of your nickname. She doesn’t want your friends to make fun of you behind your back.”

Mu Er Pang replied, “I like it when my family calls me that. It feels affectionate. Besides, if anyone makes fun of my nickname, they’re not really my friends.”

Shen Cui acknowledged with a nod, finished arranging the books on the table, and asked, “Is something on your mind?”

Mu Er Pang nodded and sat up, saying, “After watching Big brother Wei Shu and Wei Xi performance back then, I thought I understood a bit about the imperial exams. After all, ‘Even if you’ve never eaten pork, you’ve seen pigs run.’ But experiencing it firsthand today, I realized how superficial my understanding was. I met a few people outside the academy and gained some insights…”

Before, Mu Er Pang thought he had been working hard for the past few years.

Now, he realized that everyone striving for success in the imperial exams had to work hard.

Hard work was the foundation of success on this path.

People like He Qing and He Yan, he had deep conversations with them all morning and could feel their efforts from their discussions— they could recite the Four Books and Five Classics backwards.

But due to various reasons, their levels and strengths were completely different, resulting in significant differences.

Accompanying the reader of scholars like Zhang Zian at least made him aware of his own ranking to some extent.

This is actually a matter of discernment, linked to one’s perspective.

However, He Qing and He Yan couldn’t discern it. He Qing, who passed the exam, didn’t even think he would make it this time.

Their level of classical studies is indeed below his. The county exam is just the first hurdle, and there were few difficult things from the Book of Changes.

They already found it somewhat challenging. It seems they might struggle more and more as they go on.

Mu Er Pang wasn’t trying to mock them; it’s just inevitable to feel a bit sorry for them.

He indeed had good luck because his mother managed things well, allowing him to access excellent resources. So, despite starting late, he managed to surpass them— even if the last round of poetry didn’t have that flash of inspiration, he was confident that, based on his performance in the first four rounds, he could place between fifth and tenth.

However, in this vast world, there are bound to be people with better resources than him, who started earlier, worked as hard as him, or even harder.

When that happens, what right does he have to be ahead of them?

Moreover, he only needed to focus wholeheartedly on his studies these years, without worrying about the trivial matters of life.

Unlike Zhang Zian and He Qing, who had to arrange all those things about rushing for the exam themselves.

Mu Er Pang didn’t organize his thoughts when talking to his mother.

He just said whatever came to his mind. After speaking for a long while, he wasn’t the type to wallow in self-pity.

Feeling relieved, he sat up and took out a well-read book of rhymes to flip through.

Shen Cui immediately understood; he was getting that ‘feeling’ again and was about to write poetry. So, she quietly withdrew.

…

After the lively two days at the Shen family, Shen Cui was about to take Mu Er Pang back to the capital.

Although they didn’t know when they would meet the Shen family again after this departure, both mother and son felt a bit reluctant.

But Zheng Shi was more insightful. Despite her eyes reddening, she said casually, “There’s nothing to be reluctant about. You two just keep moving forward! Especially Cuihua, if our Er Pang doesn’t perform well in the future, I won’t blame him; I’ll blame you! Don’t think just because you’re getting older, your mother won’t dare to scold you!”

After saying this, Zheng Shi hurried them onto the Wei family’s carriage and urged the coachman to depart quickly.

The journey was tedious. Mu Er Pang could sit still, engrossed in his books, while Shen Cui prepared to use the physical rewards given by the system.