After the palace examination, the process of grading and reviewing the papers began.

Although it was said that the emperor was the main examiner, it was not feasible for him alone to review over two hundred papers.

Therefore, before the emperor reviewed them, eight senior officials gathered in the Wenhua Hall to take charge of grading the papers.

They would use five symbols—circle, triangle, dot, straight line, and cross—to mark the quality of each paper.

As the aesthetic preferences and biases of the eight officials varied, their evaluations of the same paper could differ.

This was normal.

However, if there were too many discrepancies, such as a paper that one official circled being marked with a cross by another, another official would need to review it.

After they finished grading the papers, if a paper had received no fewer than eight circles, the ten best-rated papers would be submitted to the emperor for his review.

These candidates would have the honor of having their papers reviewed by the emperor.

If among them there were papers that particularly impressed the emperor, even if their ranking in the palace examination was outside of the top rankings, they might still be promoted to a higher rank.

However, this was only a possibility.

At least, such an occurrence had not happened in this dynasty—after all, the abilities of the candidates were there for all to see; it was impossible for someone to write an exceptional strategy while being mediocre in other areas.

The papers of the other candidates would be ranked based on the opinions of the eight officials.

If their opinions were similar, the rankings would refer to the candidates’ rankings in the preliminary examination.

Speaking of selecting the officials to grade the papers, Emperor Xihé thought of Senior Minister Shen.

As it turned out, Senior Minister Shen had recently taken sick leave and was resting at home.

He hadn’t even had the chance to be asked.

But how could things be so coincidental? Just last month, Senior Minister Shen had been as active as ever in court.

Moreover, Senior Minister Shen had worked tirelessly for the state affairs over the years, even being dubbed the model official of the two dynasties.

Unless he was seriously ill and unable to get up, he had never taken sick leave.

At first, Emperor Xihé thought something might be wrong and sent a eunuch to offer his condolences.

But the Shen family said that the old master needed rest and politely declined the eunuch’s offer to visit, only serving him tea.

That eunuch was the same one who had advised Emperor Xihe earlier.

He might not be very wise in major matters, but he had keen observation skills in minor ones.

Although he hadn’t seen Senior Minister Shen, upon returning, he reported, “There was no sign of worry on the faces of the Shen family members. I sat there for a good while and didn’t catch a whiff of any medicinal smell.”

Emperor Xihe realized that Senior Minister Shen’s illness was likely a ruse, and his earlier speculation was correct—members of the Shen family were indeed among the candidates in this year’s examination.

However, it was possible that the Shen family’s descendants did not perform particularly well in the examination—Emperor Xihe remembered there was a candidate surnamed Shen among the top four candidates, who had also sat for the palace examination under his observation.

Yet, Emperor Xihe didn’t think this candidate was from Senior Minister Shen’s family.

The reason was not peripheral but rather because this candidate had several classmates who also came from the same region.

When Emperor Xihe was asked to oversee the examination, whether he ranked the candidates according to their true abilities or adjusted the ranking to avoid suspicion and disrupt the rankings, although he had a rough idea of what might be happening, he certainly wouldn’t rely solely on his speculation.

He eventually dispatched someone to investigate.

Once it was confirmed that there was nothing suspicious about the examination or any collusion between the candidates and the mad Taoist, Emperor Xihe took no further action.

Under this investigation, the relevant information about Mei Ruochu, Shen Aoshuang, Mu Erpang, and Wei Xi was also submitted.

Because the focus was not on these individuals’ backgrounds, and Emperor Xihe didn’t have the time to delve into the detailed resumes of a few scholars, many details were just mentioned in passing.

However, among those mentioned in passing, it was stated that there were actually not just four individuals but six who came from the same school in Qingzhou Prefecture.

They had studied and lived together in the Prefectural Academy, essentially acting as one entity.

Although Emperor Xihe hadn’t met the descendants of Senior Minister Shen’s family, how could the children of two time prime ministers mingle with commoners, eating and living together as equals? There must have been some airs about them.

This was a bit tricky.

Emperor Xihe was somewhat inclined to reserve a place in the first rank for the descendants of the Shen family.

If everything went smoothly, as long as the top four candidates didn’t perform unexpectedly poorly, they would dominate the palace examination.

Emperor Xihe didn’t intend to disrupt their rankings with his imperial authority.

After all, Mei Ruochu and the others had registered under him.

If he manipulated their rankings, it might chill their hearts.

Moreover, if Senior Minister Shen found out, a man of upright character, he might not be pleased.

Privately, Emperor Xihe only hoped that the descendants of the Shen family could at least maintain their position in the second rank.

If they fell to the third rank, it would be impossible for them to inherit Senior Minister Shen’s mantle, even with the same scholar background, as they would no longer be considered Jinshi.

After the palace examination, three days later, the minister in charge of grading finished marking the papers and selected the top ten to present.

On this day, after the morning court session, Emperor Xihe came to the Wenhuadian for the final review and ranking of the papers.

There were specific readers appointed for this task to read the papers aloud to the emperor, easing his burden.

However, as Emperor Xihe was young and the ministers were elderly, they skipped this step, and the emperor began reviewing the papers himself.

After reviewing, Emperor Xihe selected five papers that he was quite satisfied with.

Among them, the best one was titled “Phoenix Elegance and Dragon Spirit,” with each word shining like a pearl.

It was no surprise that it was written by Mei Ruochu, who had been known as a child prodigy since childhood.

As for this person’s ranking, it goes without saying that he would be top of the list.

The remaining four individuals each had their own strengths.

Some were good at writing about agriculture and sericulture, some excelled in education, and others were not particularly outstanding but also had no obvious shortcomings.

Emperor Xihe instructed for the anonymous labels on these ten papers to be removed, while secretly hoping to see the name of Minister Shen’s descendants among them.

Even if they couldn’t make it to the top four, securing the fifth position would still be significant.

As for the false household registration that Minister Shen had requested from the late emperor, it didn’t matter in the previous exams when it was just for show to other examiners.

However, in the palace examination, the real household registration had to be provided.

Otherwise, it could be seen as disrespectful towards the current emperor and exploiting the favor granted by the late emperor.

After the labels were removed, Emperor Xihe realized he had been mistaken.

Among the four individuals, the one surnamed Shen was indeed a descendant of the Shen family.

This could be considered a pleasant surprise under the circumstances, leaving Emperor Xihe somewhat astonished yet pleased.

So without a doubt, this Shen Aoshuang was undoubtedly the second-place winner.

Among the five people he selected, there were three remaining: Mu Hanshan, Wei Xi, and a scholar named Li Zifeng.

Emperor Xihe was familiar with the first two individuals, but the last one left no impression.

After inquiring with the officials from the Ministry of Rites, Emperor Xihe learned that Li Zifeng’s performance in the provincial examination was also commendable, ranking eighth.

Naturally, Li Zifeng was placed fifth.

As for the third and fourth places… Emperor Xihe pondered over the papers of Mu Erpang and Wei Xi.

…

In the days leading up to the announcement of the palace examination results, it was the first time since embarking on the path of the imperial examinations that these young men could legitimately rest and relax.

Once the results were out, they would have their respective paths to follow and other matters to attend to.

But for now, with the list not yet published, they had to maintain a low profile.

Thus, they stayed indoors at the academy, casually flipping through books.

They had read these books for years and knew every word by heart.

Moreover, with their minds preoccupied with their exam results, even Mei Ruochu, the most focused among them, wasn’t as attentive as usual.

Shen Cui simply brought out her third volume of “The Rouge Immortal Chronicles” and asked for their input.

The first and second volumes of this book sold well in Qingzhou Prefecture.

Before leaving Qingzhou Prefecture, Cui Wuniang asked her to find time to write the third volume.

She even mentioned plans to compile a deluxe edition once all volumes were completed.

Furthermore, Cui Wuniang was considering expanding the market to the capital.

This third volume was the conclusion, and Shen Cuicui took it quite seriously.

Firstly, it was her own story, and she wanted to give it a good ending.

Secondly, she had nearly depleted her funds recently, and she was counting on the future income from this book to settle down and start a business in the capital.

However, even after writing for several months and completing it, she still felt unsatisfied.

Since they didn’t have any other entertainment activities at the moment, she decided to let them work on it.

When they learned that the book was written by their Headmaster, Mu Erpang frowned and said, “Mom kept it a secret from me. It’s so unfair!”

Shen Cuicui playfully nudged him, “Wasn’t I worried about you getting distracted before? Now that the exams are finally over, I dare to put you to work.”

Mu Erpang wasn’t really upset.

He turned to help others with their tasks, saying, “Big Brother Mei and Junior Brother Wei Xi are good at poetry, so let them fill in the verses. Brother Fei and Aoshuang are good at drawing, so they can handle the illustrations. Brother Wei Shu and I will take care of refining the overall writing.”

Once they had something to do, especially something that didn’t bore them, their focus skyrocketed.

On the eve of the investiture ceremony, with the combined efforts of the six of them, the book was already revised and polished.

Shen Cui put away the finished manuscript and urged them to get some rest and freshen up.

Meanwhile, she read through the manuscript from beginning to end.

Surprisingly, after their revisions, every word felt like savoring a delicious dish, leaving a lingering taste in her mouth.

Once it quieted down outside, Shen Cui left to make sure they were all resting peacefully, not wanting them to show up with panda eyes.

However, she found no students lingering outside, only Lao Buyu standing with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the moon.

“Master, are you worried about tomorrow’s results?” Shen Cuicui approached and asked.

Lao Buyu asked how could that be?

“I’ve read their palace exam essays, and none of them performed poorly,” he said with a sigh. “I just didn’t expect the ‘Ten-Year Covenant Promise to my Big Brother’ to be fulfilled so quickly.”

Shen Cuicui didn’t fully understand what he meant.

Lao Buyu couldn’t possibly hope for his students to take longer to succeed.

Realizing his words were ambiguous, Lao Buyu quickly added, “That’s not what I meant. I’m happy that they’ve all succeeded so quickly. It’s just… it’s just…”

Shen Cuicui understood now.

In the future, the students would each go their own way, and it wouldn’t be possible for them to stay together every day like before.

She was about to comfort him, saying that there’s no eternal feast, and even if the students scattered and started their own families and careers, the genuine bonds they’ve formed over the years wouldn’t diminish, and they would still keep in touch.

Before she could speak, Lao Buyu continued, “What will I do in the future?”

Well, it seemed he wasn’t feeling sentimental about the upcoming separation under the moonlight.

Shen Cuicui chuckled and interrupted him, “In the future, Master will still be here in the academy, teaching and nurturing students. Plus, you’ll have Erpang and the others who have already passed the exams to show their filial piety to you. We’ll continue living just as we have been!”

Lao Buyu’s face brightened, “Will the academy still be here in the future?”

It’s understandable that Lao Buyu would think this way, considering that Shen Cui initially invited him to teach and later established the academy, all with Mu Erpang as the starting point.

Once the list of successful candidates is announced tomorrow, Mu Erpang will undoubtedly be among them.

Then, Shen Cui will be an official’s mother in the truest sense, with the income from her book, her reputation, and wealth all secured.

For others, they would surely want to relax and enjoy life.

Of course, Shen Cuicui values loyalty and friendship.

She’ll also arrange a place for him as a teacher.

But if Lao Buyu, the backbone of the academy, were to leave, it would truly be the end of the academy.

“Of course it will.” Shen Cuicui nodded, fearing Lao Buyu might not believe her, she added, “And I’ve already started planning for ‘enrollment matters.’ Soon, we’ll have new students joining us.”