Chapter 138: Candidates

Returning to the academy with a massive red carp in hand, I had a sudden impulse and called Wang Fu and Xiao Hanfeng to join me. The three of us set up a private stove, stewed a pot of delicious carp soup, and enjoyed the meal to our hearts' content.

During the afternoon lecture, the Dean suddenly appeared to announce that the academy would select two student representatives to travel to Kaitai Academy in Zhezhou to participate in the talent competition held on April 1st. The list of representatives would be officially announced in three days.

This news stirred up a tempest. Hundreds of senior students were thrown into an emotional frenzy. Several elderly scholars, with their hair and beards turned grey, were particularly incensed; they rolled up their sleeves and craned their necks, wishing they could leap up and grab the Dean to demand their own selection. For them, the hope of passing the official provincial examinations was slim, and their only remaining prospect was the special imperial examination. Even if they failed to secure a spot in that, performing well could still lead to being chosen as a "tribute student."

A "tribute student" was a scholar selected annually by the imperial court from regional government schools to study at the Imperial Academy in the capital. To study at the Imperial Academy was the ultimate aspiration of every scholar in the realm. As the most prestigious institution in the dynasty, the Imperial Academy boasted an astonishing success rate of over ninety percent in the imperial examinations. In other words, its status was equivalent to that of Tsinghua or Peking University in my previous life—it held a truly unique position. However, these tribute spots were generally intended as a consolation, usually reserved for students with local prestige and advanced age; the younger generation rarely stood a chance.

With the announcement set for three days later, many could not contain their restlessness and scrambled to intensify their activities, hoping to uncover any useful intelligence. Unexpectedly, the Dean remained unusually tight-lipped this time, vaguely stating that five preliminary candidates had been selected and reported to the Commissioner of Education, who would make the final decision.

Commissioner Gu resided at the Jiangzhou Prefecture Office, and trying to pull strings with him was as difficult as ascending to heaven. After all, the students at Minghua Academy generally came from modest backgrounds; even the most well-off, like those from the landowning families of Wang Fu’s ilk, were still quite distant from the Commissioner. In terms of prestige and academic standards, Minghua Academy was merely a lower-tier institution. In the past, Wu Wencai had only deigned to study here because of Nie Xiaoqian; otherwise, with his prominent background, he would have long since moved to a more prestigious academy or the Imperial Academy itself.

The quality of one's school often dictates one's future.

While the trip to Zhezhou remained at the mercy of the Commissioner, the news I had asked Wang Fu to investigate had finally arrived. As expected, that knight was a man of significant status—a guerrilla general within the Black-Shirt Guard, possessing a unique and transcendent identity. His surname was Jiang, given name Yu, known as the "Left Blade, Right Sword," and his martial arts skills were said to be divine and extraordinary.

For the imperial court to send such a man to Jiangzhou to investigate Wu Wencai’s death seemed unconventional. Since it had been determined that a demon was the culprit, one would expect a Taoist or Buddhist practitioner to be sent for a more targeted approach. Could it be that Jiang Yu was not only a master of martial arts but also capable of capturing ghosts and subduing demons?

I did not know many martial artists, and my understanding remained largely confined to imagination—feats like leaping onto roofs and vaulting over walls, or the flashing of blades and swords. In this world, the only person I had encountered at close range who practiced martial arts was Nie Xiaoqian, but I had only witnessed her light-body skills, and the specifics remained unclear.

I once heard Daoist Qingyun say that martial artists possess strong physiques and robust souls, with a vital energy so potent that weak, malevolent spirits dare not intrude. According to this logic, there was indeed some factual basis for a martial artist to subdue demons. Even if Jiang Yu were alone, his superior individual strength could potentially allow him to stand against a hundred. Thinking of this, I couldn't help but feel a subtle sense of worry for the situation of Ying Ning and Xiao Yi.

That night, I sat in my study, feeling unsettled. Unable to focus on my books, I took out the water-avoidance pearl to examine it. The bead was the size of a marble, with a slight weight in the hand. It was milky white and translucent, emitting a faint, fishy odor that was not unpleasant. After observing it for a while, I blew out the lamp. In the darkness, the bead radiated a circle of light—not as brilliant as the legendary night-shining pearl, but a very soft, milky glow.

I relit the lamp, wrapped the pearl in a piece of silk, and kept it close to my body. According to the River God Ding Yin, one had to swallow the pearl for it to take effect. Driven by an instinctive caution, I did not rush to consume it, choosing to keep it for now. After all, my acquaintance with Ding Yin was shallow, and I lacked the means to verify the object, so prudence was the better part of valor.

As for dealing with the God of Pen-Rack Mountain, Ding Yin had not provided details the previous night, likely still formulating his plan. He would inform me once it was finalized. As a River God, he had official duties and could not lightly abandon his jurisdiction to go ashore; if discovered by the City God, he would surely face punishment.

The next two days passed uneventfully. On the third day—the big day when the Commissioner would announce the representatives for Zhezhou—all the senior students dressed in their finest attire and sat upright in the spacious classroom.

Commissioner Gu of Jiangzhou, named Cheng with the courtesy name Xichao, was just over forty, in the prime of his life. He had taken the post of Education Commissioner last year. Following a major shake-up in the Jiangzhou officialdom last year, in which Prefect Nie was demoted and a slew of other officials were dismissed, Gu Xichao had been transferred to Jiangzhou.

The Commissioner oversaw education and the imperial examinations, a high-ranking position that promised a brilliant future. To achieve results and earn merit, he had to focus on the performance of the students under his jurisdiction; the number of successful candidates in the provincial exams was a significant metric. Jiangzhou’s educational standards had always been low, consistently ranking in the bottom three out of the eighteen provinces in the dynasty, making the post of Education Commissioner less than desirable. Gu Xichao was indeed unhappy about his transfer—not only due to the poor educational standards but also the remote location and barren produce. Yet, unhappy or not, he had to take his post.

Commissioner Gu was of average build and lean, with long, slender fingers that were trimmed cleanly and aesthetically pleasing. It was evident he took great pride in his hands. He was a middle-aged man who loved his own hands. Sitting in my seat and observing his every move, I formed a preliminary judgment.

When Commissioner Gu arrived, the classroom fell into such silence that one could hear a pin drop. Dozens of expectant gazes fixed upon the Commissioner's mouth, as if they wished to crawl inside to see who the final names would be. The Commissioner began with a lengthy lecture. His tone was slow, as if he were picking out each word individually, punctuated by long, drawn-out filler sounds like "hmm," "ah," and "ya." The students appeared patient, but in reality, they were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.

"Hmm, in view of the invitation received by our academy from Kaitai Academy in Zhezhou, we must select two student representatives to attend. After much deliberation, I have finally decided on the ideal candidates. They are Chen Liuxian and Xiao Hanfeng."

As the two names were uttered, the room erupted in a clamor. Two of the elderly scholars seemed unable to bear the shock; they collapsed onto the floor with a thud and took quite a while to climb back up, sparking a minor commotion.

"Commissioner, I object!"
"I object as well!"
Various shouts of protest broke out. The Dean, witnessing this, became incensed and slammed his ruler heavily onto the table. "Such rowdiness! What kind of decorum is this? Have you studied the sages in vain? You have no sense of propriety!"

The Dean was a man of high virtue and authority; at this strike, everyone fell silent. Commissioner Gu scoffed and said, "Chen Liuxian and Xiao Hanfeng, come forward. I have words for you." With that, he walked out of the classroom first. Naturally, Xiao Hanfeng and I followed without question.

The Dean, seemingly still unsatisfied, delivered a long reprimand before storming off. However, the moment he left, the other teachers followed suit, and the classroom descended into chaos. The students were furious and indignant.

"Chen Liuxian and Xiao Hanfeng must have bribed their way in! Otherwise, why would the Commissioner choose them?"
"Exactly! Two wet-behind-the-ears youths—what merit do they have to represent the academy?"
"It’s a disgrace! A total disgrace! Although Chen Liuxian took first place in the three preliminary trials, his performance in the academy has been mediocre. He can’t even write a proper current-affairs essay. How can he represent us at the world's premier talent competition? It's a laughingstock! And Xiao Hanfeng is just a newcomer with no credentials at all..."
"We cannot let this stand! The Commissioner is acting on his own whim, and we cannot sit idly by while these two boys ruin the academy’s reputation."
"What can we do? The Dean has already spoken. One cannot twist an arm against a thigh..."
"Hmph, I, Zhang Lei, will say this here and now: if Chen Liuxian and Xiao Hanfeng don't return from the competition humiliated and mocked, I will eat my desk!"
"I, Li Changkong, will eat my chair..."
"I, Ye Mingyu, will eat my inkstone..."

In a bizarre spectacle, a wave of vitriol and verbal attacks surged forward. The students were united in an unprecedented common hatred, aiming to drown me and Xiao Hanfeng in their spittle. Wang Fu, listening with great interest, had a sudden inspiration. He pulled out a brush and began scribbling rapidly on paper, creating a "field memorandum," determined not to miss a single word of the students' indignant and outlandish oaths. He planned to show it to me and Xiao Hanfeng later.

Privately, he remained as baffled as the others. Aside from their youth, neither of his two friends seemed to have enough to justify such a choice. He wondered what on earth the Commissioner could have seen in them.

Besides, why hadn't he been chosen? He was young, too!