Seeking Truth with a Sword
Chapter 44 - 43

Chapter 44: 43

The post house had to accommodate not only the caravan headed to the Academic Palace but also envoys passing information between north and south, as well as various officials. The Academic Palace candidates held a distinguished status, though not excessively so. According to regulations, after a simple meal, a fellow student from Yizhou suggested holding a banquet in the pavilion that evening, where they could recite poetry and engage in literary exchanges. However, Ji Linglang refused, citing her need to study the classics.

Zhai Yiming also spoke up in agreement, saying that they would face the first round of the Academic Palace examinations a month after arriving in Chang’an and thus had to study the classics every minute they could. Once Zhai Yiming had spoken, the fellow student, feeling embarrassed, apologized. Everyone then returned to their rooms, and Li Ang went back to his to read as well.

The first two rounds of the Academic Palace exams would test general topics: Scriptures, strategies, poetry, and the like. Li Ang’s foundation in these areas was weaker than his peers, so it was natural for him to cram. However, he didn’t seek special tutoring from Cheng Juxiu.

On one hand, Cheng Juxiu was leading the Academic Palace Patrol, so it would be unacceptable to blatantly ask for extra tutoring or hints about the exam. On the other hand, Cheng Juxiu himself had admitted that he hadn’t read Confucian classics much in recent years. His proficiency had declined significantly, making Song Shaoyuan a better option for help.

Therefore, in the following days, Li Ang spent nearly all his waking hours fiercely studying, accumulating deep, dark circles under his eyes. The others weren’t faring much better. The closer they drew to Chang’an, the more tense the Yizhou students became—except for Ji Linglang. She came from a wealthy family and had lived in Chang’an with her father, Ji Chi, as a child, so for her, this was like returning home.

The caravan journeyed north to Chang’an. Along the way, more caravans from other southern State Mansions joined them, and the Yizhou contingent also met students from these other State Mansions.

Everyone was enthusiastic upon meeting. Before long, they were addressing each other as brothers and sisters, discussing philosophy and composing poetry. As for their true private thoughts, who could say? After all, everyone they met on this road was a competitor for the Academic Palace, any one of whom could snatch away their own spot.

Of course, with the Academic Palace Patrol present, such underlying conflicts wouldn’t surface. Instead, all candidates were even more mindful of their conduct, daring not to overstep in the slightest.

In this complex and subtle atmosphere, the caravan, consisting of over a hundred horse-drawn carts, finally entered the post house outside Chang’an City.

"I’m... I’m about to die..."

In the post house room, Li Ang, his face shadowed by dark circles, set down the annotated classic he was holding.

Finally, I’ve finished memorizing it.

During the journey, news from the Academic Palace had also arrived.

The chief examiner for this year’s first round of Academic Palace exams was Great Scholar Wang Wenlun, from the prestigious Taiyuan Wang Family. The Yu Country had many noble families, but five among them were the most distinguished: the Cui Family from Boling and Qinghe, the Lu Family from Fan Yang, the Zheng Family from Xingyang, the Wang Family from Taiyuan, and the Li Family from Longxi and Zhao Jun.

These Gate Valve families had prospered since the Former Sui Period, their immense political influence allowing them to stand firm. Even during the chaos of the Late Sui, when various Cultivation Sects and rebel armies fought bloody wars across the Central Plains, they remained unaffected.

In fact, Emperor Gaozong, founder of the Yu Country, was himself a member of the Longxi Li Family. Although the influence of these ancient families had waned under the shadow of the Academic Palace, they continued to produce a steady stream of important officials, Great Scholars, and even Academic Palace Professors.

Once news spread that Great Scholar Wang Wenlun would be the examiner, his books were eagerly snapped up. His annotated versions of classics like the *Book of Poetry*, the *Book of Documents*, and the *Spring and Autumn Annals* were especially sought after, quickly selling out. All students were desperately trying to grasp his interpretations of these classics to avoid making mistakes in the examination hall.

Li Ang massaged his aching temples. "This business of making all students frantically study one person’s books," he muttered, "it has a real Ge Jun vibe to it."

"Who is Ge Jun?" Chai Cuiqiao asked curiously. "Is he also a Great Scholar?"

"No, he’s a great educator who could, amid laughter and music, with the blare of a suona, joyfully see off a million students," Li Ang retorted offhandedly. Why, oh why, didn’t the Otherworld memories I awakened contain tons of literary classics? he silently lamented.

Gripes aside, I know that even if my Otherworld memories were packed with literary classics, it would still be useless, Li Ang thought. The Yu Country has been at peace for two hundred years, and its literary scene has developed rapidly, with Confucian scholars and famous poets emerging in droves. Even if I ’borrowed’ a few poems from literary classics and fortuitously gained fame, it wouldn’t last. The Yu Country holds frequent poetry gatherings at banquets, where almost every feast requires literati to recite poetry and engage in poetic exchanges to showcase their talents. Serious literati have ten or twenty years of literary accumulation. They occasionally jot down inspired lines and store them, amassing a repertoire of good poems only over many years.

A fourteen-year-old boy with no life experience suddenly presenting dozens of famous works, spanning vast ranges and vastly different styles—who would believe it? Who possibly could? At banquets, people could pick any topic, set a theme, impose rhyme and tonal patterns, and demand on-the-spot composition. Even when a group composes a poem together, line by line, it requires a uniform rhythm and cohesive whole. If I couldn’t contribute my part, or if my contribution was poor, I’d be instantly exposed as a plagiarist, a thief of others’ poetry, nailed to the pillar of shame for life, never to recover.

Even if I got lucky and wasn’t exposed immediately, I couldn’t live peacefully in the long run. ’You, a prodigious young poet, should also be able to write articles for friends and relatives, right?’ they’d say. Can you write memorials? Can you write essays? Can you write event records? Can you write biographies? Can you write chronicles? Can you write eulogies for close friends? Can’t write any of those? Only know a few poems? What kind of genius is that? Nothing but a charlatan, a literary thief!

It was precisely because of these concerns that I was completely at peace with my own lack of literary flair. Fortunately, the Academic Palace promoted practical application. It focused more on useful endeavors like building roads and bridges, improving crafts, developing agriculture, and eradicating locusts—all matters benefiting the state and its people. Were this not the case, I wouldn’t be so eager to enter the Academic Palace.

"Young Master, we’ve finished Wang Wenlun’s books, but we still have these to look at," Chai Cuiqiao said, hauling another pile of books from the floor. "These are poems he composed and recited at various banquets, as well as biographies he wrote for others.

"They’ve just been compiled in Chang’an City. Five strings of coins per volume, they cost."

"AAARGH! This is so frustrating!" Li Ang groaned, looking at the thick stack of books. His headache was definitely returning.

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

Just as Li Ang was sighing in exasperation, Cheng Juxiu’s voice came from outside the door, "Risheng, are you in?"

"I am," Li Ang said, breathing a sigh of relief. He walked over and opened the door. "What’s the matter, Senior Brother?"

"My classmate from the Academic Palace has arrived; she’s here to check your Spirit Vein."