Martial Saint through Reading

As soon as these words were spoken, all the junior examinees in the Hall Garden immediately turned their gaze.

In these past few days, due to various events, Chu Ming had become somewhat famous in the Middle Courtyard, and many people had come to know his name.

Right next door in another Hall Garden, Luu Xian, seated in the last row, finished reading a few pages of the Classic of Poetry, then lifted his head and stretched lazily.

"Lord Feng? Chu Ming?" His voice wasn’t loud, yet almost instantly, all the junior examinees present whipped their heads to follow his gaze towards the outside.

Because Feng Yuan had not attended the Political Book class, some junior examinees remained in the Hall Garden reading on their own; among them were Luu Xian, as well as the determined Ning Hao and Liang Yuan.

"Junior Chu has been caught by Mr. Feng." A junior examinee mocked.

Everyone remembered how furious Mr. Feng had been when Chu Ming skipped class, even scolding Senior Brother Xu He in the process.

Luu Xian’s gaze flickered, a smile unintentionally appearing on his face; the other junior examinees also wore amused expressions, as if ready for a show.

But there were two who couldn’t bring themselves to laugh.

Ning Hao and Liang Yuan looked at each other, closed their "Poetry, Politics, and Military", and left with their heads down.

They knew that Mr. Feng was not angry, and that Brother Chu was not being caught by Mr. Feng—instead, he was about to become an official!

Feng Yuan and Chu Ming continued on their way, passing through the Middle Courtyard’s arched gate, and many eyes followed them from the corridor alongside.

At the end of the corridor sat two people in a pavilion; one harbored schadenfreude in his eyes, the other revealed a cold smile on his face.

"Junior Xiaang, don’t let yourself be distracted."

Xiaang Changgu lowered his head and pointed at the paper, "Senior Brother Xu, I think these two Ancient Armor Script characters mean ’correct’ and ’should’."

Correct and should?

"Just as it ought to be, I think so as well."

...

Feng Yuan and Chu Ming hurried along and arrived at the academy gate.

On the broad, quiet street, a carriage was already waiting.

This was Feng Yuan’s carriage; many junior examinees at the academy recognized it, so it likewise drew quite a few onlookers.

Feng Yuan scanned the crowd, his expression cold as ice.

Having witnessed Chu Ming’s genius, these junior examinees who prided themselves on talent and had gained admission to the academy seemed all the more unbearable to him.

No temperament, no talent...

Feng Yuan boarded the carriage first; then, perhaps noticing Chu Ming’s frail build, he reached out and gave him a hand up.

"Get in."

This small gesture immediately stunned the nearby junior examinees in place.

They might not all know Chu Ming, but they could see clearly his youthful visage.

Since when did Lord Feng’s carriage allow junior examinees inside?

The key point was, Lord Feng had actually helped that junior examinee aboard!

"Who is he? Lord Feng’s...?"

"He’s not surnamed Feng, I think he’s called Chu Ming?"

"..."

The carriage wheels rolled over the stone road, moving down the center of the street.

"Chu Ming..." Feng Yuan sat inside, glancing at the youth next to him and speaking in a composed voice, somewhat suppressed, "How long have you been at the academy?"

Chu Ming was looking at the scenery through the window, turned his head upon hearing the question, clasped his hands in salute, and replied, "Four or five days now."

"Four or five days, that’s really quite a while." Feng Yuan’s mouth twitched.

Admitted for four or five days, barely attended any classes, and already transformed from a junior examinee to one about to take up an official post...

It was indeed a long process, as if four or five years had passed.

They lapsed into silence, Feng Yuan asking nothing more.

By the time the sound of the carriage wheels faded, they had arrived before the county yamen’s main gate.

On either side, imposing stone lions guarded the entrance, and deeper inside stood a pair of large drums.

The county yamen, also called the county government, was not only for judicial cases but also the administrative center for Baiyuan County’s affairs.

Feng Yuan led Chu Ming in through the main gate; the governmental officials standing by at the entrance quickly saluted.

The county government was vast; the two passed through several arched gates, finally arriving at a secluded annex.

Before reaching the annex, Chu Ming spotted several people hurrying toward him from afar.

"Scholar, Chu Ming?" Liu Sitong examined Chu Ming with curiosity.

Chu Ming saluted respectfully, taking out the jade tablet Liu Sitong had given him yesterday.

Beside Liu Sitong, Shao Pengshu and Tan Hong smiled and nodded at Chu Ming.

"Brother Chu."

At that moment, a head poked out from behind Shao Pengshu, speaking in a tiny voice.

Hou Wuchun?

Chu Ming glanced sideways, and sure enough, it was Hou Wuchun.

"Excellent, excellent, a prodigy among the young! Chu Ming, scholar—haha, our Baiyuan County has produced such a talent!"

Liu Sitong saw the jade tablet and suddenly laughed out loud, evidently excited.

"Lord Liuu, let’s not waste time." Feng Yuan spoke from the side.

"Agreed, let’s go see the County Magistrate."

To recommend Chu Ming as an official, the efforts of Feng Yuan and Liu Sitong alone were not enough—the critical step was to pass the County Magistrate’s scrutiny.

But this was of little concern; Liu Sitong had already spoken to the magistrate yesterday. Now, all they needed was to bring Chu Ming, and let him be inspected.

...

County government grand hall.

A middle-aged man clad in official’s robe and black gauze cap sat upright at the high hall.

This man wore a smile on his face and looked benevolently at everyone below.

"Lord Fu, this is the scholar who succeeded in the Five Eyes Map challenge, and is also a junior examinee at Baiyuan Academy—Chu Ming."

Liu Sitong saluted to the man on the dais.

County Magistrate Fu Chang nodded slightly, turning his gaze to Chu Ming and speaking evenly, "Chu Ming, third son of Chu Rong, East City Merchant family."

"Yes." Chu Ming replied respectfully.

This was Baiyuan County’s leader, an authentic senior seventh-grade official, so the proper courtesies must be observed.

His identity was already known among those present; being called out in public mattered little.

"Hmm, fine temperament." A hint of praise crossed Fu Chang’s eyes.

A youth who showed no fear before a senior seventh-grade County Magistrate—a rare temperament indeed.

"Yesterday, Lord Liuu gave you a sheet of paper; did you read what was on it?"

After a brief pause, Fu Chang asked again.

This time, his tone was noticeably more stern.

"Lord Fu," before Chu Ming could answer, Liu Sitong interjected, "With only one night, even if Chu Ming looked it over, it’s unlikely that..."

Feng Yuan inwardly felt uneasy.

If Magistrate Fu was questioning like this, he must be testing whether Chu Ming could interpret Ancient Shell Script.

But Chu Ming had only just received the Mountain Scripture fragment; at best, with his remarkable associative ability, he might decipher a few characters.

"Lord Liuu, I’m asking Chu Ming." Fu Chang’s voice was calm, but all present heard that he was intent on testing Chu Ming.

Liu Sitong did not dare speak further, his face turning somewhat grim.

Last night he had gotten Fu Chang’s promise to recommend Chu Ming, which is why he had brought him here with such confidence.

But now the situation depended solely on Chu Ming’s performance.

Chu Ming took the sheet of paper from his breast, nodded and said, "Reporting to Your Lordship, I have read it."

"Oh?" Fu Chang’s eyes lit up; he saw in Chu Ming’s face a calmness—an even-tempered confidence—"Let’s hear it."

Liu Sitong and Feng Yuan also sensed Chu Ming’s confidence.

Could it be that this boy has really deciphered the opening fragment?

"Reporting to Your Lordship, the writing on the paper is a kind of pictographic script, an opening synopsis of the Great Qin Dynasty and neighboring states’ culture, geography, and customs."

Chu Ming replied.

"Pictographic script?" Fu Chang’s sternness melted away, replaced by delight, "A fine term—’pictographic script’. I think it’s even more apt than ’Ancient Shell Script’."

As he spoke, he took the sheet of paper from Chu Ming, pointed at a character, and asked, "This character, what does it mean?"

"Mountain."