Chapter 153 - 112: Your Excellency Is... Zeng Liangjiang?!

Chapter 153: Chapter 112: Your Excellency Is... Zeng Liangjiang?!

Amidst the dead silence of the entire field, Zeng Anmin simply stood there with quiet indifference. A breeze-like calmness lingered in his gaze, making him look every bit the modest Crown Prince. All eyes were gathered on him. Everyone was so shocked by the scene before them that no one could utter a single sound.

Zeng Anmin shifted his gaze to the instructor. Lightly stroking the longbow at his waist with a serene expression, he waited quietly for the older man to speak. At this moment, he didn’t even need to open his mouth to be the most conspicuous person in the crowd.

The first to snap out of the daze was a student from the Imperial College. His name was Cheng Yu—the very same one who had mocked Li Ru’s height.

"What’s wrong? Cat got your tongues?!" Cheng Yu shouted. His face flushed red, brimming with a profound sense of vindication. Standing behind Zeng Anmin, he shot a disdainful glare at the students of Qi Lin Academy opposite them.

The scene remained completely silent. Not a single person spoke up.

All the students from Qi Lin Academy pressed their lips tightly together, their breathing growing heavy. They wanted to retort but felt entirely powerless to do so. Obviously, they didn’t know how to argue back. None of them were fools. After witnessing Zeng Anmin’s performance just now, it was clear he was countless times better than Li Ru! The victor had been decisively proven, and even Li Ru himself had nothing left to say.

"Li Ru and Zeng Anmin are tied for first place in points." After pondering for a moment, the instructor looked calmly at the students and spoke slowly. "However, Zeng Anmin’s archery ’intent’ is superior, so he deserves the title of champion this time.

"If anyone is dissatisfied, we can extend the distance to a hundred paces and compete again," he added, sweeping his gaze across the crowd at an unhurried pace.

Extend it to a hundred paces? Li Ru’s eyes twitched. With his frail physique, drawing a Soft Bow meant for thirty paces was already his absolute limit. A stiff bow for a hundred paces was completely out of the question.

His gaze flickered as he looked at Zeng Anmin opposite him. Just by looking at those pierced arrow fletchings, it was obvious that this person could definitely draw a stiff bow! If he forced himself to continue competing, he would only lose even more miserably, and he would earn a reputation as a sore loser to boot.

"I concede completely. There is no need to compete further," Li Ru said, taking a deep breath and looking openly at Zeng Anmin. "Zeng Anmin, are you the ’Zeng Liangjiang’ whose poetic fame has shaken Jiangnan?"

Upon hearing this, the breathing of all the students in the field hitched. They instantly turned to look at Zeng Anmin in utter disbelief.

Zeng Anmin pursed his lips, feeling that he could hardly suppress the corners of his mouth from curling up. He thought, "It’s not that I want to show off! He’s the one forcing me to do it."

"Barring any surprises, that would be me." Zeng Anmin nodded expressionlessly, then looked at Li Ru. "Your archery skills are absolutely peerless. It’s just a pity you ran into me. You were simply a bit short on luck."

It was a classic case of mutual professional flattery.

With his admission, someone immediately couldn’t help but exclaim, "Zeng Liangjiang?"

"The Zeng Liangjiang of the *Two Rivers Ode* and the *Border Quatrains*?!"

"It’s actually him!"

"No wonder..."

"Mr. Li losing at the hands of Zeng Liangjiang is truly no injustice."

Very quickly, the students of Qi Lin Academy had even helped find an excuse for losing the academic selection.

"This is the Zeng Liangjiang who was praised by the current Crown Prince as a ’staunch minister of the state.’ Let alone losing to him, just being able to compete against him is enough to leave us completely satisfied."

The more people chimed in, the higher his reputation soared. Before long, the discussions among the crowd had already elevated Zeng Anmin to the status of the number one young scholar in the capital.

"Well then, the imperial examination quota is yours. I hope you will live up to the academy’s expectations," the instructor said, looking at Zeng Anmin earnestly.

"Understood. Thank you for your hard work, Instructor," Zeng Anmin replied, cupping his hands in gratitude.

By the time Zeng Anmin appeared before Qin Wanyue again, the academic selection had reached the hour of its conclusion. The winner of the competition didn’t have to go on stage to receive an award, nor did they have to give a speech. Otherwise, Zeng Anmin truly wouldn’t have minded showing off one more time.

As the students of Qi Lin Academy departed into the distance, it was safe to say that the Imperial College had won a sweeping victory this time. Zeng Anmin had won the championship in the art of Archery. The Imperial College had also secured three more champions across the remaining Six Arts. Even among the top sixteen in the written examination, nine were students from the Imperial College.

This caused all the instructors of the Imperial College to feel a profound sense of vindication, their faces glowing with radiant pride. In stark contrast were the instructors of Qi Lin Academy, all of whom sported gloomy, darkened expressions. It was an extremely sharp contrast.

In particular, Zeng Anmin’s achievement of winning the championship with a "perfect score" instantly made the Imperial College instructors look at him with doting affection. Furthermore, Zeng Anmin was the only student at the venue to achieve a "perfect score." It was evident enough that after this academic selection, the name Zeng Anmin—Zeng Liangjiang—would become utterly renowned throughout the capital’s circles of scholars.

"Quan Fu," Qin Wanyue said with a beaming smile, her eyes sparkling with joy. "Congratulations on winning the championship in the academic selection. I imagine it won’t be long before you pass the imperial examination and obtain the status of a tribute scholar."

A tribute scholar was also commonly known as a Scholar. They held the privileges of not having to kneel before officials and being exempt from personal taxes. Of course, given Zeng Anmin’s background, these two points couldn’t even cause a single ripple in his life. However, this was still the first step Zeng Anmin was taking to pave the way for his future entry into the royal court using his own strength.

"Haha, fame and fortune are but fleeting clouds. Compared to those things, I’m much more worried about whether you’re hungry or not, Wanyue," Zeng Anmin said. The smile on his face was clean and radiant, and his eyes carried a genuine sense of care for her.

A rosy blush flashed across Qin Wanyue’s face. She pursed her lips into a soft smile, revealing perfectly straight teeth, each one as pristine and translucent as white jade.

"I’m not hungry. It’s still an hour or so until noon. Let’s hurry back to the classroom, and when noon arrives, we can go to the dining hall to eat."

"Alright."

Zeng Anmin and Qin Wanyue walked together toward the classroom. Before long, the two of them arrived at the original corridor.