Song Qiming looked Song Gaoli's clothes up and down. He couldn't see any fading; Song Gaoli took great care of what he wore, without even a single wrinkle.
"It's fine, wearing cyan makes you look elegant. Just remember that you are a provincial graduate now, and that is enough."
Compared to their origins and family backgrounds, being able to pass the provincial examination and become a provincial graduate was already bringing honor to their ancestors and making them dragons among men. There was nothing to feel inferior about.
Back in Xining City, a provincial graduate would be treated with great respect by anyone who met him.
Song Gaoli didn't have much money right now. If he chose not to continue taking the exams and instead went back to open a private school as a teacher, he would become as wealthy as Provincial Graduate Wang in just a few years. There was absolutely no need to fret over a set of silk clothes.
Coming to Chongde Hall once again, compared to the apprehension he felt when attending the Hairpin Banquet, Song Qiming was now able to remain as calm as still water in the exact same place.
Half of the top twenty were acquaintances. Seven were classmates from Anyang Academy, and the other three Song Qiming had met at the Xiyuan Literary Gathering; they were all top scholars from other academies.
The remaining half had very unfamiliar faces. They were likely not from Anyang Prefecture and had rushed over from other prefectural cities specifically to participate in the provincial examination.
"Is that this year's Jieyuan? Why does he look so young?" The speaker wore a hair crown tied with a cyan silk ribbon that fluttered in the wind. Dressed in a cyan shirt, he looked very refined, giving off the feeling of a youthful literati.
The sixteenth-place scholar standing nearby lowered his voice and replied, "A thirteen-year-old Jieyuan is naturally young. I heard he was also the Anshou of the Anyang Prefecture college examination last year."
The man in cyan widened his eyes in shock. "He only passed the county examination to become a Xiucai a year ago?"
The sixteenth-place scholar nodded. "I heard Song Qiming comes from a peasant family. When he was young, his family was so poor that he could only eat until he was half full. He only started studying at the age of eleven, and in less than three years, he has already become a provincial graduate. He is truly a heaven-sent genius with a boundless future!"
Wang Xu, who was passing by, caught a earful of this. He paused his steps slightly and glanced at the two of them.
What heaven-sent genius? If it weren't for Lord Ye giving him special daily guidance, Song Qiming would never have been able to win first place as the Jieyuan.
It was a pity for He Feixuan. He had been first every time for the past three years, but right at the very end, someone took advantage of a loophole. It was just too unlucky.
Dozens of tables were arranged in a U-shape on three sides, divided equally between students and examiners. Sitting in the very center was Duan Yanhua, the chief examiner of this Longbei Province provincial examination.
"Student Song Qiming pays his respects to the esteemed teachers."
"Student Song Gaoli pays his respects to the esteemed teachers."
All the examiners present held official positions in the imperial court, but here they were uniformly addressed as mister or teacher, even the chief examiner Duan Yanhua.
The Luming Banquet was not just a feast; it was more of a starting point for building social networks and political factions.
Although all the examiners came from the imperial court, almost all of them originated from Longbei. The official careers of the twenty newly minted provincial graduates present would largely depend on their promotion and care.
Although with Ye Liangyu around, Song Qiming did not lack patronage, no one would ever complain about having too many connections. It was hard to guarantee they wouldn't come in handy one day.
The moment he stood up, Song Qiming astutely noticed that the chief examiner Duan Yanhua's attention lingered on Song Gaoli for a long time.
Thinking of the poem Song Gaoli had written during the provincial examination, and the fact that the academy headmaster had called him to attend the Luming Banquet, could it be related to Duan Yanhua?
If he disliked Song Gaoli and called him over just to teach him a lesson, there would have been no need to let him barely pass the provincial examination; failing him outright would have sufficed.
As it stood now, the only possibility was that Song Gaoli's poem had pleased him. Duan Yanhua was very satisfied with him and looked upon him favorably. This was a great opportunity.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, they were about to take their seats. Their assigned seats were quite far apart. Before separating, Song Qiming pulled Song Gaoli close and whispered in his ear.
"After you sit down, look at Duan Yanhua a few more times. Remember, you revere him greatly. Your eyes must show excitement, joy, and adoration, but do not overdo it, or it will backfire."
Their eyes met. Song Gaoli's pupils darkened slightly, and he gave a quiet, inconspicuous hum of agreement.
After sitting down, he glanced at Duan Yanhua several times, and finally, their eyes met.
At the first moment of eye contact, Song Gaoli instantly lowered his gaze to avoid it. Then, pretending to have mustered up his courage, he raised his head to meet the examiner's eyes again. His gaze was three parts joyful, three parts excited, and four parts adoring, as if it were about to melt into water.
Duan Yanhua smiled faintly, shifted his gaze away, and continued speaking with the others.
Song Gaoli slowly exhaled. Did this mean he succeeded?
