Chapter 45: Unseen Show-off

Outside the door, Su Mingyue, full of rebellious spirit, didn’t leave but eavesdropped on the conversation.

What was there that she couldn’t hear? She just had to listen.

When she heard the hidden meaning in the doctor’s words, Su Mingyue’s entire body turned bright red, and she immediately ran off without looking back.

Ahh, her ears were dirty now~

She really shouldn’t have heard that!

How could the doctor say such things?

She was just worried her husband wouldn’t be able to handle the pressure of studying, that’s why she had him rest for a few days.

Sigh, seems like it’s no good.

That night.

Shen Xiuyan was thinking about how to subtly hint to his wife.

But to his surprise, before he could even speak, Mingyue didn’t refuse him.

In fact, she was extra enthusiastic.

!!!

Thank you doctor!!!

After an absurd period of time, the day before the exam arrived.

Su Mingyue had put all her heart into Shen Xiuyan’s well-being.

She believed in balancing work and rest when it came to studying. After so much study, she feared Shen Xiuyan would be too stressed before the exam. So, in the last few days, she decided not to let him study anymore and instead took him out to the streets for fun.

As the exam approached, the city of Yuyong was already crowded.

Even those with homes nearby had arrived early to rest and prepare for the exam.

The street was filled with various market calls, and since Su Mingyue had never been to the city before, everything seemed new and exciting to her.

Shen Xiuyan walked beside her, diligently blocking the crowd around them.

He was worried someone might bump into her fragile heart.

“Hubby, there are so many people over there, let’s go check it out,” Su Mingyue quickly dragged Shen Xiuyan over when she saw something interesting.

“Slow down, slow down, my little ancestor.” Shen Xiuyan smiled helplessly and held her hand tightly.

When they got closer, they saw that there was an event happening.

It was an event that occurred once every three years in the city. Whenever scholars came to take the imperial exam, those who loved calligraphy would come to collect their work for future preservation.

At this time, their calligraphy wasn’t worth much, but if one day they became successful, then it would be something others could never get.

This was called early investment.

The gifts given at the event weren’t very appealing.

But everyone had a competitive spirit, so starting from some year, all the scholars taking the exam had to come and “compete” in secret.

The goal was to use their excellent calligraphy to suppress others from the same batch.

Indeed, some famous people had emerged from this event, so it quickly attracted many scholars.

Currently, the top three pieces of calligraphy were displayed high up.

Su Mingyue pouted, “Huh? They can get in the top three? I feel like even my hubby’s scrap paper is better than theirs.”

One scholar nearby frowned, “Young lady, if you don’t understand, you should keep quiet, it’s an insult to literature.”

Su Mingyue shot him a look and pursed her lips without speaking.

But Shen Xiuyan didn’t like that, his wife was someone anyone could talk about, but he hadn’t even had a chance to treasure her yet.

So, he responded, “Brother, you’re wrong. Did my wife say something wrong? Where’s the logic in saying a piece of writing is bad?”

The scholar was speechless, what kind of extreme person was this? Although a little angry, he patiently explained.

“Do you know who wrote the top three pieces? The first place is Lin Jiazhong from Wuxian, a genius who could read at three and composed poetry at seven. The second place is Wu Jiping, a scholar praised by the Imperial Tutor. As for the third place, although they don’t have as big a reputation, they are the top scholar of a county.”

Su Mingyue muttered quietly, “So what if they’re top scholars? My husband is a top scholar too…”

Hearing this, the scholar’s expression softened. He didn’t expect her husband was also a top scholar. In that case, shouldn’t he have some self-awareness now?

But Shen Xiuyan just casually said, “Oh, so what? That doesn’t mean their writing isn’t bad, and no one should stop others from commenting.”

Anyone who dared to say his wife wasn’t good enough, who wasn’t a youthful genius?!

Shen Xiuyan puffed out his chest, recalling his own childhood as a genius.

The scholar was speechless. He thought Shen Xiuyan was one of those people who thought highly of himself, and since he couldn’t reason with him, he simply turned and ignored them.

Su Mingyue saw Shen Xiuyan wanted to argue further, but thinking it best not to make a scene, she tightly held his hand and acted coquettishly.

“Hubby, don’t mind him. Let’s just enjoy ourselves and not ruin our mood.”

Seeing that Mingyue wasn’t angry, he nodded, “Alright.”

Both sides became annoyed with each other and ignored one another. Suddenly, Su Mingyue exclaimed, “Hubby, look at that little lantern, it’s so pretty!”

Shen Xiuyan followed her finger and looked over. It was a little rabbit-shaped lantern hanging at the gift-giving area, with round eyes that looked just like Mingyue’s, making it endearing.

He squeezed Su Mingyue’s small hand, “Let’s go check out how we can get it.”

They walked over, and Shen Xiuyan asked, “Excuse me, how can we get that lantern?”

The person in charge immediately smiled, “This scholar has a good eye. This lantern was personally made by the city’s master, a unique one. It has been here for several days but hasn’t been taken. The requirements are not too high; you just need to rank in the top ten among the calligraphy pieces displayed.”

Although the person said it wasn’t difficult, their smile was filled with pride. This year, there were too many excellent pieces of calligraphy. Getting into the top ten wasn’t easy.

He was probably hoping to make a good profit after the exams.

“Is there a live evaluation here?” This was the most important question to Shen Xiuyan. If he couldn’t get it immediately, Mingyue would surely be upset.

The person in charge said, “Of course, we have several masters here, and with the evaluation from the crowd, the rankings will be decided right on the spot.”

“Alright, I’ll write a piece too,” Shen Xiuyan said, confident in his own calligraphy.

After all, his handwriting had nearly driven his strict teacher to distraction.

No matter how much his talent was criticized, no one had ever said his handwriting was bad.

“Alright, please go ahead.”

The scholar who had just had an unpleasant interaction with him also curiously walked over. He wanted to see what kind of good calligraphy this person could produce!

Shen Xiuyan took up the brush and with one swift motion, a fluent stream of characters poured out.

The characters were powerful and vigorous, each stroke like a dragon or snake. They looked oddly familiar.

After a while, someone gasped, “This… this looks just like the Imperial Chancellor’s handwriting!”

The scholar who had been displeased earlier slapped his thigh. That’s right, it was the Imperial Chancellor’s handwriting!

No wonder it looked so familiar!

“Wow…”

“!!!”

Various exclamations filled the air, and the crowd slowly began to gather around.

The person in charge was already stunned, completely bewildered by how this scholar could produce such writing.

Shen Xiuyan slightly lifted his chin, feeling a sense of pride.

See? Once his calligraphy was revealed, it would definitely dazzle them. As expected, it was just as he had predicted.

He smiled faintly and said, “Excuse me, where should I take this for evaluation?”

The person in charge, trembling, carefully accepted the piece of writing and cautiously said, “No need, no need for evaluation. This handwriting deeply resembles the Imperial Chancellor’s true style. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes today, I would have thought it was the original!”

Then, he raised his voice and announced to the crowd, “This piece deserves to take the first place without question. No objections, right?”

“No, no.”

Who would dare object?

“This scholar is young, yet his handwriting is remarkable!”

The Imperial Chancellor’s handwriting was renowned across the land as being top-notch. Anyone who dared to object would likely be torn apart by his admirers.