"Brother Lu!" Zhu Yushan couldn’t hold it in anymore.
"Don’t worry, Brother Zhu!"
Lu Zheng patted Zhu Yushan’s hand and comforted him, "Now that you’ve succeeded in your cultivation, your lifespan has significantly increased. Even if you have to take the exam for another twelve years, it doesn’t really matter and won’t have much impact."
Zhu Yushan, "..."
"Hee-hee—"
Li Hanyu and Liu Qingyan were already laughing, holding onto each other.
Zhu Yushan opened his mouth, actually wondering if he would have to take the exam for another twelve years, forgetting to retort for a mont.
Li Hanyu couldn’t bear to see her husband being bullied, so she nudged Liu Qingyan, signaling her to have Lu Zheng tone it down a bit.
Liu Qingyan understood, stretched her foot under the table, and kicked Lu Zheng lightly.
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow, so he no longer joked about Zhu Yushan, but simply raised his glass to clink with Zhu Yushan’s.
"We originally said we’d have a small gathering after the exam, enjoy so leisure, but Brother Zhu, you had another mishap this ti, I wonder..."
"I’m used to it, if I missed it, I missed it, I’ll just continue next year."
Zhu Yushan shook his head and said, "As Brother Lu ntioned, now that I’ve succeeded in cultivation, I’m going to see how many more tis this bad luck can stop !"
"Good! Such determination!"
Lu Zheng gave a thumbs up, and Li Hanyu also affectionately looked at Zhu Yushan.
"Since Brother Lu is here, allow to be the host and show you around Yizhou. It’s not a small place, and there are so sites worth visiting."
"Then I’ll trouble Brother Zhu," Lu Zheng raised his glass and smiled, "Let’s have a good ti, refresh our minds, regain our spirits, go ho to prepare, and continue next year!"
Zhu Yushan, "..."
Li Hanyu, "..."
...
"Not far ahead, in the forest, there’s a white stone screen wall, which is actually a rock face as smooth as a mirror, with inscriptions by scholars or officials returning from the imperial examination."
On a stone mountain path, Lu Zheng and his group were being led up the mountain by Zhu Yushan.
"Many students co here in their spare ti to gather, admire the writings of their predecessors, and exchange their own learnings."
"Moreover, these mountain peaks are relatively easy to climb. The state capital has even built stone paths, making them easy to walk, with many people coming in the sumr for a cool retreat."
"The mountain has clear springs and streams, bamboo forests with pinecones, and occasionally pheasants and wild rabbits," Zhu Yushan introduced as they walked. "The scenery in the mountains is good. Climbing to the mountain tops, you can overlook the state capital with even better views."
"We’re not far from the state capital, so there are no large wild animals, right?" Lu Zheng asked.
Zhu Yushan nodded, "To the north of these mountain peaks is a town. If there were wild animals in these woods, the state capital wouldn’t even know before they are hunted by the hunters from the town and taken to the governnt office for a reward."
"The state capital is bustling with life and noise; any clever wild animal wouldn’t co close," Liu Qingyan added.
They took another few turns, besides the sound of birds and streams, soon they heard voices ahead, blocked by large stone trees.
"Is there soone?"
"It’s not sumr yet, it’s still a bit cool in the mountains. It should be scholars who just finished their exams," Zhu Yushan explained.
As they walked past the mountain path, a wider clearing ca into view.
This clearing had little slope, and the trees had been cut and cleared. To the west, the rock face was rugged, with a small stream flowing down it, with multiple drops along the way creating a sound of rushing water, mist swirling, the air damp.
On the east side, there was a huge, smooth white stone wall, several dozen feet square, with no cracks or weeds—truly deserving to be called a white stone screen wall.
High or low on the screen wall were nurous poems and writings, so neat and square, others bold and vigorous, full of imposing manner.
In the clearing, next to the western stream, there were two pavilions, one to the north and one to the south. Surrounding the pavilions were several stone tables and stools. At this ti, four scholars were seated around the northern pavilion, chatting and enjoying themselves with drinks.
Besides the scholars, there were also several brightly dressed won accompanying them, pouring wine and offering smiles, their laughter full of charm. Their every movent, without exception, made one feel like bathing in the spring breeze, with eyes showing admiration—definitely professionals.
When Lu Zheng and his group saw those people, naturally those people also saw their arrival.
"Zhu Yushan? Lu, Young Master Lu?"
"Hmm?" Lu Zheng squinted, recognizing soone?
"Young Master Duan?" Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow, recognizing the scholar he once encountered at the Lushui Ferry, Duan Xian.
Seeing Lu Zheng still rembered him, Duan Xian couldn’t help but smile and quickly got up to greet him.
"What brings you here..."
"That Mr. Liu is a friend of ours. He thinks the exam went well this ti, hoping to beco a scholar, so we ca to admire the inscriptions of predecessors and encourage each other for next year’s autumn exam."
Lu Zheng followed the voice and saw a young scholar about fifteen or sixteen sitting among them, hugging a flamboyant woman, drinking a full cup.
"Haha, that’s nice... that’s nice..." Lu Zheng nodded with a smile.
"Zhu Yushan, is it the misfortune-ridden Zhu Yushan?" That Mr. Liu suddenly realized, then stood up, teasing, "Did Brother Zhu take the exam this year?"
Touching upon the wrong topic!
Duan Xian’s expression changed, just about to scold, but Zhu Yushan waved his hand.
He was already used to it.
So he shook his head with a smile, "Bad luck, I was in closed-door cultivation and forgot the ti, missed it again."
"Pfft—"
Mr. Liu couldn’t help but laugh, "Forgot the exam because you were studying in seclusion?"
"Mr. Liu, silence!" Duan Xian imdiately interrupted Mr. Liu.
"Ah?" Mr. Liu was montarily puzzled.
How was teasing a poor scholar like Zhu Yushan any problem?
Lu Zheng glanced at the slightly flushed face of the man, shook his head slightly, and said to Duan Xian, "Continue your gathering, don’t mind us."
"Alright! Alright!"
Duan Xian pulled Mr. Liu away, gritting his teeth inwardly, thinking that originally it was a good networking opportunity, yet it got ruined by Mr. Liu.
After sending away those scholars, Lu Zheng and his group explored the inscriptions on the wall, then continued to climb the mountain.
Upon reaching the summit of this small mountain, they were several miles from the state city, but the majestic city spread below was an indeed breathtaking scene.
However...
Lu Zheng turned back, looking at the mountains behind him, each peak higher than the last, refraining from reciting the big killer poem.
...
After half a day of sightseeing, they descended back to the city. On their way down, they didn’t encounter those scholars again, unclear if they returned early or went elsewhere in the mountains.
Zhu Yushan, despite being a native of Yizhou Prefecture, lived in a surrounding town, so he stayed with Lu Zheng at the Yuelai Inn.
Early the next morning, the four gathered in the inn’s main hall, discussing where to go for fun.
But, as they talked, Lu Zheng noticed the inn’s main hall guests becoming fewer, and every ti the inn clerk approached a guest with a greeting, that table would soon rise and leave.
Until eventually, as the innkeeper and staff were preparing to hide in the kitchen, Zhu Yushan and the others realized sothing was wrong.
"What’s happening?"
The next mont, several constables swiftly entered the door, spreading out around.
The lead man, dressed in chief constable attire, walked briskly to the four and asked sternly, "Zhu Yushan?"
"That’s ?" Zhu Yushan curiously looked up, unsure why a constable was looking for him.
The leading chief constable glanced at Lu Zheng and the two won, his eyes flashing a hint of admiration, before turning to intense vigilance, "There’s a case involving you guys."
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