Chapter 608 - 608: The Truth Revealed

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

Within the crowd, Yan Jingkui stared at Chu Qingzhi with a hint of malevolence. He refused to believe that someone could advance their knowledge so significantly after just one night of reading. There had to be more to it.

Chu Qingzhi sensed Yan Jingkui’s gaze and turned to look at him. Her eyes were calm, like a still pond, unfazed.

Yan Jingkui, caught off-guard by her direct gaze, felt his heart skip a beat. A sense of unease spread through him, and he quickly averted his eyes, not daring to meet hers again.

When he calmed down a bit, he realized his back was drenched in sweat.

Beside him, Zeng Ruijie glanced where Yan Jingkui had been looking and saw Chu Qingzhi. He quickly looked away and asked, “Brother Yan, are you alright?” Yan Jingkui forced himself to appear calm and nodded.

At that moment, the eunuch’s shrill voice announced, “The Emperor arrives!”

Everyone bowed and stood still.

The Emperor walked to the Bitong Hall and ascended to the platform. After some encouraging words, he began the most anticipated part – distributing the prizes.

The eunuch brought a chair for the Emperor, and Grand Libationer Cao Changkun took over the proceedings.

Cao Changkun stepped onto the platform and addressed the crowd, “We’ll announce the winners in the order we have arranged.

“First, for the essay competition, which is a bit special, Xu Guannan from Yunfei School and Jiang Zhanglin from the Imperial College are both declared winners.”

Xu Guannan and Jiang Zhanglin glanced at each other, then looked away almost simultaneously before walking towards the Bitong Hall.

The eunuch presented two boxes, “Congratulations to both of you for ranking first.”

After thanking and receiving their prizes, they returned to their respective groups.

Some time later, Cao Changkun announced another special case, “For horse racing, the winner is… Chu Qingzhi.”

Chu Qingzhi was surprised. Why was she being mentioned? She hadn’t participated in the competition.

The crowd’s gaze turned to Chu Qingzhi, filled with curiosity and scrutiny. It was unprecedented for a woman to participate in the Poetry and Rites Competition, let alone win.

Chu Xuyuan and Chu Xuyao exchanged glances, wondering when their fifth sister had taken part in horse racing.

Chu Qingzhi approached the Bitong Hall, “Grand Libationer, that was an accident. It can’t be considered a competition.”

Cao Changkun subtly looked at the Emperor. Seeing the Emperor’s happy expression, he knew that he had done the right thing. “Even though it was an accident, everyone saw you reach the finish line first and perform the most challenging feat of mid-air horse leaping. 1 believe no one will object to this result.”

Indeed, no one objected, not wanting to offend the Emperor or Grand Libationer. Besides, they couldn’t match Chu Qingzhi’s skill.

The Emperor spoke, “What belongs to you is yours. Take it.”

Chu Qingzhi accepted the box, “Thank you, Your Majesty.” She returned to her spot, holding the box.

Seeing Chu Xuyuan and Chu Xuyao’s curious gazes on the box, she casually handed it to them.

Curious, the brothers took the box to a corner.

Chu Xuyuan opened the box and immediately widened his eyes. It was actually a box of golden sunflower seeds, gleaming and full.

Chu Qingzhi, amused by their reaction, glanced at the box. Seeing the practical and generous reward, she smiled, liking it quite a lot.

Chu Xuyuan closed the box and handed it back to Chu Qingzhi, “Sister, you keep it. We don’t want to lose it.”

“We’ll look at it when we get back.”

“Ok.”

It took two hours to announce the results of the competition. Cao Zhangkun heaved a sigh of relief. It had finally ended.

Just then, Zhuang Yuyan stepped forward through the crowd to the front of Bitong Hall, and spoke loudly, “Your Majesty, 1 have something to say.”

The Emperor, who had some impression of Zhuang Yuyan as a talented man in couplet matching, asked, “What is it?”

When Yan Jingkui saw this scene, his heart sank. An ominous feeling rose in his heart.

Zhuang Yuyan said, “Yesterday, in the couplet contest with Yan Jingkui, it came down to a final upper couplet, which was very difficult. At that time, Yan Jingkui couldn’t come up with the lower couplet, so I said we would announce the answer this morning.”

“At that time, I couldn’t think of an excellent lower couplet either, so 1 gathered my senior and junior brothers to brainstorm.”

“Later, unable to figure out a good lower couplet, Chu Xuyuan suggested asking his fifth sister, Chu Qingzhi, whose abilities are well-known to all. After studying overnight, she wrote an excellent lower couplet.”

“However, this couplet was switched with a blank paper on the way here.”

“Your Majesty, I’m not telling you this because I want to win, but because 1 want the truth to be revealed.”

Yan Jingkui turned pale, never expecting Zhuang Yuyan to reveal this matter in front of the Emperor.

In panic, Yan Jingkui knelt down and desperately argued, “Your Majesty, that couplet was written by me, not switched. Please discern the truth.”

As soon as he said this, all the students from Yunfei School were relieved.

The Emperor wasn’t naive and quickly realized the truth, “How dare you deceive your sovereign!”

Yan Jingkui was so frightened that his body trembled. With a flustered expression, he said, “Your Majesty, 1 wouldn’t dare.”

The Emperor sternly retorted, “Just now, Zhuang Yuyan never mentioned who switched the couplet, yet you claimed you didn’t switch it. Isn’t that a confession?”

Yan Jingkui, sweating profusely, blurted out without thinking, “The couplet was switched by Luo Jisheng. I just happened to not have a lower couplet and used it. Your Majesty, this has nothing to do with me!”

If Luo Jisheng knew how easily Yan Jingkui betrayed him, he would surely regret it deeply.

Cao Changkun and other students from the Imperial College glared at Yan Jingkui. The reputation of the Imperial College was now in tatters, especially after they had mocked the Yunfei School students just moments ago.

The Emperor angrily said, “Even if you didn’t participate in the switching, using someone else’s couplet reveals your low character. You don’t deserve to be a student of Imperial College!”

Yan Jingkui prostrated himself on the ground, pleading, “Please have mercy, Your Majesty. I was momentarily misguided and will never dare again.”

The Emperor, rubbing his temples in frustration, said, “Considering this is your first offense, you and Luo Jisheng are forgiven this time. For the next three years, in addition to your studies, you will also have to clean the Imperial College. Additionally, you must apologize to Chu Qingzhi until she forgives you.”

Yan Jingkui immediately kowtowed, “As Your Majesty wishes, 1 will follow your decree.”

Chu Xuyuan tugged at Chu Qingzhi’s sleeve, “Fifth, isn’t this punishment too light?”

Chu Qingzhi whispered back, “The Emperor has to take their family backgrounds into consideration. It’s not as simple as it seems. When you consider issues in the future, don’t just think of the individual but also their family background, understand?”

In this era, it was not individual interests that were paramount, but family interests. Without a strong family backing, an individual’s power is not secure..