Chapter 1776 – A Little Hint
“Lord, Ci thinks that sugarcane and rubber trees are not suitable topics for the examination. It’s quite unfair. These two subjects haven’t been widely known yet, except for the children of a few ministers… the other students are all of common origin, how are they supposed to know about these?” Wei Ci cast a dissenting vote.
The imbalance in information channels clearly made it unfair for those students from ordinary backgrounds to take the test on such topics.
Both sugarcane and rubber trees were obscure subjects that very few people knew about.
Even the unprepared Feng Jin might struggle to answer, let alone a group of students.
The exam questions set by their own lord were not just advanced but potentially lethal!
Jiang Pengji couldn’t help but chuckle, “Zixiao’s considerations are thorough but a bit too cautious. If I include these as exam topics, I will ensure that those few boys won’t have a chance to cheat. The questions can briefly mention the properties and applications of sugarcane and rubber trees, revealing key information for students to analyze and judge. I’m curious—if I ask students to promote the benefits of these two items, will they dig deeper into the meaning and understand my intentions?”
If they conducted the exam this way, Feng Yi and the others would lose their advantage, as Jiang Pengji had leveled the playing field.
Jiang Pengji continued, “Graduation assessments won’t be difficult for these students; no one will fail and have to repeat a year. However, I don’t just need people who can recite from memory.”
The assessment system at Golden Scales Academy was quite strict. Jiang Pengji had observed the students’ past performances and graduation was definitely not an issue.
Wei Ci pondered for a moment, “What the lord says is quite true, but—Ci still has something to say.”
“Speak freely. Is there anything we can’t say between us?”
Wei Ci hesitated, “Having two questions at once seems wasteful; why not just have one leave the other?”
“Leave one? For what purpose?”
“Don’t you remember? Though the graduation assessment is important, it’s just a small test within the academy. The grand examination for selecting talents lies ahead,” Wei Ci reminded her. If they released both major questions at once, what would they have left for the upcoming imperial examination?
Jiang Pengji smiled, “If you hadn’t mentioned it, I might have forgotten. I’ll just go with one question and keep the other as a backup.”
The two laughed as they decided upon a question that would make the exam unforgettable. Years later, many students would still wake up in the night, dreaming of sitting for their graduation exams. This wasn’t horror; the horror lay in the final major question—truly a nightmare of nightmares.
According to the original plan, the graduation assessment was set for the end of the first month after the New Year, but due to insufficient preparation, it had to be delayed by a month.
The group of students felt no relief; instead, they grew even more anxious.
As the assessment date approached, everyone felt like they were headed to the guillotine.
The tense atmosphere among the older students infected the younger ones, who sympathized with their seniors.
With feelings of crisis overflowing, the students exploded with unprecedented enthusiasm for studying.
Though they had time before their assessments, being better prepared meant they wouldn’t be flustered later.
Some students reported, requesting to join the graduation assessment alongside older students, but their results wouldn’t count towards the final ranking.
Han Yu’s eldest legitimate son, Han Run, was one of them.
He wanted to see how much he differed from the senior students to gather experience for the graduation assessment in a few years.
On this day, Han Yu was resting at home, giving his legitimate son extra tutoring to mend his gaps, while his illegitimate sons and daughters sat at a nearby desk studying diligently, and his youngest legitimate son, Han Chi, sat beside, nodding his head while reciting his learning materials. At that moment, an “unexpected guest” arrived.
As Han Run was studying, he caught sight of a figure outside.
“Father, the steward has come.”
Han Run assumed the Old Steward had some report to make and didn’t dare delay. Han Yu furrowed his brows and turned to ask.
“What is it?”
The Old Steward wore a troubled expression, “My lord, a guest has come to visit.”
“Who is visiting? No one sent an invitation beforehand?”
It was rare for Han Yu to have a day off; he had declined many invitations from friends, specifically to catch up on his children’s studies.
He didn’t want to meet an unwelcome guest who arrived without an invitation.
The Old Steward’s gaze fell on Han Run and the young Han Chi, hesitating for a moment.
However, Han Yu understood, the “unwelcome guest” related to his two legitimate sons must be from the same family as well.
Which family?
Naturally, it was his former wife, the Tao Clan, who had divorced him years ago.
Considering his two legitimate sons, Han Yu didn’t get angry. He calmly asked, “What does she want?”
The Tao Clan had been wiped out by the lord’s hand, and as an ex-wife, she managed to avoid disaster and was settled by her eldest son Han Run at a private residence in Shangyang County.
Since their divorce, Han Yu had not kept up with her situation, and he was puzzled by her visit.
The Old Steward said, “I heard… it seems she has some joyful news and specifically came to see the two young masters.”
Han Yu paused for a moment before understanding; the Tao Clan was going to remarry.
“Then I should congratulate her.”
Hearing that his ex-wife was getting married again, Han Yu’s response remained calm.
Since they were divorced, they were no longer a couple. She wasn’t very old, so finding a second spring was perfectly normal.
Han Yu had no objections to his ex-wife remarrying.
However, Han Run beside him bit his lip tightly, his hand trembling slightly around the brush. While Han Yu could accept it without a hitch, he couldn’t do the same.
After several years of separation, the once sharp and oppositional couple had lost their edge.
As Tao Clan looked at the composed Han Yu, her eyes flickered with a hint of nostalgia. Over the years, she had been stifled, aged far more than ten years, while Han Yu had not aged in appearance, his demeanor more refined, seemingly the essence accumulated over the years, making her unable to help but sigh at the unfairness of fate.
If only, she thought, had she not been so stubborn back then, maybe now she would still be the revered Lady of Han.
Unfortunately, there is no such thing as regret medicine in the world, and she wouldn’t change her choice even if given another chance.
Husband, children, and family—she would always choose the latter.
Of course, Tao Clan wasn’t there today to rekindle old flames with her ex-husband.
She understood Han Yu’s temperament; once she chose to give up, she would not be nostalgic, nor would she look back or create unnecessary troubles.
The two exchanged calm pleasantries, with Tao Clan asking about the studies of her eldest son Han Run and the health of her youngest son.
Han Yu answered one by one.
He was a smart man, and Tao Clan’s disguise was not very skillful. He understood that she was there for a specific purpose.
Feigning ignorance, he watched as time slipped away, and since the conversation hadn’t reached the main topic yet, Tao Clan became anxious.
She had to express the purpose of her visit, though she worded it somewhat subtly.
But—
No matter how subtle, it couldn’t change the fact that she was probing about the graduation assessment questions.
Han Yu frowned slightly, pursing his lips in silence, while his son Han Run remarked, “Mother, exam questions involve confidentiality. It’s heard that the question pool is secretive and created by several great scholars, while the questions are selected by Lan Ting from that pool. No one knows the assessment content; how could father know?”
He was also curious—what was his mother asking this for?
