Outside the Qingyi Garden, the candidates who had arrived earlier had been waiting for a long time. As the time for the imperial palace exam was approaching, there were only about two hundred people on - site. This inevitably gave rise to a sense of anxiety among the candidates.
Qin Wanrong, Zhang Yingxue, and Zhuo Shu were among these two hundred people. They had come very early. After they arrived, they occupied a small area, waiting for Su Yuanyuan and the others to arrive so that they could stick together for mutual support. However, to their surprise, they had waited for so long but still hadn't seen them.
Zhuo Shu looked towards the end of the official road, looking worried. "Why haven't Yuanbao and Young Master Su the Second come yet? Could something have happened on the way and delayed them?"
"Shoo, shoo, shoo!" Zhang Yingxue quickly said. "Don't talk nonsense. With Second Brother Su and Brother Sheng around, how could anything go wrong? Right, Wanrong?"
Qin Wanrong tightly pursed her lips and frowned. Worry was clearly visible on her face.
"Misses." A voice called from behind. The three of them turned around. Qiu Han was standing there with a lute on her back. She curtsied towards them and said, "Qiu Han saw you all with the princess before. I assume you are the princess's friends. May I ask if you know why the princess hasn't arrived yet?"
Zhang Yingxue said, "We didn't receive any letter from Yuanbao before we set off. We don't know why she's so late. There's still some time. Let's wait a bit longer."
Other candidates around were also discussing whether something had happened, which was why so many people hadn't come to take the imperial palace exam. Some were secretly delighted. If the remaining seven hundred candidates really didn't come, they would suddenly have many fewer competitors. Maybe they could even win the top prize in the exam.
Just then, a horse appeared at the end of the official road. Someone shouted loudly, "Here they come!"
First, there was a single horse, followed by a neatly - lined formation of the Jingji Army and a large crowd of candidates. As they got closer, the ground seemed to tremble, which made people feel secretly shocked.
Everyone's eyes fell on the person riding the horse in the front. Just one glance and they recognized it was Su Huaiyuan. Qin Wanrong immediately let out a sigh of relief.
"It's Second Brother Su! Wanrong, it's Second Brother Su! They're here!" Zhang Yingxue said excitedly, holding Qin Wanrong's hand.
The three of them supported each other and walked towards the approaching group. Seeing this, Qiu Han also followed with the lute on her back.
Su Huaiyuan led the Jingji Army to safely escort the remaining candidates to the outside of the Qingyi Garden gate. The boulder that had been weighing on his heart finally fell. The Jingji Army quickly took their positions and surrounded the Qingyi Garden, guarding the order on - site.
The other candidates also walked forward one after another and joined the first two hundred candidates.
Su Huaiyuan dismounted from his horse and hugged the approaching woman into his arms. Qin Wanrong didn't expect him to be so bold as to hug her in front of so many people. She felt shy, but also noticed that his mood was off, so she asked, "What happened?"
Zhang Yingxue deliberately avoided looking at the two hugging each other. She stood on tiptoe and looked back, eagerly looking forward to the appearance of her sweetheart. Humph, when her Brother Sheng came, she would also show off.
But she looked around everywhere and didn't see the figure she had been longing for. Zhuo Shu also wondered, "Where are Yuanbao and Third Brother Su? Second Brother Su, didn't they come with you?"
"Yes, the imperial palace exam is about to start. If they don't come, they'll miss the time." Zhang Yingxue said anxiously.
Su Huaiyuan let go of Qin Wanrong and then told them what had happened on the way.
"Yuanbao and Third Brother Su are really something! The imperial palace exam is so important. How could they just give up!" Zhang Yingxue said anxiously. "Even if they wanted to appease those refugees, they could have sent their maids and servants!" Zhang Yingxue was so anxious that she was hopping up and down.
Qin Wanrong shook her head. "The maids and servants' status is not high enough to suppress those refugees."
"But if they miss the imperial palace exam, they'll give up the positions of music master and the clerk of the Ministry of Punishment that were already within their reach!" Zhang Yingxue still couldn't calm down.
"Will the princess not take this imperial palace exam?" Qiu Han's voice came from behind. Everyone looked at her.
Zhang Yingxue said angrily, "Yes, she won't take it. Maybe you'll be the top scorer. Are you satisfied now!"
Qin Wanrong tugged at her sleeve, signaling her not to say any more.
Zhang Yingxue was about to cry. She not only felt sorry that Su Yuanyuan and Su Huaisheng had given up the official positions that were within reach but was also angry at the cold - bloodedness of the other candidates.
They had just watched Su Yuanyuan and Su Huaisheng make such a sacrifice while they themselves rushed to the exam venue! If they hadn't come so early, they could have helped Yuanbao and Brother Sheng.
"Not only will Third Brother and Yuanbao give up, but I will too." Su Huaiyuan suddenly said. "I won't let Yuanbao stay there alone with those refugees. Sister Rong, Miss Zhang, Miss Zhuo, you stay here and take the exam well. I've successfully completed the task Yuanbao assigned to me. Now I'm going back to find her."
Su Huaiyuan tightly held Qin Wanrong's hand. After saying that, he was about to remount his horse and leave, but was stopped by Qin Wanrong.
"Brother Yuan, if you all do this, how can we take the imperial palace exam with peace of mind?" Qin Wanrong said. Zhang Yingxue and Zhuo Shu nodded vigorously.
"Then what do you mean..." Before Su Huaiyuan could finish, a series of drumbeats came from the direction of the Qingyi Garden. This was a signal that the time had come and the imperial palace exam was about to start.
As the deafening drumbeats sounded, the gates of the Qingyi Garden opened inwards. The candidates waiting outside were immediately energized and rushed forward.
A tall and graceful figure walked out from inside. He stood at the gate of the Qingyi Garden. His outer robe painted with stars made him look like a celestial being. He was Cang Xuan, the chief supervisor of this special imperial exam and the current premier of the Great Chu.
There were several examiners beside him, but in everyone's eyes, there was only this powerful and handsome man.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for him to speak. He glanced casually at the official beside him. The official's forehead broke out in a cold sweat. He stepped forward and said:
"Congratulations to all the candidates for passing the first round of the special imperial exam and successfully entering today's imperial palace exam. This is the last exam of this special imperial exam. If you pass this exam, you will directly enter the officialdom, obtain official positions, and become the right - hand men of His Majesty, serving the Great Chu court and millions of common people.
"This imperial palace exam is different from the previous ones. Once you step through the gate of the Qingyi Garden, the exam will officially begin. There are no exam questions in this exam. You can only rely on your own intelligence and strength to solve the problems. You can choose to act alone or form teams freely with others."
After saying that, the examiner paused, as if waiting for the candidates outside to ask questions.
Sure enough, someone asked after a moment of thought, "My lord, since there are no exam questions in this exam, what criteria will be used to judge the results? If I team up with a candidate for the same position, how will our results be evaluated?"