[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber":3,"chapter-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-94":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","My Life as a Rising Force in the Red Chamber",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2310892,4515,"Chapter 94: First Triumph at the Moon Palace (Seeking First Subscription)","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-94",94,"\u003Cp>Rongqing Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Mu sat upright on the central bed, looking somewhat weary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia She sat below and said, “Old Lady, you saw it yourself today—this brute thinks he’s read a few days of books and has grown even more arrogant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’s become utterly lawless, daring to draw a blade and assault someone—turning the son of the Capital Garrison Commander into that state. Prince Wang Ziteng is a first-rank official!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, the Wang family is our in-law kin, so there’s still some face to spare; if it had been another family, wouldn’t it have brought catastrophic disaster upon the Jia household?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In my view, such a disobedient brute should’ve been expelled long ago, to avoid future trouble!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Lady’s heart was filled with bitter hatred—Jia Cong had humiliated her nephew so thoroughly, and her own brother, the Capital Garrison Commander, had come to pay birthday respects only to be disgraced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she heard Jia She suggest expelling Jia Cong, her eyes flashed with light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Mu snapped, “Shut your mouth! As his father, you won’t even defend your own son, yet you can’t even see right from wrong. Today your son acted rashly, yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if that Wang boy hadn’t come here provoking trouble, would any of this have happened? The moral high ground is ours!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He defended the Jia family’s honor—if anyone and everyone could come jabbering at us, you don’t care about your face, but I still have mine to preserve!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yuanyang replied, “Yesterday I heard Qingwen say that today the provincial examination results were posted at the Ministry of Rites. Third Master Cong invited his classmates to go see them. Old Lady, shall I go find out the news?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She turned to Yuanyang beside her: “Didn’t he just say he was going to see the results?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that Wang boy is the son of a military family, a martial cultivator—how could he be so easily overpowered by that brat, left at his mercy to be beaten or killed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How many more things are we unaware of? You, as his father, have no sense of it—he comes home only a few times a year. You’d better leave him alone; let everyone have some peace.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Jia Mu didn’t favor Jia Cong, she was fiercely partial toward her own children and grandchildren—but she hadn’t grown completely senile. She still knew her own family from outsiders, and would never favor the Wang family.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone who hadn’t found his name on any of the first three lists had clung to a final sliver of hope, but now was utterly disappointed, his face pale as death.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You good-for-nothing drunkard, always scheming against your own son, spouting nonsense about expelling him—don’t you fear others laughing at you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, all eyes turned to the top of the list.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone found his name there, ecstatic, even weeping uncontrollably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This first-place list seemed to possess a bewitching power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Countless burning gazes fixed upon the red-silk scroll of the first-place list, as if trying to set it ablaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The posting of the Yongzhou provincial examination’s first-place list pushed the atmosphere of the crowd to its peak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia She, scolded by Jia Mu, turned beet-red and dared not speak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beneath the east wall of the southern courtyard of the Ministry of Rites.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Lady’s face turned pale—Old Lady had grown resentful toward the Wang family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the coveted post every year the red-clad yamen runners longed for—only students who made the first-place list received such honors.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Mu said, “It’s good to keep an eye out—he’s still a Jia. Don’t let him boast. No one in the family keeps track of exam results; when Zheng returns, he’ll surely ask.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the first-place list was posted, a group of red-clad yamen runners appeared beneath it—they were there to deliver good news to the top examinees—and alongside them stood a Ministry of Rites official holding a register.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the first-place list was posted, these runners would visit the homes of the successful candidates, according to the register and distance, bringing news of their success; every family that passed would receive generous rewards.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We always knew he liked reading, but who would’ve thought a single piece of his calligraphy was so treasured even by the Retired Emperor?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd surged, countless people pushing forward, desperate to get closer, to see who the lucky top scorer of this year’s provincial exam was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Didn’t scholars pour their hearts out, burning oil through the night, all for this moment of glorious triumph?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surging crowd pushed Jia Cong even further to the edge—here, he remained blind, unable to make out a single name on the list.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, more and more people read the name at the top, and countless voices echoed through the crowd: “Jia Cong! Jia Cong!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, the name spread like a tidal wave—when Jia Cong heard everyone around him murmuring his name, he froze in stunned silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was satisfied with his performance in the provincial exam; after the test, he transcribed his answers from memory and showed them to several academy instructors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All the instructors praised his responses, saying that if the examiners judged fairly, he was virtually guaranteed to pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why he approached the results with calmness—even standing far away, unable to see the list, he wasn’t anxious. Since his chances of passing were so high, there was no need to rush.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when he heard countless voices chanting his name, he finally realized—he had become the top scorer of this year’s Yongzhou provincial examination!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he had barely survived in the Eastern Academy, even after Jia She had stripped him of his academy enrollment, he never put down his books.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For nearly three years at Qingshan Academy, he studied day and night, never daring to slacken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Jing’an Gong had gifted him books and guidance; since the old man lived on Mount Luocang, he often offered direct instruction, greatly aiding Jia Cong’s studies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He also had Lin Daiyu’s transcribed notes on the reading methods of the third-place scholar, deepening his understanding of the imperial examination path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The scholarly tradition of Qingshan Academy had given him a solid foundation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All these internal accumulations, plus a touch of fortune in the exam hall, had earned him the honor of top scorer in the provincial exam.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To say he wasn’t delighted would be false—Jia Cong was truly joyful. Years of hardship and endurance had finally borne fruit; he had now entered the realm of scholarly success, and his future path was his to claim.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the Jia household, which had produced no successful examinees for years, a provincial top scorer carried immense weight—he now had a firm foundation, and no one could ever again look down on or ignore him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the crowd watching the list were many Qingshan Academy students—they all knew who Jia Cong was, and excitedly searched the crowd for his figure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now that his wish was fulfilled, Jia Cong had quietly slipped away from the southern courtyard of the Ministry of Rites alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The news that Qingshan Academy student, Jia Fu’s son Jia Cong, had passed the Yongzhou provincial examination as top scorer in the Jiazhao 12th year spread rapidly among thousands of students and throughout the Divine Capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several red-clad yamen runners rushed toward Ningrong Street in Dongcheng, to the Jia household, to deliver the good news.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Zheng was attending a meeting at the Ministry of Works regarding the construction of the Grand Ci’an Temple in Jin Ling. The four bureaus of the Ministry had clearly divided responsibilities, and Vice Minister Li De had assigned the Director of Construction, Qin Bangye, to Jin Ling to oversee the temple’s actual construction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Court ministers and noble officials had voiced criticism over the Emperor’s decision to build the Grand Ci’an Temple to honor and pray for his deceased mother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Emperor first ascended the throne, he had posthumously granted his mother, who had been only a fifth-rank Jieyu , the title of Empress Dowager—this had already stirred controversy in court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at that time, though the Emperor had reigned only a few years, he had already demonstrated strong leadership, diligently governing and establishing his authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Court officials had once offered advice, but after a bold-upbraiding Right Censor-in-Chief was exposed by the Bureau of Investigations for corruption and exiled to the wilds, opposition in court fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, she was a woman long dead, merely a hollow, noble title.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, however, the Emperor wished to build the Grand Ci’an Temple to enshrine and pray for his long-dead mother—again striking a nerve among ministers regarding ancestral rites and propriety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They argued that since the current Empress Dowager still resided in the Central Palace, building a temple and monument to honor a deceased former Empress Dowager would dishonor the living one, violating filial piety and ritual propriety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Emperor’s mind was made up, and no one could oppose him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, the current Emperor had seized the throne through extraordinary means and struggled hard to secure it, leaving deep shadows in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After ten years of refinement, he now commanded the realm, his imperial authority growing ever stronger. His longing for his mother was genuine—but he also sought to measure the empire, to see whether his will alone could truly command all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though court debate raged on, the Emperor had spoken—Li De feigned deafness to the controversy and placed the construction of the Grand Ci’an Temple on the Ministry of Works’ agenda.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1584,"2026-06-20T12:19:54.434Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","6652ef4bd1cca14c2143e97d870617c67877ea47d55aed149a43147c43673646","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-95","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-93",920,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-cover.jpg"]