Chapter 53: Paying a Visit

"Now that you have attained the top rank and are the Martial Champion of this Imperial Examination, do you have any other plans for the future?"

Sun Shouren wore a smile on his face; upon learning that Chen Mo had taken the top spot, he was in quite a good mood.

Chen Mo was his foster son, and this examination had been sponsored by him; that Chen Mo could take the top spot also added luster to his own face.

Admittedly, there was a part of this due to his own influence, but it could not be denied that Chen Mo himself possessed sufficient strength to have come out on top.

"This child wishes to wait another two years before going to take the Provincial Examination." Chen Mo gave his answer after a moment of thought.

With the strength he currently displayed, his advantage in taking the Provincial Examination would not be very great.

Twelve hundred catties of strength is considered little in the Scholar Examination; perhaps there isn't even one such person in a Prefecture Examination.

But in the Provincial Examination, it can only be considered excellent, and definitely not particularly rare.

Because those who go to take the Provincial Examination include not only the new Scholars of this year, but also the old Scholars who have accumulated over the years.

Unless Chen Mo makes no attempt to conceal anything and unleashes his full strength, only then could he achieve the same advantage in strength and technique as he has now.

Even so, he might not necessarily pass the Provincial Examination, because his shortcomings are truly too severe, and the advantages he currently possesses cannot compensate for these shortcomings.

There is no help for it; of the several skills required for the Imperial Examination, he has only studied for half a year in total, and among them, Riding and Policy Essay have at most been practiced for a few months.

Even if he had more talent, he could never compare in these areas to those old Scholars who have studied for ten or twenty years.

Rather than continuing to waste time taking the exam, it is better to settle down and consolidate for two years, and wait until he is fully prepared in two years' time to take the Provincial Examination.

"Mm. Not bad. With your strength and skills, if you were to rush into the exam now, it would indeed be very difficult to pass.

Practice steadily for two years before going; with your talent, if you make a concerted effort, you might even be able to pass the Metropolitan Examination." Sun Shouren nodded lightly and gave his assessment.

Chen Mo's Riding, Policy Essay, and other such skills could only be considered at a medium level among the many students who came to be examined.

To go and take the Provincial Examination again, while there is hope of passing, it is very slim.

It is better instead to practice steadily for another two years; in any case, given his age, he will still be in his prime in two years' time.

By then, with a concerted effort, he might be able to secure the title of Metropolitan Graduate directly.

Of course, he said this specifically to encourage Chen Mo; the Metropolitan Examination is not so easy to pass.

Only fifty people are selected every three years; even if Chen Mo has some talent, it is not so easy to pass.

"This child understands." Chen Mo nodded in agreement, and Sun Shouren continued to instruct:

"Since the three of you have now attained the rank of Scholar, the Chief Examiner of this year, Xia Wuqi, is the Master of you three. I have already prepared gifts for you in advance; you need only take the gifts and go pay him a visit."

This is a long-standing rule: after candidates attain their rank, they must take gifts to visit their Master.

Whether the gift is valuable or not does not matter; what is important is that one must go, for not going will be seen as a lack of courtesy.

"Understood, I will call them to go together now." Chen Mo bowed, turned, and exited the study.

Calling Xu Dabao and Sun Li, he asked the steward for the gifts that had already been prepared, and the three of them clustered together and headed straight for the Xia Mansion.

The gates of the Xia Mansion were wide open, and from time to time, Martial Scholars would arrive with gifts to pay a visit. Seeing Chen Mo and the others arrive, many Scholars greeted them with smiles, mainly smiling to greet Chen Mo, the Martial Champion of this year.

Chen Mo did not remember them, but they had a very deep impression of Chen Mo, this rare Martial Champion.

Since they were in the same Imperial Examination, they were of the same year; Chen Mo had Sun Jiangjun as a foster father and possessed quite good talent himself, so he would surely achieve something in the future.

Getting on familiar terms with him now was certainly the right thing to do. There were even those with more cunning minds who pondered first establishing a relationship with Chen Mo, and then through him, establishing a relationship with Sun Jiangjun; perhaps they wouldn't even have to wait until passing the Provincial Examination to secure a position as a Martial Official.

One does not strike a person who is smiling; since these peers were so enthusiastic, Chen Mo could not keep a cold face and responded to everyone with a smile as well.

Walking all the way into the Xia Mansion, they were led by a servant into the main hall.

"Disciples pay respects to Teacher." Chen Mo and the others bowed low to pay their respects; as for the gifts, they had already been taken by the servants.

Xia Wuqi was their Master; according to the rules, calling him "Teacher" was sufficient, though there were also those with thick skin who would call him "Benevolent Teacher."

Xia Wuqi ordered tea to be served, encouraged the three of them with a few words, made some small talk, and asked them to convey his greetings to Sun Jiangjun, saying that if there were an opportunity, he would certainly visit in person.

After chatting for a while, Chen Mo and the others rose to take their leave and walked out of the Xia residence.

"Does Brother Chen still remember me?" A loud shout came from behind.

Chen Mo looked over and saw Wu Kai, dressed in brocade robes and beaming with joy, striding over. He walked up to him, cupped his hands, and offered a greeting.

"Brother Wu." Chen Mo returned the salute, a flash of confusion crossing his eyes.

Ever since he had defeated the other party before, they had not met again; why was the other party so enthusiastic toward him today upon seeing him?

"Haha, I knew Brother would still remember me." Wu Kai's expression was quite delighted.

While there are indeed some playboys in noble families, their numbers are not very large.

The reason is simple: if there are too many playboys in a single generation, then a noble family will uncontrollably decline, and within two or three generations, this noble family will vanish into thin air.

And the fact that Wu Kai could have such martial arts cultivation showed that he was definitely not a good-for-nothing who only knew how to idle away his life.

"Since Brother and I are of the same year, we should naturally get to know each other well. I have already set up a banquet at Dongqi Tower; I wonder if Brother would do me the honor."

Wu Kai's attitude was quite sincere, and throughout his speech, he consistently addressed Chen Mo as "Brother."

He was young, ambitious, and proud, feeling that he would certainly come out on top in this Prefecture Examination.

However, Chen Mo had appeared out of nowhere and easily defeated him. Although he was proud, he was definitely not someone who couldn't afford to lose.

Since Chen Mo could beat him, he was convinced by Chen Mo.

"Good." Chen Mo did not refuse this; being invited by a peer of the same year to have a meal was no big deal.

Moreover, he could guess that while this meal was supposedly an invitation from Wu Kai, in reality, it was mostly likely that the elders of Wu Kai's family had told him to invite him.

As for the purpose, it was mostly likely that they wanted to secure an official position for Wu Kai or for others in their family who had martial achievements, and wanted him to help pull strings.

He could certainly go on this errand, but whether it would succeed would depend on the sincerity they offered and the attitude of his foster father.

"Then Brother, please wait for me a moment; I must first pay a visit to Master Xia!" Hearing Chen Mo's agreement, Wu Kai seemed to heave a sigh of relief, and carrying his gifts, he hurried into the Xia Mansion.

Before long, he hurried back out and pulled Chen Mo straight toward Dongqi Tower.

Xu Dabao and Sun Li accompanied Chen Mo as they went along.

Dongqi Tower could be said to be the most luxurious restaurant in the entire Xingyuan City, and even the entire Xingyuan Prefecture.

The building had three floors; the first floor was the main hall, while the second and third floors were independent private rooms.

Wu Kai had made a reservation here earlier, and after reporting his name, a waiter led the way.

Walking into a private room on the third floor named Chunyu Pavilion, a middle-aged man of over thirty years was already seated inside.

"Uncle," Wu Kai said, cupping his hands in a salute.

"I am Wu Ming, Xiao Kai's clan uncle. May I ask who these few are?" Wu Ming stood up and looked toward Chen Mo and the other two.

The group then each exchanged names, and the smile on Wu Ming's face grew even brighter as he immediately ordered the waiter to serve dishes and wine.

All sorts of delicacies, land beasts, and flying birds were brought to the table one by one; it had to be said that the craftsmanship of the Dongqi Tower's cooks was truly quite excellent.

Chen Mo also had the opportunity to feast to his heart's content, with various dishes being rapidly swallowed into his belly to be digested, absorbed, and converted into his own Qi and Blood.

It was normal for martial artists to be able to eat, but seeing Chen Mo's appetite for the first time, Wu Ming and Wu Kai were still somewhat shocked.

Wu Kai finally realized just how large the gap between himself and Chen Mo truly was; for a martial artist, being able to eat meant being able to fight.

Chen Mo could eat far more than him, and the gap in strength between the two was not just a little bit; no wonder he had lost so thoroughly that day.

When the cups and plates on the table were in disarray and everyone was slightly tipsy, Wu Ming waved his hand to dismiss the waiter who was serving on the side.

Chen Mo also slowly put down his chopsticks; he knew that Wu Ming was about to discuss some more important matters next.

(End of this chapter)