Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 18: The Noob-Slaying Game, the Kuaiyi Clan's Treasure Trove
Gongsun Ce lost.

They lost because of their arrogance.

If Gongsun Ce were to compete with Bao Zheng in football, playing the zither, calligraphy, or swimming, he would likely win. However, Gongsun Ce was arrogant and insisted on competing with Bao Zheng in reasoning.

Gongsun Ce hid five copper coins in five different locations within Tianhong Academy, according to the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Bao Zheng had to find all the coins within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Bao Zheng, as always, won by timing his moves perfectly.

Losing to Bao Zheng is nothing; we can find a way to win back in the future. But with outsiders present today, the students in the academy are discussing it amongst themselves, which makes us restless and agitated.

Zhan Jun suddenly asked, "Young Master Li, the abbot said you are a child prodigy in Jinling. May I ask for your guidance?"

Li Zhaoting shrugged: "Uh... I'm quite good at divination. Your forehead is dark, which means you're in conflict with the Five Elements. You may face a fatal disaster wherever the Five Elements are involved."

Upon hearing this, the students of the academy burst into laughter.

Zhan Jun asked, "What does it mean to be 'destined to be afflicted by the Five Elements'?"

Li Zhaoting said, "When it rains, you must not go out, go to the deep mountains, go to the dense forest, be hot-tempered and act impulsively, and especially avoid encountering a large iron hammer."

How to avert disaster?

"The elements of metal, wood, water, and earth are all relatively easy to resolve, but the one that causes excessive fire in the heart is truly difficult to overcome. Being overconfident and having an impatient and restless mind will seriously affect one's performance in the exam!"

"you……"

“You all think you are child prodigies, but you don’t know that there are countless child prodigies in the capital. If you can’t calm down and study hard, you may fail to get into university.”

There's an interesting saying about geniuses.

A martial arts prodigy, after overcoming countless hardships, finally broke through the void, ascended to the immortal realm, and became one of the 100,000 heavenly soldiers and generals of the Heavenly Court. His opponent was a monkey.

There is a more vivid example to illustrate this point.

A genius student from a small county town, who had always been first in his school in every exam since childhood, successfully gained admission to Tsinghua, Peking, Fudan, and Shanghai Jiao Tong Universities, only to discover that he was actually last in his class.

The imperial examinations in the Song Dynasty were exceptionally difficult several times.

Besides the extraordinary feat of the Dragon and Tiger List in the second year of the Jiayou era, which even the God of Literature would find daunting, Bao Zheng's participation in the imperial examinations was equally remarkable, with several prime ministers emerging from the same cohort.

Everyone understands the reasoning Li Zhaoting is giving!
Whether they understand or not is one thing, whether they want to hear these words is another. Outsiders saying these things is tantamount to provoking the academy, and the students must respond.

If we admit it, won't we be looked down upon?
Zhan Jun and Gongsun Ce blocked Li Zhaoting.

The two wanted to compete with Li Zhaoting in literary talent.

Li Zhaoting opened his folding fan, smiled calmly, and exchanged a glance with the supervisor; everything was understood without being spoken.

Tianhong Academy has no shortage of geniuses, famous teachers, or connections. The only problem is that the students are either arrogant and conceited or too lazy and complacent.

The former headmaster, who had served as the dean of students for decades, had witnessed countless ambitious students who had gone to the capital for the imperial examinations return dejected, many of whom would never recover.

When the abbot was young, he focused on diligence; when he was in his prime, he focused on conduct and discipline; and when he got older and his energy declined, the only thing he could teach the students was mindset.

The highly paid scholar Yang greatly agreed with the academy's philosophy. According to Yang's judgment, Bao Zheng was the only one from Tianhong Academy who had a chance of passing the imperial examination.

Gongsun Ce has a 20% chance of slipping away.

There is a 90% chance that Zhan Jun will fail the exam.

Li Zhaoting smiled and said, "Gentlemen, I know you are not convinced. We are all scholars. You can set any questions for us, such as those on music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Don't say I'm bullying you!"

"Okay, let me go first!"

Bao Zheng's good friend Lun Rijing took the initiative to step forward.

"My friend, please pose a question!"

"My lord, you flatter me!"

"let me!"

"Concession!"

"It's my turn this time!"

"Concession!"

"I want to play chess with you!"

"Concession!"

"Concession!"

"Concession!"

An hour later, Li Zhaoting left Tianhong Academy whistling and humming a song. Zhan Jun and the others were filled with disbelief, slumped to the ground, and dejected.

Is this guy really human?
Our opponent is this inhuman creature.

The old supervisor said with a smile, "You bravely stood up today, which shows that you are not willing to admit defeat. Since you are not willing to admit defeat, then find a way to defeat Li Zhaoting."

Make Li Zhaoting your role model.

When you achieve certain results and feel that you have learned something, think of Li Zhaoting.

As the saying goes, there's always someone better, and there's always someone better. It's not shameful to be less skilled than others.

What's shameful is losing your courage.

Do you think you can pass the exam on your first try?
If you fail your first exam, do you have the courage to try again? Stand up, go back to the classroom immediately, and each of you write a reflection!
This is the test question that Scholar Yang has given you!

The opportunity is yours!
Let me see your resolve!

Zhan Jun and the others immediately returned to the classroom, and Li Zhaoting had calmed down the previous restless atmosphere by about 70-80%.

Scholar Yang nodded in satisfaction.

The headmaster secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The acceptance rate has a great impact on the academy.

If a certain academy has many students who pass the imperial examinations, or even become the top scholar, the academy will become increasingly prosperous. If no one passes the examinations, the academy will gradually decline.

For Tianhong Academy, if Bao Zheng, Gongsun Ce, and Zhan Jun can pass the imperial examination, Xiang Ming will have completed his mission and can continue to serve as the academy's headmaster.

Xiang Ming must stay in Luzhou.

Luzhou was Xiang Ming's lifelong wish.

This wish is... a treasure!
……

"I confess! I confess! I confess!"

"Spare me! I don't want to die!"

"I'll trade the treasure for my life!"

"A great treasure is hidden in Luzhou!"

“Lu Xiaofeng, I know you’re here. Don’t you want the treasure? There’s an important figure in Luzhou from the Liao Kingdom who’s looking for a great treasure.”

"Lu Xiaofeng, get out here and see me!"

The fake poster was screaming wildly at the window.

He was the one most afraid of prison among the three managers, because he was originally a notorious con man in the capital. After being discovered by the casino, he was imprisoned and suffered many punishments.

The jailers' favorite characters are the God of Gamblers, the Saint of Gamblers, and the King of Gamblers!
These prisoners are often very wealthy.

In order to squeeze money out of the fake landlord, the prison guards used all sorts of tricks, from rubbing bones to extract marrow and oil, and after squeezing out all the money, they prepared "cloth bags".

Luo Ma rescued the fake landlord in time. Thinking of the tortures in the Heavenly Prison, the fake landlord preferred to be killed by Lu Xiaofeng's finger rather than go to the Imperial City Guard.

"Whoosh!"

Lu Xiaofeng quietly appeared from the window.

Where is the treasure?

"I...I don't know..."

"You're trading unknown secrets for your life? Is your life worthless, or is the treasure worthless?"

"This matter...this matter..."

"You have half an incense stick's time."

“There was an outsider group in Luzhou who called themselves the Kuaiyi people. They had a great treasure passed down in the tribe. Later, the tribe was wiped out, and the treasure was lost.”

Liao spies built the Paradise Tower in Luzhou for two reasons: first, to serve as a transit point for the Jiangnan prefecture; and second, to search for the treasure of the Kuaiyi tribe and use it as operating funds.

If you can find the treasure of the Kuaiyi tribe, it will be enough for you to live a life of extravagance for ten lifetimes, enough for you to buy all the most beautiful courtesans in the world and have endless pleasure.

Lu Xiaofeng, isn't this a big enough secret?

The fake landlord looked at Lu Xiaofeng with anticipation.

Legend has it that Lu Xiaofeng always carries a stack of silver notes with him when he goes out, each note being at least five thousand taels. Where does his money come from?

Lu Xiaofeng has a "legitimate profession".

Lu Xiaofeng is a "hunter of the martial arts world," capturing notorious thieves in exchange for bounties. The name "Detective Lu Xiaofeng" is earned through his repeated captures of notorious thieves.

In this case involving counterfeit banknotes from Datong Money Shop, the Hua family offered a reward of 100,000 taels of silver, while Li Zhaoting was rewarded with free renovations of his residence and the construction of a Jiangnan-style garden.

Of course, given Lu Xiaofeng's personality, even if he were given a mountain of gold, he would spend it all in no time.

If there is one precious item in the world that cannot move Lu Xiaofeng, it must be gold and silver.

Lu Xiaofeng didn't care about money, but he became somewhat interested when he heard that the Kuaiyi clan had been wiped out overnight.

Tell me more about the Kuaiyi ethnic group!

"I...I want to eat roast chicken..."

The fake poster cautiously probed.

Lu Xiaofeng said, "Within half an hour, you can enjoy roast chicken and fine wine. In the days to come, you will receive a roast chicken for every confession you make."

"Thank you very much, Master Lu!"

The fake poster honestly confessed.

At the same time, in another prison.

Li Zhaoting is interrogating Boss Qian.

"You and Lockhart have fallen out, haven't you?"

"Young master has discerning eyes."

“Luoma is a Liao spy. You had a falling out, but he didn’t kill you to silence you, which means you have something that Luoma desperately needs, something that can threaten him.”

"Young Master Li, this is what happened..."

Old Qian repeated to Li Zhaoting what he had said to Luo Ma earlier: "I'll trade this man for my life, please, Young Master Li, show mercy!"

"Liao Kingdom spy?"

"A very important spy."

"He was imprisoned by you in Luzhou?"

"Nobody knows where he is."

"Are your trusted confidants truly loyal to you?"

“I helped him fulfill a wish. He sold his life to me and will never betray me.”

Old Qian looked smug.

Li Zhaoting closed his eyes and pondered, recalling the map of Luzhou City and every street and alley in his mind.

Suddenly, Li Zhaoting opened his eyes.

"A spy is outside the city!"

Li Zhaoting suddenly spoke, his voice booming like a bell.

Old Qian was terrified, and his pupils contracted.

"So the spy was inside the city."

"Young Master Li, I..."

"In the east, west, and south of the city... So the spy was in the south. Your composure is terrible!"

"Stop testing me!"

"There are eighteen streets in the south of the city, including Jixiang Lane, Ruyi Lane, Mayi Lane... In Mayi Lane, the roads in front of and behind Mayi Lane, one, two..."

Li Zhaoting slowly recited the map.

While reciting, he also observed people's expressions and demeanor.

Qian Laoda was imprisoned and lived in constant fear. Whenever Li Zhaoting mentioned the location, the fat on his face would twitch involuntarily, his mouth would droop, and his pupils would contract.

Inner city, outer city, inner city!
Southeast, Northwest, South of the city!
A small alley in the south of the city, Ma Yi Alley!

Number 1, 2, 3... of Mayi Lane

By asking questions bit by bit, they quickly uncovered Boss Qian's most secret safe house. His life-saving trump card was tricked out of him with just a few words by Li Zhaoting, and Boss Qian was furious.

"Li Zhaoting, you bastard! You bastard! I'll haunt you even as a ghost, I'll fight you to the death..."

Old Qian charged at Li Zhaoting with bared teeth and claws.

Li Zhaoting tapped his forehead with one finger.

With a flick of his left finger, he extinguished the incense.

This is a gift from an old friend from Miao territory. It can make one's heart burn with passion, one's blood boil, one's mind become agitated, one's temper become impulsive and irritable, and one's fatal flaws be revealed unintentionally.

Environment, incense, verbal guidance...

When had Mr. Qian ever seen such methods of forced confession?

By the time Boss Qian regained consciousness, the most valuable information in his mind had already been tricked out of him by Li Zhaoting.

With the most valuable intelligence gone, and wanting to suffer less before being beheaded and eat more fish and meat, the only option is to confess other secrets in exchange for a night's rest.

Not long after, Li Zhaoting took the confessions of Boss Qian and the fake landlord and went to deceive Miss Wuyan.

The Prisoner's Dilemma.

The three interrogated each other separately.

Two of them have already confessed.

Wu Yan, do you still need to persevere?

(End of this chapter)