The White-Bone Demon of the Farm is as rich as a country

It was almost You hour. When Chu Ning'an arrived at the county government office with Mr. Wu and others, the courtyard was already full of people. However, it was much quieter now. These people probably understood that the county magistrate would arrive at any time. If they continued to behave like before in the inn, they would inevitably be reprimanded by the county magistrate.

They sat upright in the arranged seats, drinking tea politely. Occasionally, acquaintances would greet each other in a low voice and then sit down. Only Yang Sixian walked among the crowd, acting as the host, but he also attracted a lot of compliments and fawning.

Seeing Mr. Wu, Yang Sixian quickly left the people he was dealing with and came forward to greet him, "Hello, sir, my uncle will be out soon. Let me take you to the living room for a cup of tea first." He nodded to Chu Ning'an and the others and made a gesture of invitation, as if he was at home.

Mr. Wu frowned slightly, then turned away from him imperceptibly, saying, "You can go and take care of the others. We can wait in the hall for a while. I think Lord Xu will be here soon."

As he said this, he walked sideways with a few of his students without looking at him again.

Soon, a voice came from the door, announcing, "The county magistrate has arrived!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lord Xu strode in, dressed in a vermilion official uniform, accompanied by Mr. Cheng and several respected and well-known teachers from the county school.

Everyone stood up and saluted, shouting, "Greetings to the County Magistrate, and greetings to all the gentlemen."

"You are all the best students in Pingyang County. Please stand up quickly. No need for formalities." He walked to the front seat and invited the other teachers to sit down together. "The county examination will be in three days. I and the teachers of the county school really value your talents. I wanted to meet you in advance. I hope that everyone will be on the top of the list in this county examination."

Everyone bowed again and said, "Thank you for your kindness, sir. We will work hard and will not let you down."

County Magistrate Xu glanced at the crowd and finally saw Mr. Wu and his apprentice at the end of the table. He knew that Mr. Wu did not like these social engagements. If it were not for Chu Ning'an, he might not have come today. He smiled helplessly and nodded slightly at him.

Thinking that his old friend was willing to lower himself to accompany him for the sake of his students' future, how could he refuse his old friend's kindness?

"It's a rare opportunity for you all to gather here at the county yamen today. Why not meet friends through literature?" County Magistrate Xu wanted to help his old friend, but he also wanted to get a glimpse of the talents of this year's candidates. He was also worried that everyone present might be hiding something, so he added, "I'm older than you, but I simply entered the government before you. Perhaps in a few years, you'll be serving in the same court as me, so just be spontaneous."

"Thank you, sir. Please give us the questions." It must be said that these students are all very smart. For a career in officialdom, knowledge is certainly important, but fame cannot be neglected. With the county magistrate as a platform, it is perfect. All the students present are eager to try.

"Early spring has arrived recently, with plum blossoms in bloom and snow falling in the evening. It seems to be a congratulations to all of you for passing the imperial examinations. How about I write a poem on this topic?" County Magistrate Xu twirled his five long beards and smiled.

"I will obey your orders, sir. No one dares to disobey."

Master Cheng called his servants to bring writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstone for the students to improvise.

This topic was extremely simple for these students, but precisely because it was too simple, it was extremely difficult to write an outstanding poem. County Magistrate Xu looked around at everyone and finally landed on Chu Ning'an. He had heard Mr. Wu praise his student many times and had met him twice. He knew that Chu Ning'an was a rare talent, but he had never seen his poems. County Magistrate Xu was also looking forward to it.

Soon, a student put down his pen and handed the draft of his poem to the attendant to present to County Magistrate Xu and others. Afterwards, the students submitted their poems one after another.

County Magistrate Xu and several gentlemen each took some poems to appreciate. From time to time, someone nodded with satisfaction and handed the poems they liked to others for further appreciation. After a while, two piles of poems were placed in front of the gentlemen. Any smart person could tell at a glance that the thick pile must have been rejected by the gentlemen, and only the few pages above were the works selected by the gentlemen.

The hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Only the occasional sound of flipping papers or whispers from people next door could be heard, which made the students below very nervous.