Never divorce, never stop getting rich

This five-school competition was held with extra grandeur due to the status of the other four schools in Tang State, and because it happened after the Heavenly Sacrifice, and attracted the attention of the vassal kings and foreign envoys.

Even the local academies in Tang State were willing to bring their students here from afar to watch the exhibition, in order to broaden their horizons and knowledge.

Of course, no academy in Tang Country thought that Panshi Academy would win. Even if the common people set up a gambling game, they would exclude Panshi Academy. No one thought that anyone from this academy would win.

The college competition is generally divided into preliminary and final rounds. In addition to those on the list, some substitutes are also allowed. However, the major colleges assume that the substitutes are not strong, and not many people will pay attention to the substitutes.

It was under such circumstances that Panshi Academy began their competition.

"Who do you think will win this competition?"

"That must be Qingyun Academy. The students there are extremely talented and knowledgeable, so they are sure to take first place."

"I don't think so. The students of Wenyuan Academy have always been ahead of other academies in martial arts. They will definitely win this time."

"If we're comparing math, I think Qiming Academy is pretty good too."

"Jiangsong Academy is still better."

The academy was held at the martial arts field in the capital. The empress was present in person at the opening ceremony, accompanied by foreign kings and envoys from foreign countries.

In addition, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, the Grand Secretary of Wenying, the Grand Secretary of Shangxian, the General of Cavalry, some officials from the six ministries, etc. were all present.

The competition was also open to ordinary people. During the ceremony, many people stood outside the martial arts arena to join in the fun, and occasionally discussed privately, making the atmosphere become very lively.

"Look, the clothes worn by the students from the academies in front are very uniform and look very nice."

"As expected of a prestigious school. The aura and spirit of the academy are completely different."

"What are we competing for today? I heard it's policy essays. It's said that the Cabinet University will draw the topics themselves to ensure fairness."

"Have you seen the students from Rock Academy? They all look listless. Did they go out gambling before the competition?"

"The clothes are nice, but it's this guy, his face is sallow and he looks like he has kidney deficiency. I don't know where he was having fun last night. Tsk tsk tsk... He's definitely going to lose."

People from other academies also saw the students from Panshi Academy. They winked at each other, thinking that the students from Panshi Academy must have thought they couldn't win, so they simply gave up the competition and ran out to fool around again.

Several university scholars and teachers from the four major academies also saw the mental outlook of the students of Panshi Academy.

They all shook their heads in disappointment, but the teachers still felt a little happy, thinking that their academy had a sure win.

He even stopped considering the students of Panshi Academy as his rivals, and instead directed his attacks at his old rivals.

"Is this the academy that woman funded? It doesn't look that great, in my opinion! She might as well marry me and go back to Hengzhou with me to enjoy the good life. Why bother working so hard out there?"

King Hengshan sat on the stage and spoke loudly without restraint.

The people around were very embarrassed. Princess Yongle also heard this and felt angry, but after looking at her mother, she forced herself to hold it back.

Her mother said that a little impatience can ruin a big plan, so she couldn't ruin her mother's plans.

She looked at Qian Qiansui from afar, feeling very worried, and only hoped that Panshi Academy could win this competition.

After the boring opening ceremony and the empress's excited encouragement, the competition finally began.

The five academies are gearing up to compete for first place.

"Enter the venue."

Following the eunuch's command, the students taking the first written test entered the martial arts arena one after another.

Rows of desks had been placed on the podium early in the morning. After entering, the students immediately found their seats and sat down, waiting for the test questions to be announced.

"Today's competition, the first round, is policy discussion. Sir Yuan, please come forward and draw the lot." The palace eunuch announced loudly while standing on the martial arts stage.

Lord Yuan, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, walked to the front of the stage. Everyone's eyes were focused on him. In front of him was a lottery box filled with essay questions, all about current affairs.

Most of them dealt with natural disasters and man-made disasters. Regardless of the type of questions, they were extremely difficult for the students currently participating in the competition. It wasn't something they could fully grasp at their age.

You should know that there are many difficult questions in this lottery box that even people from the six departments cannot completely solve. They have even been piled up for many years, which is really a headache.

"Flood." Lord Yuan picked up the test paper with a bad look on his face and announced to everyone.

Flood? Floods in the south have always been one of the natural disasters that cause trouble for Tang Country.

Every year the imperial court would allocate funds from the Ministry of Revenue to control floods, but the results were not good every year.

Batches of corrupt officials were killed, and batches of silver were used, but the problem still existed, and the number of casualties increased year by year.

This has happened repeatedly and has become a serious concern.

When the four major academies saw this exam question, their faces suddenly turned ugly.

The teachers were so nervous that they were restless, worried that the students in their academy would not be able to write better ideas, lose the competition, and bring shame to the academy and themselves.

On the other hand, at Panshi Academy, neither the teachers nor the students seemed to be too moved. The students preparing for the policy essay exam were even leaning against their desks, looking drowsy.

Looking around at the students on the podium, some are frowning, some are writing with great concentration, and some are looking around.

The empress became interested and turned to ask Prime Minister Pei on her right: "Who do you think will win?"

The Prime Minister looked at it for a long time and shook his head. Flood knowledge was too complex. At their age, being able to write a superficial overview was already good enough. Trying to be meaningful, or even come up with a plan, would be too much of a challenge.

"I can't tell."

The official who was standing nearby took over the conversation and replied with a smile, "I don't know who will win, but I do know who will lose.

The boy from Panshi Academy should be called Ge Youguang, the youngest son of Ge Hongtao, a doctor in the Ministry of Works. He was a bad student since childhood. He beat the teacher in the academy and bullied his classmates from time to time.

His father beat him and scolded him, but the boy simply never came home, spending his days outside taking care of cats and dogs. He probably couldn't even read a single word, let alone a policy paper.

It's hard to say that just two months of studying at Panshi Academy can make up for the seven or eight years others have spent there."

Ge Youguang sat beside the desk, picked up the pen several times but put it down again. It was not that he didn't know how to write, but his head was buzzing and he was still in a daze. God knows, what did this playboy go through before the competition?

Floods, water control, he dares to say that in this field, no one knows how to control water better than him!