This immortal was clearly ordinary, yet he was unusually confident.

This slight tremor came unexpectedly. Ye Chuxue had tried countless methods before, but none of them could budge the golden lock even slightly.

But just now, in the instant Zheng Zhuang looked over, Jin Suo moved on its own!

Ye Chuxue was somewhat incredulous. Could it be that she had fallen for him?

She glanced at Zheng Zhuang's extremely ordinary face and shook her head slightly, perhaps because of the exquisite phrase "I searched for her a thousand times in the crowd."

But in any case, it's all related to this Peach Blossom Immortal!

"Uncle Chen, please invite the Peach Blossom Immortal to Mengchang's study. I wish to see him," Ye Chuxue instructed.

Chen Chui nodded, then turned and left.

On the other side, Yang Minghan took a while to come back to his senses, feeling lost and disappointed. He had lost all three matches without any suspense.

They didn't even need the rules that were set beforehand; they suffered a crushing defeat without any chance of fighting back.

"Mr. Zheng's talent is unparalleled, and I, Yang, am completely convinced of my defeat!" Yang Minghan said dejectedly.

"You..." Zheng Zhuang was about to offer some words of comfort, saying, "Actually, you're not bad, you just happened to run into me," but in the end he simply cupped his hands in a gesture of respect and said, "You flatter me!"

Overjoyed, Meng Chang immediately announced, "The winner of this poetry competition is Zheng Zhuang of Quliang Academy!"

Most of the participants in the poetry gathering were citizens of the Azure Moon Kingdom, and upon hearing the results, they couldn't help but cheer:

"The academy is still the same academy, indeed producing many talented people!"

"Of course, I knew it would be like this."

“Yang Minghan is actually quite talented, but he shouldn’t have come to provoke my Quliang Academy. How can the number one academy in Cangzhou be treated like child’s play?”

"What this gentleman says makes sense. Mr. Zheng's three poems are truly amazing and can all be called masterpieces!"

"Indeed, all three are excellent, but I still prefer 'A Boat Full of Dreams Pressing Down on the Milky Way'! That scene is simply too beautiful!"

"I have a different opinion. 'Searching for her a thousand times in the crowd' is absolutely brilliant!"

"..."

The crowd was buzzing with discussion, but the members of the Rising Sun delegation were anything but happy. Staying there would only bring them humiliation, so they turned and left dejectedly without even saying goodbye.

“Vice Envoy Yang…” Chief Envoy Li opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn’t know what to say.

Yang Minghan waved his hand and said with a wry smile, "The responsibility for this trip lies with me. I will explain to the Empress Dowager when I return, so you all need not worry. I did not expect that Quliang Academy would have a person like Mr. Zheng. The reputation of the number one academy in Cangzhou is well-deserved."

The members of the delegation breathed a sigh of relief. This mission had been a complete loss of face, but if someone was to take responsibility, their punishment would not be too severe.

Just then, a guard-like man arrived at Li's side and whispered a few words.

Instructor Li was immediately startled: "Is what you said true?"

The man nodded and said with certainty, "I am not mistaken. The old man should be Chen Chui, the Grand Preceptor of Cangyue Kingdom, and the other middle-aged man is Ding Wu. I have met him on the battlefield before, so I would not mistake him."

Li, the mastermind, narrowed his eyes: "The Grand Preceptor and the Commander of the Imperial Guards are traveling together, and their attitudes are very respectful. So, the woman in the cloak must be Ye Chuxue. I didn't expect her to actually come to Quliang City. Yes, yes, with a great battle imminent, she can't possibly sit still. It's truly heaven's help!"

Yang Minghan also asked in surprise, "Is the Azure Moon Empress in the academy?"

Li, the mastermind, gave a sinister smile: "Heh, if we can capture her, the Cangyue faction will be leaderless and in chaos. Then we can launch an attack, and there's no way we can fail. We'll have accomplished a great feat!"

Yang Minghan said, "This is within the territory of the Cangyue Kingdom. How could she be without protection?"

Envoy Li smiled and said, "Vice Envoy Yang need not worry about this matter. Before leaving, the Empress Dowager gave me a token that can mobilize the 'Divine Guards.' As long as we distract Chen Chui, the others are not a concern."

“‘Divine Guard’? Hmph!” Yang Minghan sneered, ignored him, and strode away angrily.

The Cangyue Kingdom has a national advisor, and the Xuri Kingdom naturally has one as well, but Yang Minghan really couldn't understand how the wise Empress Dowager could cooperate with that evil-looking person.

Everything changed after he arrived in the Kingdom of Rising Sun.

First, an evil god appeared in the country of Rising Sun, and then several other sects emerged one after another. These sects bewitched the people, acted recklessly, and plunged the entire country of Rising Sun into chaos.

These sects developed rapidly and quickly accumulated a large number of followers. They not only exploited the people for money, but also frequently caused people to mysteriously disappear, creating a climate of fear and making people afraid to go out at night.

The so-called "divine guards" are the messengers of those sects, and each of them is said to have extraordinary abilities.

However, in Yang Minghan's view, they were simply a group of demons and monsters, some of whom even ate human flesh.

Especially the Imperial Advisor Sang Qiu; every time Yang Minghan saw him, he felt very uncomfortable, with a chilling feeling.

Yang Minghan repeatedly petitioned Ye Ningshuang, arguing that these people should not be allowed to act recklessly any longer, otherwise it would surely lead to a great disaster in the future. However, Ye Ningshuang always ignored him, saying that the overall situation should be taken into consideration.

The bigger picture? Empress Dowager! Why did you have to destroy the Cangyue Kingdom? Are personal grudges really that important?

Years of war have brought untold suffering to the people! How many families have been torn apart, how many wives and children separated from their loved ones? Can't you really see that?

A sense of regret crept into Yang Minghan's heart, and he wondered whether his choice back then was right or wrong.

If the Crown Prince had ascended the throne, would the Kingdom of Rising Sun have been a completely different place? How could the kind-hearted, benevolent, and simple Consort Ning have become like this?

Is power really that fascinating?

Yang Minghan chuckled self-deprecatingly, his figure gradually disappearing into the darkness.

After the poetry gathering ended, Zheng Zhuang did not rush to leave, but instead pretended to be reserved and enjoyed the compliments from everyone.

"Mr. Zheng's talent is truly astounding!"

In this literary contest, Cangyue Kingdom emerged victorious, and the reputation of the academy also rose to a new level. Therefore, Mengchang praised it without reservation.

"I admire your erudition greatly, sir," Liu Mengchen echoed from the side.

Zheng Zhuang smiled and waved his hand, then turned his gaze to Meng Chang. Meng Chang was taken aback at first, then reacted and continued:

"Mr. Zheng's three poems, no, including the 'Peach Blossom Poem,' all three poems and one poem are destined to spread throughout Cangzhou. The first time I met you, I knew you were no ordinary person."

Zheng Zhuang seemed a little embarrassed by the compliments, but then looked at Liu Mengchen.

Liu Mengchen glanced at Meng Chang with some confusion, but then she saw Meng Chang give her a wink with a smile, and she realized that he wanted her to continue flattering him.

"Sir, your poem 'The Shepherd's Flute' is truly melodious and captivating!"

Unexpectedly, as soon as Liu Mengchen finished speaking, Zheng Zhuang turned his gaze to Meng Chang's face again. Meng Chang coughed lightly and continued:

"Mr. Zheng truly deserves to be called a 'celestial being'; his poetry and music are both extraordinary!"

"Mr. Talented!"

"gentlemen……"

After several repetitions, Zheng Zhuang shook his head inwardly, thinking, "What kind of scholar is he? He doesn't even know how to compliment someone. He completely misses the point."

Not a single person praised my good looks!