The aroma of cooking filled the house: I sent my eldest brother to become the Grand Secretary.

It was completely dark, and the moon was big and round.

The Snow Moon Pavilion was brightly lit.

A beautiful young woman carrying a moon lantern walked into the garden.

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to her.

She walked slowly towards the center, the lantern in her hand swaying back and forth, the light flickering on her face, the dim yellow light making her look very beautiful.

Grand Tutor Zhou smiled as he looked at the newcomer, stroking his beard and nodding gently.

Shen Chen's gaze swept around the room, growing increasingly dark.

Although the girl wore a veil, it could not conceal her beauty.

Shen Chen recognized the person immediately; it was Shen Cao.

"The last topic for today is the moon in the sky," the woman said in a gentle, sweet voice, pointing to the full moon.

"The kitchen just received a basket of large, plump hairy crabs today, so this is the last theme. The manager has specially prepared Shaoxing rice wine to match the hairy crabs to enhance the festivities."

"Please enjoy your crabs, drinks, and moon-viewing."

After saying that, Shen Cao turned to leave, but before leaving, she playfully raised an eyebrow at Shen Chen and left with a smile.

After she left, everyone around her looked at Shen Chen with envy.

“Brother Shen, that girl is smiling at you, why are you still frowning? You're so clueless about romance,” Zhao Kuo said to Shen Chen.

Shen Chen did not speak.

That's his sister!

Another group of maids came in carrying trays and placed a steamed hairy crab on each person's table.

Shen Cao was surprised to find that people in the capital city don't eat crabs. She had asked someone to find these hairy crabs in a village on the outskirts of Beijing a few days ago.

Surprisingly, she actually found it.

The hairy crabs are big and fat.

She bought two large baskets.

After finishing the banquet today, she made the leftovers into drunken hairy crabs for herself.

Everyone looked at the hairy crabs on the table with suspicion. Some people had seen these things in the river, but none of them knew that they could actually be eaten.

Considering that none of them knew how to eat hairy crabs, Shen Cao thoughtfully arranged for someone to teach them how to prepare them.

Zhao Kuo found the food novel and listened carefully to how to eat it.

He suddenly heard chewing sounds coming from the side, turned around and found that Shen Chen had actually started eating according to the method taught by the servant.

"Brother Shen, have you eaten this before?"

Shen Chen didn't even look up. "My sister used to make it for me when I was at home, and I ate it often."

"Oh!"

Not to mention, when eating hairy crabs, you use tools to peel the crab meat out bit by bit before eating it, and finally drink a sip of Shaoxing wine.

Although I couldn't eat much meat, it was still very flavorful.

After eating the crabs and drinking some Shaoxing wine, everyone gathered in twos and threes to admire the moon.

At this moment, a servant walked up to Grand Tutor Zhou and invited him to leave.

Half an hour later, the servant took away the last poem he had written.

After waiting for about fifteen minutes, the servant came out with the final result.

Grand Tutor Zhou and the woman in white from before came out and began to announce the final results.

The first round was to announce the name of the author of the poem that won third place.

The prize for this round is one hundred taels of silver.

There are five in total.

Only one name was called out in the garden; the other four people were not in the garden.

One of them was Yang Tong, whose calligraphy had been praised by Grand Tutor Zhou when he visited.

Yang Tong came from a poor family, and his parents supported his education by relying on their meager farmland.

His mother usually did some embroidery to save money, and the money his mother saved for his trip to the capital to take the imperial examination was the money she earned from her embroidery.

One hundred taels of silver might not be much money for a young master from a prominent family in the capital.

But for him, one hundred taels of silver meant he could move to a better inn, have enough to eat three meals a day, and buy more books to read.

It can do many things.

When he heard his name called, tears welled up in his eyes, and he had to tilt his head back to keep them from falling.

There are three second-place winners: Shen Chen and Li Wenchao.

The prize for second place is two hundred taels of silver.

When Shen Chen's name was mentioned, everyone was clearly more interested in him.

Grand Tutor Zhou took in students from afar.

I heard that he was personally instructed by Grand Tutor Zhou every day at Grand Tutor Zhou's mansion.

However, to my surprise, he didn't win first place.

[So this is Grand Tutor Zhou's student? His poems aren't very good at all!]

I heard he'll be participating in the autumn imperial examinations this year; if he doesn't get the top score, he'll be letting down Grand Tutor Zhou for all the cultivation he's received.

[That’s right, that’s right. 】

The sound was neither too loud nor too soft; those nearby could hear it.

Shen Cao glanced at her older brother with concern, and Shen Chen gave her a reassuring look.

Grand Tutor Zhou maintained a smiling face throughout, and it was clear that he was very satisfied with the result.

He seemed oblivious to the surrounding chatter, walked up to Shen Chen, and gently patted him on the shoulder.

"Well done, you didn't let your teacher down."

"After reading the first-place poem, I can say that your artistic conception is indeed three points inferior to his."

"However, your poems are also very good."

After he finished speaking, he addressed the crowd below, saying, "Today's poetry gathering is simply a chance for everyone to exchange ideas and learn from each other. Although there are rankings, there is no difference in status among the participants."

"Each poem has its own characteristics; it's just that, overall, the feelings that readers have about the poems are different."

“However, you are right. Studying cannot be rushed. Chen’er is only seventeen this year. He is still young and needs more experience.”

The people below fell silent upon hearing Shen Chen's age.

Finally, Shen Cao announced the winner of the day: Zhao Kuo.

Upon hearing Zhao Kuo's name, Shen Chen smiled and turned to look at him.

It turns out it was Zhao Kuo. Losing to Zhao Kuo is not shameful.

The teacher is right; his poems do lack the vigor and arrogance of Zhao Kuo's poems.

Zhao Kuo accepted the painting from Grand Tutor Zhou with a smile.

He never expected that he would win first place.

He walked up to Grand Tutor Zhou and said, “Grand Tutor Zhou, I admire you very much. I have read all of your works.”

"Besides, I am also Shen Chen's friend." With that, he pulled Shen Chen in front of Grand Tutor Zhou.

"I have a request that I'm not sure if I should make."

Grand Tutor Zhou smiled and asked him to speak.

"I know that Brother Shen is currently living in the Grand Tutor's mansion. I wonder if I could go there to discuss scholarship with him?"

Grand Tutor Zhou stroked his beard and nodded with a smile, "Of course, Chen'er really should learn from you."

Shen Chen is too old-fashioned!

The Mid-Autumn Poetry Gathering concluded perfectly, accompanied by the full, round moon.

The news that Shen Chen, as a student of Grand Tutor Zhou, had not won first place also spread quickly.

Zhao Kuo hadn't had a chance to go find Shen Chen yet.

He has now become a highly sought-after young master from various prominent families in the capital, with a constant stream of people coming to visit him every day.

Everyone is speculating that he might be the top scorer in this year's autumn imperial examination.

As for Shen Chen, many people think that at such a young age, he shouldn't even be able to get into the top three.