Reborn in Liangshan: I built the strongest lineup

"What place did you think Xun'er got?"

Cao Zu turned around in disbelief, looking towards the source of the sound.

"Uncle Cao, congratulations! Brother Cao Xun has ranked seventeenth in the imperial examination! You've passed too, so both you and your son have passed! Father and son passing the exam together, this is truly a wonderful story!"

The person who brought the good news congratulated Cao Zu.

"Ten, seventeen?"

Cao Zu was stunned. He turned to look at his son and found that his son was staring intently at the ground with his head down, not looking at him.

"It really is seventeenth place. I'm fifty-second, and my son... is seventeenth?"

Cao Zu looked at the list again, and this time he saw the four big characters "Yingchang Cao Xun" in the seventeenth position!

The place of origin and name are correct; it's definitely my son!

But how did he end up ranking so high?

For a moment, Cao Zu didn't know what to say.

Was he just thinking about giving his son some advice?

The result was that his son came in seventeenth! His ranking far surpassed his father's!

Looking back now, what I just said seems rather ridiculous.

"Dad, are you alright?"

Seeing that his father hadn't spoken for a long time, Cao Xun cautiously approached him and said carefully.

"I'm fine! My son came in seventeenth! Even better than me! What do you call that? You get what you deserve! The student surpasses the master! I'm happy!"

Cao Zu appeared very happy, but Cao Xun looked puzzled.

"Dad, if you're so happy, why are you stomping your feet?"

"This is excitement."

"And what about blushing?"

“Refreshed!”

"What about clenching your fist?"

"I'm afraid I won't be able to resist..."

"Can't help what?"

I can't help but beat you up!

Cao Zu looked up to the sky and roared, then grabbed his son's clothes and slapped him hard on the back twice!

That brat, he's been keeping it a secret for so long! He really thought that brat was so relaxed because he failed the exam!

"Dad, be gentle! Be gentle!"

Cao Xun was beaten by his own father, so of course he didn't dare to fight back, but he could protest verbally.

"I'm your father! It's only right for me to beat you up!"

Cao Zu was very domineering at this moment, but as he patted the table, he started to cry. His tears contained both his joy at his son's success in the imperial examination and his relief at his own repeated failures.

……

"Brother Changqing, why aren't our names mentioned?"

Zhang Jun looked from the last place all the way up to the eleventh place, but he didn't see his or Chen Kangbo's name, which made him a little flustered.

No way, did I not get it?

Of course, Zhang Jun probably originally thought that he was in the top ten, so his name wasn't on the list.

But when he saw that Chen Kangbo beside him also had no name, Zhang Jun became less convinced of the idea.

Because, since there are only ten spots in the top ten, how could these two brothers have the honor of occupying two of them?

The probability of that is even lower than if one of them were in the top ten!

"Brother Deyuan, calm down. There are still top ten names yet to be announced. It's a good thing that our names aren't on the list! Maybe we'll be in the top five!"

Chen Kangbo patted Zhang Jun on the shoulder to encourage him.

"Brother Changqing, we all know how difficult it is to get into the top ten among so many people. What makes us think we're both in the top ten? We didn't say that before!"

Zhang Jun said, "We thought we could get into the top 20 or 30 together before, but now you're thinking of getting into the top 10 together... No, you just said you wanted to get into the top 5 together?"

"Brother Deyuan, trust me, I have a feeling we'll do well!"

Chen Kangbo also stared at the top ten names on the list that were blocked, but for some reason, it seemed as if a voice was telling him that he was one of the top ten!

Zhang Jun felt somewhat helpless, thinking that his friend might be a little obsessed.

At this moment, the room fell silent, and everyone stared at the last ten names!

Many people who didn't see their names are now clasping their hands together, silently praying for a miracle!

Top ten, top ten...

"Tenth place, Hu Bugui of Liangshan University!"

As Xiao Jiahui removed the seal from the list of tenth place, she shouted out the name. Upon hearing this, everyone immediately congratulated a burly-looking student in the crowd!

Congratulations, Brother Hu!

"Brother Hu, from now on, you must ensure that the thieves never return!"

……

Hu Bugui showed some surprise on his face, but quickly recovered and smiled as he responded to the people around him.

"Ninth place, Ye Jiu from Liangshan University!"

"Eighth place, Du Xiuyuan from Liangshan University!"

"Seventh place, Qi Shu from Liangshan University!"

From tenth to seventh place, four consecutive people were from Liangshan Academy. Although the applause and congratulations continued, some people couldn't help but wonder:

"Four people in a row are from Liangshan University. Does that mean the top ten are all their own people?"

But then, their doubts were dispelled.

"Sixth place, Qin Hui of Jiangning!"

"I'm sixth?"

Qin Hui, who hadn't seen his own name until now, looked up in surprise.

He thought he was at the top three level, but he didn't expect to be in the top five.

"But sixth place is not bad either. Let's see who's ahead of us."

"Brother Qin, well done! You've surpassed the people from Liangshan University!"

"That's right! Brother Qin, you mustn't forget about us in the future!"

……

Qin Hui dealt with each of these people one by one, and Xiao Jiahui observed his actions. Seeing that a considerable number of people had already gathered around Qin Hui, Xiao Jiahui thought to herself:

"No wonder my brother was a little wary; this guy is definitely cut out to be an official."

"Fifth place, Zhang Shangying from Shu Prefecture!"

"Fourth place, Zong Ze from Wuzhou!"

Xiao Jiahui quickly announced the results for fourth and fifth place. When everyone heard these two names and saw that they were both elderly people, they were amazed.

"I never expected that two of the top five would be elderly!"

"Indeed, having an elder in the family is like having a treasure. These two elders must be extraordinary."

Hearing the somewhat outrageous discussions around them, a student who knew the two individuals couldn't help but offer some explanation:

"Haven't any of you heard of them? The fifth-ranked Lord Zhang was formerly the prime minister of the Song Dynasty! The fourth-ranked Lord Zong was also a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) of the Song Dynasty!"

These words shocked those around them even more:

"There are actually officials from the Song Dynasty coming here to take the imperial examinations!"

"It's the same prime minister as before, but he's only fifth? Then who will be in the top three?"

After exchanging a glance in the crowd, Zhang Shangying and Zong Ze did not say much. This was mainly because Zhang Shangying had a higher status than Zong Ze, and he had only heard some things about Zong Ze but did not know him personally.

As for Zong Ze, he was amazed that he had actually passed the imperial examination. Although he was not in the top three, his fourth place was still a very high ranking!

"Ren Yuan, are you telling me that as long as I have the ability, you will give me an official position even if I insult Liangshan?"

Just as Zong Ze's mind was racing, Xiao Jiahui's voice rang out again:

"Third place, Tan Hua! Zhang Jun of Hanzhou!"

"Brother Deyuan! It's you! You came in third! You're the third-place winner!"

As soon as Xiao Jiasui finished speaking, Chen Kangbo patted his friend's shoulder forcefully!

"Me, I'm third?"

Zhang Jun was genuinely surprised. He had prepared himself to fail the exam, but to his surprise, he came in third.

But if I come in third and there are two names left, wouldn't Brother Changqing be in danger?

"Brother Changqing, you..."

"Hey, it's okay. I'm genuinely happy for you that you came in third place. Even if I hadn't won this time, it would still have been worth it for me!"

But Chen Kangbo didn't seem to care about the rankings at all; he kept introducing Zhang Jun to the people around him.

"Second place, runner-up! General Lü from Taizhou!"

"Brother Lü, second place! You're truly amazing!"

"That's right, Brother Lü, you're the highest ranked among us brothers!"

Beside Lü Jiang were the same people who had come with him: Gao Yu ranked fifteenth, Huan Yi twenty-first, and Feng Xi thirty-seventh—all of them were on the list.

But to everyone's surprise, General Lü actually took second place! This gave these people from Jiangnan a huge boost in confidence!

"Secondly, it's really good."

Lu Jiang was satisfied with his second-place finish; he felt that he would either be first or second after he finished.

But he really wanted to know who was number one, and who had defeated him.

Xiao Jiahui understood everyone's thoughts, and he paused for a moment before revealing the last name.

"First place, the top scholar! Chen Kangbo from Xinzhou!"

Upon hearing Xiao Jiahui's words, Zhang Jun, who had just been worried about his brother, suddenly became excited!

"Brother Changqing! You're the top scholar! You're the top scholar! That's wonderful! That's wonderful!"

Before coming here, Zhang Jun never dreamed that he would become the third-ranked scholar and even become friends with the top scholar!

"Top scholar! That's wonderful! My ambitions can finally be realized!"

Although Chen Kangbo was very excited to have become the top scholar, he didn't show it too much. After thanking those around him, he held up two fingers to Zhang Jun:

"Brother Deyuan, according to our agreement, you owe me two drinks."

"Eat! Eat now!"

Zhang Jun responded with a smile:

"Brother Changqing, don't forget, I won too, and you owe me money for two meals!"

……

"Hang up the list of successful candidates!"

Xiao Jiahui gestured to hang up the complete list of names. By this time, all the names had been read out. Those who did not hear their names at the end felt as if their spines had been suddenly removed, and they lost all their energy!

Many people collapsed to the ground, shaking their heads and muttering something incessantly. Some even started banging their heads on the ground, as if they thought it was all a dream and that they would win when they woke up!

"Brother Li Yun, I'm leaving this to you. Don't let those students who didn't pass the exam take their own lives."

While instructing Li Yun to maintain order at the scene, Xiao Jiasui memorized the appearances and names of the 100 people who had passed the first imperial examination in Dayi.

"Congratulations, fellow students, on passing the imperial examination! You may now take a break. A banquet will be held tonight in the Juyi Hall, awaiting your arrival!"

……