A peasant girl travels through time with a hospital, rising to become an empress.

Tiande Academy.

Dean Qiu called Gu Xiao to his room and told him that the county government had posted a notice about the county examination, announcing the specific examination time and arrangements.

Candidates had to register at the rites office of the county government. The county examination consisted of four sessions, each held every few days. Only those who passed the previous session were eligible to participate in the next session, which was divided into the main session, the first review, the second review, and the consecutive reviews. The tests included the Four Books, five-character six-rhyme poems, classical texts, and regulated verse.

Dean Qiu certainly had confidence in Gu Xiao, saying, "You don't need to worry about the county exam; just perform normally."

That's a joke. If even Gu Xiao can't pass the county and city level, then probably very few people in the entire Great Yu Dynasty could.

As Gu Xiao came out of Dean Qiu's room, he ran into Jiang Wenxuan.

Jiang Wenxuan: "Brother Gu, have you seen the announcement for the county examination?"

Gu Xiao: "Yes, Dean Qiu just told me."

Jiang Wenxuan looked pained. "Why did it come more than half a month earlier this year? I wasn't prepared at all..."

Gu Xiao glanced at him, "Even if it's postponed for six months, you're still not ready."

Jiang Wenxuan: "Brother Gu, is your mouth poisoned? How can Sister-in-law Qianqian stand such harsh words..."

Gu Xiao recalled that Nie Qianqian had had many verbal exchanges with people, and he had never seen her suffer a loss in this regard. Every time, she would leave people speechless and walk away in a huff. He calmly replied, "Her mouth is even more venomous than mine."

Jiang Wenxuan: "..."

If we are not from the same family, we will not enter the same house.

Jiang Wenxuan grabbed Gu Xiao's arm, his face looking like he was about to cry, his voice trembling with sobs, "Brother Gu, please help me! I can only cram at the last minute. If I still fail this time, my dad will really beat me to death."

Gu Xiao pulled his hand down and gently dusted off his clothes. "Go and pray for help, don't come here to pray for help from me."

Jiang Wenxuan: "..."

Jiang Wenxuan: "Gu Xiao, passing the county exam is a piece of cake for you, so please help me out."

Jiang Wenxuan was not about to let Gu Xiao off the hook, so he begged and pleaded until Gu Xiao finally agreed to help him cram for the exam.

Gu Xiao: "I will teach Tuantuan and Tiedan to read and write tonight. Come over after they finish, and I will tutor you for half an hour."

Jiang Wenxuan readily agreed. With the matter settled, his face finally stopped showing his bitterness and resentment, and he remembered his father's instructions.

“Brother Gu, when do you and Sister-in-law Qianqian have time? My father wants you to come over for a chat, and he's been urging me for years. You know, my father is really something. Gu Xiao and I are as close as brothers, so Qianqian is my sister-in-law, but he always calls her ‘little sister’ when he talks about her. Isn’t that a difference in seniority? It’s like he’s demoted me.”

Jiang Wenxuan was very dissatisfied with this matter, and immediately felt inferior to Gu Xiao and Nie Qianqian.

Gu Xiao ignored his complaints and said, "We need to ask Qianqian about going to the manor. She can decide. If she agrees, I will go with her. Go to Guangjuxuan and ask her yourself."

Seeing how naturally Gu Xiao made it so that Qianqian, a woman, could manage all the affairs of the household, Jiang Wenxuan couldn't help but admire Nie Qianqian.

Gu Xiao is such a celestial being, yet now he talks about Qianqian all the time, and everything is decided by Sister-in-law Qianqian.

"Tsk tsk tsk, amazing, amazing."

Jiang Wenxuan was still shaking his head and sighing when he noticed that Gu Xiao had already turned and left.

"Hey, Gu Xiao, why didn't you wait for me? What's the rush?"

"Go home and eat."

Jiang Wenxuan couldn't help but drool when he thought about the food at his home.

Ah, eating is an important matter; I need to hurry home.

"Hey, wait a minute, Brother Gu, why are we going to Guangjuxuan to find Sister-in-law Qianqian? Brother Gu, please, please don't go..."

After the two left, a figure emerged from behind a pillar in the corridor. He was dressed simply and looked like a handsome young man, but his eyes were extremely dark.

Nie Wenye's fingers dug deeply into his hands beneath his sleeves.

Is passing the county-level exam as easy as taking something out of a bag?

"Gu Xiao, even if you are exceptionally talented, aren't you being a bit too arrogant?"

He recalled that when he took the county examination, although he was confident, he was still extremely nervous and spent a lot of money to buy exam prediction guides.

But Gu Xiao didn't care about the county examination at all.

He wanted to see what kind of results Gu Xiao, the genius everyone talked about, could actually achieve.

Using this as an excuse, Jiang Wenxuan followed Gu Xiao all the way back to Guangjuxuan.

Inside Guangjuxuan, Liu Xiong and Liu Yan had just returned. Upon seeing Jiang Wenxuan, Liu Yan greeted him warmly.

Last time during the roof-raising ceremony, if it weren't for Jiang Wenxuan and Master Jiang upholding justice, the entire ceremony would have been ruined. Liu Yan was extremely grateful. There was another reason why she was so enthusiastic towards Jiang Wenxuan: it was for Gu Xiao's sake.

Gu Xiao has a cold personality. Over the years, Liu Yan has never seen Gu Xiao have any close friends. Only Jiang Wenxuan treats Gu Xiao as a friend. No matter how cold Gu Xiao's expression is, he doesn't care and still pesters Gu Xiao.

Liu Yan genuinely liked this rare friend and hoped he could spend more time with Gu Xiao, so she took extra care of Jiang Wenxuan.

Jiang Wenxuan, with his sweet tongue, said as soon as he saw Liu Yan, "Wow, Aunt Liu, your outfit, your figure, and your demeanor today are truly a sight to behold! You don't look like someone from Qinghe Village at all; you could easily pass for the wife of a county magistrate."

Liu Yan almost wanted to cover his mouth after hearing that. How could he just say something like that so casually?

Liu Yan did not move, but heard a cough behind her.

Jiang Wenxuan subconsciously turned around, but one glance almost made him jump up in fright.

Standing behind him were Lord Tang and his servant Afu.

Oh no, his attempt to flatter backfired, and he ended up offending the person in question.

Lord Tang heard what Jiang Wenxuan had just said. He knew Jiang Wenxuan; the boy was just spouting nonsense.

He had been single for many years and had never considered remarrying. He admired Liu Yan's simple and honest qualities, but he never imagined it would...

As Lord Tang was pondering this, his gaze fell upon Liu Yan.

Liu Yan wore a plain brocade dress embroidered with delicate plum blossom patterns. Her hair was styled into an elegant bun, with a smooth, lustrous jade hairpin inserted at an angle.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted.

Only a few days have passed, yet Liu Yan's appearance and demeanor have changed again.

Liu Yan was very nervous, her eyes filled with helplessness. She looked at Lord Tang's expression, afraid that he had heard these nonsense.

Lord Tang coughed lightly, "What are you talking about, you seem to be having a great time?"

Liu Yan visibly breathed a sigh of relief, and Jiang Wenxuan's heart, which had been pounding with anxiety, was finally put at ease.

Jiang Wenxuan chuckled, "Reporting to Lord Tang, I'm currently discussing the county examination notice with Aunt Liu."