Female Supremacy and Rise to Power: Lin Shu's Imperial Examination Adventures

Li's mother tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. She gently nudged Li's father beside her and said in a low voice:

"Mu Lang, tomorrow, write a letter to Yun'er, saying that if she passes the exam this time, Huanzhi should decide her own marriage. I will not interfere for the next six months."

"Yes, my wife."

What Li's mother didn't say was that she feared Li Huanzhi still had feelings for Liu Qiqi and wouldn't want to break off the engagement.

……

The Lantern Festival is just around the corner.

During this period, Li Yun'er could only be seen at the school; she was nowhere to be seen at other times.

That day, right after lunch, Li Yun'er arrived at the door with Li Huanzhi and Yuanbao.

"Hey sis, there's a Lantern Festival tonight, let's go out for a stroll!" Ever since receiving the letter from Yun County, Li Yun'er has been studying incredibly hard. She hasn't left the house for over ten days, and she feels like she's turning into a bookworm.

So when he heard there was something exciting to see today, he quickly came to invite Lin Shu.

Upon hearing this, Lin Shu turned to look at her two husbands, her eyes questioning. Seeing their anticipation, she agreed, "Okay."

Li Yun'er immediately beamed with joy, "That's wonderful!"

Upon hearing that they were going to the lantern festival, Song Yun pestered Lin Shu with questions, "My lady, is the lantern festival fun? I've never seen one before!"

Before Lin Shu could answer, Li Yun'er chimed in, "It's fun, really fun! You can win lanterns by guessing riddles, but the lanterns and riddles at this lantern festival are really hard. I've never guessed them all correctly."

"..." The two chattered away.

"Shu'er, I won't go. You young people go and have fun! I'm too old to handle it." Xue Wen said at the right time, then turned to his two husbands and instructed them, "There will probably be a lot of people tonight, so you two must stay close to Shu'er to avoid her getting hurt."

"Yes. Father, get some rest." Lin Shu and her two husbands replied.

Lantern Festival.

Night quietly fell, and many Kongming lanterns floated in the sky, like twinkling stars, illuminating the ground as brightly as day.

Along the streets on both sides of the lake, colorful lanterns hung everywhere. The bridges were crowded with people, and a few lanterns floated on the river below, shimmering faintly with the ripples. Many vendors hawked their wares along the lake and riverbanks, their voices rising and falling, creating a unique atmosphere. Scholars and literati gathered around the lanterns, trying to solve riddles, their laughter echoing through the air. In addition, performers put on acrobatics and other entertainment, drawing cheers from the audience. The whole scene was lively and festive, filled with joy and celebration.

"Hey, girl, come quick, over here!" Li Yun'er's eyes lit up as she looked left and right, finally spotting the Lantern King of this year's Lantern Festival. She quickly called Lin Shu over.

There are five lanterns at this Lantern Festival, each corresponding to one of five riddles.

Lin Shu grabbed her two husbands, one on each side, called out to Li Huanzhi, and headed towards him.

Wearing a Uyghur hat, Li Huanzhi followed closely behind Lin Shu, afraid of being separated from her in the crowd. The lantern festival was crowded, and if they were separated or trampled, the consequences would be unimaginable.

As Li Yun'er saw Lin Shu approaching, she hooked her arm around Lin Shu's neck:

"Look, that's the King of Lamps."

Lin Shu followed her gaze and saw five exquisite lanterns hanging in front of her, each depicting a cute animal: a rabbit, a cat, a butterfly, a monkey, and a sheep.

These lanterns are unlike ordinary lanterns; they resemble exquisite glass goblets, radiating dazzling seven-colored light. Each lantern seems to be imbued with life, vividly displaying its own unique characteristics and charm.

The rabbit lantern is lively and cute, the cat lantern is agile and playful, the butterfly lantern is fluttering and dancing, the monkey lantern is clever and intelligent, and the sheep lantern is gentle and obedient.

Together they create a magnificent and colorful scene that is truly captivating.

Lin Shu turned to her two husbands and asked, "Which lantern do you want?" Seeing that Su Mu had chosen the kitten lantern and Song Yun had chosen the rabbit lantern, she thought for a moment and then turned to Li Huanzhi and said, "Young Master Li can also choose one."

Li Huanzhi didn't expect her to ask him, so he quickly pointed to the butterfly lantern and said, "I'd like this one over there, thank you, Miss Lin."

"Okay." Lin Shu turned to pay the money.

"Hey! Girl, let me pay!" Li Yun'er said with a grin as she took out her money.

After paying, the stall owner came over and gave them the riddles:

"The first one is the Civet Lantern. The riddle is: Round when drawn, square when written, short in winter, long in summer. Please, sir..."

Before the stall owner could finish speaking, Lin Shu blurted out, "Damn."

The stall owner was taken aback and quickly looked for the answer. When he saw it was true, he could only hand the lantern to her. She took it and handed it directly to the aloof man next to her.

"The second one is a rabbit lantern. The riddle is: 'One step deep, one step shallow.' What is the idiom?"

"Of paramount importance".

The stall owner was surprised by Lin Shu's skill and felt a pang of heartache for the lanterns, as he hadn't earned much tonight and Lin Shu had already won two of them.

More and more people gathered around, and when they saw that Lin Shu had guessed two riddles in a row, they all came over and clapped and cheered.

"Auntie, there's one more." Lin Shu looked at her with a half-smile.

Helpless, the stall owner could only continue: "The third one is a butterfly lantern. Riddle: The clouds are hidden and the moon is overhead. Guess a Chinese character."

"Disgusting."

Finally, he swallowed hard, looking helpless, and reluctantly handed over the butterfly lantern.

Stall owner: ...[Damn it, I really don't want to give it to her.]

"Here you go." Lin Shu handed the butterfly lantern to Li Huanzhi, then turned and pulled her husband forward.

"Thank you, Miss Lin." Li Huanzhi watched her retreating figure, gripped the lantern tightly in both hands, and said in a voice only he could hear.

Several men, carrying lanterns, were in high spirits.

Especially Song Yun, after looking around and stealing a few glances at Lin Shu, suddenly pounced into her arms and gave her a big kiss on the cheek.

Lin Shu was startled by his enthusiasm and flustered for a moment, but she quickly covered it up, tapped his head with two fingers, and said, "Walk properly."

Song Yun playfully covered her head, pulled Su Mu aside to complain, and frowned, "My wife is so annoying." After a pause, she added, "But I like her very much."

Su Mu and Lin Shu exchanged a glance and shook their heads helplessly.

The group bought several more river lanterns, intending to release them on the riverbank. The atmosphere was quite pleasant for Lin Shu and her two companions when, unexpectedly, some mischievous child ran around and knocked down a group of people. Everyone quickly retreated, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire.

Yuanbao was suddenly thrown forward, which also knocked Li Yun'er into the riverbank. Fortunately, the water wasn't deep, but there was chaos, and no one noticed that Li Huanzhi was being knocked towards the middle of the river. By the time Li Yun'er realized it, it was too late.

"elder brother!"

Li Yun'er screamed in terror. She tried to reach out and grab Li Huanzhi, but they were too far apart to touch him.

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