Quick Transmigration: The Female Supporting Character's Counterattack, A Guide to Cunning Strat

"Thump thump thump, thump thump thump, thump thump thump..."

"Who can you wake up with such a light touch? Use a little more force!"

"Miss, this...this isn't appropriate..."

"Forget it, move aside, I'll do it myself!"

Gu Yanli, who was still fast asleep, was suddenly awakened by the noise outside the door. Before he could get up, he heard a loud bang as the wooden door slammed onto the ground.

This sound completely woke Gu Yanli up. He hurriedly wrapped himself in the quilt and heard Lin Shuwan's maid Zhi Qiu and his page Shi Zhu trying to stop him.

"Miss, you can't go in, Miss."

“Young master is not properly dressed, young lady, it is not appropriate for you to go in like this.”

Outside the door, Lin Shuwan, who had raised her leg high, was forced to lower it and reluctantly called out to the inner room:

"Gu An, you have half an hour to get dressed and wash up. If you haven't come out by then, I'll go straight in!"

After saying that, he didn't care whether Gu An heard him or not, and went straight to the corridor to sit down.

Inside the room, Gu An looked at the still gray sky, sighed, and finally got up.

With Shi Zhu's help, he hurriedly arrived and, half an hour before the appointed time, stood before Lin Shuwan, all ready.

"You've come to Bamboo Garden so early. May I ask what business you have with me, Miss?"

Now that he is temporarily staying at the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, he is considered to be living under someone else's roof, so when Lin Shuwan made a fuss about him, he could only obediently get up.

But he wasn't a pushover; being woken up before dawn, his tone was inevitably a bit harsh.

"Of course we're here to supervise your scientific expedition!"

(Sigh, Gu An is such a lazybones; I have to wake him up early.)

(And they want to conduct scientific research with this? Tsk tsk tsk.)

(Fortunately, I'm here, so dedicated and responsible, urging him to study for the imperial examinations early this morning.)

(Upon closer inspection, he looked quite respectable in that long robe he was wearing today.)

Lin Shuwan responded matter-of-factly, then frowned and looked him up and down before shaking her head and saying, "This outfit won't do, go change."

Gu Yanli took a deep breath. If he hadn't heard Lin Shuwan's thoughts, he might have thought she was deliberately picking a fight.

But waking up early left him feeling groggy, and his tone sounded harsh. "What's wrong?"

"The sleeves are too wide and the robe is in the way, so just change into one that's similar to mine."

Lin Shuwan condescended to stand up and spread her hands to show him her clothes for the day.

Gu An then noticed that Lin Shuwan was wearing a sporty outfit today. The style was simple and the cut was well-fitting, which showed off her heroic spirit. It suited her better than her usual elegant and dignified dress.

(I know I'm good-looking, so he doesn't need to keep staring at me.)

(As I suspected, he was indeed captivated by me.)

(Perhaps even participating in the imperial examinations was so that he could be worthy of me.)

(Oh dear, it's all because I'm too charming.)

Lin Shuwan sighed inwardly. Seeing that he still hadn't changed his clothes, she became impatient again and waved her hand at him with a look of disdain: "Hurry up, go quickly, don't dawdle."

Gu Yanli's brow twitched, and he gritted his teeth as he said, "An's status is low, and she only has a few robes sent by Old Madam Lin, and no other styles."

"Alright, then forget it. Bamboo, help him gather up his sleeves and hem, and hurry up," Lin Shuwan said, wrinkling her nose reluctantly.

“Miss, my name is Shizhu. Unlike bamboo, I am a medicinal herb.”

The pageboy Shizhu, fearing Lin Shuwan's reputation for beating and scolding servants, only dared to mutter softly, but his hands were quick and efficient in helping Gu An tighten his sleeves.

"Okay, okay, Bamboo," Lin Shuwan replied casually.

(I'll have the people from Yunxiu Pavilion make him a few sets of clothes later. After all, he's my student, and it would be a disgrace for me, his teacher, if he doesn't even have clothes.)

Gu Yanli opened his mouth, but then, realizing that this was Lin Shuwan's true feeling, he swallowed back what he wanted to say, feeling extremely frustrated.

He just didn't have a fighting outfit, not that he didn't have any clothes!

Oh well, he's here to make clothes for him anyway, so he'll just pretend he doesn't know anything.

Ugh, I'm still so annoyed! (／‵Д′)／~ ╧╧

Why should she let him hear her true feelings?

And what kind of teacher is she anyway?

Back when Gu Yanli was still serving in the Eastern Mausoleum court, countless scholars and literati wanted to become his students. His poems, calligraphy, and paintings were treasured as family heirlooms...

"Young master, young lady, it's done." Shi Zhu took a step back and stood behind Gu An.

"Alright, then run fifty laps around the yard," Lin Shuwan instructed.

"Hmm, hmm? What, what do you want me to do?"

Gu Yanli was still reveling in the glory of his past life when he suddenly heard such terrible news. For a moment, he wondered if he had misheard.

Lin Shuwan raised her voice and said, "Run, around, the, yard, fifty times! Now, do you understand?"

(So ​​young, yet his hearing is already impaired.)

Gu Yanli had no way to refute, and could only suppress his anger and say, "I heard you clearly, but I'm going to take the imperial examination, not the military examination, so why should I run!"

"Ahem." Lin Shuwan coughed lightly twice in a serious manner, put her hands behind her back, and said, "I ask you, what two tests must one pass to obtain the title of Tongsheng?"

Gu Yanli answered as instructed: "The county examination and the prefectural examination."

Lin Shuwan then asked, "In which month is the county examination?"

"February."

Will there be charcoal available in the examination room?

"No, generally not."

"How many sessions are there in the prefectural examination, and how many days does each session last?"

"Three sessions. The first two sessions will each be held on one day, and the third session will be held over two consecutive days."

Having answered this question, Gu Yanli understood Lin Shuwan's intentions.

In his previous life, he participated in the imperial examinations, and even with life-saving pills and proper arrangements, he still lost most of his life.

Although it was related to his naturally weak constitution, looking at all the scholars who took the imperial examinations, almost none of them could complete the examinations without falling ill.

Furthermore, his health has never been very good throughout his life.

Judging from the fact that he only soaked in the pool for a short while in the sweltering summer and his body became ill for three to five days, one can tell that his imperial examinations will also be very difficult for him.

Lin Shuwan didn't ask any further questions, and said directly, "So, with your small frame, if you don't practice more now, you'll faint in the examination room. I can't afford to lose face like that."

Gu Yanli pursed his lips, accepting her statement, and silently began running around the courtyard.

Behind him, Lin Shuwan's gratified voice drifted back: "This child is teachable."

The maid, Zhi Qiu, stood to her right rear and whispered, "Miss, isn't fifty laps around the courtyard a bit too few? Bamboo Garden isn't even half the size of your courtyard!"

It's less than one-tenth of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion!

When Zhi Qiu thought about how Lin Shuwan was now following the guards around the mansion ten times a day, she couldn't help but feel that Lin Shuwan was being far too kind to Gu An!

Lin Shuwan looked at the indeed small courtyard, stroked her chin and said, "Take it slow, add a little each day, but fifty laps does seem a bit too few, so let's change it to one hundred laps!"

Seeing that her plan had succeeded, Zhi Qiu's eyes gleamed with schadenfreude. She continued to suggest, "Why don't we wait until he finishes these fifty laps before telling him? Suddenly increasing the number might put a burden on him!"

That's exactly what the dog guard did to her yesterday.

God knows how devastated she was when she finally finished five laps only to find out there were still five more to go!

She wanted to share these feelings with Gu An, or rather, now she should call him Young Master Gu.

I'm sure Young Master Gu will understand.

Lin Shuwan nodded and said, "That makes sense, I'll listen to you."

Gu Yanli, who was still running, was unaware that in just a short while, someone who was tormented by running laps had forcibly doubled his training for his own selfish desires.

However, he will find out soon enough.