Chapter 37

The dean spoke with pride, his back straighter than usual: "Qin Ye is a very famous student at our academy. Despite being young, he masters his studies and almost never makes mistakes. His test papers are always flawless..."

This was akin to having a perfect score hanging as a benchmark.

If you made even a single mistake, you would fall short.

Xu Wan thought for a moment and found it quite satisfactory.

Having such a peer as a standard could not only give the mischievous young master a sense of achievement by outperforming the others but also keep him vigilant about his own shortcomings, maintaining his motivation to continue learning.

She smiled and said, "Then let Qin Ye continue to excel and hold onto his top position."

The dean raised an eyebrow, not quite understanding her, but still courteously escorted her to a side room to rest.

The monthly exam at Qingbo Academy consisted of two sessions, with provisions of dry food prepared in the examination hall, and students were only released after completing both sessions.

In the afternoon, Zong Wenxiu was the first to emerge from the examination hall.

He was a child of exceptional talent, extremely diligent in his studies, which allowed him to catch up with his peers in just half a year. Consequently, he finished his test papers faster than most, with a high accuracy rate.

Xu Wan praised him without reservation: "Wenxiu, you did very well. You were the first in the entire academy to finish your test papers!"

Zong Wenxiu, feeling a bit embarrassed by the praise, scratched his head and replied, "This was my first time taking a proper exam. I didn't know how long it should take, I just heard the proctor say that once you're done, you can leave."

The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‍dean also looked at him with admiration, clapping his hands in approval: "Well done, well done! No wonder you're from Yangyuan Marquis Manor. Today, I truly witnessed something remarkable. With this pace, you've outstripped the other students by half an hour."

Xu Wan corrected him: "Wenxiu is now also a student of the academy."

The dean laughed heartily: "Hahaha, yes, yes, of course."

Zong Wenxiu sat down and waited for another half-hour, as more students gradually exited the examination hall, but Zong Jincheng was still nowhere to be seen.

He felt a bit anxious but, with the dean present, he didn't dare to ask outright.

It was Xu Wan who saw through his thoughts and spoke up: "Jincheng's handwriting isn't very fluent yet. This is his first time facing such a large volume of questions, so he needs more time."

Zong Wenxiu thought about it and realized it made sense.

When he first started learning to write, his speed was even slower than his brother's. It was only through daily practice and memorization that he gradually improved.

With this in mind, he felt a bit more at ease but still couldn't sit still.

Just as he was getting restless, Zhang Zhi and Wu Shusen, who were in the same examination room, came out first and started whistling towards Zong Wenxiu, looking rather mischievous.

The dean's forehead bulged with veins, and he stood up to intervene, fearing that these two boys might offend Yangyuan Marquis Manor. However, Xu Wan poured him a cup of tea and gently said, "Dean, have some tea. Let the children handle their own affairs."

The dean was momentarily stunned. He was surprised that Xu Wan not only didn't ask him to intervene on behalf of her child but also advised him not to meddle. Was she that confident in her child?

The two boys, seeing that the dean didn't move, became even more brazen. They taunted Zong Wenxiu: "The questions in this month's exam were insanely hard. Your brother, who loves to boast, is probably struggling inside, about to cry. You better get ready to comfort your little master, haha!"

Zong Wenxiu was a very socially anxious person, afraid of meeting people, interacting with strangers, and even more afraid of offending anyone.

But these two boys insulting his brother really angered him. Somehow, he found the courage to retort: "The exam isn't about speed, but about mastery of knowledge. I have full confidence in my brother, confident that he will perform better than you!"

The two boys were taken aback, not expecting this seemingly timid young boy to stand up for himself.

Zhang Zhi sneered: "Taking so long to write the test paper, isn't it because you can't solve the questions? Some people are just stubborn, refusing to admit defeat, but in reality, their knowledge is no deeper than their tears, huh?"

Zong Wenxiu: "You..."

"What's going on here? Picking on my brother in my absence?" A voice suddenly came from behind, and everyone's eyes turned towards it.

The two boys, seeing him return, didn't have the energy to argue with him and snorted before walking away.

The mischievous young master raised his fist towards their backs: "Just wait until the results come out, I'll make you two regret it!"

Xu Wan: "..."n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

With this kind of spirit, she felt the mischievous young master could probably take ten more test papers.

However, after showing off, Zong Jincheng trotted over to Zong Wenxiu, looking dejected and complaining: "This stupid test paper never ends, I've written several pages and there are still more! My hand hurts so much!"

Zong Wenxiu, hearing this, quickly asked: "Is it the muscles that ache, or the veins?"

When he first started practicing writing, he often felt like his arms weren't his own.

Zong Jincheng thought for a moment, his expression showing a hint of confusion, and finally said: "Both!"

Zong Wenxiu immediately began massaging his brother's arms, saying as he did: "Let me press some acupoints for you. This is what the family doctor taught me, it helps relieve the soreness."

"Okay."

Shunzi watched as his young master, who seemed on the verge of collapse, looked completely different from the little playboy of two months ago. But seeing the young master now enjoying the arm massage, he felt something was off.

Xu Wan knew what was off.

The mischievous young master's arms weren't actually sore; neither the muscles nor the veins were affected. The boy just wanted to be pampered, his acting skills were terrible.

Xu Wan gave him a sidelong glance: "Let's go back to the manor, I'll have the family doctor massage your arms. Your brother has just finished a day of exams, do you have no conscience asking him to massage you?"

"Mind your own business," the mischievous young master, emboldened, hummed as he got on the carriage.

After two months of almost closed-door studying, Zong Jincheng had developed a close relationship with his only peer, his brother Zong Wenxiu.

Of course, in Xu Wan's eyes, this boy was just a little lazy brat who took advantage of his brother's kindness.

Zong Jincheng's charming face made it hard for people to resist his cute antics, but Xu Wan felt goosebumps rising just watching: "Can you keep away from Wenxiu? Are you treating him like a pillar?"

Zong Jincheng was leaning against Zong Wenxiu, eyes closed, looking like he had no bones in his body. He lazily said, "I'm too tired, you can try to pick me up if you have the guts."

Xu Wan: "!" What a thick-skinned kid.

"I'll throw you out of the carriage in a minute."

The carriage swayed, and the mischievous young master's eyelids fluttered a few times before he fell asleep, the carriage now as quiet as a pin drop.

Xu Wan, seeing that her threat went unanswered, soon heard the boy's even breathing.

"..." He could actually fall asleep like that.

"You're too lenient with him," Xu Wan said to Zong Wenxiu, "he'll take advantage of you like this."

Zong Wenxiu looked a bit confused, as if he didn't quite understand the phrase. He chuckled innocently: "My brother is really tired, he's been studying very hard these past two months."

Xu Wan: "..." It seemed she was meddling in what was none of her business.

The one being taken advantage of was doing so willingly.