Chapter 93: Tyrant
The announcement of the Imperial Examination results came earlier than expected, and the names of the top scholars surprised many attendees.
The top scholar was Gu Qingheng from the Gu Residence!
This 14-year-old boy was more outstanding than other scholars, securing the first place with an impressively dominant performance.
Perhaps anticipating disbelief and suspicions of foul play, the government office immediately posted Gu Qingheng’s exam papers on the public notice board for all scholars to examine.
Several government soldiers were also stationed on either side of the notice board to ensure the papers’ integrity.
Upon seeing the contents of the papers, those who had doubted the results were left speechless, wondering if Gu Qingheng had started studying in his mother’s womb.
Otherwise, how could he be so brilliant!
Aside from rote memorization, Gu Qingheng also answered questions requiring flexible thinking exceptionally well, making one question if he was merely a 14-year-old boy.
He was like an old fox!
When the news of Gu Qingheng becoming the top scholar reached the Gu Residence, Gu Qing was overjoyed, celebrating with banquets for seven days and nights, which brought him immense prestige.
However, this left Gu Qingheng somewhat depressed, feeling like a monkey in a zoo for the past few days.
Before the examination, some people had spoken ill of him behind his back, but as soon as the results were announced, their attitudes changed drastically.
This was the complexities of the adult world!
Musing on these thoughts, Gu Qingheng let out a helpless sigh and then began to network with important figures alongside his father, preparing for his future entry into the officialdom.
Compared to others, Gu Qingheng felt very fortunate to have the opportunity for early exposure.
Other candidates did not have such a good chance.
Indeed, power was inherently unfair.
“What’s wrong? You’re not happy even after getting first place in the exam?”
As the Gu family’s son-in-law, Gu Yu also had to attend the social functions. After being persuaded to drink several times, Gu Yu took a hangover pill, immediately sobering up from his dazed state, and noticed Gu Qingheng looking a bit down.
Gu Qingheng was hiding in a corner, and apart from Gu Yu noticing him, no one else paid much attention.
After several rounds of drinks, even if they wanted to pay attention, they couldn’t concentrate.
“Brother-in-law, I didn’t expect to be exposed to the adult world so quickly. It feels a bit unreal!”
Looking at Gu Yu approaching, Gu Qingheng couldn’t help but sigh, and his subsequent words amused Gu Yu, who didn’t expect his younger brother-in-law to have such worries.
Having already decided his future path, he was being a bit melodramatic!
However, Gu Qingheng was still young, so it was understandable.
“What’s so unreal? Your brother-in-law did so many things at your age. Why can I do it, but you can’t!”
Gu Yu playfully tapped Gu Qingheng’s head, causing Gu Qingheng to cry out in pain and cover his head.
He then looked at Gu Yu’s gaze with speechlessness, secretly thinking in his heart that his brother-in-law was so impossibly strong that he couldn’t even compare.
In Gu Qingheng’s heart, no one was as capable as Gu Yu.
Even Bai Qian, who was now on the throne, if Gu Yu didn’t dislike the throne, Gu Qingheng felt that his brother-in-law would be more suitable.
However, coupled with Gu Yu’s personality, Bai Qian was clearly the winner.
Gu Yu’s temper was unpredictable, and aside from Gu Mengyao, no one could suppress him. If Gu Yu had ascended the throne, he might have become a tyrant!
Thinking this, Gu Qingheng immediately felt fortunate that his brother-in-law had not become emperor and remained the Gu family’s son-in-law!
“Brother-in-law, I think we should be realistic. Can you give me an example?”
“Oh, why can’t I?”
“What else? Brother-in-law, you are too strong. I… I don’t even have hope of comparing. I only wish I could be half as strong as you, and I would be extremely grateful.”
“Is that so? I don’t think it’s very likely, because half of my strength would be earth-shattering~”
“…”
After chatting with Gu Yu for a while, Gu Qingheng’s mood gradually returned to normal.
This allowed him to look at the bustling banquet in the distance, and his previously restless heart became calm.
Since he had already decided to walk this path, regretting it would be futile. It was better to stay true to his original intention and continue forward.
He was never fighting alone.
Even if it was through connections, as long as the final outcome was satisfactory, one shouldn’t care about the process.
The comments of others were never an issue.
Gu Qingheng felt that he didn’t need to pay attention to others, but rather to achieve a good outcome, so that the Gu family could become stronger and not be easily bullied.
With these thoughts, Gu Qingheng gained more confidence. After a few more words with Gu Yu, he walked towards the crowd.
Looking at Gu Qingheng’s retreating figure, Gu Yu suddenly realized that the little follower who had always trailed behind him had grown up!
Time was truly magical.
…
When Gu Qingheng returned to the banquet, he no longer paid any mind to the scholars who had previously mocked him. Instead, he continued to get acquainted with the ministers in the imperial court.
His spirited demeanor caused many scholars attending the banquet to gnash their teeth in envy and jealousy, feeling as if they had eaten a cartload of lemons, sourness overwhelming them.
Originally, the reform of the Imperial Examination this year was already significant, but the newly revised rules were exceptionally fitting for Gu Qingheng.
This led many to secretly spread rumors, claiming that Empress Bai Qian had shown special favor to the Gu family, which was why the Imperial Examination reform had occurred.
Of course, some people opposed this theory.
Since his son became intelligent, Wang You had directly joined the reformist faction and strongly endorsed the current Imperial Examination reform, completely disbelieving that Empress Bai Qian had given the Gu family special treatment.
Instead, he believed it was bait to attract intelligent people and recruit capable assistants.
Various theories abounded, but Gu Qingheng, the central figure of public opinion, remained as stable as an old dog, exuding a calm and unhurried demeanor that earned him much admiration.
However, it was clear that Gu Qingheng’s silence on the matter would not resolve it.
At the banquet hosted by Gu Qing, many people were closely watching Gu Qingheng, not only to see the brilliant top scholar but also to probe his capabilities.
Their intentions were clearly not good!
Unfortunately, Gu Qingheng only interacted with important figures that day, merely nodding to others. This made many people anxious, thinking of ways to make Gu Qingheng lose face today.
The Gu family had been too arrogant recently.
Did they really think they could control everything in the capital!
