In Love With My Fierce Farming Wife!
Chapter 1233 - 1145 Hall Test Announcement

Chapter 1233: Chapter 1145 Hall Test Announcement

She could not help but feel dejected, for her soulmate seemed a bit too young—was he really just sixteen or seventeen years old?

Unexpectedly, he understood her feelings so well; it was truly shocking.

Miss Hanmei had no idea about Su Ke’s thoughts.

Upon hearing that he had won the round, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief and, cupping his fists, said, "Winning is good. Since Miss Hanmei likes this painting, I will give it to her. I only fear that my mediocre skills might offend your eyes."

Everyone was immediately astonished!

How much Miss Hanmei liked the painting could be seen from the fact that she had been holding it in her hands without letting go since she received it. Yet even so, Su Ke unexpectedly offered to give it to her; his generosity was indeed overwhelming!

Miss Hanmei was even more startled!

Wide-eyed and speechless, she stared at Su Ke for a while before she was certain he was serious.

She immediately became excited and kneeled to thank him, "Thank you, Master Su, for parting with this love. Hanmei will make sure to give the painting to the best framer, not letting it suffer the slightest injustice!"

Everyone inside was roaring with madness!

How could these living beings not compare to the painting in her hands? It was infuriating!

Su Ke, however, did not feel this way. Seeing that it was getting late, he casually cupped his fists, "It’s getting late, if we don’t leave now, we might not even be able to get through our own front doors. We shall take our leave now. Enjoy yourselves."

Young Master Ning and the others couldn’t wait for him to leave and naturally did not detain him.

Miss Hanmei’s thoughts remained wholly on the painting, so upon hearing this she nodded in agreement, "Master Su’s generosity in gifting this painting, I will keep it in my heart. When Master has time, I shall host a feast to treat you properly, and I hope Master Su will not decline."

"It’s just a trivial painting; please, do not trouble yourself over it. Farewell!"

Su Ke cupped his fists to bid farewell to everyone and then left the private room and went downstairs. The three Qin Hui brothers originally planned to stay a bit longer, but considering they had come together, they felt compelled to leave as well.

Qin Hui and his companions fetched their horses and, taking advantage of the night, mounted and rode back, constantly looking back, their faces filled with reluctance.

"Who would have thought, Su Ke, that you had such ability; it really makes me feel inferior," Qin Hui exclaimed with a long sigh, "Before, I thought that I merely lacked some knowledge, which was the main reason I failed the Spring Imperial Civil Service Examination. But now, compared to you, it seems my deficiencies are not just slight; I might as well be running a circle around Shengjing! When Mother told me to learn from you, I was unconvinced, but now I see she knew me better after all!"

"What are you talking about? If I really had such ability, how could I have been defeated in the palace examination? That painting before was just me taking a shortcut by chance because I happened to paint the painting of white cranes and that Miss Hanmei happened to like it, which led me to win first place."

Su Ke spoke with continuous emotion; these were truly his innermost thoughts. Heaven knows how apprehensive he was when he painted that painting.

But to Qin Hui and the other two, it seemed like he was being modest, inevitably leading to further compliments, causing Su Ke to be quite embarrassed.

These days, speaking the truth is not believed!

What kind of world is this?

The next day, which was the third day after the palace examination, the people on the streets began to grow restless.

According to the traditions of previous years, although the top scholar would parade through the streets on horseback three days later, on the twenty-fifth of March, the final examination results were to be announced in the afternoon of the third day, which was the twenty-fourth of March.

Su Ke, like many other Tribute Scholars, had positioned themselves in teahouses and taverns near Bangpeng Street. Everyone was nervous, quietly waiting for the palace examination results to be announced.

These soon-to-be Jinshi Scholars were engaged in lively discussions, mostly revolving around who would claim the title of top scholar.

Everyone knew there were only three spots in the first rank: top scholar, second place, and third place, which would only emerge from among the ten candidates of the palace examination. However, they also hoped to secure a position in the second class.

It was known only those who ranked in the second class would be granted the title of Jinshi Scholar. Everything about their future career path as an official hinged on this critical moment. Scholars in the third class were also granted the same Jinshi title, but the difference in wording distinctly emphasized the gap in status.

"Equivalent of Jinshi Scholar," meant just that. No matter the equivalence, there was still a list separating them from actual Jinshi Scholars, and their future career paths in the officialdom would be worlds apart.

After lunch, Su Ke had left and was now accompanied by Xue Qian and a few classmates. Although these classmates were neither very close nor distant from Su Ke, since they all qualified in the Imperial Examination and were Tribute Scholars, they inevitably had to engage in social pleasantries.

Before long, Qin Hui and the three Qin Hui brothers joined them.

Although Qin Hui had also participated in the examination, he did not even qualify as a Tribute Scholar, let alone proceed to the further examinations. He brought his three brothers mainly to watch the excitement, but he also aimed to get acquainted with Su Ke and others.

Following the trio, Feng Jiu also walked over slowly.

Although Su Ke knew Feng Jiu, and they had entered the retest together, his impression of her was neither particularly good nor bad. They knew little about each other and seldom talked together.

When they unexpectedly met now, their eyes briefly met and nodded slightly before each turned away.

Sitting next to Su Ke, Xue Qian casually tossed a couple of peanuts into his mouth and chewed, "The gambling house outside is taking bets. It’s said that if Li Wen Li wins the top scholar, the payout is one-to-one. For Lu Da, it’s one-to-two. The most pitiful is me. Ranked tenth in the retest, the bet has risen to one-to-a-hundred. My dad scolded me badly last night. What about you? Who did you bet on and how much?"

Su Ke looked back at him and said nothing.

Not giving up, Xue Qian gently kicked him, "Hey! Speak up, are you mute?"

"You’re the mute one."

Su Ke glanced at him, "I haven’t left the estate these past two days; how would I know there’s this kind of entertainment? Of course, I haven’t placed any bets."

Actually, he lied.

He hadn’t left the estate indeed, but he couldn’t resist sending Little Shitou every morning and afternoon to scout around Shengjing. The bets in the gambling house heavily favored Li Wen Li as the top scholar, which resulted in a one-to-one ratio for him winning.

After a brief moment of pondering, Su Ke handed over two hundred taels of silver to Little Shitou to place a bet on someone.

"Yeah, right, I don’t believe you!"

Xue Qian looked disdainfully and then turned especially dejected, "Can you believe how much of a failure I am! Not only does my dad look down on me, but those damnable gambling houses don’t care for me either, betting at one-to-a-hundred against me. Damn!"

Xue Qian’s rank was among the last few in the Apricot List, all due to his misinterpretation of the examination questions.