Zong Jincheng was also astonished. He exclaimed, "You did so well? You came in second place! How could Feng Song have the nerve to say you’re not suited for studying? Is he blind?"
The little troublemaker instantly felt that he hadn’t scolded Feng Song enough earlier. That weakling from the southern academy was really asking for a beating. What level was he even at, to dare bully Qin Shi, who ranked second in the joint exam?
Qin Shi smiled lightly and said, "It’s fine, I didn’t take it to heart."
His temper was truly too good.
Completely different from Qin Ye’s infuriating demeanor.
Zong Jincheng immediately decided to remove him from his grudge list and said earnestly, "Alright, just wait. I’m definitely going to surpass you!"
Zong Wenxiu turned his head in surprise. How had his brother suddenly learned to be tactful?
But he quickly added, "And me too. My name is Zong Wenxiu."
Qin Shi smiled and said, "Alright, I’ll be looking forward to it."
At the Qin household, Qin Shi had just walked in with a stack of books when he ran into Qin Ye, who had returned from the academy.
He looked the same as usual, without a trace of joy for having taken first place in the children’s division. Hanlin North Academy had prepared for this joint exam specifically to seek revenge against Qin Ye, but to their dismay, the entire children’s class of over a hundred students had been completely defeated, losing even more miserably than last month.
Qin Shi said, "Qin Ye, congratulations on taking first place again. This time it’s first in the children’s division. When the children’s exam comes next spring, you’ll surely achieve an excellent result."
Qin Ye noticed the book in his hands and walked over, asking, "Haven’t you already mastered 'Mengqiu'?"
Qin Shi glanced down at the book and smiled again. "I can recite it, but I’m not yet proficient in applying it. So I wanted to review it a few more times."
Qin Ye nodded and asked, "Brother, did you bring back your exam paper? Let me take a look at where you went wrong."
Although Qin Shi was older than Qin Ye in age, Qin Ye was far more advanced in terms of knowledge. After persuading his brother not to sacrifice his own future for him, Qin Shi often took the initiative to ask Qin Ye for help, making his brother feel that he didn’t mind.
Over time, Qin Ye got used to helping him and began to proactively ask if there were any areas Qin Shi hadn’t fully grasped, just like now.
Qin Shi replied, "Yes, I’ll come to the study later to find you."
Qin Ye nodded again, still speaking little.
In contrast, Qin Shi seemed more talkative. He casually mentioned, "By the way, on my way back, I met two students from your academy and chatted with them for a while. They were really nice and even helped me get my book back from Feng Song."
"Did Feng Song bully you again?" Qin Ye frowned and was about to turn around. "I’ll go tell Father and have him settle the score with the Feng family."
Qin Shi quickly stopped him, saying, "No, no, we’re still relatives with the Feng family. It’s not good to have Father intervene and affect the adults’ relationship. Besides, Feng Song already apologized to me today and promised he’d never bully me again."
Qin Ye paused, slightly puzzled.
Qin Shi smiled and said, "It was those two who helped me. One is named Zong Jincheng, the same age as you. He looks a bit fierce but is actually very kind. The other is probably his older brother, named Zong Wenxiu, the same age as me."
"Those names sound familiar…" Qin Ye searched his memory and recalled a time when Qingbo Academy was in chaos, and he couldn’t get out because of a reward notice posted by these two, offering five hundred taels to find something.
They didn’t seem very reliable.
Qin Shi smiled and said, "They both said they’re going to surpass me. They’re quite confident, but they’re not like Feng Song. Honestly, I’m quite looking forward to it. Qin Ye, you should be careful too. I think Zong Jincheng might be as smart as you. He might even catch up to you."
To rank ninth in the joint exam after only four months of studying—even Qin Ye couldn’t have achieved such rapid progress.
Qin Ye said, "Brother, you’re overthinking it."
"No one can take my first place."
The young boy’s eyes were sharp and determined, his confidence intimidating.
At the Marquis Manor Elite Class, the two overachievers headed straight to the study as soon as they got home. It was the afternoon session after lunch, and the three private tutors had already sorted out the mistakes on their exam papers and prepared detailed explanations.
As soon as the two boys sat down, the tutors began explaining the errors. Each of them also had a scribe taking notes beside them. If they didn’t understand something, they could refer to the notes or ask the tutors to explain again.
To overtake others, it wasn’t just about having excellent tutors and high-quality exam questions. The students themselves had to put in a lot of time studying, memorizing, and practicing.
Listening, reading, and writing—none could be neglected.
After four months of studying in the study, the little troublemaker’s writing speed had already caught up to Zong Wenxiu’s. Although his handwriting was still atrocious, it was at least legible.
However, Xu Wan wasn’t in a hurry to correct his messy handwriting.
For one, the little troublemaker was still in the stage of enjoying the fun of using colorful ink to write ugly characters. It wasn’t the right time to crush his interest. Secondly, there was still more than half a year before the children’s exam, and there would be plenty of time to practice his handwriting before then.
Xu Wan understood the principle of not rushing things and knew how to balance things appropriately.
Meanwhile, the little troublemaker was still shouting, "Tutor Zhao, I want to take the ten-year-old class exam with my brother. Teach me at his pace. I’m going to defeat Qin Shi!"
Zhao Yin smiled and said, "Young Master Jincheng, what an admirable goal. But let’s not rush. I’ve prepared two sets of exam papers for you. Try them both first."
"Oh? What exam papers?" Not only was the little troublemaker curious, but even Zong Wenxiu looked over.
Zhao Yin smiled and said, "Our elite class has obtained the past exam papers from Qingbo Academy. These two are from the nine-year-old and ten-year-old classes. Young Master Jincheng can use them to test his current knowledge level."
Zong Jincheng’s eyes lit up. "Great, give them to me!"
The curriculum of the elite class was tailored to their learning speed. Since both children were highly talented, the lessons were faster and more detailed than those at the academy. However, it was also easy to lose track of their progress.
Now, with the academy’s exam papers for each age and month, they could clearly gauge their own progress.
Zong Wenxiu was also tempted.
Pan Hongzhi smiled and asked, "Young Master Wenxiu, would you like to try the eleven-year-old exam paper?"
Zong Wenxiu looked up, delighted. "Eleven years old… Can I?"
Pan Hongzhi smiled and said, "You can give it a try."
"Alright!"
The three tutors handed out the exam papers to the two boys and lit the specially made exam incense that Xu Wan had ordered. They began preparing for the exam.
"This incense burns for one hour, which is the duration of your exam. Please finish the exam before the incense burns out. You may submit your papers early, but once the time is up, you must stop writing immediately."
