The examination ghost didn’t even last three exchanges against Hen Zhen. The translucent shadow split into three in mid-air, meaning that its soul was scattered.
In an instant, a wisp of black smoke slipped through the cracks of doors and windows.
Xin Hexue felt the karmic aura was extremely strange, as if there was a hint of familiarity.
But due to the nature of koi demons, he couldn’t remember where he had encountered it before.
He quickly chased it into the courtyard, only to see the smoke rushing through the night sky, its fading trace pointing east.
That direction…
Seemed to be the northeastern outskirts of the capital.
What was out there?
Xin Hexue narrowed his eyes slightly.
Hen Zhen said faintly from behind him, “Let’s go back. The night watch has sounded.”
……
“Three candles burnt out!”
The bell signaling the end of the examination rang out in Gongyuan Hall, echoing gently over the sycamore trees.
On the branches above, the waning moon in the sky was slowly sinking.
The candidates exited the Gongyuan Hall one after another.
Some were starving due to insufficient food; others sat upright for a whole day and half a night and now suffered from backaches. Some sighed alone, some chatted in pairs and trios, creating a scattered noise of voices.
Zhou Shanheng looked up at the moon in the sky.
With the Imperial Examination over, all that remained was to await the release of the results. Until the list was posted, no one knew whether they had succeeded in getting first place.
Zhou Shanheng tightened his grip on the red string in his palm.
……
The results would be announced at the end of the second lunar month, when it was almost March.
The light rain from the previous night had cleansed the air, making it especially crisp.
As the sky brightened with a faint fish-belly white, the morning glow turned crimson and fluttered atop the city tower.
As the curfew drums sounded and the night curfew lifted, it was time to post the results.
Outside the east wall of the Ministry of Rites’ southern courtyard, crowds surged. The clerks sent by the Minister of Rites to post the list pasted the results onto the wall.
Beside the list, a minor official loudly called out the names.
There was a sea of people beneath the list, crying, laughing, dazed, boisterous…every expression could be seen. Besides the candidates, there were also many curious onlookers from the common people, making the scene extremely lively.
Zhou Shanheng saw his name, it was at the top of the list.
His usually warm and composed eyes now revealed a faint hint of joy.
The official calling out the names shouted, “First rank, granted title of Jinshi, first place…Zhou Shanheng!”
Some of the candidates who had known him from the lodging house or had exchanged names before the exam at the Gongyuan Hall offered their congratulations.
“Second place, Bu Jincheng.”
Zhou Shanheng heard the name and vaguely recalled having heard it before.
He turned to look at the candidate now being surrounded with congratulations.
Zhou Shanheng remembered this face. On New Year’s Eve during the fire, he had been calling out Xin Hexue’s name and had realized that someone else in the crowd was also calling out the same name.
At that time, there had been another person also searching for Xin Hexue.
Zhou Shanheng recognized the face and confirmed it was indeed Bu Jincheng.
Those not named returned dejectedly, while the successful candidates lined up to leave.
After being conferred the title, many formalities still had to be observed, including paying respects to the Prime Minister and offering thanks to the Minister of Rites, who had overseen the examination, as well as other officials responsible for the process.
The newly titled Jinshi candidates tidied themselves up and gathered at the Sifang Pavilion, where food and drink had been prepared. They waited for the Prime Minister to arrive and meet them.
About the time the Prime Minister arrived, hall officials came to collect the name slips, and the students followed the chief examiner from the Ministry of Rites to pay their respects.
The hall official announced, “Minister of Rites, leading the newly titled Jinshi to meet the Prime Ministers.”
Zhou Shanheng had stowed the red string in his wide sleeve, and his whole demeanor seemed somewhat distracted. It wasn’t until a fellow Jinshi beside him gave a quiet reminder that he, as the top scorer, stepped forward to deliver his speech.
He cupped his hands and spoke with calm composure, “On this twenty-eighth day of the second month, the Ministry of Rites posted the results. We are fortunate to have made the list, gaining the favor of Prime Minister Tao Zhu. We are deeply honored and fearful…”
After his speech, he simply bowed and stepped back.
The Jinshi candidates then announced their names one by one.
After expressing gratitude to the officials in charge of the examination and meeting the Prime Minister, they followed a similar process again when visiting the Secretariat.
Once the entire round was completed, the food and drink was hurriedly consumed and no one paid attention to the taste.
After delivering their speeches and bowing again, they exited the main hall.
Zhou Shanheng didn’t even change his clothes. He quickly bid farewell to the Minister of Rites, took the reins of the red-maned horse, and steadily mounted it.
Only then did he head to the place that had occupied his thoughts.
The warm spring breeze bloomed around him. The sound of hooves clattered along the river embankment that was worn by rain and sun, and he exited through the south gate.
Zhou Shanheng suddenly heard the sound of overlapping horse hooves, rising and falling in a strange rhythm.
He suddenly felt confused.
A white horse approached steadily from behind. Bu Jincheng held the reins in his hand, raised an eyebrow, and said, “What a coincidence. Zhou gongzi, where are you headed?”
Zhou Shanheng turned slightly and looked back.
Behind him were several more horses.
As their eyes met, Ren Ke gave Zhou Shanheng a polite smile.
There were four or five other faces Zhou Shanheng hadn’t paid attention to before…likely second-rank Jinshi or third-rank titled scholars. Since they were separated by a dozen or so ranks, they hadn’t stood near each other during the greetings and formalities, so no impression had been made.
There was one face he did recognize, he was a relative of the Deputy Minister of Rites and ranked right after him and Bu Jincheng.
Zhou Shanheng finally nodded to Bu Jincheng. “I’m going outside the capital.”
Bu Jincheng replied, “What a coincidence, I’m also heading out of the capital.”
Ren Ke’s horse came forward too. “Zhou gongzi, are you leaving the city for something important?”
Zhou Shanheng: “To find someone. To bring good news.”
He held the reins with one hand, the other reaching into his wide sleeve and pulling out a red string. He lowered his eyes and said in a soft voice, “We’re in love. He didn’t mind my humble origins and helped me greatly. I’m a humble scholar, so I only wish to repay his kindness and stay by his side forever.”
Bu Jincheng looked away and murmured, “Is that so? I also have a benefactor. I was seriously wounded at that time and nearly died. He took me in for the night and treated my injuries.”
Ren Ke pursed his lips and said, “When I was still in Shuzhou, the village bullies harassed my Ren family. They tried to dig up my ancestral graves under the pretense of expelling a drought demon. Fortunately, a kind-hearted young man happened to pass by and stood up for me…”
The three Jinshi in the rear, upon hearing the front riders also speaking of going out of the city to thank their benefactors, also began to talk.
“My benefactor gave me shelter for the night and treated me to a sumptuous dinner.”
“My benefactor packed my belongings and, seeing I was short on funds, secretly slipped me some money.”
“My benefactor lent me silver and helped pay for my father’s burial expenses.”
The fox demon’s eyes darted around. Although he couldn’t reveal that his benefactor had bought him from a butcher, he still insisted, “My benefactor is beautiful and gentle.”
Second-rank Jinshi: “My benefactor has skin like congealed fat, like an immortal.”
Third-rank Jinshi: “My benefactor wears silk robes as white as snow and has an extraordinary temperament.”
Second-rank Jinshi: “My benefactor’s voice is clear and gentle, with elegant speech.”
Zhou Shanheng kept holding the reins, eyes fixed ahead. As he listened to their conversation, he suddenly felt something was off.
It was all too coincidental.
Even the roads they were taking seemed too coincidental.
Coincidental to the point that, after exiting the south gate, the two branching paths were all being taken by this group…all headed east without prior agreement.
Coincidental to the point that the wide official road couldn’t even accommodate so many horses moving side by side at the same time.
……
Spring was warm and sunny.
The peach blossoms at the corner of the temple courtyard were in full bloom.
Occasionally, a breeze would pass by, carrying with it two peach blossoms that landed on the scroll spread open on his lap.
The hand that brushed away the peach blossoms had a slender wrist and white knuckles.
Xin Hexue turned to ask Hen Zhen, “Are the results being posted today?”
Then that poor scholar should be coming soon to share the good news with him.
Even though Xin Hexue had had another round of memory cleansing, Hen Zhen had already told him that the poor scholar who saved him was Zhou Shanheng.
After receiving a definite answer, Xin Hexue closed the scroll and rose from the reclining chair.
Hen Zhen lifted his chin slightly and looked into the distance, his expression gloomy as he said to Xin Hexue, “Look, the poor scholar you’ve been thinking about is here.”
Xin Hexue casually handed the scroll to Hen Zhen to put away, and walked out to the front of the temple’s main hall.
Let him see what kind of person this poor scholar he had repaid looked like.
The sandy path between the pine trees was clean and dry.
Until the jinshi rode up on horseback, kicking up clouds of dust.
At the front, the top scholar wore a black gauze hat adorned with golden flowers. He dismounted from his red-maned horse, his eyes eager, “Hexue…”
Xin Hexue: “?”
Wait, when did he repay this many poor scholars?
Was this a jinshi team-building event?
O.o?
……
The dilapidated temple wasn’t large, with only two monk’s rooms that could house people.
So the scholars only stayed for one meal.
They even had to use the Eight Immortals table.
During the meal, someone asked, “Benefactor, what is the statue covered with red cloth in the main hall of the temple?”
Hen Zhen interjected faintly, “You must be really ignorant not to know, that’s the Little Fish Bodhisattva, who sympathizes with scholars and has a charitable heart.”
The jinshi was suddenly stabbed for no reason, and could only laugh awkwardly, “Oh, oh, I truly haven’t heard of it…yes, I’m just ignorant, haha…”
Xin Hexue perfunctorily responded and then sent all the jinshi away.
Only Zhou Shanheng was left behind.
Even Hen Zhen was dismissed.
The moon rose from the mist over the river valley, hovering above the mountain spring, scattering fragments of shimmering light.
Zhou Shanheng stepped forward and called out, “Hexue.”
Xin Hexue turned around. In the moonlight, the smile at the corner of his lips was soft and hazy.
Zhou Shanheng gently embraced him. The person in his arms wore a thin robe, cool and smooth like fine white jade. Zhou Shanheng couldn’t help but worry, “Though it’s already late spring, it’s still chilly at night. Why didn’t you put on a cloak?”
As he spoke, he took off his outer robe, intending to drape it over Xin Hexue’s shoulders.
But the young man stopped his movement.
His voice was soft, but it sounded especially desolate and clear in the moonlit night.
Xin Hexue said slowly, “Zhou Shanheng, you will rise in your official career. From tonight onward, don’t come back again.”
Zhou Shanheng froze, his body stiffened, and his speech quickened without him realizing it. “Did something happen? Why would you say this all of a sudden? Was it because too many people came today and disturbed you, or did I do something wrong?”
The once peaceful atmosphere between them turned cold and quiet.
The wind rustled through, and tree shadows swayed.
Xin Hexue shook his head, “It’s not because of that. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
Zhou Shanheng still couldn’t understand, “But… didn’t we say before, once I passed the examination…”
He pulled out the red string that had once been tied to the Yue Lao tree, “The other piece is still with you.”
Xin Hexue seemed confused by his inability to let go, “Did you forget? I’m a demon.”
Zhou Shanheng eagerly declared, “Hexue, you know I don’t care. I told you before…there are humans who commit crimes, but there are also demons like you who are benevolent and righteous. If we judge only by whether one is human or demon, then this world is far too shallow.”
“From beginning to end, the one I love is Xin Hexue, whether you’re Young Master Xin or a koi demon.”
Xin Hexue frowned and looked at Zhou Shanheng in puzzlement, “But the words you once said…I’ve already forgotten all of them.”
He looked carefully at the red string in the man’s hand, “Even this red string…I lost my piece of it.”
Zhou Shanheng followed up, “Losing it doesn’t matter. The red string only carries human wishes. As long as you’re still beside me, the string holds no meaning. That’s enough.”
“The words I said, the things we went through, every bit of it, I can tell you again.”
“Zhou Shanheng.”
Xin Hexue interrupted him and raised his eyes to meet Zhou Shanheng’s earnest gaze, “It’s not the world that’s shallow. It’s you who have made everything too simple.”
“A hundred years may be out of reach for mortals, but to us demons, it’s just a snap of the fingers.”
Xin Hexue spoke calmly, “It took me two hundred years to develop spiritual consciousness in Tianchi Lake on Mount Zhaoyao. That span of time is something mortals cannot experience or comprehend.”
Xin Hexue turned his head, “I forgot you today. Seven days from now, I will forget again. And another seven days after that, still the same.”
“Human life spans thirty thousand days, how many times can you endure this?”
His voice was clear and cold. Even though it wasn’t sharp, it still stung inexplicably.
Zhou Shanheng subconsciously stepped forward to grab Xin Hexue’s hand, but only brushed against the fluttering hem of his robe, which quietly slipped through his fingers.
There was a sound of splashing water.
Zhou Shanheng’s red robe was soaked, and water dripped down from his brow.
The young man flicked his snow white tail in the mountain spring, and lay against the edge of a rock wall.
His voice was cool and ethereal, saying in a faint voice, “Zhou Shanheng, go back.”
[Zhou Shanheng’s heartbreak value +5]
[Zhou Shanheng’s current heartbreak value: 95]
……
After exchanging a few words, Zhou Shanheng’s face looked defeated. He murmured slowly, “I’ll come find you again in a few days.”
Even when brushing past Hen Zhen, Zhou Shanheng didn’t lift his eyelids, not giving the snake demon, a former enemy, a single glance.
But after a few steps, Zhou Shanheng suddenly stopped.
“Did you say something to Hexue?”
He suspected Hen Zhen had done something behind the scenes or said some twisted slanderous words.
Otherwise, Xin Hexue wouldn’t have suddenly changed his attitude so drastically.
Hen Zhen shrugged and sneered, “You couldn’t keep the person and now you’re blaming others? This is the grace of a top scholar who has read all the sages’ books?”
Zhou Shanheng was silent for a few moments and eventually flung his sleeve and left.
Xin Hexue said coldly from the mountain spring, “Are you done watching the show?”
Hen Zhen raised three fingers to show innocence, swearing earnestly, “I didn’t eavesdrop on anything. You told me to go stand on the pine forest path in punishment, so I did. Where would I dare to eavesdrop?”
“But…” Hen Zhen walked over to the spring, “Did you really let go of that poor scholar? You really don’t like him anymore?”
Xin Hexue glanced at him indifferently, “What are you thinking? Do you want to help me call him back?”
Hen Zhen shook his head like the wind, “I don’t have the habit of handing over my sweetheart.”
At most, he was Xin Hexue’s dog…not a bull-headed beast.
Xin Hexue lazily lay on the edge of the smooth rock wall, “Since I’ve already repaid his kindness, and he’s successfully passed the exam, what’s wrong with things as they are now?”
Hen Zhen noticed that in his words, Xin Hexue only mentioned himself and Zhou Shanheng, he hadn’t mentioned himself (Hen Zhen).
“Did you forget something?”
“…No.”
Xin Hexue lifted his eyelids and crooked his finger in Hen Zhen’s direction, “Little dog, come here.”
Hen Zhen walked over slowly, and pretended to be serious as he knelt by the mountain spring.
A pair of wet and dripping hands emerged from the water and gently cupped Hen Zhen’s jaw.
Xin Hexue arched his neck upward, the curve long and beautiful.
Hot spring mist rose, and the moonlight was hazy.
They shared a kiss, both dripping with water.
After a long time, wind passed through the forest.
Xin Hexue let go, his breath disordered.
After catching his breath, he said to Hen Zhen, “I’m going to cleanse my memory tomorrow. Don’t come bother me.”
Hen Zhen was so dazed he had no idea where north or south was, so of course he agreed.
……
Xin Hexue opened his eyes at the bottom of the spring.
His eyes were clear.
He opened his hand. In his palm was a single light golden scale that had been sliced off.
A heart-protecting scale.
There were faint streaks of blood on it.
The heart-protecting scale was originally tightly attached to guard his danxin.
Now that it was carved out, it left a crack on his danxin, and the blessings within naturally began to seep away.
Blessing was what sustained the life of koi demons like him. Once all of it flowed out, he would no longer be a koi demon, and naturally wouldn’t continue to automatically cleanse his memory.
Xin Hexue could feel that as his life force slowly leaked away, the restraints of the world’s laws of fate on him were weakening. Thus, flashes of the past began to surge through his mind.
He clenched the heart-protecting scale.
Xin Hexue said to K: [Exchange for painless world exit program.]
K: [Confirmed.]
He directed his perception to the abnormal thread within his memories; the northeastern suburbs of the capital, where the karmic residue of the examination ghost had escaped back then.
It was also close to the Anning Tower beneath Taichu Temple.
And today, a banquet was being held there for the new jinshi.
……
The spring scenery was bright and blooming, and a hundred flowers competed in splendor. The tower cast its shadow across mountain light.
Sunlight shimmered against the mist, and the arched bridge stretched like three rainbows across the heart of the lake.
In the quiet courtyard, gauze curtains and reed blinds hung, and in the pavilion were calligraphy and paintings by famed scholars.
Green robes and white garments mingled together, and laughter could still be heard.
Ren Ke asked in confusion, “Zhou gongzi, what’s wrong with you? Why do you look so gloomy, like something’s weighing on your heart?”
The wine cup in Zhou Shanheng’s hand was already tilted, and drops of liquor were falling into the lake. Hearing someone speak to him, he finally snapped out of his daze.
He forced a difficult smile, “No, I’m fine.”
In the distance, a six-pillared painted boat as tall as a building approached over the lake. Flutes and drums played, and red curtains and green canopies fluttered.
The jinshi laughed and boarded the boat.
Fine wine and delicacies were already set out, and the music of flutes and drums was clear and stirring.
Zhou Shanheng stepped away from the banquet and walked to the front deck to get some air.
As he leaned on the railing, he saw the sky suddenly shift.
Clouds and wind swirled, and silver lightning rolled.
In an instant, thick fog blanketed the surroundings, so dense one couldn’t see their hand before their face.
Zhou Shanheng felt the weather had become too strange. He turned back toward the cabin to warn the others, only to see the jinshi at the banquet all collapsed over the table.
At the same time, flames suddenly ignited from the four corners of the boat without any wind, burning the flower curtains by the windows and swallowing up the pearwood furniture with blossoms in the corners. The fire raged violently.
Waves of heat surged forward.
