Chapter 25: The Best of Omens

Early in the morning, Li Yanqing and his three companions donned their formal attire. This typically consisted of a "hooded garment," which included a black gauze cap, a dark linen robe, and a horn belt. Due to the chilly weather, they each wore a short fur coat over the top.

Foregoing the ox cart, they followed their master, Yao Ding, on foot toward the nearby county government office. They were there to attend the opening ceremony and the drawing of lots for the upcoming Children’s Competition.

As they approached the side gate of the office, a tall, slender man hurried out. With facial features strikingly similar to Tang Huai’s, he was their liaison and Tang Huai’s eldest uncle, Tang Zhengzong. He appeared to be in his forties and looked exceptionally shrewd and capable.

Having served as their liaison for four consecutive years, Tang Zhengzong was well-versed in the proceedings. Upon seeing Yao Ding, he hurriedly said, "The other seven schools have all arrived. We are the only ones left."

"Wasn't it agreed that it wouldn't start until the seventh double-hour? We are still half an hour early," Yao Ding remarked with dissatisfaction.

Tang Zhengzong gave a wry smile. "Everyone wants to gauge the competition, so they arrived early. Just a moment ago, the Tangbei Township School and the Youli Town School had a confrontation. It was quite tense. If nothing goes wrong, the championship will likely be contested between those two."

Lowering his voice, Tang Zhengzong added, "I also heard a rumor that the Prefect, Magistrate Li, intends to come. I don't know if it's true."

Yao Ding remained silent. His eldest son had told him last night that Prefect Li was very interested in the Tangyin County Children’s Competition and intended to come and observe it, likely arriving in the final days. However, after a heated argument with his son the previous night, he had no desire to discuss it. "Let's leave these trivial matters for later," Yao Ding said. "Let's head inside."

The group entered the central hall to find the courtyard filled with students arranged in seven rows. The boys were all around twelve or thirteen years old, each looking ambitious and casting wary glances at one another.

When the four students from Lushan Town School walked in, a roar of laughter erupted from the courtyard. They had actually sent four little brats. Everyone had already looked down upon the Lushan Town School, and now that four small children had arrived, they were held in even lower regard. Still, it was fine; every red flower needs green leaves to set it off.

Just then, a man in his thirties emerged from the hall. He gave a heavy cough, and the courtyard fell silent. From his appearance, Li Yanqing immediately recognized him as Yao Wannian, the son of Master Yao and the Tangyin County Education Commissioner, responsible for all educational examinations in the county. The father and son looked almost identical.

Yao Wannian invited his father, Yao Ding, into the hall for a brief rest, but the students were not afforded such luxury. They were left to stand in rows in the courtyard. They would have to stand for an hour or two, patiently waiting for the draw to conclude before they could disperse, leaving their legs numb with cold. Most students, however, were experienced; they each brought a book to pass the time. Of the four from Li Yanqing’s group, only Yue Fei had brought a copy of the *Collected Works of Wang Linchuan*.

After standing for only a moment, Li Yanqing heard whispers in the nearby row. "Who do you think this Red Boy really is? Why would the Bull Demon King say that Red Boy is not his son?"

Li Yanqing was stunned. Wasn't that his book? He looked around and realized that more than half of the twenty-eight students were reading the same volume. Li Yanqing leaned over to glance at the cover. The title was *The Great Sage Catches Demons: Red Boy*, the very novel he had written. Below the title was the author’s name: "Lushan Xiaoxiaozhi." Li Yanqing covered his mouth, nearly bursting into laughter. That was a clever pen name—wasn't he, after all, the "Little Lad from Lushan"?

Wang Gui whispered to Li Yanqing, "This book seems quite popular. Let’s go buy a copy later."

Li Yanqing nodded repeatedly. He certainly intended to buy one; it seemed to be selling quite well.

After waiting for a full half-hour, with his legs nearly frozen, a bell chimed, and the Children’s Competition ceremony finally began. The masters of the eight schools, surrounded by three officials, walked out of the central hall, chatting and laughing. Of the three, Li Yanqing only recognized the Education Commissioner, Yao Wannian.

Tang Huai whispered to the group, "The one in the center is County Magistrate Liu. The one on the left is Assistant Magistrate Ma, and the one on the right is the Education Commissioner. Those three are the judges for this competition."

County Magistrate Liu had an ordinary appearance with fair skin, but he carried himself well. He was tall and thin, with the refined, otherworldly air of a Taoist.

Assistant Magistrate Ma, however, was quite striking—his face was longer than a donkey's, and his eyes had more white than black, resembling tadpoles swimming in a white porcelain bowl. This was the so-called "four-white eye," or "snake eye." It is said that appearance reflects the heart, and at first glance, one could tell this official was not a kind soul.

Suddenly, a thought struck Li Yanqing. Didn't his father get into trouble for taking an exam on behalf of the Assistant Magistrate's nephew? Could it be this very man? Although that happened four years ago, his intuition told him it was likely this same official.

"Hard work, students!" Magistrate Liu Zhen began. "Since this county initiated the Children’s Competition, this is already the fifth year. I have some good news: eight students who participated in the second year’s competition took the prefectural exam two months ago, and seven of them passed to become provincial graduates. Next year, they will head to the capital for the metropolitan exam. This event has caused quite a stir in Xiangzhou, and even the Prefect has decided to come and observe our competition, proving that our initiative is entirely correct..."

Magistrate Liu grew more and more excited as he spoke, while the students below whispered among themselves. Seven out of eight passing was indeed an astonishing ratio. Wang Gui curled his lip and muttered, "That’s the result of their own hard work. He talks about the competition like it’s some miracle cure that works the moment you apply it."

Yue Fei shook his head, disagreeing. "You can't say that. We only trained for twenty days and gained a lot, but I heard several townships have been training intensely for half a year. The competition is a great way to hone one's skills; that cannot be denied."

Li Yanqing didn't hear what they were saying. His attention remained fixed on Assistant Magistrate Ma. He noticed that when the Magistrate mentioned the competition was "entirely correct," Assistant Magistrate Ma curled his lip in an imperceptible, scornful sneer. Though the expression was fleeting, Li Yanqing caught it. He silently reflected that there seemed to be hidden tensions between the Magistrate and his assistant.

Magistrate Liu spoke for a full quarter of an hour before officially declaring the fifth Children’s Competition open. Next was the drawing of lots. The top four schools from the previous year drew lots to determine their first-round opponents. The bamboo slips were inscribed with the names of the bottom four schools from last year. Everyone hoped to draw the Lushan Town School, as that would mean an easy path through the first round.

After the Education Commissioner, Yao Wannian, reiterated the rules, he walked toward the masters of the four top-ranked schools—Youli Town School, Tangyin County Elementary School, Tangyin Wuben School, and Weinan Town School—holding a bamboo tube containing four slips.

The corresponding four opponents were Longyang Town School, Yongji Township School, Lushan Town School, and Tangbei Township School.

In truth, Tangyin County had far more than these eight schools; there were dozens of private academies, village schools, and society schools of varying sizes. Some had twenty or thirty students, others only a dozen, but there were only eight government-run elementary schools.

As the draw began, all the students turned to gaze at the four little juniors from Lushan Town School, their eyes filled with mockery. Who would be the one to catch this little deer this year?

Just then, He Zhen, the master of Weinan Town School, let out a loud laugh. "I’ve drawn it!"

Everyone understood his meaning. This year, it would be Weinan Town School against Lushan Town School. A commotion broke out in the hall. Magistrate Liu gave a cough of disapproval, and He Zhen, realizing his lapse in decorum, hurriedly apologized with a smile.

Magistrate Liu nodded. "Since the draw is done, Education Commissioner, please announce the results."

Yao Wannian stepped forward and announced in a loud voice, "The results are as follows: Youli Town against Yongji Township, Tangyin County School against Longyang Town, Tangyin Wuben against Tangbei Township, and Weinan Town against Lushan Town. The matches will take place tomorrow at the seventh double-hour in the Diligence Hall of the County School. Failure to arrive on time will be considered a forfeit."

The ceremony ended amidst a noisy bustle. The four students from Weinan Town were so excited they embraced, as if they had already secured their victory. Yao Ding walked over, patted his young students on the shoulders, and smiled. "Actually, we had good luck. We drew a decent lot."

The group offered wry smiles. They hadn't faced Youli Town or Tangbei Township in the first round; their luck was indeed decent.

Yao Ding continued, "The Education Commissioner needs to clarify the debate and examination rules for the eight masters, and I must attend. You should return to the inn to eat. Use your afternoon to practice calligraphy or study; don't go wandering around."

The four agreed and followed the crowd outside. Once they left the government office, Wang Gui laughed at Yue Fei and Tang Huai. "Brother Qing and I want to visit the bookstore. Do you want to come along?"

Tang Huai gave Wang Gui a nudge—why would he even need to ask about something so good? The three of them looked toward Yue Fei, who hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement. After all, they were scholars; who wouldn't want to browse a bookstore?