At the foot of Xiaofeng Mountain, the bamboo forest ripples gently.
Outside the bamboo grove, at this very moment, a tall young man with an honest face is kneeling straight on both knees.
His expression is earnest, and though he says nothing, everyone knows what he is pleading for.
"The Lin Family must have sent someone to the Prefecture City by now, right? Unfortunately, a round trip to the Prefecture City takes at least a day. With Lin Qi's acute illness, who knows if he can last until evening?"
"Brother Lin Yuan, why go through such hardship? A man's knees are as precious as gold..."
"To kneel for one's own brother, what harm is there in that?"
Suddenly, the sound of wheels is heard. In the distance, a blue-clothed carriage winds through the path from the northern city, quickly approaching this direction.
The murmuring crowd momentarily falls silent, and after a brief pause, someone exclaims in surprise: "Huh, who's coming?"
Everyone understands the subtle tone of the question.
The arriving carriage is exceedingly frugal, and almost none of the families present would use such a modest vehicle.
Students from the County School gather on the left side of the path, while on the opposite side are the scions of several influential families from Lin County of Jichuan County.
There was already some unspeakable animosity between the two groups, but the arrival of the humble carriage suddenly provoked a burst of laughter from the County School students: "I know who it is!"
"Who is it?"
"It's the White-Clothed Scholar of Yunjiang once praised by Mr. Xiao from the Prefecture City, Chen Xu!"
"White-Clothed Scholar of Yunjiang? Who? Never heard of him."
"Isn't Mr. Xiao from the Prefecture City the one who got entangled in the scandal involving family members forcibly seizing civilian property and got expelled from the Prefecture School two years ago... that Mr. Xiao?"
"Heh, better not to say, better not to say."
...
Chen Xu once had a great reputation in Jichuan County.
But most famously, he was plagued with bad luck.
Not only was he unlucky himself, but even the teacher from the Prefecture School who praised him also suffered misfortune.
Such misfortune caused the County School students to gradually distance themselves from him, despite the potential he had shown.
And the only one who maintained a close friendship with him, Lin Qi, also fell ill for no apparent reason.
"Hiss!" A gasp of astonishment arose from the County School's side, and someone remarked, "Brother Lin's illness, could it be... could it also be because of him?"
This statement was like a thunderclap on flat ground, immediately suppressing all the fragmented murmuring outside the bamboo forest.
For a moment, the entire scene fell silent; no one spoke.
All eyes were on the approaching blue-clothed carriage, watching it come closer and closer, until it was about to stop outside the bamboo grove. The curtain of the carriage was lifted.
A figure clad in an indigo cotton robe stepped down from the carriage first, and in the County School crowd, someone sighed: "It's Xu Wenyuan, Brother Xu."
Xu Wenyuan had come to the small bamboo grove early and had tried to enter the Star Array, but like many of his peers from the County School, he was inexplicably sent out before even approaching the gate.
Everyone knew it was due to their own incompetence, not even possessing the qualification to participate in the assessment entry.
The crowd fell into despondency, only Xu Wenyuan gritted his teeth, determined to seek Chen Xu's help.
Now, it was apparent that Xu Wenyuan had invited Chen Xu here.
The County School students had mixed emotions. Even if they often mocked Chen Xu's misfortune behind his back, few dared to question his talent.
Especially in divination, Chen Xu's prowess was leagues ahead of his peers.
If only, if only he weren't so unlucky...
"Look quickly!"
Someone pointed to the west.
Soon there was the swift sound of galloping hoofs, followed by several dark horse chargers kicking up a trail of dust and cutting through the wind like a sudden storm, appearing before the crowd.
Meanwhile, Chen Xu had not yet alighted from the blue-clothed carriage.
Over there, several horsemen dashed through the crossroad in the middle of the path.
"Whoa——"
The riders on the horses were all dressed brightly, full of Essence Qi.
Leading them was a young man in splendid attire on a snow-footed horse, who laughed heartily: "Cui Yunqi of the Cui Family in Yunjiang Prefecture, here with my brothers to pay respects to Mr. Zhou!"
Before he finished speaking, he leapt gracefully from his horse, his robes fluttering.
He then clasped his hands elegantly toward the bamboo grove: "Mr. Zhou, my father sends me with a message, asking if you have been well since the farewell. Since you are back in Yunjiang, why not come to the Cui Mansion for a gathering? The old friends at Moyan Small Building are waiting for you."
Such eloquent speech, even before finishing, had already mesmerized the students from Jichuan County School and the surrounding areas.
When the visitor completed his speech, the students, forgetting their previous apprehension toward Chen Xu, couldn't help but curse: "Shameless!"
This Cui Yunqi, from the start, presented himself as having a special connection with Mr. Zhou. What was he trying to do?
Someone angrily said: "Mr. Zhou will not entertain such people!"
"Yes, indeed..."
The crowd echoed in agreement.
Yet after their agreement, they were inevitably anxious if Mr. Zhou would truly ignore this person.
After a few moments passed, all was silent within the small bamboo grove, truly no response came out for Cui Yunqi.
Only then did everyone simultaneously breathe a sigh of relief; it was excellent, indeed, Mr. Zhou was a man of principle, fair and impartial.
Cui Yunqi, receiving no response, did not appear embarrassed. He smiled as he straightened up and said: "I overstepped my bounds. Since I am here, how could I not attempt the Star Array before seeking an audience with the teacher?"
Finishing, he strode towards the bamboo grove.
Seeing that he was about to step into the bamboo thicket directly, Xu Wenyuan beside the carriage was anxious: "Wait!"
Xu Wenyuan raised his voice: "Cui... this Young Master Cui, please wait. There is an order of precedence in all matters, we clearly arrived here first, how could it be right for Young Master Cui to attempt the array first?"
He feared Chen Xu would be delayed by this Cui Yunqi and not be able to seek an audience with Mr. Zhou at the first opportunity.
His loud shout was both out of urgency and a muster of courage.
Unexpectedly, Cui Yunqi, walking in front of the bamboo grove, suddenly turned his head, looking puzzled: "What order of precedence? The Star Array is not a common thing, if I enter, is it that others cannot?"
These words implied that the Star Array could simultaneously accommodate multiple people attempting the challenge.
Neither the people of Jichuan County nor those from neighboring counties had known this.
Or rather, it never occurred to anyone to consider this, as anyone intending to join the array would respectfully give thanks outside the array and then patiently line up for their turn one by one.
Cui Yunqi's words of surprise made Xu Wenyuan's face turn red hot.
Blazing, though no one slapped his face, he was so ashamed he wished he could find a hole to crawl into.
Cui Yunqi chuckled: "Brother, feel free to come in; if your talents are sufficient, Mr. Zhou is the most approachable elder."
With those final words, the young riders accompanying Cui Yunqi laughed collectively.
They followed suit, dismounted their horses, saying: "Brother Cui, let's go, let's go, let us together savor the elegance of the Famous Scholar's Array."
Having said that, they lifted their feet and walked straight into the bamboo grove ahead.
Nobody cared if Xu Wenyuan would follow, let alone bothered with Chen Xu, who had yet to alight from the carriage.