“Yan Huaimin, conferred the title of Tanhua, Third Place Scholar of the First Class.”
“Yang Mingxuan, conferred the title of Bangyan, Second Place Scholar of the First Class.”
“Shen Shixu, conferred the title of Zhuangyuan, Top Scholar of the First Class.”
In the grand and solemn great hall, civil and military officials stood on either side. The civil officials wore crimson court robes, with colors differentiated by rank, those standing at the front wore darker shades, growing lighter toward the back.
The military officials wore dark blue court robes, likewise darker at the front and lighter toward the back.
But today, the most eye-catching figures were the three men standing at the very front of the assembled officials: this session’s Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua.
The three wore long crimson robes of the same color, yet each carried himself with a different bearing, the Tanhua was handsome, the Bangyan composed, and the Zhuangyuan simply stunning.
The most striking of the three was the Zhuangyuan, Shen Shixu. He had originally been intended for the position of Tanhua, but his essay was written so brilliantly that ranking him third would have been an injustice, so he was crowned Zhuangyuan instead.
He was also the youngest of the three, having just turned eighteen this year. To win the top spot on his very first attempt at the spring imperial examination, truly a prodigy of his generation.
Shen Shixu himself had never expected to place first on his first try. Even though he tried his best to restrain himself, the corners of his mouth still lifted, and his eyes sparkled as if filled with an entire galaxy of stars.
The other officials were all sizing up these three future colleagues. The Bangyan and Tanhua were considerably older than Shen Shixu, and though they were delighted inside, they managed to maintain calm expressions on their faces. Still, the joy in their eyes could not escape these old foxes who had spent many years navigating the treacherous waters of officialdom.
As for Shen Shixu, his youthful, high-spirited exuberance made these no-longer-young old-timers couldn’t help but recall their own pride and elation from the days when their names appeared on the golden list.
Emperor Wu’an gazed at his three newly acquired talents, as well as the other scholars waiting outside the hall. These were all fresh blood for his Great Qian dynasty, the pillars of state of the future, and he couldn’t help feeling overjoyed.
Just as everyone was rejoicing, a voice suddenly rang out through the entire hall, a voice that did not belong to this era, brimming with high technology.
“Ding-dong. Suitable host detected: Shen Shixu. Binding requested. Binding successful.”
After this mechanical voice sounded, before the assembled officials or Shen Shixu could react, a crisp, youthful voice suddenly spoke up: “Dear Host, hello! I’m the Melon-Eating System 011. You can call me Little One.”
Shen Shixu had read novels in his previous life, so he had some understanding of systems. Hearing this voice, he realized he had been bound by a system. But what kind of system was a “Melon-Eating System”? He’d never heard of such a thing.
What Shen Shixu didn’t know was that ever since this system had bound itself to him, his inner thoughts were being broadcast directly into the ears of everyone present.
The officials exchanged glances with one another, and seeing the shock and doubt on each other’s faces, they all understood: that voice hadn’t been heard by them alone, everyone else had heard it too. They looked up at Emperor Wu’an, as well as the Crown Prince and the various princes and lords. Those great figures looked just as bewildered as they did. So it seemed they hadn’t been hearing things after all.
011, after binding with Shen Shixu, could share thoughts with him. Realizing he didn’t know what it was, it explained directly, “Great Host, I’m a Gossip System. I can see other people’s secrets, some even they themselves don’t know. I can see the future and the past. I’m the best assistant for watching drama.”
Although Shen Shixu would have preferred a Career-Advancement System to help him navigate officialdom, a Gossip System wasn’t bad either. Having a system to help him relax and unwind after work was pretty good too.
【So that’s how it is. Do you have any gossip for me right now? Also, calling me “Great Host” sounds strange. Why not change how you address me? Aren’t you going to be bound to me for life? In that case, just call me Big Brother. Your voice sounds younger than me.】
Shen Shixu didn’t move his lips, asking 011 in his mind. (From now on, Shen Shixu’s inner voice and the system’s voice will both be marked with.)
011 felt its luck was simply amazing, to bind with such a capable, good-looking, and kind-hearted host on its very first binding.
【Got it, thank you, Big Brother. Big Brother, I found a piece of gossip here, it’s about the former top scholar, Sun Minghao. I have to say, this Sun Minghao is a scumbag who abandoned his wife and child, repaid kindness with ingratitude, and is utterly heartless!】
The ministers eavesdropping together, upon hearing the name Sun Minghao, couldn’t help but look toward Li Zhengda, Vice Minister of Revenue, who wore an ochre-colored official robe.
The moment Li Zhengda heard this matter involved his son-in-law, he perked up his ears to listen carefully. After hearing this so-called system use such derogatory terms to describe his son-in-law, his first reaction was disbelief. How could Sun Minghao possibly be the scumbag the system described?
Abandoning his wife and child, repaying kindness with ingratitude, being heartless none of it had any basis whatsoever.
No matter how shocked and incredulous Li Zhengda felt inside, 011 continued telling Shen Shixu the gossip. 【This Sun Minghao came from a poor family. His father died early, and he was raised by his mother alone. The year he passed the xiucai examination, his mother arranged a marriage for him. The wife he married was the most capable woman for miles around, though her looks were nothing special, just ordinary.
But she was truly excellent at work. After He Xiuniang married into the Sun family, she took on all the household chores. From small tasks like washing clothes and cooking, to big ones like working in the fields, she did it all. She also ran a tofu business and occasionally did needlework to sell to the embroidery shops in town.
Just from selling tofu and doing needlework, He Xiuniang managed to save up money for Sun Minghao to travel to the capital for the imperial examination.
Sun Minghao clearly didn’t love He Xiuniang in his heart he despised her for not being pretty, but he still consummated the marriage, and the two had a six-year-old daughter.
Before leaving for the capital, Sun Minghao promised He Xiuniang and his old mother that he would definitely achieve a good ranking and give them a good life. But once he left, he never returned not even a single letter.
Sun’s mother worried about her son every day, and with no news whatsoever, she fell ill from anxiety. He Xiuniang cared for her devotedly, spending every last penny on her medical treatment, but Sun’s mother couldn’t hold on and passed away last month, still murmuring Sun Minghao’s name even as she died.】
Hearing this, Shen Shixu couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, [Hearing you say that, this Sun Minghao really is a piece of work. He looked down on He Xiuniang for her looks, yet he still consummated the marriage with her and got her with child.
If he hadn’t touched He Xiuniang, I’d have some respect for him. But he clearly didn’t like her, and yet he still touched her. Pretending one thing while wanting another, utterly disgusting!
And his mother his father died early, and she raised him through hardship, even found him a virtuous wife, only to end up with such an ungrateful wretch. I truly feel it wasn’t worth it for his mother!]
011 wholeheartedly agreed with Shen Shixu, [That’s right, big brother is right. And the bad things he’s done don’t stop there! Now he’s married again and has a new child and the wife he took is one he schemed to get through underhanded tricks.]