CHAPTER 51: CHAPTER 51: YANGZHOU SPRING NOODLES

The father’s status as a Lord Minister definitely gave him more backbone.

To leave a good impression on the Teacher, she had to perform excellently, after all, it concerned her future years.

Just stepping out of the study hall’s gate.

Among the crowd, a young girl dressed in a Golden Butterfly Cloud Brocade Skirt with a Near Fragrance Bun stretched lazily, a slight smile involuntarily appearing at the corner of her red lips. Turning to a young boy in a blue robe beside her, she said, "Great, finally finished the exam. Changzhou, do you think you did well?"

The young boy with bright eyes and sparse eyebrows nodded earnestly, "Yes, it wasn’t difficult. How about you?"

The girl giggled, her face confident and at ease, "Of course, I’m a renowned little talent from Yangzhou City."

From plucking garden flowers to leisurely dressing, by the pond, green backdrop reflects red skirt! It turns out the little girl hailed from the ancient famous town of Yangzhou City.

Yangzhou City, a place that draws so many Jiangnan scholars to bow in admiration.

The young boy beside her smiled slightly, seemingly accustomed to her self-praise, with seven parts helplessness, three parts indulgence in his smile.

The little girl in the Cloud Brocade Skirt followed along with the students while quietly chatting with the boy.

"Changzhou, what do you think we’ll be tested on this afternoon?"

"I don’t know."

"Whatever it is, try your best, you must pass and stay at the Imperial College with me."

"I’ll do my best." With his talent, it shouldn’t be a problem.

Ye Zhi followed behind the two and started to envy such pure childhood sweetheart affection.

As they walked, with nothing to do, she began to wonder, realizing the boy’s name was Changzhou, which sounded familiar. The girl looked pretty, a modest beauty, yet she didn’t know their names and wondered if they were just side characters.

The first batch of examinees, having finished, were taken to the serene, half-aged Cold Fragrance Garden to rest.

At the entrance of Cold Fragrance Garden stood a large banyan tree with flourishing branches and leaves, blocking much of the sun. A gentle breeze flowed beneath it, quite comforting. The ground was paved with blue flagstones, and inside the garden was a spacious study hall, which should be the classroom for the senior students of the Imperial College, purposely emptied to accommodate the newcomers. Inside was vast, with the students scattered around inspecting, some in company, some alone.

Liu Qingxi noticed Ye Zhi distancing herself from her, so she opted not to engage and found a place in the study hall to sit down.

Elsewhere, Ye Zhi also found a spot under the banyan to sit and wait for Shen Chen.

She had just asked the Teacher, who informed her that each batch, upon finishing the exam, would be brought to Cold Fragrance Garden.

Feeling utterly bored, she recalled Yangzhou noodles, a major delicacy of the city. In the local slang, ten is referred to as spring, and the noodles were sold for ten coins per bowl, thus called Spring Noodles. The soup was clear and fresh, light and savory, mixed with fragrant scallion oil and thoroughly cooked dried shrimp with the noodles. The noodles were tender and smooth, the shrimp soft yet tasty, and the scallion oil exuded a rich fragrance.

"Grumble, grumble..." Her stomach growled with hunger.

Hungry!

Then for lunch, it should be Spring Noodles.

Perhaps afraid of leaking questions or something else, the examinees who finished couldn’t meet those who hadn’t. Hence, by the time the fourth batch came, Shen Chen arrived slowly.

When Ye Zhi saw him, she didn’t ask any pointless questions about his confidence.

If he wasn’t confident, other students would probably be hopeless, this was the definition of a male protagonist.

The first thing she said was, "Shen Chen, let’s have Spring Noodles for lunch."

From a certain perspective, Shen Chen was her family’s "diner," living and eating at the Ye Mansion for free, so naturally, he wouldn’t refuse, and he simply responded with a soft "Hmm." He said no more, his expression still calm, like a serene monk.