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Liu Shiye continued reading the list of successful candidates, and with each name, cheers erupted from the crowd. Of course, mixed with the cheers were also many sighs. As the names continued, they had already reached the top ten, and many felt that they didn't have the talent to be among them.
Some of them sighed and, before the list was even finished, left early.
"The ninth place, from Lingdong County, Song Wen."
"The eighth place, from Tiannan County, Wang Kai."
Hearing those familiar names, Su Qian'an and Qin Huai were fine, but Ye Chong, on the other hand, was not pleased at all. This lackey of Wei Yun not only passed the exam but also made it into the top ten. Something must be fishy about it.
Ye Chong thought to himself. If it weren't for the occasion, he would have definitely confronted Song Wen.
Standing next to Wei Yun, Song Wen smiled and nodded when his name was called, casting a glance at Su Qian'an and the others, full of disdain.
"Heh, this lackey is really proud, huh? Just wait, once the announcement is over, let's see how I deal with him."
"It's just the ninth place, what's there to be happy about? Wait and watch, once Qin and Su's names are called, I'll make sure to mock them properly."
Hearing this, Su Qian'an couldn't help but laugh bitterly. It was Ye Chong muttering under his breath.
"This guy from Lingbei County is really harmless." Su Qian'an smiled inwardly.
"Sixth place, from Lingbei County, Qin Huai."
"Fourth place, from Chuan Central County, Liu Zhi."
Sure enough, it wasn't long before Qin Huai's name was read out by Liu Shiye. Ye Chong immediately burst out into thunderous applause, followed by a loud cheer from his subordinates behind him. The atmosphere was intentionally lively.
"Ha, I told you, Qin Huai was definitely a shoo-in. I wonder who was so excited over the ninth place. What a country bumpkin, they've never seen the world."
Ye Chong's sarcasm was obvious, and it soon sparked a wave of mockery. But this time, instead of retaliating, Song Wen, who was Wei Yun's lackey, just stayed silent.
His tightly clenched fists slowly loosened, and when his cold gaze fell on Ye Chong, it was filled with a subtle sense of triumph.
Although Song Wen was trying to hide it, Su Qian'an noticed.
Su Qian'an didn't care if Song Wen was up to something. He was just a lackey, not even worth considering. Throughout all of this, Su Qian'an had never taken him seriously.
However, from the list of successful candidates just read, Su Qian'an did pay attention to one thing: nearly half of the 47 candidates were from Chuan Central County.
Next were Lingbei and Lingdong counties, each occupying 15 slots. The rest came from other counties.
Chuan Central County, as the largest county under the jurisdiction of Chuandu District, had not only a large population but also a strong economy and a wealth of talent. Over the years, Chuan Central's people had held key positions in many sectors of Chuandu.
The Wei family had almost dominated Chuan Central County. No official in the county could afford to disrespect them, and this was Wei Yun's greatest support.
Therefore, it was no surprise that nearly half of the successful candidates came from Chuan Central County.
"In the future, we need to be cautious when dealing with the Wei family."
From this small event, Su Qian'an could already see the power of the Wei family in Chuan Central. To completely bring them down would require long-term planning.
After reading out the names of the 47 successful candidates, Liu Shiye paused for a moment, opened the final scroll, and after a brief silence, announced loudly.
"The top three in this county's exam are: Zheng Can, Qin Ming, and Wei Yun."
At the moment the names were read, the crowd went silent for a moment, before erupting into thunderous applause. This time, however, the cheers didn't come from Ye Chong's side but from Song Wen's.
Ye Chong, Qin Huai, and the other students from Lingbei County were stunned, as if they had misheard. Not only them, but even Liu Shiye, who was reading the list, seemed shocked.
For fairness, the officials did not know the list in advance. It was only when the names were announced that everyone, including the officials, learned who had succeeded.
The shock came because Su Qian'an's name was not on the list.
At first, they had thought Su Qian'an would be among the top candidates, so being placed further down the list seemed natural. But when the names of all 50 successful candidates had been read, and Su Qian'an's name was nowhere to be found, it became clear—Su Qian'an had failed.
The crowd was shocked, and Su Qian'an himself was surprised for a moment. However, he quickly adjusted and patted Ye Chong and Qin Huai on the shoulder, saying lightly.
"Looks like I failed this time. But it's all good, no need to feel sorry for me. I'll just take the exam again next year."
Su Qian'an's calmness was met with surprise, but Ye Chong was far from satisfied. He shook his head and immediately spoke.
"With Su brother's talent, how could you possibly fail? Even my foolish self made it, how could you not?"
"Exactly," Qin Huai added. "This is strange. Don't worry, I'll get to the bottom of it and make sure you get justice."
Before Qin Huai could finish, Song Wen's sarcastic voice rang out, interrupting.
"Heh, what talent? Failure is failure. And you want to investigate? Is that a challenge to the exam results? Are you questioning the three examiners?"
"Who's this dog barking over here?" Ye Chong sneered, "Song, if you've got something to say, come say it to me. But leave my brother Su out of this."
"Shut up, you scoundrel. I'm not in the mood to argue with you right now, but if you keep pushing it, I'll make you regret it."
As Ye Chong was about to respond, Song Wen was already stepping forward, ready to escalate things into a fight.
Just as the two were about to clash, Liu Shiye's voice rang out from the podium.
"How dare you fight right outside the county office after just being announced as successful candidates? Do you think this is a joke? Anyone who steps forward will be arrested and thrown in jail immediately."
Liu Shiye's words carried a strong deterrent force. Despite their internal frustrations, both parties knew the seriousness of the situation and restrained themselves from fighting.
Seeing the tension ease, Liu Shiye's cold voice rang out again, "If anyone is dissatisfied with the results of this county exam and has solid evidence, they may appeal to the county magistrate."
"Wei Yun, are you questioning my authority?" Liu Shiye shot a cold glare at Wei Yun.
Wei Yun, realizing the situation, quickly backed down, saying, "I apologize, I was just anxious. You're right, it's the students' right to appeal. I shouldn't have said anything in front of you."
Liu Shiye nodded, not saying anything more. Given his position, getting Wei Yun to back down was as much as he could do.
This was his final act to protect Su Qian'an.
Liu Shiye's words were clear, and Ye Chong, not being foolish, immediately took over the conversation.
"Don't worry, we will appeal. We'll make sure Su brother gets justice. Thank you, Master Liu, for your help. We won't trouble you further."
With that, Ye Chong and Qin Huai didn't even spare Wei Yun a glance and left with Su Qian'an.
Song Wen, sensing the situation, didn't try to stop them and allowed them to leave.
He turned to Wei Yun, quietly saying, "Brother Yun, it seems this is getting complicated. With Ye Chong's temperament, he'll surely push for an appeal. What do we do now?"
Wei Yun shook his head, replying in an obscure tone, "Don't worry about it. Let them appeal. Even if Su Qian'an has someone like Fang Jingzhi backing him, so what? Even if the appeal is successful, the top 50 slots are filled. Nothing will change."
"Let them be. We'll move on."
With Wei Yun's words, Song Wen's anxiety eased. He nodded and quickly followed Wei Yun out.
Watching them leave, Liu Shiye couldn't help but let out a small, knowing smile. He looked at their departing figures with an expression that seemed to view them as fools.
If Wei Yun had just left Su Qian'an alone, there might not have been any trouble. But unfortunately, he had to play with his little tricks.
Liu Shiye could never forget that night when Su Qian'an had been pushed by Xie Hou, and Xie Hou had said:
"This boy, if he ever rises, will soar to great heights."
Dealing with this rising star, it seemed that Wei Yun had truly messed up.
Liu Shiye snapped back to his senses, shook his head, and turned to head to the county office. Today's events still needed to be reported to the absent Fang Jingzhi and Xie Hou.
This matter was likely to cause a great stir.