The person standing behind him was Xun Mao, whom Qin Zhao knew. Qin Zhao's pupils dilated and his thoughts were confused for a moment.
The emperor took the exam paper and said, "Qin Zhao stepped forward."
Qin Zhao put aside his cluttered thoughts, gathered his mind and went out in line according to the order, bowed and saluted, "The common people kowtow to the emperor."
The emperor was very satisfied with the young man in front of him with a tall and straight figure, handsome face and clear eyes.
The emperor ordered Qi Qige to step forward again. Qi Qige stood next to Qin Zhao, put away his usual laziness and saluted the emperor.
The emperor had long heard that two dark horses emerged from this year's scientific examination, and they were both disciples of Xu University. When they saw it today, they were indeed well-deserved.
Emperor: "Young Promising Young Man, I read your test papers. Although you have different ideas, the result is the same."
The door of the main hall was closed tightly, and from time to time the emperor's laughter and the words of the candidates could be heard. The eunuch in charge secretly glanced at the emperor. It seemed that he was very satisfied with the results of this year's scientific examination.
The results of the palace examination came out soon. As expected, Qin Zhao won the first prize, Qi Qige was second, and the third best was a middle-aged man whom he didn't know.
Cao Xi received the good news and told Ada to choose the best place to watch the champion parade, and she would pay for it.
Naturally, Ada would not let her pay. The Zhuangyuan Building was not only Qiqige's property, but also the only way for the number one scholar to go on parade, so the location had been reserved long ago.
Cao Xi and Ada each held a handful of flowers in their hands and stood in front of the window early.
For about an hour, the sound of playing and beating came from far away. Cao Xi leaned out and could vaguely see Qin Zhao wearing a red champion uniform, riding a horse at the front, followed by Qi Qige.
Cao Xi excitedly pointed in the direction of Qin Zhao, "Ada, look, is that them?"
Ada had long recognized his young master, and his mood was even better than that of Cao Xi. He took out the flowers he had prepared in advance, and his body was almost hanging out of the window.
"Yes, it's them"
The parade was getting closer and closer, Cao Xi waved the bouquet in his hand.
"Qin Zhao, Qin Zhao, I'm here"
Ada also shouted "Master". Unfortunately, a woman's voice is naturally more penetrating than a man's. Cao Xi's innate advantage overshadowed Ada's voice.
Along the way, flower handkerchiefs kept throwing at Qin Zhao and Qi Qige. Such young top picks and second place picks are not common. If they can catch their eyes, it will be a good story.
But Tanhua, who was following the two of them, suddenly lost all color.
Qin Zhao avoided flying flower handkerchiefs while looking for Cao Xi in the crowd.
"Qin Zhao"
Cao Xi's high-pitched voice passed through the crowd and hit Qin Zhao's eardrums. He followed the sound and saw Cao Xi leaning half of his body out of the window, which scared him to the point of losing his mind.
Cao Xi saw Qin Zhao looking at her and excitedly threw out the bouquet in his hand.
Looking at the bouquet flying towards him, Qin Zhao couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth. He tightened the horse's rope, stabilized the horse, and reached out to catch Cao Xi's bouquet.
Wow, there was a lot of exclamation, the number one scholar actually took the initiative to take the flower.
Behind him, Qiqige saw the bouquet Ada threw to him. The corner of his mouth twitched and his body almost leaned against the horse to escape this disaster.
Ada:? ....Why didn’t the young master accept his flowers?
After watching the No. 1 Scholar Parade, Cao Xi and Ada walked home quickly. Due to the crowds of people on the street and the traffic jam, Qin Zhao and the others arrived home half an hour later than Cao Xi.
Qin Zhao's body hadn't entered yet, but the big red flower on his chest came in first. Although it was festive, it was actually a bit silly.
Cao Xi blushed when she saw Qin Zhao holding the flowers she gave her and said, "Why do you still keep these flowers?"
There were no leaves but flowers, and there were a lot of dry branches. Cao Xi was so excited at the time that the bouquet was shaken violently and the petals scattered all over the ground. This was what he discovered when he left the Zhuangyuan Building.
Unexpectedly, Qin Zhao, a fool, hugged him all the way.
Qin Zhao smiled with a joking look on his face, "How can you throw away the flowers sent by your lady at will?"
Cao Xi reached out and untied his corsage, "He's becoming more talkative."
Qin Zhaogang wanted to answer, but was pushed away from behind. Qi Qige removed the red flower from her chest with one hand as soon as she stepped into the hospital.
"Too scary?"
Ada followed closely behind, "Master, why didn't you accept my flower?"
At this point, Qiqige became angry. He kicked Ada in the butt and said, "Shut up, you idiot. How can a man give flowers to a man?"
Qin Zhao and Cao Xi looked at the two of them and laughed.
.............................
In the bedroom.
Cao Xi: "You don't have to take exams anymore. Studying has been the most boring thing since ancient times."
Qin Zhao lowered his eyes and smiled, holding Cao Xi's hands.
"Well, I will have more time to spend with you in the future."
Qin Zhao smiled maliciously, and Cao Xi was so embarrassed that he hit Qin Zhao in the chest.
Cao Xi took off the No. 1 Scholar's uniform for Qin Zhao and said, "The ones made by the palace are good, and the cloth is tight and smooth."
Qin Zhao took the clothes from Cao Xi, hung them up, and led Cao Xi to sit by the bed.
"You have suffered all these years."
"Another nonsense"
Qin Zhao hugged Cao Xi, put his chin on Cao Xi's shoulder, pressed his cheek against Cao Xi's neck, and called softly, "Sister".
Cao Xi, "What?"
Qin Zhao hugged her tightly, his face turning red completely where Cao Xi couldn't see it.
"Sister"'s hoarse voice penetrated the eardrums and hit the heart directly.
Bang bang bang, his heart tightened, his body went limp, and Cao Xi could barely sit still.
"Sister, you have sacrificed a lot for me over the years, and now I have won the top prize, don't you want to have a taste of it?"
"I see that you are becoming more and more unwilling to restrain yourself."
"Ouch, sister, let go"
Cao Xi pinched Qin Zhao's waist, and he grimaced in pain.
"Do you still dare to tease me?"
Qin Zhao felt aggrieved, let go of Cao Xi, took her hand and put it on his lap.
"Sister, if that's the case, have they met since you were preparing for the exam? Now that the dust has finally settled, I want you to have a taste of what it's like to be number one, but you don't appreciate it."
"You dare to say it, I think you are itchy."
Cao Xi's hand that hit the person was intercepted in mid-air, and the other person used his strength to hit him. Cao Xi's body became unstable and he fell on the bed. The bed curtain fell down and blocked the view of the room.
Afterwards, Cao Xi recalled that the first prize tasted really good, and he blushed so much that he couldn't see anyone.
.............
Three days later, Qin Zhao and Qi Qige were summoned to the palace.
Foreign enemies invaded Luzhou, and the war continued. The Zhizhou governor of Luzhou died in the war. There was no one in charge of the Zhizhou city. The people the emperor wanted to send did not want to die. The emperor was aggrieved and had no way to deal with it.
Now that the scientific examination is over, two white men with no background have caught the emperor's eye.
Qin Zhao was granted the title of magistrate of Luzhou, and Qi Qige was assigned to serve in the Ministry of Rites.
After leaving the palace, Qi Qige complained.
"What are you trying to do to stop me? I have martial arts and can still protect myself when I go to Luzhou. How can you survive in Luzhou if you don't have the strength to restrain a chicken and you still have Cao Xi with you?"
"What are you asking for?" Qi Qige grabbed Qin Zhao's arm with a look of pain on his face.
Qin Zhao smiled and said, "I know you have good intentions, but how can you change things that the emperor has decided at will? The Ministry of Etiquette corresponds to diplomacy. You are eloquent, eloquent, and a smiling person. The Ministry of Etiquette is suitable for you."
Qi Qige never sounded like she was praising him.
"You are also insidious and cunning, and you will retaliate for your anger. You are cruel to others when you talk to others. When you went to the Ministry of Rites, you made them even more frightened."
After saying that, the two looked at each other for a long time and smiled bitterly.
Qi Qige reached out and hugged Qin Zhao, choking and saying: "Qin Zhao, I can't let you go."
Qin Zhao patted Qi Qige's back lightly, "My wife said you are not allowed to let others get close to you outside. This will not happen next time."
"Pfft" Qi Qige couldn't hold it back and scolded with a smile: "You deserve to be scolded for being useless."
"If you go to Luzhou and come back safely, I will do my best in the Ministry of Rites to persuade the two countries to truce and negotiate."
"I believe you"
