Gu Lan thought about the doubts in his heart when he first came to the capital.
The old master in front of him was a veteran of three dynasties.
There should be very few things in officialdom that he doesn't know about.
Zhang Qing smoothed his white beard slightly, frowned and said: "Hiss! How can what I said, little friend, sound like imperial examination fraud?"
"Well...it's fraud!"
"Ah? Who dares to be so bold!"
Zhang Qingwei said: "Our empress attaches great importance to the strictness of the imperial examination. If we find out, we will definitely kill the three tribes!"
"This...a friend of mine asked me to ask, haha..."
Gu Lan was ashamed.
Sure enough, it is important to find out who that person is first!
If one day in the future something comes to light and the empress comes to visit, she can drag that guy out and take the blame. She really doesn't know about it!
"That's it."
Zhang Qingwei's expression softened, and he thought for a while and said: "If you can help people commit fraud and hide it from the Supervisory Yuan, you must be an official of the fourth rank or above in the court."
"Is fourth grade enough?"
Gu Lan was stunned.
The search scope is too large.
"Do you think the fourth grade is very small?"
Zhang Qingwei rolled his eyes: "Even if you really get Jinshi and enter the Hanlin Academy, it will take you more than half your life to get into the fourth rank. Some people will only reach the third rank in their lifetime."
"How fast can it be done with the help of Sima Xiangguo?"
Gu Lan said with a deep smile.
"That guy is a cool official, he can't be supported!"
Zhang Qing smiled.
"What about you?"
"Hey, what do you mean? In your eyes, am I not..."
"In addition to chess records and poems, I also have some long poems in parallel prose. The quality is high but not low!"
"Ahem...that can only allow you to enter the fifth rank of the imperial court!"
Zhang Qingwei blushed.
Although he didn't want to admit it, he did envy the literary talent of a genius like Gu Lan.
He had studied it all his life, and he would have gained more by reading what Gu Lan had written casually.
Your Majesty must be able to forgive you for bending the law for the sake of the development of world literature...
"You're kidding, I don't want to be an official!"
Gu Lan sat on the chair prepared for him in the high pavilion, looking like a wandering crane.
Zhang Qingwei nodded: "Actually, it's okay not to be an official. There aren't so many worries... Do you want to play a game? I've already read your chess record!"
"Okay, as you wish!"
Looking at the confident old man, Gu Lan smiled.
A black and white battlefield opened up between the two of them again.
All in one afternoon.
Gu Lan won eight games in a row against Zhang Qingwei.
During this period.
He also gradually figured out that the big shot who gave him a back door might not be so easy to find out.
Moreover, it is best not to even know about this kind of thing, otherwise it will expose the risk that both of them will kill the three tribes.
Gu Lan actually suspected it was Zhang Qingwei at first.
But a month ago, he didn't even know that someone like him existed. With the old man's character, it was definitely impossible.
"To be further checked..."
Gu Lan retracted his thoughts and his eyes gradually became clear.
Snap!
One piece fell, and the ninth game was settled.
"Lost again!"
Zhang Qingwei was very distressed.
If it weren't for the sake of face, he would have gone to the palace to invite the Empress or Tutor Su Hua to play chess with Gu Lan. He wanted to see where Gu Lan's limit was!
Could it be that he is really a natural national player?
"Come on again, failure is the mother of success, Master, you must understand this truth."
Gu Lan smiled, mixed the chessboard evenly, and started fighting again.
"This is almost like our ancestors..."
Zhang Qingwei's mentality is a bit broken. Fortunately, he has been addicted to chess for a lifetime, otherwise he would not be able to be so good and playful.
"Old Master, where is your hometown?"
Gu Lan chatted with him about home affairs.
Thinking that this should relieve his sadness.
"In Shuzhou, I studied in Shuzhou in my early years. Later, after entering the royal realm from Wen Dao, I came to Jingguo and made friends with the late emperor."
Zhang Qingwei said: "No, if he tricked me into going to the palace to help take care of the children, most of my life will be gone!"
"You get a bargain but you still act arrogantly."
Gu Lan teased: "I think Jingguo has given you a lot of resources. Becoming an immortal does not rely solely on talent."
"Ha! There are resources and opportunities!"
Zhang Qing frowned slightly, then suddenly slapped his forehead and said, "Speaking of opportunities, I almost forgot about something important!"
"What?"
"Wait a moment, little friend!"
Zhang Qingwei fumbled twice from his sleeve robe, took out a piece of jade and handed it to Gu Lan. It glowed brightly, as if it had some words engraved on it.
"This is called the Spiritual Jade. It is an immortal jade along with the Spirit-Making Jade and the Spirit-Destroying Jade. It has the function of sensing the changes in spiritual energy between heaven and earth."
"Just yesterday, a piece of news came from above."
"It seems that the secret realm of Shuzhou Tianshan will be opened in the next few days!"
The secret realm of Tianshan Mountain in Shuzhou.
When Gu Lan heard this name, he was not unfamiliar with it.
Because in the original work, this is a secret realm explained at the beginning, and I heard that it contains ancient inheritance and peerless opportunities!
Moreover, Shuzhou is a holy land of literature and Taoism.
It is very likely that it will be beneficial to add something to your system.
"Aren't there any restrictions on this secret realm?"
Gu Lan pondered and asked, "Don't be like the novels in the previous life. If the realm exceeds xx, you are not allowed to enter, or you will be suppressed to the same realm."
Why should you suppress the cultivation I earned through hard work copying books?
"There is a limit to bone age."
Zhang Qingwei's eyes lit up: "However, my little friend is just right!"
Hear the words.
Gu Lan's heart suddenly moved!
The bone age limit is much easier to deal with. With my own cultivation and speed, I can definitely pack all the high-end resources inside.
Then he left without anyone noticing.
Gu Lan thought leisurely while playing chess carelessly.
At this time!
Zhang Qing squinted his eyes slightly at the chessboard, burst into laughter, and quickly made a move on a flaw: "Hahaha, a fool will always succeed after all his considerations. I finally won the game against my little friend!"
"Ah, Master, you have made some progress, I'm so happy to congratulate you!"
Gu Lan smiled.
actually.
He just gave in on purpose!
The old man has told himself about this opportunity, and it means that he treats him completely as one of his own, so how can he have the nerve to let him lose in ten games?
"Well, it all depends on my little friend's chess skills!"
Zhang Qingwei may have known that Gu Lan was letting him go, but he didn't tell the truth, stroking his long gray beard with a smile.
...
Gu Mansion, dinner room.
There are six people in the family, and the master and servant never separate tables.
The main hall is filled with a happy atmosphere.
After Gu Lan had eaten his fill, he wiped his mouth and said with a smile: "I won another lottery from the old master today and got some news... I heard that a treasure land in Shuzhou will be opened the day after tomorrow. Then Tan'er and Zhongren will go to explore it. Fan it."
Lin Tan'er is worthy of being the destined daughter.
Even if she usually doesn't put much thought into cultivation and spends most of her time working to pay off debts, she has now reached the Great Perfection of the innate realm, which is enough to look down on practitioners of her age!
So this time she should be allowed to go out and find her own opportunities.
Lin Tan'er nodded obediently.
When the young master says one thing, she never says two things.
Zhongren was very excited when he heard that he could go out to play.
"Brother Gu, are you going with us too?"
"I'm just going to see you off. Master, I won't get involved in the affairs of the immortal cultivators..."
Gu Lan raised the corners of his mouth and smiled slightly.
Looking at Mu Yuyan who was picking up food for her, she hesitated and asked, "By the way, madam, have you... felt any changes in your body in the past few days?"
