A Time-Traveling Mishap: I Became an Ancient Nobleman

Chapter 14 A Unique Flower at Tianan Academy

The pageboy didn't say anything more, and left after saying that.

The parents below were furious when they heard this, but they didn't dare to speak loudly and only whispered among themselves.

"Why have the rules of Tianan Academy been changed again?" one of the parents said.

“Yes, last year we could still bring a page and some miscellaneous items,” another parent chimed in.

"Sigh, I could go home every day the year before last. Don't say anymore, Mr. Mo Xuan is right after all. Most of the students who studied at Tianan Academy in recent years have graduated from high school."

Upon hearing this, all the parents nodded in agreement.

That's true. Considering the high high school graduation rate, there's nothing that can't be tolerated.

After listening for a while, Zhou Hanzhang ignored them and pulled Jiang Bowen to walk into the academy gate first.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Mo Xuan, who had just left, was now sitting on a bench in the academy, with a small table next to him, on which tea was brewed, the aroma of which created a rather idyllic atmosphere.

Behind him stood a young student, who looked to be about the same age as them.

When Mo Xuan saw Zhou Hanzhang and Jiang Bowen enter, he looked up at them briefly before lowering his gaze again.

Just as Zhou Hanzhang and his companion were wondering what to do, a page boy came and said to them, "Please stand behind Master Moxuan and wait for a moment."

Although they didn't know what it meant, the two obediently stood behind the old man. Fortunately, it was early morning and the sun wasn't too hot, so standing wasn't too uncomfortable.

Later, more students came in and were told by the page to stand behind Mr. Mo Xuan.

Mr. Mo Xuan didn't say much, silently brewing and drinking his tea. After he finished his cup, he slowly said, "Close the door."

The students behind him immediately erupted into a frenzy, like boiling water.

"There are still students outside who haven't come in yet, why is the gate closed?"

Mr. Mo Xuan ignored them, slowly got up, picked up his bamboo cane, and pointed at them, "When did the academy say we should arrive?"

Then everyone suddenly remembered that they needed to be at the academy before 9 a.m.

A huge sundial was placed at the main gate of the academy, and its shadow fell precisely on the 9:00 AM mark.

"Studying, studying, he can't even keep to the most basic schedule. He's not going to be a good prospect. Our academy can't afford someone like that."

Mr. Mo Xuan picked up his bamboo cane and pointed to the first student who had stood behind him, along with Zhou Hanzhang and Jiang Bowen.

"The three of you follow the page to the schoolhouse. The rest of you will stay here. Two senior brothers will come to give you a simple test later. Only those who pass the test can stay in the academy."

One of the students immediately asked, "Why were the three of them able to go directly to the schoolhouse with the page, while we have to stay here to be tested?"

Mo Xuan grew impatient and tapped the ground twice with his bamboo cane. "Whether you stay or not, get out of here!"

The crowd was so frightened that they immediately fell silent.

The pageboy stepped forward with a smile and said, "This is our academy's rule. The first three students to enter the academy each year do not need to take any tests and can go directly to choose their dormitories."

A chorus of groans erupted from below.

Someone quickly stepped forward and asked the page, "Excuse me, senior brother, what will we be testing later?"

Mo Xuan tapped his bamboo cane on the ground again. "Why ask? You'll find out soon enough. You should know that now that you've entered our academy, you should behave yourselves, observe more, do more, and speak less."

Not long after, a burly young man walked over.

First, he bowed to Mo Xuan and greeted him, "Dean."

Upon seeing this person, Mo Xuan's expression softened slightly. "These rookies are in your hands now. You must carefully examine them and make sure you don't bring in any unsuitable people, or you know the consequences."

The young man's expression turned strange, and he quickly agreed.

The group of freshmen who had been described as noobs by Mo Xuan now looked at the young man in front of them with shining eyes and said, "Greetings, Senior Brother."

Upon seeing this, the young man immediately stood up and introduced himself: "I am your senior brother Meng Yunqi. Now, I will test your physical fitness first."

Everyone looked bewildered. "How is one's physical constitution assessed?"

"It's simple, come with me." As he spoke, he led a group of students to an open space.

Meng Yunqi pointed to the large area of ​​land and said, "I'll give you half a cup of tea's time. You have to run ten laps around here. One lap is one li (a unit of distance in China)."

Looking at the empty land in front of them, the students felt like they could faint on the spot, and some were even secretly thinking of using physical discomfort as an excuse to escape.

"By the way, if you feel unwell or don't finish the run within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, it means you're not in good health and are not suitable to stay at our academy."

Upon hearing this, everyone, even those who were truly unwell, perked up.

At Meng Yunqi's command, everyone sped off.

After a short while, several students who had fainted were dragged out by their servants. The rest were disheveled, their clothes were soaked, and their hair was a mess with sweat dripping down.

They helped each other up and limped to Meng Yunqi's side. "Senior brother, have we passed the test?"

Meng Yunqi nodded with a disgusted look, covering his nose. "You act like this short distance is going to kill you. Your physical condition is still too poor. Go wash up quickly. Your senior brother is waiting for you."

"By the way, you only have about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to wash up. There are spare clothes from our academy in the washroom. If you're late, you..."

Meng Yunqi didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew that this was a gentle reminder from his senior brother.

The students dared not delay any longer and practically dragged their pageboys to the washroom.

After the students finished washing up, another senior student was already waiting for them in an antique-style room.

“There is a piece of paper on each of your tables. My question is that you each write a word on the paper. After I read it, I will decide whether to keep you.”

Should we retain them, depending on the circumstances?

what does that mean?

What should we write on the paper?

Before the newbies could even catch their breath from running, they were nearly driven mad by this strange and meticulous research.

"Oh, you only have the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

The students, whose minds had been completely blank, quickly sat down and racked their brains at the desk. Finally, before the incense burned out, they managed to write down their characters.

The page boy collected all the papers from the desk and placed them on the senior student's desk.

The newbies below looked at their senior brothers above, exchanging bewildered glances.

Someone who knew him whispered, "This looks like Senior Brother Chen Moran."

"What?! No way?" the person who heard it exclaimed in a low voice.

The senior brother sitting above heard what was said below and smiled slightly. "I didn't expect that some of you have heard of me. I forgot to introduce myself. You guessed right, I am Chen Moran. If fate allows, we will become fellow disciples in the future."

Another chorus of wails erupted.

Chen Moran can be considered a unique talent at Tianan Academy.

He was exceptionally talented, excelling in many areas, and especially fond of studying the I Ching and the Eight Trigrams.