First Volume Summary

The first volume has drawn to a close. Our protagonist, Su Lu, has finished his studies at Taiping Academy, received his courtesy name, earned some money, and finally stepped out of the mountains into a much broader world!

This volume shaped quite a few lovable characters that everyone seems to have grown fond of. I was especially worried about the Eldest Aunt at first, fearing the readers might find her repulsive. But the fact that everyone has been so forgiving toward her shows that our readers are truly kind-hearted people who understand that nobody is perfect, and that one should judge people not just by their words, but by their actions.

Moreover, everyone has probably noticed that there are no true villains in the strict sense throughout this volume.

In truth, this is what real life is like. In the starting village, how could there be so many pure, irredeemable scoundrels? We shouldn't force characters to be mindlessly evil all the way through just to manufacture conflict and drive the plot forward.

Take characters like Sheng Wanhfan, Sheng Wanzhou, and Sheng Wantang—at first, they acted like total clowns. Yet once the protagonist demonstrated his capability, they naturally chose the stance that served their own best interests.

Besides, in school environments, being a top student has always been a privilege akin to belonging to the celestial caste, and that was even more so back then. No one would be foolish enough to go against the protagonist day in and day out, because the teachers would blindly protect the academic elite.

Furthermore, the imperial examinations, much like the modern college entrance exams, do not involve fighting for a single exclusive spot. Therefore, the relationships among classmates are not nearly as terrifying as those found in immortal cultivation novels; mutual help and collective progress are entirely possible.

Thus, it should be about peers cherishing their youth together, rather than strangling one's youth.

Consequently, as long as you endow the characters with normal brains, you won't get that many instances of pure, unadulterated malice.

Of course, as the protagonist grows, he will inevitably witness the darker side of human nature. In fact, the early appearances of Scholar Cheng and later Commander Ma, along with Chun'ge's failure at the provincial examination, have already hinted at this, even if they weren't depicted head-on.

The second volume will feature direct confrontations with these elements.

Additionally, this volume covered quite a bit of studying; otherwise, how could we make readers believe the protagonist is capable of becoming the top scorer in the imperial palace examinations? Yet, as everyone has likely noticed, I have never repeated any of the study methods or the knowledge points taught by the teachers—with the sole exception of the eight-legged essay.

To be honest, I really didn't want to write about eight-legged essays because they are excruciatingly difficult. Deliberating over every single sentence takes half a day just to finish one piece. With that amount of effort, I could have written thousands of other words.

However, if I go a dozen chapters without writing a bit of it, the scholarly atmosphere starts to wane. After all, the book is titled *The Top Scholar*.

Actually, I've already exercised great restraint. Since the book was published on shelves, I haven't written a single full-length essay; I just write an opening snippet and leave it at that. Yep, I am definitely not just being lazy.

It is perfectly fine if everyone doesn't entirely understand those parts, because whenever I read the specialized knowledge points in many other novels, I don't understand them either. But it doesn't matter, as long as it sounds vaguely impressive and incomprehensible.

Besides, I never let any of those sections exceed two hundred words.

On the whole, the mission of this volume has been largely accomplished, and I am quite satisfied with it.

In the next volume, the protagonist will pursue his studies in a major city, take the Licentiate examination, and the court politics storyline will also be introduced. These two narrative threads will be linked together through a certain unlucky sage.

In short, it's going to be even more exciting.

Finally, I would like to ask for your monthly votes and subscriptions. Our average subscriptions have already surpassed nine thousand and are on the verge of hitting ten thousand. I sincerely ask everyone for your support!