Chapter 29: The Announcement of Results

“I have something to say, but I don’t know if I should!” The chubby Su Lang came out as well, lips pouting so much you could tie a cow to them. “No matter how hard the questions are, we’ll take it, but they can’t test us on things outside the curriculum!”

“And where exactly is the curriculum? Who gave it to you?” At this moment, a few members of the Cheng family strolled over, sneering as they overheard Su Lang. “The academy sets its own entrance exams; they can make them as hard as they want. Let me give you a tip—if you’d just practiced composition solving for a while, you’d know how to answer.”

The Su brothers didn’t bother arguing, stepping aside to let them pass.

“It’s because your family school is so hopeless,” the Cheng boys taunted, even as they walked past, taking full advantage of the moment. “Makes sense—if your teacher knew how to teach composition, you wouldn’t keep failing the county exams…”

He hadn’t finished his sentence before a hefty kick landed on his backside, sending him sprawling face-first into the mud. The crowd of examinees burst into laughter.

“Ow! Which bastard just kicked me?!” He pushed himself up, glaring back furiously, only to see the five Su boys still standing exactly as before, arms crossed, with an air of perfect innocence.

“Cut the act. It was you lot.” His brothers helped him up, all of them glaring at the Su boys.

“Don’t slander us. We scholars use words, not fists,” sneered Su Dan, the sharp-tongued one. “He tripped and fell on his own.”

“Lies! How does someone fall and end up with a shoeprint on his backside?” the Cheng boys retorted, pointing at the muddy mark.

“He fell, you accidentally stepped on him,” the Su brothers replied, utterly composed. They’d already blown the exam, so nothing could faze them now.

“If you dare slander us again, we’ll teach you a lesson you’ll never forget!” Su Lang rolled up his sleeves, the others cracking their knuckles. “If you Cheng brats keep yapping, we’ll have to loosen up your bones a little!”

They were barefoot, but the Cheng boys wore shoes—clearly, they were confident of passing…

“Don’t fall for their trap—don’t let them drag you down with them!” one of the Cheng youths warned his companions.

“Thank you for the warning! We almost let them trick us,” the Cheng group realized, fleeing without another word.

The Su boys roared with laughter, striding out with their heads held high, the gloom in their hearts somewhat dispelled.

But it was all for nothing.

Once they passed through the academy’s gates and saw their families waiting anxiously, their faces fell once more.

Su Lu was no exception. Ashamed to meet his father’s eyes, he lowered his head before Su Youcai. “Father, I’m sorry. I failed…”

“I already heard. It’s not your fault—if anyone is to blame, it’s me for not teaching you well enough,” Su Youcai said softly, ruffling his hair. “Didn’t I tell you? The fact that you made it to the final round surprised me already.”

He paused before grinning. “Besides, the results aren’t out yet. What if my son’s name is on the list? Then all my comforting wouldn’t be wasted, would it?”

“Yes, Father.” Su Lu nodded. Of course, he hadn’t given up hope, but the odds seemed slim…

Su Youcai had other students to console and signaled his second son to take over.

Su Tai stepped in, whispering, “Want to try crying a little? Might help.”

Su Lu couldn’t help but laugh, but seeing his brother reminded him of everything his family had done for him, and his nose stung with emotion.

“No tears—swallow them back!” came a stern voice. Chun Ge, their eldest, stepped forward with a serious look. “A Su man can bleed and sweat, but he doesn’t cry!”

“I wasn’t going to cry,” Su Lu protested. “Just got dust in my eyes.”

“Hmph.” Su Man, uncharacteristically gentle, said, “You only studied for three months. The others have had six or seven years, at least. The fact that you held your own until the last round is a miracle.”

“It’s meaningless—no different from being eliminated in the morning,” Su Lu shook his head with a wry smile. “In the end, I’ve only embarrassed you, big brother.”

“Don’t say that—you haven’t!” Su Man looked stricken. “I only said those things to push you…”

He raised his hand and slapped himself on the right cheek, muttering, “I deserve that—shouldn’t have spoken so harshly!”

“Big brother, don’t be like that. I know you mean well!” Su Lu quickly tried to calm him.

“I won’t let you talk like that, either. You’ve proven your talent and determination—how can you say it’s meaningless?” Su Man waved off his concern, trying to sound casual. “It’s not like Taiping Academy is the only path to becoming a licentiate…”

But even as he spoke, his confidence faltered. In their entire garrison, every boy who’d passed the exam in decades had come from this very academy. The counterexample was their second uncle, who’d stubbornly refused to send his son here, with predictable results…

“Even if no one’s ever done it before, you can be the first,” Su Man finished, slapping his left cheek this time.

“Big brother, please don’t!” Su Lu was stunned—was this self-punishment becoming a habit?

“Don’t scare me, big brother,” Su Tai echoed, alarmed.

“It’s nothing—I’m just mad at myself for not knowing how to comfort you,” Su Man said, frustrated.

“Big brother, you’re too hard on yourself,” Su Lu sighed. “Don’t worry, I’m really fine now.”

It was clear to him that his brother truly took his siblings’ worries as his own…

“In short, I won’t let you give up your studies. And I’ll never give up on you, either,” Su Man said fiercely.

“Yes, big brother.” Su Lu nodded quickly, afraid to trigger another round of self-slapping.

Even their uncle came over to ease the tension, speaking kindly, “You must be exhausted. Rest up before the New Year. Don’t worry about anything else until it’s over.”

But the three boys didn’t respond…

Seeing the awkward silence, their uncle forced a laugh, trying to lighten the mood. “Anyway, the results aren’t out yet. Who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky…”

“Father, you’re not much better at this than big brother,” Chun Ge couldn’t help but say.

“Fine.” Their uncle gave himself a slap, too.

Crude as it was, their uncle was right: until the results were posted, even the most pessimistic candidates clung to a glimmer of hope…

So, not a single one of the two hundred examinees or their families left. All waited outside the academy gates.

Waiting was agonizing. The chubby Su Lang wanted to eat up all his snacks before the results, but he had no appetite—they tasted like sawdust.

Fortunately, the academy was efficient. The two hundred papers were graded and ranked in short order, the names transcribed onto a large sheet of red paper and carried out before night fell.

Two student helpers brushed paste on the courtyard wall and stuck up the three-foot-long, one-foot-wide red list.

The teacher in charge announced loudly, “Successful candidates, report on the sixteenth day of the new year with your registration papers and fees. If you’re late, you forfeit your spot!”

Nobody paid him any mind. The examinees and parents surged forward, crowding around the list so tightly not even a drop of water could get through.

To be fair, the academy was partly to blame. Posting the list so late, and in such small print, forced everyone to push forward.

The teacher was almost knocked over, rescued just in time by the two helpers, who shielded him as they fled the crowd.

Outside, people kept squeezing in, shoulders turned, necks craned, eyes locked on the list, searching from top to bottom for their son’s name.

Su Lu was in the throng, but he wasn’t tall or strong enough to get to the front. On tiptoe, he could only see the top twenty names—none of them his.

He was desperately trying to think of a way to see the rest when he was suddenly lifted up under the arms.

Looking back, he saw it was his second brother. Grinning in thanks, Su Lu turned back to the list. Now, he could see all but the very last row.

At last, at the fortieth name, he spotted it—Su Dan, the sharp-tongued one!

Seeing the name, Su Lu shouted, “Su Dan! You made it!”

Su Dan, the skinny, sharp-tongued one, was stuck outside the crowd, anxiously pacing. The moment he heard, he jumped three feet in the air. “Ha! I made it! Father, I made it!”

“Hurry, help us check—” Su Lang urged Su Lu.

By now, Su Lu had finished scanning the list and told his brother, “Put me down.”

“How was it?” Before Su Lu’s feet even touched the ground, everyone was already crowding around, asking.

“No luck, except maybe on the bottom row,” Su Lu shook his head.

“Ninety-nine percent sure it’s over, then…” The others sighed in unison. Still, who could walk away without checking every name? No one gives up until all hope is gone.

So they waited.

The boys watched as, from the dense crowd, parents struggled out, faces glistening with sweat—some overjoyed, some crestfallen, some caught between hope and disappointment…

The boys' emotions were simpler. If their father told them they’d passed, they jumped and cheered; if not, they were inconsolable.

To Su Lu and his friends, the noise was just grating. Finally, when the crowd thinned, the boys slipped through like fish, dodging into the space below the wall to check the last row of names.

But that final row held no more “Su” names.

Now, all hope was gone. The chubby Su Lang forced a laugh. “Well, that’s that. Let’s go home.”

“Come on—let’s go,” the boys nodded, dejected, turning to leave.

“Wait!” Chun Ge squeezed in just then. Ever meticulous, he counted the names on the red list and said, “Weren’t there supposed to be sixty admitted? Why is there one missing?”

One of the helpers, still nearby, replied, “How could there be? With so many eyes watching, there are exactly sixty places—not one more, not one less.”

“Count for yourself,” Su Man pointed at the list.

There were still plenty of people around. Hearing this, they started counting aloud, “Two, four, six, eight, ten…”

“Fifty-nine!”

“It’s really fifty-nine!” Everyone finished counting and began shouting, “Did you make a mistake?!”

Their last desperate hope—the graders had made an error.

They still couldn’t give up until the very end.