"To be able to pass the theory examination and the first half of the combat examination, you are all outstanding talents of the younger generation in the Jing Kingdom..."
According to the usual practice, before the final segment, an official from the Ministry of Rites had to give a formal speech.
Li Yi had never seen this official before. He scanned the crowd and saw many familiar faces, but there were even more new faces.
He had been away for five years, and many officials had been promoted or demoted. The surrounding officials and nobles glanced at him and then back, but there were two gazes that were always on him.
Those were two gazes in the same direction.
After being in a high position for so long, MIngzhu had a sense of supreme authority. This kind of authority was not present on the sloppy Li Xuan.
All the immaturity and immaturity could no longer be seen on Shouning's face. She wore a palace dress and sat beside MIngzhu. She had on light makeup, and her eyes were looking in this direction.
Li Xuan tilted his head and looked at Shouning and MIngzhu. He asked, "Why are you not anxious at all? Do you know something?"
No one answered him.
The official from the Ministry of Rites had reached the end of his speech, "The first half of the combat examination has ended. For the second half, Princess Shouning will test you personally..."
What had just happened was only the first half of the combat examination. Only by passing the first half would one have the chance to be tested by Princess Shouning.
The princess' test was simple. The person who could defeat her would be the Emperor's son-in-law.
If no one or more people won, the decision would be made by the Empress Dowager and the Princess Consort.
Shouning walked down from above, holding a sword in one hand.
A young man walked into the hall from the crowd. He held a long knife and bowed to her respectfully, "Your Highness, please excuse me!"
Whispers could be heard among the officials.
"He is a junior from the Zheng Family. No wonder he could pass two rounds and stand here."
"The Zheng Family has a genius in both literature and martial arts."
"I wonder if he can defeat Princess Shouning. If he can marry Princess Shouning, the Zheng family's rise will be imminent …"
…
As the officials whispered among themselves, the official from the Ministry of Rites struck the gong, signaling the start of the competition.
The young man had already unsheathed his sword the moment the gong rang. Last year, during the military examination, he had lost to Princess Shouning, who was disguised as a man, by three moves. In the past year, he had trained hard and his strength had improved greatly. He thought that he had a fifty-fifty chance of winning.
Clang!
He drew his sword very quickly, but Shouning was even faster.
Halfway through pulling out his saber, a white shadow flashed in front of him. When he came back to his senses, a cold sword was already at his neck.
Seeing this scene, a fatty who had just sat up from the ground took the opportunity to lie back down.
Among the nine of them, several of them couldn't help but shudder and take half a step back.
"I … I lost." The young man tilted his head and looked at the sword on his neck in disbelief.
The officials were also stunned.
From the looks of it, these people who had worked so hard to pass the written examination might not even be able to pass Princess Shouning's martial examination.
This junior of the Zheng Family was already a rare genius in both literature and martial arts. People like him couldn't possibly reach the pinnacle of both...
As for him, he was already one of the most outstanding individuals among the ten.
Shou Ning withdrew his sword and simply threw it on the ground, saying, "Next."
The official from the Ministry of Rites immediately said, "Next, Peng Er."
No one responded.
A eunuch walked over to take a look and said, "Peng Er has fainted."
Fainted people naturally couldn't compete with the princess and were treated as forfeiting. The official from the Ministry of Rites crossed off Peng Er's name and said, "Next..."
"I forfeit..." a young man said hurriedly. "I am not a match for the princess, I forfeit..."
Many of the people present shook their heads.
It was fine if he was not a match, but if he didn't even have the courage to fight, it would be too cowardly.
This time, it wasn't just for Princess Shouning's consort. The officials of the court also wanted to see if there was someone with both ability and virtue among these people so that they could guide them in the future...
Clearly, this young man's forfeit had disappointed those who had their eyes on him.
Up above, the Empress Dowager shook her head when she saw that only two people were left after Shouning eliminated them. "This child... should have passed the martial examination first and then the written examination. She and MIngzhu have practiced martial arts for so many years. How could these young people be a match for her?"
Beside her, Concubine Yan smiled and said, "That's not necessarily true..."
Watching those people being eliminated by Princess Shou Ning one after another, the official from the Ministry of Rites stood in the hall with a helpless expression and said, "Next, Mu Zi."
Li Yi wasn't the last person. He didn't know how the list of competitors was arranged, but there was still one person behind him.
Shouning thought about it and walked to the side of the official from the Ministry of Rites. She pointed to the last person and said, "I will compete with him first."
The official from the Ministry of Rites was startled. "Your Highness, this..."
"You can't do it, right? If you can't, then I won't compete..."
"Alright, alright..." The official didn't dare to say no. It wasn't difficult to change the order of the competition. If Her Highness didn't compete now, it would be a huge mistake for the Ministry of Rites. He would definitely be skinned by the Minister afterwards...
He looked at the name list again and said, "Next, Long Tao."
The officials didn't know what Her Highness had said to the official from the Ministry of Rites. They felt it strange that the order of the competition was suddenly changed, but they didn't take it to heart.
The last young man was a weak scholar. He looked at Shouning and said with a trembling voice, "Please, please show mercy, Your Highness."
"I won't hit you!" Shouning thought about it and said, "Why don't you forfeit..."
The young man's expression became solemn. He said, "A man should face difficulties head-on and not retreat. Even if I'm not a match for Your Highness, I will still try."
The eyes of the surrounding people brightened slightly.
"You have some courage..."
"You know you can't win, but you still do it. Not bad..."
"Even if you lose, you are so much stronger than the previous few..."
...
Shouning looked at him and nodded. She picked up the long sword that she had put down after the first round and said, "Then make your move. In order to respect you, I won't show mercy..."
The young man thought of the people who had been eliminated and then looked at the sword she picked up. His heart trembled.
In the next moment, a look of determination appeared on his face, and he strode forward to meet them.
So what if he failed? Retreating because of fear was more shameful than failure!
Thump!
He suddenly sprained his ankle and fell to the ground.
He held his ankle, cold sweat dripping from his forehead. "My, my ankle is sprained..."
Contestant number nine was carried off for treatment because he had accidentally sprained his ankle. When he was carried off, he looked disappointed, as if he would not have retreated if he had not sprained his ankle.
At this point, among the ten people, only Mu Zi was left.
Of course, this did not mean that he was the Emperor's son-in-law. If he had not passed Princess Shouning's test like the previous people, he would have ended up the same as the previous people.
The people who had been eliminated could not help but look at him.
As long as he lost, they still had a chance.
The official from the Ministry of Rites cleared his throat and said, "Next, Mu Zi."
Li Yi took a few steps forward and stood in the middle of the hall. He looked at the woman opposite him.
Shouning was also looking at him. Her expression was a little absent-minded as she stood there in a daze.
She just looked at him.
After a long time, the official walked to Shouning and cleared his throat. He whispered, "Princess, the competition has begun..."
Shouning looked away and nodded.
He gripped his long sword and strode into the hall.
She suddenly sprained her ankle. Her body swayed and the long sword in her hand fell to the ground.
"Sprained my ankle..." She steadied herself and limped to Li Yi's side. She raised her head, her eyes filled with tears. "I admit defeat."
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