"Boss Ming, are all the judges for your restaurant personally invited by you?" Gongsun Liangce had at least managed to see Ming Lingyi today, and he felt he should take the initiative to ask her directly.

’What if? What if my friend has a chance, too?’

’After all, it gets you into the official gazette. In a way, isn’t that basically like publishing your own work?’

"Not all of them are invited by Boss Ming."

Just then, at Shangguan Jun’s table, as he and Qiao Ming were telling their teacher the news they had gathered, someone from a nearby table suddenly interjected.

Chen Guochao had been a little dejected upon hearing his students’ words. He didn’t even know the owner of Ming’s Restaurant. And she, he’d heard, was a woman, so she probably had never heard his name either. ’How could the owner of Ming’s Restaurant possibly invite me?’

The elderly Imperial Doctor felt a wave of melancholy.

Just as Chen Guochao felt that his chances of participating in such a review were hopeless, he heard the voice from the next table.

Chen Guochao whipped his head around and saw a somewhat chubby middle-aged man sitting there.

Chen Guochao didn’t know who this man was, but Shangguan Jun and Qiao Ming recognized him immediately.

"Mr. Du!"

They had become friendly after meeting at the restaurant many times. What’s more, Du Xuan had recently made a fortune because of Ming’s Restaurant, and a significant portion of the silver he earned came from the students of the Imperial College. Evidently, Shangguan Jun and Qiao Ming were regular customers at Du Xuan’s own shop.

"Young Master Shangguan, Mr. Qiao," Du Xuan greeted them cheerfully.

"Mr. Du, you just said that the judges aren’t necessarily invited by Boss Ming. What did you mean by that? Is it true?" Shangguan Jun took the initiative to ask on behalf of his teacher.

Du Xuan was one of the most frequent patrons at Ming’s Restaurant. Since their businesses weren’t far apart, they interacted often, and as a result, he was on good terms with every employee there.

"I heard it from Miss Xiao Chun. Didn’t their restaurant just hire a new gentleman? You all should know by now, it’s the son of the former Grand Tutor Ming’s family, Mr. Ming. And Mr. Ming is good friends with many young masters in Shangjing City, so today’s Mr. Zhang was actually recommended to Boss Ming by Mr. Ming. After all, Boss Ming is a lady; how many men in Shangjing City could she possibly know? So, in my opinion, if you want to be a judge for the poetry event at Ming’s Restaurant, you can totally just put yourself forward!" Du Xuan glanced at Chen Guochao. Although he didn’t know who the man was, it was clear he was a professor from the Imperial College.

Du Xuan was secretly amazed. ’It’s not that I was trying to eavesdrop on the conversation between the teacher and his two students,’ he thought. ’It’s just that their tables are so close, it was hard not to overhear.’

’An Imperial Doctor wants to be a judge at Ming’s Restaurant?!’

This news was simply astonishing to him.

What kind of place was the Imperial College? It was the most prestigious academy in the entire Dayan Dynasty. The Imperial Doctors who held positions there were all men of the highest culture and learning.

’And someone like that wants to volunteer to be a judge at Ming’s Restaurant?’

’Heavens,’ Du Xuan couldn’t help but think, ’that’s Boss Ming for you. She always manages to surprise me!’

As a member of Huaided Fang, he felt truly happy!

Shangguan Jun and Qiao Ming exchanged a look. ’Have their teacher recommend himself?’

’Is... is that appropriate?’

But before the two could say anything, someone at another nearby table also overheard Du Xuan and asked in surprise, "You can actually recommend yourself?"

The voice made all four of them turn their heads in unison.

Du Xuan didn’t recognize the person who had just spoken to him, but how could Shangguan Jun, Qiao Ming, and the seated Chen Guochao not know who it was?

"Dr. Liu."

"Mr. Liu."

"Yo, Xiao Liu."

Three voices rang out at the same time.

Liu Yu was quite a bit younger than Chen Guochao and hadn’t been teaching at the Imperial College for long. However, he was easy-going and got along well with the students.

He was in charge of C Hall, and in truth, he still had some trouble keeping his students in line.

Liu Yu stood up and clasped his hands in Chen Guochao’s direction. "Dr. Chen." Then he nodded to the two students who had greeted him before turning back to Du Xuan, his eyes filled with a certain eagerness. "Was what this gentleman just said all true? Can you really recommend yourself?"

"Ah," Du Xuan let out a sound of surprise, only then realizing this man was also a Doctor from the Imperial College. "It should be. Boss Ming is very easy to talk to. If you, sir, would like to give it a try, I have a friendly relationship with Boss Ming. After today’s judging is over, I can make an introduction for you."

Liu Yu didn’t overthink it like Chen Guochao. He barely hesitated. Upon hearing Du Xuan’s words, he immediately picked up his wine cup from the table, walked over, and clinked it against Du Xuan’s. "Then I thank you!"

’If I can get connected with Ming’s Restaurant and become a judge, will it be long before my name appears in the official gazette?’

Thinking of how the official gazette sold out at Liufang Bookstore on the day of its release, it was hard to imagine any scholar who wouldn’t be envious.

Chen Guochao hadn’t expected that in the brief moment he was lost in thought, someone had already beaten him to it, establishing a connection with Du Xuan first.

’I never said I wasn’t willing to recommend myself!’

’The honest and introverted always lose out!’

However, on second thought, Chen Guochao figured that if Ming’s Restaurant really did accept self-recommendations, he could just wait and see if Liu Yu managed to get in. If he could, it wouldn’t be too late for him to go then. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

There were quite a few people today who had the same idea as Liu Yu and Chen Guochao.

Meanwhile, Shangguan Jun and Qiao Ming, sitting at the same table, were completely dumbfounded.

’One Doctor from our Imperial College wants to be a judge at Ming’s Restaurant, and that’s not enough, now there’s another one?’

’In the future, will there come a day when all the judges at Ming’s Restaurant are professors from our Imperial College?’

’Then...’

Shangguan Jun’s eyes met Qiao Ming’s once again. The two had a strong rapport, and this time, they saw their own thoughts reflected in the other’s eyes—

’If we submit poems to Ming’s Restaurant in the future, during the judging, won’t we get chewed out mercilessly by our own professors? The kind of public humiliation where three of them take turns scolding us.’

At the thought of such a "grand occasion," both Shangguan Jun and Qiao Ming couldn’t help but shiver, and even the fat on their bodies seemed to tremble along with them.

The new "judging panel" was indeed very different from the old one, which had been composed of Shangjing’s Twin Beauties and the founding members of the old Xianyun Liushui Pavilion. Whether it was Ming Chengyu, Zhang Sifan, or Pu Yan—who had been frustrated and unrecognized for years—each had their own unique insights when critiquing poetry.

When the three of them came together as judges and had differing opinions, they would argue their points vigorously. They turned a simple review session into something that resembled a spirited Buddhist debate from a state temple, which was quite interesting.

The debaters’ expositions were fascinating, and the listeners felt they benefited immensely. For a time, Ming’s Restaurant, or rather, the entire Huaided Fang, was abuzz with excitement.

It was not hard to imagine that after today, the poetry event at Ming’s Restaurant would reach a new level in terms of both popularity and fame, becoming one of the liveliest grand events in Shangjing City.