On the Eve of the County Exam, I Exchanged for the Top Scholar of the Imperial Examination

Five years after transmigrating to the Great Yong dynasty, Lin Yan concealed within himself the literary legacy of thousands of years of Chinese civilization, yet couldn't put a single word to paper. He repeatedly failed the imperial exams and became a down-and-out licentiate mocked by everyone in Qingyun County.

Just as he'd given up hope and resigned himself to his fate, the Literary Fortune System finally arrived. Its beginner's gift guaranteed him the top score in this year's jinshi examination!

The day it activated, the Su family publicly called off their engagement. Lin Yan immediately declared, “Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Never look down on a poor young man! You break off our engagement today, but one day I'll place first in the imperial exams, and your Su family won't be worthy of me!”

Everyone thought Lin Yan had lost his mind and waited for him to ruin himself.

But from then on, he swept through every challenge: his essays stunned veteran scholars in the county exam; his poem “Ode to the Willow” left the educational inspector reeling; he exposed corruption and swept all six rounds to claim first place in the county. He cowed the scions of noble families in the prefectural exam, then sealed his fame with the ci poem “Nian Nu Jiao” in the academy exam. The provincial education commissioner praised him as “the greatest talent in Jiangnan in fifty years.”

Then he passed all three highest examinations in succession, won the top scholar's title, and became famous throughout the court.

But this was far from the end.

War flared in the northern frontier. The Hu cavalry stormed through the passes and swept south, leaving the Great Yong dynasty tottering amid turmoil.

With no other choice, Lin Yan raised troops to meet the enemy. But one snowy night in camp, the soldiers under his command draped him in the imperial yellow robe.

(This is an alternate-history novel. Since it's set in ancient times, men can naturally qqcq. Those who know, know.)