Chapter 50: The Loyalty Test, Assessment Complete

Chapter 50: Loyalty Test, Conclusion of the Examination

After Ying Zheng and the civil and military officials drank several rounds of tea by the drill ground, the examination finally came to an end.

The estate manager of the State Preceptor's Manor collected the candidates' scores and handed them over to the assistants for tallying. Yang Zimo watched the participants who had finished the test and let them rest for a moment before announcing: "Today's final test is: Loyalty!"

Yang Zimo immediately had ten huge wine jars brought forward. Once the seals were removed, an intoxicating aroma of wine instantly enveloped the crowd. Many people present could not help but sniff deeply, and some even began to salivate.

Ying Zheng and the others assumed that Yang Zimo was preparing to treat everyone to wine, and they secretly planned to have some distributed to them afterward to satisfy their cravings.

"Brave warriors, this is the Immortal Drunk wine brewed by the Marquis's Manor. I presume all of you have heard of it." Yang Zimo ladled out a bowl and said to the candidates.

Seeing that no one spoke without permission, he nodded in satisfaction; it seemed the training had been exceptionally effective.

"Now, I invite you all to drink. Before you drink, I must tell you one thing: out of these ten wine jars, I have added a massive amount of deadly poison to five of them. Now, I will fish them out for you to see." With that, Yang Zimo picked up the tools nearby and reached into the wine jars.

"Take a look, everyone. This is a five-step snake; once bitten, you are certain to die within five steps. This is a banded krait, a poisonous scorpion, a centipede..." As Yang Zimo introduced them, various venomous creatures were fished out, and soon the table was piled high with them.

This sight turned the candidates' faces pale, and even Ying Zheng and the others standing behind them trembled involuntarily.

"State Preceptor, isn't this going a bit too far? These are all fine sons of Great Qin!" Ying Zheng could not help asking.

Yang Zimo did not answer, offering Ying Zheng only a reassuring look.

"Now, the wine in all the jars has been blended by me to the exact same color, so you cannot tell which jar is poisonous. The wine will be poured into your bowls. Those who are unwilling to drink may simply place their bowls on the ground! I will not ridicule any of you, and you will even be rewarded with twenty taels of silver."

With that, Yang Zimo instructed the manager to move the wine jars behind a curtain and switch their positions. Then, the curtain was removed, revealing the rearranged wine jars.

As the wine was ladled, bowl by bowl, into the candidates' bowls, the entire drill ground fell into a chilling silence, broken only by the sound of people swallowing. Not a single person dared to take the first drink from the bowl in their hands.

"I give you ten breaths to consider! Think of the aging mothers at home, your gentle wives, and your lovely children. It is hardly worth losing your young lives here!

After ten breaths, you either drink and die here, or place your bowl on the ground and take twenty taels of silver home!"

Yang Zimo issued the final deadline.

"Five breaths remaining!" Yang Zimo shouted coldly.

"Lord Marquis, I have failed you!" Someone placed their wine bowl down and collapsed limply onto the ground.

"That is the correct choice! Three breaths remaining! Do you want to die or live?"

"Two breaths remaining!"

"Ah! I'll take my chances!" Accompanied by furious roars, some people closed their eyes and gulped the wine down in one breath.

"I trust the Marquis!" More and more people drank the wine.

Looking at the flushed faces and distorted expressions of those who had drunk, some people ultimately put their wine bowls down.

"Time's up!"

As Yang Zimo's voice echoed, everyone in the entire field let out a collective sigh of relief, immediately turning anxious gazes toward those who had consumed the wine.

Their flushed hands and faces looked deeply abnormal; some even had distorted expressions on their faces, opening their mouths wide to gasp for air continually.

Just as Ying Zheng and the others were about to call for physicians, Yang Zimo began to clap his hands loudly: "Congratulations to the brave warriors who drank the wine, you have passed the examination!"

"By the way, those were medicinal wines, and they are not poisonous! If you don't believe it, feel for yourselves. Aside from feeling hot and having a dry mouth, is there any other abnormality?"

Hearing this, the men began to pat and check their own bodies, as if searching for something unusual.

"State Preceptor, what is the meaning of this?" Ying Zheng asked with lingering concern. It was his first time hearing of venomous creatures being steeped in wine.

"Your Majesty, why not send imperial physicians to examine them, and you will know whether what I say is true?" Yang Zimo suggested; some matters still required personal verification to be believed.

"Go! Examine them!" Ying Zheng immediately ordered the attending imperial physicians to step forward.

The chief physician led several other medical practitioners forward to examine those who had drunk the wine.

"Strange? They clearly drank wine steeped in venomous creatures, yet why is their blood surging, their qi and blood abundant, and why is there not the slightest sign of poisoning?" The chief physician pondered in bewilderment after examining one man, then uncertainly checked another.

"Aside from some deficiency in kidney water, this man shows no signs of poisoning either!"

After several examinations, none of them found any trace of poison, leaving all the physicians deeply puzzled.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this old minister and the others have examined everyone, and not a single trace of poisoning was found. On the contrary, everyone's qi and blood are abundant, and their bodies are in exceptionally good condition!" The chief physician reported carefully.

"State Preceptor, why is this?" Ying Zheng's face was full of questions.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, steeping venomous creatures in wine does not make the wine itself poisonous. Venom only causes toxicity when transmitted through the bloodstream; unless someone has internal bleeding in their digestive tract, they generally will not be poisoned."

"I see! And what about their expressions?" Ying Zheng remained somewhat skeptical.

"The wine steeped in these venomous creatures not only promotes blood circulation and removes blood stasis, but it also dispels wind and dampness, and enhances a man's vitality. As for their facial expressions, it is because I increased the alcohol content of this wine. Compared to ordinary wine, the proof is much higher, and they were unaccustomed to it on their first try. Your Majesty, think back to when you first drank Immortal Drunk; wasn't it much the same?" Yang Zimo patiently explained to Ying Zheng.

"Ah! Indeed it was!" Ying Zheng agreed, accepting Yang Zimo's explanation.

"State Preceptor, let us proceed!" Ying Zheng looked at those jars of medicinal wine, his eyes rolling thoughtfully.

"Congratulations to those who drank the wine for passing the test. This particular examination tested loyalty. As for those who failed the test, I can only express my regret!"

Holding the ledger handed over by the manager, Yang Zimo announced again: "All assessments have now concluded. I will now announce the names of those who passed the examination, ranked in order."

Everyone immediately stood at attention, waiting for the announcement.

"Aside from those who gave up during the third test, a total of eight hundred and forty-three people completed this assessment. However, I will only take the top three hundred."

"Three hundredth place, Cao."

"Two hundred and ninety-ninth place, Wo."

...

"Third place, Chen Ping."

"Second place, Zhao Yue."

"First place, Han Xin."

"Chen Ping! Han Xin!" Ying Zheng suddenly stood up, gazing out over the crowd, his sharp, hawk-like eyes scanning back and forth among the people.

"Your Majesty, please remain calm. I have already arranged for people to investigate the backgrounds of these two men. In due time, we will know whether they are the very individuals I mentioned to you."

Seeing Ying Zheng lose his composure, Yang Zimo immediately offered words of comfort.

"The State Preceptor has gone to great lengths!" Realizing he had lost his composure, Ying Zheng sat back down and said to Yang Zimo.

"I am willing to serve Your Majesty!"