As Wei Tu and the others conversed—
Outside the magistrate's office, several servants who had been waiting in the nearby alley for their masters caught sight of them and quickly approached. They cupped their hands in greeting, eager to inquire about the reason so many Martial Scholars had been summoned into the magistrate's office so late at night.
"Young Master Fu, is my young master safe inside? The master and the eldest madam have been worried sick," the leading servant, who recognized Fu Zhizhou, asked anxiously.
"The prefect merely summoned us to get acquainted with the new Martial Scholars of this term. Your young master will be out shortly," Fu Zhizhou replied smoothly after exchanging glances with Wei Tu and the others.
Though they had firmly rejected Prefect He and avoided entanglement, the matter involved Martial Luck Pavilion, and they dared not reveal too much.
They all understood the principle that "secrecy is the key to survival." Otherwise, they wouldn't have risked offending Prefect He by outright refusing.
Hearing this vague yet reassuring response, the servants refrained from pressing further. It was enough to know that their young masters were not in immediate danger.
At that moment, servants from Fu Zhizhou's and Kou Liang's families, as well as a runner sent by Dan Yan Gong, also arrived, waiting to attend to them.
After instructing the servants to return home and deliver the news, the four of them set off down the main street, heading toward Xuanhe Tower.
—
Half an hour later.
Xuanhe Tower.
Three rounds of drinks had passed, and the night was nearing dawn.
Seeing that Wei Tu and the others had eaten and drunk their fill, Fu Zhizhou did not hesitate any longer. He immediately called for the shopkeeper and instructed him to prepare incense, an altar, and all necessary items for a formal brotherhood pledge.
"You actually meant it?" Wei Tu was momentarily taken aback.
He hadn't expected Fu Zhizhou to be so serious about it—to step out of the magistrate's office and immediately arrange to swear brotherhood.
People of this time valued loyalty and righteousness.
Especially among Martial Scholars, a sworn oath of brotherhood held more weight than blood ties. To break such an oath would bring eternal condemnation and shame.
After all, one's blood relations were determined by birth, but sworn brothers were chosen out of mutual admiration and trust.
However, this arrangement carried many benefits for Wei Tu himself, so he saw no reason to object. Instead, he was quite pleased with the turn of events.
Fu Zhizhou, Kou Liang, and Wei Fei had all demonstrated intelligence and courage in recognizing the danger behind Prefect He's proposal and in refusing his demands despite the risk.
This showed not only their foresight but also their strong will.
Moreover, like him, all three had achieved high rankings in the Dao Examination. Their potential was evident.
Their starting points were similar. Their ambitions aligned. And after standing together against Prefect He, a foundation of trust had already been built.
In short—there were no better candidates for sworn brothers, nor for forging a shared path to the future.
—
A short while later.
Inside a private room in Xuanhe Tower, an incense altar had been set up.
On the altar rested offerings of three sacrificial animals, an incense burner, a live chicken, a jar of wine, and a bound registry.
The cover of the registry bore three bold characters—Brotherhood Records.
Now came the formal process.
The four of them arranged their ranking by age.
Among them, Kou Liang, at twenty-four, was the eldest, and the others readily acknowledged him as the eldest brother.
Wei Fei, at twenty-three, became the second brother.
Then came Wei Tu and Fu Zhizhou.
When Fu Zhizhou finally reported his age, both Wei Tu and Wei Fei were momentarily dumbfounded.
Neither of them had expected the most skilled of them—Fu Zhizhou—to be so young. He was not even twenty.
Only eighteen.
"No wonder he's so full of youthful vigor," Wei Tu mused to himself.
Hearing Wei Tu and Wei Fei's reaction, Kou Liang smiled slightly.
"Back in Xiaoyi Prefecture, Fourth Brother was already famous as a martial arts prodigy. Originally, I thought he would wait for the next Martial Scholar examination, but unexpectedly, he took it alongside me in this session," he said.
After speaking, Kou Liang did not waste any more words. He reached to his waist, drew a dagger, grabbed the live chicken on the incense table, and swiftly sliced its neck.
Blood immediately spurted from the wound, dripping into the wine jar.
Following this, Kou Liang made another quick cut across his palm, allowing his own blood to mix into the wine.
One by one, Wei Tu, Wei Fei, and Fu Zhizhou took the dagger and repeated the same process.
The wine, now infused with their blood, was poured into four rough porcelain bowls.
The four of them raised their bowls, drinking deeply as they swore their oath of brotherhood.
"Today, we four stand here as sworn brothers, with Heaven above and the Earth below as our witnesses—"
"—From this day forth, we are bound as brothers, sharing life and death, aiding each other in times of misfortune and celebrating together in times of fortune. No betrayal, no abandonment, no deceit—"
One by one, they recited their oath.
After this, they formally acknowledged each other by rank and decided upon a name for their brotherhood: The Righteous Society.
The name was proposed by Wei Tu and was quickly approved by Kou Liang, Wei Fei, and Fu Zhizhou.
As their voices fell silent—
Outside, the sky had brightened.
—
"The rankings are out!"
"The results for this session's Martial Scholar examination have been posted!"
A sudden burst of excitement erupted from outside Xuanhe Tower. Many Martial Scholars hurriedly left their rooms, eager to rush to the Martial Tribute Court and see the rankings for themselves.
At that moment, the shopkeeper of Xuanhe Tower knocked on their private room's door. Standing outside, he respectfully addressed Fu Zhizhou.
"Congratulations, Master Fu! You have placed second in this session's Martial Scholar examination and have been awarded the title of First-Class Martial Scholar."
Xuanhe Tower was one of the most prestigious establishments in Qingfeng Prefecture.
Besides offering fine accommodations, it also provided services for scholars and warriors—including sending runners to check examination rankings on their behalf.
Earlier that night, Fu Zhizhou had paid a handsome fee to have Xuanhe Tower retrieve the results for him.
Thus, the moment the rankings were released, the shopkeeper immediately dropped everything and rushed to deliver the news personally.
—
"Congratulations, Fourth Brother," Kou Liang grinned.
"To place second in the Martial Scholar examination and become a First-Class Martial Scholar—this is no small achievement."
Wei Tu and Wei Fei also congratulated him.
Although they had already expected Fu Zhizhou to perform well, having his ranking officially confirmed was still a joyous occasion.
"But what about the rest of us…" Wei Fei's expression darkened slightly.
Though he didn't believe Prefect He had the power to alter the rankings of the Martial Scholar examination, there was always the possibility—what if they had been disqualified? What if they had lost their titles?
Wei Tu felt a similar unease.
"Don't worry," Fu Zhizhou reassured them.
"Prefect He wouldn't dare interfere. A man like him values stability above all else. Even if he had the ability to tamper with the rankings, he wouldn't take such a risk."
His voice was calm, but firm.
—
Just then, the voice of a young servant rang out from outside their room.
"Wait, Shopkeeper! You haven't finished reporting the names!"
Hearing this, the shopkeeper stopped in his tracks, turning with a puzzled expression.
"What?"
"The other three gentlemen from Room Tian-3—they're also on the rankings!"
The shopkeeper was stunned.
He had assumed that Fu Zhizhou was the only one among them to make it onto the list. After all, achieving such a rank in the Martial Scholar examination was no easy feat—what were the odds that all four of them had passed?
Yet, the young servant quickly confirmed it.
"All four guests from Room Tian-3 are listed on the official rankings at the Martial Tribute Court!"
Then, he began reading the results aloud.
—
"Wei Tu—Ranked 12th in this session's Martial Scholar examination. Awarded the title of Second-Class Martial Scholar."
"Kou Liang—Ranked 17th. Awarded the title of Second-Class Martial Scholar."
"Wei Fei—Ranked 34th. Awarded the title of Third-Class Martial Scholar."