My name is Chang An, your name is Gu Li

Gu Li kept talking until they got to the room. After entering the room, she realized something was wrong:

"Oh! I'm sorry, Chang Lang. I was the only one doing the talking. Are you tired, Chang Lang? Do you want to take a rest?"

Chang An smiled and shook his head, saying, "Isn't Gu Niang trying to comfort me?"

"Ah?" Gu Li was stunned for a moment, then asked: "How did Chang Lang do in the exam today? Were the questions difficult?"

"Fortunately, today we are testing on copying scriptures. We just need to memorize them on weekdays and then write them down from memory." Chang An put the things aside with a smile, and Gu Li reached out and untied the futon on Chang An's head.

"So what will be the test tomorrow? Policy essays or current affairs?" Gu Li asked, straightening his wrinkled hat.

"Neither. Policy essay and current affairs are the same thing. Tomorrow's test will be about composition." Chang An gently poked Gu Li's little face and said.

After the couple sat together and chatted for a while, Huaiqin came in with two bowls of food, one of which was noodles and the other of which was eggs. After placing them in front of Chang'an, she left, and was replaced by Imperial Doctor Ma and Imperial Doctor Yang.

Chang An was about to pick up his chopsticks to eat a little, but when he saw the two imperial doctors, he put them down and greeted them, "Imperial Doctor Ma, Imperial Doctor Yang."

"It's okay, don't worry about us. We just came to see how Marquis Dingkang did in the exam today. Just eat and don't worry about us." Ma Huai waved his hand and said.

Chang An nodded, without any scheming, and just picked up the chopsticks, then asked: "By the way, two imperial doctors, what did you eat for lunch today? Did you eat well?"

Chang An asked this question every day, for he was afraid that something might have happened to the two imperial doctors in his home.

"The food is delicious. It's no exaggeration to say that the kitchen in Marquis Dingkang's house has excellent cooking skills." Yang Mo said with a smile.

"That's good."

While Chang An was talking to the two doctors, Gu Li had already peeled an egg and put it close to Chang An's mouth. After Chang An took a bite, Gu Li laughed twice.

"Marquis Dingkang, although today's exam is about copying scriptures, I wonder how you did?" Ma Huai sat not far away, keeping a distance from the couple.

"It's not bad. It's just some dictation. It won't take much time. The main time-consuming thing is grinding the ink myself." Chang An said - if there is no need to grind the ink, half a day should be enough.

"Tomorrow we have to write an essay, which is much more difficult than copying scriptures." Yang Mo said.

"It's okay, just write. It's not like I haven't written articles or poems before." Chang An said casually, "I just don't know if there are any required formats, or if there are any things I can't write."

Ma Huai and Yang Mo laughed at this time and said, "Marquis Dingkang, you are joking. Even if you write your "Fu on Afang Palace" in it, there will be no problem. And no one will suspect you of cheating because of it."

"The composition book is to use all your abilities to write an essay or poem to show your talent. As long as it is not something that directly offends His Majesty, there is no problem."

Chang An nodded, and Gu Li brought another egg over. He looked at Gu Li, who was looking at him with smiling eyes, thought for a moment, and then took a bite of the egg, then raised his head and removed only the upper part of the egg white.

Gu Li saw Chang An eat the egg white, but the yolk was still on the remaining half of the egg white. She immediately became anxious and put the egg close to Chang An's mouth, so anxious that she forgot to speak.

"Give the egg yolk to Mother Gu. She also needs to replenish her body." Chang An said with a smile.

"Well... I don't like egg yolks, especially the yolks of boiled eggs." Gu Li still said this.

Chang An smiled and pinched Gu Li's cheek, saying, "Why do you sound so strange to me, Gu Niang? Our family is not so poor that we can't afford to eat. It's just an egg yolk, it's the same for everyone, why do you have to divide it into so many pieces?"

Ma Huai and Yang Mo looked at each other tacitly at this time, then stood up and said, "Marquis Dingkang, please take a rest first. The two of us will take our leave first."

"it is good."

Chang An nodded, then looked at Gu Li again and said, "Eat quickly. I'll eat an egg yolk. Isn't there another one in the bowl?"

Gu Li had no choice but to open his mouth and eat the egg yolk and the remaining half of the egg white. His mouth was still bulging like a hamster, but he started to peel the last egg with his hands.

After watching Chang An eat the last egg and the yolk, Gu Li smiled with satisfaction. Then he looked at Chang An and said:

"If you don't want to eat this noodle, you don't have to. If you eat too much, you might not be able to eat at night."

Chang An was eating heartily at this time. After hearing what Gu Li said, he raised his eyes. He quickly put the noodles into his mouth and said vaguely: "It can't be spicy, but Gu Liang gave me bamboo shoots."

Gu Li laughed out loud after hearing his strange words, took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of his mouth, saying, "Don't talk while eating. Nodding or shaking your head is also fine."

"Hmph..."

......

The next day, Chang An arrived at the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall as usual.

Today's exam was about composition, so he would definitely be home later than yesterday. So Gu Li asked the kitchen to prepare some pancakes in advance, and put them in a cloth bag along with ginseng slices and donkey-hide gelatin cakes.

When entering the examination room, the soldiers and officials were the same two from yesterday. After a simple inspection, they let Chang An in.

After taking a break and getting the test paper, Chang An looked at the questions first - good, there were no questions. In that case, he took out the inkstone and ink stick and started grinding ink. While grinding the ink, he thought about what kind of article he should write.

In fact, he had considered what the two imperial doctors said yesterday, and he was indeed selecting some articles that could be used for writing in his mind, but after thinking about it, he gave up the idea.

After all, those famous works throughout the ages are the wisdom of the ancestors...and later generations. If you just act as a plagiarist, there will be no point in taking the imperial examination.

But you have to write and write well, otherwise you will be embarrassed if you fail the exam.

After thinking for a long time, Chang An finally picked up his pen and wrote:

"The ruler is the one whom the people look up to. He should cultivate himself to bring peace to the people. In the past, during the reigns of Yao and Shun, the people were loyal to the rulers because they were benevolent. During the reigns of Jie and Zhou, the people lost their way and had few supporters, and their lives were in vain..."

"The people are the foundation of the country. The happiness and suffering of people's livelihood are related to the order and chaos of the world. A country should take the people as the foundation, so that it can have long-term stability. In the past, Jie and Zhou were unjust, the people were displaced, and eventually the country was destroyed..."

After writing a paragraph, Chang An would continue to grind the ink and think about what he should write next.

......

"So, assign people to their respective positions, burn their books, and build their houses. Make clear the ways of the ancient kings and apply them to the people, and settle the people's hearts to establish their well-being. The tillers will have their fields, the toilers will have their earnings, and the widows, the orphans, the disabled, and the sick will have their provisions. This is what is desirable!"

After finishing writing, Chang An let out a long sigh, as if he was so absorbed in writing that he had forgotten the time. He looked up at the sky, but could see nothing. He just felt that the sky was a little gloomy, and wondered if it was already afternoon.

"I don't know how Gu Niang knew the time by looking at the sky."

After muttering something, he put the test paper aside, and put away his pen and inkstone in the basket. What a coincidence, he saw the pancakes that Gu Li prepared for him. Chang An took out the pancake and ate it in big mouthfuls.

The invigilator who passed by saw Chang An eating pancakes and poured him a bowl of hot water. Chang An wanted to ask about the time, but he didn't know if he could talk in the examination room, so he didn't say anything.

After resting enough, Chang An checked again whether the ink on the test paper was dry, packed up his things, and stood up to hand in the paper. The invigilator looked up at Chang An today, and after confirming that his test paper was put away, he nodded and allowed him to leave.

......

Chang An stood at the door, watching Gu Li walking towards him in a hurry, while Zhen'er behind him was holding an umbrella and trying to support Gu Li at the same time, obviously a little flustered.

"Chang Lang!"

Gu Li quickly came to Chang An at this time, and then showed his hand which had been hidden under his sleeve: "Chang Lang, eat an egg quickly!"

But when she saw that the egg had not been peeled, she took it back, quickly peeled the shell, and held it directly in front of Chang An. After watching him take a bite, she also looked to see if he had eaten the yolk. After confirming that he had eaten the yolk, she smiled with satisfaction.

After eating the eggs, Chang An handed the food to Zhen'er and helped Gu Li back home.

"By the way, Madam Gu, what time is it now?"

"Just like yesterday, it was also between 5 p.m. and 3 p.m." Gu Li said, "Chang Lang writes very fast. He comes back so soon every day."

Chang An helped her into the house and said, "I'm not sure about tomorrow, because I have to write a policy paper, probably three or five articles."

"It's okay. I'll wait for Chang Lang to come home." Gu Li took a handkerchief and wiped Chang An's mouth. "Will Chang Lang want some noodles later? The family has prepared the noodles just like yesterday."

Chang An nodded and said, "Eat! Of course I have to eat!"

......

On the last day, Gu Li sent Chang An to his doorstep as usual, and then said, "Chang Lang, I put some pancakes in the basket, and some pickled meat from the kitchen. If Chang Lang gets hungry during the exam, you can eat some to fill your stomach."

"I won't let the kitchen prepare noodles today. Chang Lang is back, so I'll prepare a feast for him!"

"Okay, I'll definitely wait."

After another kiss goodbye, Chang An got on the carriage.