A piece of Japanese incense

Aunt Hong handed the heater to me and placed the foot warmer quietly at my feet. My mother gently stroked my hair and wiped it with a silk handkerchief.

"Don't wipe it, we'll be home soon~"

"If you catch a cold when getting off the bus, the symptoms will easily relapse. You have just recovered from a serious illness, so you need to be careful in everything." Aunt Hong warned carefully.

(I guess my grandfather didn’t tell them that I was faking my illness. That’s good. The fewer people who know about it, the safer it will be.)

"Aunt Hong, where is Brother Nian? Oh, right! Let me first congratulate Aunt Hong. Congratulations to Brother Nian on getting admitted to the university and wishing him a bright future!" I bowed.

"Hahaha~ you kid~ haha ​​ah ha ha ah ha~" Aunt Hong couldn't stop laughing.

My mother was also infected by Aunt Hong's cheerful laughter, and she couldn't hide her smile: "Your Aunt Hong has been overjoyed since the announcement of the results, and she was smiling even during the meal!"

"That's really a joy! How many people are old and still can't pass the imperial examination, but my brother started at the age of ten and stood out at the age of eighteen! If this isn't genius, then what is! Unparalleled in the world! Extraordinary! Exceptional! ..."

"Hahaha! Stop it! If you don't know, you would think that Anian got the top scorer in the exam." Aunt Hong's eyes were bright, revealing a row of white teeth.

I heard Yuzhu's cheers outside the car. I lifted the curtain and saw my grandmother waiting at the gate.

I waved to her from afar: "Grandma~"

"Mom, what a fool! She came out to wait in the rain."

"Huh? Grandpa hasn't come home yet?"

"The old man has been in the palace since he went to Sui Garden that day. Here we are! Get off the car!"

"Wow! Shredded pork with fish sauce! Boiled pork slices! Kung Pao chicken! Mouth-watering chicken! ..."

"Don't tell me the names of the dishes! Sit down and eat!" Grandma pulled out a stool for me, motioned for everyone to sit down, and looked at Aunt Hong.

Aunt Hong immediately responded to my grandmother: "Nian'er is attending the Wenxi banquet, and I don't know when he will be back. Let's eat together today!"

Grandmother said with joy: "He Baoer, did you hear what your aunt Hong said? Your brother passed the imperial examination and became a second-class Jinshi..."

"I already knew it the day before yesterday! Grandma! You forgot! You asked Yuzhu to send me red dates and snow swallows!"

"Oh my! Grandma is so excited! Nian'er has suffered a lot in the past few years for his studies. He gets up early and goes to bed late. The day he moved back home, the whole room was filled with books. There was no place to put his feet."

"Nian'er's hard work has paid off. Sister Hong has finally made it. Nian'er has moved back home. Sister Hong doesn't have to miss her son so much that she can't sleep every day." The mother sighed.

"Oh~ Stop praising him, he's just lucky. You don't know this year's top scholar, he's the best among men, he's a very talented person, he's the first person in our dynasty to win three first prizes in a row, Nian'er still has a long way to go compared to him~"

"I think Nian'er is the best! Why compare with others? I will burn incense and pray to Buddha when He'er can be half as worry-free as Nian'er."

(Okay, I am involved again.)

I lowered my head and concentrated on eating without responding.

"Tomorrow the number one scholar will be parading in the streets. He'er must be bored in Suiyuan. I'll ask your brother Nian to take you to watch it tomorrow!"

I suddenly became excited: "The top scholar parade?! I haven't seen it yet! I want to go!" I turned my head to look at my grandmother.

"Go ahead, go ahead! But there is one thing you must be careful of," my grandmother put down her chopsticks and pointed at the tip of my nose and said seriously, "After watching the ceremony, go home quickly and don't wander around!"

I nodded vigorously like pounding garlic.

The first night back home, I lay in my own little bed, feeling the long-lost inner peace and tranquility.

Next, I just need to pretend to be a weak person for a while, and then I can live a free and easy life again~

Yutuan and Yuyi were still choosing clothes to wear tomorrow, while I was thinking about how to breed maggots for A-ban. My thoughts drifted away and I gradually fell asleep...

The sun shone through the window lattice onto the bed. I slowly opened my eyes, still a little sleepy. Yu Tuan lifted up my embroidered quilt, hugged my feet and touched the ground.

"Girl? Girl! Wake up! We are going to watch the No. 1 Scholar's Parade today! Stop daydreaming!"

I was still wearing a plain white pajamas. Yuyi took my hand and walked to the dressing table, combing my beautiful black hair in front of the mirror.

She gently put on an exquisite jade hairpin and decorated her hair with a few elegant flowers.

"Huh? How come I've never seen this hairpin before?"

I tilted my head and took a closer look. Yuyi was holding a hairpin with a white camellia pattern in her hand.

"Oh, it was given to me by my cousin. I only wore it once, so I'll wear it today."

Yuyi happily inserted the hairpin into my hair. After some dressing, I finally completed my morning ritual.

When I walked out of the room, I saw Yu Nian feeding Fuguier meat. Fuguier was drooling and eating with relish.

"No, who would eat braised pork so early in the morning?" I complained.

"It's leftover from yesterday's banquet. I didn't eat much of it, so I brought it to Fugui'er."

"Oh my! Why does it smell so strongly of alcohol?" I pinched my nose and took two steps back.

Yu Nian sniffed his sleeves: "Anything else? I've already showered and changed my clothes."

"Hmm~ You're different when you grow up. Brother Nian drinks alcohol?!" I said with a smirk.

Yu Nian smiled and said, "Let's go. Are you hungry? What do you want to eat?"

"Huh? No need to eat at home?"

"I've asked my grandmother for permission. We can eat outside today!" Yu Nian winked at me.

"Ah! Let's go! I want to eat noodle soup, oven cakes, fried cakes, steamed cakes, sesame porridge..."

"So much, can you eat it all?"

"I'm not the only one eating it! Jade balls, jade candies, jade pillars, cassia seeds, and liming..."

"Hmm~ The taste of the ones I tasted at the stall and the ones I bought home are completely different~" I sighed.

Every bite was filled with endless happiness and satisfaction, and I couldn't help but want to keep eating it.

Yu Nian had no time to think about anything else and was busy eating every bit of food I left behind.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Deafening noises came one after another, like a violent storm, and the sound of firecrackers rose and fell. The smoke dissipated with the increasingly dense sound of firecrackers. Strings of firecrackers danced like fire dragons, tumbling and overlapping.

The children were jumping for joy amid the sound of cannon fire, and I was carefully guarding the peanut porridge, fearing that dust would fall into the bowl. Even though Yu Nian covered my ears with his greasy hands, I still felt my brain buzzing, as if my eardrums were about to burst.

The sound of firecrackers lasted for a long time, so long that when I lowered my head to taste the porridge, it had become cold.

"Dang~dang~dang~"

The deafening sound of gongs and drums suddenly sounded, pouring into the market like a wild torrent, attracting everyone's attention. The bustling streets were enveloped by the sound of gongs and drums.

"The number one scholar has entered Tianjie! The number one scholar has entered Tianjie!"