Starting from a thatched cottage, the farmer embarked on the road to wealth through imperial examina

Mr. Cai and Liang Jingcheng both looked incredulous, but they saw that Ye Changyan seemed to be confident.

"In this cold winter, a frost can kill most vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables. If there is heavy snow, the vegetables that are not frozen to death will be crushed by the thick snow."

Mr. Cai felt that Ye Changyan grew up in Yuzhou Prefecture and might not have any concrete idea of the difference between the severe cold in Shengjing and that in Yuzhou Prefecture.

"Teacher, don't worry. Since I said there is a way to supply fresh vegetables in winter, I will naturally take into account the harm of frost and heavy snow to crops. Now I need to confirm whether the farm left by Master's wife is rented to farmers or hired workers to cultivate it myself."

Seeing that Mr. Cai and Liang Jingcheng were looking at him with confusion, Ye Changyan continued speaking with a firm face.

"If the farm has already been rented out to farmers, we can't just take it back right away. If we hire farmhands to farm, I can make the corresponding preparations right away and arrange for farming very quickly. For example, we might be able to eat some fast-growing leafy vegetables during the New Year holidays. As for the fish-flavored eggplants that the teacher likes, maybe others haven't planted them yet after the New Year, so I can find a way to serve them on the teacher's table."

When Mr. Cai heard Ye Changyan say that he could eat fresh green leafy vegetables for the New Year’s Eve dinner, and that he could eat fish-flavored eggplants after the beginning of the year when others hadn’t yet planted seeds, he was very excited.

Seeing that Ye Changyan didn't seem to be joking, Mr. Cai called the housekeeper Dai Xing over and asked about the situation in Sanyuan County's farm.

"Master, the farm in Sanyuan County is not very large. Before Old Yang passed away, he hired a few long-term workers to farm. During the busy farming season, he hired a few short-term workers to handle the work. After Old Yang passed away, Little Yang also hired long-term workers to farm."

Ye Changyan was delighted by what the steward Dai Xing said. Since the farm had not been rented out, he could implement his plan immediately.

"Teacher, we have to go to the Imperial College to register tomorrow. I want to go to the manor first after registering to see if the conditions there meet what I want. Anyway, the manor is not too far away. If it meets the requirements, we can start the experiment right away."

Both Mr. Cai and Liang Jingcheng were interested in Ye Changyan, so Mr. Cai nodded and told his butler Dai Xing to make preparations and go to the farm in Sanyuan County together tomorrow.

The next morning, Lu Tingfeng drove a horse-drawn carriage carrying Ye Changyan, Liang Jingcheng and Sang Li towards the Imperial College in the north of the city.

In order to avoid excessive speculation from some people, Mr. Cai chose to avoid suspicion and did not go with them. Instead, he waited at home for Ye Changyan and the others to come back, and then went to the farm in Sanyuan County together.

The carriage drove northward. It seemed that Shigu Lane was not close to the Imperial College. Ye Changyan was curious. When Mr. Cai was the chief priest of the Imperial College, did he travel back and forth like this every day? So he asked Liang Jingcheng.

"When the teacher was working at the Imperial College, he rented a small courtyard nearby. When the teacher was busy, he would live in that small courtyard. Later, when my eldest brother was studying at the Imperial College, he also lived in that small courtyard. My teacher's wife took me to live in the small courtyard occasionally for a few days."

"I see. Then why not buy that yard?"

"It's not that the teacher and his wife don't want to buy this yard, but this yard has a special meaning, and the owner can't sell it."

"What is the special significance of this yard?"

"This courtyard originally belonged to the Tong family, a prominent family in Huizhou, Jiangyou. It was used as a residence for the children of the family who passed the Imperial College. Later, a member of the Tong family's side branch passed the imperial examination and became the top scholar. He is now the Minister of Rites Tong Zhongqin. Because this courtyard produced a top scholar, the Tong family naturally did not want to sell this small courtyard. However, Minister Tong had a good relationship with the teacher, so they decided to rent the courtyard to the teacher."

"I see. This mansion that produced a number one scholar is truly a treasure!"

Ye Changyan and Sang Li both had envious expressions on their faces.

As he spoke, Lu Tingfeng finally stopped the carriage at a street corner in front of the Imperial College.

When Ye Changyan and his companions got off the carriage, they saw that the endless stream of carriages and horses had blocked the entrance of the Imperial College.

I saw that the entire entrance of the courtyard was crowded with people.

"It seems that there are quite a lot of students planning to take the Imperial College entrance examination this year."

Seeing the surging crowd, Lu Tingfeng parked the carriage and walked in front to clear the way. Ye Changyan, Liang Jingcheng and Sang Li then passed through the dense crowd and entered the gate of the Imperial College.

There were clerks inside, directing the students to line up to register. Lu Tingfeng went to a corner to wait, while Ye Changyan and others followed and lined up behind the line.

When it was Ye Changyan's turn, everything went smoothly and he received the certificate of successful registration.

The clerk in charge of registration then patiently and carefully explained the important points to Ye Changyan.

For example, the exam was scheduled for the 22nd day of the first lunar month of next year, so Ye Changyan must not miss the exam.

Just as Ye Changyan was listening to the clerk explaining other precautions, he heard a loud voice coming from behind him.

"You barbarian, are you blind or what? You actually stepped on my foot!"

"Which eye of yours saw me step on you?"

Ye Changyan turned around and saw Sang Li, who was standing behind Liang Jingcheng, having a conflict with a young man in luxurious clothes.

"This is a group of civilized people who grew up reading books of sages. You, a barbarian, suddenly appeared in the crowd. Who else could it be but you?"

"If you want to talk, keep your mouth clean!"

Sang Li became angry because the other party kept calling him a barbarian.

"Oh! This barbarian really has a wild temper!"

Liang Jingcheng saw that the students around him were all looking over here, and judging from the other party's clothes, he was afraid that he might be from some important background, so he stepped forward to persuade them to make peace.

"Brother, don't be angry. I'm afraid there is some misunderstanding."

The young man in luxurious clothes saw Liang Jingcheng coming forward to persuade them to make peace. He looked at Liang Jingcheng with a squint and found that Liang Jingcheng looked gentle and refined. However, he was in the circle of noblemen in Shengjing and had never seen this person before. He thought that the other party should be a child of a not-so-famous family.

"Misunderstanding, this barbarian stepped on me. Not to mention how painful my feet are now, look at what my shoes have been shattered by him."

As he spoke, the nobleman stretched out his foot, and indeed one could clearly see half a shoe print on the upper.

"I was standing in front of you, and your footprints were clearly from the front of your feet. Could it be that you ran in front of me and deliberately let me step on you?"

The onlookers saw that the shoe upper that the nobleman stretched out did indeed have the print of the forefoot, and after listening to Sang Li's sharp-tongued remarks, they immediately burst into laughter.