The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Until they returned to the inn, everyone was still talking about how good they had met such a good person. They were so lucky to have such a classmate, who would also be their future network.

Zhang Ping'an asked his father for Liu Shuisheng's address, but Zhang Laoer couldn't figure it out either, only knowing it was at Shengxing Rice Shop in the prefectural capital. Zhang Ping'an planned to go out with Liu Shengyuan tomorrow to ask around. Anyone who could open a rice shop had a strong background, and since it was a matter of daily necessities, the prefectural capital was small, so if they asked around, someone would probably know.

At this time, Liu Sanlang sat down at the table reluctantly and said, "Dad...Dad...Dad, everything...is...safe. I want to...go...to...the...wharf...to...do...something...tomorrow."

Zhang Pingan understood: "Brother-in-law, you want to go to the dock to work tomorrow, right?"

Liu Sanlang nodded.

"Then I'll ask Lin Junhui tomorrow and ask him to arrange something for you. He's the boss, so I don't think it's a big deal. It just so happens that I have to go out early tomorrow morning and go see Shuisheng. I haven't seen him for a long time, so I might as well find something to do to increase my income." Zhang Ping'an nodded in response.

After hearing this, Zhang Laoer frowned and said, "Son, there's nothing wrong with going to Shuisheng to get together, but you just finished your exams, so you should take a good rest. You don't have to work. The family has been saving money for your studies!"

"Dad, I'm not going to do any heavy work or anything. I know my physical condition well. I'm going to go to the bookstore to see if there's any work like copying books or writing storybooks. We won't be in the city for long, only two or three days at most, so it won't be tiring. Any money we can earn is good to pass the time. Besides, there are people among us who are helping to copy books. We can copy a Thousand Character Classic in two days. It's good to earn some living expenses and bring some small things back to our family." Zhang Ping'an said with a soothing smile.

Zhang Laoer then stopped talking and secretly thought that he would have to save on food for the next two days.

Hard work pays off. The next day, Zhang Ping'an and Liu Shengyuan asked a grain shop and found out that Shengxing Rice Shop was in the east of the city. They could see it after crossing the Baima Bridge. It was right next to the bridge and the door sign at the door was very conspicuous.

After expressing their gratitude, Zhang Ping'an and Liu Shengyuan went to the inn where Lin Junhui was staying and told him that his eldest brother-in-law wanted to work at the dock. Lin Junhui immediately sent an attendant to Tongfu Inn and asked him to take Liu Sanlang directly to the dock to find the manager.

Zhang Ping'an thanked him again and then followed Liu Shengyuan to Shengxing Rice Shop to find Liu Shuisheng.

After crossing the White Horse Bridge, they could see a sign with the words "Shengxing Rice Shop" written on it. Zhang Ping'an and Liu Shengyuan exchanged a glance, then walked in and asked, "Excuse me, is Liu Shuisheng working here? We are from the same hometown as him."

The young man from the rice shop was not very old and looked smart. After he looked them over, he said, "He's in the backyard. Wait, I'll go call him."

After a while, the waiter brought Liu Shuisheng out. After more than half a year, Liu Shuisheng had grown a lot taller and looked more mature. When he saw the two visitors, he said in surprise, "Ping'an, Ayuan, why are you here?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he slapped his head and said, "Look at me, I'm so busy that I'm confused. Are you here to take the provincial examination?"

Zhang Pingan and Liu Shengyuan laughed and said, "Yeah, now that the exams are over, I came to see you. It's been a while!"

Liu Shuisheng spoke as lively and clever as ever: "See, I told you that one day you would come to the provincial capital to find me, and you're here in just half a year." He even winked after he finished speaking.

He is still the familiar Liu Shuisheng, but his maturity is just an act.

In just a few words, the estrangement that had plagued everyone for half a year was completely eliminated. Liu Shuisheng said, "Wait for me for a moment. I'll ask my master for leave. I'll take you for a walk and we'll have lunch together at noon."

"Okay," Zhang Pingan nodded in response.

By the way, I took a look at the Shengxing Rice Shop, which is said to be the largest rice shop in the east of the city. There are indeed many kinds of products in the store. In addition to the local Qiao rice, there are also corn and japonica rice shipped from the north and south, as well as various beans, mushrooms and other dry goods. The prices are surprisingly similar to those in the county.

After a while, Liu Shuisheng came out from the backyard and said, "Let's go. I have made an appointment with my master."

"It seems that your master treats you well," Zhang Pingan said after walking out of the door. It is very hard to be an apprentice in this era. It is normal for the master to beat and scold you at will. There are few holidays throughout the year. It's just a matter of "endurance". As long as you can get through it, everything will be fine.

Liu Shuisheng chuckled and said, "My eldest brother found this connection for me. This master had received some favor from my eldest brother before and helped him a lot, so he's pretty good to me. What's more, I've been educated for a few years and can recognize quite a few words. I can usually help out in the warehouse and the accounting office by running errands, so I'm doing OK in the store."

After hearing what Liu Shuisheng said, Liu Shengyuan felt relieved. "Brother Shuisheng, I heard that being an apprentice is very hard. I was worried that you would not have a good life in the provincial capital. Now I feel relieved after hearing this."

Liu Shuisheng said nonchalantly, "Who am I? Don't worry, I can live well anywhere. But how did you do in the provincial examination? The results will be announced the day after tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, the results will be announced the day after tomorrow. Anyway, I feel like I did okay in the exam. Let's wait and see the result the day after tomorrow. There's no point in thinking too much about it now." Zhang Pingan is now in a very peaceful state of mind.

"Okay, then I'll take you around. The things sold in the South City Market are cheap and good. They have everything to eat and use. You can take some back to your family." Liu Shuisheng called a cart and then explained to the two people: "The South City Market is quite far away, and the road there is not good. Although it didn't rain today, there are puddles everywhere. Don't get your shoes wet. Calling a cart is cheap and convenient."

There is no difference between the so-called flatbed cart and the mule cart, except that it is pulled by people in the front and there is no shed. It can carry people as well as goods.

It took about two quarters of an hour to reach the south of the city. The south of the city should be the slums of the provincial capital. The ground was full of potholes, and the houses were shorter and more dilapidated. It was only April, and many children were wearing straw sandals without even a pair of socks. There was a strong smell of urine coming from the base of the wall.

Liu Shuisheng introduced: "Don't be fooled by the shabby appearance of this place, but there are some families that sell good food and fruit, and they also make their own dyed cloth and boiled sugar blocks, which are also cheap. The south of the city is the suburbs, so the people here live a harder life than in the city."

After going around two alleys, there is a wide open space with many stalls densely packed with food, clothing, housing and transportation. After Zhang Pingan took a walk around, he found that it was indeed much cheaper than the county town, and the things were also good. They were all homemade. They were not considered exquisite in the provincial capital, but they were quite good in the county town and the countryside.

Finally, I bought a few jars of Ezhou old wine, a few pieces of cotton cloth, brown sugar blocks, cakes, etc. I even found some good leather and hunters' homemade insect repellent powder, which I could make into leather coats or leather boots to wear in winter.

Liu Shengyuan bought less. His parents have always been responsible for buying things for his family. In addition, there are few people in his family and no relatives, so he only bought some food to take back.

Since they bought a lot of things, they had to call a cart to take them back to the inn first, and then the three of them found a restaurant to eat.