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

In theory, people with the title of Tongsheng or Xiucai can go to the county school. However, in the two hundred years since the founding of this dynasty, there were at least three or four hundred Tongsheng and Xiucai in a county, while there were only fifty places in the county school. Even if many people had no hope of continuing to take the imperial examinations, they still had to get a place in the school to get by and make a name for themselves.

So it is actually not an easy thing to go to the county school, and I don’t know how Liu’s father did it.

Originally, Master Lin taught one-on-two, but now it has become one-on-one. Occasionally, Lin Junhui would come over, and Master Lin would let the two of them communicate and discuss to learn from each other's strengths and weaknesses.

After school that day, Zhang Laoer rarely came to the study to talk to his son: "Son, I want to discuss your fourth sister's marriage with you. Normally, I shouldn't tell you about this, but I'm always a little unsure. Can you give me some advice?"

"Oh? Dad, which family are you talking about? I heard you say before that you had a plan in mind." Zhang Pingan put down his pen and turned around to ask.

Zhang Laoer was a little hesitant: "To be honest, I wanted to marry your fourth sister to the eldest son of the Li family next door. The child is smart, and his family only has a widowed mother and a younger brother. They don't even have a house and their conditions are very ordinary. I thought that after your fourth sister gets married, you and him can study and take exams together so you will have a companion. But this time when I went to the provincial capital to take the exam and spent more time with him, I felt that it seemed not so appropriate. What's more, he is still a student and has a bright future in the future."

After hearing this, Zhang Ping'an considered his words carefully before saying, "Dad, Li Mingxuan is a very noble man, and has great ambitions. He won't be happy to marry a peasant girl. It won't help his future at all. So even if you propose it, his family won't agree. It's not that our family or Fourth Sister is bad, but that both sides have different ideas. To be honest, our two families are not the same kind of people. There is no need to force them together. It's just a matter of neighbors helping each other out of face. What do you think?"

Zhang Laoer nodded, breathed a sigh of relief, and said in a deep voice: "Son, what you said hits the nail on the head. I thought this guy was pretty good before, but now the more I look at him, the more he seems unsuitable. I feel uneasy. So forget it. I'll find another family for your fourth sister."

Zhang Pingan nodded: "Yes, a forced melon is not sweet."

"Hey, we have to find a husband for your fourth sister in the next one or two months, otherwise she will get older. Now that you have just passed the imperial examination, it is a good time to propose marriage," Zhang Laoer was also worried. He wanted to tell the county about it.

Zhang Pingan pondered for a moment and replied, "Fourth sister is indeed too old to wait. I do have a good family that you and mother can consider. He and Luo Fugui were classmates in the same academy. He also took the county exam this year, but failed. My family heard that he is doing well. He has many brothers, so it is difficult to marry someone of high status or low status. He even asked me before if there was a sister of the right age in my family who wanted to get married. At that time, you said you had plans in mind, so I decided to wait and see. Judging from the family background, our family can also marry into the family."

"Which one is it?" Zhang Laoer asked curiously.

"It's the Sun family in the west of the city. They're all accountants. You can ask a matchmaker to go there first to test the waters. It's probably going to work out."

"Okay, then when I pick a date, I'll send a matchmaker over. If it doesn't work out, it doesn't matter. No one in the county knows us anyway." Zhang Laoer also thought it was a good idea. At least the other party's family had the ability to make a living.

"Well, I'll keep an eye out for Fourth Sister too. I'll let you know when I find a suitable classmate."

In a blink of an eye, it is May, which is the most comfortable time of the year in Ezhou Prefecture. It is neither too cold nor too hot, perfect for travel.

Qingsong Academy organizes students to go for an outing to East Lake every year at this time, and this year is no exception. The academy provides simple meals, and students can also prepare them themselves.

Liu Shengyuan also took a leave from the county school to come and participate. After all, his student status is still at Qingsong Academy.

The four-member group of Ganfan haven't gotten together for a long time. Jinbao said dissatisfiedly: "I thought that after I went to the county town to study with you, everything would be the same as before. Who knew that after we went to the county town to study, you all became busier and busier, leaving me alone. Fortunately, Xiao Yifei kept me company."

Zhang Pingan jokingly said, "Who was that person who was so engrossed in reading a storybook while having dinner with me?"

Jin Bao couldn't pretend any longer and burst out laughing, "Reading storybooks is more interesting than reading books. I'm starting to learn how to write them. Last time I heard you say that you made a lot of money writing storybooks in the capital. I think that's great, it's perfect for me. I can make money and kill time at the same time. How great!"

Liu Shengyuan laughed and said, "Zhang Jinbao, it seems you were just pretending. I felt sorry in my heart just now! You deserve to be punished!"

Xiao Yifei had grown quite a bit in the past few months, his figure becoming more upright and sturdy. He couldn't sit still, and he wasn't impatient to join his classmates in reciting poems, composing couplets, admiring flowers and looking at the water. He suggested, "Why don't we go to Moshan Mountain to pick some fruit? I've brought a bow and arrow, so maybe we can shoot some wild game. We can roast it and eat it later."

Moshan is right next to East Lake. The scenery is beautiful, there are no large wild animals, and it is very safe. Everyone has a rare chance to spend some free time here to move around, and they are all excited: "Okay, let's go!"

After Zhang Pingan said hello to the teacher in charge of the outing, they headed towards Moshan. Along the way, they found quite a few wild fruits: cherries, mulberries, and loquats, all ripe. Jin Bao plucked a handful of mulberries, his mouth turning purple-black from eating them. He nodded as he ate, commenting, "Not bad, quite sweet, but they're a bit small."

Zhang Pingan picked a few cherries and ate them. His eyes narrowed because of the sourness. "The cherries are not fully ripe yet, they are a little sour."

The closer you get to the top of the mountain, the denser the vegetation becomes and the fewer people there are. From time to time, pheasants fly out from the grass, dragging their long colorful tail feathers, looking extremely beautiful.

Xiao Yifei's technique was pretty good, and he actually shot one, saying excitedly, "I shot it, I shot it!"

After saying that, he ran forward to pick up the pheasant and said, "Why don't we roast it here and eat it, it will be a lot of fun."

Jinbao was the first to nod in agreement.

Zhang Pingan and Liu Shengyuan were not the type to spoil the fun, so they agreed when they heard it.

Xiao Yifei took out the dagger he carried with him and began to prepare to kill the chicken with great interest.

"Hey, wait a minute, but there's no place to clean up after killing them," Liu Shengyuan suddenly thought of this problem.

"Hehe, it's okay. I remember there is a stream further up the mountain. We can just wash there," Xiao Yifei had already thought about it.

After killing the chicken, Zhang Ping'an used a wooden stick to pick up some soil and buried the internal organs. Then Xiao Yifei took a few people directly to the stream, washed the chicken in the water, and then put it on the rack and started to roast it over a fire.

Zhang Ping'an also picked a handful of peppercorns and perilla on the mountain and stuffed them into the chicken's stomach to remove the fishy smell.

Liu Shengyuan sighed, "The water in Changchun is as blue as the sky, and I have half a day of leisure. What a rare and pleasant time!"

Seeing that the chicken was almost cooked, several people were just about to start eating when suddenly an old man who looked like a farmer walked out of the woods ahead. At first, they thought he was just a passerby, but who knew that he walked straight towards them and said, "Oh my God, how could you kill and eat my chickens?"

Several people looked at each other, a little confused. This was obviously a pheasant, even the tail feathers were different!

Zhang Pingan thought, is this a scam?