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

It was not until Zhang Ping'an entered the room that he saw a pile of luggage on the floor. Xu's face looked very unhappy, but she didn't curse at anyone. It was unclear whether she had already had an outburst before.

Zhang Laoer's face looked okay. When he saw his son coming back, he said, "There are only three rooms in our house. It's definitely not enough for everyone to sleep. Ping'an, you go to Jinbao's house and sleep with Jinbao. Sanniang, you and Siya sleep in one bed. Then Erya and Sanya will sleep in one bed with the two children. The rest of us, the father-in-law and the son-in-law, will have to squeeze into one bed."

There weren't enough beds, so they had no choice but to divide them like this. Xu went straight back to her room angrily, and Si Ya followed her in like a quail. When she passed Er Ya and San Ya, she shrank her neck and gave them a look of "May the best of luck to you".

As sons-in-law, Liu Husheng and Qian Yongde had no say and just did whatever their father-in-law arranged.

The ones who had the most awkward atmosphere were Erya and Sanya. They didn't speak a word. After listening to Zhang Laoer's arrangement, they quietly put their things aside and did their own things. The two boys in Erya's family were quite sensible. Seeing that the atmosphere between the adults was not right, they sat quietly aside and ate fruit without making any noise. They were very obedient.

"Ping'an, let's go. I'll take you there. It's not safe on the road after dark," Zhang Laoer said, standing up and going to the kitchen to get a lantern.

Zhang Ping'an went back to his room to get some clean clothes and followed his father silently. He didn't ask until he was sure that no one in the family could hear their conversation, "The atmosphere between the second and third sisters seems to be wrong, and didn't the second sister say before that she didn't want to be with the third sister?"

Zhang Laoer said angrily: "Your third sister is shameless and insisted on following you. What can your second sister do? I heard that the two of them had a fight on the road, and after they came, they were scolded by your mother. Your mother was so angry that she didn't even cook dinner, so it was the two sisters who cooked it. But the arrival of the two families will indeed affect your studies. I will let them go out to find a house tomorrow daytime."

Zhang Pingan nodded: "I can stay at Jinbao's house for the next two days. There's no need to rush. We still need to let my second sister and the others find a suitable house."

Zhang Laoer had his own plans in mind, so he didn't say much after hearing what was said. The two of them arrived at Jinbao's house in just a few moments.

After Zhang Laoer knocked on the door and told Grandpa Jinbao the situation, Grandpa Jinbao said enthusiastically: "Okay, come in quickly, it's just right for you to keep our Jinbao company."

Jin Bao had just returned home to rest for a while and hadn't washed up yet. Seeing Zhang Pingan coming over, he said happily, "It would be better if you could sleep here for a few more days. I'll give you my pillow."

Zhang Pingan joked: "Didn't you say you couldn't sleep without a pillow?"

Jinbao smiled slyly: "You are my pillow!"

Zhang Laoer looked at the two children bickering and smiled helplessly. The two families had been friends for many years, so Zhang Laoer didn't get too polite. After giving them a few instructions, he went back.

When Zhang Ping'an got up the next day, his father had already brought him his school bag and toiletries so that he didn't have to run home again.

Jinbao's grandmother specially made noodles with gravy in the morning. Zhang Ping'an and Jinbao ate it before going to the academy together.

"What do you think about my next book being about a beautiful rich girl who falls in love with a poor scholar?" Jin Bao asked as they walked.

Zhang Pingan smiled and said, "It doesn't matter what genre you write about. What matters is that the story has enough twists and turns and is bizarre enough to keep people coming back for more. That means you've succeeded. For example, how did the rich daughter meet the poor scholar? What was it about the poor scholar that attracted the rich daughter? These are all good stories. A story full of emotion is a good story."

Jin Bao nodded continuously as he listened, and suddenly covered Zhang Pingan's mouth and said anxiously: "Ping'an, wait a minute! Don't say anything yet, wait until we get to the classroom, I want to write down everything you say."

Zhang Pingan pulled Jin Bao's hand down in annoyance: "Why are you covering my mouth? I'm just giving you an idea. In the end, you have to write it yourself."

Jin Bao said, "I know, I know. Please tell me later. I won't be able to remember if you tell me too much."

The two of them walked into the academy chatting and laughing, and parted ways at the door of Class B.

Zhang Ping'an thought that he would be the only one in class just like usual, but he didn't expect that Lin Junhui also came early today, but Master Lin had not arrived yet.

"Good morning," Zhang Pingan greeted his classmate whom he hadn't seen for many days.

Lin Junhui also smiled and said, "Good morning!"

"Why did you think of coming to class today?" Zhang Pingan was curious.

"I was a bit bored at home, so I came over. It's just right to keep you company," Lin Junhui still looked cynical.

Zhang Ping'an didn't say anything. He just needed to study hard on his own. After sitting down, he took out the book from his bag and started reviewing.

"Hey, aren't you tired of studying every day? It's so boring and tedious. There are actually people who like to study the Four Books and Five Classics," Lin Junhui asked as he got closer. He was also quite curious.

Zhang Pingan saw that this classmate was just bored and wanted to talk to someone, but he couldn't offend him, so he turned around and replied seriously, "It's half and half. Half of it is because I really love studying, and the other half is because I want to find a way out after studying well." He paused and continued, "Although our family backgrounds are different, studying for the imperial examination is the best way out for both of us."

"That's right," Lin Junhui nodded, and then made small talk: "By the way, is your brother-in-law interested in being a bodyguard? He's the strongest man I've ever seen. With his physique and some training, he'd be perfect for this job. What future does being a pig butcher have? Being a bodyguard would earn him at least five or six taels a month."

"But being a bodyguard would be dangerous," Zhang Ping'an thought about it and felt that it was not appropriate, so he shook his head and replied.

Lin Junhui rolled his eyes and scoffed, "How can there be such a thing as an easy and profitable job? He hasn't even been educated. Our academy's supervisory office is currently recruiting security guards. That's an easy job, but it's only 800 wen a month. What can he do with that?"

"The academy is recruiting guards? How come I didn't know about it? When did it happen?" Zhang Ping'an asked.

"I heard from the manager of the Supervisory Office that there are thieves who come to our academy to steal things at night, and from time to time there are students living in the dormitories who sneak out at night, so we plan to find a guard to patrol the academy at night," Lin Junhui said lazily.

Zhang Ping'an thought that this job was suitable for his second brother-in-law. Although the money was not much in Lin Junhui's eyes, it was actually not a small amount. Besides, he would be on farm leave soon, so it would not affect his work in the fields, and he could still do business during the day. It was the best of all worlds.

"Brother Lin, I just thought about it. The job of guard is quite suitable for my second brother-in-law. I wonder if you could help talk to the manager so that my second brother-in-law can come to work at any time," Zhang Pingan turned around and said with a smile.

Lin Junhui leaned back in his chair and waved his hand: "No need to say anything, if your second brother-in-law wants to go, just go and tell the manager that I introduced him."