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

Daya came over with a handkerchief to wipe the sweat off her man's face, and she looked relatively calm.

The other female members of the family were usually only responsible for washing clothes, cooking and taking care of children at home. They hardly even worked in the fields. Their lives were quite comfortable. They had never seen such a scene, with all the chattering and noise. They had never thought that one day they might be arrested and taken to the government office.

The boatmen who had just run away came back when they saw the people from the Hebosi had left.

Just now they had been hiding on the edge of the other side of the reed marsh, ready to dive and escape if the situation turned bad. They had deflated the sheepskin raft, rolled it up and carried it on their backs. They could not afford to pay bribes or go to jail.

Seeing that everyone was standing there peacefully, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Did you bribe them with money?"

Zhang Pingan shook his head. "My senior brother is the deputy officer of the Hebo Police Station. He happened to be familiar with the leader, so they let us go."

"Oh, I didn't expect you still have connections. It would be better if you could just go to the provincial capital and take a big ship, so you don't have to suffer this pain," one of the boatmen laughed.

Now that the matter has been resolved smoothly, they are happy to fulfill their promise and send the person safely to the provincial capital.

Zhang Pingan smiled but said nothing. He was even more embarrassed to say that he had not attended a single formal class since he became their disciple, and was even less familiar with his two senior brothers. However, this time he did help a lot by using this title.

After a long period of noise, everyone gradually quieted down and found a place to take a nap.

Jinbao came over and sat next to Zhang Pingan. The two had been friends since childhood and were of similar age, so they always had things to talk about when they were together.

After a while, Qian Yongde also came over and whispered, "Ping'an, who do you think reported us? Could it be the people from Tangjiadu before?"

"Isn't it obvious? Who else except them would know that we would rest here today? They are so shameless. Fortunately, Brother Ping'an has face." Jin Bao got angry when he said this.

Zhang Pingan narrowed his eyes, his smile a little cold: "Let's wait until we get to the provincial capital safely. We can't control them now. Let's wait and see. Don't let them fall into our hands."

Qian Yongde felt heartbroken when he thought about it: "I wasted more than ten taels of silver in vain. If I use this to buy meat, I will never be able to afford it!"

"I paid for all this," Zhang Pingan glanced at his third brother-in-law. "When we get to the provincial capital, we'll calculate the expenses for this trip and then pay per person."

"Ah..." Qian Yongde opened his mouth, "I'll go find your third sister, you two can chat slowly!"

"Hahaha," Jin Bao laughed, "It's easiest to talk money with my third brother-in-law."

Zhang Ping'an leaned back against the dry reeds and smiled, "I didn't really want their money. I just wanted to scare him. I know they've already spent a lot on military service. Besides, whether I go to the provincial capital or to the south, it's much easier for me to make money than them. Even if I didn't take them with me, I would have to spend the money anyway."

"Yeah, it's hard to be too clear about things between family members," Jinbao nodded, showing understanding.

"Okay, go to sleep quickly. It will probably be dawn soon," said Zhang Ping'an.

Everyone dozed off for a bit, but it didn't feel like too long before the boatman started yelling, "Wake up, wake up, we're leaving."

The sheepskin raft had been deflated yesterday, and the boatmen had to inflate it again and tie it up again, and they were busy on the shore.

Zhang Ping'an stood up, patted the reed scraps off his body, drank a few sips of cold water to moisten his throat, and ate half a dry biscuit. But he really couldn't eat anymore. It was so hard!

Jinbao yawned with his head full of crumbs, but he slept quite well.

By the time everyone got on the boat, it was already dawn and a white mist was rising from the surface of the river.

"Everyone, wrap your heads with clothes and hats to avoid getting cold," the leading boatman shouted.

When the boatman reminded them yesterday, everyone took out their hats and clothes and covered their heads, but after a night, they still felt chilly when sitting on the water.

"Everyone hold on to the hemp ropes tightly. It's not fun to fall into the river," Zhang Ping'an shouted loudly. He saw his cousin Tianshou from Xu's family squinting his eyes, looking as if he had not woken up yet, and his body was almost tilted.

"Tianshou, sit down quickly," my aunt Shen scolded quickly.

"Mom, I feel dizzy," Tianshou muttered.

Shen's heart tightened. She raised her hand and touched her son's forehead. Fortunately, he was only slightly warm. She couldn't help but comfort him, "Okay, I'll buy you something delicious when we get to the provincial capital. Come and sit down!"

Da Ya and Er Ya held their children tightly in their arms. Some of the children were still energetic enough to look around and chatter softly.

"We will reach the provincial capital in about an hour. Everyone, be alert and don't cause any trouble," the leading boatman shouted.

"I know, don't worry," responded the other boatmen.

At this time, they had already passed the boundary of the provincial capital and were still a long way from the provincial capital. No one came to check, so the boatmen became much bolder.

In this way, we rowed from dawn to bright day, and around 9:00 a.m., we could already see the big wharf of the provincial capital Yingzhou from afar.

Everyone on the water was almost frozen and some were coughing slightly, but when they saw they were almost there, they couldn't help but cheer up and stopped chatting.

The leading boatman also slowed down and rowed slowly towards the shore.

"Do we want to get off here?" Zhang Pingan asked.

"Yes, we can only take you here and can't go any further. Our boat is not registered and has not paid taxes. It would be terrible if we were caught. After you get ashore, walk along the road for another seven or eight miles and you will reach the dock. There are cars there that can take people into the city," said the leading boatman.

His voice was shivering with cold. It was very painful to row on the river for such a long time so early in the morning. Moreover, the clothes and shoes he wore were not thick, and he had nothing warm to eat. He had to endure to get until now.

When the raft approached the shore, the leading boatman called over another nimble tribesman and said, "Dog, come here! It's up to you!"

"Okay! Uncle, here we come," another boatman responded.