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

Everyone's life is moving in a good direction.

After a few days, the Jinbao family set the date for moving to a new house, and invited everyone to come to the greenhouse for dinner.

That day happened to be Zhang Ping'an's holiday at the provincial school, so he didn't have to ask for leave.

Zhang Laoer and Xu discussed for a long time and sent a new big iron pot. The house that Jinbao's family and Xu's uncle's family originally shared had only one pot in the kitchen, and they had to rely on it to cook and boil water, which was very inconvenient.

After buying the new house, Jinbao's father specially renovated the kitchen stove. There are two stove eyes in the front and back, one for cooking and the other for boiling water. He has only bought one pot so far.

The iron pot is not cheap, and it is a very practical and presentable gift.

Zhang Pingan bought a high-quality wolf-hair brush for himself and planned to give it to Jinbao.

On the day of moving into a new house, everyone came to Jinbao's house early with gifts. The streets in the north of the city were much cleaner than those in the south, and the contrast was obvious.

Jin Bao's small courtyard is not far from Xiao Yifei's house, just across two alleys. It is very clean and tidy. There are also several pots of cymbidium orchids planted in the courtyard. They are in full bloom, emitting a faint fragrance, adding a bit of elegance to the house.

Jinbao's father dressed up particularly smartly today, changed into new clothes, and stood at the door to greet everyone warmly with a hint of satisfaction on his face.

After entering the yard, the women went into the kitchen to help Jin Bao Niang cook, while the men gathered together to chat and drink tea.

The children chased each other in the yard and played by themselves without any adult supervision.

Zhang Laoer pointed to the pots of orchids in the yard and said with a smile, "I've known you for decades, and how come I didn't know you liked to grow flowers? And you're quite elegant at that!"

Jin Bao's father laughed heartily and waved his hands, saying, "Well, it's not me. How could I like something that's not suitable for eating or drinking? It's my old lady. She likes flowers and insisted on buying a few pots to plant in the yard. I just let her do it. It smells really good!"

"Your yard is really nice. How much did you pay for it?" Zhang Laosan asked after looking around the house. Their family is a big one, and sooner or later they will have their own house.

Jinbao's father stretched out his hand and made the number three, then five. He felt heartbroken every time he said this number. The family's savings were almost empty, and it was really costing him his life to find a marriage for his child.

"Three hundred and fifty taels, my god, that's so expensive," Boss Zhang exclaimed.

As the oldest elders present, Mrs. Zhang and Grandma Jinbao did not need to go to the kitchen to work, they just had to wait for dinner.

After hearing what his eldest son said, he couldn't help but said calmly: "When the world is stable, you have to buy a house sooner or later, otherwise the house will become more and more expensive. You can't always rent a house with your parents, wife, son, grandchildren and great-grandchildren!"

"That's right, I'm also preparing to look at houses, but I plan to buy in the south of the city," Boss Zhang nodded and replied.

Everyone then gathered around the house and chatted again. They were all eager to buy a house, except for Uncle Xu's family. Uncle Xu smiled bitterly in his heart, as they didn't have enough money to buy a house. Alas!

As juniors, Zhang Ping'an and Jin Bao had no say in the matter. Jin Bao brought people to his study and said happily, "Look, my study. How is it? Not bad, right?!"

"Well, it's pretty good, and it's convenient for you to write. Your parents really care about you. Especially this desk, it's really spacious and made of huanghuali wood, which must be expensive," Zhang Ping'an commented after looking around the study.

Moreover, this study is located in the best-lit place in the entire courtyard, and you can see the courtyard by opening the window.

"Hehe, I think it's pretty good too," Jinbao said with a smile.

Soon it was noon and Jin Bao Niang was preparing to set the table for dinner when suddenly there was a knock on the door.

Donkey Egg rushed to open the door, shouting, "I'll do it, I'll do it!"

When he opened the door and saw that it was someone he didn't recognize, he turned around and shouted into the yard, "I don't know who's coming!"

"It's me, Xiao Yifei," the man said loudly, and then came in carrying a chest of drawers.

The chest of drawers was too high and blocked my face.

Jinbao and Zhang Pingan heard the noise and hurried out to help take over the chest of drawers.

"Why did you bring a piece of furniture here?" Jin Bao asked. "It's too valuable!"

Furniture was considered a big item these days, and new ones were usually only bought when getting married or moving into a new house. Many people would use the same box for their entire lives. For example, when Zhang got married, Zhang's grandmother made a pair of new boxes for her. Zhang had used them for almost fifty years, and the paint on the boxes had long since fallen off, but she was still using them before she fled!

Zhang Laoer and Liu Sanlang both knew Xiao Yifei, and they did not expect that he would send such an expensive gift to the Jinbao family. They were both very surprised.

"It's okay. Last time I heard you say that your family was moving, so my mother asked a carpenter to make this chest of drawers as a small token of my appreciation. Don't say you don't want it, that would be a slap in my face," Xiao Yifei pretended to be angry.

"This..." Jinbao looked at his father and grandmother, not knowing whether he could accept it.

"Thank you very much, your mother. We are about to start the meal, let's sit down and eat together," said Jinbao's father, walking over and touching the cabinet.

Xiao Yifei didn't hesitate and agreed readily!

Since there were so many people, it was more lively. The meal lasted until mid-afternoon and both the guests and the hosts had a great time!