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

On the way back, Zhang Ping'an felt dizzy, his forehead was hot, and his body was very cold. It was confirmed that he had typhoid fever.

I can’t attend classes in the short term, it’s so terrible!

When they got home, Zhang Laoer and Xu had already gone to bed, but they were still keeping an eye on the door. As soon as Zhang Ping'an knocked on the door, Zhang Laoer put on his clothes and came out to open the door.

Seeing that the person had been brought there, the servant said nothing more, bowed to Zhang Laoer and left.

Zhang Ping'an stumbled a little when he entered the house. Zhang Laoer quickly supported his son and asked worriedly, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"Dad, I feel like I have a cold. Please go and make some medicine for me," Zhang Ping'an whispered. "I'll sleep for a while!"

When Zhang Laoer heard his son had typhoid fever, he quickly touched his son's forehead and asked in surprise, "Why is it so hot?"

He was suddenly extremely anxious and didn't bother to ask too many questions. He hurriedly asked Xu to get up and take care of his son, while he ran to the kitchen to boil medicine.

Mrs. Xu sat down beside the bed and touched her son's burning forehead with heartache. While blaming her son for not being able to take care of himself, she used a wet cloth to cool his forehead.

Zhang Pingan no longer had the energy to respond to his parents at this moment. He just wanted to have a peaceful sleep.

Not long after, Zhang Laoer came in with the decocted medicine. Xu gently helped her son up and put the medicine bowl to his mouth.

After Zhang Ping'an drank the medicine in a daze, he fell asleep again and began to have a deep dream.

He dreamed about his time in an orphanage in his previous life.

Unlike other children who were abandoned in an orphanage halfway, Zhang Pingan was abandoned when he was only a few months old. The aunts in the orphanage were surprised to find that he was still a healthy boy after checking him. This was very rare at that time. Most of the boys who were abandoned had disabilities or congenital diseases.

Logically speaking, he should have been easily adopted, but he was probably born with a bad fate. He suffered from illnesses of varying severity since childhood. He was hospitalized several times due to diarrhea and dehydration. He was the type of person who could neither live nor die. His complexion was very bad, and it was not until he was eight or nine years old that he felt a little better.

At this time, he was already attending the welfare primary school affiliated with the orphanage. He learned to read and became much more sensible.

But he was still very lonely in the orphanage. The reason was simple. The orphanage system in the early 2000s was not yet perfect, and resources were too tight. It was difficult for the children to have enough food. Everyone was in a competitive relationship, and the fight was very serious. They also liked to form small groups, and it was difficult to have real friendships. In addition, he was the only healthy boy, which made him even more excluded.

Zhang Pingan seems to be very sensible in normal times, and his temper is not as violent and aggressive as other children. However, when it comes to his own interests and whether he can live well, he will not give in. He is gentle but stubborn!

The most memorable time was when we all went out together on the weekend to sell the handicrafts we made. This was a task in the orphanage, and the children who sold the most would be rewarded with meat that day.

Everyone else was selling individually, but he thought they could sell more if they worked together, so he made an agreement with another child with a disabled arm that they would sell together. He would not take the credit for being the first to sell, but the reward of meat would be split in half between them. The other party agreed.

After a day of hard work, they finally earned more than 50 yuan and won the first place as they wished. The aunt in the orchard also rewarded the child with meat as promised, but when the time came, the other party changed his mind and was unwilling to share it equally with Zhang Pingan.

Zhang Ping'an was very angry at the time, although he could really understand the other party's choice. The courtyard only had boiled seasonal vegetables all year round, and they ate whatever was cheap, without any meat at all, and everyone was too eager to eat meat.

But he would not forgive this betrayal of promise!

Looking at the other person's defensive eyes and the fact that he spit at the meat several times, Zhang Ping'an knew that it was useless to argue anymore, so he said nothing. He quickly finished his meal and returned to the dormitory. He went straight to the other person's bed, took out the math homework that the other person had done yesterday, erased it all bit by bit with an eraser, and then put it back.

He and this child were in the same class. The bald math teacher in the class was very strict, even a little perverted. He liked to vent his frustrations on the students and would beat and scold them at will. He knew that these children were orphans and had no one to rely on, so they could be bullied at will.

As he expected, during the math class the next day, the math teacher was furious when he saw that someone dared to openly disobey him and not do his homework. He beat the student severely with a ruler.

Only then did Zhang Pingan feel relieved!

Since childhood, he has never experienced normal family warmth, and he doesn't know how to get along normally with his parents and siblings.

In his new life, it was his parents Zhang Laoer and Xu who taught him little by little with their wholehearted love, allowing him to let down his guard.

This love was hard-earned, and he couldn't just fall down because of a typhoid fever.

If he died, he couldn't imagine how sad his parents would be. He had two sisters who were still unmarried and no brothers at home, so how could he find a good family?

Zhang Pingan had no idea how long he had been dreaming about this bizarre dream, and he struggled hard to wake up from it.

I just felt my throat was dry and sore.

Turning his head to look to the side, he saw Xu lying on the edge of the bed, her hair already gray.

Zhang Ping'an wanted to get up and get a glass of water, but just as he moved, Xu was startled awake. She looked up and saw her son was awake. She immediately burst into tears and turned her head to the outside, shouting excitedly, "Daddy, Ping'an is awake!"

Zhang Laoer rushed in from outside upon hearing this. He also looked exhausted and unshaven. He was delighted to see his son was awake. He sat down beside the bed and helped his son up, repeatedly asking, "Son, are you hungry or thirsty?"

Zhang Pingan hissed, "Water..."

Xu quickly went outside and brought in a cup of warm water. She cried and laughed, "Look at me, I'm so happy that I forgot. I made you a cup of warm water. Please moisten your throat first."

After saying that, he urged Zhang Laoer, "Dad, please ask a doctor to come and see your son."

Zhang Laoer was just about to get up.

Zhang Pingan felt much better after drinking the water. He pulled his father's sleeve and said tiredly, "No need, Dad, I'm fine. By the way, how long have I been sleeping?"

Mrs. Xu wiped her tears and said, "You've been sleeping for three days now. It's so scary. I couldn't even get the medicine to work. You kept talking in your sleep. We've called three or four doctors. Your grandmother, your uncle, your third uncle, and your eldest and second sisters have all come to see you. From now on, we're never going to this outing again!"

"Mom, I'm fine now," Zhang Pingan said weakly, then changed the subject and asked, "Has anyone come to see me in the past two days?"

Zhang Lao Er nodded and said hoarsely, "Yes, your provincial school teacher sent someone to look for you, and your classmate Lin Junhui also sent someone. However, seeing that you were seriously ill, they didn't say anything. They just sent someone to deliver some medicinal herbs and told you to send someone back to report back after you woke up."

Zhang Pingan nodded and wanted to stand up: "Then I'll go write him a letter, and then you can find someone to deliver it!"

Zhang Laoer helped his son slowly out of the house.

Looking at the sun outside, Zhang Ping'an squinted his eyes, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"It's already 3 p.m., son. I'll go make you a bowl of noodles," said Mrs. Xu, looking at the sky.

Zhang Ping'an simply wrote a letter to report his safety, and asked Zhang Laoer to go out and find someone to deliver it to Lin's house.

The messenger was very fast. Zhang Ping'an had just finished his noodles when he brought back Lin Junhui's reply.

When I opened it, there were only two sentences: "Don't worry, it's over!"