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

"I know," Xu replied in a low voice, secretly encouraging herself in her heart that she had to hold herself up high and not let the neighbors look down on her.

Although the two servants bought from the bearded man were a little older, they worked very efficiently and had put everything in place in no time.

Seeing that there was no one else who needed their help, Liu Sanlang and Liu Husheng got up and went home, and would come back in the afternoon to have dinner together.

Zhang Pingan shared the remaining half bag of candy he had just bought with his family and said, "Okay, come over earlier in the evening. We have a big and spacious yard now, so it's much more convenient for the children to come over and play!"

"Hey," Liu Sanlang and Liu Husheng nodded and responded with a smile, then went home.

The maid they bought was named Hu. She was a well-behaved person who didn't talk much. After getting along with her for a while, Xu felt quite comfortable with her and found her useful. She immediately felt a lot more relaxed.

Seeing that the house was almost cleaned up, he prepared to take Mrs. Hu out to buy some vegetables. So many people would be coming in the evening, so he would have to buy a lot of dishes for the banquet.

Zhang Laoer drove the car and took Old Man Lu out to buy groceries. There were still many things to buy for the new home.

At the moment, only Zhang Ping'an and Wu Yaliu Ya were left at home, and the two sisters were in their own rooms.

Zhang Ping'an went to take a look in his room. The bed was very big. It was left by the original owner and now it was covered with new bedding. The windows were also large, so the lighting and ventilation were very good. The most important thing was that the floor was finally not mud, but bricks, which looked very clean!

The study is next door, which is very convenient. Zhang Pingan couldn't help but sigh that he finally lives in a decent house!

Zhang Ping'an got up early in the morning, leaned on the bed in a daze, and fell asleep in a short while.

When I woke up, it was almost noon. Zhang Laoer and Xu had both returned from shopping.

Seeing her son wake up, Mrs. Xu smiled and said, "We can't be careless about this lunch when we eat together as a family. Mrs. Hu said she cooks Huaiyang cuisine well, so I asked her to stew an old duck. I heard it's very nutritious and it will be ready in a while!"

She was just about to cook out of habit, but Mrs. Hu refused to let her and took the spatula and started cooking herself with quick and efficient movements.

Xu didn't argue anymore. Just like her husband said, she had to adapt. She was happy to think that she could be a hands-off boss in the future without having to deal with cooking fumes.

Zhang Laoer just went out to buy something and ordered two trucks of firewood. Now the people delivering the firewood are unloading the firewood with Old Man Lu. Zhang Laoer wanted to go forward to help several times, but he held back!

"Dad, Mom, we have moved now. We need to discuss and decide the date for the Juren banquet as soon as possible. I want to see who to invite so that I can send them invitations in advance," said Zhang Ping'an.

Mrs. Xu nodded repeatedly in agreement after hearing her son's words. She sat down at the table and said, "Of course, the sooner the banquet is held, the better. We don't have much to do at home right now, so we're free. But we still need to ask someone to choose an auspicious day!"

Zhang Laoer agreed: "Let me ask someone to calculate and pick a good day!"

There was no calendar at that time, so people would usually seek out a Feng Shui master or a blind man to calculate their fortunes for weddings, funerals, and housewarmings.

"Dad, Mom, there's no need to go through so much trouble. Have you forgotten that I have studied the Book of Changes? I can calculate a date simply. I just calculated that three days later is an auspicious day. Why don't we set it on that day?" Zhang Ping'an calculated with his bent fingers.

Mrs. Xu had complete trust in her son and smiled, "Okay, then let's set it for September 1st!"

After agreeing on a date, Zhang Ping'an went to his study and began writing invitations, which he sent out in the afternoon.

Not long after lunch, families came one after another. No one came exactly at lunchtime. After all, it was very time-consuming to prepare a meal for so many people, so they had to come early to help.

The children had been living in cramped conditions since they came to the south, but now when they saw a yard as spacious as the one in their hometown, they exclaimed "Wow". The older children still had deep memories of their hometown.

They immediately started to have fun and were very noisy!

There is a swing next to the pavilion, and everyone is scrambling to swing on it.

Erya was afraid that the children would destroy the flowers and plants in the yard, so she put her hands on her hips and shouted, "You can play, but don't mess with the flowers and plants in the yard. If I see you, I won't care who you are and will reward you with a meal of stir-fried pork and bamboo shoots!"

Pengpeng and Manman shrank their necks and made much less noise when they heard this.

Donkey Egg and the others also slowed down their movements. This Second Aunt really beat people up, and she beat them very hard, unlike his mother who was just pretending.

Children are the most sensitive and know very well who can offend them. All children are afraid of Erya.

Zhang Pingan asked Mrs. Hu to bring out a tray of fruit and snacks, all freshly bought that morning. He then gave each of them a handful of copper coins and said with a smile, "Here, this is your pocket money. If you don't act naughty today and behave well, I'll give it back to you when you leave. You can use it to buy your favorite snacks and toys."

Donkey Egg and Chen Yang from Erzhu's family were older and more astute. They rolled their eyes and said crisply, "What if my mother takes it away? It still won't fall into our hands!"

"I told your mother that I won't let you take it away," Zhang Ping'an said.

"Then we promise to be obedient," the children immediately chirped and promised, put away the copper coins, and went to the pavilion to play chess.

Uncle Xu said enviously, "It's so lively here, unlike my home which is so quiet and deserted. No wonder the old people always say that having more children means more blessings. A family without children is just not a good place!"

Not to mention Uncle Xu, even Zhang Laoer is very envious. He is about the same age as Zhang Laosan, and Zhang Laosan's eldest grandson is already in school, while his son has not yet married, and there is no sign of a grandson. In this respect, they are really incomparable, alas!

"At least your two sons are married, and you will have grandchildren soon. Unlike Ping'an, he hasn't even arranged a marriage yet," Zhang Laoer comforted him. His son had told him that he wanted to arrange a marriage after the tryout next year, and in the blink of an eye, another year has passed!

Tiancai replied angrily, "What's the point of marrying her? It was my father-in-law who didn't let my wife come back before, and now that she's allowed to come back, my mother isn't happy about it. It's just putting me in a difficult position!"

Zhang Laoer was surprised and said, "How can you say that? Your mother doesn't let you come back, my good wife?"

Tiancai had been feeling aggrieved for the past two days and had long wanted to talk to his cousin and uncle to ask for their help in making a decision. He ignored his uncle Xu's desperate winks and said, "Uncle, you don't know that I went to Tianjia Village outside the city on the afternoon of the day my cousin passed the imperial examination. When my father-in-law learned about it, he agreed that my wife could come back with me. But after all, it was my family that did the wrong thing. My father-in-law said that we couldn't return without knowing the reason. He asked my family to prepare the apology gifts, including a piece of red cloth, ten packages of square cakes, a goat, and a jar of wine. He would only let my wife return after we had formally apologized. But my mother disagreed and refused to take the money no matter what!"

Zhang Laoer and Zhang Laosan, who was standing next to him, frowned upon hearing this. "It's only right to apologize. These apology gifts only amount to about one or two taels of silver. How can they be more important than a daughter-in-law? Your mother is so confused!"

"She is not confused. My mother just doesn't like my wife anymore and wants me to divorce her," Tian Cai said.

He knew exactly what his mother was planning, but he felt that he couldn't do that.

Jin Bao's father rolled his eyes when he heard this and said, "Your family has no house or land now, and the woman has done nothing wrong. Where do you get the confidence to divorce her?"

Uncle Xu said awkwardly, "I also said his mother, she's been busy these past two days and plans to go to her in-laws' place tomorrow."

The men spoke loudly, and Zhang Pingan also heard it. He immediately understood what was going on. It was not surprising that his aunt-in-law was unwilling to take the money, but if his uncle really needed the money, there was no way he could not get it. Now his attitude was so ambiguous, probably just wanting to wait for the woman to give in first!

After thinking it over, Zhang Pingan walked over and sat aside, saying lightly: "Uncle, logically speaking, this is your family affair. As a junior, I shouldn't interfere. But if my aunt-in-law wants to use my name to make some shameful wishful thinking, then I can't ignore it. I studied so hard to pass the imperial examination so that I and the people around me will not be bullied as much as possible, not to do things that bully others!"

Zhang Laoer also said seriously, "Youcai, Ping'an is right. You were the ones who made the mistake in the first place. Don't go too far! And don't use his name to do anything that will ruin his reputation!"