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

After a while, Zhang Laoer also came back with his shopping.

After dinner, the family went to bed early.

The next day was a holiday for the provincial school. Although Zhang Ping'an didn't have to go to school, he still got up early and reviewed his lessons in the study.

Xu and Mrs. Hu were busy in the kitchen.

Just after noon, Wu Ya came back with her husband in a mule cart.

Zhang Laoer had asked Old Man Lu to wait at the door. As soon as the mule cart stopped at the door, Old Man Lu came forward to help carry things.

Leading the way in front, he led a few people in.

After Wu Ya and her husband entered the room, they first bowed to Zhang Lao Er and Xu, served them tea, and then sat down.

The two of them were followed by a maid and a servant, and they looked very elegant.

Xu's face was full of smiles. She held Wu Ya's hand and sighed, "It's only been a few days since she got married, but her demeanor has changed. She's so dignified and polite. The Fang family really knows how to teach their daughters-in-law!"

Wu Ya sat aside without saying a word.

Zhang Ping'an looked at his fifth sister and saw that she looked okay, and her fifth brother-in-law was still smiling as usual, so he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

It seems that these days have been pretty good and my fifth sister hasn't caused any trouble.

I hope she can figure it out, otherwise she will be the one suffering and living her life alone with no one to help her.

The Fang family has strict rules. Fang Ziqi has been influenced by them since he was a child. He is also a scholar with official titles, so he speaks in a very elegant manner. It is very difficult for Zhang Laoer to respond to the conversation, so he simply lets his son and son-in-law chat while he drinks tea and relaxes.

Fang Ziqi was very warm and brought a lot of gifts to his parents' home this time. He was very thoughtful. In addition to Zhang Laoer and his men, Old Man Zhang and Liu Ya also had gifts, and they were all presentable.

Zhang Ping'an knew that his marriage to the Qian family not only changed his own destiny, but also changed the status of several sisters in their husband's families.

In-laws are the closest ties.

Xu was very satisfied with this and felt respected and valued by her in-laws.

He looked at his son-in-law with a smile, and the more he looked, the more satisfied he became. He hurriedly asked Mrs. Hu to set the table.

When Fang Ziqi saw this, he quickly ordered the two servants who had followed him to help. He was very perceptive.

The atmosphere was very lively after we sat down. Although Fang Ziqi was sour, he was not pedantic.

When I saw that Zhang Laoer didn't talk much, I realized that my approach was not applicable to the Zhang family, so I spoke in a much more popular and straightforward manner afterwards.

His attentive attitude made Zhang Laoer and Xu very satisfied.

The alcohol content of the wine at the table was not high. Even if they drank as much as they wanted, they would only be slightly tipsy at most. Xu didn't care.

Everyone was very happy during the meal.

After the meal, Zhang Ping'an even felt that his fifth brother-in-law was much more warm to his family than his fifth sister.

Xu asked Mrs. Hu to serve tea to the few people to help them relieve the greasiness and help digest the food.

He also placed a plate of the persimmon cakes that Fang Ziqi brought. These persimmon cakes were different from the ones from his hometown. They tasted soft, glutinous, sweet, with thick flesh and cream. They melted in his mouth and had a very good taste.

"I really don't know why there is such a big difference. The persimmon cakes in our hometown used to taste harder and drier. I thought that was what persimmon cakes were like," Xu said with a smile.

"Oranges grown in the south of the Huai River are oranges, while those grown in the north of the Huai River are tangerines. It's just that the water and soil in each place are different. Moreover, this variety was specially transplanted by my grandfather, so it tastes different," Fang Ziqi explained.

"Oh, your old man really likes to eat," replied Xu.

In fact, she didn't understand what her son-in-law said about oranges and citrons, but she understood the general meaning.

"Father-in-law and mother-in-law, my little brother, my family has an orchard halfway up the mountain in the suburbs. The fruits there grow very well, but the persimmons ripen later than usual. Next time, I'll have my servants bring some over for you to try."

"Well, that's great, may everything go as you wish," said Zhang Laoer with a smile.

Wu Ya didn't say much the whole time.

The couple sat for a while and then stood up to say goodbye.

Xu quickly took out the prepared return gift and asked Old Man Lu to put it in Wu Ya and the others' car.

Some of them were return gifts brought back from the Qian family, which was quite generous to give to Wu Ya and the others.

Although Xu was heartbroken, she knew her son was right and did not refuse to give it to her.

The family saw them out the door and watched the mule cart go away.

Mrs. Xu waited until the car drove away before she frowned and said angrily, "Dad, look at the Fifth Girl. It really makes me angry. I raised her for nothing! And I gave her so many things. No wonder they say daughters are a waste of money!"

"Okay, I'm married now. From now on we can just visit each other during the New Year and other holidays. Why bother about it?" Zhang Laoer was very open-minded.

He has never had any requirements for his daughter, and his position is very clear. He has never expected too much from his daughter. Anyway, he just needs to fulfill his responsibilities as a father.

Zhang Ping'an also shook his head and said nothing.

After what happened to his third sister when they were fleeing famine, he saw through a lot.

Understand that everyone lives their own life, and it's enough to have a clear conscience about some things.

Wu Ya doesn’t know that her parents have any opinions about her, and even if she knew, she wouldn’t care.

After getting on the carriage and turning out of the alley, Fang Ziqi put away his smile and said coldly, "Who are you showing off to? If it weren't for your good brother who was a Juren at a young age and married into the Qian family, I would have divorced you the day after our wedding! Now you are my Fang family's daughter-in-law. In life, you belong to the Fang family, and in death, you will be a Fang family ghost. You'd better give up any other thoughts as soon as possible!"

Wu Ya still sat there without saying a word, tears flowing silently.

"I get angry when I see you like this. I'm so unlucky. My first wife died of an acute illness, but now I've met you and I can't even divorce her!" Fang Ziqi said he was unlucky.

The maid and the servant sat in the front of the carriage, listening to the noise inside but pretending not to hear anything, not daring to make a sound.

The Fang Family Temple is small, but it has many rules and is very strict with servants.

"Wipe your tears quickly and don't embarrass me when you go back," Fang Ziqi said coldly, taking out a handkerchief from his arms and throwing it to Wu Ya.

After a pause, he warned, "Especially in front of my elder brother and his wife, you have to pretend well! This is your second marriage. If something goes wrong again, you know the consequences better than me..."

"I understand," Wu Ya said in a hoarse voice, and spoke the first sentence.

Then he looked out the window.

She didn't know how her life became like this.

Suddenly, a familiar figure flashed outside the window, and Wu Ya couldn't help but stick her head out to take a closer look.

Fang Ziqi immediately pulled the man back and made him sit down, scolding him, "We're outside, don't you know the rules?"

Wu Ya's tears had stopped flowing, and she felt a little relieved. She couldn't help but retort coldly, "Your Fang family has more rules than the residence of a Juren master. Ha, I haven't seen a Juren come out of your family!"

Fang Ziqi was a little angry when he heard this, and sneered: "You are just being stubborn!"