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

It wasn't until the next day, while sitting in the donkey cart on his way to school, that Zhang Pingan finally realized what was wrong. He exclaimed, "Dad, why didn't I hear Liu Sanlang speak yesterday? Don't you think something is wrong?"

"Oh, I heard from your second aunt that he stutters a little, but that's not a big problem. He's a down-to-earth, hardworking man who can support his family. His family is also well-off, which is enough for your eldest sister." Zhang Laoer replied calmly.

"Stutter...stutter?!" No wonder. When he gave the betrothal gift yesterday without saying anything, I knew there must be something wrong. It's obvious that my parents knew about it, so it can't be considered a marriage fraud.

Zhang Pingan thought for a moment and then asked, "Do grandma and big sister know about this?"

"What does it have to do with them? Marriage is a matter of parents' decision. It's enough for your mother and I to decide!" Zhang Laoer was stunned by the question.

what? !

"Dad, you won't randomly suggest a family for me to marry in the future, right? That won't work. I have to find someone I like first!" Zhang Pingan said anxiously.

"Hahaha, son, you are so young, why are you thinking about such far-reaching things? Don't worry, Dad will definitely find a good one for you," Zhang Laoer was asked, feeling both amused and helpless.

"I'm serious!" Zhang Ping'an said with a puffed face. He was irritated by his father's attitude. It was obvious that he didn't listen. As a child, he had no human rights!

"Yeah, I got it. You don't have to worry about it," Zhang Laoer replied perfunctorily.

Jinbao sat aside and listened for a long time until he understood what was said. He came over and said proudly: "My mother also said that when I get married, she must marry me a capable wife. At least she must be like her, who can take over the business of the tea shed. It would be even better if the tea shed was turned into an inn. I can hire waiters to work there, and I will only be responsible for collecting money at the counter."

The more I talk about it, the more beautiful it becomes, as if I have already seen that day.

"......" Zhang Pingan frowned, it was a nice thought!

With something on his mind, he felt very anxious during the whole day of classes. After finally waiting for the get out of class to be over, Zhang Laoer came to pick him up. Zhang Ping'an quickly pulled Jinbao into the car.

This problem did not attract the slightest attention from his parents, but in Zhang Ping'an's opinion, this future brother-in-law had language defects, and he had to talk to his eldest sister about it. After all, his eldest sister was the one involved and would live with someone else for the rest of her life. If his eldest sister was unwilling, he would definitely help her. There was still room for maneuver since they had not gotten married yet.

After returning home, Zhang Ping'an secretly told his eldest sister about this matter while his parents were not around. He thought that his eldest sister would be very excited and at least ask his parents about it.

Unexpectedly, Daya just lowered her head and remained silent for a long time. Then she whispered, "How can a country girl like me have everything? I can just get one. Like Dad said, it's not a big deal."

After she finished speaking, she seemed to have figured something out, cheered up, and calmly touched Zhang Ping'an's head: "Ping'an, thank you for still thinking of me, but your sister is not that good, and it's great to have found someone like Liu Sanlang. You should study hard and don't think too much. Maybe you can help me out when you have a promising future."

Looking at the calm elder sister, Zhang Pingan suddenly felt a deep sense of powerlessness. In the eyes of everyone, he was just a five-year-old boy with pigtails. How could he be trusted!

"Sister, don't worry, I will definitely be successful in the future. My parents' home is your support!" Zhang Pingan said solemnly, and then said nothing more, and began to take out his schoolbag to do today's homework.

After studying for a while, Master Luo is now teaching several people how to pick up a pen. Among them, Zhang Ping'an, Liu Shengyuan and Luo Fugui are the best learners, and the other three are not much behind.

The situation in the school also gradually became clear. The students in Class C were just beginning their education, the students in Class B had studied for two to three years, and the students in Class A had studied for four years or more. Class B had the most students and Class A had the least. Only the students in Class A could learn the Four Books and Five Classics and make a fighting chance at the imperial examination.

Zhang Ping'an observed carefully. Several students in Class A came from families with some assets, but they were not too rich. Most of them were not the eldest sons, and their talents were average. Their families did not expect them to establish a new family, so they had the money and leisure to stay here for so many years.

Although Mr. Luo was a good person, he was just a student and had to teach three classes at the same time. The teaching progress could not be improved at all. So far, no student in the school had passed the entrance exam.

Zhang Ping'an's current goal is to be promoted to Class A in the shortest possible time, to lay a solid foundation first, and then see if he can go to the town for further studies.

We must start now, step by step!

When Xu and Zhang Laoer returned to the room, they saw their son doing his homework seriously. He looked so serious with a stern face that he looked like a little adult. They couldn't help but walk lightly, fearing that it would affect the child's studies.

Xu was full of pride, thinking that Erhe was much better than the third family in the east wing opposite. Erhe had never done any homework after coming back from class for so long, and he couldn't even recite a few sentences from the book.

Thinking about these makes me more motivated to work!

While the family was having dinner, Daya didn't show any emotion at all and her mood was not affected at all.

While eating, Xu chatted casually, "Da Ya, your wedding day is almost here. Try not to go out these days. Let Er Ya and the others do the housework. In a few days, I'll go to the market and buy you a few feet of red cloth to make a wedding dress. Then you can go to your grandfather's house and have your two uncles make you a few boxes as a dowry. Then you will be able to marry in style."

After he finished speaking, he paused and sighed, "Mom and Dad don't have any special abilities. We have many brothers and sisters, and there will be many places to spend money in the future. We haven't built a house yet, so we really can't give you more"!

Mrs. Xu has always been very strong in front of her children and has a bad temper. She is not a gentle mother.

Upon hearing what her mother said, Daya's eyes turned red and she cried, "Mom, I understand. You and Dad have worked hard too. You don't have to prepare anything special for me. The Liu family is after me, not my dowry. Don't bother with the red cloth. Don't waste money. I see your wedding dress is still there. You can just send it to the dyeing workshop to have it dyed again."

"Big girl, you are the most sensible one," sighed Xu, and then said to the younger ones, "Second girl, Third girl, you two are not little anymore. Look at your eldest sister, she has always been obedient and sensible, and knows the difficulties of being a parent. You should learn from her. And fourth girl, fifth girl, sixth girl, you guys just play around all day and can't even collect a basket of herbs in a whole day. You must be lazy. Watch out for your hides if you continue like this!"

Erya looked up from her bowl, a little dazed. She chewed her rice and mumbled, "Mom, when have I ever been disobedient? I did whatever you told me to do. It was Sanya who was disobedient, greedy, lazy, and always bullied Siya, Wuya, and Liuya."

When San Ya heard this, she immediately retorted, "Second sister, how can you say that to me? I always listen to our mother. But you, last time when we were collecting firewood, you and Chun Tao were braiding hair together and you played with it for the whole afternoon."

"It was only that time. You told Chuntao that she knew a lot of braiding styles and asked me to try it with her. But you were lazy many times before, and the work was done by me, Si Ya and the others!" Erya replied without showing any weakness.

"That's enough!" Mrs. Xu was so angry that she put down her chopsticks with a "snap" and pulled Erya and Sanya's ears. "You two are lazy outside every day, so your parents have to work themselves to death in the fields. You've all been eating too much free food. From now on, you won't be allowed to eat until you have collected a basket of herbs. I'll starve you for a few meals and you'll become more diligent!"

Erya and Sanya screamed in pain and begged Xu for mercy.

Daya also put down her bowl and pleaded, "Mother, let's forget about it today and forgive them. When I get married, they will naturally have to take over the responsibilities. There is no need to rush for one or two days."

Zhang Ping'an and the other children followed suit and begged for mercy. Seeing that they had almost given up, Xu released his hand and said, "For your eldest sister's sake, let's forget about it today. Let's eat."

Erya and Sanya rubbed their red ears, glared at each other, and lowered their heads to eat.