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

It was at this time that Chen Jianqiu begged for food all the way from Xiangshan to Ci County, and his fellow prisoner Fatty Wu was with him.

Back in Xiangshan, after the county government verified the identities of the pirate hostages and confirmed that they were not spies or people of unknown origin, they released them.

As for Fatty Wu's request to return the property stolen by pirates, it is impossible.

There was no way he could get money from the county government to go back home.

After Fatty Wu asked for it several times to no avail and was almost thrown into jail, he didn't dare to make trouble anymore.

He could only leave the county government office in shame, empty-handed, just like Chen Jianqiu.

Both of them could read and write, and initially they found jobs in Xiangshan running errands and copying books, which allowed them to make a living.

Chen Jianqiu was a good doctor, and he wanted to find a job as a clinic doctor, but he couldn't find anyone to vouch for him, and he was not a local, so no medical officer was willing to hire him.

Forget about working as an accountant!

There is no other way but to start with the hard work, after all, I have to eat.

Moreover, both of them wanted to go home, but the mountains were high and the waters were long, so money was a big problem.

Fatty Wu has many years of business experience and is quick-witted. It is impossible for him to work honestly for others just for three meals a day.

After the two received their first month's salary, Fatty Wu persuaded Chen Jianqiu to start a small business together.

The capital was not much, less than 500 coins. Even a good cook cannot cook without rice. Fatty Wu was very cautious about how to use the money, even more nervous than when he handled the tens of thousands of taels of silver.

After careful observation, he decided to go to the countryside to collect some older antiques, calligraphy and paintings and sell them in the city.

Thanks to his upbringing, he has a certain taste and experience in antiques, calligraphy and paintings. He doesn't want those that are everywhere on the street, and chooses more special ones. Although they are not made by famous people, they are old and have an antique flavor.

Most of the country people don’t understand these things, so you can buy them at very low prices.

The target customer group is mainly readers, and packaging even accounts for more than half of the cost.

At that time, only scholars had money, and only scholars' money was easier to make.

Fatty Wu’s positioning is very clear.

At first, it was indeed going smoothly. Chen Jianqiu helped out and had several full meals together.

But the good times did not last long. The two were soon targeted. They had no background and no foundation. Even if they were put in a sack and beaten to death with a stick, no one would know.

Finally, he was driven out of Xiangshan under the threat of thugs and all his money was robbed.

Fatty Wu just wanted to cry!

The world is so difficult that good people are simply not allowed to survive!

So the two of them began their begging journey, preparing to go to the next county town.

Who would have thought that at this time the imperial court would start to levy corvee and taxes, making life even more difficult for the common people, not to mention these beggars!

What does it mean to be born at the wrong time and have bad luck? This is it!

Even though Chen Jianqiu always had a good attitude, he couldn't hold it anymore.

It is so frustrating to have all kinds of skills but not be able to use them!

The two of them lost a lot of weight due to hunger.

"If God must torture me like this, it would be better for me to stay on the pirate island. At least I can have enough food to eat," said Fatty Wu, touching his belt which had loosened again.

"Hold on a little longer. Didn't the other beggars say that the county magistrate of Ci County up ahead was giving out porridge? Let's go there. We can have a sip of porridge and at least we won't starve to death. We can think about the rest later!" Chen Jianqiu replied, touching his stomach.

Fortunately, he was a doctor and knew some edible herbs. This skill saved him.

When the two men arrived in Ci County, except that their faces and bodies were cleaner than those of ordinary beggars, they were no different from beggars in other aspects.

Pockets are cleaner than face!

The porridge was distributed at noon and the end of the afternoon every day, and the two of them happened to be there in time.

When Fatty Wu received his share of hot porridge, he was so moved that he almost cried. With tears in his eyes, he said, "This county magistrate is such a good man! When I get home, I'm going to make him a golden statue and place it next to the Bodhisattva!"

After Chen Jianqiu finished his hot porridge, he sighed, "Yeah!"

After saying that, he licked the bowl and continued, "It would be better if there wasn't so much sand in the porridge. It's so sticky!"

"Don't be picky if there's food to eat. I think Ci County is pretty good. Let's see if we can find some work tomorrow," said Fatty Wu.

The two of them spent several days in Ci County before they finally found a temporary job helping to dry books. They were provided with two meals a day but no wages.

It was because others saw that both of them were literate and had good conversational skills that they were chosen from among the crowd.

Only when we arrived did we find out that they were going to work in the county school.

The manager walked over and said, "Your task is to dry all the books and files in the county school during the next few days while the sun is good. Repair and paste any insect-eaten parts, and then cover them with mothballs. It's not a difficult job, but you have to be careful. Don't be rough or damage them, or you won't be able to afford the compensation even if you sell them!"

After a while, he took the two of them to the library.

There were two people from the county school drinking tea inside.

The steward quickly stepped forward, bowed, and said with a flattering smile, "Two scholars, as you requested, I have found the people for you. They are both literate and have some knowledge of writing, and their handwriting is also neat."

"Hmm," one of them nodded, and said in a haughty tone, "I've explained the rules to them. If anyone asks, the wages are 20 wen a day."

"Don't worry, I've explained everything clearly. They just need to take care of the meals," said the manager with a smile.

"That's fine, you take them upstairs," said the man.

Fatty Wu knew that his wages had been withheld, but he didn't expect that so much had been withheld, and not a single cent was left for them!

He finally understood the feelings of the workers, and he swore that after he returned home, he would definitely put an end to the corruption among the people. Life is so difficult for the workers at the bottom!

The food in the county school cafeteria was very generous. After all this time of wandering, the two of them were finally able to eat a hot and filling meal again.

The work of drying books is a bit tedious for the two of them, but not difficult.

Two days passed in a flash, and on this day, Zhang Ping'an took Jiao Yu to inspect the county school according to the planned schedule.

There are not many scholars in Ci County, and the county school is deserted. The students are all old scholars who have been here for many years. Their families are not short of money, so they just hang around in the county school.

Zhang Ping'an knew the situation, so he didn't have any expectations and just went through the motions.

Unexpectedly, I met an old friend in the library.

At first, he thought he was dazzled!