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

Zhang Ping'an accidentally saw Chen Jianqiu when he was giving a speech in the library.

At first glance, I just felt that the face looked familiar, and then I realized who it was. After that, I immediately stopped and looked at it a few more times, but I was still not sure.

It was not until I asked the person on duty at the library and found out that the place of origin, name and age all matched, that I was 99% sure that it was Chen Jianqiu!

It's really not Zhang Ping'an's fault for not being able to believe it. Chen Jianqiu had experienced an incident at sea and was imprisoned by pirates for quite a while. In addition, he had been displaced for a long time recently. He had become very thin and haggard.

The gap is huge compared to before.

Looking at the skinny servant who was bowing and saluting in the distance, it was hard to associate him with the smart and handsome young man of the past!

You can tell at a glance that he has suffered a lot!

Zhang Ping'an was deeply touched and his throat choked.

At this time, a group of people from the county school were still following behind Zhang Ping'an. They stopped together, making quite a noise, which attracted Chen Jianqiu, Fatty Wu and other servants to secretly look up.

When they saw each other, their eyes accidentally met in the air. Chen Jianqiu was also stunned, and then he opened his eyes wide, his eyes full of disbelief.

"Jianqiu, long time no see!" Zhang Ping'an walked up and said softly, helping the person to stand up.

Chen Jianqiu stood up and was stunned for a moment before he asked uncertainly, "Are you safe?"

"How dare you address the county magistrate by his name!" The person on duty at the library scolded him hastily after hearing this, but his tone was not harsh, as he obviously noticed that the two were old acquaintances.

He was just pretending to be so because he was afraid that Chen Jianqiu didn't know the rules and would offend Zhang Ping'an, which would implicate him.

As expected, Zhang Pingan immediately waved his hands and said with a smile: "Everyone has misunderstood. This person is an old friend of mine. It has been many years since we last met. I didn't expect to meet him here today!"

Fang Ziqi was an expert at reading people's expressions. He knew immediately that this man had a close relationship with his brother-in-law, so he immediately said with a smile, "Haha, meeting an old friend in a foreign land is a great blessing in life. It's a great fate. It's almost noon now, so why don't we have Mr. Chen come with us for lunch? We can chat while we eat. Your Excellency can also take this opportunity to catch up with Mr. Chen!"

Jiao Yu looked around and agreed with a smile, "Haha, this is really like a flood that has washed away the Dragon King Temple. Family members don't recognize each other anymore. I didn't even notice that Mr. Zhang's friend was in this small piece of land under my jurisdiction. I'll punish myself with three cups of wine later!"

"Jianqiu, let's go and have dinner first. We can talk after dinner if we have anything to say," Zhang Pingan invited with a smile, barely suppressing his excitement.

As a county official, he actually has to behave in a dignified manner most of the time in order to maintain his authority and mystery. Zhang Ping'an is very tired, but he has to do so, otherwise some people under him will dare to take advantage of him.

Chen Jianqiu was still immersed in the reunion and hadn't reacted yet. He was really shocked!

After the excitement, his eyes were a little red. When he heard that they were going to have dinner, he was about to agree, but then he looked at the person next to him hesitantly.

Zhang Pingan immediately understood and invited, "Is this person next to you your friend? Why don't you come with us for dinner? We can still finish the book drying work in the afternoon."

"Your humble servant Wu Yousheng pays his respects to Lord Zhang." Fatty Wu is much more capable than Chen Jianqiu, so he quickly seized the opportunity to make his presence felt.

I couldn't help but feel ecstatic. This is what it means to be saved from a desperate situation!

It's like a new hope after a dark tunnel!

Moreover, it seems that Chen Jianqiu has a very good relationship with the county magistrate. It really is true that there is always a way out!

Since they are good friends, the county magistrate will definitely help Chen Jianqiu, and it should not be difficult to help himself at the same time. It seems that returning home is just around the corner!

Chen Jianqiu then introduced the two parties, and then everyone went to the county school cafeteria to eat together.

This cafeteria is different from that cafeteria. It is not the same place where Chen Jianqiu and his friends usually eat.

It is an independent place built in the side courtyard of the county school, next to the small garden.

Specially used to entertain distinguished guests.

The place is not big, but very elegant and exquisitely decorated.

After sitting down, some people couldn't help but ask about Chen Jianqiu's background.

Especially the two scholars in the library were very nervous, fearing that Chen Jianqiu would reveal that they had embezzled the wages of the servants.

In fact, Chen Jianqiu had never thought about this at all. Although it was wrong for them to embezzle money, at least this job could allow him to have two full meals in the county school, and he was already very satisfied.

As for his origins, he only roughly said that he came from Yingzhou, was born into a family of medical practitioners, and was a gossipmonger. He didn't say much else.

Zhang Ping'an didn't want Chen Jianqiu to be questioned openly or secretly, so he quickly changed the subject.

Chen Jianqiu also secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After finishing his meal, Zhang Ping'an asked Chen Jianqiu about her recent situation out of concern. He probably had an idea in his mind and couldn't help but sigh at the cruel fate.

Because he had official business to attend to, it was inconvenient for him to stay for long, so he whispered, "I'm also at the county school this afternoon. When you get off work, wait for me in the library. I'll come find you. You can take my carriage and follow me back to the county government office."

After saying this, he glanced at Fatty Wu who was peeking over at the side and said, "I'll arrange for someone to take your friend to the inn to rest. It's definitely better than sleeping on a large bunk bed at the county school."

"Okay!" Chen Jianqiu nodded in response, not feeling comfortable saying that they couldn't even get a bed in the county school's dormitory, and now they were sleeping in a dilapidated temple in the city every night.

After Zhang Ping'an left, Fatty Wu came forward and put his arm around Chen Jianqiu's neck, saying happily, "Great, brother. You're a real person, don't show your true colors. I didn't expect you to know someone in Ci County. My future depends entirely on you!"

"I didn't expect that either," Chen Jianqiu murmured, shaking his head.

Then he cheered up. No matter what, this was a great thing for him at the moment. With the county magistrate as his backer, it would at least not be difficult to find a job.

Zhang Ping'an's visit to the county school this time was mainly to discuss the issue of student source reform in the county.

In his opinion, the county school in Ci County is basically non-existent now. It is full of old hands who are just getting by, and there are few people who really want to learn. This is a huge waste of financial and educational resources.

It's really disgusting!

Therefore, Zhang Ping'an planned to improve the county school system. From now on, an examination would be held every three months. Those who passed the examination would continue to stay, while those who failed would be expelled or donate money to stay. The extra money would be given as a reward to students with good academic performance.

Make reasonable allocation of existing resources.

Only in this way can the county school develop slowly, select good talents from the few scholars and cultivate them, which will also be conducive to promoting the learning atmosphere of the county school.

This regulation kills two birds with one stone.

Jiao Yu and the teachers thought about it and felt that apart from some trouble, there didn't seem to be any loss, so they didn't object.