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

"Ping'an and I are new to the capital and are unfamiliar with the place. As the host, you have to treat us well. We are relying on you," Lord Huang joked with a smile.

Liu Sanlang laughed and said, "Of course!"

Then he lowered his voice and said, "Let's be cautious for the next two days. Once the palace is quiet and His Majesty has held a celebration banquet for you and rewarded you for your achievements, I will take you to eat something delicious."

"Why, is it still about the Nine Thousand Year Old Man from the previous dynasty?" asked Lord Huang.

Liu Sanlang raised his eyebrows when he heard this, a little surprised: "You all know this too?"

Then, after a moment's thought, he understood: "Indeed, news in the capital cannot be concealed. It is precisely about the Ninth Thousand Year Old Man. Brother Zhao said that he is already terminally ill. It has only been the past two days. The Emperor is very upset because of this. There are many people in the capital, so let's not rush into danger!"

"The capital city is still a place that can hone people, brother-in-law. It hasn't been long since you've been able to thrive in the capital's officialdom. It's not easy!" Zhang Ping'an said with admiration, his hands behind his back.

"Well, I learned all this from others. Anyway, the best thing to do is to talk less, do less and listen more," Liu Sanlang said naively.

As they talked, they walked out the door together.

Liu Sanlang attracted a lot of attention along the way because he was wearing a military officer's uniform, was tall like an iron tower, and had thick hair and beard.

Even the people who had spoken to Mr. Huang before came forward to greet him and to find out more about the visitor's background.

Mr. Huang just gave a few perfunctory remarks to get the matter over with.

Several people did not take the carriage, but rode horses slowly forward.

After a while, we arrived at the old shop in the east of the city that specializes in mutton offal.

There were three doors open side by side in a row, which looked quite nice. There were about twenty tables in the lobby. Although it was past dinner time, most of the people were still sitting there.

This shows how good the store’s business is.

"It's only been a short time, and the common people are so rich now?" Lord Huang asked with a smile.

Liu Sanlang explained, "This is a century-old brand. It's been open for over a hundred years. Everyone in Beijing knows about it. And since they don't have any branches, their business is usually very good.

It's not convenient to talk on the first floor, let's go up to the second floor. The shopkeeper here knows me, I'll ask him to arrange a private room for us."

As he spoke, Liu Sanlang walked towards the counter inside.

The shopkeeper was a young man who looked to be in his twenties. When he saw Liu Sanlang coming in from afar, he stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Sir Liu, what brings you here? Looking at your figure from afar, I guessed it was you!"

"Shopkeeper Bai, I'm here to take care of your business today. I've brought my brother-in-law and a friend with me. Please arrange a private room for us," Liu Sanlang bowed and smiled in return.

He spoke very modestly, and it was obvious that he had a good relationship with the shopkeeper.

"Of course, please go upstairs!" Shopkeeper Bai said as he bent down and made a gesture of invitation.

He also bowed to Mr. Huang and Zhang Ping'an respectively.

Normally, in places where food is sold, the tables, chairs and floors are always greasy, but Bai's Mutton Offal Restaurant is different, it is kept very clean.

The debris on the customers' tables is also cleaned up at any time. It is not easy for the food business to be so meticulous at this time.

Zhang Ping'an immediately had a good impression of this restaurant.

After they sat down in the private room on the second floor, Liu Sanlang ordered a few signature dishes, a pot of good tea, and asked the waiter to leave.

"Their mutton offal is different from other places. You can't get it anywhere else. Take the fried mutton sausage, for example. It's made by washing the mutton intestines, wrapping them with mutton fat, mutton blood, and minced mutton, and then frying them together. It's crispy, tender, and juicy. You'll want to have it again after trying it once.

There's also mutton soup, shredded mutton tripe, roasted mutton liver, mutton head skewers, mutton yogurt, and so many other dishes! I never knew you could eat a whole sheep like this!" Liu Sanlang explained as he poured tea for the two of them.

The two who heard it were also amazed, "Then we are in for a feast!"

After talking about food, Zhang Pingan remembered something important and said, "Oh, brother-in-law, you might not know this yet, but Shuisheng will be coming to the capital in a few days. Bring him here to try it. He often travels overseas for business and is well-informed. He's tasted a lot of delicacies from land and sea, so he might just like this strange snack!"

"Shuisheng is coming to the capital?" Liu Sanlang asked in surprise with his eyes wide open.

Zhang Pingan nodded. "Yes, I heard that he and other members of the Wu family came here together to compete for the position of imperial merchant. I think the emperor will probably vigorously develop maritime trade in the future, so he needs big merchants like the Wu family to lead the way."

"That's great. We can slowly reunite with our family from our hometown. It would be great if my second sister and her husband could come to the capital together in the future. My uncle and aunt will definitely be happy to see Shuisheng," Liu Sanlang said with a smile.

"That day will come. Once my assignment is finalized, I will use my connections to help my second brother-in-law and have him promoted from the lower-level canal transport department. He has a steady personality and doesn't like to get involved in trouble. Now that the world is peaceful, it's just right for him to be a small official and make a living." Zhang Ping'an said his plan.

"That's great! His two boys are also sensible, much better than Maodan," Liu Sanlang nodded.

While we were talking, the waiter started to serve the dishes slowly.

After Mr. Huang and Zhang Ping'an tasted it, their eyes lit up.

"It seems that this store really has an exclusive secret recipe. It doesn't taste like mutton at all and has a unique flavor," Zhang Pingan praised.

"Yes, but they are all small businesses, and they earn their money through hard work. Plus, cleaning these sheep offal is very tiring, so no one who is really rich and powerful is interested in this business, which is why it has been able to survive until now!" Liu Sanlang said with relish.

After eating two large pancakes, he ordered a separate order of mutton offal soup to fill his stomach, otherwise the whole table would not be enough for him.

Mr. Huang doesn't have a big appetite, and he eats and drinks at the same time, looking very relaxed and comfortable.

After the meal, Liu Sanlang took the two of them for a walk to help digest the food.

"There are many nobles living in the east of the city, so there are several famous theaters, as well as shops selling precious products such as silk, medicinal herbs, and tea. The south of the city is where ordinary civilians live, close to the suburbs. Look, that's the direction you are heading into Beijing. There are many jugglers under the overpass, and people selling snacks. People who perform sword swallowing, wrestling, storytelling, and crosstalk make a living there. That's where you can feel the real fireworks of the capital. I usually go there to kill time during the weekend," Liu Sanlang said, pointing to the south.

He pointed to the west of the city and introduced, "There's a large Liuli Factory to the west. It's said that the glass produced there was exclusively for the royal family. It's still under renovation. There are many temples to the north of the city, including the famous Daxiangguo Temple. And in a few days, it's the Buddha's Bathing Festival on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month. There will be a grand parade and the temples will also be giving away beans. We can go and worship together!"

"I forgot about the Buddha's Birthday. What a coincidence. Don't worry, I will definitely go there then." Mr. Huang was very interested in worshiping Buddha, let alone the Daxiangguo Temple.

It is said that the abbot of Daxiangguo Temple is very good at interpreting divinations. I don’t know if I can get him to help me interpret divinations based on my official position.

Zhang Ping'an also nodded in agreement, and inadvertently touched the amulet around his neck.

It was originally given to me by the old monk from Daxiangguo Temple. More than 20 years have passed. Although a little old, this amulet is not broken or rotten. It is the thing that has kept me the longest.

Now, he has come to the capital again. Who can say that this is not fate?

However, the old monk was already quite old at the time, and there had been wars for so many years, so it is very likely that he is no longer alive!