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

When the whole family was having dinner together in the evening, Zhang Ping'an mentioned that Mr. Luo asked all the parents of Class A to go to school the day after tomorrow.

Zhang Laoer was not very surprised to hear this. Mr. Luo had this idea last year. He wanted Zhang Ping'an and Liu Shengyuan to go to the city to find a teacher so as not to delay the children. Zhang Laoer had been asking about it since then and had already prepared himself mentally. Besides, Mr. Luo was really old and could no longer take care of so many students.

"I've already had an idea about this matter. Tomorrow I'll go to town to buy some things and bring them to Master Luo the day after tomorrow. Thanks to his good teaching in the past few years, you have become so successful now, and our family is living better and better. The current situation is something I never dared to imagine before." Zhang Laoer sighed. He was sincerely grateful to Master Luo.

Mrs. Xu nodded in agreement. "Yes, I never thought I could have such a good life. If you can study hard and get a good score, I will die without regrets."

Zhang Pingan didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he heard this: "Pooh, pooh, pooh! Mother, why are you saying that? Don't talk about life or death. Your good fortune is still to come. Besides, didn't you tell my father before that I was a monk who read my fortune and told my horoscope that I was destined to be a high-ranking official? This is nothing!"

Xu grumbled bitterly, "I was just talking in my sleep, just to satisfy my daydreams. As long as you can be a little more successful than the average person and have enough food and clothing, I'll be satisfied. One should always be down-to-earth."

"That's right! Your mother is right. Our family is much better off than most other families now, but we still have to dig in the dirt for food. It would be best if you could pass the imperial examination and we could move to the county and live a comfortable life, just like Master Luo." Zhang Laoer finished the remaining soup noodles in a few mouthfuls and slumped in his chair, holding his stomach.

"Dad, I plan to stop studying at Master Luo's school this year and go directly to the county to take the exam for a better academy. If I'm admitted, I'll live in the academy. What do you think?" Zhang Ping'an discussed with his father.

Xu was the first to object, frowning and saying, "How can that be? You're still young, barely eleven at most. If you live in the academy, how will you feed and wash your clothes? And what if you get bullied in school?"

Zhang Pingan was helpless: "Mom, then I have to continue studying. I have to leave you and learn to be independent. I can do all these things, don't worry!"

"No!" Xu refused outright. The atmosphere was a little stagnant for a moment. The fourth, fifth and sixth girls all lowered their heads and ate silently without saying a word.

"When the time comes, we will rent a yard next to the academy so that you can study with us. There's nothing difficult about it. I've already thought about it." Zhang Laoer suddenly said with a thunderclap.

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone looked over.

Xu was also a little confused: "Dad, this... why didn't you tell me this?"

Zhang Ping'an also frowned and said worriedly: "Dad, our whole family has gone to the county town, what should we do with the medicinal herbs in the fields?"

Five years later, the Zhang family's medicinal herb cultivation had expanded significantly in both scale and variety. They no longer only supplied the two medical clinics in town, but also began collaborating with others in the county. Zhang Laoer's family could no longer handle the produce, so even Zhang Laoda and Zhang Laosan's families had joined in the effort. Others in the village wanted to follow suit, but the market was limited, and no one would buy even if they grew more, so they gave up.

However, other villagers still accused the Zhang family of monopolizing the market and refused to give in. The village even held a family meeting in the ancestral hall for this matter. The current village chief is Zhang Daqiang, Da Hu's father. He tried to mediate several times but to no avail. The two sides fought several times and almost resorted to fighting. Finally, Zhang Ping'an asked Master Luo to intervene and it was decided that the Zhang family would contribute 500 coins every year to repair the ancestral hall and help the orphans and widows in the village. Only then was the matter settled.

Otherwise, there would always be those bad-hearted villagers who would sneak into Lao Zhang's field at night to pull up the seedlings, which would be disgusting enough.

This is because the Zhang family has many cousins, and the brothers from the first, second and third wives also came to support them. With the help of the student Luo Fuzi, this matter could be resolved with a few hundred coins. If it were a weak family with no one around, they would not give up until they had a piece of meat torn off.

Zhang Ping'an didn't sleep well for many days because of this matter. He always felt a sense of urgency in his heart. Later, he studied harder and even asked Mr. Luo to give him some advice. He said that he didn't need to work so hard and that forcing things to happen was not a good thing.

Now Zhang Laoer said that he wanted to move his whole family to the county town, so all the benefits that he had fought so hard for would be lost. Zhang Pingan was puzzled, but not in a hurry. He wanted to hear what his father had to say. There must be a reason for doing this, it couldn't be just for studying.

Zhang Laoer didn't elaborate further and sent his daughters to the kitchen to wash the dishes. "Si Ya, take your two sisters and collect the dishes and wash them in the kitchen."

Si Ya is already 13 years old. She is a little silly, but very obedient. She didn't say anything when she heard it, and went out with Wu Ya and Liu Ya, carrying the bowls and plates.

Xu followed and closed the door, then sat back down, also staring at Zhang Laoer with burning eyes.

Zhang Laoer finally spoke up, saying in a deep voice, "I'm planning to go to the county now. Actually, there are several considerations. First, Ping'an needs to go to school. He's still young, and it's reassuring to have him by my side. He's my only son, and no matter where he goes, I'll follow him. Second, I'm a little nervous about my medicinal herbs business right now. I haven't told you all this time because I'm afraid you'll worry."

Zhang Laoer paused for a moment, then turned to look outside. After confirming that no one was around, he whispered, "I don't know what's going on right now, but the prices of medicinal herbs are skyrocketing. I have a feeling it's not a good thing. They've tripled or quadrupled compared to five years ago. Last time I went to the county, Doctor Fu even hinted that I could mix tree bark into the herbs and increase the commission, saying he had a market. But the truth is, since we've grown so many herbs, the money we pay him has already taken up half of our profits. There's nothing left to share. I can't do such a thing as selling inferior goods as good ones."

Zhang Ping'an frowned fiercely and said, "Dad, why didn't you tell me about this before? Does Doctor Fu mean he wants to smuggle herbs himself? That's a lot. My family and my uncle's families have planted nearly 40 mu of herbs together, which means more than 100,000 kilograms. Even if it's dried, it's still a lot. This is illegal!"

Zhang Laoer replied in a deep voice, "Of course I know that, which is why I'm always uneasy. Our family has made a lot of money in the past few years, and we have no problem making ends meet. So I don't want to continue farming. I'll also ask your uncle and third uncle's families to plant less, just enough to supply the town clinic. People should be content and not greedy."

"Dad, you think too simply!"