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

Zhang Ping'an analyzed slowly, "Our family has had to give gifts to Doctor Fu every year for the past two or three years. Although these few dozen taels may not be a big deal in his eyes, a mosquito is still meat. If we suddenly say we don't want to plant, he might have some ideas in his mind. After all, Doctor Fu is a government official. It's easy for him to discipline us ordinary people. So we can't withdraw rashly, as this will easily offend people. Also, although you know the seriousness of this matter, your uncle and the other uncles don't know, and the villagers don't know either. If you don't plant, they will definitely want to take over. Have you thought about how to deal with it? Our family can rent a house in the county temporarily, but my grandparents' family is still here, and our land is still here. These have to be considered."

Xu also echoed with concern, "Yes, our roots are still here. Going to the county town is only a temporary thing. We can't say what will happen in the future. We can't lose our roots."

Zhang Laoer sighed and said, "Hey, I have considered what you said, but I don't have any better solution. We can't get involved in this illegal matter."

"Dad, do you think this is okay? Let me go to the county town and take the exam first, and then we'll see the results. We can plant medicinal herbs for now, but we can gradually reduce the scale of planting. Our family now uses all 40 acres of land to plant medicinal herbs, and we have to buy all the food. This is very dangerous in itself, especially now that the price of medicinal herbs has skyrocketed. It must be because there is instability somewhere, and the demand for medicinal herbs is huge. The imbalance between supply and demand will lead to price increases. What if the price of food also skyrocketed later?" Zhang Pingan continued to analyze slowly to his parents.

Zhang Lao Er nodded and said, "Then wait until you finish the exam. If you are successful, these things will not be a problem anymore."

"Well, Dad, I will try my best," Zhang Pingan replied, then changed the subject: "I'll go to town with you tomorrow. I'll ask Jinbao to go to the school and ask for leave from the teacher. I also need to buy some books. The teacher has always encouraged Ayuan and me to read more and consolidate the knowledge we have learned."

Xu asked from the side, "Is it okay to ask for leave?"

"It's okay. The teacher said a few days ago that Ayuan and I are both self-disciplined. In fact, we can study at home and there is no need to spend the tuition money. We think the learning atmosphere in the school is very good and relatively quiet, so we insist on going. The teacher also knows that I want to buy books." Zhang Pingan explained.

"That's good," Xu breathed a sigh of relief. She had always respected the teacher.

Early the next morning, the father and son drove a mule cart to the town. After the family became rich in recent years, they bought a big blue mule to carry things.

Xu also picked up a few bags of large, carefully selected goji berries for Daya and Sanya. These goji berries were a foreign variety, much larger than the local varieties, and were great for eating dry or making tea or soup. Her daughters often brought gifts home. Xu wasn't the type to take in anything but give out. She had readily available, homegrown produce at home, and she'd give some to her daughters from time to time, free of charge.

It was still early when he arrived in town, so Zhang Laoer first went to the stall of his relative Liu the butcher, one to give something to his daughter, and the other to buy some meat to bring to Mr. Luo when he went to school tomorrow.

Butcher Liu is not young anymore, his hair is a little gray, but his voice is still very loud. Seeing Zhang Laoer coming, he put down his work and greeted him enthusiastically, "Hey, relative, why are you here? Come on, come in and sit down!"

Turning around and seeing Zhang Pingan, he immediately praised: "It's been such a long time since we last met. Pingan has grown taller and more handsome. He looks smart."

Zhang Laoer said politely, "Hey, it's still the same."

After several people entered the door, Liu the Butcher shouted towards the backyard: "Ludan, Maodan, your grandpa and uncle are here"!

As soon as he finished speaking, two strong boys ran out from the backyard. They were chubby and looked strong. They rushed into Zhang Ping'an's arms like two little cannonballs, and shouted happily: "Uncle, uncle, why did you take so long to come see us?"

Zhang Pingan was nearly knocked over by his two nephews. The two strong boys really hadn't grown in vain. After catching the two children and helping them up, he smiled and asked, "Donkey Egg, Cat Egg, have you missed your uncle? Have you been good recently?"

"Of course I miss you, uncle. We were very good. I even helped my dad kill the pig," said Donkey Egg, a four-year-old boy who was very articulate.

Maodan'er, who was only a little over two years old and whose speech was still a little slurred, also said, "I do, dear."

Zhang Ping'an also liked these two nephews very much. He took out a bag of tangerine peel candy from his pocket and handed it to the two boys. He patted their heads and said with a smile: "Share it together!"

"Hmm," Donkey Egg and Cat Egg both nodded vigorously, opened the paper package and took out the candy to eat. The sour and sweet taste stimulated their taste buds, and the two boys squinted their eyes in sourness.

After eating, they insisted on dragging their uncle out to play. In fact, they just wanted their uncle to buy things. Zhang Pingan was helpless. How could he understand what the two boys were thinking? After saying hello, he took the two boys to the street.

Zhang Laoer and Liu the Butcher laughed and joked, "You two little brats only remember your uncle and not your grandpa. Every time they come, they like your uncle the most."

Butcher Liu waved his hand and laughed heartily: "Drink tea, drink tea, this has become a traditional dish. It's strange that children like it. You don't know, these two boys may have eaten it. They are a head taller than children of the same age. This morning, when we slaughtered a pig at home, Donkey Egg insisted on grabbing the pig's tail, saying that he was helping his father to kill the pig. Don't tell me, this boy is really strong. He is worthy of being a descendant of our Liu family. He is just like his father!"

Zhang Laoer is getting older now, and he likes the feeling of having his children and grandchildren around him. He only regrets that his son is too young. He couldn't help but grin when he heard this.

"Having many children brings blessings, how wonderful!"

Daya just came out from the backyard at this time, holding a little baby in her arms. It was her little girl Zhuzhu, who was just over three months old. She was named after the homonym of Zhuzhu. The child was still young and had not been given a full name yet, so a humble name was given to make it easier to raise her.

"Dad, I'm sorry. The little girl was making a fuss just now and I finally managed to calm her down. Are you and my mother doing well recently?" Daya sat down with the child in her arms and asked softly.

She gave birth to a big fat son in the first year of her marriage. Her husband Liu Sanlang and her parents-in-law loved her very much. In addition, her family's business of growing medicinal herbs became better and better, and her brothers from her family also became successful in their studies. Now Daya lives a very smooth life in her husband's family. She looks relaxed and still very young.

"Everything is fine at home, you don't have to worry. I came here to buy meat from my in-laws so that I can send it to Ping'an's teacher tomorrow. By the way, your mother asked me to bring you some wolfberries. They are all big ones that I picked specially. Eating them will nourish your body." Zhang Laoer replied with a simple smile.

He is also happy to see his eldest daughter getting better and better.

Daya took the wolfberries and said angrily, "I'm sorry to bother you, mother. Actually, I have everything I need. It would be great if I could keep them and sell them for money."

"These are all gifts from your mother, just accept them," Zhang Laoer said, waving his hand without saying anything, and then drank tea with Liu the Butcher.