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

In the days that followed, Xiaoyuer was simply overwhelmed with work.

It's either attending one family's banquet for successful candidates in the imperial examinations today, or another family's banquet for successful candidates in the imperial examinations tomorrow. They're all classmates or from the same year, so you can't refuse to show your respect and support them.

After the banquet for the successful candidates in the imperial examination, there were literary gatherings, poetry gatherings, and all sorts of other parties. It was half a month later before Xiaoyuer finally managed to hold his own banquet.

Qian Yu remained in Beijing, citing medical treatment as the reason for not leaving. Zhang Ping'an invited him to dinner twice, but failed to extract any particularly useful information from him.

Zhang Ping'an knew that when someone didn't want to talk, he couldn't get a single word out of him, so he simply gave up and decided to remain unchanged in the face of all changes.

Zhang Lao Er and Xu Shi were busy packing things for their grandson to take back, filling three large carriages with various items.

In the end, it was Zhang Ping'an who forcibly stopped the process, preventing it from continuing.

"Father, Mother, I brought a lot of silver notes for Xiaoyuer when he went back this time. If he needs anything, we can buy it later. It's too much trouble to get these several cartloads of things onto the ship, and it's easy for people to keep an eye on us. There's no need for that!"

After saying this, Zhang Ping'an instructed his servants to bring down all the odds and ends, taking only the essential items with them.

Madam Xu was quite reluctant to part with them, emphasizing, "There are servants with us, so we can have them carry it. These are all things for your eldest uncle, third uncle, and maternal uncle's family, as well as your sisters and relatives. Each family will send different things according to their closeness to the other. Xiaoyuer is still young; how would he know about social etiquette? How much should each family send? It would be bad if we sent too much, too little, or the wrong thing."

Zhang Ping'an's attitude remained firm: "Then you can have Chi Bao make a list and let Xiao Yu'er buy according to the list. Everything else is up to you. Xiao Yu'er's return trip is scheduled, so we can't just mess around with it."

Upon hearing that it concerned his grandson's return to the capital to take up his post, Zhang Lao Er immediately said, "Then forget it, don't bring him. Let Xiao Yu'er buy it directly when the time comes. We can't let things get delayed."

Xu no longer objected.

When Xiaoyuer returned, she realized she had avoided the misery of traveling with several truckloads of luggage, and secretly applauded her father.

Zhang Ping'an couldn't help but chuckle; she really still had that childish side!

However, there are some things he still needs to be told.

"You've had your fill of eating, drinking, and having fun these past few days. It's time to settle down. Before you leave, go visit your in-laws. Our two families are now engaged. You're going on a long trip back to visit your family, so you have to let them know. Remember to bring something valuable. If you don't know what to bring, just go to the storeroom and pick one out yourself."

Little Fish nodded: "Okay, I was planning to go tomorrow anyway."

After saying that, he suddenly remembered something, sat up straight, and said, "By the way, Dad, do you know? It seems that Fourth Uncle is not going back to his original post. Grandfather used his connections to get him transferred to Jizhou. He will be leaving soon."

"Jizhou?" Zhang Ping'an was surprised. "I really didn't hear about it. How did you find out? Official transfers are no trivial matters, especially since he hasn't even finished his term. This is rather suspicious!"

Xiaoyuer also found it strange. "I overheard my older cousin talking about it during dinner today. The official document from the Ministry of Personnel should have just come down. My maternal grandfather didn't seem to want to make a fuss about it and told them not to talk about it outside. The explanation he gave was that my fourth uncle was in poor health. The climate in the south is hot and humid, which is not good for recuperation. In addition, my fourth uncle has always had outstanding achievements in the south, so it would be easier to transfer him. Therefore, he used his connections to transfer him to Jizhou."

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Ping'an instructed, "Since that's the case, don't talk about it to outsiders. Your grandfather must have his reasons for wanting to keep a low profile."

"I understand. It's just something we're talking about internally. I won't reveal it to outsiders," Xiaoyuer understood this perfectly.

After visiting the Li family, Xiaoyuer led his men south to Ezhou Prefecture to return to his hometown and sweep the tombs.

The imperial court allocated special funds for scholars who had passed the imperial examinations to return to their hometowns to visit relatives, and there was also a corresponding set of etiquette for their reception. However, Xiaoyuer had been living a life of luxury since childhood, so this amount of money was obviously not enough for him.

After having a full meal, we had already booked a luxury boat at a dock in the suburbs of Beijing, which was fully equipped with food and drinks.

It will take about half a month to reach Ezhou Prefecture.

Zhang Ping'an specially assigned some skilled men to accompany him, and also wrote a letter in advance to Ezhou Prefecture, asking his fourth brother-in-law and others to meet him.

Even though I still have some worries, I understand that my son is grown up and it's time to let him fly on his own. He has to walk his own path from now on.

Let's not even mention how carefree Little Fish's life was after he boarded the boat.

As soon as Zhang Ping'an returned to the mansion, he saw Xiao Hu waiting anxiously in the main room, looking like he had been sitting there for a while.

I originally thought Xiaohu came to ask about Xiaoyuer.

Zhang Ping'an greeted him with a smile, "You wanted to see Xiaoyuer off, right? It's a pity you're a little too late. I just came back after dropping him off. That kid couldn't wait a moment longer; he got up early this morning to get ready and leave."

Xiao Hu forced a couple of laughs before saying with a worried expression, "Brother Ping An, I came here today not for Xiao Yu'er's matter, but for something at the estate in the suburbs."

"What's wrong at the estate?" Zhang Ping'an asked casually, while instructing a servant to pour tea for Xiao Hu.

"Here's the thing, last winter the snow came too late, and I predicted that there might be a drought this year. Sure enough, there's been very little rain this year, and the fields are terribly dry. Fortunately, our village has a large population and a good location, so we can manage to carry water, and the harvest won't be reduced too much. But yesterday someone found locusts in the fields, and their numbers are significantly more than in previous years. As the saying goes, 'Locusts in April mean the land is barren,' so I'm a little uneasy, which is why I came to tell you."

At this point, Xiao Hu sighed: "We have quite a lot of land in the suburbs. If there really is a locust plague, the losses will be enormous!"

Upon hearing about locusts, Zhang Ping'an's expression turned serious. He asked, "Have you found any locust eggs in the soil nearby?"

Xiao Hu shook his head: "I had someone dig it up and check, and it's fine."

"It seems these locusts must have flown in from somewhere else."