Uncle Yao originally did not want to take the provincial examination in August. After all, he knew what his abilities were and felt that it was unlikely that he would pass.
But Ye Maosheng and Zhou Yusheng persuaded him to give it a try. If it didn't work, he should go and gain experience.
Uncle Yao thought the same thing. Even if he doesn't take the exam this year, he will take it next year. Why not go and see what the examination room of the provincial examination looks like first.
There was no hope of getting into the exam, but Ye Maosheng was engaged to Miss Yao Qi, who was his brother-in-law, so he might as well go with him to take care of her.
To be honest, the marriage that Ye Maosheng arranged was really worthwhile.
Not to mention the rural examination question set, examiner preferences, etc., the carriage for travel and the yard reserved in advance were all arranged by the Yao family.
Countryside, Ye family.
Because it was noon, women from every household in the village were busy in the kitchen, preparing lunch.
The men working in the fields picked up the time, packed up the guys who were working, and rushed home under the sun. It is July now, one of the hottest months of the year, even if the farmers can endure hardships
, and I am afraid that working in the sun will damage my body.
Once your body is exhausted, there will be nothing left.
So at noon, if there is no particularly urgent work, everyone will go home to have a meal and take a rest.
In the afternoon when the sun is no longer so strong, go out to work again.
Ye Dazhu is the eldest son in the family. He usually works the hardest, is exposed to the sun for a long time, and does not have enough to eat all the year round. He has long been as thin as a monkey and is not as tall as Ye Erzhu.
He carried the hoe and remained silent all the way.
With the sun so bright, the three brothers of the Ye family had no intention of talking, so they met the elders in the village on the road and said hello.
When an aunt next door saw them like this, she said to the man next to her with sympathy: "The Ye family is so pitiful. What have they done to support their fifth child? I heard that their third daughter, in order to support her mother's family,
We all started quarreling with my husband’s family..."
The man glared at her: "You are just talking nonsense. What does other people's affairs have to do with you? At least they have a scholar. What do you have? You have nothing to do with it!"
The aunt was a little unhappy: "What's wrong with the scholars? There are so many scholars in the world. The fifth child in his family has been studying for so many years, but he hasn't learned anything. If he continues to read, I think their family will starve to death. Still.
Fortunately, my cousin didn't marry into their family, otherwise..."
…
Faintly, Ye Sizhu could hear some of it, and felt congested in his heart.
He is one year older than Ye Maosheng. In the village, at his age, it is logical that he would have gotten married early. Unfortunately, their family was too poor, and all the money was used for Ye Maosheng's education, which made him marry a wife.
There is no money.
When people saw that his two sisters-in-law had married in, they suffered along with them, and those who cared a little for their daughters were reluctant to marry their daughters in.
Ye Sizhu was not without grievances, but there was Old Ye above him and Mrs. Ye was suppressing him, so there was nothing he could do.
After entering the yard, Ye Sizhu threw the hoe aside, went into the kitchen angrily, and poured himself a large ladle of cold water.
That gourd was made from a gourd picked by Ye Dazhu and cut into two halves.
Mrs. Ye was working on the stove. She was a little unhappy when she saw the banging and clanging: "Fourth, who provoked you to be so angry?"
"Nothing!" Ye Sizhu suppressed and did not admit it. He just turned his head and looked at the stove, "What are you going to eat today?"
After asking, he found that his mother's car was a porridge with wild vegetables and almost no corn grains visible. Ye Sizhu became even more angry.
After working so hard, I said I had a snack, but in the end I couldn’t even see the grains of rice, it was just wild vegetables. What’s the point of living?
Before Mrs. Ye could speak, Ye Sizhu left the kitchen.
Sister-in-law Ye and Second Sister-in-law Ye had already noticed that Ye Sizhu was unhappy, but no one dared to interrupt.
In the past few days, the atmosphere at home has been bad, with all kinds of beatings and beatings. Old man Ye and old lady Ye are also holding back their anger. They really don't want to be angered.
This is not the first time that Ye Maosheng has taken an exam. From February and March to June and July, it stands to reason that there should have been news long ago.
I don't know why, but there has been no letter from there.
The Ye family has already guessed that Ye Maosheng may have failed the exam again this time.
Thinking that the few taels of money that everyone had saved by tightening their belts were wasted like this, everyone felt a little uncomfortable.
There are grievances, petty thoughts, and mutual complaints.
The wild vegetable porridge was served, and everyone was silent.
I don’t know how long time passed. Just when Mrs. Ye sighed in her heart and was about to let everyone start eating, there was a sudden movement outside the courtyard door.
Soon, Li Zheng appeared with a government servant who announced the good news.
It turns out that the fifth child of their family, Ye Maosheng, was admitted as a scholar!!!!!
"Xiucai?!"
"Lao Wu passed the exam to become a scholar? Doesn't that mean..."
"Isn't there always no news?"
…
How can the Ye family have the money to reward the government officials? It should be paid by Li Zheng.
He happily sent the Yamen servant away, and all the neighbors who heard the news rushed over and congratulated the Ye family.
"Congratulations, you have a scholar in your family!"
"Oh, Mrs. Ye, you will be blessed this time. When your son becomes a high official, you can become an official's wife."
…
Others held Mrs. Ye in their arms, introduced their niece, and praised her, saying that she was a perfect match for Ye Sizhu.
Some people are self-aware and can't get Ye Maosheng's idea, so they just keep an eye on Ye Maosheng, while some people don't seem to be so clear-headed and actually want to marry the girl at home to Ye Maosheng.
Mrs. Ye felt proud for a rare moment. She felt proud in her heart, and she also showed some pride on her face. She boasted that her son could study and he would definitely be a good official in the future.
For a time, the Ye family was bustling with activity, and even the rich masters in the town came to send congratulatory gifts.
If Li Zheng hadn't stopped her, Mrs. Ye would have almost accepted the one hundred taels of silver she sent and got engaged to her daughter.
Li Zheng looked at the confused look of the Ye family and frowned slightly: "Old man Ye, don't accept this marriage indiscriminately, and don't collect things indiscriminately. If you have anything to do with your fifth son when he comes back, I can ask your fifth son. He is a scholar now.
He has seen it outside and knows more than you, so if you agree to something behind his back that you shouldn't agree to, wouldn't this be holding him back?"
"How can this be a hindrance? That family is so rich. If they agree to the marriage, the fifth child will have enough money to study in the future..." The Ye family was stunned, obviously not understanding.
Li Zheng had no choice but to tell them what was going on: "I didn't come here before, but you came here only after the fifth child in your family was admitted as a scholar. There must be something wrong here. Although I don't know what the problem is, but pay more attention.
A little is always good.”
For a moment, the Ye family looked at me and I looked at you, but they could only refuse.
Although they are a little greedy for the money, if there is really a problem with this marriage...
If they agree, won't they be holding back Ye Maosheng?
Not long after, the Ye family received a letter from Ye Maosheng, telling them that he was engaged to a wealthy family in Jinling and was preparing for the provincial examination...
Also sent at the same time were twenty taels of silver.
Ye family: "..."
Fortunately, they listened to Li Zheng and didn't agree to others casually, otherwise it would be really troublesome.
