The rest of the journey was filled with stop-and-go traffic, which made Gu Nanjiao and Lü Siniang extremely anxious.

Bai Luochen said, "Since we've finally made it to the capital, of course we should eat, drink, and have fun. Otherwise, wouldn't it be a waste to miss out on all the beautiful scenery along the way?"

Gu Nanjiao counted the days on her fingers. Lu Yanzhao and Gu's father had already finished the exam, and the results would be released in a month. By the time they arrived in the capital, it would be around the time the results were released, which would be just in time.

Fine, let's do as Bai Luochen says. We'll eat, drink, have fun, and enjoy the scenery along the way.

By the end of September, we finally arrived in the capital.

At the city gates of the capital, carriages and horses thronged, and people streamed in. The line to enter the capital stretched for over a mile. In the distance, several imposing banners could be seen flying atop the city walls. The city gates were heavy, the walls tall and sturdy, and the guards were extremely strict, with thorough checks at every checkpoint.

"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, we've arrived in the capital!" Lu Siniang excitedly got up from the carriage and looked around. She would soon be able to see Gu Qingyan.

Gu Nanjiao was equally excited. This was the ancient capital, unlike Hengdian World Studios; it was the real capital.

Thinking of the magnificent palaces and jade towers, I wonder if I will ever have the chance to visit the imperial palace in this lifetime.

At the same time, in Toad Village.

As far as the eye can see, everything is a golden yellow. The aroma of ripe fruit permeates the entire Toad Village, emitting an enticing fragrance.

With a bountiful pear harvest in sight, the villagers of Hama Village are all beaming with joy.

During a break from the busy farming season, Liu Meihua's mother-in-law, Granny Zhang, couldn't help but gossip with Li Shi in a sour tone.

"That Wang (Lu's mother) is so lucky! She hires people to harvest the pears from her orchard, and she can sit under the trees and enjoy the shade. She married a woman who earns money and runs a big business in the county town. She just manages the shop and collects money all day long, without having to work in the wind and sun. The other day, Da Hua and I went to the county town, and what did I see? That Wang woman owns a big restaurant and employs more than a dozen people. They're all dressed in fine cotton clothes, and I heard that her younger sister even hired a female tutor to teach her music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. When Lu Yanzhao passes the imperial examination, the whole family might move to the capital. Unlike us..."

Li said irritably, "What's so great about her? My son is also going out to do business, and he'll do even bigger business than her in the future. I don't envy her at all."

After being beaten by Bai Su, Lu Yanping became very obedient. He had no money and naturally couldn't redeem Yang Meiqin. Besides, he didn't even know where Yang Meiqin had been sold to.

Li assumed that Lu Yanping had failed to redeem Yang Meiqin and had instead been beaten. Seeing her son's miserable appearance, she didn't ask any further questions.

A few days later, Lu Yanping disappeared without a trace, leaving only a letter saying that he was going out to do business.

Granny Zhang pursed her lips, clearly not believing Li's words. Everyone in the village knew Lu Yanping's capabilities.

Seeing that Granny Zhang looked down on her, Li said sourly, "Your daughter-in-law was introduced to the county town by Gu Nanjiao. I heard she manages a shop and her grandson is in college. Why didn't she give you a single penny as a filial gift?"

Mentioning Liu Meihua makes Granny Zhang feel choked up. It's not that she hasn't tried to extort money from Liu Meihua before, but Liu Meihua is just too ruthless, and she and her daughter almost ended up in court because of it.

Granny Zhang said sourly, "I don't care about her money at all. As long as my grandson can pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, I don't care if he goes to the academy or not. That will bring honor to the Zhang family." Speaking of passing the imperial examination, Granny Zhang couldn't help but think of Lu Yanzhao and asked Li Shi, "I heard that Lu's son went to the capital to take the exam, but there's still no news. I'm afraid he didn't pass."

Li said sarcastically, "Passing the county-level exam is already the best you can do. What else can you possibly pass? It would be a miracle if you could pass it."

A horse-drawn carriage sped towards them from a short distance away.

The carriage arrived at the pear orchard in front of Lu's mother and stopped.

Lu Yanzhao lifted the carriage curtain and called out "Mother" to his mother, his eyes then searching for Gu Nanjiao's figure.

He rushed over before the results were announced, and after a long and tiring journey, he arrived at Meiwuzhai, only to be told that Lu's mother had gone back to Hama Village to harvest pears.

Lu Yanzhao didn't linger and rushed over immediately. However, why was Gu Nanjiao nowhere to be seen?

Granny Zhang nudged Li with her elbow: "You're back so early. I wonder if you passed the exam. Could it be that you were right and failed, and slunk back home?"

These words truly struck a chord with Madam Li. She was already jealous of Lu's mother, and now that Lu Yanzhao was back, he probably hadn't passed the exam. Thinking of this, Madam Li could no longer hide the schadenfreude on her lips.

Hearing the familiar voice, Lu's mother stopped picking pears and asked, "Why are you back?"

Lu Yanzhao pouted: "Mother, wouldn't it be better if your son came back earlier? It would be a good time to spend more time with you."

"By the way, where's Gu Nanjiao? I can't find her anywhere. Where did she go?"

Before Lu's mother could even feel happy, she heard Lu Yanzhao ask this question and sighed, "Jiaojiao went to the capital to discuss business. She was counting down the days and said she would wait at the place where the results were posted when she arrived in the capital. I didn't expect you to come back."

All of Lu Yanzhao's joy seemed to be extinguished. His shoulders slumped, his eyes were slightly red, and he sat down against a pear tree with a blank expression, looking listless as if all his enthusiasm had been drained.

Seeing Lu Yanzhao's expression, Li Shi became even more certain that he hadn't done well on the exam, which was why he was so disappointed.

Li was overjoyed and worked quickly and efficiently.

...

That evening, seeing that Lu Yanzhao had lost a lot of weight, Lu's mother specially prepared a large table of dishes and said with heartache, "My son has worked so hard. I haven't seen you for a month, and you've become so thin. Everyone says that the imperial examination is tough, and it's true."

Faced with a table full of dishes, Lu Yanzhao had no appetite. No matter what his mother said, he didn't respond and just remained silent.

Lu's mother couldn't help but scold Lu Yanzhao for coming home too early, asking why he didn't wait for the results to be released before returning home.

Well, that's it, we've completely missed out on Gu Nanjiao.

Lu Yanzhao originally intended to leave and then return to the capital, but his mother said, "This round trip will take another month or so. By the time you get to the capital, Jiaojiao might already be back."

Only then did Lu Yanzhao give up the idea of ​​returning to the capital.

When Gu's father returned home and heard the news that Gu Nanjiao and Lü Siniang had gone to the capital, he couldn't help but berate Lu Yanzhao.

As soon as the exam was over, Lu Yanzhao urged everyone to go home, saying she missed her daughter. Rather than waiting for the results in the capital, she preferred to go home.

Once the results are announced, someone in the county will notify you.

Father Gu thought it made sense, and it was good for his son-in-law to come back with him. He hadn't seen Fourth Sister for a long time and missed her dearly. Lin Ji saw that the two of them had gone back, and he felt bored staying in the capital alone, so he decided to come back with them.

To Gu's father's surprise, this was the situation.

The thought of his daughter going to the capital filled Mr. Gu with anxiety and fear.

...

After waiting in line for an hour, it was finally Gu Nanjiao and her carriage's turn to enter the city.

Lu Siniang wiped the sweat from her forehead, almost rubbing off the mole on her face, completely losing her previous excitement.

Gu Nanjiao looked at Manager Yun listlessly: "Do we always have to wait in line this long every time we enter the city?"

"No, it's just that things have become stricter recently. I don't know why, but people are being thoroughly checked when entering or leaving the city."

Just as Bai Luochen handed the four people's travel permits and identification documents to the gatekeeper, a magnificent carriage with tall horses roared past him and passed directly in front of him.