Chapter 89: Reporting Good News of the Top Scholar's Return from Fishing...

In the eastern part of the city, the streets and alleys are bustling with activity and crowds of people.

The messenger weaved through the crowd, joyfully announcing, "Great news! Zhang Xiaolian from Tongzhou Prefecture has achieved the top rank in the imperial examination!"

She rushed to the Zhang residence to deliver the good news, nearly bumping into a vendor selling candied hawthorns. She smiled and apologized repeatedly, saying, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry." Thinking about the celebratory money she would receive later, she couldn't contain her joy.

Then he loudly and repeatedly sang, "Good news..."

As the messenger arrived along the way, the good news spread throughout the entire eastern part of the city, and everyone who heard it stopped to listen.

"Zhang Huiyuan lives in the east of our city? Which family is he? I've lived here for so many years, how come I've never heard of a literary star descending to earth in this area?"

"That Zhang family mansion next to Guiweixuan, oh my, I heard they just moved there not long ago. My family has a house nearby, they're going to be rich now, everyone's definitely scrambling to buy it soon!"

The person who had just asked the question heard that she had a house near the God of Literature, and asked, "How far is your house from the Zhang residence? Is it right next door?" She had children studying at home, and even if she couldn't establish a connection, living nearby would be good for her to absorb some of the God of Literature's literary aura.

People around, hearing that her house was near the Huiyuan Mansion, flocked to her, asking only, without inquiring about details, "How much is your house for sale?"

“Sell it to me! I can draw up the contract and pay the deposit right now.”

“I have ten times more than them! I will pay all the money today.”

The first person to speak panicked, fearing that the opportunity to be influenced by literature would be snatched away, and hurriedly pushed the others aside, saying, "It should be sold to me; I was the first one here."

The woman who said she wanted to sell the house was forced back step by step by the crowd. Her heart was burning with desire, and she blurted out, "I want to sell it for 100,000 taels!" As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted it. How could she sell it for such a high price? She only bought the house for 3,000 taels.

To her surprise, instead of leaving, the crowd moved even more enthusiastically towards her, with some even taking out silver notes from their sleeves and handing them to her, afraid that she would refuse.

"Sell it to me! Sell it to me!"

"Don't push, don't push, you all move aside. I was here first, so this house should rightfully be mine."

"I'll give you an extra 30,000 taels!" he said, pulling out a stack of silver notes from his sleeve, each note worth a thousand taels.

The woman's mouth gaped open in shock, she swallowed hard, and remained speechless for a long time. Good heavens, she had never seen so much money at once!

But that wasn't enough. More and more people heard the news and crowded around, eager to buy.

The woman seemed to realize then that she held a great treasure in her hands, and began to reflect: if it was such a nice house, why didn't she keep it for herself and instead sold it to someone else?

She also has a daughter who is currently in school!

The woman suddenly realized what was happening, pushed through the crowd, and tried to squeeze through the gap, shouting, "I'm not selling anymore! I'm not selling anymore!"

The crowd, however, did not let the woman go and blocked her way.

"If you think the money is too little, we can discuss it further!"

"That's right, that's right."

"I'm really not selling it. I'll keep this house for myself!"

"That won't do. In business, you have to keep your word. Everyone heard what you said!"

The woman, her face contorted in misery, was surrounded by the crowd, caught in a dilemma, and so regretful she wanted to slap herself. "Why didn't you just keep the good stuff to yourself? You had to tell everyone! Now look what happened!"

The messenger, whose throat was dry from shouting all the way, arrived successfully outside the Zhang residence. She still sang in a hoarse voice, "Good news! Good news! Zhang Xiaolian from Tongzhou Prefecture has achieved first place in the imperial examination!"

The gatekeeper excitedly invited the messenger in and poured her a bowl of water to soothe her mouth. "Drink this, and come with me to deliver the good news to the young master!" The master's success in the imperial examination is a momentous occasion that brings glory to the family and ancestors. They might even receive a few more months' worth of extra pay.

Hearing this, the messenger became even more excited. The Zhang family was clearly a wealthy household. She didn't even bother to drink water, her eyes shining brightly. "Please, Your Majesty, take me there immediately!"

"Okay. This way, please."

The gatekeeper ran ahead, but was stopped by a servant from the inner courtyard, who scolded her: "Why are you so rude? How dare you enter the inner courtyard?"

The gatekeeper, unperturbed by the scolding, beamed and said, "I've come to deliver good news to the young master! He has passed the imperial examination!"

The messenger lagging behind chimed in, "Your lord is exceptionally talented, and he even achieved first place in the imperial examination!" He then gave a thumbs-up.

Upon hearing this, the servant clapped his hands excitedly and said, "This is indeed a great joy! Quickly come with me to pay our respects to the young master."

The three of them, like a string of gourds, rushed towards the main house one after another.

Inside the main room, Zong Suyi was frowning as she resumed her old trade of embroidering a purse. The slender needle went through the embroidery frame and then out again, occasionally poking the wrong spot and having to start over.

"Tsk."

The position was off again.

He slammed the embroidery frame on the table in a huff, pouting and sulking. Suddenly, he asked, "Has the master returned to the manor?"

Early this morning, the wife was called away by her aunt and three other senior sisters to go fishing.

I really don't know what's so fun about fishing, and my aunt won't let him go!

Xiao Rong smiled awkwardly to the side. It was not yet noon, and this was the fifth time her husband had asked about it today. He only said, "No news has come back from outside yet, so it should be early."

Zong Suyi let out a groan and slumped onto the table, poking at the table legs in boredom. Why hadn't his wife returned yet… and no one was there to talk to him.

Also, the results should be released soon, but I wonder when I'll receive the good news.

"My lord, my lord, what a joyous occasion!"

Upon hearing the sound, Zong Suyi immediately straightened his back, sat upright on the small couch with a solemn face, and behaved with the demeanor of a dignified and composed husband of a prominent family.

The servant led the two in, and the messenger who was following behind squeezed forward first, smiling as he congratulated the master of the mansion on passing the imperial examination. The other maids present also took the opportunity to offer their congratulations.

He truly is the top scholar!

Zong Suyi couldn't help but smile, and jumped off the couch to the ground with joy. He clasped his hands together and said generously, "Since there is such a joyous occasion in the manor, then we will allocate an additional three months' worth of silver this month."

"Xiao Rong took a purse out of my drawer and gave it to the person who brought the good news."

The messenger bowed and took the purse. With a quick tug of her hand, she exclaimed, "Good heavens!" She hurriedly opened it and saw that it contained about fifty taels of silver. "My husband is really generous!"

The messenger beamed with joy and uttered many auspicious words, wishing that the master of this mansion would pass the imperial examinations every day.

Zong Suyi nodded repeatedly as he listened, proudly raising his chin. His wife was far more capable than his grandmother and great-aunt; how could a mere provincial examination stump her? Hehe.

The servants below also knelt down and shouted, "Thank you, young master, for your generous gift!" They were overjoyed, remembering how their young mistress had also received three months' worth of celebratory money after passing the provincial examination. This money was no ordinary silver; it was copper coins imbued with the aura of the God of Literature! Whether for personal use or to be passed down to future generations, it was excellent.

Not long after, several more people came to tell the three senior sisters in the manor the good news. Zong Suyi was very generous and rewarded them with silver. He also ordered a literate servant to go to the front of the list and copy it back.

Zong Suyi hummed a cheerful tune with her hands behind her back, her steps light as she walked on the stone slabs. Today was such a wonderful day, why bother fishing?

She casually summoned a maid and said, "Go and invite the master back. Tell him there's something important at home." Then she curled her lip and added disdainfully, "Invite the others back as well."

These guys are monopolizing his wife every single day!

"Yes." The maid replied and turned to leave the mansion without stopping, eager to be the first to deliver the good news, hoping to receive a reward from the young ladies.

Zong Suyi turned around and instructed the kitchen to make Zhuangyuan cakes, as some would be distributed to the neighbors later.

Upon receiving Zong Suyi's message, Zhang Ting and his group carried the fish bucket back home.

This was Zhang Ting's first time fishing, and she was very lucky today, catching a full bucket on her first try, which made Xun Han extremely envious.

Xun Han's face was practically submerged in the bucket as she pouted and said sourly, "With your skills, Junior Sister, even if you don't become an official and earn a salary, you can still support yourself by fishing." Today, she came with an empty bucket and returned with an empty bucket again.

Zhang Ting just smiled. Fishing buckets alone can't support Zong Suyi. He wants children so much, so if he gets pregnant in the future, the child must not suffer.

"Senior sister wants some? Tingyun will give you half a bucket."

Xun Han waved his hand and sighed sadly, "What is destined to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force." He glanced at the fish in her bucket, as if looking at a 'lover' he could not have, his eyes filled with loneliness.

"You two brats, what are you dawdling about for so long? The whole bus is waiting for you two, get over here right now!"

Zhang Ting looked over at the sound and saw his teacher standing by the carriage with his hands on his hips, fuming and glaring, looking very proud. However, his face was covered with a smear of mud, making him look quite comical.

Zhang Ting suppressed the urge to smirk, but when she looked away, her gaze met Xun Han's. Both of them were trying to hold back their laughter, but when they saw the distorted expression on the other's face, they finally couldn't hold it in any longer and burst out laughing.

Shoulders trembled, heads tilted back in laughter, the air itself filled with joyful chatter.

The five-person carriage stopped in front of the Zhang residence, and neighbors who had heard the news came out to offer their congratulations.

"With four Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) from this family, Old Master Zhang can expect officials to come and kowtow to you from now on!"

Zhang Shu waved his hand with a smile, secretly delighted, but feigning modesty, he said, "No, no, these silly girls haven't passed the imperial examination yet. Don't say things like that and they'll get cocky, hahaha..."

"Well, it's a done deal. I've seen it all today. Your disciples all ranked quite well, especially your fourth disciple! He's even the top scholar! Everyone else has benefited from this!"

"Indeed, as soon as the results were released today, people came to ask if there were any houses for sale nearby. They wanted to soak up some of the literary aura of the God of Literature. We're really lucky to be living next to the God of Literature!"

When Zhang Shu had nothing to do, she would chat with her neighbors about her experience in raising disciples. Her words moved them to tears, and they all sighed at how hard she had worked to raise these disciples, and how they had finally made it through.

"..."

The four senior female students looked at each other, and each of them saw disdain on their faces.

Yang Fuchen coughed lightly and stepped into the residence. "Junior Sister, is lunch ready?"

Zhang Ting pretended to realize something and quickly followed him inside, saying, "I'll go check the kitchen."

"To be honest, I'm hungry too."

"...I'll take the fish to the kitchen."

Zhang Shuzheng was chatting with his neighbor, and was about to boast about his apprentices to her one by one... no, I mean, he was introducing them to her. But when he turned around, he found that all four of his apprentices were gone. He was so angry that his nose flared with rage, and he cursed under his breath: "These unfilial disciples!"