The candidates in the examination hall were still struggling. They had worked hard for many years, not to mention the ten years of hard work, all hoping to make a final push.

Mu Yi'an and the others were at home feeling uneasy, wondering if they would be able to make the list.

Even the children in the family knew that their father was going to take the imperial examination to become a scholar, and they would ask him questions from time to time.

"Mom, when will Dad finish his exams?"

"It will take several more days."

"Will my dad be able to get first place?"

Chu Yue knew that her older brother always ranked first in exams, and she had even heard her mother praising him.

"Little sister, Dad will definitely get first place! He's even better than big brother!"

Shao Yun's inexplicable confidence in his father stemmed from his ignorance of how many people participated in the provincial examination.

Among these people were elderly people over seventy years old, as well as young people full of youthful vigor.

Some people start their education at the age of three and study their whole lives, all for the moment of passing the imperial examination with flying colors.

But how many people can actually cross the single-plank bridge amidst a sea of ​​thousands? And how many unknown stories of Fan Jin passing the imperial examinations are there in the world?

As Mu Yi'an listened to the child's innocent words, she thought about the days to come.

"Second sister-in-law, how many more days until second brother comes back?"

Mu Yi'an was quite surprised to see Jiang Qi, who was holding her pregnant belly, enter, leading An Ran, and with Jiang Lan following behind.

"Auntie, Sister Anran, I miss you."

Chu Yue's eyes lit up the moment she saw Jiang Qi.

"Hello, Auntie! Hello, Little Aunt!"

Shao Ming pulled Shao Yun to greet their two aunts. They were all grown up now, unlike Chu Yue, who only had one aunt in her eyes.

The children said goodbye and went out to play, leaving the aunt and her sister-in-law talking inside.

"How are you feeling? Is the child fussy?"

"Second sister-in-law, don't worry, I'm fine, and I can feel the baby moving inside me."

Jiang Qi's belly was quite noticeable, and even her loose clothes couldn't hide it.

"That's good. Your Dr. Chu is a professional. I've been thinking about your second brother these past few days, and my mind is in turmoil."

"It's rare to see my second sister-in-law lose her composure."

In Jiang Qi's memory, her second sister-in-law had always been able to keep things stable.

"Concern leads to confusion; it means you can't help but overthink."

Jiang Lan watched her second sister-in-law and her sister chatting casually about everyday matters, but she felt a little out of place and didn't know what to say.

"How is Jiang Lan? Are the Zhou family members easy to get along with?"

Although Mu Yi'an had some unpleasantness with Jiang Lan, she was a guest and couldn't go too far.

“It’s fine. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law are very busy, and I don’t have much to do every day. My husband is studying at the academy and can only come back once every few days.”

Zhou Zilin wanted to take the imperial examination to become a scholar, so six months after his marriage, he went to another academy.

"There's nothing we can do. Our second brother has been doing this for the past few years too, all for the sake of his studies. He can only come back a few times a year."

Jiang Qi thought about how difficult it had been to go home these past few years, especially after her second brother went to Bailu Academy.

"I know, it's just a bit lonely. I don't know what to do. I stay in my own yard every day and time seems to pass too slowly."

After Jiang Lan married into the Zhou family, their courtyard had maids, a head maid, and servants.

She doesn't have to do anything herself, big or small; she's really quite idle all day long.

“You can learn something, read books, paint, write, do needlework... There are many things you can do, and the Zhou family will not lack things like writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones.”

Mu Yi'an felt that being alone was quite nice; she was waited on hand and foot. She wanted to learn more while she didn't have children.

"I'm not going to become the top scholar, so why bother learning those things?"

Jiang Lan felt that reading and writing were things that scholars like her husband should do.

"No one says you can't study unless you become the top scholar in the imperial examination. Studying can make you wise."

By reading travelogues, you can learn how vast our Great Li Dynasty was. Besides the land we live on, there are other places that are different from here.

In some places, the four seasons are distinct, with heavy snow blocking the mountains in winter and temperatures dropping to minus twenty or thirty degrees Celsius. In other places, it is hot all year round, and it is all desert...

Mu Yi'an has read the travelogue that Jiang Shuyun bought back at the beginning several times. Even Shao Ming has read it twice, and now Shao Yun is reading it too.

"Ah, there are places that are so cold."

Jiang Lan was a little confused. The farthest she had ever traveled in her life was from Jiangjia Village to the county town.

"Yes, I recently read a travelogue that recorded many different crops and herbs from different places. It was quite interesting."

Jiang Qi is pregnant and can no longer research medicinal cuisine, as Doctor Chu is worried that some herbs might be harmful to pregnant women.

This was the first time Jiang Lan had heard of these things. In her more than ten years of life, her biggest concerns were whether she could marry into a good family, how much dowry she would receive, how beautiful the gold hairpin was, and how gorgeous the silk clothes were...

Judging from Jiang Lan's reaction, Mu Yi'an felt that girls should be encouraged to read more books, travel more, and broaden their horizons.

"Eldest sister, second sister-in-law, I went to my aunt's house yesterday and witnessed a farce."

Jiang Lan came over today because she had something to say, but she almost forgot about it because of what her second sister-in-law and eldest sister said earlier.

"A farce? What farce?"

"The farce at the Fan family's house—isn't their house closer to my aunt's? I was passing by in my car when the Fan family's gate suddenly opened, and my cousin with the girl's hairstyle rushed out."

She was shouting that the Fan family wanted to kill her when Fan's mother, who had chased after her, led a group of people to capture her. The woman was also shouting that she was pregnant, but the Fan family denied it and accused her of being unfaithful.

In her panic, Fan's mother let slip that her son couldn't have children and demanded to know where the illegitimate child in the woman's womb came from.

Jiang Lan happened to be there and deliberately stopped her car to watch the spectacle for a while.

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