This time, Zhuangyuanlou is the biggest winner again.
Forty percent of the students on the list stayed at the Top Scholar Building. The manager was all smiles, not only waiving the meal fee for all the students that day, but also reducing the room fee for the top-ranked candidates.
On the surface, it may seem like he's lost out, but he won't lose out no matter who loses.
With these test-takers by its side, Zhuangyuanlou's customer base will be quite good in the following years.
The test takers were also happy. Nobody's money comes from thin air, so every penny saved counts. Even those who are well-off wouldn't complain about having too much money.
On that day, the top ten newly appointed scholars received a banquet from the prefect, which was customary.
Since they were all students from Ning'an Prefecture, the prefect naturally had to meet with and encourage them, as education was one of the prefect's performance evaluation criteria.
Yan Min and Bai Sha returned to Shao County that day. The twins waited for Li Qingyao to finish the banquet before going back together.
The next day, Li Qingyao dressed neatly and went to attend the banquet.
Upon arriving at the government office, they saw the newly appointed chief clerk, Lin Can.
Lin Can was sitting alone, utterly bored and lost in thought.
He looked down on others, but he didn't want to talk to them because they were a bit older than him.
When he saw Li Qingyao, his eyes lit up immediately, clearly showing great interest in Li Qingyao, who was about the same age as him.
"You're the third place winner this time?"
"Yes, Li Qingyao, I have met Chief Lin."
Because he usually communicates with Wang Jiao, Li Qingyao is quite good at chatting with children of this age. During his self-introduction, he even secretly teased Lin Can.
"Oh, Brother Li, just call me Lin Can. Please don't call me Lin Anshou. It sounds uncomfortable."
"Then you can call me by my name."
Seeing that Li Qingyao was friendly, Lin Can happily started chatting with him.
Lin Can has a very active and imaginative mind, but once you talk to him, you'll know that he has a very solid foundation.
The prefect treated Lin Can very well. He was young, and if he failed the provincial examination once, he could take it several more times, which gave him a much greater chance of becoming a successful candidate than others.
He greeted Li Qingyao with a friendly expression and even asked a few questions about the Li family's farming this year, which was one of his achievements.
This year, the entire Ning'an Prefecture has begun breeding and rice planting.
Are you going to take the provincial examination the year after next?
Lin Can asked Li Qingyao directly.
"Hmm, you're planning to?"
"Of course I'm going to take the exam. If I don't pass, I'll just consider it as gaining experience. This year's prefectural exam is very difficult. To be honest, I'm even more eager to take the provincial exam."
Perhaps that's just how top students are—they become stronger when faced with stronger opponents.
"If I pass, I'll hone my skills for a few more years before taking the provincial examination. You know I'm young, so the provincial examination isn't very advantageous for me."
The imperial examination was different from other examinations. Even if you passed, your ranking would be suppressed, and you would not be granted an official position because you were too young and not convincing enough.
Li Qingyao nodded, indicating his understanding.
"I've tried the tofu from your Li's Workshop, and the tofu pudding was delicious."
Li Qingyao couldn't help but laugh. No one would have guessed that the top student was such a foodie.
"If you like it, that's fine."
"It's very creative. This is a really special technology, and the regeneration of rice and the breeding method are amazing."
"It was an idea from an elder in the family; she is indeed very capable."
The meal was quite enjoyable because Lin Can was there with us.
After the meal, the two arranged a time to discuss their studies together.
The scholars from Zhuangyuanlou had mostly left. After the banquet, Li Qingyao, along with Li Qingduan and Li Qingyi, went to buy many gifts to bring back to their brothers and sisters before returning to Shaoxian County.
Upon arriving in Shao County, Li Qingyao was summoned by Lin Pei, who praised him highly. Li Qingyao also sincerely thanked Lin Pei for his previous guidance.
The county government also updated Li Qingyao's information and gave him a list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations.
After a lot of trouble, we finally got back to Lijia Village.
The Li family had already received news that he had passed the prefectural examination and were eagerly awaiting his return to the village.
"Yao-ge'er is back!"
"The scholar has returned to the village!"
Congratulations, Scholar!
As soon as he entered the village, he was greeted with congratulations all the way, to which Li Qingyao responded in a loud voice.
Thank you everyone!
The villagers crowded around Li Qingyao as he went to the Li family home. Those who were not familiar with him before became familiar with him, calling him "Brother Yao" or "Scholar" and "God of Literature" with great enthusiasm.
Even worse, some tried to pull or touch Li Qingyao's head, but were stopped by Li Qingduan and Li Qingyi.
The three people gradually couldn't handle the enthusiasm and fled in panic.
The villagers burst into laughter.
Upon returning home, he received a warm welcome from his clansmen and was met with admiring glances from the children.
Having passed the prefectural examination, Li Qingyao naturally wanted to thank Master Liu. Yan Min had prepared the thank-you gift as soon as he returned, and Li Qingyao simply took it with him.
Li Qingyao also brought the answers to the exam with him and handed them to Master Liu. Master Liu looked at them carefully and gave him some suggestions, which instantly enlightened Li Qingyao.
It really does take a guide.
In fact, Master Liu could have continued to teach Li Qingyao, but Master Liu felt that Li Qingyao needed to go out and read thousands of books and travel thousands of miles.
You have to go out and see things that you can't learn from books, and only then can your writing have substance.
Li Qingyao wholeheartedly agreed and planned to wait until the ancestral worship ceremony was over, rest at home, determine the study tour route, attend Li Qingruo's wedding, and then begin his study tour.
Yes, Li Qingruo's wedding date has been set.
Because the children of both families were not young, and Madam Gao was eager to separate Gao Chuan from his family, the wedding date was set relatively early.
It was set for April 23.
For the past six months, Mo Qiaoniang has been busy preparing Li Qingruo's dowry. Gao Chuan is an illegitimate son and won't get much of the family property.
However, this child is a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examinations), and there are quotas for tax exemption. These quotas are given to his family and clan for free. As a result, the clan will cover the cost of taking the provincial-level imperial examinations, so life will not be too difficult.
Originally, the Gao family did intend to make do with the betrothal gifts, but the dowry sent by the Li family was too impressive, including a house in the prefectural city and shops.
"This is all the dowry list from the Li family? How could a second branch of the Li family prepare such a large dowry for their daughter?!"
Faced with Madam Gao's questioning, the confidant couldn't utter a single word; indeed, the Li family lived in the village.
Mrs. Gao felt she had been deceived….
It was too late to back out at this point, so he could only angrily increase the betrothal gifts for the Li family. However, no matter how much he increased them, he couldn't exceed what his own son would receive.
The Li family held another ancestral worship ceremony.
This sacrifice is for Li Qingyao; he is the absolute protagonist.
That day, Lin Can also sent his servants with congratulatory gifts, reminding Li Qingyao once again not to forget to visit him.
This left Li Qingyao both amused and exasperated. He asked the man to tell his young master that he would definitely go and would bring his younger brother along.
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