Chapter 136 Recognition
After the Gu family's rented carriage left Qingshui Village, Old Lady Gu muttered softly, "It's really disgraceful to have to fight for a meal."
Zhang Yuniang smiled awkwardly upon hearing this. She did not mention that Old Lady Gu was also a member of the food-grabbing group. Instead, she said, "Mom, didn't you say before that you wanted to live in the village for a while?"
Old Mrs. Gu did have this idea before she returned to the village, but after staying in the village for half a day, she felt uncomfortable everywhere. She was also thinking about the braised food shop, fearing that she would be too busy at home without anyone to help.
"There are so many things going on in the shop, how can I feel at ease?" Old Mrs. Gu replied casually.
She was paid for helping out in the shop, and this time she used the money to buy a lot of snacks for her children at home. They all surrounded her and called her "grandma". She felt very happy inside.
Although it is not like before when one person was in charge of the entire family's money, now that you can earn and spend your own money, you don't have to be so frugal.
"The third son's wife is a good person. The shoes she made for Niu Niu have fine stitching and it looks like she put a lot of effort into it." Old Mrs. Gu said again.
Zheng Cui'er gave a pair of shoes to everyone in the family. The shoes for Niu Niu and Gu Xiaoya were the most exquisitely made, with delicate patterns embroidered on them.
Upon hearing this, Niu Niu raised her feet to show her family.
Zhang Yuniang said softly, "Third brother has finally come to the end of his suffering."
Old Lady Gu said, "I just hope that the third child won't be like those people out there who are short-sighted and mean to others just because they think they are ugly."
Although Gu Laosan said that he didn't care about the beauty of his bride, he actually felt a little uncomfortable in his heart.
Although Liu Erni had many flaws, she was not bad looking, and her two children also inherited her good looks.
But when candles were lit in the room at night, under the dim light, Gu Laosan turned around and saw Zheng Cui'er looking at him tenderly.
At this moment, the birthmark on the woman's face seemed to be covered with a layer of light golden light.
Gu Laosan suddenly felt that there was something wrong with her ex-fiancé’s eyes. He was obviously handsome, so why would he break off the engagement just because of a birthmark?
The days passed faster and faster, and it was June in the blink of an eye.
The Gu family packed their bags again, and this time they had a lot more things to pack.
This year is the year for the provincial examination, and Gu Mingda must arrive in Jiangzhou Prefecture before August.
The provincial examination is a major test, and the examination site is not set up in the provincial capital this year. This time, all the scholars from the four nearby provincial capitals will gather in Jiangzhou Prefecture to take the exam.
"Now that you are gone, you can't stay at home for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Otherwise, you can leave Niu Niu here so that she can keep us company." Old Mrs. Gu held Niu Niu tightly in her arms.
Zhang Yuniang originally did not want to take the children with her after the long journey, but Gu Mingda wanted to take the children back with him. The first reason was that he was worried that the old lady would not have enough energy and the children would get lost again; the second reason was that the scenery in Jiangzhou Prefecture was different from other places, and he also wanted to take the children to broaden their horizons.
Just as the Gu family had packed their bags, someone came to their door.
"Brother Gu, I haven't congratulated you on winning first place yet!"
After not seeing him for several months, Sun Jiaxing now has a rosy complexion and looks full of energy.
Gu Mingda was also surprised to see him, and he said with a cupped hand, "The news that Brother Sun won the second place in the imperial examination has spread all over the city. I should be the one congratulating Brother Sun."
Sun Jiaxing smiled heartily when he heard this and said, "It was just luck. It was all thanks to Niuniu. If she hadn't reminded me, I don't know if I would have survived to come back."
When the Gu family heard this, they were immediately surprised.
"When I arrived in Beijing, my fellow countryman invited me to stay at the Zhaoyue Guesthouse, saying it was cheaper than other hotels. I was about to move in, but suddenly I remembered Niuniu's advice and changed to another hotel. Although I spent more money, I was able to escape disaster. Unfortunately, my fellow countryman was too greedy to change with me. After the New Year, there was a fire in the Zhaoyue Guesthouse and many scholars were burned."
“If so many people had not been unable to take the exam, I’m afraid it would not have been so easy for me to get the second place.”
"The senior officials in the capital even joked that our batch of Jinshi may be the least talented batch."
Although Sun Jiaxing said this, from the looks of him, he seemed not to be affected by these words at all.
Gu Mingda said, "Brother Sun is too modest. Even if the inn caught fire, it was only the dozens of candidates from that inn who were unable to take the exam. How could it have affected so many people?"
Sun Jiaxing sighed and said, "Before the incident, the owner of Zhaoyue Hotel bought all the houses on that street and connected them to make it the best hotel in the capital. When the fire broke out, there were 300 candidates living in his hotel. Burning a few houses was not a big deal. So many candidates got together to sue the hotel for misconduct and made a fuss in Jingzhao Prefecture for several days..."
The fire was indeed the fault of the inn, and the Jingzhao Prefecture also ordered the inn to pay compensation to the candidates for ruining their futures. The compensation ranged from thousands of taels to hundreds of taels. The former wealthy merchants in the capital saw their business ruined overnight, and they had to sell off many of their properties before they could settle the lawsuit.
"The fire was so big that it took two full days to put it out. My fellow villager was lucky as he only burned his hands. But the unlucky ones had their bones burned to the bone." Sun Jiaxing felt very scared when he mentioned this.
Sun Jiaxing sent a lot of gifts to the Gu family this time, but the most precious one was a heavy gold collar.
Sun Jiaxing ignored Gu Mingda's obstruction and insisted on putting the gold collar around Niu Niu's neck.
Niuniu only felt her neck sink, and her head didn’t seem like her own. She said, “It’s so heavy… I can’t stand anymore…”
Sun Jiaxing laughed and said, "This is just the beginning. When you get married, I will make you a big golden headpiece!"
"Brother Sun, this is too precious. It's just a casual remark from a child. You don't have to give such a generous gift." Gu Mingda helped Niu Niu take off the gold necklace.
But Sun Jiaxing insisted on giving it to her, saying, "Although it was just a casual remark from Niuniu, it saved my life and my future. Niuniu is my benefactor, and I deserve to give her a valuable gift."
Niuniu held the gold collar in front of Sun Jiaxing and said, "Uncle Sun, thank you for giving me the gold collar. I want to give it to your baby as a gift."
Sun Jiaxing couldn't help laughing again after hearing this and said, "What a pity, I got a pair of these collars and left one for Changshou at home."
"Longevity?" Niu Niu looked surprised.
Sun Jiaxing smiled and explained, "Your aunt gave birth to a son ten days ago, and his nickname is Changshou."
Gu Mingda congratulated him repeatedly.
Sun Jiaxing and his wife had been married for ten years without having any children, but now they are content with their son. Whenever Sun Jiaxing talks about his child, he can't hide the smile on his face.
"Changshou's eyes are like Niu Niu's, big. Changshou's nose is also like Niu Niu's, small and delicate..."
If someone who didn't know the truth heard what Sun Jiaxing said, they might think Changshou was Niu Niu's biological brother.
At this point, Sun Jiaxing revealed his true intentions and said, "Brother Gu, my wife and I both like Niuniu very much. If possible, can you make her our daughter?"
Second update
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