Chapter 739: Remain calm in the face of adversity
However, I have been away from Beijing for forty days now, and it will take two days for the letter to be sent back to my house...
Here
, let's talk about Feng Jing's imperial examination first.
In a blink of an eye, another day has passed. The once
-in-three-year autumn examination is finally here!
Early in the morning, before the sun rises.
The whole family is ready to go, to be the most dazzling team to cheer for the exam!
Xiao Nuobao dressed up early, and tied a pair of stable buns, and put on a white and gold Song Jin vest with a brocade carp pattern. The whole outfit is a bit more dignified than usual.
Feng also found a cloak with a black fox fur base, and paired it with a golden phoenix hairpin, which looks very imposing.
Sun Chunxue was a little flustered.
She wanted to put on some red lip balm to have good luck.
Then she remembered the yellow talisman she had asked for in the temple, and she had to let Feng Jing touch it.
However, no matter how busy the family was, the owner was not in a hurry.
Feng Jing was no different from usual.
Not only did he sleep well,
but he also grabbed a piece of peach cake left over from last night and ate it while standing in the yard while feeding the birds.
Feng couldn't help but feel nervous for him. Even though he had checked the exam bag three times last night, he still had to open it again before leaving.
"Wait, how could I forget, are the knee pads I brought for the fourth child the ones with deer velvet?"
"And the blanket, have you taken out the lining inside? The examination room will strictly check the straps, and double-layer ones are definitely not allowed. Don't be careless."
After checking everything, Feng looked up again and saw Feng Jing walking around the yard with his hands behind his back, counting which bird ate the most of his biscuit crumbs.
Seeing this, Feng almost laughed out of anger.
"Look at us, we are almost in a mess because of him, but he is fine, as if nothing happened. People who don't know would think that I am going to take the exam today!"
Li Qiqiao prepared breakfast, walked over to take a look, and smiled, "Mom, don't worry, our fourth brother is so calm when facing a big exam, which shows that he has confidence in his heart."
Hearing this, Feng Shi couldn't help but be happy, but in order to balance her luck, she still said, "Who knows, everything is left to God, what we can do is to send him to Gongyuan safely."
Soon, the whole family packed up and went to eat breakfast.
In order to take care of Fengjing, the table was full of light and tasteless food this morning.
Xiao Nuobao had already prepared some snacks, so he only ate half an egg pancake and sat obediently next to his fourth brother, waiting for him to set off together.
After the family finished eating, there was still half an hour before the Gongyuan opened.
Jiang Fengnian stood up and said, "Although our home is not far from the Gongyuan, the carriages on the road are bound to be congested today. It is better to go there early so that we can feel more at ease."
Feng Jing thought of something and looked at his eldest and second sisters-in-law, "Mother, two sisters-in-law, there are many people today. If our whole family goes, it will be too eye-catching. It is better to keep a low profile before the big exam." When
Feng heard this, she thought about it and took only Xiao Nuobao, Jiang Fengnian and Madam Zheng with her.
The carriage drove out of the alley and arrived outside the Gongyuan in less than a quarter of an hour.
At this time, the traffic outside the Gongyuan was already so congested that no one could get through.
For the sake of their children, every household was eager for the whole family to join in the battle and cheer together.
Nanny Zheng parked the carriage farther away to avoid the inconvenience of leaving later.
After getting off the carriage, Xiao Nuobao squinted her eyes and could tell which students were there this time. They were just here to "run for the race".
It is not easy to get a good ranking and enter the palace examination.
Xiao Nuobao turned her head to look at her fourth brother, and her little face couldn't help but smile.
Her fourth brother was different.
He was lucky and had a smooth academic career. Although he couldn't get the first place this time, it was no problem for him to enter the palace examination.
At this time, other families saw the Jiang family's carriage and knew that it was to send Feng Jing to the exam, so many of them came to greet him.
After all, their children also took the imperial examination. If they passed the examination together, they would be formal classmates. It would not be a bad thing to make some advance arrangements.
Two wives of officials working in the Ministry of Justice and the wife of a minister of the Ministry of Works came towards Feng with smiles on their faces.
They first flattered her, praising the princess for her increasingly outstanding appearance and Feng Jing for his handsome appearance.
Then they changed the subject and began to make invitations.
"Madam Jiang looks good too. By the way, your Feng Jing is about the same age as our children. How about after the imperial examination is over, we can take our children to the West Mountain in Chengde to see the maple leaves. What do you think, Madam?"
When Xiao Nuobao heard this, he secretly made a face at his mother.
That's not good.
She had seen the children of these families and could tell at a glance that they would only be runners-up in this year's imperial examination.
If they had no reason to establish this relationship, when the results were announced, and only the Jiang family passed, who knows how much jealousy they would cause.
Feng had already noticed the look in the lady's eyes, but she did not refuse openly, but just laughed it off tactfully, "Are you going to Chengde? That's a good place."
"Well, I've promised the farmers on the farm that I will take them to pick white mushrooms this year. How about I tell you after we set a date?"
When they heard that they were going to take dozens of country people, the three wives hesitated for a moment, then exchanged glances with each other, and quickly smiled and waved their hands awkwardly.
"This... maybe we should wait until the results are announced."
"Mrs. Jiang is polite, but we can't bother you too much. Maple leaves are not that good to look at..."
Jiang Fengnian couldn't help but sneer.
Isn't it just that they despise ordinary farmers?
But in the eyes of the Jiang family, these people are nothing more than "lower class" who cling to the rich and powerful.
Soon, after sending these people away, the gate of Gongyuan was about to open.
Seeing that the students were about to enter, Feng hugged Feng Jing. She didn't forget to whisper instructions.
"Fourth brother, this is your first year taking the exam, so just treat it as a test. Don't worry about your ranking. You're still young anyway, and it won't be too late to work hard in three to five years. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, understand?"
Although she wanted her son to have a promising future, Feng was also afraid that Feng Jing would be under too much pressure and make things difficult for himself.
The little fat girl smiled and twisted her little butt to push her mother open.
"Okay, mother, it's my turn to speak!"
"Fourth brother! Listen to me, when the time comes, you just focus on writing the test paper. Don't worry, Nuobao is here, I guarantee that luck will be on your side this time!" As the little Nuobao spoke, he patted his chest.
Jiang Fengjing smiled with a pair of dimples, touched his sister's head, hugged Feng again, and then walked into the tribute courtyard with a confident look on his face.
Examination?
He was not afraid of it.
The examination lasted for three days. Seeing Feng Jing's back disappear from sight, the adults in front of the Gongyuan Gate also gradually returned to the carriage.
However, Xiao Nuobao did not rush back home, but went to the department store to help the fifth brother check out the business.
After entering the department store, I have to say that the fifth brother is really born with a business mind.
Although he is not in the capital, he has already arranged what to sell inside.
The first stall that caught his eye was full of camel carpets for winter, various Zhang satin materials, and small hand stoves "dressed" in beautiful clothes!
Unable to resist the temptation, the little girl picked a round copper-gilt fat hand warmer, and also bought a lavender soft smoke and a persimmon red satin hand warmer cover.
Then she went to buy some cotton gloves and thick-soled cotton boots, intending to give them to the people of Laicheng as a return gift.
However, just as she turned to leave, she heard some murmurs from a small shop owned by a foreigner behind her.
"Hey, do you know? I heard that Japan across the sea has a new king, and it seems that it is the most unpopular second prince. This is really rare!"
"It's the second prince? Wasn't he driven out of Kyoto in his early years? By the way, did he travel to Nanji for a few years to study?"
Several vendors from Silla were whispering to each other, holding spicy and salted vegetable buns in their hands.
One of them couldn't help but sigh, "The old king was old, but the new king is ambitious. Otherwise, how could he have endured for many years and suddenly ascended the throne!"
Xiao Nuobao pricked up his ears and listened for a while. He couldn't help but be curious and turned to ask Madam Zheng, "Japan? What kind of country is that? Do we have close relations with it?"
Madam Zheng hesitated, and then showed a look of disgust.
"Hmph, Japan, which was also called Fuso in the early years, did have some exchanges with us!"
"However, they are not like other small countries. They are either friendly with us or directly hostile to us. They are two-faced. Whenever their national strength is weak, they will be humble and show weakness, but when their national strength is strong, they will try their best to eat our products, just like maggots in the gutter!" Madam Zheng said, spitting hard. "
Moreover, this country's grain production was very low in the past, and the government orders were not implemented. They relied on paying tribute to our Nanji, coming here to learn our rice planting, and then passing it on to their people after returning, so that they could have enough food and their national strength gradually improved!" Madam Zheng frowned more and more as she spoke.
Xiao Nuobao suddenly understood, and at the same time he touched his chin, and he became more and more impressed by the importance of food.
A country can only be strong if its granaries are full.
On the contrary, if there is not enough food and the land is wasted, it will definitely decline...
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