"You're back, you're back." Deng Xue saw her brother coming back from a distance at the door and shouted at the top of her voice into the yard.
Sure enough, after a while, Deng Yuan came back running with his shoes in hand, his hair disheveled, and panting.
As soon as he saw the two of them, he excitedly shouted: "Sir, you got it, you got it."
"How many?" Tian An asked hurriedly.
Deng Yuan stretched out his free hand and made a six, then answered loudly, "Sixth place, young master, you got sixth place."
Tian An stood up excitedly, "Sixth place is great! Sixteenth in the prefectural exam, and sixth in the academy exam. Two sixes, isn't that a perfect omen? It means Brother Yiming, your path to the imperial examination will be smooth sailing. What a good omen!"
Zhao Yiming was also happy. Once he passed the academy examination, he would become a scholar. He had ranked sixth, which meant he was a top student. He could be exempted from corvée labor and taxes, saving Tian An a lot of grain every year.
Thinking that the government messenger would arrive soon, Tian An quickly put the agreed-upon amount of one or two taels of silver into Deng Yuan's purse and told him to give it to the yamen runner later. Then, they stared eagerly at the gate, waiting for the messenger to arrive.
They didn't have to wait long before the sound of gongs and drums came from outside the door, and then a group of yamen runners walked in. The leading yamen runner looked at the few people and asked in the direction of Zhao Yiming, "Are you Zhao Yiming?"
Zhao Yiming stepped forward and said, "Exactly."
The bailiff asked again, "Do you have any proof?"
Zhao Yiming took out the nameplate and seal he used for the exam and handed them to the yamen runner.
The yamen runner checked it once, and only after confirming that there was no problem did he open a red post and shouted:
"Zhao Yiming from Shangba Village, Changhe Town, Jinning County, Qingzhou, Ming'an Prefecture, ranked sixth in the imperial examination. Congratulations."
Then Wendie handed a proof of identity notice to Zhao Yiming.
Zhao Yiming excitedly took it with both hands and sincerely said to the yamen runner, "Thank you!"
Seeing Zhao Yiming take Wendie, Deng Yuan beside him hurriedly handed the purse he had prepared in advance to the yamen runner, "Thank you for making this trip, big brother officer. This is a small gift from my master. I hope you will accept it."
The yamen runner took the purse and felt it, and knew that it contained silver, and no less than one or two taels. He was very happy to have met a generous man, and said a lot of congratulations.
Not long after the bailiff left, the landlord, upon hearing the news, arrived with gifts to congratulate him. His courtyard was always rented by candidates taking exams, but this was the first time someone had passed! Because of this, he knew that even if he raised the rent as much as he could next year, candidates would still flock to share in the success.
Three days later, Zhao Yiming went to the yamen to handle the formalities and received ten taels of silver as a reward from the yamen to encourage the students.
After getting the silver, Zhao Yiming took Tian An and the other two out shopping after leaving the yamen.
The first place they went to was the jewelry store. Tian An had worn a few pearl flowers on his head during his stay at Gu Jinyan's house the last time, which made him look even better. He had always remembered this. This time, since he had the time and the money was his reward, it was just right to buy Tian An some pearl flowers.
The shop assistant greeted them with a smile when they entered the shop. "What would you like to see?"
Zhao Yiming looked at Tian An and asked, "Do you have any pearl flowers suitable for her?"
The waiter looked happy and nodded quickly, saying, "Yes, yes, guests, please follow me."
The waiter led them to a counter filled with pearl flowers. "These are the pearl flowers that are suitable for this lady. Please take a look and see which ones you like."
Zhao Yiming took a look at the various pearl flowers, then turned to Tian An and asked, "An An, what kind do you like?"
Tian An glanced at the pearl flowers on the counter, not very interested. "Brother Yiming, did you bring me here to buy pearl flowers because you felt that my dress embarrassed you?"
She had never been in a relationship, but she had watched TV dramas where most men of status would despise their wives for not looking or dressing up to their standards. Zhao Yiming had just passed the imperial examination and brought her here to buy pearl flowers. Could it be that he was starting to despise her too?
Zhao Yiming was stunned after hearing Tian An's words, and said with a smile: "Silly girl, what are you thinking! How could I feel ashamed of you! I just won a reward and wanted to buy you a pearl flower as a souvenir."
"You should buy it for yourself as a souvenir!" Tian An said.
Zhao Yiming suppressed his blush and took Tian An's hand in front of everyone. He looked at Tian An seriously and said, "Half of my success is due to you. We are inseparable."
This is a confession! Tian An blushed for the first time, "Since it was given to me by Brother Yiming, then you can choose for me."
"I'm afraid you won't like what I choose."
Deng Xue looked at the two people with blushing faces and teased, "Whatever the young master picked, the young ladies will definitely like it."
Their faces turned even redder.
Zhao Yiming looked at the pearl flowers on the counter, examined them carefully for a long time, then pointed to a goose yellow and sky-blue pearl flower and said to the clerk, "This one!"
The clerk took out the pearl flowers from the counter with a discerning look and said, "Sir, you have excellent taste. This set of two-color glazed and gold-sprinkled petals and tassels is a new model we have just arrived. Miss, you can try it on. It will surely look good on you."
Zhao Yiming took the pearl flower from the waiter's hand and put it on Tian An.
The pearl flowers are of two matching colors, elegant and simple. Several small flowers are clustered together, and the tassels are made of petals and fine beads. Tian An shook his head slightly, and the petals on the tassels collided slightly, making a crisp tinkling sound.
Deng Xue, who was standing by, covered her mouth and said exaggeratedly, "Sir, you are indeed worthy of being a successful scholar. You have good taste. The girl looks even more beautiful with this pearl flower on! She is like a fairy."
Tian An glanced at her amusedly, "Why haven't I noticed you're so sweet before? You praised two people in one sentence."
Deng Xue blinked mischievously and pouted, "How could that be? It's clearly the truth. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that the pearls the young master picked are a perfect match for you." She didn't forget to talk to her brother, "Brother, don't you agree?"
Deng Yuan nodded hurriedly, "Young Master's vision is naturally the best."
Zhao Yiming also thought it looked beautiful. Tian An looked even more lively and beautiful with the pearl flower on. Seeing Tian An's smile, she knew she liked it too. She looked at the waiter and said, "This one, how much?"
The clerk hurriedly said, "Sir, this pearl flower is a new model. It's a little more expensive than the others. It costs eight hundred coins."
Just as Zhao Yiming was about to pay, he heard Tian An say, "Can you make it cheaper? Even though it's a new model, it's just a beaded piece. Eight hundred coins is a bit pricey."
The waiter was stunned and hadn't reacted yet. The shopkeeper came out from the inner room and took over the conversation: "Miss, this is a new product. It's not available anywhere else!"
Tian An was unmoved. "No matter how new it is, it's just a pearl flower. The average pearl flower costs three or four hundred coins, and the better ones are only four or five hundred coins." He pointed to the pearl flower on his head and said, "Shopkeeper, this pearl flower is indeed made of good material and the style is beautiful, but six hundred coins is about right."
"Miss, I don't bargain like you do!" The shopkeeper smiled bitterly. He must have met an expert. Although the price of this pearl flower was indeed about the same as she said, he still wanted to sell it at a higher price.
Tian An took the pearl flower off his head and said, "It's only six hundred coins. If the shopkeeper wants to sell it, we will buy it. If not, forget it."
The shopkeeper wanted to struggle, thinking that it was Zhao Yiming who paid and the man would be more concerned about his reputation, so he turned to look at him. However, Zhao Yiming did not give him any chance and turned to look at the hairpins on the counter next to him.
Shopkeeper: “…”
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