The spring examination was a lively affair for a while, but things gradually calmed down, and life went on as usual.
By summer, Yuanbao was able to sit up, so Lu Lin laid bamboo mats all over the floor of the room, allowing Yuanbao to crawl around on them.
Yuanbao can already grasp things, and the little guy has a unique interest in dropping things.
Chen Xiaomai really likes her nephew Yuanbao. Whenever Yuanbao throws something out, Xiaomai will eagerly help him pick it up. The two of them have a great time playing together. Yuanbao should be starting to be shy around strangers at his age, but he is very outgoing.
He doesn't cry no matter who holds him. Of course, there are still differences. Although Yuanbao is a chubby baby, he is very reserved and rarely cries or laughs loudly.
If a familiar person holds Yuanbao comfortably, Yuanbao will occasionally give a smile. If an unfamiliar person holds him, Yuanbao will close his eyes and sleep. Although everyone in the family says that Yuanbao is very well-behaved, Lu Lin is vaguely worried that Yuanbao, being so well-behaved, might be abducted.
Lu Lin thought to himself that his son was so calm and collected that even if he were caught by human traffickers, he probably wouldn't cry or make a fuss. But then he realized that although his son was usually quiet, if he were to go hungry, he would be like a demon possessed, crying loudly and it would take a lot of effort to soothe him.
Lu Lin is very satisfied with his life here. He frequently introduces new products to his shop to ensure a steady stream of customers.
Children grow up very quickly; in the blink of an eye, Yuanbao is already one year old.
Yuanbao is chubby with fair skin. He looks so plump that you can't help but want to pinch his cheeks.
Although Yuanbao looks a bit chubby, he is actually very agile.
When the first birthday banquet arrived, Lu Lin prepared a "first birthday gift" for Yuanbao.
Lu Lin laid out a bamboo mat in the room, on which he placed a brush, ink, paper, inkstone, coins, and gold ingots... After preparing everything, Lu Lin placed the gold ingots in front of the bamboo mat.
Yuanbao seemed somewhat bewildered by the situation before him and lazily yawned.
Chen Xiaomai glanced at Lu Lin and said, "Brother Lin, Yuanbao isn't interested in any of these things! Does he just not like them?"
Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiaomai and said, "How could no one be interested? Yuanbao just hasn't made his move yet." Listen, the saying "silent until he speaks, then he'll amaze everyone" probably describes his son's current state.
Chen Xiaomai said dismissively, "I think he just doesn't like it."
Chen Xiaomai took half a flatbread from her pocket and placed it on the bamboo mat. When Lu Lin saw what Chen Xiaomai took out, he picked it up and thought, "This is a baby's first birthday celebration. She probably likes to eat. If she takes out food, doesn't that prove she's a foodie?"
Lu Lin looked at Yuanbao, his heart leaping into his throat. Yuanbao bit his finger and looked around, seemingly unmoved by the pancakes that Xiaomai had put down.
Looking at Yuanbao's appearance, Lu Lin thought to himself: My son is really promising. He was not tempted by the delicious food. He is destined for great things.
Seeing that her son was not moving for a long time, Chen Xiaomi finally lost her patience and kept calling Yuanbao to grab something. After being called by Chen Xiaomi for a long time, Yuanbao seemed to understand something.
Yuanbao wiggled his chubby little legs and grabbed a string of coins.
Choosing money first here is not the best option, as it will be seen as being overly materialistic.
Lu Lin thought it was great that Yuanbao liked money; you can't do without money. It seemed his son was quite pragmatic.
After Yuanbao grabbed the coin, he threw it away.
Lu Lin blinked, thinking to himself: He actually threw it away. That's money! With his son's attitude, will he become a spendthrift?
After Yuanbao threw away the coin, he grabbed a silver ingot. Lu Lin was pleased to see this and thought to himself: My son has high aspirations and doesn't care about small money. It seems he's destined to make a lot of money.
Yuanbao waved his hand and threw the silver away as well.
Qin Lang, who was watching from the side, couldn't help but say, "Yuanbao is obviously someone important! He treats money like dirt."
Such a large ingot of silver is just thrown around like that. Does this brat even know how many steamed buns that ingot of silver could buy? He waved his hand, threw out gold ingots and pens, and laughed as he did so, probably finding it very amusing to throw things away.
Lu Lin watched as Yuanbao grabbed a book and started slamming it to the ground, and suddenly realized that his son probably wasn't cut out for studying.
After throwing everything away, Yuanbao finally grabbed an abacus.
Lu Lin looked at Yuanbao and thought to himself: Yuanbao actually chose the abacus. This must mean that he will follow in his father's footsteps and become a great merchant in the future.
Time flies, and two years have passed in the blink of an eye.
In the fourth year since Lu Lin arrived here, Lu Chengyu finally passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations).
When Tang saw that Lu Chengyu had passed the imperial examination and become a scholar, she felt as if the clouds had parted and the moon was shining through. The Lu family seemed to straighten their backs.
Mrs. Tang said excitedly, "Alright, alright, that's good now."
Scholars who passed the imperial examinations were exempt from corvée labor and their land was also tax-exempt. They could also meet officials without being considered wealthy, as the government provided them with subsidies, allowing them to receive two taels of silver a year. More importantly, they gained prestige.
"Son, you've finally made it!" Mrs. Tang said excitedly.
Lu Chengyu had failed the imperial examinations for the past two years, which led to many rumors in the village and put a lot of pressure on Tang's family.
Lu Chengyu breathed a sigh of relief. He had finally passed the imperial examination and become a scholar. If he stayed in the village to teach, he should be able to make a living. However, that was not his goal.
Next is the imperial examination for the title of Juren. Only by passing the examination can he become an official, a superior person, and trample Lu Lin underfoot.
Huaxia Trading Company's business has been very stable in recent years. Many villagers would hunt wild game and collect mountain products, and then sell them to Lu Lin in town. Out of consideration for the villagers, Lu Lin would always give them a good price. Thanks to Lu Lin, Lu Lin's reputation in the village has been getting better and better.
Previously, the villagers had been gossiping about Lu Lin taking kickbacks, but after a while, there was no response from Huaxia Trading Company, so everyone got tired of it and gradually stopped talking about it.
In recent years, Lu Chengyu has had to bear the pressure of academic setbacks on the one hand, and the praise from the villagers for Lu Lin on the other. He has long been feeling extremely resentful.
Chen Xiaomi looked at Lu Lin and said, "Lu Chengyu really passed the exam!"
Lu Lin nodded and said, "Lu Chengyu should have some ability, but he's only a Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations)."
Scholars have some privileges, but it's mostly just a good reputation. Of course, if Lu Chengyu is willing to teach, he will be well paid. If he does nothing, he is very likely to become a poor scholar.
Given Lu Chengyu's personality, he will definitely want to take the exam to get a higher position.
Chen Xiaomi glanced at Lu Lin and said, "It's not easy for a scholar to pass the imperial examination. If he accidentally passes, he can really become an official."
Lu Lin raised an eyebrow. This official had a high level of prestige. If an official came from a village, he could even influence the fate of the entire village.
The Xiucai exam was held once a year, but the Juren exam was much more difficult, held once every three years. Putting aside everything else, the cost of traveling to the provincial capital for the exam was not low. Many Xiucai did not fail in the examination hall, but collapsed on the way.
Lu Lin pursed his lips, thinking to himself: He has saved up quite a bit of silver over the past few years, more than four thousand taels, which may soon be enough to buy an official position.
Huaxia Trading Company is doing well, but Lu Lin doesn't rely solely on it for his profits.
In the past two years, Lu Lin has made a lot of money by brewing beer. In addition to beer, Lu Lin's shop also has some high-proof liquor. After mixing these liquors with the drinks in the shop, Lu Lin sold them to restaurants and made a lot of money.
"Lu Chengyu is going to be in the limelight for a while this time," Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiaomi nodded and said, "I think so."
At first, Chen Xiaomi often drove to the fields to harvest vegetables. However, after Granny Shen rented out all the land, Chen Xiaomi found it troublesome and started buying vegetables from the villagers. Recently, the villagers who came to visit mentioned Lu Chengyu quite a bit. But there was nothing that could be done. Lu Chengyu had passed the imperial examination and become a scholar, which brought some honor to Dashi Village. Having a scholar in the village was a very prestigious thing, and it even helped with marriage in Dashi Village.
Lu Chengyu passed the imperial examination and became a scholar. The Lu family held a banquet to celebrate, and Madam Tang invited all the prominent people in the village to attend, making it a grand occasion.
The relationship between Li Fangyue and Lu Chengyu has been very tense in the past two years. Li Fangyue originally thought that things would be better if Lu Chengyu passed the imperial examination, but she did not expect that their relationship would become more and more strained.
A few years ago, Lu Chengyu failed the imperial examination and became a scholar. The villagers said that it was all for naught that Lu Chengyu married Li Fangyue. Now that Lu Chengyu has passed the examination, some of the envious people are saying, "Lu Chengyu was able to pass the imperial examination because of Li Fangyue. It's really good to marry an official's wife! That's why he passed the examination."
The year after Lu Chengyu married Li Fangyue, he failed the imperial examination and became completely disillusioned with her.
Lu Chengyu didn't pull any strings for this year's imperial examination. Therefore, Lu Chengyu felt that his success in becoming a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations) was entirely due to his own hard work and had nothing to do with Li Fangyue. He believed that marrying Li Fangyue was his biggest mistake.
Madam Tang cooked chicken soup for Lu Chengyu and said with some pride, "Son, you've finally made your mother proud."
Previously, the Lu family had held a lavish banquet, which cost a lot of money. However, most of the villagers had given gifts, so they still managed to make a profit. Tang felt that life was finally starting to look promising.
"Cheng Yu, what are your plans for the future?"
Lu Chengyu said with a firm gaze, "Now that I've passed the Xiucai exam, I should naturally continue to take the exams." If he could pass the Juren exam, what would a mere clerk be?
Unable to rely on this relative, Lu Chengyu even came to hate the registrar, and was determined to rise above others and trample those who looked down on him underfoot.
Mrs. Tang said with some regret, "Lu Lin is too arrogant. He stays in town and doesn't come back."
Previously, when hosting a banquet, Madam Tang had asked someone to pass on a message to Lu Lin, inviting him to come back for a meal.
The reason Tang invited Lu Lin was to show off to him.
In recent years, the villagers have praised Lu Lin for being capable and talented, saying he is destined for good fortune, which has made Tang feel extremely frustrated.
Lu Chengyu finally passed the exam, and Madam Tang wanted to take this opportunity to tell Lu Lin that he was just a laborer, while her son was the one who studied and had a bright future. However, Lu Lin refused.
Lu Chengyu said sullenly, "Lu Lin has been with Huaxia Trading Company for quite some time now."
Mrs. Tang nodded and said, "Yes!"
Back then, Chen Jing committed a serious crime, and Chen Xiaomi immediately took out thirty taels of silver to sever ties with the Chen family, which Tang Shi has always held a grudge against.
For so many years, the owner of the Huaxia store has never shown up, and Lu Lin's position has remained secure. The Tang family has always suspected that Lu Lin has pocketed a lot of kickbacks over the years.
Tang roughly calculated that if Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin each earned two taels of silver, they would earn more than forty taels a year. Even without considering kickbacks, over several years they would probably have earned more than one hundred taels.
Whenever she thought about how Lu Lin had made a fortune with Chen Xiaomi while her family hadn't benefited at all, Tang felt as if her heart was being torn apart. Tang looked at Lu Chengyu and said, "Chengyu!"
When Lu Chengyu passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations), Madam Tang breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but start thinking about other things.
Lu Chengyu and Li Fangyue had been married for several years, but they only had one little girl.
Mrs. Tang knew that her son and Li Fangyue hadn't gotten along very well in recent years, so they had always slept in separate rooms. Mrs. Tang didn't like Li Fangyue either, so she just let it go. However, the older Mrs. Tang got, the more she wanted to have a grandson, and she gradually became a little anxious.
Lu Chengyu said sullenly, "We'll see!"
Lu Chengyu has recently developed a dislike for Li Fangyue. However, during a recent classmate banquet, he was dragged to a brothel and surrounded by beautiful women. Lu Chengyu couldn't help but have some other thoughts.
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