Chapter Twenty-Five: Register of Craftsmen
"Sister-in-law! Look!" Zhang Liuyi, with her sharp eyes, suddenly pointed at the entrance of the yamen and exclaimed in a low voice.
The two heavy doors opened again, and several figures walked out one after another.
Leading the way was Zhang Liuji.
He carried his treasured toolbox, and his steps seemed much lighter than when he went in.
Accompanying Zhang Liuji was a middle-aged man dressed in a blue robe, with three long wisps of beard, and a refined demeanor.
He was facing the person sideways, speaking respectfully, and at the end, he solemnly bowed deeply to the person and cupped his hands in greeting.
The bearded man stroked his beard and smiled, seemingly saying a few words of encouragement. He also nodded slightly to Zhang Liuji before turning and walking in another direction.
"Brother Liu Ji! Over here!" Zhang Yili couldn't contain his excitement and waved and called out.
Zhang Liuji turned around at the sound, his face no longer showing the apprehension and solemnity of the morning, but instead a relieved ease, and a smile spread across his face.
"It's done!" Zhang Yili and Li Xiulan exchanged a glance, both seeing immense joy in each other's eyes.
No need to ask any more questions; just look at Zhang Liuji's confident stride and smiling eyes, and you'll know the outcome!
Zhang Liuji rushed up to them, his face flushed with excitement, and his voice was louder than usual: "Xiulan! Listen up! I...I passed the exam! I'm on the list! That was Master Liu, who was in charge of the carpentry exam! He praised my mortise and tenon work and told me to study carving techniques more in the future!"
He was so excited that he became somewhat incoherent.
"Great! Brother Liu Ji!" Zhang Yi clapped his hands excitedly, even happier than if he had made money himself.
"Honey...that's wonderful! That's wonderful!"
Li Xiulan's eyes instantly reddened, her voice choked with sobs, and her hands holding Xiao Nan'er trembled slightly. The anxiety that had been hanging over her all day finally subsided.
Little Nan'er seemed to sense her parents' joy, reaching out her little hand to touch Zhang Liuji's face, babbling softly.
"Let's go home! Dad's still waiting at the town gate!"
Zhang Liuji was in high spirits. With a wave of his hand, he seemed to feel as light as if the heavy toolbox on his back was nothing.
The three of them, with Xiao Nan'er in tow, hurried to the entrance of the county town.
From afar, you could see Zhang Dahe squatting beside the oxcart, chatting idly with an old man selling tea next to him, but his eyes kept glancing anxiously towards the county town.
"Father!" Zhang Liuji called out from afar, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement.
Zhang Dahe suddenly looked up and saw his son's radiant face and brisk walk. Then he saw the undisguised joy on the faces of his daughter-in-law and niece following behind. His heart skipped a beat, and a surge of elation rushed to his head.
He jumped up and rushed to his son, grabbing Zhang Liuji's arm with his large hand. His voice trembled with excitement: "Liuji... how did it go? Did it work? Tell me quickly!"
Zhang Liuji nodded vigorously.
"Father, we did it! Our names are on the list, and we're now registered carpenters with official credentials! From now on, we're people with skills and official positions!"
"Good! Good! Good lad!!"
Zhang Dahe slapped his thigh hard, making the cows next to him snort.
His wrinkles beamed with joy: "My son has made something of himself, truly made something of himself! The Zhang family's ancestral graves are emitting auspicious smoke. A carpenter, that's the head of all craftsmen, a secure job! He's brought honor to the family, truly brought honor to the family!"
He was so excited that he spun around twice on the spot, then suddenly looked at Zhang Liuyi and Li Xiulan.
"Did you hear that? Did you hear that? My son! He's a craftsman for the government now! From now on, whenever our village builds a house and raises the roof beam, everyone will have to bring generous gifts to invite our Master Liu Ji! Hahahaha!" His hearty laughter made the city gate resound, attracting the attention of passersby.
"Dad, please keep your voice down..." Zhang Liuji was a little embarrassed by his father's exaggerated reaction, and his face turned even redder.
"Why are you being so quiet? I'm having a good time! I'm going to drink my fill today!"
Zhang Dahe waved his hand, exuding a heroic air, "Let's go home! Go home and have your mother cook some good dishes, and Yi-jie, chop up another big plate of your pork offal! We're having a feast today! We won't stop until we're drunk!"
On the way back to the village, Zhang Dahe's excitement had not diminished at all.
He sat on the shaft of the cart, driving the oxcart, humming an off-key tune, and every now and then he would turn around and grin at his son, daughter-in-law and niece in the cart.
Zhang Liuji wore a helpless yet happy smile. Li Xiulan held the sleeping Xiao Nan'er, looking at her husband and father-in-law with eyes full of smiles.
Seeing her uncle's smug expression, Zhang couldn't help but smile.
By the time we returned to Zhuoshui Village, it was already dark.
Zhang Dashan had already received the news and was eagerly waiting in the courtyard.
Hearing the oxcart bells from afar, they came out to greet it.
As soon as the oxcart came to a stop at the gate of the courtyard, Zhang Dahe couldn't wait to jump off and rushed to Zhang Dashan, giving him a big bear hug.
"Dashan! My dear brother! Hahaha!"
Zhang Dahe put his arm around Zhang Dashan and patted his back hard, making Zhang Dashan cough.
"Our Liuji passed the exam! He's got a secure job, a government job now, hahaha! My son is really something! He's really made the Zhang family proud!"
Zhang Dashan, breathless from his older brother's embrace, cried out, "Brother! Brother! Let go! I know! I know! Liu Ji is successful! Our whole Zhang family will benefit! Let go first..."
Zhang Dahe then let go of her hand. "I'm happy today! Dashan, drink with me again! We won't leave until we're drunk! Xiulan! Quick! Quickly cook the dishes! Bring out the good wine!"
Li Xiulan and Zhang Yili suppressed their laughter and hurried to the kitchen to prepare.
Zhang Liuji then set up a tea table in the main room and poured a bowl of water for his uncle.
Soon, the food was served.
A plate of fragrant and glistening braised pork offal, a plate of scrambled eggs, a plate of green vegetables, and a dish of pickled vegetables. Li Xiulan also specially cooked noodles.
The jar of strong liquor hanging on the roof beam of Zhang Dahe's house was also opened, and a strong aroma of liquor filled the air.
Zhang Dahe didn't need anyone to persuade him; he filled a large bowl himself, picked it up, and held it out to Zhang Liuji.
"Come on, son, let me toast you! You've done a great job! You've made me proud! Drink up!"
After saying that, he gulped down half a bowl of the spicy soup, wincing from the spiciness, but laughing even more heartily.
Zhang Liuji had no choice but to drink a small sip along with them.
Zhang Dahe then turned to Zhang Dashan: "Dashan! Drink! We brothers... must drink to our hearts' content today! I'm so happy! My son... is a craftsman! He's the head craftsman! Do you know that? The head craftsman!"
Zhang Dashan looked at his older brother's smug expression, then glanced at his family members beside him.
"Alright, brother, I'll drink with you. Liu Ji's success is a great joy for our whole family!"
Under the dim light of an oil lamp, the aroma of food mingled with the scent of wine as the family sat together, drinking and chatting, thoroughly enjoying themselves.
Zhang Liuji was the first to rush out, his heart pounding like a drum.
Zhang Dahe almost lost his shoes while running, and shuffled to the courtyard gate in his slippers.
Zhang Dashan and Zhang Yili also peeked out from the kitchen.
On the village road, two officials dressed in black robes and carrying broadswords strode forward.
The leader, tall and upright with a steady gait, was Xiong Zixiang from the same village.
Behind him followed a young, unfamiliar yamen runner, who carried a scroll in his hands and had a yellow cloth bundle slung across his shoulder.
"Captain Xiong?" Zhang Liuji was both surprised and delighted when he saw who it was and quickly went to greet him.
"Brother Liuji, congratulations!" Xiong Zixiang's face was serious, but his eyes held a sincere smile as he clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhang Liuji.
The good news had already alerted the neighbors, and villagers pushed open their gates to peek out, while some busybodies gathered around.
The young constable stepped forward, his sharp gaze sweeping over Zhang Liuji's face. He then took out a folded portrait from his pocket, unfolded it, and carefully compared it with Zhang Liuji's appearance. After confirming that it was correct, he put the portrait away and nodded slightly to Xiong Zixiang.
Xiong Zixiang understood, stepped aside, and made way for him.
The young constable cleared his throat, stood still, raised the scroll high with both hands, and read aloud:
"By the Magistrate of Anping County, Zhang Liuji, a villager of Zhuoshui Village, was examined by the craftsmen of this county on the seventh day of the third month of the twenty-fifth year of Tianle. His carpentry skills were proficient and in accordance with regulations. He was deemed qualified and is hereby registered! This certificate is hereby issued!"
After the scroll was read aloud, the young yamen runner handed it to Zhang Liuji with both hands. The scroll was wrapped in blue cloth and tied with a red silk ribbon, making it look particularly solemn in the morning light.
Zhang Liuji's hands trembled slightly as he respectfully accepted the scroll.
"Incredible! Incredible! From now on, we'll have to call him Master Zhang!"
"Look at that scroll, made of blue cloth and red brocade, it looks precious!"
"Tsk tsk, this is a secure job! A skill that allows you to live off the government!"
"The Zhang family is really on the rise!"
Standing beside his son, Zhang Dahe listened to the surrounding discussions, his back straighter than ever before!
"Thank you, Officer Xiong! Thank you, officers!" Zhang Liuji composed himself, bowed deeply to the two officers again, and said sincerely, "You two must be tired from your journey. Please come in and have some tea and rest!"
Xiong Zixiang waved his hand. "Brother Liu Ji, congratulations. I have official business to attend to and cannot stay long." He pointed to the yellow cloth bundle held by the young yamen runner. "This is your craftsman's register. You need to fill in your name and place of origin yourself and affix your fingerprint to complete it."
"Of course! Of course!" Zhang Liuji quickly replied. Li Xiulan had already cleverly moved a small square table to a clean spot at the entrance of the courtyard, and also brought over a basin of clean water.
Zhang Liuji carefully handed the scroll to his father, Zhang Dahe, who held it. He then washed his hands and solemnly opened the yellow cloth bundle.
Inside was a brand-new booklet with a dark blue cover, on which were printed the three neat characters "Craftsman's Register".
Turning to the inner pages reveals blank forms where you need to fill in information such as name, place of origin, address, age, and skills. Finally, there are places to sign and leave your fingerprint.
He wrote his name neatly at the signature area, and the young yamen runner took out a small inkpad box.
Zhang Liuji extended his right thumb and pressed it heavily onto the bright red inkpad.
"Alright." The young yamen runner put away the booklet and inkpad, carefully checked them to make sure there were no errors, and nodded to Xiong Zixiang.
Xiong Zixiang nodded slightly and said to Zhang Liuji, "We'll take the booklet back to the yamen for filing. Keep this scroll of the good news document safe; it will serve as proof."
"Thank you both so much! You've really gone to a lot of trouble!" Zhang Liuji thanked them again.
While Xiong Zixiang turned around and exchanged a few pleasantries with his father Zhang Dashan, Zhang Liuji quickly took out two small strings of copper coins strung together with red rope from his pocket.
He walked calmly to the young constable and stuffed one of the strings of cash into his hand. "Sir, this is a little money for tea. It's nothing, just a small token to buy some tea on the way."
The young constable squeezed the heavy copper coin in his hand, his serious expression softening slightly. He nodded slightly, accepting the favor.
Zhang Liuji then turned to Xiong Zixiang, holding another string of coins, and whispered, "Officer Xiong, you've had a long journey..."
Xiong Zixiang raised his hand to stop him from handing over the money: "Brother Liu Ji, there's no need for that. We're neighbors from the same village, it's our duty and our responsibility."
"We have official business to attend to, so we'll take our leave now."
Zhang Liuji put away the copper coins, cupped his hands and said, "Very well, official business is important. I'll see you two off."
Zhang Liuji accompanied Xiong Zixiang and the young constable, escorting them to the village entrance under the curious yet awe-inspiring gazes of the villagers. He expressed his gratitude along the way, and only turned back after watching their figures disappear at the end of the main road leading to the town.
Back at the gate of his own yard, the villagers who had been watching had not yet dispersed and were still gathered there.
Zhang Liuji cleared his throat and cupped his hands in greeting to the villagers who had gathered around: "Thank you all for coming to support me, uncles, aunts, brothers, and sisters. Today is my big day. I'm grateful for your blessings and to share in your joy! I don't have much to offer, just some candy to sweeten your mouths!"
As he spoke, he called out into the courtyard, "Xiulan! Listen up! Bring the candy!"
Li Xiulan and Zhang Yili were already prepared and came out carrying a large winnowing basket. The basket was filled with square maltose blocks wrapped in red paper, as well as fragrant roasted peanuts and melon seeds.
"Come on! Everyone, don't be shy! Sweeten your mouths!" Li Xiulan greeted with a smile, handing the winnowing basket to the crowd.
Congratulations, Brother Liu Ji!
Congratulations, Master Zhang!
"May you share in the joy!"
The villagers beamed with joy and rushed forward, each grabbing a handful of peanuts and a few pieces of candy while uttering auspicious words.
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