Chapter 168
After the New Year, Yin Zheng took Jiaojiao to the village chief's house and asked him to arrange the guarantor.
Hearing that Yin Zheng was going to take the county exam, the village chief looked at him with a bit of disbelief: "County exam? You're going to take the county exam?!"
Yin Zheng, who had never attended school for a single day, was going to take the county exam?!
"Are you possessed by something?"
Yin Zheng looked at him silently. After saying this, the village chief met his gaze and smiled awkwardly twice: "I mean, you haven't been to school yet, and you're going to take the county exam. I'm afraid..."
The village chief didn't say the rest, but his meaning was very clear.
Yin Zheng: "Don't worry, Village Chief. I'm studying."
Jiaojiao, who was in her father's arms, looked at her father and then at the village chief, raised her little paw and said, "Jiaojiao is reading too."
The village chief glanced at Jiaojiao. Could it be that Yin Zheng had been secretly reading Yin Youcai's books during these years at the Yin family?
But when it comes to reading, how can you understand it by just reading on your own?
The village chief was very pessimistic and began to advise: "You know, after a county exam, plus the guarantee for the students in the academy, it will cost about two taels of silver. You will have many expenses in the future to raise two children. I think you should reconsider it."
"It's okay, please help me arrange it."
Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, the village chief sighed. He thought that the reason why Yin Zheng wanted to take the imperial examination was probably because he was angry that Yin Dazhu and his wife were shouting everywhere in the village that Yin Youcai would definitely pass the exam and become a scholar this year, and soon they would become the parents of a scholar.
Although he was not optimistic, the village chief finally agreed. Seeing Yin Zheng's firm attitude, he thought it would be better for him to agree than for him to ask others for help and spend more money in vain.
After talking to the village chief, Yin Zheng left with Jiaojiao in his arms.
After the village chief agreed, he contacted the guarantor and the mutual student within half a month. He took Yin Zheng to meet them, paid the guarantor money, and came back to wait for the registration day for the county examination.
When the villagers learned that Yin Zheng was going to take part in this year's county examination, they were surprised and then became pessimistic. Yin Dazhu and Old Mrs. Wu even laughed at him openly, and said that if Yin Zheng could pass the county examination, they would recognize him as their father.
When Tiedan ran over to tell Jiaojiao what Old Mrs. Wu and the others said, Jiaojiao didn't understand at first. After Qin Mianmian explained it to her in detail, she immediately pursed her lips in displeasure, shook her hands and tried to run to find Yin Dazhu and Old Mrs. Wu. Before she ran out of the yard, she was pulled back by Yin Zheng.
Jiaojiao flapped her limbs and said angrily, "Daddy, please let Jiaojiao go. I'm going to tell those bad guys that Jiaojiao's dad is the best and most powerful, and they are not allowed to look down on him."
Yin Zheng held him in his arms and smoothed his fur: "It's okay, no need to tell them."
Jiaojiao buried herself in her father's arms and said aggrievedly, "You can't say bad things about Dad."
On the 20th day of the first lunar month, the village chief came early in the morning to inform Yin Zheng that registration for the county exam had begun.
After this news came out, Shangyou Village became much more lively than Lijia Village. Unlike Lijia Village where only Yin Zheng and Yin Youcai took part in this year's imperial examination, Shangyou Village had a clan school. This year, there were seven or eight people who went to take part in the county examination, most of them were children around thirteen or fourteen years old. The clan also specially used money to hire a horse-drawn carriage to take the children to the county town to register.
The whole village was bustling with activity. Some people came to Lijia Village to show off and make sarcastic remarks. When they found out that Yin Zheng also wanted to take the exam, they laughed at him even more. Then they were scolded back mercilessly by Old Wang.
Yin Zheng checked the things he needed to take, confirmed that he had the silver, household registration and mutual agreement, then picked up Jiaojiao, took Qin Mianmian's hand and went to the village entrance with the village chief.
He was worried about Jiaojiao and Qin Mianmian staying at home, so he asked the village chief to help look after Jiaojiao and Qin Mianmian while he went to the county government to register.
Although he was a little unhappy with Yin Zheng's wariness of the Lijia Village people, the village chief knew that Yin Zheng was wary of Li Ergou's incident, so he didn't say anything and agreed immediately. Not to mention that when Yin Zheng asked him to do this, he also brought a large piece of pork and wine. The old woman had already agreed to it on his behalf, so he didn't have to say anything more.
Yin Youcai did not go with Yin Zheng. After all, he was already a student and had to wait until the academy examination started before going to the county town. Therefore, only Yin Zheng was going to the county town this time. He planned to take an ox cart to the town first, and then hire a horse carriage from the town to the county town.
The people on the ox cart saw that Yin Zheng and the village chief knew that they were going to the county town. They were pessimistic about Yin Zheng but also very envious. You know, they were going to the county town. Many people in the village had never been to the county town in their lives.
"I heard this county is very lively, with opera performances and monkey shows."
"Yes, I heard that there are storytellers in teahouses and taverns. The stories they tell are very exciting. Many of them are things we have never heard in our lives."
"How do you know? Have you been there?"
"I haven't been there. I only heard about it from my great aunt when I was a child."
Aunt Li, who was chatting about this with the people around her, glanced at Yin Zheng across from her. She was about to say something, but finally couldn't hold it in anymore and said, "Yin Zheng, if I had to say something, you shouldn't be so angry. It's not that easy to pass the imperial examination in the county. Take your Yin Youcai, for example. He started school at the age of six and studied for more than ten years and took the exam three times before he passed. How can you compare to him when you have never been to school? Not only will you make a fool of yourself by going there, but you will also waste a lot of money."
Aunt Li's words were so heartfelt. She really felt that Yin Zheng's trip to the county was a complete waste of money. No matter how much money he could make, he shouldn't spend it like this. He still had two children to support at home.
Aunt Li spoke up, and the people on the ox cart also started to persuade him. Even the cart driver Li Tiezhu couldn't help but say a few words of advice.
The village chief didn't say anything, in fact he also hoped that they could persuade Yin Zheng.
Knowing that they meant well, Yin Zheng didn't say anything. Instead, Jiaojiao, who was in her father's arms, refuted every word they said seriously.
"Daddy has studied."
"Daddy is amazing. He reads a lot of books and can pass the exam."
"It doesn't cost money to raise Jiaojiao. Jiaojiao saves money to support her father."
The people on the ox cart were originally trying to persuade Yin Zheng, but as they were trying to persuade him, all their attention was drawn to Jiaojiao.
Aunt Feng looked at Jiaojiao in Yin Zheng's arms, who was seriously refuting them. The wrinkles on her face widened a little, and she couldn't help but teasing, "How old is Jiaojiao?"
Jiaojiao thought for a moment and then held up three little fingers: "Three years old!"
"Wow, Jiaojiao can count now?" Aunt Li praised him as she looked at his three raised little fingers. "That's amazing."
Jiaojiao puffed out her chest slightly, her eyes shining as she said, "Jiaojiao is amazing."
The people on the ox cart tried to hold back their laughter. This little kid was really adorable.
The ox cart was shaking as it moved, and Jiaojiao couldn't help yawning. Yin Zheng saw this and wrapped him in a cotton jacket. Jiaojiao adjusted his posture and snuggled in his father's arms.
Yin Zheng gently patted Jiaojiao's back with his big hand. After the shallow breathing in his arms gradually stabilized, he turned his head to look at Qin Mianmian beside him. After thinking for a while, he put his hand on his back and pushed him towards him.
Confused, Qin Mianmian moved forward under Yin Zheng's force, and then was pressed down on his legs by Yin Zheng. Meeting his puzzled eyes, Yin Zheng touched him, lowered his head, and said concisely, "Go to sleep."
Qin Mianmian was stunned for a moment, then obediently closed her eyes, her little hands quietly grasping the corner of Yin Zheng's clothes, and she felt inexplicably at ease.
It took about half an hour for the ox cart to arrive in the town. Yin Zheng got off the cart, holding Jiaojiao in his arms, and took Qin Mianmian with him to go to the carriage shop on West Street with the village chief to hire a carriage.
It was a coincidence that the carriage they hired this time was the same one they hired last time. When the coachman saw them, he kept saying it was a coincidence. When he saw Qin Mianmian, he even asked if he had recovered from his illness.
After getting on the carriage and shaking all the way, we arrived at the county town at the end of the noon hour. The county was bustling with activity and there was no trace of the war that happened years ago. The only difference was that since the Turks were killed by lightning, every household in the county town began to believe in the god of thunder.
Looking around the market, there were many small vendors selling pictures of Thor, and children chasing and playing around were singing songs about Thor.
Yin Zheng took a quick look and led his men to the county government office. Although he had been to the county town several times, this was Yin Zheng's first time to the county government office.
As soon as I arrived at the county government office, I saw a long queue, roughly estimated to be around a hundred people.
Yin Zheng did not delay and handed Jiaojiao and Qin Mianmian to the village chief. After giving some instructions to Jiaojiao, he stepped forward and lined up at the back of the team.
The person in front was bored waiting, and when he heard the noise, he turned around and wanted to talk to the person who had just arrived behind him. But when he saw Yin Zheng, he was frightened by the scar on his face, and quickly turned around and stood up straight.
Whenever Zhou Yujie thought about the vicious person standing behind him, his back would tense up involuntarily. All his idle thoughts disappeared immediately. He just hoped to reach him quickly and get away from the person behind him.
Jiaojiao was a little uneasy when she left her father for the first time. Her tender little white hands grabbed Qin Mianmian's cuffs, and she looked at the people queuing in front of her and the yamen runners in the distance who were wearing yamen runner uniforms and had knives on their waists with confusion and anxiety.
Yin Zheng was much taller than everyone present. His explosive back made his clothes slightly tighter as he walked, and several old scars could be seen on his exposed wheat-colored arms. Even if he just stood there silently, he gave people a sense of fierceness.
The bailiff at the yamen gate saw the man at first sight and put his hand on the hilt of the knife with caution.
After a while, three or two yamen runners came forward with unfriendly faces and asked Yin Zheng who he was and what he was doing here.
The village chief in the crowd was shocked when he saw this scene and immediately became a little panicked, fearing that Yin Zheng would have a conflict with them.
For ordinary people who work in the fields all year round, they will subconsciously feel awe when facing yamen runners.
Jiaojiao, who was concentrating on looking at her father, was frightened by the sudden harsh shout. Her little hands nervously clenched Qin Mianmian's sleeves. She was afraid that these ferocious-looking people would bully her father, so she mustered up the courage to step forward with her short legs, but was pulled back by Qin Mianmian.
Qin Mianmian was not afraid of these yamen runners. Seeing that Jiaojiao was frightened, he looked at them with dissatisfaction. In his opinion, there was no need to be afraid of these yamen runners.
When facing the yamen runner Yin Zheng, he did not have the panic and fear of the village chief. He calmly explained to them that he was there to register for the county examination.
When they learned that he was here to take the county examination, several yamen runners were stunned.
The yamen runners couldn't be blamed for making such a fuss. The man before them stood out from the crowd with his tall and loud figure. Compared to a scholar, he had darker wheat-colored skin, sharp brow bones, knife-like facial features, dark eyes, and a hideous scar running from the left side of his face to his jaw. In addition, his restrained yet fierce aura that made people feel oppressive, made him look unkind no matter how you looked at him, let alone like a scholar.
The yamen runners, who did not believe in superstition, carefully checked the household registration and mutual agreement of the person in front of them. After confirming that this person had come to register for the county examination, they felt a sense of trance in their hearts.
After these yamen runners returned, the other yamen runners were surprised and asked them why they came back so soon. Wasn’t that person still there?
The yamen runner who was being questioned had a sour face and said unhappily, "They are students who came to apply for the exam. Isn't it normal for them not to leave?"
The yamen runner who was questioning him looked at Yin Zheng in disbelief. This man was actually a scholar? Yet his aura looked even more like a bandit than a ruthless gangster!
As they thought about this, they glanced at Yin Zheng from time to time.
Yin Zheng, who was standing in line, was not at all disturbed by their wary looks.
The registration time given by the county government was quite generous. There were not many people coming to register today, and it was Yin Zheng's turn soon.
Seeing Yin Zheng, several clerks were stunned for a moment. One of the clerks came to his senses and heard that it was a candidate from Hengyang Town, so he got up and went to the tea room next door.
After a while, several scholars wearing scholar's caps and robes came in. One of them was the scholar named Zhang whom he had met in the town some time ago when the village chief took him to pay the bail.
Mr. Zhang was actually also very surprised. When Village Chief Li brought Yin Zheng to see him, he was stunned for a long time. He confirmed with the village chief again and again before agreeing to this matter.
Zhang Xiucai came out and carefully identified the candidates he was guaranteeing, especially looking at Yin Zheng before signing his name on the guarantee letter.
After writing the guarantee letter, Yin Zheng also picked up a pen and wrote down his name, place of origin, age, and the resumes of his three generations on the form.
Seeing Yin Zheng's smooth and vigorous handwriting, the clerk's doubts dissipated and he issued a float.
Yin Zheng took the float and looked at it carefully for a while, then put it away and walked out.
When Jiaojiao in the crowd saw her father, she stood on tiptoe and waved, as if she was afraid that her father couldn't see her.
Yin Zheng walked over quickly, picked up Jiaojiao and held her in his arms. As soon as she fell into her father's arms, Jiaojiao quickly put her arms around her father's neck and rubbed her furry head against her father's neck.
Jiaojiao, who still remembered those ferocious yamen runners, patted her father on the shoulder and whispered to him, "Don't be afraid, Dad. Jiaojiao is here."
"Yeah." Yin Zheng responded softly and carried him towards West Street.
The West Street in the county town is the most lively, with all kinds of stalls, restaurants, and acrobatics all here.
After registering, Yin Zheng did not take Jiaojiao and Qin Mianmian back to the village immediately. Instead, he took them for a walk in the county and bought a string of candied haws and a clay figurine for each of Jiaojiao and Qin Mianmian.
The village chief who followed Yin Zheng watched him buy a bag of snacks on the left and a bag of fruits on the right, and his heart trembled. No matter how much money his family had, it would not be able to stop Yin Zheng from spending money like this.
But... where did Yin Zheng get so much money? If I remember correctly, when he separated from the family, he only had one or two taels of silver in his hand!
It should be earned from hunting. I remember that Yin Zheng went to the mountains quite frequently during that period. I guess he saved a lot of money in half a year.
But is hunting so profitable?
The village chief, who was thinking about something, glanced at the large and small oil-paper bags in Yin Zheng's hand, and his lips trembled. Yin Zheng doted on his children too much!
After buying some food and some writing materials, Yin Zheng took Jiaojiao and the others back.
Jiaojiao, who was held in her father's arms, gave her father the three candied haws that she had specially reserved for him. Yin Zheng lowered his head and bit off a candied haws from the bamboo stick. He couldn't help but touch the back of Jiaojiao's round head.
When leaving, Yin Zheng suddenly remembered something and turned back to the inn to reserve a room. Fortunately, they came early, on the first day the news was released. It was estimated that the inn would not be available for booking in the next two days.
The room rates during this period were extremely high, three times more expensive than usual. The village chief felt heartbroken when he heard the price, but Yin Zheng didn't feel anything and reserved two rooms for the inn.
When paying the deposit, Jiaojiao was still busy taking money out of her pocket, so Yin Zheng paid the deposit quickly and turned to leave the inn.
When Jiaojiao took out two copper coins from his pocket, he realized that he had already walked a long way out of the inn. He blinked blankly, tilted his head and said "Huh?"
Yin Zheng looked at him like this, a smile flashed in his eyes, and he carried him into the carriage.
When Kongchen came back from discussing Buddhism at Lingyin Temple outside the county, a carriage just happened to be driving out of the city, and he dodged to the side.
A carriage passed by him, and the curtain was blown up by the wind. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a delicate child in the carriage holding a candied haws. He was suddenly stunned where he was. When he came to his senses and turned around to look, the carriage was no longer on the official road.
Kong Chen's brows furrowed unconsciously. Why did he see the Buddha's light rising into the sky from that child?
This... shouldn't be the case!
When Qi Zuqing and his men passed by, they saw Kong Chen, who was stunned on the side of the road. He rode his horse forward and said with a smile, "Master Kong Chen, why is he standing here on the side of the road in a daze? Could it be that he saw a deity or Buddha? Master Kong Chen, the most Buddha-like person in all of Dayong, is so stunned that he can't recover for so long?"
Kong Chen came back to his senses and thought of the Buddha's light that had shot up into the sky. He looked at Qi Zuqing with a strange look, said sorry, and turned around to quickly chase in the direction the carriage had just left.
Qi Zuqing: "...Tsk, what's that look in his eyes?"
After returning from the county, Yin Zheng spent more time reading. He knew a little about the county examination. Xie Shuyu had mentioned in the letter he sent that the county examination was nothing more than calligraphy, poetry, essays, calligraphy interpretations, imperial edicts, etc.
Most of the sutras were from the Four Books and Five Classics, but he wasn't worried about that. After all, his memory was excellent, and he rarely forgot what he had read once. The meaning of the text wasn't difficult either. The thing that worried him the most was poetry and prose, as poetry is often lyrical, and this was his only weakness.
So in the following period of time, Yin Zheng focused on writing poetry. There is no shortcut to writing poetry except to read more and write more.
He looked at the topics for poems and essays from previous years, and found a wide variety of them, including praising plum blossoms, appreciating the moon, talking about snow, and praising autumn.
Jiaojiao also watched with his father and wrote two poems in imitation of his father. After reading them, Qin Mianmian's evaluation was that they were worthy of being father and son, their poetry writing levels were about the same and there was no inspiration at all.
However, he still praised Jiaojiao against his conscience. When facing Jiaojiao's bright eyes asking for praise, he could not say anything else except words of praise.
Qin Mianmian sighed softly. No wonder Uncle Yin doted on Jiaojiao so much. It was really because Uncle Yin was so good at acting like a spoiled child that even he couldn't resist him.
Qin Mianmian felt a little worried when she thought about this. If this continued, would Jiaojiao be spoiled in the future?
It was originally planned that one of him and Uncle Yin must play the good guy, and Uncle Yin couldn't bear it so he took over, but it seemed that he couldn't sing either!
Qin Mianmian glanced at Jiaojiao, who was sitting at the table on the kang and copying big characters obediently. He couldn't help but poke Jiaojiao's soft face with his hand. When Jiaojiao looked up in confusion, he withdrew his hand and thought expressionlessly that it didn't seem to be his fault. Jiaojiao was so well-behaved, who could be so cold to him?
Kong Chen failed to find Jiaojiao. He found that every time he was about to find the right road, he would suddenly lose his mind and take another road. By the time he realized something was wrong, he was almost in the next county.
Kong Chen, who spent three days rushing back to Jiayang County, still did not give up, but he changed his approach and chose to wait in Jiayang County. He always felt that he would meet the little kid again!
In the blink of an eye, nearly a month had passed. The county examination was approaching, so Yin Zheng and others went to the county town early to be on the safe side. The village chief was busy with spring planting, so it was Old Wang who came to look after Jiaojiao this time.
Old Mrs. Wang was so happy that she didn't even care about her newly born grandson at home, and happily followed Jiaojiao and the others to the county town.
On the day of the county examination, Yin Zheng got up just after the hour of Yin. He got up quietly and just finished washing up. When he turned around, he saw Jiaojiao on the bed had woken up and was looking at him drowsily with half-open eyes.
Worried that Jiaojiao wasn't getting enough sleep and growing taller, he went over and sat beside the bed, patted Jiaojiao on the back, and coaxed her, "Sleep a little longer. Daddy will be back after the exam."
Jiaojiao moved forward and buried herself in Yin Zheng's arms. Her voice was still vague and soft as if she had just woken up: "Jiaojiao, send daddy off~"
Yin Zheng straightened his messy hair: "Be good, no need."
Jiaojiao frowned in confusion. He wanted to send his father off, but he also didn't want to be naughty. After a while of hesitation, he stretched out a little finger and asked tentatively, "Jiaojiao, can you be naughty for a day?"
After saying this, Jiaojiao grabbed his father's clothes tightly, with a little uneasiness in his eyes. He knew that being naughty was wrong, but he really wanted to send his father off.
Seeing his uneasy look, Yin Zheng's heart tightened, and finally he compromised reluctantly. This was not being disobedient, this was clearly being too obedient, so obedient that people didn't know how to refuse.
He put clothes on Jiaojiao, and Jiaojiao cooperated obediently by stretching her hands and feet. During this time, her little hands kept tightly grasping Yin Zheng's clothes, as if she was afraid that she would be abandoned because of her misbehavior.
After getting dressed and washing up, Yin Zheng carried Jiaojiao downstairs to have breakfast.
The lobby downstairs was already full of people, and Yin Zheng also saw Old Wang and Qin Mianmian among them. Although it was not his own son or nephew who took the exam this time, because she attached great importance to Jiaojiao, and because of the tense atmosphere among the candidates in the inn, Old Wang also became inexplicably nervous, so she got up early, causing Qin Mianmian, who was in the same room with her, to get up as well.
When the candidates and their families in the store learned that Yin Zheng was also a candidate, they could not hide the surprise in their eyes.
After breakfast, the gong sounded outside. It was past four o'clock in the morning and we were ready to enter.
The inn clerk opened the door of the inn and held up a lantern to light the way for everyone. A group of people followed him out.
Jiaojiao, who was in her father's arms, helped her father carry the exam basket. Afraid that Yin Zheng couldn't lift it, she used her hands to drag him under the basket.
At the hour of Mao, the dragon gate slowly opened. Yin Zheng picked up the examination basket and handed Jiaojiao to Old Wang. He pinched Jiaojiao's face and asked him to wait patiently, then followed the other candidates into the examination room.
The clerk took out a list and divided people into groups of five, who were all friends. Only those whose names were called could enter. Then the yamen runners searched them. In front of Yin Zheng was a handsome scholar. The yamen runners checked him according to their official procedures and then let him go.
When it was Yin Zheng's turn, she wanted him to take off all his clothes for inspection, and even took out the insoles of his shoes for inspection before letting him go.
After the inspection, he entered the examination room. After the clerk called out the name of the candidate, Zhang Xiucai came over and carefully confirmed it. Then he continued to call out, "I, the student from the imperial academy, Zhang Yezhi, guarantee my name!"
It was already dawn when they entered the cell. The cell had walls on three sides, only the south side was open. The interior of the cell was three feet wide, four feet deep and six feet high. There were two high and low brick joints on each wall, with two boards placed in between. The high board was used as a desk and the low board was used as a stool. It was so narrow and cramped that Yin Zheng couldn't even stretch his legs inside.
While waiting for the papers to be distributed, Yin Zheng was distracted and thought of Jiaojiao.
Not long after, the drum sounded at Guanlong Gate, and a clerk came to distribute the test papers.
Sorry, because the author prefers the daily life of ancient times, the writing of this world has been a bit slow, but it doesn't matter, I have already thought about how to speed up the progress next. I will ensure that the new map is changed within one chapter, and the world will be concluded within the next 25 chapters. Also, there is a two-in-one, and I have updated four chapters. I will not update today~
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