Seeing that the two had returned so quickly, Yu Ruhai could not help but frown and asked nervously, "Has the messenger not arrived yet?"
Yu Hanshan looked gloomy, "I did come, but I just went to the Chen family to announce the good news. Aunt Wang said that Chen's Qing'er passed the imperial examination."
"Chen Zhiqing passed the imperial examination?" Yu Jinshu came out of the back room and happened to hear this. He asked hurriedly, "Did the yamen runner tell me how many places Jinyan and I passed?"
Yu Ruhai glanced at him and sighed with disappointment, "Since you didn't get into our Yu family, it means none of you passed the exam. I told you and Jinyan to study hard, but now, none of our four brothers passed the exam, and only Chen Zhiqing from the Chen family passed. It's really shameful!"
Being scolded like this, Yu Jinshu's face turned pale, and he stammered, but he dared not say anything. He returned to the west room in shame.
Seeing Yu Jinyan sitting at the table with a book in his hand, Yu Jinshu stepped forward and took the book from him, "Don't read it, we all failed the exam, and I don't know what kind of shit luck Chen Zhiqing had to pass the exam!"
Yu Jinyan's face turned pale, and he snatched the book back from Yu Jinshu with a cold face. He pursed his lips, lowered his head and continued to read the book, but he didn't read a single word.
He felt that his answer sheet was pretty good this time. When they were in the academy before, Chen Zhiqing's essays were never as good as his. Why did he pass the exam while he failed? Yu Jinyan felt very unwilling.
In the main hall, Zhao was also very unwilling to accept the fact. It would be fine if Jinyan did not pass the exam, but the teacher in the academy praised Jinyan countless times, so how could he fail the exam?
"Dad, I'll go to Chen's house and ask the yamen runners. There's no way Jinyan won't pass!" Zhao said this angrily, turned around and walked out.
Yu Ruhai stopped her, "What are you asking? Don't you think it's embarrassing enough? Do you want to make people laugh at my Yu family?"
"Master, let's ask the third son's wife to go." Yu Zhou has always regarded Yu Jinyan as if he were the apple of her eye. She also found it hard to accept the news that Yu Jinyan did not make the list.
"Who knows, maybe our brother's name is at the bottom of the list. We should go and ask."
Yu Zhou's words gave Yu Ruhai a glimmer of hope, and the anger on his face subsided a lot.
Seeing this, Zhao quickly said, "Dad, I'll just go and ask, don't say anything more."
Yu Ruhai was silent for a moment, and Zhao quickly walked out of the yard.
Half of the village gathered outside the gate of the Chen family's courtyard to watch the fun, all shouting that the scholar was congratulating the Chen family. Chen Zhiqing stood leisurely at the gate of the courtyard, smiling and handing out melon seeds and peanuts to the villagers who came to congratulate him.
Zhao finally squeezed through the crowd to the gate of the courtyard, and saw Chen Gensheng stuffing two hundred yuan into the hands of the official who was delivering the letter. The official smiled and said auspicious words, "The Chen family's young man is a handsome man. He will definitely be able to win the first prize in the imperial examination in the future!"
"Thank you for your good wishes, sir. If my son can pass the imperial examination tomorrow, I will treat you to a drink again." Chen Gensheng smiled proudly.
The yamen runner exchanged a few more pleasantries and then said goodbye. Zhao stepped forward and said with a flattering smile, "Excuse me, sir, may I ask if there are any other people in our Changkui County who have passed the exam?"
The yamen runner narrowed his eyes and looked at Zhao, asking doubtfully, "Who are you...?"
Everyone in the village knew that the Yu family had spent a lot of money to buy places for the three brothers in the family to become students. All four brothers went to Qingzhou to take the exam, but the official did not go to the Yu family to inform them. It was obvious that no one from the Yu family passed the exam. Yet, Zhao actually came to the Chen family's door to inquire, and everyone couldn't help but talk about it in a low voice.
Chen Gensheng glanced at Zhao calmly. Zhiqing's success in the imperial examination greatly surpassed the Yu family. He was very happy and said to the yamen runner with a smile, "Sir, you may not know that her family also has a son who is taking the provincial examination this time... I'm afraid no one came to report the good news, so I came to ask."
"Third aunt, failing the imperial examination is a common thing in life. Jinyan and Qizhe are still young. They may pass the examination again in a few years. You don't have to take it too seriously." Chen Zhiqing smiled and said comforting words with an undisguised look of pride on his face.
When he was in Qingzhou, he was looked down upon and felt very aggrieved. But today, when the results were announced, the situation was completely turned upside down. What's the point of winning the top three places at a young age? From now on, no one will mention how great the fifth brother of the Yu family is.
Zhao blushed, but since she was here, she had to ask for clarification. However, before she could say anything, the yamen runner beside her asked, "What is the name of your son who is taking the provincial examination?"
Zhao heard the voice and said hurriedly, "My husband's surname is Yu, and there are two brothers in our family who are taking the imperial examinations. Their names are Yu Jinshu and Yu Jinyan."
After hearing these two names, the yamen runner shook his head and said, "I have never seen these two names on the list."
Zhao's face turned pale and she nodded hesitantly. Seeing that everyone in the village was looking at her, she felt ashamed and embarrassed and was about to leave.
The yamen runner then said, "I just heard the Chen family's boy talking about Qi Zhe. Which family is this boy from?"
Zhao stopped walking and said hurriedly, "They are from my family too. I forgot to mention that my eldest and second brothers' two children also got into trouble this time. One is named Yu Zhizhou, and the other is... Yu Qizhe. I wonder if they are on the list, sir?"
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