Xu Di spent five days taking the exam and returned looking disheveled. He soaked in the bathtub for half a day to clean himself up before dressing in new clothes to pay his respects to the old lady.
The old lady had already prepared chicken soup and was waiting. When she saw Xu Di come in with a pale face, she quickly took his hand and sat him down on the daybed next to her, asking, "Did you not eat well? Now that you're back, we'll make sure you eat something good."
Xu Di sat down next to the old lady and looked around, only to find that his brothers and sisters were all there.
Xu Di said, "Grandma, I'm fine. I'm very healthy. It's normal to be a little nervous during exams. I'll be fine after a short rest."
Xu Quan's second daughter, Xu Tong, asked curiously, "Big brother, are your exams difficult?"
Xu Di said, "Well, some people find it difficult, while others find it easy; it all depends on the individual's learning situation."
Xu Hua smiled and said, "Brother, do you think it's difficult or not?"
Xu Di said, "I don't think it's difficult. The key to writing an essay is whether it suits the examiner's taste. If my essay is full of flowery language, the examiner might think it's all show and no substance. Or, if my essay is very solid but the wording isn't fancy, and the examiner likes fancy words, then my ranking won't be high."
Xu Hua smiled and said, "I understand. It depends on luck. But we can find out the examiner's preferred style beforehand. Once we know, we can cater to their tastes, right?"
Xu Di said, "This is a shortcut. In my opinion, to do academic research, you have to be down-to-earth and do your research well. No matter what kind of examiner you encounter, you can always make your articles resonate with the examiner. This way, you will definitely get a good ranking."
The younger children listened with great interest, and the old lady said with a smile, "Your eldest brother just came back from his exams and is starving. Let him have a bowl of chicken soup to fill his stomach first. It's almost dinner time, so why don't you all eat here?"
It was certainly nice that the old lady invited us to stay for dinner. Not only were the meals delicious in her small kitchen, but the snacks were also incredibly tasty.
Xu Bai was also brought by Xu Zhi to wait for his elder brother at his grandmother's place. When he heard that the old lady had invited him to stay for dinner, he quickly ran over, stepped on the footstool under the daybed, climbed onto the daybed, knelt down next to the old lady, took her hand, and happily said, "Grandma, cake, cake."
Xu Bai loves to eat pastries. Pastries made with traditional methods are different from those made by machines or imported Western pastries. After Xu Bai was able to eat on his own, he tried many pastries and thought that the pastries made by the old lady were the best. It's just a pity that the pastries are sweet. Zhang Zhaoci was afraid that Xu Bai would eat too many sweets and ruin his teeth, so she controlled his intake of pastries.
The old lady looked at her great-grandson, who was gazing at her with hopeful eyes. The little guy's round eyes were fixed on her, and the old lady felt her heart melt. She wished she could give everything she had to this little guy.
Just as the old lady was about to agree, Xu Di coughed softly beside her. Xu Bai quickly straightened up, then cautiously turned to look at Xu Di. Seeing Xu Di's expression, he turned back to the old lady, stretched out his chubby right hand, pressed down his thumb and little finger with his left hand, and said, "Mother said at most three pieces." His expression was like a wilted eggplant, which made the old lady's heart ache. She really didn't know how to coax this poor, chubby little boy.
The old lady hugged Xu Bai and said, "My dearest granddaughter, today we're celebrating your older brother's triumphant return from the exam. I'll plead with your mother for you to let him have a couple more pieces. If that's not possible, we can have a couple more pieces today, and a smaller piece tomorrow and the day after. That way, we'll all be fine, right?"
Xu Bai pouted and shook his head, saying, "Grandma, the same amount."
The old lady laughed heartily and said, "What a clever little thing! Your mother said you can only eat three pieces a day, so let's eat three pieces. Grandmother will have someone steam some of our own 'Rouge Rice' for you, and then make you a Kung Pao Chicken. It'll have meat and vegetables, and it'll taste good, okay?"
Seeing how the old lady was coaxing him, and then looking at his older brother sitting to the side with an increasingly calm expression, Xu Bai felt that he was about to reach his brother's limit. He hugged the old lady's neck, kissed her, and said with a grin, "Thank you, Grandmother."
The old lady was so happy she felt like she could fly, and quickly called for Granny Shen to go to the kitchen to give instructions.
After the meal, Xu Di escorted Xu Zhi and Xu Bai to Zhang Zhaoci's courtyard, then went to the Marquis's study in the front yard. The Marquis had already eaten and was waiting. When he saw Xu Di arrive, he poured him a cup of tea and asked him to sit down.
After Xu Di thanked the Marquis, he sat down opposite him. The Marquis smiled and said, "The exams are finally over. Should we prepare for the provincial exams next?"
Xu Di said, "I have to thank my grandfather for helping me find out Lord Li's preferences, because of this, I have saved myself a lot of trouble."
Lord Li is the chief examiner for this prefectural examination. In order for Xu Di to participate in the prefectural examination, the Marquis specially asked someone to inquire about Lord Li's preferences. Writing an essay according to Lord Li's preferences will surely gain more favor from the chief examiner.
After drinking the tea in front of him, Xu Di poured a cup for the Marquis and then poured one for himself. The Marquis looked at his eldest grandson, who was not old but very composed. Moreover, he was the grandson who looked most like him among his grandsons, and he couldn't help but nod in approval.
Xu Di said, "Grandfather, I have not kept what my father and I did in Hexi a secret from you. Now I just want to ask, which of the princes do you favor?"
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