They talked all the way and soon arrived at the town.
The town was indeed bustling with activity. It seemed as if people from the surrounding villages had all come. People were coming and going everywhere. Wang Yu was quite tall, and when he looked forward, he saw heads everywhere. This reminded him of the modern holiday tourist attractions, which were also crowded with heads just like they are now. No matter what era it was, such holiday outings were always attractive.
There is a big platform at the west end of the town. There are the most people here. They didn’t come early, so they could only stand on the periphery to watch. Wang Yu saw some people standing with low stools. They must be people from the town, otherwise the villagers would not bring stools when they come to watch the lantern festival.
There was a dragon and lion dance going on on the stage. Wang Yu and his friends stopped to watch for a long time. The people below cheered, and it was very lively. This was the first time they had seen such an ancient and charming activity.
He remembered that when he was a child, during the Chinese New Year, people would go to various places to dance the dragon and lion dances and ask for good luck. He had seen this at the doorstep of his house. Later, this gradually disappeared, and in the end, he could only watch it on TV and mobile phones, but it was far less lively and beautiful than here.
After watching the show, even Wang Yu couldn't help but applaud and cheer.
A few people walked further into the street. When they saw acrobats, they would stop to watch for a while and throw a copper or two to show their appreciation. After all, acrobatics is a technical job.
Cheng Chen and An Ge'er had a lot of snacks in their hands and looked around as they walked. They saw a stall selling glutinous rice balls on the street, so they sat at two tables and waited for the store to serve them.
There is a small bowl of steaming white jade dumplings. The sesame filling inside falls out as soon as you take a bite. The glutinous rice skin has a very delicate texture and the filling inside is not particularly sweet, which Wang Yu likes very much.
After eating the dumplings, the group strolled for a while. There were many people releasing Kongming lanterns on the bridge by the river. There was also a person named Zhuge Kongming in this era, but after the Sui Dynasty, history took a fork and it was no longer the dynasty that Wang Yu was familiar with.
Cheng Chen and Li An also went over to release Kongming lanterns, wrote their wishes on them and watched the lanterns in their hands slowly float up into the sky. As the other lanterns floated farther and farther away, the full moon in the sky made the floating lanterns look even more beautiful.
I wish the mountains and rivers are safe and the people are at peace.
Second, I wish my family always healthy, safe and happy.
My third wish is that you will always be with me and that our years will be peaceful.
After the Lantern Festival, Wang Yu was about to go to the academy. On his first day, the teacher checked their homework and asked them questions. The three of them answered well. The teacher nodded with satisfaction and said, "Not bad. It seems that you haven't slacked off during the New Year. You will take the academy exam in a year. You must keep up the good work!"
After the three of them returned to their seats, they each began to study.
The academy examination tests the meaning of classics, and its content comes from the "Four Books" and "Five Classics", but the essays here do not need to be written in the same format as the eight-legged essay, and are not so strict. In addition, students are required to copy a passage from "Sheng Yu Guang Xun" from memory, and there are also test poems, which require them to create a regulated verse with five words, six rhymes or eight rhymes. There are certain requirements, and sometimes there may be other examination subjects, such as classics and commentaries, regulated verses, policy essays, etc.
Wang Yu planned to copy all the books he needed to learn again from the beginning and read them silently to consolidate his memory. After all, a good memory is not as good as a good pen. He did not have Song Boyan's ability to remember everything he saw. He might gain new understandings in the process of copying, killing two birds with one stone.
He resigned from the restaurant after they hired a new accountant. After that, the wine transactions were directly arranged by someone every month, and the eldest brother just had to take care of it. He basically didn't have to worry about anything and just focused on studying.
The days passed one by one in a dull manner, and we gradually took off our heavy clothes and welcomed early summer.
On the eighth day of April, Cheng Chen got up early in the morning. He was going to send a bride to a wedding. During this period, Li An was confined at home to embroider the dowry, and Cheng Chen occasionally went to accompany him to embroider.
Today we have to deliver the prepared dowry, accompany Li An and help out. Wang Yu also took a day off to go over and help. The Li family also fled here and have no relatives at home. They have a good relationship with Wang Yu's family, so they should come to help. Otherwise, it would not look good if there are too few people. Two people from Li's eldest brother's wife's family also came to help.
Mother Li looked at Wang Yu and the others and said, "Achen is here. Xiaoan is in the room. Go and keep her company."
Cheng Chen nodded and said, "Okay, Auntie is busy, my parents will be here soon."
Mother Li smiled and nodded. Today was her brother's wedding, which was a happy occasion. She had to make the wedding banquet a success and not let people look down on it. She turned around and went back into the kitchen to prepare wedding dishes with the aunties from the village.
Wang Yu also took the initiative to help carry the table out. Brother Li gave Wang Yu the prepared gift sheet of writing and ink. They came early today, so they needed to prepare it in advance. When the villagers came to pay their respects, he would record them one by one.
Cheng Chen went in to accompany An Ge. An Ge was sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing a red wedding dress. Qing Ge was also there, and there were two other little boys. Cheng Chen was not very familiar with them. They were probably invited by the aunt to accompany Li An. They greeted each other when they met.
Li An was very happy to see Cheng Chen coming. He patted the seat next to him and said, "Achen is here, come and sit down."
"Congratulations, Xiao An. Today is really great." After saying that, he smiled and handed the gift in his hand to Li An.
Li An took it, touched the pattern on it, and said, "It's embroidered very beautifully. Thank you, Achen."
Xiao An is wearing a red wedding dress today, with a silver hairpin in her hair and a light makeup on her face. She looks very beautiful. Although I am reluctant to part with my good friend, I am still very happy to see him getting married.
The two boys looked at the gift Cheng Chen brought, which turned out to be a bright red quilt cover embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in the water. They felt a surge of envy, not knowing whether to envy Xiao An or Cheng Chen. Most of the gifts they gave were small items like purses, handkerchiefs, or pillowcases that they had embroidered themselves.
When they first learned that Cheng Chen was married to bring good luck, they felt a pity for him, thinking that he would have a hard time if Wang Yu could not wake up. But after Wang Yu woke up, everything was different. His parents at home said that he was a blessed man, because Wang Yu woke up after he got married.
Especially this year, the Wang family bought grain from the village at a high price. During that time, every household was discussing that their family had become rich and had a scholar. If he passed the imperial examination and became a scholar in the future, their family would be completely different. Many families regretted it for a while. You know, if Wang Yu could wake up, their brothers and sisters would be suitable, not to mention that Wang's father and mother were kind people.
But it's no use regretting it now. You can't send your own child to be a concubine. Regardless of whether Wang Yu is willing or not, any parent who loves their child will not let their child become a concubine. However, some people are confused.
Several people talked in the room for a while. Cheng Chen thought of bringing some food to An Ge'er because he wouldn't be able to eat after the bride's party arrived. When he went out, he saw a girl standing next to Wang Yu. She was holding a handkerchief and smiling as if she was talking to Wang Yu very happily.
Cheng Chen didn't know her. Although Wang Yu was counting the bills and ignored her, Cheng Chen still felt uncomfortable seeing this scene. He looked at her twice and finally went to the kitchen to serve food to An Ge'er.
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