Chapter 1754 Noble

Changzhi drank the hot water but did not leave. The woman in the yard had already returned to the house, and only the little girl was sorting the dried papers in the yard.

The man of the house came back and stood outside the fence for a while before coming to his senses. "Excuse me, who are you?"

Changzhi put down the cup and said, "I was on my way to study and passed by here to ask for some hot water. Sorry for disturbing you."

The man was only 28 years old, but he looked older than his actual age due to years of frustration. He looked like he was about 35 or 36. Chang Zhi's eyes fell on the man's hand.

The man reacted excitedly for a moment, "Are you the master of the house?"

Chang Zhi shook his head, "He is just a scholar from a wealthy family who likes to travel and study."

The man then remembered that he had not introduced himself. "My name is Liu Mingsheng. I am ashamed to say that I have tried so hard for so many years but have not been able to pass the exam."

Why did Changzhi come to this place? Because Liu Mingsheng in front of him did not wipe out his will. "I just read the article you wrote. The article is well written. How old are you this year?"

The man was stunned for a moment, "Twenty-eight this year."

As he said this, he looked at the written paper in the yard, with pain flashing in his eyes. He didn't understand, because he clearly felt that he would win.

Changzhi said to the servant, "I think Xiaoliu Village has a nice environment. You can go and rent a yard there."

The servant glanced at the driver, then thought that no one here knew the master, so he took the order and left.

Liu Mingsheng asked, "How many days will you stay?"

Chang Zhi nodded, "I see you are also a scholar, can I ask you for advice?"

Liu Mingsheng felt sad, "This kid is not even a student."

"You are too narrow-minded. Everyone has his or her own learning method. You should learn from others' strengths to make up for your own deficiencies. Humility is very important in studying."

Liu Mingsheng greeted him and said, "You are short-sighted."

When Changzhi saw the woman coming out, Liu Mingsheng remembered that he had food in his hand. He said to his wife, "I got twenty copper coins today, and I used them all to buy food."

The woman's eyes were filled with joy, but she frowned again, "There's no paper at home."

Liu Mingsheng said: "If you don't have any, wait until you have enough money to buy some. You and the children can't go hungry."

Changzhi listened to the couple's conversation and had a better impression of Liu Mingsheng. After the woman and the child went in, Changzhi asked, "I see that your handwriting is good. Why don't you go to the bookstore to get it?"

Before he could finish, Liu Mingsheng interrupted him and said, "I've been there, so you don't need me."

Even if he only wanted the lowest pay, he would not be hired. The only jobs he could find were helping with the accounting or writing letters.

In the capital, the highlight of the book club has arrived. Concubine Chen smiled and said, "Everyone knows that I have prepared a prize. Everyone must be curious about what it is."

The women waited quietly, and the concubine did not keep the secret, and continued: "Whose story is better, the prerequisite is that it must be your own."

Zhulan looked at her granddaughters. Was it cheating for her granddaughters to participate?

After Concubine Chen finished speaking, many people wanted to participate, especially those who wanted to show off. Winning first place would not only make them famous, but also catch the eye of Concubine Chen.

All the participants were young ladies. Women did not participate but instead hoped that their daughters would win the first prize.

Concubine Chen had already ordered someone to bring the first prize, "This is my wedding headdress. I have never worn it before, so I have refurbished it."

The competition atmosphere became more tense after the prize was raised.

Yudie didn't want to participate. She didn't want the limelight and would rather watch the game quietly.

Yuyi is not a person who likes to be in the spotlight, and she also suppressed Yujiao and did not allow her to participate.

Yuwen was even more reluctant to join in. She looked up at her grandmother with a smile on her lips. She always thought that her grandmother's stories were the most interesting.

Linxi was reluctant to participate, for fear of being accused of being unfair. Who cares about her status?

The girls who participated stood up. Linxi paid attention to Miss An. This girl has great ambitions, but she didn't know if she had the wisdom to match her ambitions.

How can I describe the stories told by the young ladies? Most of them are anecdotes, and none of them are about love. They are all about young ladies from official families who care about their reputation regardless of being engaged or not.

There were some really good ones, for example, a Miss Jiao told a story about solving a crime and added some ghost stories. Fortunately it was told in the daytime, otherwise it would have been shocking at night.

Zhulan's eyes lit up when she heard this. This girl is great and she is good at creating an atmosphere.

Concubine Chen also nodded repeatedly after listening to it. Finally, the result came out and Miss Jiao took the lead.

Lin Xi said to Yu Wen, "This girl is quite interesting."

Yuwen: "Yeah."

Lin Xi looked at Miss An who was jealous but trying to hold it back, and sneered in her heart.

Miss Jiao was overjoyed; her story was recognized. Not only did she win the prize, but the concubine also bought her story!

Seeing that the little girl was neither arrogant nor impatient, Zhulan smiled slightly. The little girl caught the eyes of many female relatives.

In Xiaoliujia Village, Changzhi tested Liu Mingsheng and was impressed by his knowledge. It turned out that there was a problem. This person was obviously suppressed because he could not make any money.

Changzhi asked, "Since we are about to register, should we continue to take the exam this year?"

Liu Mingsheng hooked his fingertips and said, "No, my wife is going to give birth and the family needs money."

Changzhi smiled and said, "Let me ask you a question."

Liu Mingsheng was inexplicably nervous. "Please speak."

"What do you think of the current imperial examination system?"

Liu Mingsheng was confused. What about the imperial examination? The imperial examination was a way for the court to select talents for the various classes of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans. It was also an opportunity for poor students to make a breakthrough. Of course, it was good, but he felt resentful because he didn't get it. He was obviously talented.

Changzhi was not in a hurry. He looked quietly at the mountains in the distance, thinking in his mind about the talents recruited by the Ministry of Works in recent years. There was someone in the Ministry of Works who was particularly good at math. His mother even said that the one from the Ministry of Works was a genius. However, he would definitely not pass the imperial examination because his knowledge of the Four Books and Five Classics was a mess. His mother smiled and said that his imbalanced performance was too serious.

Even though my father dislikes the Ministry of Works for being a big spender, he never fails to give the money it deserves, and he often talks about the importance of talent. It is because the Emperor is influenced by my father's ideas that the Ministry of Works selects talents from all over the country.

Chang Zhi curled his lips. In fact, he had changed a lot without realizing it. He was just waiting for the opportunity to change through gradual accumulation.

Liu Mingsheng pursed his lips and said, "Do you know the county magistrate?"

“I don’t know.”

Liu Mingsheng took a deep breath, "The county magistrate was born as a judge, and he worked hard for more than ten years and used connections to become the county magistrate today. However, the county magistrate is not interested in county affairs, but likes to invite scholars to recite poems and make couplets."

Chang Zhi looked deep in his eyes, "How would you handle county affairs if it were you?"

Liu Mingsheng was stunned, "Huh?"

Changzhi smiled and stood up and said, "That's all for today. Go and register for the exam. We met by chance, so don't worry about the money."

Liu Mingsheng's heart was pounding, but he held back his anger and said, "No, I can't."

"If you're sorry, please help me copy a set of the Four Books from memory. I'll send the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone to you tomorrow."

"ah?"

Changzhi smiled and said, "Don't rush to give it to me. Take your time to write it and give it to me when I come back from my study tour."

When Liu Mingsheng came back to his senses, the person in front of him was gone. His intuition told him that he had met a noble person. If he didn't seize this opportunity, he would never be able to turn things around!

(End of this chapter)