As soon as they arrived, servants rushed out. Hearing that their master had come, they dared not be negligent and busied themselves unloading all the things.
The examination atmosphere in Yizhou Prefecture was even stronger than in the prefectural city. Fu Changfeng also made the most of his time to review all the books he had read, afraid of missing anything. The notes that Old Master Hu had given him were enough for the two brothers to use.
Xichun, along with Xiaoyue and several maids, tidied up the room inside and out, and even made sure to clean up her elder brother's courtyard, instructing the servants to prepare everything.
"Madam, everything is ready, and the front yard has also been tidied up."
"You've all been busy all day, go and rest. Come back tomorrow, and I'll explain the rules to you all." Xi Chun saw that they were quite perceptive, so she didn't criticize them too much.
There are six maids in this courtyard. Two of them are responsible for sweeping the courtyard, and the other two are responsible for the kitchen. However, with the exams coming up, Xichun is not too at ease, so she has also put the maids she brought with her in charge of all the kitchen affairs. If anything goes wrong, she will hold them accountable.
There were five servants outside the courtyard, mainly responsible for guarding the gate, serving the masters, and running errands. Xi Chun instructed them to keep a close eye on their posts, and if they were unsure about anything, they must report to their master first before making a decision. They were not allowed to make decisions on their own. If someone came to visit, they had to be polite and not show any disdain because of the other person's clothes or appearance.
This is what Xi Chun heard from Fu Changfeng. Before and after the exams, scholars would visit each other, some inviting others to travel together, and others to discuss scholarship. Among these people were many with genuine talent and learning, so one should not offend them because of their appearance.
The only thing the courtyard lacks is a proper housekeeper, but time is tight and Xichun doesn't have time to find a reliable one, so she can only worry about it herself.
That day, Xichun was preparing for her exams when a servant came to report: "Young mistress, a scholar has come to visit. He says he is looking for the young master. The young master has already gone to entertain him and asked you to prepare some dinner so he can discuss scholarship with him."
"Tell the kitchen to prepare some snacks and tea. I'll go check and prepare dinner." It was already noon, but fortunately, the kitchen prepared some vegetables every day, so cooking wouldn't be difficult.
"My lord, the meal is ready. Please come to the front hall for your meal." Xichun came over with her maid.
“Brother Zeng, this is my wife. Let’s go to the front hall for a meal first, and then continue our discussion.”
"Brother Fu, this dinner is truly sumptuous. It seems that traveling with your wife has many advantages. Madam Fu is indeed a virtuous woman." This scholar Zeng was someone Fu Changfeng had met during the provincial examination. Now they were all from the same hometown and had shared the bond of taking the exam together, which is why he came to visit Fu Changfeng after he arrived in Yizhou.
"Brother Zeng, you flatter me. But with your wife around, things are certainly much more convenient." The two discussed until curfew before stopping.
In the following days, many of the scholars who had taken the imperial examination with Fu Changfeng came to visit, and some show-offs invited people to poetry gatherings, hoping to gain fame.
However, Fu Changfeng kept in mind Old Master Hu's words and declined such gatherings whenever possible, spending all his time studying. Only if he actually made it onto the list could everything be discussed.
Fu Changjin finally arrived before the provincial examination, but he was only there to experience the atmosphere of the examination. He himself was not very confident that he could pass it.
"I'm just here to experience it, so I don't really want to rush into reading. There are quite a few literary gatherings in Yizhou Prefecture, so I'll go check them out. If anything interesting happens, I can come back and tell you about it."
After hearing about the literary gathering, Fu Changjin became very interested. In the following days, he would go out with his servant and a fan, and he would not see anyone all day long.
The surrounding houses were full of candidates and their families who had come to take the provincial examination. Xiaoyue became acquainted with the maid of the scholar next door and learned that the scholar had also brought his wife. He heard that Xichun had also come and said that he would come to visit tomorrow.
Xi Chun was naturally willing to have someone to talk to. Every day, she was surrounded by a tense atmosphere and a mixed bag of people. She didn't even feel like going out to investigate. She was worried that something might happen and she would regret it too late.
So she specifically instructed the kitchen to prepare some side dishes for the next day, so she could chat with the scholar's wife and perhaps even become acquainted with her in the future.
“Madam Wan, my husband’s surname is Fu. He is from Weinan County, Guangming Prefecture. He is twenty years old this year. I don’t know whether I should call you sister or younger sister?” Xichun went to the door to greet her. When she saw her appearance, she couldn’t tell the difference between them for a moment.
"Hehe, then I really have to presume. You can call me Sister Cao. I'm twenty-five years old this year. We're from Xuhai County in Danzhou Prefecture." Madam Wan was also an easy-going person. She looked kind, had a smile on her face, and spoke without any awkwardness.
"Sister Cao, come and sit down. I heard you were coming yesterday, so I had some snacks prepared. I don't know if they'll suit your taste. If they don't, please let me know. It's quite boring staying here without anyone you know to talk to."
"I love eating snacks. You really suit my taste, sister. These snacks are sweet but not greasy. I didn't expect you to have such a skilled cook. I really envy you. I can never get used to the food in Yizhou. But I love the chili peppers sold in Guangming Prefecture. It's a pity I didn't buy many. I ate them all on the way here."
"Oh, what kind of chili peppers are they? Let me see if they look similar to the ones I prepared. I can share some with you, sister." Xi Chun had heard that she liked chili peppers, so now she really had something in common to talk about.
"Let's call it Chen's Chili Oil. My sister brought some too. I don't know if it's the same, but as long as it's spicy, I like it. I sent a servant to check the streets before, but there were too many people. He didn't buy anything, and his money was stolen instead." Thinking of the servant running back, Cao Shi looked helpless.
"What a coincidence! I brought the same thing. Xiaoyue, go quickly and get two jars." Upon hearing this, Xichun immediately sent someone to fetch them. It turned out to be their family's chili peppers. She really didn't know that her family's business had expanded to Danzhou.
"Really? That's such a coincidence. But if you only have two jars, do you have enough? How about I take one jar? I'll have someone bring the money later."
"What's money to me? My sister and I are destined to be together, and money can't replace that. Take these two jars back and enjoy them. To be honest, this is actually my own business. I didn't expect that it even came from Danzhou. I'm even happier now. It's not worth much money, so please don't be so polite, sister."
"Oh dear, my apologies! I never imagined this was your business, sister. I've really made the right trip and gotten a great deal. To be honest, my family is also in business, but my mother-in-law says that people look down on merchants and tells me not to talk nonsense outside, lest it affect my husband's career. I'm so bored hiding at home every day."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com