Chapter 174 Chapter 174
After the provincial examination and before the results are announced, the scholars can relax and have some fun.
Yu Li also asked Fu Wenxiao if he wanted to go out for fun.
During the nine days of the provincial examination, it is said that the scholars were very pent up, so after a good rest, they all planned to relax and invited each other to go out and play.
Some people also came to invite Fu Wenxiao, but he refused.
"Where do you want to go, Ali?" He turned to ask her, "Do you want to go boating on the lake? Or go hiking in the mountains?"
He actually had no interest in going out for fun, but if she wanted to go, he would naturally want to accompany her.
Yu Li said, "It's all right, but let's go to Jin Niang's shop first. When you took the provincial examination, Jin Niang was very worried about you."
Although Yu Jin was worried, she still regarded him as a sickly scholar, afraid that he would not survive the provincial examination and something unexpected would happen, and her sister would become a widow.
Fu Wenxiao agreed with a smile.
After breakfast, the two took a car to the south of the city and came to Yu’s Rouge Shop.
They arrived early and there were not many customers in the store, so there was no need to be cautious when the male guest Fu Wenxiao came in.
The girls in the store were busy arranging the merchandise on the counters. When they saw them coming, they went to the backyard to call Yu Jin.
They all knew that Manager Yu's brother-in-law was a scholar and a scholar who was taking part in the provincial examination this year. They were inevitably a little in awe of him, which was also a common attitude of the world towards scholars.
However, it is also because Yu Jin has such a brother-in-law who can read that the girls working in the shop can feel at ease. If Fu Wenxiao can pass the imperial examination this time, then Shopkeeper Yu has a brother-in-law who is a juren, so those who want to take over Yu's Rouge Shop will have to think twice.
Yu Li waved at them, "You guys continue with your work, we'll just go in and look for Jin Niang."
She pulled Fu Wenxiao to the backyard.
Yu Jin was moving goods in the warehouse and was very happy to see them.
She first asked, "Big sister, have you had breakfast?" After learning that they had already eaten, she turned to Fu Wenxiao and said, "Brother-in-law, are you feeling well? You must have worked hard in the provincial examination."
Fu Wenxiao smiled and said, "It's okay. Thank you for your concern, second sister."
Yu Jin looked at him carefully. Although her sister said that Fu Wenxiao was fully recovered and his face was not as pale and sick as when they first met, however...
Perhaps the impression of that sickly boy was too deep, and sometimes I always felt that he was still sick.
After confirming that there was nothing serious wrong with his body, Yu Jin finally felt relieved.
Seeing that Yu Jin was busy, Yu Li naturally would not sit idle. She rolled up her sleeves to help move the goods.
Fu Wenxiao also wanted to help, and Yu Jin was about to stop him when she saw her sister directly handing the things to him and asked him to move them to the shop in front.
Yu Jin: “…”
Seeing Fu Wenxiao actually helping to move things, the girls in the store were shocked and at a loss.
In their minds, how could they let the scholar do such a thing? Would it humiliate the scholar?
However, he was fine and looked natural, not noticing anything, and even asked them where they wanted to put the things.
When Yu Jin heard the noise coming from the front, he turned to look at Yu Li and suddenly said, "Sister, if my brother-in-law can pass the provincial examination this time, he will be a juren..."
Yu Li nodded, "Yes."
"Are you okay like this?" she asked in a low voice.
Scholars are indeed noble, not to mention a juren scholar, but her sister didn't seem to care much. She gave orders when necessary and even let him do this kind of work.
Yu Jin couldn't help but feel a little worried.
As Fu Wenxiao's identity changed again and again, from a student to a scholar, and maybe even a juren... her sister was just a peasant girl, and it was unknown whether there would be any problems with the change in their identities.
Of course, she felt that her eldest sister was a perfect person, but in the eyes of the world, her sister was indeed of low status, and even used to be a pig butcher, so she would definitely be looked down upon by the world.
What if one day, a powerful person comes out to capture the son-in-law and asks my brother-in-law to divorce his wife and marry someone else?
For a moment, Yu Jin thought of many things that might happen and worried about her sister.
"What's the matter?" Yu Li turned to look at his worried sister and smiled, "No matter who he is, he is Fu Wenxiao."
Fu Wenxiao walked over and heard these words, so he stood in the corridor and listened.
Yu Jin glanced at her sister's calm expression, then smiled too.
"Big sister, you are right." She took something off the shelf and said with a smile, "It's rare that my brother-in-law has finished the provincial examination. He should relax. I heard that many scholars have recently gone out together to travel on painted boats."
Yu Li said, "We have toured the painted boat before, and we plan to tour the mountains tomorrow."
After a long while, Fu Wenxiao walked over and Yu Li gave him some more goods to move out.
After several trips, I finally moved all the things.
Yu Jin went to bring some tea and snacks with a smile on her face, and invited them to come over and have a rest.
Fu Wenxiao lifted up his robe and sat down. He picked up the teapot, poured a cup of tea for Yu Li, and sat there quietly, listening to the two sisters talk about the business in the shop.
It was almost noon when they got up and left, preparing to go for a walk nearby.
As soon as I went out, I met a young man in brocade clothes.
When the young man in brocade clothes saw Yu Li, his eyes lit up and he ran over and said, "Miss, do you still remember me? On the Mid-Autumn Festival, I almost bumped into you..."
Fu Wenxiao looked at the young man in brocade clothes, his eyes slightly narrowed, and examined him calmly.
This young man looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old. He had a good-looking appearance, red lips and white teeth. It was obvious that he was spoiled by his family.
Yu Li had a good memory. She could remember even if they only met once. She nodded and said, "I remember."
The young man in brocade clothes was very happy, and his tone was much lighter: "Miss, my surname is Chu, and my given name is Shao Yu. May I know your name?" Then he added, "I didn't mean it at the time. I want to thank you... uh, and apologize to you specially."
When the other party gave his surname, Yu Li would naturally politely reply, "Yu Li."
She had no idea that she couldn't tell a man her maiden name, so after reporting her name, she said it was nothing and pulled Fu Wenxiao away.
Chu Shaoyu also noticed Fu Wenxiao next to him. Seeing them holding hands, he was stunned and asked hesitantly, "Miss Yu, who is this gentleman..."
Yu Li said: "My husband."
"Mr. Chu." Fu Wenxiao greeted the other party in a friendly manner, with a hint of joy in his eyes.
Chu Shaoyu looked back and forth at them, and said somewhat dejectedly: "It turns out that the girl is already married..."
Yu Li looked at him in confusion. Wasn't her hair styled like a woman's?
After they walked away, she and Fu Wenxiao whispered, "Is he blind? I'm clearly not dressed like an unmarried girl."
"Maybe." Fu Wenxiao agreed, sneering in his heart.
Either he ignored it on purpose, or he was so surprised to see you that he didn't notice it.
Judging from Chu Shaoyu's reaction, he was obviously too surprised and probably didn't pay attention.
Fu Wenxiao tilted his head to look at her. He knew that she was very beautiful and had a unique temperament. It was normal for men to admire her.
Although I felt a little unhappy, I was mostly happy.
No matter how those men were attracted to her, she was already his wife and they loved each other, and that was what made him happy.
Chu Shaoyu was just an episode and neither of them took it seriously.
When they went out today, Fu Wenxiao was simply accompanying her shopping. They had no particular purpose and just went wherever they wanted. If Yu Li saw anything delicious on the way, she would run over to buy it to try, and Fu Wenxiao would be responsible for helping her carry things.
In the following days, the two traveled around the provincial capital, mainly eating, drinking and having fun.
Many people sent invitations to Fu Wenxiao, but he refused to accept them all and asked the Wang family to help deal with them.
Song Xiucai and other fellow villagers also sent him letters, asking him if he wanted to go to the temple to pray.
It is said that there is an old osmanthus tree in the temple. Every time the tree comes, many scholars will go there to hang bamboo plaques tied with red ropes, implying that they will get their names on the list of successful candidates.
When Yu Li heard about this, he asked Fu Wenxiao if he wanted to go and pray.
"No need." He said with a smile, "I don't need to do this."
Although he didn't say it explicitly, his implication was obvious: he didn't believe it.
In fact, Yu Li didn't believe it either, but she thought there was nothing wrong with burning incense and worshiping Buddha. She could just treat it as a custom, and it was quite interesting to participate in it occasionally.
In a blink of an eye, it was the day before the announcement of the results.
Usually at this time, the Imperial Examination Hall would issue a notice announcing what time the list would be announced the next day.
When Yu Li heard the news, he was unusually nervous.
Fu Wenxiao said: "A-Li, don't worry. I should be on the list. As for my ranking this time, it's hard to say."
Yu Li sat there with his chin propped up, "Do they dare to lower your ranking?"
He shook his head slightly and said the same thing: "It's hard to say."
Seeing her frowning, not knowing what she was thinking, Fu Wenxiao smiled and said, "A-Li, don't worry too much. Of course, they are not easy to suppress. I still have confidence in this."
Yu Li relaxed his brows and decided to go and see the list in person tomorrow.
The next day, Yu Li didn't have the chance to look at the list in person.
Because they had a fight last night, both of them got up late today. They were still eating breakfast leisurely, and the person sent by the Wang family to check the list had already returned.
As soon as he entered the room, he said, "Congratulations, Mr. Fu, you are the top scorer!"
The first place in the provincial examination is the winner.
Mr. Wang laughed heartily, "I knew that the champion must be my brother!"
He was not surprised by the result. Although he was worried that the examiners might have some preferences, he thought of Fu Wenxiao's brilliant writing skills. The article he wrote was not a fancy but empty piece of writing. As long as the examiners were not blind, they would not deliberately lower his ranking.
When the messenger came to the Wang family to announce the good news, neighbors came to congratulate them one after another.
Mr. Wang was so happy that he seemed to have passed the imperial examination himself. He ordered his servants to prepare the reward silver early. After rewarding the official who announced the good news, he scattered copper coins outside so that everyone could share in his joy.
For a moment, Huyun Lane, where the Wang family lived, was filled with joy.
The Mo family also received the news.
In fact, Mo Xue Zheng got the news earlier. When he heard that Fu Wenxiao was the top scorer in the provincial exam, he was not surprised at all.
Madam Mo was surprised and said, "They actually picked Prince Fu as the top scholar? I thought they would lower his rank."
It was not surprising that Fu Wenxiao was on the list, but I didn’t expect that he would become the top scorer.
Mrs. Mo was a little suspicious. Could it be that the chief examiner this time had some kind of relationship with the Fu family?
Mo Xuezheng said: "This is not surprising. There is no need for them to suppress his ranking here. After all, Master Fu will return to the capital sooner or later. If the saint asks about it in the future..."
Those people still have to take this into consideration.
The emperor's mind is unpredictable, and few people can tell what the old emperor is thinking.
Back then, the saint always kept his nephew Fu Xiao by his side and treated him as his own son.
If it was not certain that Fu Wenxiao was the son of Duke Fu, some people would probably suspect that he was actually the son of a saint, but was just raised in the Fu family.
Even though they are not biological son, everyone can see how much the saint has loved Fu Xiao over the years.
It would have been fine if Fu Wenxiao didn't return to the capital. But when he did, if the emperor remembered how much he loved his nephew in the past, and if he investigated the matter and thought that the examiners had deliberately lowered his ranking, I'm afraid the chief examiner would be in trouble.
This world is so unfair.
After hearing this, Mrs. Mo sighed slightly in her heart and said nothing more.
When the news of the death of the Prince of Zhenguo came, everyone found it unbelievable. How could the Prince of Zhenguo die suddenly?
However, due to the silence of the saint in the palace, no one dared to explore anything and accepted this matter silently. Only they themselves knew what they were thinking.
**
It was not until the evening that all the people who came to congratulate were finally sent away.
The Wang family specially prepared a banquet to celebrate Fu Wenxiao's success in becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination, and also called Yu Jin from the south of the city to come and celebrate together.
When Yu Jin heard the news, his face turned red with excitement.
The girls in the shop are all the same, cheerful and with their backs straight.
Mr. Wang even specially prepared some wine, intending to drink with everyone until they were drunk. However, as Fu Wenxiao had to attend the Lu Ming Banquet the next day, he was the only one drinking in the end.
Yu Jin used tea instead of wine to congratulate Fu Wenxiao on becoming the top scorer.
The same goes for Yu Li. Although she wanted to drink, she was afraid of running around in the provincial capital and not knowing what might happen.
After the banquet, Fu Wenxiao had the drunk Mr. Wang sent back to his room, and he and Yu Li sent Yu Jin back together.
Then the two went back to their room to wash up and prepare to rest.
Before going to bed, Yu Li lay there and said happily: "Xiao brother, after the Luming Feast, are we going back to the county town?"
He hummed.
After hearing this, she couldn't sleep anymore, so she got up quickly to pack her luggage, and couldn't wait to go back.
Fu Wenxiao pulled her back helplessly and said, "Don't worry, Ah Li. We can clean it up tomorrow."
She groaned and lay back on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. "I haven't seen mom for a long time. I miss you a lot." Then she asked him, "Xiao brother, when you go to Beijing to take the exam, will mom go with us?"
From her voice, you could tell she was very worried.
Fu Wenxiao said: "Yes, mother said she wants to go to the capital with us."
Yu Li was pleasantly surprised, "Really? I don't have to be separated from my mother?"
"Well, we won't separate!" Having said that, he pressed her in his arms. Although he knew that she loved her mother the most, he still felt jealous.
-
Yu Li was too excited last night, and when he woke up in the morning, he didn't feel very energetic. After his supernatural power circulated in his body, he finally felt energetic.
While eating breakfast, she looked at Fu Wenxiao opposite her.
Fu Wenxiao is going to attend the Lu Ming Banquet today. He is wearing new clothes that the Wang family specially asked the embroiderer to make for him. It makes his figure look like pine and bamboo, or majestic and towering.
He was originally very handsome, with fair skin, deep and beautiful facial features, and a natural noble air.
Anyone who sees him will sincerely feel that this is the best son of a noble family.
After finishing his breakfast leisurely, Fu Wenxiao finally set out for the government office and said to Yu Li, "Ali, I'm leaving first."
Yu Li nodded and watched him get on the carriage and leave.
As soon as Fu Wenxiao left, she jumped up and said to the servants of the Wang family, "Hurry, hurry, let's go pack our luggage."
She couldn't wait to go back to the county town.
**
The Lu Ming Banquet was held in the government office, hosted by local officials, and the newly-appointed scholars and examiners of the provincial examination were invited to attend.
"Brother Fu!"
As soon as Fu Wenxiao got off the car, he heard someone calling him. He turned around and saw Song Xiucai wearing brand new clothes.
Song Xiucai was also on the list of candidates for the provincial examination. Although he ranked relatively low, he finally became a juren. At his age, he was considered promising for being able to pass the examination.
Song Xiucai was in high spirits. He came over to greet Fu Wenxiao and congratulated him.
"Congratulations to Brother Song as well." Fu Wenxiao said.
Song Xiucai was a little embarrassed, "If it weren't for Brother Fu's guidance, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to..."
He knew that his knowledge was still lacking, and fortunately, over the past year or so, he often went to Fu Wenxiao for advice on articles, and he always gained a lot.
After more than a year of diligent study, he decided to take part in the provincial examination.
At first, some people ridiculed him for being too flattering, but later, seeing that Fu Wenxiao was willing to give advice, they finally swallowed their pride and went to ask for advice. Everyone who asked for advice benefited a lot, and in the end they were convinced by him.
After Mr. Song came over, the scholars around him also came over to congratulate Fu Wenxiao.
Unconsciously, everyone present was thinking that Fu Wenxiao was the leader.
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