Zhang Yazi knocked on the door of the Lu family's backyard with a beaming smile. Qin Jinxiu hid behind the door warily, only peeking out with her head. "Who are you looking for?"
Autumn has quietly arrived, and the sun is shining brightly today. She is washing her younger sister's clothes in the yard. Qin Xiaozhou insisted on taking the sisters away from the Lu family in Wangjia Village, so taking care of the younger sister became the responsibility of everyone in the shop, while she was responsible for washing the clothes. Fortunately, the younger sister is very well-behaved, does not cry or fuss, and eats and sleeps, so she does not need to be taken care of too much.
Zhang Yazi wasn't in a hurry to enter. He noticed that although the girl in front of him was dressed in nice silk clothes, her eyes were timid, quite different from Lu Yan's cheerful personality. "Second Miss Qin? I'm Zhang Yazi from East Street. I have something to discuss with your elder sister."
Qin Jinxiu was taken aback; no one had ever called her Second Miss Qin before. "Wait a minute, my eldest sister isn't here..."
Lu Yunfeng came out of the house. "Who's here?"
Qin Jinxiu lowered her head and twisted her fingers. "He said it was Zhang Yazi."
After inviting the man in, Zhang Yazi said excitedly, "Oh dear, it's the same if we talk to Young Master Lu since Manager Qin isn't here. I've found two houses that perfectly match your requirements. Would you like to take a look?"
Lu Yunfeng frowned. "What house? A shop or a place for people to live in?"
Zhang Yazi paused, confused about the current situation. "The houses people live in are in two courtyards in the south of the city. The owner of that courtyard had his property confiscated five years ago, and it has fallen into disrepair in the last two years. It can be renovated and is now habitable. The other courtyard is smaller and was built last year. The owner got into gambling and mortgaged the house."
Lu Yunfeng thought that Qin Xiaozhou's words about wanting a divorce that day were just a slip of the tongue in anger, but he didn't expect that she would secretly look for a house. However, he didn't want to offend Qin Xiaozhou in front of outsiders, so he said, "I'll trouble you to make the trip. We'll go look at the house after we've discussed it."
Zhang Yazi didn't mind and was happy to build a good relationship with the Lu family. "Of course, of course, buying a house is a big deal and needs to be discussed properly."
After seeing Zhang Yazi off, Lu Yunfeng rubbed his temples and glanced at Qin Jinxiu, who had hidden in the kitchen. This child had been here for over two months and was still very afraid of him. He couldn't help but lower his voice and ask, "Did your older sister tell you that she was moving out?"
Qin Jinxiu shrank back into the doorway and nodded, then, remembering that her brother-in-law couldn't see her, she whispered, "I did."
What else did she say?
Qin Jinxiu thought for a moment and said slowly, "From now on, she will only have me and my sister as her family. Please take good care of my sister."
Only two relatives? Lu Yunfeng chuckled in exasperation, holding his breath until Qin Xiaozhou returned.
As Qin Xiaozhou entered the room in the afterglow of the sunset, she immediately sensed something was amiss. Lu Yunfeng was reviewing the barbecue stall's accounts under the pomegranate tree in the courtyard, Lu Yunxing and Lu Yan were reading inside, Zhao Fang was cleaning the shop with the staff, and Qin Jinxiu was hugging a stone, too afraid to look at her.
"What's wrong? The accounts don't match."
Lu Yunfeng lifted his eyelids. "No."
Since the accounts were in order, Qin Xiaozhou stopped asking questions. "It's so late, why isn't dinner served yet?"
"You want to buy a house?"
"Um."
"You really want a divorce?"
Qin Xiaozhou asked in surprise, "Then why don't you want to?"
“As a woman, the government will not allow you to establish your own household. You can only choose to return to the Qin family or be quickly married off. As long as we don’t divorce, you are my wife, and the government will not interfere with you. You can do whatever you want, which will save you a lot of trouble.”
Qin Xiaozhou looked back and saw that the pomegranate tree was laden with plump, beautiful fruits. Lu Yunfeng frowned slightly, his eyes burning with eagerness as he looked over.
She seemed to be burned by his gaze and hurriedly turned around, "Then let's not get a divorce. We still need to buy a house. We can't live here anymore. We need a proper residence eventually."
On the eighth day of the eighth lunar month, Lu Yunxing participated in the provincial examination. The examination was held at the Wenshu Academy, which was located north of the county town. The academy was originally a temple, which was used as a reading room for students who could not afford to study at the academy. The provincial examination was held there.
Early in the morning, the Lu family arrived at the academy. The academy was surrounded by guards who were on high alert. The examiners had arrived in the county town five days earlier and conducted a thorough inspection of the academy to prevent anyone from cheating.
The examination hall had not yet opened, and the entrance to the academy was crowded with people, some who had come to take the exam, and others who had come to see their relatives off. Lu Yunxing squeezed into the crowd to check the household registration and writing materials.
Zhao Fang checked the prepared water and steamed buns. She had kneaded the dough last night and steamed the buns two hours ago, so they were still warm. "This is hot water. Put it with the steamed buns so they won't be too cold when we eat them at noon. Remember to eat lunch and don't go hungry."
Today, Lu Yunxing is taking the preliminary examination for the imperial examination. He only needs to take the exam in the morning and afternoon, and he can leave at 5 PM. However, he still needs to have lunch at the examination hall. Once he enters the examination hall, the gate will be closed, and he cannot leave under any circumstances before the time is up, otherwise it will be considered as abandoning the exam.
Lu Yunxing was also cautious. "Okay, Mother, I know. You should go back. It's hot in autumn, don't wait outside."
Zhao Fang was both relieved and worried. She touched her second son's clothes, which she had specially made. They consisted of an inner garment, a middle garment, and an outer robe, all single-layered and pure gray, without any embroidery or lining. If the clothes had lining, the people checking at the gate would cut them open. Even the writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones had to be carefully inspected before they could be allowed inside. "Fortunately, the sun is shining today, otherwise he would probably be cold in just these clothes."
The Wenshu Academy was a place where students studied diligently for years. In order to discourage extravagance and debauchery, everything inside was made of cold stone, and the roof was thick, so it was not a hot place even in summer, and it was easy to catch a cold in the autumn when the weather was bad.
Qin Xiaozhou pulled Eryun to a less crowded area outside. "Once inside, don't contact anyone, don't eat or drink anything given to you by others, and especially don't take anything from others. Remember, put away your kindness and don't lose sight of the bigger picture."
Lu Yunxing nodded, "Don't worry, sister-in-law. I also participated in the provincial examination three years ago. My father and grandfather were still alive then, and my grandfather told me about these things."
The academy gates opened, and candidates lined up one after another to wait for inspection before entering. It was Qin Xiaozhou's first time experiencing an ancient examination. Standing at a distance, he didn't look. The first checkpoint only checked whether the household registration, name, gender, and age matched. There was nothing special about the rest. He just waited here. The family went back together.
On the way, Qin Xiaozhou had a sudden inspiration: "Could it be that some women would disguise themselves as men to take the exam?"
Lu Yunfeng shook his head helplessly: "The second checkpoint checks everything. Steamed buns will be broken open, and pens, ink, paper and inkstones will be checked. Clothes, hair bags, hair ties, mouths, noses and ears will all be checked. They will even take off their clothes to check for any marks on their bodies. Even if there is only a little bit of ink, they will be kicked out."
So strict? How did the woman who disguised herself as a man and became the top scholar manage to get away with it?
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