Chapter 75 Buying a Carriage
Ning Xiuwen walked out of the money exchange in a daze.
It's gone.
All the silver was exchanged for stones.
Eighty taels, a full eighty taels!
It must have been switched when someone bumped into it.
He covered his head.
I don't understand why I said I needed eighty taels in the first place.
This is really not a lucky number.
I clash with him.
They didn't understand why they had deposited the money in the bank.
If it's hidden in some corner of the house, no one will find it.
That's right, he never intended to use the money to bribe or influence officials.
The reason he planned to tell Dingxiang was that the silver had been stolen.
But how could it really be stolen?
"Hey? Brother Ning, what are you still doing here? Hurry up and go to the Qu residence, the selection has already started!" someone shouted beside him and ran forward.
A thunderclap resounded.
Ning Xiuwen was jolted awake.
Yes, it's not important.
Nothing matters.
If he becomes a disciple of Mr. Qushan, he will pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, and eventually the top scholar.
What's a mere eighty taels of silver!
It's just money; if it's gone, you can get more.
But the future is different.
Missing a good opportunity could mean missing out for a lifetime.
When Ning Xiuwen ran to the Qu residence, the test was almost over.
There were a total of twenty people, and five of them were called out by name.
Upon seeing him arrive, the remaining people looked at him with envy and jealousy.
"Brother Ning, please go in quickly, they just called your name."
"really?"
"Of course, would I lie to you about something like this?"
Ning Xiuwen was overjoyed and it took him a long time to suppress his emotions before thanking the person who reminded him.
Then, with a smile and invitation from the gatekeeper of the Qu family mansion, they entered the gate that symbolized their future.
Mr. Qu Shan's study.
An elderly man with a gray beard was engrossed in reading a book, nodding occasionally.
Ning Xiuwen, with his keen eye, recognized it as the very book he had sent: "100 Strange Tales from Around the World (Part 1)".
Suppressing his excitement, he stepped forward.
"Student Ning Xiuwen has met Mr. Qu."
"Ning Xiuwen, ranked eighteenth in the provincial examination."
"yes."
"Where did you find this book? The author is truly a genius."
If this person were a candidate in this year's exams, regardless of their ranking, I would like to make an exception and take them as my disciple.
Mr. Qu Shan seems particularly fond of this person, wanting to take him on as a disciple after only reading one book. That's just too much...
If he remembers correctly, Master Qushan only accepted five disciples!
In the blink of an eye, Ning Xiuwen had an idea...
“Sir, this is a manuscript that my father once kept. I have just sorted it out recently.”
During the exam, the candidate's family information is recorded.
Since Qu Shan knew that he ranked eighteenth in the exam, he must have seen his records and knew that his father was a student who had passed the preliminary exam.
When he received the book, he glanced through it briefly and found that the author's name was not on it.
As long as the young master of the Tong family doesn't know that the book is in Qu Shan's hands, then no one else will know.
He could also compile those folk tales in his own style.
"Oh? You organized this? This handwriting..."
"The students wrote the characters using burnt wooden sticks. In the past, their families were poor and couldn't afford to buy pens, ink, and paper, so they could only practice writing this way. However, the characters were small and difficult to control, so they didn't write well."
Mr. Qushan had no expression, and his voice turned cold.
"It's not just bad, it's downright ugly. Some of them are even missing limbs, they have no backbone at all!"
Ning Xiuwen had not yet grasped the meaning behind those words and did not know how to respond.
Then Mr. Qu Shan tore off a few pages from the book and threw them in his face.
"I initially thought you were a person who knew shame and integrity because you studied the classics, but now I know that you are of low character and are someone who takes credit for others' work!"
"Going down a crooked and evil path is a downhill road; you'd better watch yourself!"
Ning Xiuwen was stunned and dumbfounded.
When he saw what was on the papers on the ground, his eyes were blank and his mind was empty.
Where did this come from?
One corner of the paper was marked with the words: Top Secret Sexual Techniques, Your Great-Auntie.
Mr. Qu Shan's words echoed in my ears again and again:
Those who claim credit for others' work.
Unorthodox and crooked paths lead downhill.
Ning Xiuwen knew he was finished.
Although Mr. Qushan did not publicize it.
But when Ning Xiuwen came out, he felt that everyone was looking at him with strange eyes.
When Master Qushan accepted disciples, other teachers naturally came to select the remaining scholars.
All fifteen scholars found teachers, but Ning Xiuwen remained unaccepted.
Even if he asked, they would just politely shake their heads and say that they were full.
What a joke! If someone was called in by Mr. Qushan but his money was confiscated, there must be something wrong with that. They've been doing academic work together for years; how could they not have this much understanding?
Ning Xiuwen felt as if he had been stripped naked, with nowhere to hide, making him want nothing more than to flee.
"Ning Xiuwen—" A mournful cry rang out.
On the street, Dingxiang appeared.
She struggled to support a bloodied and battered man, her eyes glaring fiercely at Ning Xiuwen, who had finally appeared.
Ning Xiuwen instinctively tried to escape, but Dingxiang had already abandoned her father and rushed over.
"Ning Xiuwen! Where have you been? Where have you been? Didn't you promise me you'd go to the yamen to get my father out?"
Dingxiang's voice was sharp and shrill, attracting the attention of many people.
Ning Xiuwen, his face flushed with embarrassment, snapped as usual, "Shut up! We'll talk about it when we get home!"
"I'm going to say it right here!" Dingxiang's eyes were bloodshot, and she was on the verge of madness.
"Even at a time like this, you still care about your pride! What does your pride matter? My father got beaten up!"
Dingxiang burst into tears.
"My father was banned from practicing medicine, had to pay 30 taels in compensation, and was also fined 50 taels. If you had pleaded for him, my father wouldn't have been beaten!"
Ding Hongshi could have avoided physical punishment by paying the fine.
However, he was no longer able to practice medicine, so he lost his source of income and had to save the money he had earned to make a living.
Therefore, he gritted his teeth and said that he did not have that much money. Apart from compensating the victim with thirty taels, he could only come up with twenty taels for the fine.
So the thirty taels that couldn't be paid turned into sixty strokes of the cane.
"Xiang'er, stop talking, stop talking, hurry up and take out fifty taels to the yamen..." Ding Hongshi collapsed by the roadside, calling out weakly.
Dingxiang wiped away her tears fiercely with her sleeve.
"Did you hear me? Go to the yamen and hand over the silver right now! Otherwise, the officials will have to come to your house to collect it, which will only make you more embarrassed!"
Ning Xiuwen: "..."
"What are you still doing? Go now!"
"The silver... has been stolen!"
"What did you say?"
Dingxiang turned her head and looked at Ding Hongshi by the roadside.
Her eyes were wide open, and her expression conveyed an indescribable emotion.
It seemed to be fear and bewilderment.
Ding Hongshi then realized that the light in his daughter's eyes seemed to have disappeared.
She had only been married for three months, but she already looked no different from the other weathered women in the village.
"fragrant……"
A burst of clear, cheerful laughter rang out.
He looked in the direction of the sound.
Under the intense sunlight, some people were shrouded in gloom, while others smiled brightly and radiantly.
"This carriage is indeed very comfortable; the money spent was definitely worth it."
"Of course, it's our own home, we can lie down if we get tired of sitting."
Lu Qingqing, Lu Yun!
They actually bought a horse-drawn carriage?
“Lu Qingqing stole my money,” Ning Xiuwen murmured.
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