Chapter 260 Hairpin Banquet
The next morning, Hong Xiucai's eldest daughter-in-law came over to dress Sun Shan up, trying to make him look the most handsome. Unfortunately, Sun Shan was born with limited talent, so he wore a student's uniform, which made him look like a little kid wearing adult clothes.
Even if Mr. Hong's eldest daughter-in-law tried her best, she still couldn't dress up like a flower.
But friends and relatives all admired her beauty. Even the eldest daughter-in-law of Hong Xiucai was blinded by love and shouted, "Oh, Shanzi is so handsome. He looks so good in the scholar's clothes."
I secretly felt sorry that I didn't have a little girl of the same age.
Then, thinking that Sun Shan had become a relative of the Hong family, his frown relaxed again. A father-in-law is a father-in-law, worthy of being a scholar. He is really good at judging people and can plan ahead and build relationships for his family.
Sun Shan didn't know what Hong Xiucai's eldest daughter-in-law was thinking. He was very grateful for her enthusiasm. He cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, auntie. Thank you for your trouble."
Due to the hot weather, the hairpin banquet was chosen to be held in the morning. After that, the academician left Zhangzhou Prefecture and went to other prefectures to continue presiding over the examinations.
Sun Shan was wearing scholar's clothes, followed by Uncle Hong.
This was an order from Mr. Hong. He felt that Sun Boming was useless if he just stayed honest, so it would be better for him to have the experienced Uncle Hong accompany him.
Sun Boming has a clear self-awareness and strongly agrees with this decision. After all, what Hong Xiucai said is right, and Hong Xiucai will not harm Shanzi.
He said to Sun Shan, "Shanzi, you are still young. Come back after dinner and don't drink."
Then he said to Uncle Hong: "Brother Hong, please keep an eye on him."
Uncle Hong patted his chest and said, "Brother Bomin, don't worry, I will take good care of Shanzi."
So the two of them went out, and chose to walk as their means of travel.
Fortunately, the teacher appreciation banquet was held in the morning. If it was held at noon, I would be sweating by the time I reached my destination.
When Sun Shan and Uncle Hong arrived at the banquet, many students had already gathered there, so they didn't come too early.
When everyone saw him, they bowed to him, and Sun Shan returned the greeting.
Afterwards, he walked into the banquet alone, lost in the crowd of scholars.
Sun Shan was walking around, trying to see what the banquet was like. Soon, he was spotted by his only friend from out of town, Li Xinjun. He asked, "Brother Sun, you're here?"
Seeing such a warm greeting, Sun Shan quickly walked over, bowed and said with a smile: "Brother Li, you are here too."
The two chatted for a while, and Sun Shan found that Li Xinjun was a lively, cheerful and sunny boy. He spoke with a cheerful aura and smiled very brightly: "Brother Sun, we are really destined to be together. I didn't expect that we both passed the imperial examination."
Sun Shan also felt the same way and responded, "Yeah, I never expected that, eh."
Li Xinjun asked, "Brother Sun, when will you return to Huangyang County?"
Sun Shan didn't know when he would return. Today, Sun Boming went to the escort agency to find out when there would be a car back to Huangyang County.
Sun Shan shook his head and said, "I don't know either. We followed the escort agency when we came out, and we will follow the escort agency when we return. It depends on the escort agency's schedule."
Li Xinjun nodded and said, "Yes, it is difficult for students from other places like you to come here. If you are not in a hurry to go back, I will take you to visit Zhangzhou Prefecture. Our Zhangzhou Prefecture has beautiful mountains, rivers, beautiful scenery, and of course beautiful people."
Before Sun Shan could laugh, Li Xinjun started laughing on his own.
Sun Shan cupped his hands and said, "Okay, thank you, Brother Li."
So the two exchanged addresses for easy communication.
Afterwards, Li Xinjun took Sun Shan to meet some of Li Xinjun's friends.
A friend of a friend is equal to a friend, and friendship is built up bit by bit.
Everyone knew it was Sun Shan when they saw him. He was the youngest in the class, had the lowest grades, and was a smart guy. He was not the legendary nerd at all. His classmates were sure to know it.
Even if they don't know, a few distinctive characters will always know.
Sun Shan greeted everyone one by one, and even walked up to Case Leader Lu and said hello: "Congratulations, Case Leader Lu."
Lu Yuming replied that he was happy.
The two chatted for a while and then dispersed.
After waiting for a while, there was a commotion outside and Sun Shan knew that their academician had arrived.
Everyone stood up quickly, and the academician Wei came in.
Sun Shan's students greeted him.
Lord Wei was a serious person. He looked the same whether he was smiling or not: "Dear students, congratulations on your success in making the list. You have gone through countless hardships to be able to stand here today. You know all the bitterness and sadness of ten years of hard study.
The eyes are filled with poetry and books, and the eyes are filled with dust. There is no one who picks stars in the world. The name of the King of Yue is on the tower, and the peach and plum blossoms are always in spring. I will not say much, but I wish you all a successful career in the future. "
Sun Shan and other students quickly responded: "Students will remember your teachings."
After finishing his words of instruction, the academician pinned flowers on the students' heads one by one. The flowers were large white chrysanthemums.
White chrysanthemums symbolize purity, whiteness, and nobility, and represent a quality that is not disturbed by the world.
The image of a gentleman who is strong, brave, pure and elegant.
Led by Case Leader Lu and ended with Sun Shan, Academician Wei personally pinned flowers on the students and said a few words of encouragement to each student.
Finally, it was Sun Shan's turn. He suddenly smiled and said, "Sun Shan, you have good knowledge, but you need to practice your calligraphy and exercise your body."
Jian Jian's words silenced all the scholars in the room.
Sun Shan was stunned for a second, and quickly responded: "I will follow your instructions, sir."
Lord Wei nodded and patted Sun Shan's little shoulder.
He was frightened thinking about the boy sitting next to the pillar with a look of a hanged ghost after the exam.
After numerous rounds of selection, thirty-five candidates were shortlisted, and one candidate was found to have answered all the questions correctly on pasting scriptures, ink interpretation, law, and mathematics, and had the correct answer to the poetry and prose questions, but his literary talent was average.
The meaning of the scripture in the first scene is well-written.
The second round of art questions were much worse, especially the last one. The introduction was correct, the topic was relevant, and the point of view was there, but the handwriting was crooked. For someone like him who demands perfection, it was quite unpleasant and he really wanted to kick him out.
But among so many students, he was the only one who answered all the questions correctly. Lord Wei suppressed his inner compulsion, recalled his ten years of hard study, and still put him in the circle and called the last one.
When I opened it, I found out that the boy was only thirteen years old, so I asked around.
Well, it turned out to be that scary kid. He was the one with the worst test scores. He handed in his paper just in time and looked like he was dying of illness. It was already very good that he answered all the questions correctly.
Lord Wei, with the "good intention" of cherishing talented people, encouraged Sun Shan.
It's purely encouragement and has no other meaning.
As for what other students think, Lord Wei has no idea.
Afterwards, everyone took their seats according to their ranking. Sun Shan was last on the list, so he naturally sat at the last table. Next to him were men number 40 and , both of whom were middle-aged men around years old.
No, it should be said that the people at his table are all middle-aged men in their thirties or forties like Master Xiao Hong.
He was like a little kid that his parents took to a party.
Everyone looked at Sun Shan, and some couldn't help but cover their mouths and laugh quietly.
Sun Shan didn't mind. He just laughed. He was definitely jealous of Sun Shan's success at a young age and the fact that he passed the imperial examination earlier than them.
Today's banquet is quite rich, with all the specialties of Zhangzhou Prefecture, including meat, vegetables, soup, and the boiled chicken that is not complete without chicken. Finally, there is a plate of pastries.
The academician picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks, and then everyone started to eat.
The thirty-fourth person sitting next to Sun Shan was a kind-hearted middle-aged man. He used a serving chopstick to pick up a few pieces of meat and vegetables for Sun Shan.
Sun Shan thanked him quietly, and neither spoke a word while eating nor sleeping.
The academician Mr. Wei looked very old-fashioned and self-disciplined. He didn't say a word, so the students naturally didn't dare to say a word.
Everyone picked up their food and ate in silence. The atmosphere was quite quiet.