Chapter 344: Yearly Test
Not long after I received the letter from Aunt Sun, I received a letter from Sun Boming.
The content of the letter was also about his eldest cousin passing the imperial examination. The whole family was very happy and he would also attend the wedding.
Then he warned Sun Shan to stay in the school and not go to the wedding of a successful candidate without permission. He said that he was still young and it was too dangerous for him to go alone, so he should never go out without permission.
When he wrote the last letter, he attached another 10 taels.
Sun Bomin, Su and Huang told Sun Shan to eat well, dress well and take care of himself, especially since winter was coming and Zhangzhou Prefecture was colder than Huangyang County, so he must keep warm.
Don't rely on your youth and pursue grace rather than warmth.
You have to take good care of your own body.
Sun Bomin also wrote a letter to Gui Ge'er, in which he asked Gui Ge'er to take good care of Sun Shan, record Sun Shan's every move, and tell them when he got home.
Finally, he reluctantly showed some concern for Gui Ge'er, making sure he had enough food and clothes, and asked Sun Shan for anything he needed to buy.
Don't be shy to speak up. We are all from the same village and the same clan. We all have the surname Sun. If you need something, just speak up. Don't be polite.
Sun Bomin considerately gave Gui Ge'er one tael of silver and told him to spend it well.
Gui Ge'er took the light silver and said solemnly, "Brother Shan, I don't want the money, you keep it."
Sun Shan shook his head and said, "It's given to you, so take it. Don't be polite. But you must use it well and don't spend it recklessly."
Gui Ge'er said anxiously, "Brother Shan, I'm in the school all day, so I don't need it. You should use it."
Gui Ge'er usually stays in the provincial school and never goes anywhere else.
Even if other servants asked him to go out and play, he would not go.
He goes wherever Sun Shan goes, and doesn't go wherever Sun Shan doesn't go. Wherever Sun Shan wants to go alone, Gui Ge'er will not let him go alone.
The village chief said that his job was to keep an eye on Sun Shan. Except when he was sleeping, he had to watch Sun Shan all the time and not let Sun Shan make any mistakes.
All of Gui'er's meals, residences and entertainments were in the prefectural school. He had no place to spend the money, and he felt that he did not need the one tael.
Since becoming Sun Shan's servant, Gui Ge'er discovered that studying is really expensive.
Pens, ink, paper and inkstone cost money, buying books costs money, giving gifts to teachers costs money, and entertaining classmates costs money.
Sun Shan wanted money everywhere. Gui Ge'er thought that it was useless to give him 1 tael, and there was no need to give it to Sun Shan to buy paper to practice calligraphy.
How could Sun Shan take Gui Ge'er's money?
He said in an imperative tone: "Gui'er, this tael is given to you by your uncle Min, so it is yours. You should keep it well and don't let Uncle Min down. If he sees that you don't want his money, he will be very embarrassed."
Gui Ge'er scratched his head. He didn't understand why not asking for the money would make Uncle Min lose face. However, whatever Sun Shan said was what he did, so Gui Ge'er reluctantly took the money.
He carefully put the money into the purse, and then carefully put the purse into the inner pocket of his pants, nodded and said, "Brother Shan, I'll keep it. If you need money, ask me. Hey, I have a lot of money."
When Sun Shan saw Gui Ge'er grinning foolishly, he also smiled.
October passed and it was November in a blink of an eye. The once-in-three-year annual examination was here.
Mr. Hong and Mr. Huang arrived in Zhangzhou Prefecture early to take part in the annual examination.
Huang Xiucai joked, "Hey, Brother Hong, your student Sun Shan is also taking the annual exam, and you are also taking the annual exam. I wonder who will be better when you take the exam together? If Sun Shan ranks higher than you, then can you still be a teacher?"
Huang Xiucai's school still hadn't produced a scholar, so he took the exam with peace of mind since he wasn't competing with his students.
Hong Xiucai looked at Huang Xiucai unhappily and said, "Brother Huang, haven't you heard the saying, 'The disciple surpasses the master'? My student is ranked higher than me, and I am so happy. Which teacher doesn't want his students to be better than him? Don't you think so, Brother Huang?"
The meaning is self-evident, it means that Huang Xiucai is narrow-minded and lacks vision.
This made Huang Xiucai so angry that he jumped up and down, and he was ready to roll up his sleeves and fight with Hong Xiucai.
Sun Shan helplessly looked at the two old men who were over a hundred years old in total and were still so lively and active, and said in a fake manner: "Two masters, let's go back first. There are too many people outside, and it's not good to be seen by others."
Huang Xiucai snorted coldly and took advantage of the situation to back off. Hong Xiucai did not bother with Huang Xiucai. Huang Xiucai would always lose whenever they quarreled anyway.
Ever since his student Sun Shan passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, Huang Xiucai was doomed to lose. He never won in an argument with him.
Hong Chengcai, who was standing aside, timidly whispered to Sun Shan: "Ashan, it's a good thing I pulled you here today. If I had to deal with this kind of situation, I would just be staring blankly."
After a pause, Hong Chengcai continued, "At first I didn't just stare blankly, I tried to persuade them, but the more I persuaded them, the more they quarreled. Later I simply stopped saying anything. Hehe, Ah Shan, am I really smart?"
Sun Shan said very politely: "Brother Chengcai, you are right. If they quarrel more and more, I will stare blankly like you and say nothing. Hehe, I will speak after they finish quarreling."
Hong Chengcai and Sun Shan looked at each other and laughed happily.
It was the first time that Gui Geer saw such a scene. He said excitedly, "Brother Shan, Brother Chengcai, this is the first time I see Master Hong and Master Huang quarreling. Oh, they are still quarreling at their old age. They are really like the women in our village..."
Before Gui Ge'er finished speaking, Hong Chengcai immediately covered Gui Ge'er's big mouth. He was really afraid that his words would be heard by Hong Xiucai and Huang Xiucai. If that happened, not only Gui Ge'er would suffer, but he and Sun Shan would also suffer.
Sun Shan smiled, then quickly ran to Mr. Hong and Mr. Huang and served them personally.
He understood the needs of the elderly best, so he got along very well with Mr. Hong and Mr. Huang.
When they returned to the Hong family, Hong Dalang and Hong Erlang, who were pregnant, came to greet them along with their sons and daughters-in-law.
When Huang Xiucai saw it, he quickly agreed, saying that one should be amiable and pleasant.
When Hong Xiucai saw Hong Dalang and Hong Erlang who were pregnant, he snorted coldly. But when he saw Hong Chengcai's wife who was also pregnant, he smiled and nodded with satisfaction.
Second brother Hong whispered in Sun Shan's ear: "Ashan, now only my eldest sister-in-law is the one that my grandfather likes the most, so my grandfather specially arranged for my eldest sister-in-law to come out to meet, and it must be that my grandfather will see her first. Hehe, my grandfather smiled, and our life will be better."
Hong Chengcai said quietly from behind: "My mother said that now the only people who can make my grandfather laugh, besides Ashan, is my wife."
Sun Shan couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Sun Shan can make Mr. Hong laugh because he was able to pass the examination and become a scholar, which is the result of Mr. Hong's hard work.
The reason why Hong Chengcai's wife made Hong Xiucai laugh was entirely because of her big belly.
It means that the Hong family will have many descendants and that the Hong family will have the next generation, which represents hope.
Of course Mr. Hong laughed.