Chapter 871: Friends of the Academy
Sun Shan said goodbye to the professor and decided to take a walk around the provincial school to reminisce about the past.
Gui Ge'er looked at the flowers and plants in the government school and said happily, "Brother Shan, the government school has not changed at all. It is the same as before."
Seeing the direction of the food, he said with a smile: "Brother Shan, I have walked this road many times."
Then he said cheerfully: "Brother Shan, I spent more than you on the food money Uncle Min gave me."
After hearing this, Sun Shan smiled but said nothing.
Gui Ge'er was famous for his big eater. Sun Shan would feel full after one bowl of rice, but he would have to eat three bowls to feel full. If he was allowed to eat continuously, he could eat four or five bowls.
Of course, Gui Ge'er is still as big a eater as ever, and Sun Shan has worked very hard to raise him.
Sun Shan suspected that Gui Ge'er couldn't leave him because he had enough to eat. If he left him, he might be starving.
Sun Shan slowly walked towards the dormitory and saw that the courtyard where he used to live was now occupied by new residents.
It is true that students come and go, but the provincial school remains forever.
Gui Ge'er looked over and pointed at the former dormitory and said, "Brother Shan, the dormitory of the prefectural school is better than that of Yuelu Academy, and the place is big enough.
"It can be said that the prefectural school is inferior to Yuelu Academy in every aspect, but the dormitories are quite good.
The land was not valuable, so the school was built very wide and large, and the same went for the dormitories.
Sun Shan smiled and said, "Gui Ge'er is right. Living in the prefectural school is very comfortable and spacious."
Sun Shan found a pavilion to sit down and asked Gui Ge'er to look for Hong Jian, Aunt Lu's son.
Now that I'm here at the provincial school, I might as well meet up with my old friends.
Gui Ge'er from the prefectural school was familiar with the place and hurried to find the dormitory manager.
Soon Sun Shan saw Hong Jian, Zhang Yue, and Aunt Lu's son Lu Xiaofu.
Hong Jian and Zhang Yue took the provincial examination together with Sun Shan four years ago, but both failed, and they failed again last year.
Lu Xiaofu is a student who has been struggling on the road to becoming a scholar, and he doesn't know when he will be able to succeed.
Sun Shan had made an exchange with Aunt Lu to get Lu Juanfu to study at the provincial school. He paid five years of tuition for him at once, but he didn't know how his grades were at the school.
Hong Jian said happily: "Ashan..."
After a pause, he immediately changed his words and bowed: "Mr. Sun."
Zhang Yue and Lu Juanfu followed with their luggage: "Juniors pay their respects to Mr. Sun."
Sun Shan was amused and quickly waved his hands and said, "Brother Jian, Brother Zhang, don't be like this."
He said to Lu Juanfu: "Xiaofu has to call me senior brother."
Sun Shan and Lu Xiaofu studied at the same Hong's School. Lu Xiaofu has the youngest seniority, so it is acceptable for him to address him as the younger generation when making a greeting.
Zhang Yue and Hong Jian, Sun Shan can't let them call them like that.
Hong Jian hesitated for a while, but finally couldn't persuade Sun Shan. He said happily: "Ashan, when did you come back? Everyone is very happy to hear that you passed the high school entrance examination."
Zhang Yue echoed, "Congratulations, Brother Sun, you have made it to the top of the list."
Lu Xiaofu was very excited and congratulated him tremblingly: "Brother, congratulations."
I couldn't help sweating on my back when I said this.
Lu Xiaofu didn't know about the deal between Sun Shan and Aunt Lu. He only knew that after Sun Shan arrived at Hong's School, he said that he took a liking to him and thought he had potential, so he recommended him to the provincial school.
Lu Xiaofu was extremely surprised, so he went to the provincial school to study.
A year later, he passed the provincial examination and became a student.
Later, he took the examination for the scholar, but failed, and now continues to study in the provincial school.
Sun Shan handed each person a purse and said gently, "Take some of the good luck."
The three of them did not refuse and accepted the purse and expressed their gratitude. Everyone would like to take part in such a happy occasion.
Scholars in particular would be overjoyed to receive red envelopes from the Jinshi masters.
Sun Shan, Xiang Hongjian and Zhang Yue chatted for a while, and then Sun Shan started talking about going to Beijing to take the imperial examination, which made the two of them stunned. Lu Xiaofu was like a passerby, listening to his brothers' talk silently, not daring to interrupt.
Hong Jian and Zhang Yue told Sun Shan about their studies.
Hong Jian could not help but feel distressed: "Ashan, the provincial examination is really difficult. I have taken it twice."
Zhang Yue sighed and said, "Yes, the provincial examination is too difficult. It feels like I will never pass it even if I keep studying."
Lu Xiaofu looked at Hong Jian and Zhang Yue with envy, then looked at Sun Shan with even more envy.
Sun Shan comforted him by saying, "The path to the mountain of books is made through diligence, and the boat to the boundless sea of learning is made through hard work. The provincial examination is not just a little more difficult than the imperial examination, but much more difficult. There is no other way except to study hard."
In fact, if you stay in the provincial school and study hard, you will have a high chance of failing the exam. The conditions in the provincial school are too poor, and it is extremely difficult to pass the exam.
As far as I can remember, only two or three students who were studying at the provincial school passed the imperial examination. The rest either studied in Guangzhou or went to study in other places.
Lu Yuming, who was enrolled in the provincial school, studied in Guangzhou, while Sun Shan went to Yuelu Academy.
In fact, they cannot be considered as natives of the provincial school.
Hong Jian's family conditions are worse than Sun Shan's.
Before becoming a scholar, he relied on Hong Xiucai for financial support. After becoming a scholar, his family's financial situation was a little better, but there was definitely no way they could support his studies abroad.
Zhang Yue's family conditions were relatively good, but they were only in Huangyang County, and it was actually very difficult for him to go out and study. He had no money and no connections to support him to go out and study.
Lu Xiaofu will wait until he passes the examination to become a scholar.
Sun Shan continued, "I brought back some papers from the provincial and imperial examinations from the capital this time when I returned to the prefectural academy. I have already given them to the professor. You can go to the library and take a look when you have time."
Hong Jian and Zhang Yue's eyes lit up and they said happily, "Thank you."
Hong Jian and Zhang Yue took the articles they had written and asked Sun Shan for advice.
Lu Xiaofu blushed and said, "Brother, I, I'm going back to get the article now."
Oops, I was so surprised when I came out that I forgot to take the article to ask my senior brother who is a Jinshi for advice.
It turns out that you are still too naive and didn’t seize such a good opportunity.
Sun Shan still said gently: "Okay, go get it, I'll wait for you here."
This sentence made Lu Xiaofu so excited that he ran away with his hands and feet trembling. He was flattered that his senior brother, a Jinshi, actually said he would wait for him.
Sun Shan first read the articles of Hong Jian and Zhang Yue, and after a quick glance he knew the pros and cons.
In fact, if you read more books, do more papers, and take more exams, you will naturally be able to see how other people's articles are.
What's more, when Sun Shan was a juren, he graded Wan Songjin's homework, so he already had the ability to be a teacher.
Sun Shan did not resort to perfunctory tactics. He directly pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of Hong Jian and Zhang Yue's articles, and also gave suggestions.
But I secretly sighed in my heart: I haven’t read enough and my writing is not good, so my chances of passing the imperial examination are slim.
After listening to Sun Shan's instructions, Hong Jian and Zhang Yue were deeply desperate.
This is their masterpiece, but it has been criticized as worthless. How can they continue to work hard?
Just pack up and go home.
Seeing their pale faces, Sun Shan said to them in comfort, "Don't be afraid. Many scholars have criticized my essays, but in the end, I still passed the exam. Read more, do more exercises, and maybe you will be on the list. Don't be discouraged."
Hong Jian and Zhang Yue were not comforted at all.
They are different from Sun Shan. In addition to studying in a prestigious university, Sun Shan was also extremely lucky.
As long as you take the exam, you are guaranteed to pass.
Such weird luck is rare in the world and cannot be compared with anything else.