Chapter 17: The Good News Arrives Before the Person
Li Xuedong was actually assigned to the Prefectural School, which no one expected.
Li Jinzhu had always thought that the County School and Prefectural School were assigned based on proximity to home. Li Xuedong and Li Xiaonan also didn’t know the difference between the County School and the Prefectural School; it wasn’t in books, nor had they heard anyone mention it.
Although Li Wenhua didn’t know the difference between the Prefectural School and the County School, he felt the Prefectural School was better because, after all, studying in Pingjiang City would surely be more glorious than in Kunshan County!
As for the matter of Pingjiang City’s high living expenses and costs that Li Jinzhu worried about, he didn’t care much. The expenses for their Xiucai Scholar would definitely be covered by the clan’s public funds in the future. Whether it was a little more or less of the public Copper Coins, he was indifferent. He even felt it was better if it were more, as he was quite close to the Xiucai Scholar, practically family.
Li Jinzhu sewed needlework the entire way, worrying the entire way.
Based on her intuition, she felt the classes at the Prefectural School would definitely be harder than at the County School. Let alone the Prefectural School, even within the County School, she didn’t know if Xuedong alone could handle the coursework, and Xuedong himself didn’t know either.
If he couldn’t keep up, and people became suspicious, and it led to A Nan taking the exam for him, that wouldn’t just be a grave crime for their family, but it would also implicate countless others!
Let A Nan go with him. These two children haven’t done any proper work since they were young. Even now, A Nan can’t even manage to light a fire properly; it’s always either too strong or too weak.
Besides, studying is mentally taxing. A Nan herself needs to study, and she also needs to teach Xuedong, and do household chores. She would definitely be exhausted.
Let Xuedong do the household chores. A Nan is using the excuse of taking care of her brother to be by his side. It would be unreasonable to have her brother do household chores and take care of her.
One of us, either me, the second brother, or the third brother, must go with them. The third brother is too rough and definitely won’t do. It has to be either the second brother or myself.
The second brother is quiet. Since childhood, he has always listened to me, his Eldest Sister, in everything. He’s used to it and has never made a decision on his own. Little A Nan is too bold and too ambitious; she dares to think of anything. The second brother dotes on her too much. If the second brother goes with them, I won’t be at ease.
If I go with them, let the second and third siblings stay at home. They definitely can’t contend with Third Uncle. Moreover, with only two people at home, they won’t be able to manage those thirty-odd mu of land. If five people are split into two groups, the expenses will definitely be more than if they were all together.
If we all go together, it might be manageable in the County Town, but in Pingjiang City, alas, things in Pingjiang City are too expensive; they definitely won’t be able to afford to live there.
Alas, let’s see when we get home. First, I’ll ask Mr. Gao if he can transfer Xuedong from the Prefectural School back to the County School. If not, then we’ll see what Old Master Kuan’s wishes are.
Alas, the difficulty of this matter lies in the fact that we cannot speak of Xuedong’s difficulties in studying!
Li Xiaonan sat next to her Eldest Sister, watching her sew needlework and her worry.
According to her original plan, they would first go to the County Town, assess the situation, establish a foothold, and then find a way to move to Pingjiang City.
But now, going directly to Pingjiang City in one step, her heart is also fluttering with uncertainty. She wouldn’t dare to speak carelessly about uncertain matters.
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After the Courtyard Examination, the list of newly qualified students, printed in bright red, was posted and then sent via urgent dispatch to various prefectures.
Pingjiang Prefecture is only about three hundred li from Hangcheng, so the urgent dispatch arrived by fast horse that very day.
From Pingjiang City to Kunshan County is only half a day.
County Magistrate Huang received the good news forwarded from Pingjiang Prefecture and immediately ordered people to beat gongs and drums to report the good news to the Li Family and the Li Clan.
When the good news reached Xiao Li Village, the entire village was bewildered.
Li Yin Zhu, who was working in the field, heard the shout of the messenger and, in her excitement, slipped and fell into the paddy field. Li Yu Zhu pulled her up. Li Yin Zhu, with her arms and hands covered in mud, jumped and danced excitedly, shouting and screaming.
Li Yu Zhu felt her legs go weak. She shuffled to the edge of the field, sat down with a plop, covered her face, and cried and laughed.
Seeing this scene, the messengers realized they wouldn’t get any congratulatory money here. They immediately turned around and headed straight for Li Family Market.
Third Uncle Li Wencai looked at the good news once and didn’t believe it at all. This was impossible!
When he wanted to look again, the messengers had already taken the good news and headed straight for Li Family Market.
Li Wencai followed the messengers and ran all the way to Li Family Market.
The entire Li Family Market was already in a state of uproar. Firecrackers at the Ancestral Hall were deafening, and the festive smell of gunpowder wafted from the entrance of the Ancestral Hall in all directions.
A group of young men were shouting and carrying logs to the entrance of the Ancestral Hall.
They should be able to erect a flagpole at the entrance of their Li Family Ancestral Hall; they must choose an excellent piece of wood.
Li Wencai stood stunned in the bustling crowd for a long time, then slowly turned around and walked back step by step.
Xuedong was someone he had watched grow up. When he first learned to read, he couldn’t remember a single character in three days. How could such a dullard pass the Xiucai examination?
This is impossible!
The more Li Wencai thought about it, the more impossible it seemed. The more he thought about it, the more indignant he became. How could such a dull, stupid, sickly child pass the Xiucai examination!
Impossible!
This is absolutely impossible!
The more Li Wencai thought about it, the angrier he became, and the faster he walked.
Such a stupid, sickly, dullard like Xuedong definitely couldn’t have passed! It definitely wasn’t him who passed! It must have been someone else who took the exam for him…
Right! It must be like this, someone took this Xiucai exam for him!
His sister!
Li Wencai stopped abruptly.
His lazy and gluttonous sister, that little girl, it must have been her!
That brat is very smart; she can recite something after hearing it once and remember it after seeing it once. It must have been her who took this Xiucai exam for Xuedong!
It must be like this!
Li Wencai held his head high and ran all the way home.
He was going to report it! He wanted that stupid, sickly child, and that whole brood of brats, to die in prison, die on the road of exile, to perish completely!
Li Wencai rushed straight home, shoved aside his wife who came to meet him, and stormed into the room. He took out his inkstone, ground a full inkstone of ink, found paper and a brush, and sat down to write an accusation letter.
The wives, holding needlework and babies, stood beside their Mother-in-law, craning their necks together to watch Li Wencai furiously writing in the Main Hall. Even the sons and grandsons, the entire family, didn’t dare to make a sound.
That sickly child became a Xiucai Scholar! Their hearts were in turmoil, and they were terribly afraid.
The eldest daughter-in-law occasionally glanced at her eldest son, who stood beside his fourth uncle Li Xuefu, and secretly calculated whether she should send her son to her maternal uncle’s place to take refuge now. Her eldest son had been fighting with his fourth and fifth uncles against that sickly child since he was young.
Now, the sickly child had become a Xiucai Scholar!
In the past twenty to thirty years, Li Wencai hadn’t written more than three lines of text. This accusation letter, he wrote one after another, until after the household had quieted down. He threw away two large baskets of written paper before finally finishing it.
Li Wencai breathed a sigh of relief and held it up to look. There were too many smudged ink blobs. He copied it again, carefully put it away, and then rested.
Before dawn the next day, Li Wencai ate a bowl of salted pork noodles, tucked the accusation letter into his pocket, and headed straight for the County Town.
