The oxcart was traveling along the main road towards Hat Mountain when Meng Anzhi suddenly asked, "What were you laughing about just now?"
"I laugh at how my cousin from Shiyan Zhao Zhiyuan..." Meng Anci's lips curled up slightly. For some reason, he could always tell at a glance who was the most scheming in a crowd.
Jin Shanyao didn't want to get involved in the children's conversation, but how did Meng Anci determine that the two had similar personalities from just one sentence? Was there some secret to it?
She turned to look at him, puzzled, and asked, "Does she look like Zhao Zhiyuan?"
Meng Anci looked at her aunt's curious eyes and chuckled. "Hmm... the two of them speak like they're starving, they don't even dare to raise their voices."
Meng Anzhi recalled how Zhao Zhiyuan usually spoke to her; his voice was indeed soft. She suppressed a laugh and said, "He's just a gentleman, very polite."
Meng Anci softly... Women can never see through a man's true nature.
The three arrived at Hat Mountain, hung all their picnic supplies on the old ox, and drove it towards the crooked-necked tree. Surprisingly, Xie Chao wasn't on the crooked-necked tree.
The Jin Shanyao, its sound imbued with Spiritual Power, and called out towards the mountain, " Xie Chao... Monkey Treasure..."
After shouting, he started unloading things on his own. Meng Anci put the clay stove on the ground and began to put charcoal in. When the charcoal was halfway in, Monkey Treasure came running over from a distance with a small bamboo basket on his back.
It proudly presented the small bamboo basket to Jin Shanyao, Jin Shanyao glanced at it and laughed, "Wow... Monkey Treasure picked so many mushrooms! We'll have hot pot with them later."
Monkey Treasure's eyes lit up upon hearing this.
Xie Chao walked over and said with a smile, "Why did you come up the mountain today?"
"I missed you..." Jin Shanyao said, handing him a bag of glutinous rice and red date cakes. "Try it... Qing He made it herself; you can't buy it anywhere else."
Xie Chao took the mushrooms and hung them on the crooked tree. He then picked up a bamboo basket and started processing the mushrooms with Meng Anzhi. Turning to Meng Anci, he asked, "How did your provincial examination go?"
Meng Anci walked to the water to wash his hands and said, "I sent the exam paper to the teacher... The teacher replied that I did very well, and I should have no problem getting into the top fifty."
Xie Chao laughed after hearing this, "That's wonderful! Not only will passing the imperial examination exempt you from many taxes, but you'll also be qualified to become an official..."
Upon hearing this, Jin Shanyao immediately perked up, "What kind of official position can a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations) hold?"
"Either the county magistrate nor the registrar are acceptable."
Jin Shanyao up with a smile. Meng Anci could become an official, which meant that she had already completed more than half of her repayment of the debt of gratitude. Now that Meng Anzhi's medical skills and housekeeping abilities were sufficient, she no longer needed Meng Shanyao's assistance.
If Meng Anci doesn't take the exams again, he can still live a comfortable life as a county magistrate. The siblings should be considered quite capable.
Xie Chao waved his hand in front of her eyes. "What are you thinking about?"
"It's nothing... Don't you like eating mutton? I brought a lot today. If Anci passes the provincial examination, we'll have to go to the capital ahead of time."
I'm afraid I won't be able to spend the New Year with you.
Hearing her say that, Xie Chao's smile gradually faded. He lowered his head and dealt with the mushrooms in his hands, thinking to himself that all good things must come to an end.
Jin Shanyao has been with me all these years, I should be content... Just as I was thinking this, someone bumped my shoulder and a big, smiling face appeared right in front of me.
"I'm not happy... Didn't I say that even if I leave, I'll still come to see you regularly...?"
Xie Chao forced a smile, "Who's unhappy... I'm only at ease when you guys don't bother me."
"Mmm, you're at ease..." Jin Shanyao put the prepared mushrooms into a wooden basin and took them to the water to wash them. At this time, the clay stove had already been lit.
The copper pot sat on the clay stove, bubbling and steaming. Meng Anzhi put the seasonings she had brought into the pot, arranged the meat and vegetables, and called out towards the water.
"Auntie, Uncle Xie... dinner's ready."
"Hey... I'm coming," Jin Shanyao the washed mushrooms to dry them, then walked to the stove and plopped down next to Xie Chao.
Xie Chao's gaze fell on the bowl of shredded lamb tripe. He had only taken a couple more bites when they had hot pot last time, but Jin Shanyao remembered it.
Jin Shanyao nudged him, "Eat... what are you thinking about?"
Xie Chao picked up his chopsticks, first placing a piece of food on Monkey Treasure's plate before starting to put the shredded tripe into the pot himself. "Thank you..."
"What are you thanking me for??" Jin Shanyao was completely confused. Seeing that he didn't speak and just kept simmering the tripe, she laughed and said, "Last time we had hot pot, Qing He noticed that there was some left over from all the other dishes, but none of the tripe was left... This time she specially brought extra."
Xie Chao's chopsticks, which were slicing tripe, stopped in mid-air. He stiffly turned his head and asked, "Did Qing He prepare this?"
"Of course... not to mention the tripe, even the ingredients were brought by Qing He. We only need to heat them up..." Jin Shanyao said, not forgetting to put some mushrooms on Xie Chao's plate.
Xie Chao's gratitude shattered into pieces... His sincerity was ultimately misplaced.
"What's wrong with you today?" Jin Shanyao, puzzled by his dawdling over his meal. "Did someone go up the mountain without permission?"
She repeatedly warned the villagers not to come up, but could it be that some reckless person insisted on barging in?
"No..." Xie Chao ate the shredded tripe, his eyes brightening. Although there was no hint of gratitude, it was still delicious...
Seeing that he was finally eating, Jin Shanyao chuckled twice, then picked up another piece of mushroom for him with her chopsticks. She thought to herself, "Poor kid... when will this jail end?"
After the meal, Jin Shanyao took her siblings hunting. They were really just hunting pheasants and rabbits—animals that wouldn't move if they encountered danger.
Large prey like tigers and wild boars are so rare, let alone hunting them... you can't even see them.
On the thirteenth day of the ninth month, the results of the provincial examination were released.
The area outside the examination hall was packed with people. When Meng Anci arrived, he couldn't squeeze in at all, and he couldn't ride on his aunt's shoulders like he did when he was a child.
You can only stand on tiptoe and crane your neck to look inside, but you can't see anything except the pitch-black ceiling.
Suddenly, someone in front shouted, " Wu Zhiyu the top scholar in the provincial examination!"
Meng Anci's heart suddenly clenched. Which academy did Wu Zhiyu come from? Could he be another candidate whose household registration is there but whose person is not?
Then someone shouted, " Bao Qingshan is second... Tan Ping'an is third... Zhao Zhiyuan is fourth..."
Meng Anci only came to her senses when Zhao Zhiyuan appeared. The top three names on the list were the same as during the academy examination, still unfamiliar names, except that Zhao Zhiyuan had surpassed her.
He asked himself if he had held back anything, yet he had fallen behind. Had he failed the exam? Meng Anci's heart pounded in his chest. Suddenly, a voice boomed out like a thunderclap from a clear sky.
" Meng Anci fifth..."
Meng Anci thought he had misheard and was in a daze, until someone hugged him tightly and Meng Anzhi's ecstatic voice rang in his ears.
He turned his head blankly, "I passed the exam?"
Meng Anzhi exclaimed excitedly, "You passed! You passed! You ranked fifth... Anci, you've become a Juren!"
Meng Anci helped his sister up, his heart bursting with joy. "Sister, Aunt... I passed the imperial examination!"
Jin Shanyao smiled and looked at him, "Yes... Juren Meng."
"Ah... I've passed the imperial examination..." Meng Anci couldn't help but shout, overjoyed.
Jin Shanyao responded loudly to him, "Yes, you passed the imperial examination... fifth place."
It would have been better if she hadn't called out fifth place; the moment she did, all the excitement I'd felt vanished... He actually failed to beat Zhao Zhiyuan? Where did things go wrong???
He should take out Zhao Zhiyuan's test papers when he has time, and ask the teacher to analyze them for him. No... it would be best to get the papers from the top three.