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Xie Ning's heart was sweet as honey too. He wrapped his arms around Zhou Jinian's neck and gazed at him.

"Were you cold at night without your husband to warm your bed?"

Xie Ning drew his hands back against his chest and buried his face in Zhou Jinian's chest. Jinian was wonderful in every way, except that whenever they were alone in the room, he always said such naughty things to embarrass him.

Zhou Jinian buried his face in Ninglang's neck and sniffed gently. "Your husband is tired. Will you help your husband undress, Ninglang?"

Xie Ning had fallen asleep sprawled on Zhou Jinian, clearly exhausted. Even as Zhou Jinian held his arm and turned it this way and that to examine it, he did not open his eyes.

Zhou Jinian studied the skin of the man in his arms. It was smooth and delicate, with red threads still lying beneath its surface. Apart from those marks on his body, Ninglang had not complained of feeling hot again, and his skin no longer itched.

If there were no lingering ill effects, Zhou Jinian did not mind the marks on his skin.

The next day, Xie Yao hired a carriage and headed back to the village. Ordinarily, he ought to have given his younger brother a few reminders before leaving, but when he thought of how lovingly Zhou Jinian cared for his brother, there seemed to be nothing to worry about.

Only after five days did the county office send someone over. The county magistrate rode on a horse led by an attendant, with two lines of soldiers behind him. Many townspeople brought their children along to join the excitement. After all, only the top scorer had the honor of receiving his results from the magistrate in person, and everyone wanted to see what the scholar who ranked first in the first class looked like.

Everyone was surprised to see the lively procession enter Upper North Alley. They had assumed it would be someone from the literary circles on East Street again, yet they were heading into Upper North Alley? They hurried to keep up.

Zhou Jinian was writing at home. If he had not been waiting for the people delivering the results from the county office, he would have taken his little husband back to the village long ago. He had a plan for raising fish.

Zhou Sanfeng and his husband abandoned their stall and hurried home. The alley was already packed with people, and Xie Ning opened the gate to welcome the county magistrate.

Apart from the top scorer, Zhou Jinian, all the commoners bowed to the county magistrate.

"Joyous news! In the thirty-seventh year of Qingyuan, Zhou Jinian, a candidate from Qingshui Town, placed first in the county, prefectural, and academy examinations. Zhou Jinian is hereby named the top scorer."

The man delivering the results had a ringing voice, and all the townspeople gathered around the gate heard him clearly.

The crowd erupted in an uproar. Envious and curious, they jostled desperately to peer into the courtyard.

The county magistrate waved to the subordinate holding the stipend silver. "From this day onward, Scholar Zhou, you are truly a man of letters. You must study even harder from now on and not disappoint the court's efforts to foster your talents. This is your stipend. Starting next month, you must collect it in person at the county office. Accept it."

"This student understands." Zhou Jinian bowed with his hands clasped and accepted the stipend silver.

The county magistrate offered a few more reminders to study diligently before leading the soldiers away.

Xie Ning was stunned. The top scorer? His husband had come first!

Compared with the excitement in town, one branch of the Zhou family in Great Well Village was rejoicing while another was grieving.

In his tenth year of pursuing the imperial examinations, Zhou Liufeng had finally become a scholar! Although it was not as glorious as the Xie family at the far end of the village-Xie Yao was a stipendiary scholar-Zhou Liufeng had merely attained scholar status, with no privileges beyond exemption from corvée labor.

Zhou's Sixth Daughter-in-Law hugged her son. Their bitter days had finally given way to sweetness. "Son, from now on, you're a scholar's son! Your father is a scholar, and your mother is a scholar's wife!"

She repeated the word "scholar" over and over, then actually shed tears of excitement. The old woman dropped straight to her knees at the entrance to the main room, kowtowing and calling out, "Husband, look! I raised a scholar for your Zhou family. Do you see?"

Zhou Sifeng was delighted too. After all, this was his own younger brother, and his family had good news as well: his wife, Lin Guihua, was pregnant again! At the thought, he hurriedly pocketed some money and went to buy meat from the village hunter.

Zhou Wenshu had locked himself in the study and was feeling that he had let his parents down when his mother's cautious voice came from outside the door. "Wenshu, it's all right. We'll try again next year. It took him ten years to pass; let's aim for nine."

Although Zhou Wenshu did not reply, he felt much better. He had seized the initiative by feeling aggrieved first.

"Son, whatever you do, don't do anything rash..." When Zhou's Eldest Daughter-in-Law heard no response from her son, she grew terribly anxious.

His mother's words finally made Zhou Wenshu feel a little better. He did not find failing the examination particularly upsetting. The only thing troubling him was his fear of being scolded by his elders. Since they did not blame him, he no longer had any burden on his mind.

But whenever he thought of the three members of their family who had taken the examinations-one top scorer, one scholar...

He never could have imagined that Zhou Jinian possessed such learning! His second younger brother had never taken the academy examination before, because each trip to sit the examination cost at least three taels of silver.

Once he married, he had both enough silver and enough learning! Ninglang had originally been betrothed to him. If his father had not broken off the engagement for him, perhaps he would have been the top scorer instead? And there was that stipendiary scholar elder brother, Xie Yao...

In truth, before anything had happened to Xie Ning, he had been very satisfied with this fiancé. After the incident, he had also considered marrying Xie Ning and then seeking medical treatment for him.

He had planned it all out, but his father and mother had carefully calculated the costs for him, then painted a picture of his future. For instance, if he passed the examinations with distinction and entered officialdom, his future husband or wife would be a young lady from a wealthy household, a prime minister's daughter, or someone of that sort, just like in the storybooks.

Zhou Wenshu had fallen silent. Once he entertained such prospects, the ailing Xie Ning no longer seemed so appealing.

But no one had expected Xie Ning to recover as soon as he married! He could even run a little business selling vegetarian jerky. Just as the villagers said, he brought prosperity to his husband and his household.

Seeing how far his third uncle's family had come, Zhou Wenshu recalled what his father and mother had said when discussing breaking off the engagement with him. It was like having a fly stuck in his throat that he could not swallow, leaving him sick with disgust.

Xie Ning had no choice but to return to the entrance of the alley to help with the cooking, because their wonton stall had become famous in town!

Everyone in Qingshui Town knew that Upper North Alley had a top scorer's wonton stall, and eating fish could make you a scholar! Supposedly, that top-scoring scholar ate a bowl of fish head soup and two bowls of fish wontons at every meal, three meals a day. He owed all his cleverness to them.

Every day, not even a drop of broth remained at the wonton stall. Business was so brisk that Xie Ning finally no longer had to stay locked in the courtyard. He was going out to help!

To be fair, Zhou Sanfeng and his husband could not be blamed. Every household in town kept its daughters-in-law and sons-in-law from going out into the streets. Only because Zhou Jinian permitted and encouraged it, and persuaded his two fathers as well, was Ninglang allowed out to run the stall and do a little business.