The two interacted intimately, making Chu Ye drool with envy.
He also longed for the chance to smell Wuxia's face. It would be even better if he could hold Wuxia in his arms wherever he went, just like his cousin held Xiao Wushuang.
So, Chu Yao took the lead, Chu Ye followed with a dreamy look on his face, and Chu Xu brought up the rear with Wu Shuang's "Heaven rewards diligence" painting. The four of them went upstairs.
In the hall behind them, Qi Lan, who was sitting in the corner, stood up, walked to the table where Lin Ruqing had been sitting, squatted down, and pulled out a scroll that had been left behind from under the table.
She unrolled the scroll and looked at the painting, but being illiterate, she couldn't understand it. Slightly disappointed, she rolled the scroll up again, looked up at the upstairs, and finally hugged the scroll tightly like a precious treasure before returning to her corner to sit down.
Table of Contents 47 | 46 | 45 | 44 | 43 | 42 | 5
Chapter 47:
On the day of the provincial examination, Wushuang, unusually, got up very early, washed and dressed, and skipped out of her room. [Qiushu.cc has almost all the books you want to read; it's much more stable than other novel websites, updates faster, and it's all text with no ads.]
Jun Shu, who gets up at 3:45 AM every day, was practicing his boxing in the courtyard when he saw his youngest daughter push open the door and come out of the side room. He first looked up at the sky, then looked down and rubbed his eyes. The sun hadn't risen in the west, and he wasn't seeing things; he simply couldn't find any reason to justify Wushuang getting up so early.
Jun Shu withdrew his fist, walked towards Wushuang, picked her up, and asked Li Mama, who was following behind, "Why did Shuangshuang get up so early today? Did you have a nightmare and were scared, or did you suffer some grievances during the day and have something on your mind?"
Before Li's mother could speak, Wushuang answered first: "Today is the day of the provincial examination. Shuangshuang is going to take her third cousin to the examination hall to encourage him."
Junshu was pleased that Wushuang was friendly with her cousins. However, boys are different from girls; they must be strictly disciplined from a young age, able to be independent when they go out, and capable of shouldering responsibilities so that they can take on the responsibilities of a large family when they grow up.
When Yang Tianxing went to the examination hall in this city, although his elders had given him advice and guidance in advance, no one planned to see him off in person. His mother, Zhao, only gave the kitchen a few instructions, asking the cooks to make the dry food and snacks more to Yang Tianxing's taste.
As for today's trip, there was a carriage, a coachman, and an old servant accompanying him, just like when a young master from a wealthy family goes out.
Junshu didn't know if the young Wushuang could understand the reasoning, but he still patiently explained it to her.
Wushuang thought for a moment, then counted on her fingers and said, "But, the other day, Shuangshuang gave the painting to her third cousin, and he really liked it. If Shuangshuang goes with him, he'll definitely be very happy, and he'll do even better on his exams!" She smiled and swayed her arm around Junshu's shoulder, "Daddy, let me go, let me go!"
When children get stubborn, they can be incredibly annoying. Jun Shu couldn't resist his youngest daughter's pleading and finally had to agree. He personally carried her to the carriage and then sternly instructed Wu Shuang, "Don't cause trouble. Be obedient and don't interfere with your third cousin's business, or you'll get a spanking when we get back."
Wu Shuang tilted her little face up, stuck out her tongue and made a face. Then, before Jun Shu could get angry and drag her back, she scrambled into the carriage, hid behind Yang Tianxing, and taunted her father, "Third cousin is willing to let me go!"
Yang Tianxing, like his brothers, adored his sister. Even if Wushuang only accompanied him for a short distance to the examination hall, he would agree to let her follow him into the examination hall and sit beside him to watch him take the exam, provided the examiners allowed it.
"Don't worry, Uncle, I'll take good care of my sister!" he assured, patting his chest.
At Jun Shu's signal, Li's mother also boarded the carriage and kept an eye on Wu Shuang to prevent her from being naughty.
The carriage traveled slowly and steadily along the cobblestone path to its destination.
Many candidates had already gathered in front of the examination hall, all carrying long-eared bamboo baskets, quietly waiting for the time when the examiner would call their names and let them enter.
The preliminary examination for children was the entrance examination for the imperial examination. Most of the candidates were very young. Yang Tianxing was probably the youngest among them. Many others looked to be no more than thirteen or fourteen years old. So, in addition to the candidates themselves, there were also many family members and servants who came to escort them.
These people were not allowed to enter the examination hall; they could only wait outside the area designated by the officials.
After getting off the carriage, Yang Tianxing went to the place where the examinees were waiting. Knowing that his little cousin was watching him, he deliberately stood at the outer edge, facing Wushuang, who was being led by Li's mother.
Wushuang maintained a smile throughout, watching the excitement while occasionally waving to her third cousin.
The education commissioner quickly came out of the examination hall, sat down at the table that had been set up in advance, and began to call the roll.
The sponsored students lined up in order on both sides of the education commissioner. When a candidate was called forward, the sponsored students would step forward to identify him. After confirming that it was the candidate, the sponsored students would personally sign their names.
Afterwards, the constables searched the long-eared bamboo basket containing pens, ink, and food, looking for any cheat sheets, even checking hair knots and the corners of clothing. [www.qiushu.cc Lots of great novels]
Wushuang watched as a bailiff pulled several pieces of paper covered in small regular script from the corner of a candidate's clothes. However, to her surprise, the education official only confiscated the cheat sheets, scolded him a few times, and then let him enter the examination hall.
Does attempting to cheat not count as cheating?
Wushuang was so surprised that her little head tilted to the side, and she began to reflect on whether her plan could succeed.
There was more than one person cheating; soon, someone else was discovered hiding cheat sheets in their crotch.
The waiting candidates couldn't help but burst into laughter and cheer when they saw this.
The school official glared at him, and everyone fell silent.
"Hiding in such a sacred place, you have desecrated the sacred texts! This is a grave offense; your admission is revoked!" The academic administrator began to punish the candidate. "He is to kneel for one day!"
Two constables immediately forced the examinee to kneel on the stone steps outside the gate.
Wow!
Wu Shuang opened her mouth wide in excitement. This was truly an eye-opener. How did he come up with the idea of slipping the note there? If she didn't have important business to attend to, she would have liked to go over and chat with him about her thought process.
Even Li's mother, who is usually mature and composed, couldn't help but laugh.
However, looking at the elderly people over seventy years old, with white hair and beards, and hunched backs, who were still participating in the children's examination at the examination hall, I felt that scholars really had it tough. No wonder they could come up with such strange and unusual methods.
Yang Tianxing was ranked relatively high, and it wasn't long before his name was called out. Fortunately, nothing went wrong. After the students identified themselves and signed their names, the search went smoothly. As they approached the gate of the examination hall, Yang Tianxing didn't forget to turn back and wave goodbye to Xiao Wushuang, looking as proud and smug as a young hero about to go to battle.
"Girl, let's go back." Yang Tianxing entered the examination hall, and Li Mama squatted down to carry Wushuang back to the carriage.
The exam would last all day, and they couldn't wait indefinitely. They had also agreed to return to the governor's mansion after seeing off the young master.
"Don't go back!" Wushuang objected vehemently. "Those brothers are so interesting, Shuangshuang wants to see them again."
Do you want to watch them cheat and make a fool of themselves?
Looking at the strange smile on her daughter's innocent face, Li's mother felt as if crows were cawing overhead.
Is it really that interesting when someone makes a fool of themselves?
What happened to the innocence and kindness of children?