Chapter 13: Rice Ears and Ripe Rice Seeds

"Master, is there anything wrong?"

Chen Heng stood beside the desk, looking at Wang Xianming's somewhat old face under the light. He is now fifty-one, has some white hair growing on his head, and his eyesight is not as good as before.

Under the dim light, Wang Xianming read the article written by Chen Heng and said with emotion: "Heng'er, your articles are getting better and better as you write them. You have grasped the key points of the inheritance, transformation and integration of the eight-legged essay."

Chen Heng was not complacent. As he grew older, he became more prudent in his dealings, and he also knew that Wang Xianming still had something to say.

"As a teacher, I know your talents best. With my current writing skills, it will be easy to pass the county examination. Apart from the difficulty of ranking, I can't find fault with you as a teacher. It's just..."

Wang Xianming pointed to the white paper covered with pen and ink in his hand, and continued towards Chen Heng, "I am reading your article as a teacher. It is full of flowers, but I still feel something is wrong. I want you to polish it again, but I don't know where to start."

Wang Xianming sighed, as an old boy, Wang Xianming and Wen Zhang really lacked skills. It feels wrong to belong to me, but if you ask me to teach you to change it, you are in trouble.

"You should know that if you can get a good rank in the county examination, the government examination will fail. If you can still get a good rank in the government examination, you can get the title of scholar with just half of your hand."

Wang Xianming shook his head to himself, implying that he hoped Chen Heng could endure it. Taking the county exam this year may not be the best choice.

If you can sharpen your writing skills, you will get first place in the county examination and pass the prefecture examination without any accident. Only after passing the government examination can one be considered a real child and take the first step in transforming from a commoner to a scholar.

How could Chen Heng not know Wang Xianming's concerns and expectations? He had been taught carefully by his master for more than two years, and he did not dare to relax for a day. All they wanted was to achieve something in the imperial examination.

But time waits for me.

Chen Heng did not dare to tell Wang Xianming about his anxiety.

This matter starts with Chen Heng's second uncle. Two years ago, Chen Huaijin followed Chen Sande to the Xue family's pawn shop in the county. By some unlucky fate, he was able to get money back home in no time.

At the beginning, it was still tens of cents or tens of cents, but later it was hundreds of cents. During the Chinese New Year this year, Chen Huaijin took out three taels of silver and gave it to the Zhou family when the family was having a meal, which made Chen Heng deeply feel that disaster was coming.

Grandma Zhou also asked about the origin of the money, and Chen Huaijin always said that it was a reward from the shopkeeper. Mrs. Zhou didn't become suspicious and just smiled and praised her son for his ability. After all, people in the village often go to the county for walks. When passing by the pawn shop, they can see Chen Huaijin busy inside.

But these words only deceived the elderly who did not go out at home. Chen Heng saw this and was anxious in his heart. It’s not like he has never seen the world in his previous life. If the higher-ups can give you money like this, it’s just to shut your mouth or make you do something shameful.

With a little knowledge, Chen Heng didn't know what was waiting for him in the future. He couldn't change his second uncle, so he could only force himself to take the imperial examination, hoping to gain fame when disaster struck.

Seeing that his disciple was silent, Wang Xianming knew that he could not persuade this child to take the imperial examination. I can only advise Chen Heng to go home and rest first, so that he can think about it at home.

Wang Xianming was worried about this. Not to mention, when Chen Heng got home, he took out his book and studied hard as usual. His family knew his own affairs, and he knew the problems of his article. Chen Heng could feel that he was standing in front of a door. As long as he pushed it open, there would be a vast sea and sky.

But this door not only blocked him, but also the Master and many people.

…………

…………

This night.

Wang Xianming lay in bed unable to sleep for a long time. Mrs. Liu didn't know when she last saw him like this, so she couldn't help but ask a lot. Wang Xianming didn't plan to say anything at first, but he couldn't stand Liu's entanglement, so he could only express his worries.

"You are so confused!" After hearing this, Master Liu, Mrs. Liu, put her foot on Wang Xianming. She was really anxious and angry, "You don't understand, why don't you ask someone for advice? You have delayed Heng'er's important event. If you ruin the youthful spirit in him, I’ll see what you will regret in the future.”

Wang Xianming shuddered when he heard this, and he suddenly thought of the fallen scholars in the examination room. How many people who have learned a lot have become depressed day by day because of one or two failures, and have embarked on the wrong path of becoming worse every day.

Originally, all he could think about was letting Chen Heng succeed in one fell swoop, standing next to him and looking at the scholar's gate together. Now think about it, if Chen Heng failed in the imperial examination and wasted his energy, who knows what will happen in the future. Thinking of this, he was originally looking forward to it with a hint of worry, but now he also became panicked.

"What should we do? What should we do?" Wang Xianming was trembling even as he spoke, and his face turned red with anxiety. The more he thought about it, the worse it got. Even small problems that he had not noticed before were magnified.

"I'm still in a daze about writing, so I quickly got up and wrote a letter." Mrs. Liu pushed Wang Xianming out of bed, got up and dressed herself, and paced around the room. "I'm afraid I won't be able to catch up if I write a letter to dad now." ”

Mrs. Liu suddenly thought of someone, "Why don't you write a letter to Ruhai."

"This... he is busy with official duties, I'm afraid it's not good." Wang Xianming showed hesitation. He now knew that Lin Xiucai was the current Salt Patrol Censor in Yangzhou, and he was a junior and powerful official. (Note 1)

Wang Xianming became angry at the thought of writing him a letter, and subconsciously wanted to avoid this option.

"No matter how busy he is, why not take some time to visit him? For the past two years, I have been respecting you and never brought you with me every time I visited him. When they asked, I also said that you were going to teach at home. Now, for Heng'er's important matter, you can't even give up this little face?"

Liu is really a female Zhuge, and she hit Wang Xianming's weak spot with just a few words. The latter did not hesitate any more, and asked his wife to light the lamp quickly, and started writing directly in the bedroom.

In the letter, he explained his confusion one by one, and found three of Chen Heng's latest articles to sandwich them, put them all in the envelope, and sealed them with mud.

The next day, the letter was sent to the county by the village's Jianzu.

Three days later, on the 18th day of the first lunar month, the letter arrived at Lin's house as scheduled. Lin Ruhai, who came back from the government office in the evening, took the envelope sent by Shanxi Village from the gatehouse, and was still a little confused.

After he opened the letter in the study, he read the content of the letter and picked up Chen Heng's article to read it. He couldn't help but laugh and said, "No wonder, no wonder. The fog blocked my eyes, and I didn't know I had entered the forest."

"My sister's family sent a letter, what's the important matter?"

The study door was pushed open, and the voice came before the person came in. Lin Ruhai knew that the only person who could come in at this time was his first wife Jia, and those concubines would never dare to disturb him, so he got up and walked out quickly.

Jia walked under the lamp, and the dim candlelight made her luxurious clothes even more beautiful. Her face was tired, and her almond eyes were drooping. I think she was disturbed by her son during the day.

Lin Ruhai took her into his arms and said with a smile, "It's my brother-in-law's disciple who has some writings."

Jia nodded, put down the ginseng tea in her hand, and advised, "Husband, drink it while it's hot." She also joked, "I've only met my brother-in-law once or twice in the past two years. He must be really anxious to write to me today."

Jia was as beautiful as a lotus in August. She smiled before she spoke. Under the light, Lin Ruhai was dumbfounded and the middle-aged man was distracted.

Seeing the teasing in Jia's eyes, Lin Ruhai reacted, restrained his mind, and said with a smile, "If it weren't so, how could I be worthy of being your brother-in-law?"

Jia just nodded and smiled. Since Lin Ruhai came to Yangzhou to work, he has been surrounded by many salt merchants and rich people. Most of these people are people who curry favor with the powerful. They find ways to say nice things and find reasons to give rare treasures to him. Even Jia, who was used to seeing wealth, was often shocked by their generosity.

But Liu, although valued by her husband. But every time she was invited to the mansion, she was a little reserved in her enthusiasm. Occasionally, she came to the house and was restrained in her words and deeds. She neither asked about official affairs nor asked about the family affairs of the Lin Mansion. She just chatted.

After a few contacts, even Jia could see the good of Liu. No wonder her husband could always call Liu sister. Instead of talking to those ladies every day, Jia, who was born in a famous family, preferred Liu's sincere and straightforward character. At least it was not difficult or troublesome to talk.

"Go and see if Yu'er is asleep. I will go to accompany you after I finish writing the reply." Lin Ruhai persuaded his wife after drinking ginseng tea.

"Okay."

After Jia went back, Lin Ruhai pondered for a moment and picked up the pen to write on the letter.

On the second day, when Lin Ruhai was leaving, he asked the doorman to take the letter to the post station to deliver it.

Three days later, it was the twenty-first day of the first lunar month.

Wang Xianming was dumbfounded when he received the reply. If it weren't for Jianzu, the messenger, who repeatedly assured him that he had not taken the wrong letter, he would have suspected that Lin Ruhai had taken the wrong letter.

But looking at the handwriting, it was indeed written by Lin Ruhai himself, and the nickname at the end was also Wang Xianming's nickname. Wang Xianming had no choice but to call Chen Heng to his side, hand the letter to him, and let Chen Heng make his own decision.

Chen Heng took it and looked at it, and was also dumbfounded.

The letter said: Why don't you go out and fly a kite?

Note 1: Regarding Lin's father's official position, there are different opinions outside. Some say that his official position is high and powerful, and some say that his official position is small and not worth mentioning.

I personally think that both may be wrong. First, the salt administration is a national treasure, and it is not something that ordinary people can do. Second, Lin's father was also a third place winner, and he also served as a doctor at the Lantai Temple. This position is not high, and it belongs to the censor. It is certain that the emperor likes Lin's father, but to promote him directly to manage the salt administration of the whole country is to break the rules of officialdom, which is unreasonable. And there is no reason for a minister of a country to work in the local area instead of in the central government. So I made some changes.

In the future, some explanations will not be issued unless it is particularly necessary. Anyway, it is all fiction, let's go ahead with the writing style.

PS: By the way, I have good news, we are going to sign a contract. Haha, we don't even have a cover, but we are going to sign a contract. It feels really mysterious. Thank you everyone, and by the way, I ask for some recommendation votes, thank you.