77. The Farmer Who Became the Top Scholar

Except for the second wife’s family, no one knows what the family talked about in the room of Yan Changxi and his wife that night.

Anyway, I don’t know whether it was the effect of the conversation that night, or the confidence and motivation given to the couple by their son’s ability to study. Now it is not the busy farming season, otherwise the money saved by the family from working is not all handed in.

For example, Li Qiuyue and Yan Meihua, the sisters, made three brocades, and reported eight out of ten, so they had two more brocades. When Yan Changxi took odd jobs, he occasionally bought buns and steamed buns on the pretext of being hungry, and he deducted a penny or two every time. After a lot of times, the second wife finally had a little money in her hands, so sometimes the daughter didn’t have to ask Old Lady Yan for money when she wanted to buy a red headband or a silk head flower.

In the past, it would never succeed to encourage parents to do such things.

Old Man Yan and Yan Jiang may not have been unaware of the Second House's move, but they chose to turn a blind eye to it. Compared to the five hundred coins that the First House could handle on its own, the Second House's action was already very aggrieved.

At the beginning, they did not resist, and the old couple did not mention this matter. Now that the Second House would do this, it shows that they also have their own little thoughts in their hearts. Excessive suppression will only cause them to have a greater sense of resistance.

Old Man Yan and Old Lady Yan are very smart. They know that when they are old, they still have to be filial to the honest Second House family for retirement. Therefore, from the beginning, they never thought of forcing this child to be unfilial. Therefore, this is not too much behavior. The two old people did not ask, just pretending not to know.

Yan Chu studied more smoothly than the original body. You know, in the previous life, the original body did not show his outstanding talent for studying on that day. In order to let his younger brother study, Yan Meihua almost broke up with his aunt Yan Mudan and his uncle's family.

If Yan Changxue hadn't still been concerned about his reputation, and knew that if Yan Meihua didn't care and went out to talk about how their family bullied their second branch, the original body wouldn't have been able to study.

However, even though the original body and Yan Lu both became freshmen in the clan school in the second year, the life of the second branch of the Yan family became more and more difficult, especially the second sister Yan Meihua, who offended her uncle and aunt, and even the old man and the old lady Yan also felt angry that their granddaughter had offended their authority. When it came to her husband's family later, Yan Meihua didn't marry well.

The man she married had some wealth in his family and gave a high betrothal gift, but the man was honest and simple on the surface, but beat his wife behind his back. Yan Meihua's life was difficult until the original body passed the examination for a scholar, and the man didn't dare to beat her too much, but small fights were still inevitable.

Logically, the original body should be the one who helped this elder sister the most, but he felt that having a divorced sister was not a good reputation. After he became successful, he gave Yan Meihua a lot of money, but begged her to live a good life with her brother-in-law for his reputation.

Since then, no matter how hard life was, Yan Meihua never went to the Yan family. She thought that brother died when he said that.

This life is different. Old Man Yan and others saw the potential in Yan Chu, and they were no longer so resistant to letting him study. In the last life, those threatening words that were said for the sake of his brother's study, Yan Meihua did not say them this time. In the eyes of the old couple of the Yan family, she was still the favorite one among their granddaughters.

*****

In a blink of an eye, four years have passed. Yan Chu went to a private school at the age of six, and now he is nine years old.

These days, many strangers come in and out of the house during the day, most of them are matchmakers from nearby villages and towns, either to propose marriage for Yan Chunhua and Yan Meihua, or to help other girls and find out the mouth of the Yan family.

Yan Yu is already seventeen this year. In recent years, he has failed in the college entrance examinations and has always been a student. However, he is still young. There are many people who passed the examinations in their twenties and thirties. When he was able to become a student at the tender age of nine, it meant that he had a talent for reading, and many people were willing to bet on his future.

Moreover, the Yan family has dozens of acres of fertile land. As the eldest son of the eldest house, Yan Yu will be the eldest son of the eldest house. In the future, most of the land here should belong to him. No matter what, he can live better than ordinary farmers. Therefore, many girls are willing to marry into the Yan family, but most of the Yan family members do not like those girls.

"Mother, I think the daughter of Huang Xiucai is good. She looks fair, has a virtuous and gentle temperament, and is the daughter of a scholar. She is not afraid of not being able to talk to Yu'er."

Liu Fuchun said to Yan Jiangshi with a red paper list. This is the only one she is satisfied with among the many girls she has seen these days.

But she couldn't say she was very satisfied. In Liu Fuchun's opinion, her son's talent was not appreciated because the examiners had no vision. Otherwise, with her son's talent, he would have passed the imperial examination long ago, and the top scholar would not be a problem. He would even be worthy of the princess.

But now Yan Yan was only a student, and he was also of marriageable age. She didn't like the farm girls, and the daughters of the prefects and county magistrates didn't like him. As a second choice, Liu Fuchun could only pinch her nose and recognize the most outstanding young lady from the scholar's family among the girls who were interested in marrying into the Yan family.

"The girl from the scholar Huang's family is indeed good, but the bride price that family wants is too high, thirty taels, which is enough to buy a small courtyard in the town. No matter how good his girl is, she is still worth more than gold."

Mrs. Yan Jiang shook her head. She loved her eldest grandson, but she really didn't think it was necessary to spend so much money on marrying a daughter-in-law. As a woman, it doesn't take long for her to have children, as long as she is not too brash or weird.

"Mom, I'm not just interested in that girl, I'm more interested in Huang Xiucai."

Liu Fuchun had already guessed the possible reaction of the old lady. She whispered something into the old lady's ear. The old lady's face was tangled with joy. It took a while before she spoke.

"My son's third cousin is also a scholar. If he really has a trick, why won't he tell us?"

Old Mrs. Yan felt that her daughter-in-law's words were too unreliable. If there was really any shortcut to the exam, then wouldn't all the Jin Dynasty be scholars? Besides, if Huang Xiucai really had the ability to teach, he wouldn't be almost selling out now. My daughter is asking for money to the extreme.

"Mom, think about it, my third cousin's uncle's family is the direct branch of the family. They wish that none of us from the side branches can make a difference so that we can rely on him to live our lives. If you think about it carefully, after so many years, is it the main branch that has the highest chance of producing a talented person? ? That means there is indeed a shortcut to this exam."

Liu Fuchun asked the old lady to figure out for herself how many of the many talented people who came out of the Yan family were direct descendants at that time.

Yan Jiang thought for a while, and it seemed to be the case, but if he thought about it carefully, it was because only the main branch at that time had the energy and financial resources to raise children in the family. How much money can an average farm family have to support many children?

"Our family and the clan leader have long been distant relatives who are separated by several houses. People may not tell us such news, but Huang Xiucai is different. If Chu'er becomes his son-in-law, he can still take such an important matter. Hidden from him? It’s not a bad deal to buy a daughter-in-law with the title of scholar for thirty taels.”

Liu Fuchun's words were very tempting and tempting. Being able to have a scholar in their family was something they thought about day and night.

But the old lady couldn't completely make the decision regarding her grandson, and marrying a daughter from Huang Xiucai's family would cost too much, so she had to discuss the matter with her old man.

Seeing that the old lady was tempted, Liu Fuchun gave up half of his thoughts.

Yan Chu stood outside the door of his grandmother's room. Originally, he came to tell his grandma that his third uncle planned to let him take part in this year's county examination. Unexpectedly, he heard the conversation between his eldest aunt and his grandma, and then he suddenly realized Well, it turned out that the days passed so fast, and in a blink of an eye, it was almost the day when Fu Zhenzhen came to the house.

*****

"Old madam, buy a maid and go home. This girl has a small appetite and can't eat much food. Moreover, she is eight years old this year. In a few years, she will be able to give birth to sons for the young men in the family."

Because of the persuasion of the eldest son and his wife, and the fact that the younger daughter also thought the marriage was good, Old Man Yan and Mrs. Yan finally agreed to the eldest grandson's marriage to the daughter of Huang Xiucai's family.

Today the old lady took her eldest daughter-in-law to the county to buy things needed for the wedding. Because there were a lot of things to buy, she even drove the family's ox cart here.

A few days ago, there seemed to be a disaster in the north. A lot of refugees came to their area. Fortunately, the number was not large and not large-scale. In addition, rich people outside the county town had already started giving porridge and fasting, which did not affect the lives of the local people. What an impact.

There were also those whose families were in trouble, and in order to settle down in a new place as soon as possible, they began to buy and sell their young sons and daughters. During this period, such scenes were more common. Those people did not dare to go to the county town for fear of being arrested by the officials, so they often They stay on the trails leading into the city, waiting for wealthy country people or people from the county who leave the city.

Today we came to the county town to do some shopping. Both Mrs. Yan and Liu Fuchun were well-dressed. The woman with a skinny little girl by her side took a fancy to them at first sight and stopped in front of the bullock cart without thinking.

"Our family is just an ordinary farmer. We are not that rich and don't buy maids."

Yan Jiang waved her hand at the woman and told her to get out of the way as she had to go shopping in the county town.

"If you don't want a maid, then buy a child bride. I want a bag of grain. The men and children in the family are starving to death. That bag of grain is life-saving. Madam, please do me a favor and buy our daughter."

The woman pulled the little girl next to her and knelt down to the old lady, kowtowing her head and begging.

This is the daughter of her husband's brother. Her brother-in-law and his wife were unlucky and died of illness on the way to escape. The only son said he was going to find food for his sister. If he never came back, they couldn't wait for him where he was. We can only follow the fleeing people southward until we reach this small and relatively wealthy county.

To be fair, this woman is not the kind of really cruel person. Otherwise, her niece looks pretty good. If she sells it to Goulan Courtyard, she can get one or twenty taels of silver, which is enough to buy dozens of bags of grain. But she After all, he wasn't so greedy.

She just saw that this family was well-dressed and had a bullock cart at home. Even if they were from the countryside, their family was well off. In this day and age, she didn't want to have another mouth to eat in the family, so she sold this little girl to those A prosperous farmer, her future fortune depends on her own fate.

Upon hearing the words "child bride", the other party only asked for a bag of grain. Liu Fuchun raised his eyebrows and grabbed the old lady who refused.

"Mom, why don't we buy this little girl." She whispered into the old lady's ear.

"You're crazy. How can your family have enough spare money to feed an extra mouth?" Yan Jiangshi shook her head without thinking.

"Mom, listen to me."

Liu Fuchun grabbed the old lady: "In order to find a wife for Bin'er, the family has spent almost all the money. Bin'er and Xiaobao are already nine years old this year. In six or seven years, they will be old enough to get married. By then, The two children talked about their daughter-in-law, where does the money come from? "

With her mouth, she could talk about life and death. Although she didn't know what kind of medicine she was selling, it was true that the old lady's attention was attracted by her words.

"It's not expensive to buy a child bride with a bag of grain. Even if the little girl eats it, how much grain can she eat? The most important thing is that we raised the child ourselves, so we don't have to worry about any outsiders. When the time comes, Chen'er and Xiaobao If you can pass the exam to be a scholar, then the conditions for choosing a bride are different. If you can't pass the exam, no matter who marries this little girl, he will at least live a peaceful life if he knows everything about her. "

Liu Fuchun has already asked his son. No surprise, his younger son Yan Yi will definitely be able to pass the boy examination. In recent years, Yan Chu has not shown much of his reading talent in the book school. In Liu Fuchun's opinion, he was able to memorize thousands of books by heart. Zi Wen, I don’t know how much hard work he put in behind the scenes. In terms of talent, he is definitely not as good as his son.

If the little girl in front of me was to be married, it would be Yan Chu who would marry her, which would save the family a fortune.

Liu Fuchun's abacus made a snap, but it touched the old lady's heart.

In the village, child brides are not a rare thing. They pay money to take a daughter-in-law from her family since she was a child. She is a member of the family whether she lives or dies. Judging from her stature, she can work with Mei Hua and the others. It just so happens that Mei Hua has reached the age of marriage, so she bought This little girl came back and arrived just in time.

Just like the eldest daughter-in-law said, how much food can a girl eat? When the grandson has no future, marrying this little girl can save a fortune. If both have future prospects, it will be considered as raising a daughter. When the time comes to marry her off, he will be able to earn a betrothal gift to supplement the expenses he has spent on her over the years.

Yan Jiang's position was very unsteady. Liu Fuchun persuaded him in just a few words, and he took a bag of newly beaten millet in Jinqiu that he originally planned to bring to his little girl. Because it was fine grain, the bag of rice was A little half of it was poured out.

Fu Zhenzhen was sold by her aunt for the price of half a bag of new rice.

"From now on, in this old lady's house, you have to be obedient, eat less and cook more, don't make trouble for others, you know?" The woman happily carried the half bag of food, looked at the man and child who had been guarding not far away, and felt sad in her heart. Very confident.

Just looking at the little girl who didn't say a word from beginning to end, and quietly got on the Yan family's oxcart after being sold, a trace of guilt flashed in her heart, and she said a few words to her.

The little girl hadn't had a full meal in an unknown amount of time. She was so thin that she lost her shape. Her eyes were so big that it made people panic.

The woman avoided looking at her. After saying that, she gritted her teeth and ran towards the men who had been guarding her with red eyes.

"What's your name?"

The food was given and the people got on the bullock cart. At this time, Yan Jiang felt that he had done something ridiculous, but the woman who had just sold the child had already run away with the food, and now she regretted it. It's too late.

"Zhenzhen, my name is Fu Zhenzhen."

The little girl's throat was dry and she had no strength to speak.

"From now on, you will be a member of our Yan family. When you go home, be good, you know?"

Yan Jiang took out the kettle he had brought with him and handed it to her a sesame cake to pad her belly on the road.

"Thank you, madam."

Fu Zhenzhen took the kettle, and some of them drank several sips anxiously. After their mouths were no longer so dry, they ate the sesame cake in their hands, taking small sips, picking up any small crumbs that fell on them, and eating them. After finishing the palm-sized pancake, she touched her belly with satisfaction and smiled. From the yellow and thin face, the old lady actually saw a bit of coquettishness. In terms of appearance, she seemed to be better than the daughter of Huang Xiucai's family. Up a few points.

It doesn't seem like a loss to buy such a granddaughter-in-law.

*****

"What are you thinking about? You are a scholar. How can I find you a little girl I bought from who knows where to be your child bride? This is too bullying."

Yan Taohua sat on the edge of the Kang in her younger brother's room and said to her younger brother who was holding a water-soaked brush and writing on the paper.

At this time, Fu Zhenzhen had been at home for three or four days. Originally, the Yan family thought that the old lady was kind-hearted and bought a little girl who was in trouble in her hometown. The little girl was quite well-behaved and sensible, and she rushed to do the work at home. Now and Yan Taohua and her sisters lived in the same room and had some feelings for each other.

But I don’t know since when, rumors suddenly spread in the village that the little girl newly bought by the Yan family was a child bride for Yan Chu, and there was also a rumor that she had a nose and eyes, as if they had all seen the scene where Mrs. Yan bought someone at that time. .

She couldn't get angry at Fu Zhenzhen's already pitiful little girl Yan Taohua, so she could only express her complaints and confusion to her younger brother.

In fact, rumors can spread so fast, and Yan Chu doesn't believe them without someone's help. However, Liu Fuchun is indeed a very smart person. I'm afraid even the old lady can't figure out who is the one who ruined Fu Zhenzhen's original story. She must have revealed that she bought her as a child bride.

Listening to the third sister's complaints, Yan Chu did not stop moving his hands.

If you want to take the imperial examination, it is not enough just to be able to write well. How well you write is also a very important scoring item in the eyes of the marking officials.

Paper and ink cost money, so Yan Chu used water instead of ink to practice calligraphy. When he was good at calligraphy, he would grind the inkstone and really start writing. Therefore, in the past few years, even though they were both in the same school, Yan Chu's expenses were only two-thirds of Yan Lu's.

Old Man Yan and Old Lady Yan also saw all his actions, and they loved this grandson who they didn't pay much attention to before. Although he was not as good as his eldest cousin, his grandparents still loved him more than his second cousin.

Therefore, Yan Chu was basically sure that even if he bought a child bride this time, it was not certain who the old lady's original intention was to buy a child bride for. The rumor was so widespread, and she was so confident, it was obvious who was behind it.

"Third sister, the most important thing for me now is to deal with the county exam. Let's talk about other things later."

Yan Chu hadn't figured out how to deal with his relationship with Fu Zhenzhen, so he didn't plan to have too much contact with Fu Zhenzhen before the county exam was over.

"Yes, if you become a Tongsheng, grandma won't let you marry Zhenzhen."

Yan Taohua did think of getting rid of the troubles of being a child bride because of her brother's words. Grandpa didn't dare to disturb Yan Chu's study anymore, and left quickly with his mouth covered. She had to watch over him these days and must not let Zhenzhen have too much contact with her brother.

Because of Yan Taohua's determination, Yan Chu actually had no chance to have private contact with Fu Zhenzhen before the county exam.

On the day of the county exam, Yan Changxue and Yan Changxi drove the family's ox cart to send the two children to the county town for the exam. The two of them stayed outside for the whole exam. They ate dry food when they were hungry, drank water when they were thirsty, and took turns to go to the toilet.

Because the teacher in the school said that sometimes there would be accidents in the exam. After all, people who eat grains will always get sick. The county exam is not as strict as the future provincial exam. If a candidate is sick, he will be carried out directly, and then the family will need to take him back.

Yan Changxue and Yan Changxi were afraid that their son would be the unlucky one, so they stayed outside the examination room.

Originally, they just wanted to be on the safe side, but they didn't expect that less than an hour after the examination started, Yan Lu, who had just entered and was fine, turned pale and was carried out by the yamen officials in a sweat.

Yan Changxue was so anxious that he was running around. Today's exam would determine who would continue to study, his son or his nephew from the second house. How could his son suddenly fall seriously ill?

"Yan Chu" also didn't understand. Wasn't he sentenced to exile for deceiving the emperor? Why did he appear in the examination room of the county examination at this moment?