The provincial examination ended quickly. Zhou Shuren was very calm, but Ming Qing and Shu Mo seemed impatient. They went to see the results without even having breakfast.
Zhou Shuren walked over slowly after having breakfast.
Mrs. Wu Li was worried about her grandson. Seeing Zhulan was not in a hurry, she asked, "Madam, aren't you worried about the results?"
Zhu Lan couldn't say that she had confidence in Zhou Shuren, so she could only say, "It's no use worrying about it. The results will be what they are. We'll know when the news comes. It's better to wait patiently."
Mrs. Wu Li moved her mouth. She couldn't reach this level.
Zhou Shuren and his companions came back soon. Zhulan saw the sharp contrast between Shumo's gloomy face and Mingqing's happy expression, and she knew what was going on.
Shumo went back to his room without saying hello, Mingqing said awkwardly: "Don't mind, auntie, Shumo feels bad."
Zhulan liked Mingqing's courtesy and propriety towards the two tribesmen, but Shumo was much worse. "You can rest assured. I've left some food in the pot for you. Go and eat!"
Ming Qing felt even more embarrassed, "Thank you, auntie."
After Ming Qing left, Zhu Lan and Zhou Shuren returned to the main room and asked, "How did you do on the exam?"
Zhou Shuren was very upset, thinking that he had lost the first place that was almost certain to happen. "Second place."
Zhulan knew that Zhou Shuren was very confident. It was rare to see Zhou Shuren so depressed, so she couldn't help but pinch his face. "Second place is not easy. Think about it. You are a modern person who has received modern education. Even if you can memorize and understand well, your thoughts are still somewhat out of sync with those of the ancients. I think you are already very good."
Zhou Shuren felt relieved after hearing this, but he didn't show it on his face. "Give me some loving encouragement, give me a kiss?"
As soon as Zhulan heard it, she knew that Zhou Shuren was fine. She even suspected that what Zhou Shuren said just now was said deliberately for her to hear.
Zhou Shuren looked at it eagerly. He really didn't mean it. He was indeed very upset. It seemed that he still hadn't fully integrated into the ancient times!
Zhulan's heart softened. Zhou Shuren worked hard for her and for their family, and she couldn't help at all. She lowered her head and kissed the corner of Zhou Shuren's mouth under his gaze. She was a little embarrassed at first, but the shrewd Zhou Shuren was stunned and felt a sense of accomplishment.
Taking advantage of Zhou Shuren's distraction, he turned around and left quickly.
Zhou Shuren didn't really expect to kiss him, but he didn't expect to really kiss him. He couldn't help but touch the corner of his mouth, feeling happy and wanting to slap himself. Damn it, he should have kissed back cleanly and neatly. He missed the chance and Zhulan would not admit it!
At dinner, Wu Li came happily. Zhulan also knew who won first place, and said with a smile: "This is a happy event, so make more dishes today. You see how deep the fate is between the head of the family and Wu Ming, who ranked second. Let's have a meal together to celebrate."
It's a potential stock. It would be a shame if you don't seize the opportunity now.
Mrs. Wu Li knew that the lady was sincerely inviting her. She hesitated for a moment, then thought that her grandson had no help. The Zhou family was a good family, and they could help her in the future. She washed her hands quickly and said, "Thank you, madam. I'll go back and ask my grandson to come over."
Zhulan continued, "It's getting late, and you don't have to cook at home. Call everyone over. I have no one to talk to in Pingzhou. You are the only one I can talk to. The children at home don't have any friends either. Call everyone over to have a meal together and have some fun."
Wu Li worked as a helper to make a living, and had seen all kinds of people. She was good at guessing what the family meant. She understood that the family wanted to make friends because of their grandson, so she was naturally happy, "I'll listen to you, Madam. I'll call them all."
Zhulan smiled and nodded, looking at Wu Li's back. Things were different after all. Li's grandson got the first place in the exam, and the scholar was confident that he would succeed. Even his speech was different, but it was normal, it was human nature!
Zhulan bought three pounds of pork ribs, three pounds of pork belly, two grass carps, a wild rabbit, two pieces of tofu today. She was also lucky enough to buy leeks. The rare green food was a little expensive, with a handful of half a pound of leeks costing twenty cents. Zhulan was thinking about making dumplings with leeks and eggs, so she made five handfuls of them in one go. The old farmer didn't have to go to the restaurant to sell them. Finally, she bought some dried mushrooms.
Zhulan weighed the dishes: braised spare ribs, pickled fish, braised rabbit, stir-fried pork with green onions, tofu and cabbage soup, and scrambled eggs with leeks, a total of six dishes.
As for whether Shumo would feel comfortable, Zhulan didn’t care. Their family couldn’t choose not to celebrate just because you felt uncomfortable!
Mrs. Wu Li came back quickly with the children. There were four children in the Wu family, three boys and one girl. The youngest girl was the same age as Xue Han. The eldest was Wu Ming, who was fifteen years old, Wu Yong, who was twelve years old, Wu Ting, who was ten years old, and Wu Ning, who was eight years old.
The names of the children and grandchildren of the Wu family all have the character "kou" (mouth) on the radical.
Zhulan met a few children. The three boys had regular looks, not particularly outstanding, and had ordinary looks. The little girl was pretty, and smiled shyly. Although she was thin, her smile was very pretty. She was a sweet girl. Wu Ning stayed in the backyard, and the three boys went to the front yard.
The youngest is ten years old and can be considered a little adult.
As for the boy's gift, Zhulan discussed with Zhou Shuren before the Wu family's children arrived. Pens, ink, paper and inkstone were the most suitable. They were bought in large quantities when they came to Pingzhou specifically for use as gifts. The best set cost ten taels of silver, and she bought two sets of five taels of silver and five sets of two taels of silver, spending a total of thirty taels of silver.
The gifts given to the children of the Wu family all weighed two taels, which was already very valuable.
Zhulan gave Wu Ning a purse with twenty coins in it. "We're meeting for the first time and I don't know what you like. Take this purse and play with it."
Wu Ning didn't dare to take it. She turned her head to look at her grandmother. Mrs. Wu Li knew that there would be a gift for bringing a child here, so she nodded. Wu Ning took it with both hands and said, "Thank you, Grandma Zhou."
Zhu Lan, "... Well, my little girl is the same age as you, you can play together. You are one month older than Xue Han. Xue Han can take her sister to the side room to play."
Xue Han listened to her mother's words and stepped forward to hold Wu Ning's hand, "I heard that you can read, too. Let's go trace the characters."
Yu Shuang and Ming Teng also quickly followed him out.