Before the results of the provincial examination came out, the students of the Imperial Academy continued to study in the classroom every day as usual. The provincial examination was held every three years, but not many people could pass it. For students like them, although they were studying in the Imperial Academy, it was already a great achievement for one fifth of the class to pass it.
If you become arrogant and stop studying before the results are out, it will be difficult to come back if you fail. And even if you come back, you will inevitably be ridiculed. But even if you are ridiculed, you have to stay here. During the period from the provincial examination to the metropolitan examination, you still need the guidance of the teacher. For this reason, everyone is very honest before the results are posted. After all, there are many variables in the provincial examination. Who can be sure that they will be selected
Pei Che had planned to take a few days off to investigate, but at this time, taking a leave was really a bit inconspicuous. In order to avoid attracting other people's attention, Pei Che asked someone to secretly inquire about what happened in the Yueguo Mansion. At that time, he was in the Imperial College, and he was not very clear about what happened. Later, he was always worried about his grandmother's palpitations, so naturally he didn't think of investigating the cause.
Now that it has been a long time since that day, it is difficult to find out anything. But there is no way, because grandma just refuses to tell him the truth.
A few days later, the people Pei Che sent to investigate the news on that day returned empty-handed. Pei Che just nodded after hearing this, without much disappointment. It happened more than a year ago, can we still expect everyone to remember it? Besides, the people they secretly investigated could only get information from some low-ranking maids and servants without leaving any trace.
Seeing him lower his head and keep silent, Jiang Miao thought he was feeling lost, so he advised: "Don't worry, if there is really something hidden in this matter, it will definitely be found out. Maybe your grandmother will figure it out one day and tell you about it."
Pei Che smiled and said, "You're right. I was just thinking that since my grandmother has a grudge against my second uncle and the others, she must have seen or heard something. Instead of investigating what happened a year ago, it would be better to send someone to keep an eye on them now and see if we can find the reason from them."
"Let's do this," Jiang Miao said excitedly, "If they really have problems, they will be unable to hide their true colors. The people you send out should be more secretive and not be discovered by them."
Jiang Miao recalled what Pei Che had said before, that the emperor had sent someone to watch them. When they found out they were being watched, they started to act. It was conceivable that if they felt someone was watching them, they would definitely hide their true nature.
"Did you hear Master Jiang's order?" Pei Che suddenly spoke towards the window, startling Jiang Miao. Before he could come to his senses, he saw a man in black clothes, black pants and a black mask climbing in through the window, then clasped his hands in a salute and said, "I obey your order!"
Pei Che waved his hand and asked the people to go back. After he left, Jiang Miao's eyes widened. He looked at Pei Che and then out the window. He even leaned out to look around, as if looking for the hiding place of the man just now. Pei Che was amused by his actions and said, "Their hiding places are difficult for ordinary people to find. Even I often fail to notice their existence."
Jiang Miao was surprised: "Aren't they more powerful than the people sent by the emperor? You spotted the people they sent last time!"
Pei Che shook his head and said, "The people sent by the emperor to follow us must not be the most powerful among them. After all, in their eyes, we are all ordinary people, so there is no need to send experts over."
"So that's how it is," Jiang Miao suddenly realized, "I thought so. If the people sent by the emperor were so weak, the palace would be riddled with people."
At this moment, there was no need for them to be too cautious when talking to each other, but Pei Che still reminded Jiang Miao that these words could not be mentioned to outsiders.
Jiang Miao looked at Pei Che with an expression that said, "Am I mentally retarded? How could I not have this sense of propriety? Even in front of Xiao Shitou and Mu'er, I never dared to say anything nonsense."
His tone was not good, but Pei Che heard a bit of sweetness in it. What A Miao meant was that he was the only person he trusted the most!
Jiang Miao didn't understand why Pei Che suddenly laughed so charmingly. He curled his lips and suddenly thought of a question that had been bothering him for a long time: "A Che, your subordinate wears black clothes and black pants at night so he is inconspicuous, so what does he wear during the day? Is he also dressed in black?"
In the TV shows I watched before, the killers were afraid that others would not know their identities, so they often wore black and committed crimes in broad daylight. Jiang Miao couldn't understand why. Is this their standard? Of course, this should be a trick used by TV shows to fool people, but Jiang Miao still wanted to know what they would do in real life.
Pei Che was stunned by his question: "During the day... Wear all black?" Is he afraid that he won't be eye-catching enough
"If not, then what are you wearing, white?"
"White?" Pei Che was even more puzzled. "If it wasn't during the mourning period, who would wear all white? Naturally, they wouldn't wear all black during the day. Do you know what the most important thing is to become an excellent spy?"
"Perseverance? Determination? Endurance?" Jiang Miao asked tentatively.
Jiang Miao understood: "That's right. A person meets many people every day. No one can remember the face of a stranger without any characteristics."
Jiang Miao thought that it seemed that neither he nor Pei Che could become an excellent spy because they both looked impressive.
Having made up his mind, Pei Che immediately assigned a group of people to keep an eye on his uncle and aunt, and told them to report any situation as soon as they came.
This was obviously a protracted battle. Even when the results of the provincial examination were about to be posted on the wall, Pei Che had not received any useful information.
But intelligence is not the most important thing at the moment, the results of the provincial examination are. Once you pass the provincial examination, you will be a Juren. Juren have the qualifications to be appointed as an official. For ordinary people, this appointment may be a long wait. But for the children of aristocratic families, it is easy. Some of them will not participate in the joint examination, but will be directly appointed as an official by their elders, and then transferred to a certain area outside Liangjing. First serve as a county magistrate for two or three years to make some achievements. As long as nothing major happens during the term of office, promotion is guaranteed.
As a child of an aristocratic family, Pei Che was naturally well aware of this routine. He had originally planned to keep taking exams, but now he was eager to establish his career, and the idea of becoming an official came to his mind. He planned to see his ranking in the provincial examination. If he ranked high, he would have a chance to pass the imperial examination, and he would wait until March next year to take another exam. If he ranked low, he would have no hope of passing the imperial examination, and he would not be able to wait another three years.
"Congratulations to Master Pei, Madam! Master Pei ranked eighth in the provincial examination, and I'm here to congratulate you!"
The results of the provincial examination were announced today, and the Imperial College also gave them a day off in advance. In the early morning, Jiang Miao went down the mountain with Pei Che to look at the list with a nervous mood. When they reached the mountain gate, they suddenly heard this sentence.
Jiang Miao looked closely: Wow, there are people outside carrying drums tied with red silk and beating gongs to congratulate the students who passed the exam. Their auspicious words came one after another, and they almost praised Pei Che to the sky.
Fortunately, Jiang Miao had already inquired about it and had prepared some wedding money in advance. He handed a purse with some loose change to the man who struck the gong. The man took it and weighed it, and was instantly satisfied. He said several auspicious words before leaving.
After the first report left, the second and third reports came in. On a day like today, Jiang Miao would not be stingy, and every team that came to report the good news received a gift from him.
After finally calming down, the two of them walked back and met people from the Imperial College who congratulated them. As the saying goes, don't hit a smiling person, so Jiang Miao and Pei Che had to accept the blessing politely and kept smiling the whole time.
Back in their own courtyard, the two were delighted. Jiang Miao stepped forward and hugged Pei Che's waist, looking up with sparkling eyes, and said, "You are amazing. There are so many people in Liangjing who took the provincial examination, and you actually ranked eighth!"
When Jiang Miao came up to him, Pei Che naturally hugged his waist and said, "Only eighth, not really at the top."
"It's only the eighth, you are getting cocky!" Jiang Miao said, "You need to report this news as soon as possible."
Pei Che said: "Don't worry, Grandmother will definitely send someone to wait under the list. I'm afraid she will know the result before us."
Jiang Miao nodded, and thinking of Pei Che's previous decision, he hurriedly asked: "You ranked eighth in the provincial examination, will you still take part in the imperial examination?"
Pei Che said firmly: "Of course, I ranked eighth in the provincial examination, so the possibility of failing the imperial examination is very small. I will give it a try, and it will be worth my years of hard study."
(End of this chapter)