The Lucky Farmgirl-Chapter 1939 - 1914: It’s Different

When Patriarch Xia saw this, he immediately instructed his sons and the young men of the clan to go help. These past two days, Manbao and the others have indeed participated in poetry and literary gatherings, and it’s said they were very well-received. Even the teacher who used to teach Wulang and Qilang praised them for their extensive knowledge.

At this moment, Patriarch Xia just wanted to resolve the matter as soon as possible and avoid any further trouble.

However, when Bai Shan and the other two returned to the inn, they didn’t feel as triumphant as Patriarch Xia imagined. Instead, they each went to their rooms and collapsed onto their beds, not moving.

They were utterly exhausted!

Participating in the literary gatherings required writing essays and dealing with challenges from various people on papers, on doctrines...

Participating in poetry gatherings also required composing poems and sometimes even literary duels...

Normally, it was just them amusing themselves, bickering with each other, but suddenly, they realized the wealth of knowledge out there. Of course, if it were one-on-one, they wouldn’t be intimidated.

But they were up against a large group.

That large group included not only students from the prefecture school but also academic officials and scholars. And it extended beyond to include students and literati from various counties attending the gatherings...

Who knows what books they had read in private with so many questions, out of ten, three or four they couldn’t answer, which was terribly embarrassing.

To avoid being extremely embarrassed, the three of them could only record the questions they couldn’t answer and take them back to the inn. First, they asked their teacher; if the teacher knew, he would tell them. If not, he would let them search on their own, many times just having a vague impression.

Where could the three of them find the answers?

Of course, it was the bookstores.

But the bookstores had very few books, so in the end, they had to borrow books from County Magistrate Zhai. They were so busy these past two days that they completely forgot about Xia Yi moving house.

They forgot, but Old Zhou and the others didn’t forget. They had been sneakily watching Songhua Alley these past two days.

Manbao lay on the bed, motionless, with a blank expression on her face. When Ms. Qian opened the door and saw her, she shook her head, put the basin on the rack, and went to pat her, "Get up and wash your face and hands. I brought hot water for you."

Manbao dully replied, "I don’t want to wash with hot water; I want to wash with cold water, or ice water would be best."

"Girls should avoid cold things," Ms. Qian pulled her up and said, "Freshen up first, I have something to tell you."

Manbao got up to wash, while Ms. Qian sat by the bed folding clothes, "Today, Xia Yi’s family started moving things. Your eldest brother and Fifth Brother quietly went to check it out. By tomorrow, they should be almost done. Your father and I think they’ll move everything out."

She sighed and said, "They’ve used those things for over a decade. I don’t really want to keep them, so we need to replace the beds, tables, chairs, and benches in the house..."

Manbao raised her damp little face from the basin and blankly asked, "Do we still need to furnish this house?"

Ms. Qian glared at her, saying, "Of course, we need to furnish it. Not only furnish it, but we also need someone to watch over it. Otherwise, we should rent it out. A house that’s not lived in will deteriorate."

She said, "In the future, during festivals, especially Tomb-Sweeping Day and Double Ninth, you need to come back to at least one of them for ancestor worship. Your grandparents and great-grandparents need you to pay respects. Even though your father and I won’t change your surname, you still need to fulfill your filial duties."

Manbao scratched her head and obediently agreed.

Seeing her weary face, Ms. Qian asked with concern, "These two days, you’ve been out early and back late. Are the students in Shangzhou more formidable than those in the capital?"

Manbao hung her head and said, "Not really, but in the capital, everyone discusses together. During literary gatherings, because we’re young, seldom does anyone set questions to trouble us. But in Shangzhou, because of our high status and background from Chongwen Pavilion, and since Bai Shan and Bai Erlang have been at the Imperial Academy, not only students but academic officials and scholars like to test us with questions."

Mainly, everyone wants to know the level of the Imperial Academy and Chongwen Pavilion in the capital. With an equal number of people, Zhou Man and the others naturally aren’t afraid, but not now.

Ms. Qian furrowed her brow and asked, "Are they making things difficult for you?"

Manbao shook her head and sighed, "The teacher says it’s because they like and admire us."

So in order to live up to that admiration, they could only stay up late pondering and searching for answers.

Manbao felt like crying.

As Mr. Zhuang said, "You have lived in praise for the past year, it’s time to realize there’s always someone better out there."

So the three discovered that, indeed, there were others even more knowledgeable. Where did they read so many books and know so many questions?

At that moment, County Magistrate Zhai, holding his bowl and chopsticks, was staring blankly at his eldest son eating across from him.

Madam Zhai picked a piece of meat for him and couldn’t help but ask, "Why is the master staring at Dalang?"

County Magistrate Zhai snapped back to reality, looked at the food in his bowl, and shook his head, "I’m just seeing where my son falls short."

Madam Zhai: "...Did you figure it out?"

County Magistrate Zhai nodded, "Can’t tell from the outside, so I’m guessing it’s a deficiency in the brain matter. Otherwise, how could he be so far behind when they’re all reading the same?"

Zhai Dalang couldn’t eat anymore. He raised his head from the bowl and said, "Father, are you going to praise Bai Shan and the others again? I’ve practically grown calluses in my ears these past two days from hearing it."

County Magistrate Zhai shook his head, "Why should I praise them? I’ve already come to terms with the fact that you are far inferior to them."

Zhai Dalang’s face showed some defiance.

County Magistrate Zhai said, "Yesterday afternoon, they borrowed two books from me and returned them early the next morning. By the time they came to my study to find books, you were still washing up. They had read the books and copied a lot of things for the literary gathering, and you were only then dressing up to go with the servants. Did you read a page of a book that day?"

County Magistrate Zhai shook his head, "Can’t compare, can’t match up; I made the comparison mistake to begin with."

Zhai Dalang stiffened, speechless.

Madam Zhai poked him on the head, "Get up early tomorrow to study. Every day getting you up is like waking the dead. Can’t you apply yourself a bit more?"

Sitting nearby, Zhai Erlang and Little Sister Zhai immediately lowered their heads to eat quickly, eager to leave the battlefield.

Zhai Dalang agreed readily, but the next day, he still couldn’t get up early. By the time a servant reluctantly dragged him out of bed, Bai Shan and the others had already come to borrow books. It was said that this time, they borrowed last year’s entrance exam papers from the Shangzhou prefecture school. Yesterday, someone set a question based on a two-year-old exam, which stumped them.

When Zhai Dalang heard the servants say they were all in the study copying exam papers, he couldn’t help but collapse back onto the bed, wrinkling the clothes he had just put on, and furiously said, "Do they not sleep?"

He angrily said, "No wonder they’re so short; how can they grow tall without enough sleep?"

The servant: ...Eldest Young Master, you’re one or two years older than them, you know.

As the servant dressed Zhai Dalang again, he advised, "Eldest Young Master, you’re about to be engaged. It’s better to be diligent these days."