Chapter 177 City Streets 77

Chapter 177: Prefectural City Life 77

"Boss Liu, what's the occasion today? You're even giving out 'victory cakes'?"

"Ah, you wouldn't know! Today is the final day of the provincial examination! Boss Liu is giving 'victory cakes' to every customer who makes a purchase! It's to wish the young masters of the household success in their exams!"

"Wonderful! So that's it! I heard the Qin family's young master was the top scholar in the county exam, so he'll surely do well this time too! Boss Liu, rest assured—we're all eagerly awaiting the good news!"

……

Liu Guyu beamed with joy and called for Ping’an to bring out the freshly baked 'victory cakes,' distributing a piece to each customer.

He said with a smile, "I'll take all your kind words! Today is the last day of the examination, so I have to go to the examination compound to pick them up. I'm afraid I'll have to close early today!"

Upon hearing Liu Guyu’s words, the customers all understood.

They said with full comprehension, "Of course! Of course! This is the provincial examination—passing this hurdle makes one a provincial graduate! It's the most important event for the family! Boss Liu, you should hurry along!"

Liu Guyu nodded, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and finally instructed Zhang Yun and his husband, "I'll be off now. The restaurant won't be taking new customers today. Once the diners here are finished, you can clean up and close."

Zhang Yun, who had studied a bit in his youth and could read and write, understood the importance of the exams and quickly replied, "We understand, employer! You should go!"

Tao Yu also nodded repeatedly.

Ping’an, being the closest to Liu Guyu, tugged at his arm and said, "Master, hurry along! But make sure to come to the shop early tomorrow and tell us the good news quickly!"

Tao Yu glared at the young man and lightly chided him, "Ping’an! The results aren't out yet—good news will have to wait a while!"

Listen to that—since when does a disciple tell his master to come early? That's quite audacious!

Liu Guyu wasn’t angry. He knew they were all concerned about Qin Rongshi’s exam results and nodded with a smile, "Alright, alright, I'll come early tomorrow!"

After giving his instructions, he untied his apron and hurried off toward the examination compound.

The exam hadn’t ended yet, and the gates of the examination compound were still tightly shut. But Liu Guyu arrived a bit late, and the area outside was already packed with people, crowded to the point of being impassable. Some families, young and old, were waiting at the entrance, while wealthy households had hired sedan chairs and were waiting under an old tree by the door.

"Guyu! Over here!"

"Brother Liu! Brother Liu! We're here!"

It was the voices of Cui Lanfang and Qin Banban.

Liu Guyu followed the sound and spotted Qin Banban jumping up and waving to him through the crowd. He pushed his way through the throng to reach them.

He saw that Cui Lanfang and her daughter were there, and even Xie Baozhu and his attendant Feicui were present.

Cui Lanfang and Qin Banban were both dressed in red. Banban, being a young girl, looked natural in bright colors, but Cui Lanfang usually wore plain or dark shades. This was the first time Liu Guyu had seen her in such a vibrant hue.

Liu Guyu asked curiously, "Mother! Why are you all wearing red today?"

Cui Lanfang smiled sheepishly and said, embarrassed, "It's all this girl's idea! She said red is festive and might bring her brother some luck—maybe he'll pass with flying colors!"

Liu Guyu chuckled and said, "Why didn't you tell me? I would've worn red too if I'd known!"

Cui Lanfang replied, "No matter, no matter! Our Guyu is already a lucky charm—just standing here brightens the place! No need for external help!"

Hearing this, Liu Guyu chuckled again.

On the other side, the attendant Feicui was frowning anxiously at his master.

"Master... stop pinching my arm! If you're nervous, pinch your own arm! You're going to bruise me!"

Xie Baozhu, who only heard the word "bruise," pinched even harder.

"Passed?! That's great, that's great!"

Feicui: "..."

After waiting for another fifteen minutes, they heard the bronze bell ring inside the examination compound, followed by the faint sound of officials shouting.

"The exam has ended!"

Soon, noises emerged from inside—the rustling footsteps of the examinees leaving.

As the examination compound stirred, the crowd outside also surged forward, pushing and shoving.

The gates of the examination compound swung open, and the examinees filed out.

"My son! My son, over here!"

"Why are there so many people? Where's our Guangzong? I can't see him!"

"It's over... it's all over. I'm sure I failed again this time!"

"After the recent floods, I thought they'd test current affairs. I specifically studied flood control policies from past dynasties! But they didn't test it! All that preparation wasted!"

"You fool! The exam questions are prepared in advance—they were finalized early this year! It wasn't even raining then!"

……

Amid the sea of people and the clamor, Liu Guyu and the others waited for a while until the crowd gradually thinned. Then they saw Qin Rongshi supporting Li Anyuan as they emerged.

Yes, he was supporting Li Anyuan as they came out.

Xie Baozhu exclaimed in shock and, without caring about the results, rushed forward, urgently asking, "Li Anyuan! What happened? Why are you being helped out?!"

After nine days and six nights of exams, Qin Rongshi was only slightly disheveled but still spirited.

Li Anyuan, on the other hand, looked haggard, pale, and listless, as if a demon had drained his vitality.

Liu Guyu and the others gathered around, concerned. "What happened? How did the exam turn out like this?"

They had heard before that exams were exhausting, and some weaker candidates even had to be carried out midway. But Li Anyuan was from a farming family. Though not as robust as Xie Baozhu, he had worked in the fields for years and had a strong constitution. How could he end up like this?

Hearing their questions, Qin Rongshi frowned, unsure how to explain.

Finally, Li Anyuan weakly raised his hand and waved it, leaning on Xie Baozhu’s shoulder as if he were about to vomit. After dry heaving twice, he replied, "Unlucky... so unlucky... Why did I have to be assigned the 'latrine cell' this time?"

The "latrine cell," as the name suggests, was the examination cell next to the latrine. The smell... was unbearable.

Li Anyuan had been unlucky enough to be assigned the cell right next to the latrine. After sitting there for nine days, he reeked so badly his own scent had changed. Being next to that place, he had no appetite and felt nauseated all the time, so he ate very little. After just nine days, he had lost weight and looked as if he had endured severe torture.

Fortunately, it was November. If the exam had been held in August as originally scheduled, when temperatures were still high, the smell would have been worse, and he would have had to contend with mosquitoes and flies.

Upon hearing Li Anyuan’s answer, Xie Baozhu stammered in disbelief, taking a moment to process it.

He wanted to pat Li Anyuan’s shoulder in comfort but, seeing how weak he was, withdrew his hand and sighed, "Ah, unlucky, truly unlucky. How did you end up with such a cell!"

Cui Lanfang, as the elder, took one look and quickly said, "Hurry and help him back to rest. Never mind anything else—look at him, his face is pale, and he's lost weight!"

They'd originally thought about hitting up a restaurant for a celebratory meal, but seeing Li Anyuan looking like that, he clearly wasn't up for eating, so they had to reschedule for another time.

Xie Baozhu nodded along, turned around, and called out for Feicui to fetch a boat from the nearby small ferry. The two of them then helped Li Anyuan get going first.

Afterward, Liu Guyu and the others headed home too.

The first thing Qin Rongshi did upon arriving home was to take a bath. Although he hadn’t been as unlucky as Li Anyuan, staying in the examination cell for so long had left him feeling like he'd soaked up all sorts of nasty smells. He even refused to let Liu Guyu come near him, afraid that Liu Guyu might get a whiff of something funky.

But Liu Guyu loved messing with him on purpose. The more Qin Rongshi resisted, the closer Liu Guyu crowded in, making Qin Rongshi so antsy that he grabbed clean clothes and bolted for the bathhouse, thinking Liu Guyu wouldn’t dare follow him inside.

He sighed, took off his clothes, and began scrubbing himself raw, as if trying to wash off a layer of skin. His neck was all red from scrubbing.

By the time Qin Rongshi finished bathing, dressed, and stepped out of the shed, he was still focused on tying his sash and didn’t notice Liu Guyu crouched outside waiting.

“Finished bathing?!”

Qin Rongshi: “...”

Qin Rongshi jumped, looked up to see Liu Guyu leaning in, his lips brushing against Qin Rongshi’s neck. Though close, Liu Guyu didn’t press further, only taking a sniff.

“Green tea and licorice scent—you secretly used my soap!”

Qin Rongshi: “...”

He heard footsteps from the nearby kitchen, unsure whether it was his mother or Banban coming out.

His ears turned a little pink as he pushed Liu Guyu away with two fingers, his lips parting slightly as he muttered: “Shameless.”

Liu Guyu shot back, “You’re the one who secretly used my stuff! If you’re not ashamed, why should I be?”

Then, spotting the red spot on Qin Rongshi’s neck, he mistakenly thought it was an allergic reaction to the new soap he’d bought. He leaned in again, going, “Hey! Why is your neck so red? Does it itch?”

Just as he finished speaking, Cui Lanfang’s voice called from the kitchen.

“Erlang! Finished bathing? Guyu made you fried rice. Hurry up before it gets cold!”

Hearing this, Qin Rongshi quickly grabbed Liu Guyu’s wandering hand, which had already reached for his neck and was about to slip into his collar, and pulled him into the kitchen.

Cui Lanfang brought out the fried rice and ladled a bowl of tangerine peel and red bean soup. Seeing the two enter, she hustled them, “Quick, quick, eat up! You couldn’t get anything good to eat in the exam compound—just nothing but dry buns and plain steamed bread.”

As with the previous exams, no one asked Qin Rongshi how he had performed, focusing instead on urging him to eat.

A steaming bowl of egg fried rice, mixed with diced cured sausage, stir-fried with soy sauce and salt. The eggs were fried to a golden crisp, coating the grains of rice with a savory, fragrant flavor. Each grain stood distinct, fried to a rich soy-colored hue, and sprinkled generously with scallions before serving, releasing their aromatic scent. The vibrant green scallions added a pop of color, making the dish a feast for the senses.

After enjoying a satisfying bowl of fried rice and red bean soup, Qin Rongshi shared stories from the exam hall, leaving his family totally captivated.

“One examinee, rushing to finish his paper overnight, accidentally knocked over his candle and burned his exam papers… With nothing to submit, the disappointment was too much, and he tried to hang himself with his belt in the cell. Luckily, the patrolling officers found him in time and carried him out for treatment.”

“Then there was the candidate in the cell next to mine. He bought water provided in the exam hall but didn’t realize it was either contaminated or too cold. After drinking it, he got terrible stomach cramps, sweating and turning pale… He was also carried out before finishing the exam.”

The whole family listened intently, with Cui Lanfang piping up from time to time.

“Oh dear!”

“Why'd he go that far?”

“If it doesn’t work out this time, there's always next time!”

“Oh no, stomach cramps?”

“How unlucky!”

“Good thing we brought our own water and didn’t have to buy any from the exam hall!”

…

They talked well into the night until Cui Lanfang noticed how late it had gotten and stood up, pulling Banban with her.

“Oh, it’s getting late! Erlang, you’ve been exhausted for days. You should rest early. Let’s call it a night and continue tomorrow!”

With that, the mother and daughter left the kitchen, washed up, and returned to their rooms.

Liu Guyu also got up to leave but was stopped by Qin Rongshi as he stood up.

“Wait a moment. I have something for you.”

Qin Rongshi looked up at Liu Guyu, a soft, flowing light shimmering in his eyes.