The next day.
Early in the morning, Jing Heguang left in a carriage.
Wang Sixing didn’t understand. He frowned and asked: “Heguang, it was a good time to get acquainted with the fellow scholars these days. Why do you have to go back? Is studying better than this one or two days?”
Jing Heguang raised the carriage curtain and looked at him: “Sixing, I’m not alone. You have your business to stay, and I have mine to go back. There is nothing right or wrong, it’s just a personal choice. In my heart, going home sooner is more important.”
After hearing this, Wang Sixing curled his lips and said: “You are just thinking about brother-in-law. You value love over friends. You should leave quickly!”
Jing Heguang smiled and waved his hand, then said to the driver in front: “Let’s go.”
“Okay, sir Jieyuan, sit down!”
As the sun comes out, those who have gone out are more eager to return home.
When the sun climbed higher, Jing Xiuran led people to the inn.
Jing Xiuran changed into more ‘rich’ clothes and put his hands on the counter: “Shopkeeper, is sir jieyuan awake yet?”
The shopkeeper replied: “sir jieyuan left early in the morning.”
Jing Xiuran was dumbfounded. The person actually left! He plans to find Jing Heguang to deepen their friendship.
“Why did he leave? He didn’t even say a word to me!” Jing Xiuran slapped the counter hard, a little angry.
He thought about it again. In the middle of their chat yesterday, Jing Heguang was called away by the magistrate. He probably didn’t have the chance to explain to him.
He left early last night and didn’t wait for Jing Heguang.
Jing Xiuran turned to the housekeeper behind him with a dark look on his face and said reproachfully: “It’s all your fault for asking me to go back and look at the account books. What’s there to see? Look how good it is now, I don’t even know he’s gone!”
Jing Da lowered his head, didn’t dare to reply to this little ancestor.
Jing Da is an old man from the Jing family. He was a long-term worker who was bought from the beginning to help with the work in the fields.
Later, when the Jing family became rich, he became the housekeeper because he was honest, steady, and an old man.
Jing Xiuran was in a bad mood. After leaving the inn, he kept mumbling as he walked: “I told people that I can bring sir jieyuan there, now they must think I’m bragging!”
When they got to the place, Jing Xiuran’s friends really thought he was bragging.
Jing Xiuran vowed: “There’s nothing to brag about. I had a very lively chat with sir jieyuan last night. Many people saw it! Besides me, the magistrate also chatted with sir jieyuan for a long time.”
Jing Xiuran was afraid that they wouldn’t believe it, so he added: “Sr Jieyuan is very handsome. I was stunned at first! I also know that sir jieyuan is only twenty this year. None of you know this, right?”
Those young masters each hugged a beauty and were doing nonsense things while Jing Da and the servants were sitting in the next room waiting.
Next door.
Jing Da listened to Jing Xiuran’s mention of a very handsome person. He thought for a while, then finally remembered a person who meets the condition of being able to make people stunned.
The man’s name was Jing Yangbing. He died almost seventeen years ago. Jing Da couldn’t remember the exact number of years.
However, Jing Da was very impressed by Jing Yangbing.
Jing Yangbing is extremely handsome and very talented in business. He has made a fortune at such a young age.
The other party also has a son, whose nickname is Dabao. There is only one word difference between Jing Da and Jing Dabao. Jing Da was also envious at the time that the baby named Jing Dabao would re-enter the womb.
But what happened next made Jing Da not envious anymore.
Jing Yangbing died early, then the orphans and widowers were bullied until one died and the other was not seen for many years.
The baby named Dabao seems to be twenty this year. At the same age, someone became a jieyuan. He wonders if that baby is still alive?
Jing Da thought about the baby, then thought about the woman’s death, and then thought about other things. His mouth suddenly closed tighter, like a clam that was stimulated and closed its shell tightly.
***
However, it doesn’t matter how eager Jing Hehuang is, the road is still far even if they hurry up.
On the contrary, the official messenger who announced the good news arrived at the county ahead of Jing Heguang because he set out a few days in advance and traveled on horseback!
Zhang Xingyu was wielding the machete handed down from his father, chopping pig bones, when he heard the sound of gongs and drums.
Zhang Xingyu held the machete and looked out.
He saw a man wearing an official uniform riding a horse beating gongs and drums on the street.
As soon as Zhang Xingyu showed up, the villagers gathered around the horse and pointed him out to the official.
“That’s him! That’s jieyuan’s husband!”
Zhang Xingyu was a little puzzled.
His first reaction was: Where is Jieyuan’s husband?
However, when he saw the horse stop in front of his shop, Zhang Xingyu finally realized that his family, Jing Heguang, had also gone to take the provincial examination!
The only scholar nearby is Jing Heguang, so naturally Jing Heguang may get first place…
Therefore, he is Jieyuan’s husband!
By the time Zhang Xingyu came to his senses, the official who announced the good news had already walked to the shop carrying gongs and drums.
The official hung the gong and drum on his waist, took out the good news from his arms and handed it to Zhang Xingyu: “Jieyuan’s husband, Jing Heguang, Jing jieyuan, won first place in the provincial examination! This is good news from the official government. Sir Jieyuan’s future is limitless. Congratulations!”
Zhang Xingyu was about to take it, but he saw that he was holding a machete in his hand and hadn’t released it yet!
Zhang Xingyu quickly put down the machete in his hand, wiped his hands on the clean handkerchief beside him, then took the good news and looked at it happily.
This good news looks…really like a letter.
Seeing that Zhang Xingyu was still looking at it, the person next to him impatiently urged: “Xing’ger, open the good news quickly!”
“Yes, open it and let us see what it looks like inside!”
“Good news, good news letters must be opened!
Zhang Xingyu smiled stupidly and said: “I was so happy that I forgot to open it, I will open it now.”
Zhang Xingyu opened the letter, then looked at the three words ‘Jing Heguang’ inside and smiled stupidly.
After looking again, Zhang Xingyu found the word ‘juren’.
Jing Heguang taught him these words before he left.
After Jing Heguang left, Zhang Xingyu, apart from killing pigs and selling pork for others, would occasionally go out to hunt, then would read out the words Jing Heguang taught when he had nothing to do.
Looking at those words, Zhang Xingyu missed Jing Heguang even more! So he wanted to memorize all the words even more. He wanted Jing Heguang to praise him for recognizing the characters when Jing Heguang came back.
He didn’t expect that the words he had memorized would come in handy before he got here.
Thinking of Jing Heguang, Zhang Xingyu suppressed the happiness in his heart, and while giving the official a gift, he asked: “Sir, do you know when Heguang will come back? He told me before that he would come back after seeing the list.”
The official put the money in his pocket and was quite happy.
He answered: “Jing Jieyuan was invited by master Xue Zhang to the Luming Banquet. Generally, after attending the Luming Banquet, he would also take time to become familiar with the other candidates; counting my speed, if Jieyuan is fast, he’ll be home in four or five days, if it’s slow, he’ll be home in six or seven days.”
After delivering the good news and taking the money, the official rode to the government office to report the message, leaving Zhang Xingyu surrounded by his neighbors.
Everyone gathered around Zhang Xingyu, they were even more excited than Zhang Xingyu.
“Xing’ger! Your family, Heguang, is too promising, right?! The last time our county was elected was seven or eight years ago.”
“Xing’ger! That’s incredible. Your father has really good vision. There are so many children but he picked Heguang!”
“I think it’s all thanks to Xing’ger and Butcher Zhang who are good people, otherwise his son-in-law wouldn’t be able to take the imperial examination. Kindness will be rewarded!”
…
To put it simply, everyone knew that Jing Heguang was good at studying and became a xiucai at a young age.
But everyone didn’t know that Jing Heguang was so powerful. He was a xiucai with his front foot, and then became a juren with his back foot!
There hasn’t been a jieyuan in the county for a few years now, but it doesn’t affect everyone’s knowledge. If a xiucai succeeds in the examination, he will become a juren, and his identity and social status will rise rapidly!
What’s more, a twenty-year-old Juren is the most outstanding young person in any city, let alone a small place like their county.
Not long after the official left, the county magistrate also came to congratulate Zhang Xingyu in person.
The magistrate is the boss of the city, and the county magistrate is the boss of the county. When the boss takes action, the whole county becomes a sensation.
As a result, everyone in the county knew that the husband of Xing’ger, the pork shop owner, got first place in the exam!
***
However, while everyone was talking about it, Zhang Xingyu was happy but also worried.
After the surprise, Zhang Xingyu thought of Jing Heguang’s life experience. He was worried that Jing Heguang would go to seek revenge now.
The enemy sounds vicious and they also seem to be very powerful. Zhang Xingyu also wanted Jing Heguang to get revenge, but he was also afraid that Jing Heguang would be harmed.
Zhang Xingyu was worried for two days so he didn’t sleep well at night. He turned around and packed up the remaining half of the pork and ran to the gate of the county town to set up a stall while waiting for Jing Heguang.
Like this, as soon as Jing Heguang comes back, he will see him immediately!
There is also a lot of traffic at the city gate, so he wasn’t worried about business being hard.
While Zhang Xingyu was doing business, he counted on his fingers when Jing Heguang would come back.
The official who announced the good news has been gone for two days. If Jing Heguang were late, there’s still four or five days, but if he was early, there would be two or three days left.
With no business at hand, Zhang Xingyu sat on the bench, holding his chin and staring blankly at the gate of the city waiting for someone.
He was so lost in thought that he didn’t notice that he forgot to wipe his hands, and the oil got on his chin.
Zhang Xingyu murmured: “Two or three days, or four or five days?”
Zhang Xingyu was lost in thought when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
The man said excitedly: “Xing’ger, your husband jieyuan is back!”
Zhang Xingyu suddenly raised his head and looked towards the city gate with burning eyes.
There is a carriage at the city gate, driving in.
When Zhang Xingyu looked over, Jing Heguang on the carriage also saw Zhang Xingyu.
Jing Heguang threw away the book in his hand and jumped out of the carriage!
He ran towards the stall and shouted with a smile: “Xing’ger!”
He missed him so much!
When Zhang Xingyu saw that Jing Heguang was fine, his heart that had been hanging on him for several days suddenly relaxed.
A bright smile appeared on Zhang Xingyu’s face. He ran towards the direction of the carriage: “Heguang!”
Therefore, the people who had never seen Jing Heguang and wanted to admire sir jieyuan first saw sir jieyuan hugging his tall husband and kissing him hard!
T/N:
Value love before friends.
Eng ver. Hoes before bros.
