"Lu An, don't talk nonsense about this. If you lose, you will lose. There is no need to make other excuses, but!" Liu Xingnan clenched his fists and encouraged himself: "The results in the provincial examination are not as good as his, I will definitely prove myself in the provincial examination!"
"Then... Young Master, do you want the money we gave you for the boat trip to come back?" Lu An asked. After being reminded like this, Liu Xingnan remembered that the money had not been refunded, so he supported the side of the boat and shouted at the top of his voice to the small passenger boat: "Shipman, since we have not reached our destination, please pay me back my boat money quickly!" But the boatman said three times: He tied up the passenger boat twice, climbed ashore quickly, and ran away without looking back, obviously not wanting his money back.
"Hey! Pay me back! Pay me back! That's my travel expenses to Beijing!" The more Liu Xingnan shouted, the faster the boatman ran.
"Brother Chen, could you please bring the boat closer to the shore and I'll go get the money back!" Liu Xingnan looked at Song Che eagerly.
Song Che seemed to remember that he heard their conversation earlier and mentioned that the shipping fee was half a tael of silver. Is it really unnecessary to dock for half a tael of silver?
Song Che smiled and said: "By the time the boat docked, he would have run away long ago." Liu Xingnan gritted his teeth and thanked him, then turned to shout at the boatman who had disappeared: "I tell you! I hold a grudge! Wait!" I will be the top scholar in high school and I will not spare you!" The boatman who ran away replied: "If you, a poor scholar like you, can be the top scholar in high school, then I will become the richest man in the south of the Yangtze River!"
"Ahhh..." Liu Xingnan was so angry that he stamped his feet and went crazy. Song Che looked at the crazy man in front of him and couldn't help but wonder in his heart, can such a character really win the Asian championship?
"Gurgling..." A stomach growled, making the atmosphere suddenly awkward. Liu Xingnan held his belly, and even with his head lowered, he could still see his flushed face. He shook his head and sighed: "It's really a leak in the house and it's raining again. I'm so ashamed..."
"We are about to have dinner. Brother Liu, if you don't mind, would you like to come too?" Song Che asked with a smile. Liu Xingnan raised his head and opened his eyes wide, but first declined: "I am deeply grateful to you for being able to share the ride with Brother Chen. How can I be so kind as to sit with you again?"
"It's just two more pairs of chopsticks. Let's go. It's cold at night and the food will cool down quickly." Song Che invited them warmly and asked them to go to the cabin.
"If that's the case, I would be disrespectful... Hey, Brother Chen, your caravan looks so impressive. You must be a famous wealthy businessman in the south of the Yangtze River, right?"
"Me? I'm just a peddler and a pawn, traveling here and there just to make a living. I can't compare to Brother Liu and you literati..."
"Hehe... Don't worry, if I am the top pick in high school in the future, I will return to Jiangnan to take up a job. Then I will give you a hand and make you the big boss!"
"Okay, I'll wait for you!"... In the next few days, Song Che tried not to disturb
The "college entrance examination student" was reviewing, and a separate cabin was specially arranged for him. People on the ship were also told not to make loud noises if they had nothing to do, and to have three meals a day on time.
Whether in modern times or in ancient times, reading is a shortcut to escape poverty. Anyone who has studied hard for ten years in a cold window and has this perseverance deserves to be treated kindly.
On the morning of the seventh day of February, the merchant ship arrived in Jinling. The business trip this time was not in a hurry, and there was a lot of goods to be hauled. Song Che planned to rest in Jinling for two days, and by the way, he would bring some of the things he was thinking about to Lingzhi and Zhao Qin.
"Brother Liu, you study so hard, I'll treat you to the most delicious salted duck in the whole capital." How can you not eat duck when you arrive in Jinling?
But Liu Xingnan hurriedly declined: "I have been taken care of by Brother Chen these days for food and drink. I am really embarrassed to receive any more favors."
"No problem, no problem, just think of it as advance congratulations to Brother Liu for being named to the gold list." Song Che's hospitality was hard to refuse, and Liu Xingnan did not refuse. The group left the pier and headed to Suyunzhai.
Song Che specially put on a mask. Since the scene at Suyunzhai last time, he has become a public figure. There must be a lot of diners at this midday, so he can hide his true appearance and be less clinging to him.
"Brother Chen, why are you wearing a mask?"
"To be honest, I have some enemies in Jinling. There are so many people on the street that I'm afraid of being recognized." Song Che explained casually.
Liu Xingnan nodded,
"That's right. There are dignitaries everywhere under the emperor's feet. If we can't afford to offend him, we should hide away." During the chat, Su Yunzhai arrived.
It's only been a few months since we last met. The restaurant has actually expanded several times. There's an endless stream of diners entering the restaurant, and the business is booming.
There is a large archway standing in front of Suyunzhai. Two colored balls are hung on the left and right sides of the archway. A long red couplet hangs under the ball. A large group of students in Confucian robes gather in front of the archway. They don’t know what to exchange. Look. It seems very hot.
"Hey, classmates, are you all here to take the imperial examination and provincial examination this year?" Liu Xingnan asked a Confucian scholar.
The Confucian scholar looked up and down at this shabby scholar who suddenly appeared, and said casually: "Yes, we all are."
"What are you looking at? So lively?"
"Betting head. Hey, do you see these two lines are red? The boss of Suyunzhai put them up so that we candidates can compare the pairs. The defender will make the upper couplet, and the attacker will make the lower couplet. If the attack is successful, he will become the defender, and another uplink will be created for others to fight against; as long as the defender's uplink is still on the list, during this period, the defender will have room and board in Suyunzhai. All are included in the package and will be selected into the ‘Wall of Top Picks’ for public betting.”
"Oh, that's it! What is the 'No. 1 Scholar Wall'?" Liu Xingnan asked again.
"Why are you asking so much? Is it possible that you can still be on the list? Hmm..." The Confucian scholar rolled his eyes, rolled up his sleeves and left.
Liu Xingnan turned around and smiled at Song Che: "Brother Chen, please wait for me for a moment. After I succeed in the attack, I will treat you to dinner!" Song Che nodded and said ok, he really wanted to see these.
How do "Daliang College Entrance Examination Students" struggle with literature? Liu Xingnan was not tall, so he could only squeeze forward as hard as he could. When he reached the archway, he looked up at the couplet and whispered softly: "The strong feelings are especially strong. I ride on the crane and fly the eagle. I have read thousands of ancient and modern poems, and I have the treasures in my heart." Heart to heart!"
"What a majestic first couplet and such elegant brushwork. I wonder which classmate this defender is?" Liu Xingnan looked back at the Confucian scholars.
Someone said: "The favorite is this year's No. 1 Scholar, known as the most talented man in Jiangnan, Prince Zhipeng of Ningguofu!"
"Young Master Wang is indeed a great talent. Even the top scholar in the past might not be able to get such an exquisite couplet right!"
"Yes, this has been on the list for almost a month. If I look at it, no one will be able to get it right!"
"Bah! Even our young master dares to call himself 'the most talented man in Jiangnan'. Why should Wang Zhipeng do it?" Lu An, the little book boy, sneered.
For a moment, the eyes of all the Confucian scholars turned to Liu Xingnan.
"What a loud tone. It sounds like this brother is confident that he can guess the second line?"
"Who doesn't know how to brag? The truth comes from the pen! If you are really capable, you can also open our eyes!" Most of the Confucian scholars had a mocking tone.
"What's so difficult about this? I can do it at your fingertips!" Liu Xingnan strode to the desk, folded his sleeves and started writing. But when he wanted to write, he found that he was not tall enough.
"Hahaha... You can't even reach the couplet, how can you deal with the couple?" The Confucian scholars sneered again.
The little book boy Lu An immediately lay down on the ground, arched his back and shouted: "Master, I will serve as a step stool for you, you step on me!"
