bullyxtreme Chapter 57 Unexpected Changes (2)
Chapter 57 Unexpected Changes (2)
Time is never kind to anyone, especially in this era. Granny Liao's hair turned gray, and the marks of time crept onto her face. Zhu Zi and Shun Zi started following Lin Zhong with Steward Tao, and they rarely saw each other throughout the year. Xiao Ya had also grown into a young lady and was helping Granny Liao manage the life of everyone in the Lin family.
"Granny, when is Uncle coming back?" Lin Ziping rushed into the courtyard and asked anxiously.
"You're such a grown man, why are you in such a hurry? Drink this medicine while it's hot." Seeing Lin Ziping enter the courtyard, Granny Liao took the medicine from the maid and handed it to him.
Lin Ziping took the bowl and drank it down in one gulp. The familiar taste filled his mouth. He had been taking this medicine every month since he was eight years old without fail for eight years.
Lin Ziping handed the bowl to Xiaoya, glancing enviously at her curvaceous figure and swallowing his envious saliva. Looking at his own flat-chested body, Lin Ziping wondered if he had taken too much medicine.
"Granny, I've been taking this medicine for so long, but I don't feel like it's working," Lin Ziping said. "Besides, I don't think I'm sick at all."
Granny Liao paused in adjusting Lin Ziping's clothes: "Young Master, you can't be willful."
It seems I still have to keep taking the medicine. After listening to Ji Xun's stories of palace secrets, combined with my unique upbringing and the halo effect of time travel, Lin Ziping had imagined that he might be the protagonist of a palace secret history. But after all these years, Lin Zhong has basically left him to his own devices. Apart from making him take medicine, which is a bit strange, Liao Mama has treated him like a protagonist. There was no being chased and falling off a cliff to meet an old man, no hidden master to teach him invincible skills, no heaven-defying luck of finding treasures while taking a dump, and no life-changing adventures like a cheat code. Life has its ups and downs, but most of the time it's been as calm as still water. Sigh, is the so-called time travel just a dream, and all the characters in it are fictional?
"Young Master."
Lin Ziping snapped out of his daze and looked at Granny Liao.
"Master, when you return tomorrow, is there anything important for the young master?" asked Granny Liao.
"Come back tomorrow. I can wait one more day for the prefectural exam," Lin Ziping thought to himself.
"Okay, Granny, tell my uncle I need to see him when he comes back tomorrow."
Granny Liao nodded.
Lin Ziping went to the study and pulled out a stack of bound papers from the bottom, resembling a book. The top page was slightly yellowed, with the words "Lin Ziping" written on it in Chinese characters. Lin Ziping opened it and began to record the day's events. After finishing, he turned to the last page, where the words "Mu Shaoying" were written, though the handwriting was somewhat blurred. Lin Ziping picked up a pen and traced them over. Inside, he wrote down every detail about Mu Shaoying. This was because Lin Ziping was worried about forgetting everything about being Mu Shaoying, so he carefully recalled and wrote it down, frequently reviewing it.
The following evening, Granny Liao said that Lin Zhong had returned. Lin Ziping tidied his clothes and went to Lin Zhong's courtyard.
"Greetings, Uncle." Lin Zi bowed respectfully.
"Ziping's here, please have a seat." Lin Zhong gestured for Lin Ziping to sit down. "What brings you here today?"
Lin Ziping recounted his recent experiences in a roundabout way, including the recent topic of cheating in the imperial examinations, expressing his worries, guilt, eagerness, and anxiety about not participating in the prefectural examinations.
Lin Zhong pondered for a moment and said, "Several years have passed in the blink of an eye. Ziping has grown up. I already know about this and will go to Moshan Academy later."
"Thank you very much, Uncle." Lin Ziping bowed and took his leave, feeling relieved. As long as he got on the good side of Master Cheng, he should be able to handle the prefectural examination as long as he didn't strip naked.
As I walked out of Lin Zhong's courtyard, I ran into Butler Tao. Now, Butler Tao's face also showed the marks of time, his hair was gray, and he looked weathered, but his eyes were still bright and piercing.
"Greetings, young master," Butler Tao greeted.
Seeing that Butler Tao was carrying a tray, Lin Ziping asked, "Is Butler Tao going to see your uncle?"
"Yes, these are the spice shop's recent account books. They're being sent to the master for his review. Did the young master just come out of his study?"
Lin Ziping nodded and changed the subject: "Zhu Zi should be back by now. I'll go find him first."
Butler Tao stepped aside.
"Master, these are the account books for the past few months." Butler Tao handed the account books to Lin Zhong. "Was the young master here just now?"
Lin Zhong took the ledger and began to look through it, replying, "That child wants to take the prefectural examination."
"This, he... he's also going to take the exam?" Butler Tao asked in surprise.
“Sigh, kids grow up and have their own ideas. He asked about the imperial examination cheating case.”
"How did he know? Oh, right, those two young masters from the Ji and Fang families are in the capital. Young Master is on good terms with them, so they must have told him," said Butler Tao. "And what do you mean?"
Lin Zhong took a sip of tea: "Let him go if he wants to. With Qingyu watching over him, nothing should go wrong. Why has the income been so low these past few months?"
Lin Zhong handed the ledger to Steward Tao.
"We sent a lot of gifts to the capital, and we had to bribe officials at all levels. Some of the officials His Majesty executed this time were also connected to us," Steward Tao explained, taking the ledger.
Lin Zhong frowned and said after a long while, "Our Emperor considers himself to be a man of great talent and ambition, but he suffers from being controlled by others. He is also greedy for pleasure and has no opinions of his own. This is not the first time that his family has been confiscated. We should move the people of Jiangnan as soon as possible. Most of the people who died this time were from Jiangnan. They are not isolated and helpless."
Butler Tao looked surprised: "Then it shouldn't be that bad, right?"
“Heh, Tao Xian, just you wait and see,” Lin Zhong said.
Butler Tao said respectfully, "In that case, I will arrange the examination for the young master's residence as soon as possible."
Lin Zhong remained silent. Butler Tao finished tidying up the ledgers, bowed, and left, plunging the room into silence once more.
Two months before the prefectural examination, Lin Ziping, He Jinbao, and Ji Xun were recommended by Master Cheng.
A month before the prefectural examination, several people took the entrance examination for the Moshan Academy.
In June of the 25th year of Hue, three people successfully participated in the Huai Zhou Prefecture Examination.
On June 25th, Lin Ziping and two others passed the prefectural examination, ranking among the bottom three on the list.
In August of the 25th year of Hue, merchants in Jiangnan went on strike, paralyzing the market and plunging the entire Jiangnan region into chaos.
In September of the 25th year of Hue, the government sent troops to suppress the market strike. Those who participated in the strike had their homes confiscated, and those with officials in the family were beheaded, while the remaining female relatives were exiled.
In October of the 25th year of Hue, the situation in Jiangnan stabilized, and thousands of people were imprisoned.
In November of the 25th year of Hue, news spread throughout the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, causing an uproar and prompting merchants from various regions to protest against the crime.
In December of the 25th year of the Hue reign, the imperial court issued an order prohibiting three generations of merchants from participating in the imperial examinations.
Letters from Ji Xun, Fang Zhili, and Zhao Xiancheng flew to Qingyang like snowflakes, reaching the hands of Lin Ziping, Zhang Mo, and He Jinbao.
"Xiao Bao, how's your household registration going?" Lin Ziping asked Yang Jiadian.
"Don't worry, Brother Ziping. After hearing what you said, I've already had my father take care of it. Although it will have some impact, after a while, no one should know that my family is in business, and the teacher hasn't asked me to leave the academy either," Yang Jiadian replied. "Brother Ziping, what are your plans for the future?"
Lin Ziping felt somewhat lost. He had planned to become a scholar and then apply for a teaching position at an academy, but now it seemed that this path was no longer viable.
Seeing that Lin Ziping and He Jinbao looked a little grim, Zhang Mo said, "Why are you looking so worried? We should be glad that we passed the prefectural examination and are now considered scholars. I'm the first scholar in my family to achieve this. I'm going home to take over the family business."
Seeing Zhang Mo's optimism, Lin Ziping thought about Zhang Mo's family's gambling den business, their poor family background, and the fact that he had several older brothers, and asked, "How many older brothers do you have?"
"Although I'm not a Juren (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), I'm now the first Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations) in my family, which is much better than before," Zhang Mo said, trying to sound relaxed.
Lin Ziping could imagine what Zhang Mo might go through when he returned home to take over the business, and patted him on the shoulder: "After you take over your family business, the casino part is not a long-term solution. You still need to consider doing something else."
Zhang Mo nodded, then looked at the silent He Jinbao and asked, "Jinbao, what about you?"
“Given my family’s current situation, my parents can just relax and enjoy their leisure time. I’m planning to go out and explore, starting in the north. Zhao Xiancheng wrote that there are people from several neighboring countries there, and I’d like to go and take a look.” He Jinbao said calmly, but his eyes lit up when he mentioned the north.
“It would be good to go and take a look. What about you, Ziping?” Zhang Mo asked Lin Ziping.
Thinking that he couldn't go home and inherit the family fortune like Zhang Mo, and having no interest in traveling around in this era, Lin Ziping's past experiences made him still inclined to have a proper job, but now he didn't know what to do.
Seeing Lin Ziping remain silent, Yang Jiadian said, "Brother Ziping, the county government is recruiting talented people recently. Why don't you give it a try?"
“Yes, Ziping, since you’re free for the time being, you can give it a try.”
The imperial examination system was considered equivalent to being a civil servant, while recruitment by the county government was equivalent to being employed by a public institution. At least it was a formal position. Thinking back to how I used to dream of passing the imperial examination, now that becoming a teacher was hopeless, going to the county government was a way out.