RPAGF Chapter 150 Scholar's Documents
Chapter 150 Scholar's Documents
Zhang Pingan didn't want to continue discussing the issue of background, and Lin Junhui didn't say anything more.
After the two of them leisurely finished their lunch, they boarded Lin Junhui's carriage and headed to the county government office. Collapsed eaves could be seen everywhere on the road, but fortunately the situation was not too serious and was still within the scope of repair.
Zhang Pingan inquired, "Brother Lin, do you know where the worst-hit area was this time?"
Lin Junhui replied lazily, "I don't know the specifics, but my father speculated it might be Shanzhou or Ningzhou. These two places are close to dragon veins, and the earth dragons frequently turn over. It's been more than 30 years since the last time they turned over."
Zhang Ping'an frowned. "As far as I know, Shanzhou is very close to the Tatars, so wouldn't they also be affected by the earthquake? I read in the official gazette before that the Tatars often invade our border towns. It seems that the people living on the border will have a harder time this winter!"
"What we can think of, the people above us can naturally think of as well. As for whether they will intervene or not, that is their business. Everyone has their own destiny!" Lin Junhui replied calmly.
Zhang Ping'an discovered that Lin Junhui had two faces. At this moment, the current face overlapped with the face he had when he was robbed by bandits last time. It was six parts decisive and four parts cold. Zhang Ping'an was sure that Lin Junhui would definitely be a well-known figure in the future.
"Yeah, I was just worrying too much," Zhang Pingan said with a faint smile.
Soon they arrived at the county government office. They first went to the ceremonial office to handle the scholar's certificate, and then went to the household office to replace the household registration card. The person in charge of the household office obviously knew Lin Junhui and was very attentive. He also treated Zhang Pingan very well and complimented him, saying, "Mr. Zhang is really a young talent. He became a scholar at such a young age. Now he can pay much less autumn grain tax, and he won't have to worry about the population tax and corvée in the future."
"I was lucky to win. Thank you for your trouble," Zhang Ping'an said with a smile, holding the freshly-made household registration card.
After leaving the yamen, the two families were heading in different directions, so Zhang Pingan and Lin Junhui said goodbye and went back to their respective homes.
However, it was still early, so Zhang Ping'an did not go home directly. He bought a few bags of snacks on the way and went straight to the county school. He wanted to visit Mr. Luo and Liu Shengyuan. The county government office was not far from the county school, both in the east of the city, and it only took a quarter of an hour to walk there.
When Zhang Ping'an saw the familiar persimmon tree in front of Master Luo's door, he was filled with emotion. It seemed as if it was just yesterday that he became his disciple in a private school in the countryside. Suddenly, many years had passed and Master Luo was no longer there.
After knocking gently on the door, an unfamiliar old woman came out to open it. She didn't recognize Zhang Ping'an and looked up warily and asked, "Young man, who are you looking for?"
Zhang Ping'an bowed and asked, "Excuse me, is Master Luo here? I'm his nephew, my last name is Zhang Ping'an."
The old woman took a few looks at Zhang Ping'an. Seeing that he was well-dressed and didn't look like a bad guy, she said, "Wait a moment. I'll go and inform him."
After a while, the old woman came out after announcing the news and said with a smile, "Come with me, my master is in the main hall."
When Master Luo saw Zhang Ping'an coming over, he was very enthusiastic and exclaimed, "Ping'an, I really didn't expect you to come and visit me. Come and sit down!"
"Uncle Luo, I just returned home yesterday morning and was busy with trivial matters at home. I only found time today. I'm really sorry. I should have come to see you earlier," Zhang Pingan said with a smile.
Master Luo waved his hand and smiled, "We have a close relationship, so there's no need to worry about these empty formalities. I'll be happy whenever you're free to come visit me!"
After saying that, he smiled and sighed, "We are destined to be together. If you had come a few days later, you might not have seen me."
Zhang Pingan was surprised and asked, "Uncle Luo, what do you mean?"
"Don't worry, it's not a bad thing. I plan to resign after the county school has a holiday in the next few days, and then go to the provincial capital to live with my sons. Otherwise, although I will have enough food and drink in the county town, I will be lonely and miserable. In the past, it was more convenient to go back to the countryside to visit my old father because my father was still in the countryside. Now my father is gone, and my sons have settled in the provincial capital. They have written to me several times to urge me to leave, so I decided to go to the provincial capital to live with them this year," Master Luo explained with a smile.
After saying that, he pushed the teacup in front of Zhang Pingan and said, "Stop talking and drink some tea."
Zhang Pingan took a sip from the teacup, then put it down and said with a smile, "This is indeed a good thing. Having a large family and grandchildren to share the joy of family life is a great blessing in the world!"
"Indeed, I miss my grandchildren too!"
"But Uncle Luo, you just said that we are destined to be together. Maybe I will come to the capital to visit you again in the future," Zhang Ping'an said with a smile.
Master Luo asked curiously, "Oh? What do you mean?" After thinking for a moment, he smiled and said, "Are you going to study at the provincial academy?"
"You can guess that?"
"It seems so," Master Luo said with a smile, "I haven't even congratulated you on passing the imperial examination yet. You're still young and have a bright future. Don't forget, I'm a teacher at the county school. I know exactly who has passed the imperial examination."
Zhang Pingan laughed: "As expected, nothing can be hidden from you."
Chatting with Master Luo is a very pleasant thing. Although they both come from a farming family, Master Luo has experienced decades of experience and is very insightful. He is not bound by formalities. No matter whether Zhang Ping'an talks about big or small things, he will listen patiently, analyze clearly and give his opinions. He is both a teacher and a friend.
When saying goodbye, Master Luo wrote down his address in the provincial capital to Zhang Ping'an, and repeatedly reminded him to visit him when he arrived in the provincial capital.
At this time, the sun was setting in the west and the sky was full of sunset glow, indicating that tomorrow would be another sunny day. Zhang Ping'an went to the county school and asked the doorman to inform Liu Shengyuan.
After a long while, Liu Shengyuan finally came out on crutches. When he saw Zhang Pingan, he said with surprise, "Ping'an, I was planning to come see you in a few days when my foot injury heals."
Zhang Pingan said with a smile, "Your feet are not convenient, so I'll come to find you! But I have to go back to the countryside in a few days, so I came to tell you in advance so that you don't come in vain."
Liu Shengyuan smiled and said, "Passing the imperial examination is a great joy. I should return home to offer sacrifices and celebrate. Unfortunately, my foot is injured, and my father said I won't be going back this year."
"By the way, the autumn grain tax will be collected soon. Uncle Liu should go back to the town government office to work. Who will take care of you then?" Zhang Pingan asked.
"Hey, that's okay. My father told my mother to come to the county to take care of me when the time comes. He has been trying to use his connections recently to transfer his job to the county government. I don't know if that's possible," Liu Shengyuan replied.
"Then I feel relieved. It's getting late now. You should go back and rest. I will come to see you when I return to the county town," Zhang Pingan said and helped Liu Shengyuan go in.
When I got home, I saw an unexpected person visiting me in the yard.