RPAGF Chapter 502 The Four Great Joys of Life
Chapter 502 The Four Great Joys of Life
Chapter 502 The Four Great Joys of Life
Imperial Examination Hall.
This day was the day of the triennial civil service examination in Korea, and Wang Wenzhou, as the chief examiner, naturally had to supervise the examination inside the examination hall.
The imperial examinations in South Korea were similar to those in the Ming Dynasty, lasting for three consecutive days, during which candidates were not allowed to leave the examination hall. Candidates brought their own food and chamber pots, and ate, drank, and relieved themselves all in their own "small rooms."
Wang Wenzhou, with his arm around Wang Ying and Chen Yuanyuan, sat on the proctoring table, drinking alone in boredom. Under the table, Park Lizhu and Cui Jingxue knelt on either side of Wang Wenzhou's thighs.
Wang Ying and Chen Yuanyuan are both wearing Korean official uniforms today. Their role today is that of invigilators, but their job is not to invigilate the exam; rather, they are accompanying Wang Wenzhou.
The two children knew that Wang Wenzhou had been in a particularly bad mood these past few days. Li Mei had been driven to her death by her father, and Wang Wenzhou desperately wanted to avenge her. However, Wei Yongfu hadn't arrived with his men yet, and Wang Wenzhou was at a loss, so he could only sulk.
Wang Wenzhou took a sip of wine from Wang Ying's mouth and said helplessly, "Sister-in-law, how can Li Mei be so stupid? Her father told her to die, and she just did it. Isn't that insane?"
"Sigh..." Wang Ying sighed softly. These past few days, her nemesis had been constantly nagging that Li Mei was too stupid, really too stupid...
Chen Yuanyuan said softly, "Don't dwell on this. How can children not listen to their parents?"
Unlike Wang Ying, Chen Yuanyuan was thoroughly fed up with hearing it. Her nemesis would say something like that all the time: "Li Mei is so stupid. She's already dead. What's the point of talking about her now?"
Wang Wenzhou said irritably, "That's wrong. Why should children have to listen to their parents?"
“Because children are born of parents! If there were no parents, where would children come from? Parents not only give birth to you, but also raise you. The kindness of raising you is the greatest kindness in the world. No matter what a daughter does, she can never repay it. How can she not listen to her parents?” Chen Yuanyuan wanted to talk to Wang Wenzhou about this today, so that he wouldn’t nag her all the time.
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, took a bite of food from Chen Yuanyuan's mouth, and asked in return, "Yuanyuan, according to you, you would listen to whatever your parents say?"
"Of course!" Chen Yuanyuan replied without room for argument.
"Okay!" Wang Wenzhou nodded and said with a smile, "If, I mean if, Yuanyuan, don't be angry yet."
Chen Yuanyuan frowned; her enemy was sure to have nothing nice to say.
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "If your father wanted to sleep with you, would you listen to him?"
"Pah!" Chen Yuanyuan was both amused and annoyed. "You rascal, you're so irresponsible!"
Chen Yuanyuan said irritably, "Nonsense, what kind of father is that?"
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "Yuanyuan, you tell me first, if your father wanted to sleep with you, would you agree?"
"Of course I won't agree!" Chen Yuanyuan wasn't crazy.
Wang Wenzhou said softly, "The earth is so big, there are all kinds of weirdos. Not only are there weirdos like fathers sleeping with their daughters, but there are also weirdos like sons sleeping with their mothers. For example, Emperor Yang of Sui, who created the imperial examination system, was a man who believed that those who gave him birth to him were lewd, and those he gave birth to could also be lewd."
Wang Ying smiled wryly and said, "Husband, how can unofficial histories be trusted?"
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "Of course, the records about Yang Guang may not be reliable. But that doesn't mean there aren't any oddballs in the world! In short, when faced with an oddball father, you daughters can firmly say no, right?"
Wang Ying and Chen Yuanyuan nodded. As daughters, only a madwoman would agree to let her own father sleep with her.
"Bang!" Wang Wenzhou slammed his fist on the table and roared, "Is there any difference between a father sleeping with his daughter and a father forcing his daughter to die? As parents, forcing their children to do things they don't want to do in the name of love, isn't that just bizarre?"
Wang Ying and Chen Yuanyuan exchanged glances. Chen Yuanyuan was about to speak up to defend Li Mei's father, saying that although he forced his daughter to die, there were reasons for it, and from a moral standpoint, he was not wrong.
Wang Ying shook her head at Chen Yuanyuan, "Sister, stop talking."
Chen Yuanyuan nodded with a wry smile, but swallowed the words back down her throat.
The children were silent, and Wang Wenzhou, feeling bored, said, "Let's go, let's go inspect the exam rooms and clear our heads."
Wang Wenzhou stood up, and Wang Ying helped him straighten his clothes. Two Korean girls who had been kneeling under the table also crawled out from under the table.
Wang Wenzhou was making his rounds while holding the baby.
The candidates took the exam in small cubicles, each cubicle resembling a small room. Although there were no doors, curtains provided privacy. Even so, bringing cheat sheets was impossible, as everyone was thoroughly checked before entering the examination hall.
Wang Wenzhou arrived at a room and lifted the curtain.
Shen He looked up and saw that it was Wang Wenzhou. He immediately stood up, knelt down, and kowtowed, saying, "This dog slave Shen He greets Lord Wang."
Wang Wenzhou waved his hand and said with a smile, "Get up. How was it? Did you finish answering the questions for Xiaolanlan?"
Shen He nodded and said respectfully, "Reporting to you, sir, I have almost finished copying it!"
"Hachihachi..." When Doggy Xiaolanlan saw Chen Yuanyuan, she stuck out her tongue and ran to her, rubbing her body against Chen Yuanyuan's legs and wagging her tail happily.
Chen Yuanyuan was both amused and exasperated. This woman was truly unpredictable. She actually wanted a dog to participate in the imperial examinations! And she wanted it to be the top scholar! She figured when the results were announced and the list was posted, everyone would be stunned.
Wang Wenzhou just wanted to annoy King Injo of Joseon. You're trying to kill my baby, so I'll just let a dog be the top scholar. What are you going to do about it?
Wang Wenzhou glanced at the exam paper and said, "Alright, stop copying. Whoever I say is the top scholar, is the top scholar."
After saying that, Wang Wenzhou picked up Xiao Lanlan, smeared some ink on its paws, and pressed the dog's paw print onto the test paper.
"Alright! The top scholar has finished his exam paper." Wang Wenzhou handed Xiao Lanlan to Shen He and said with a smile, "Little Shen, you'd better serve your master well from now on, he's the top scholar!"
"Please rest assured, sir, I will do my best to take care of my master!" Shen He quickly replied.
“Let’s go, babies, let’s go see some other places,” Wang Wenzhou said with a smile.
Wang Wenzhou and the babies arrived at Jin Jizhong's "room".
"Lord Wang... no, my virtuous brother!" Jin Jizhong hurriedly cupped his hands and said.
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "Brother Jin, aren't you excited? In two days, when you walk out of your room, you'll be the third-ranked scholar!"
Jin Jizhong nodded and said sincerely, "Brother, I can't thank you enough!"
"Brother Jin, you're too kind! You saved my life and my baby's. There are four great joys in life: losing your wife in middle age, meeting an old friend in a foreign land, your wedding night, and passing the imperial examination! Today, we two brothers have achieved all four!" Wang Wenzhou said in a serious tone.
"Huh?" Jin Jizhong looked at Wang Wenzhou in surprise. What's wrong with my brother?
Wang Ying whispered, "Brother Jin, my nemesis is drunk. Please don't be angry if he says anything wrong."
Jin Jizhong nodded and said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry. Boxin and I have been through thick and thin together and are like brothers. How could I be angry with him?"
Wang Wenzhou said with a wry smile, "Brother Jin, my baby died! And now I've run into you here again. The first two sentences are about me! The last two are obviously about you!"
Wang Wenzhou looked back at Park Lizhu and Cui Jingxue, and said with a smile, "From today onwards, you two are Brother Jin's babies. Now you can sleep in the exam room with the future top scholar. Anyway, with the curtain down, no one outside will know what you're doing in there."
Wang Ying was both amused and exasperated; her nemesis was truly capable of anything!
"Brother... this... isn't that a bad idea! I haven't finished my exam paper yet!" Jin Jizhong said with a wry smile.
"It's alright!" Wang Wenzhou patted Jin Jizhong on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Brother Jin, with me here, even if you submit a blank paper, you're still a third-place scholar! Hurry up and go to the bridal chamber! I won't disturb you any longer. Take it easy and don't overwork yourself!"