Mrs. Rebirth

As soon as Zuo Shaoqing put on his clothes, there was a fierce knock on the door by the housekeeper, "Third master... is the third master awake? The master has been waiting in the front hall for a long time!"

Zuo Shaoqing frowned, asked Luo Xiaoliu to open the door, and washed himself slowly.

As soon as the butler entered the door, seeing Zuo Shaoqing was still washing and washing, he couldn't help but scold him: "Master, hurry up, although the test will only start at the second quarter of the hour, but the entrance of the Gongyuan must be crowded today, and we have to search beforehand. If you do, you won’t be able to squeeze in.”

Zuo Shaoqing wiped his hands with a dry cloth, then turned to smile at the butler and said, "The butler is right, everything is packed, let's go."

It was just dawn outside and shrouded in mist. Although it was early spring, it was still very cold this morning.

When he arrived at the front hall, Zuo Shaoqing saw Zuo Yunwen waiting for him at the door, and even Mrs. Xue was already sitting in the hall, which showed that he was unusually slow.

Before Zuo Yunwen could speak, Zuo Shaoqing took the initiative to admit his mistake: "I kept my parents waiting for a long time. My son had insomnia last night, so he got up late."

Zuo Yunwen immediately swallowed the blame words that he was about to export, squeezed out a smile and said: "Shao Qing has worked hard, go in and have some breakfast, the kitchen has already prepared food for the day, and I will not eat Gongyuan for the first day today stuff in there."

The tribute courtyard has all the food and clothing needed during the exam, and it is provided free of charge, so students with little money usually go in empty-handed and use the things issued by the tribute courtyard.

But those at home who have the conditions like to prepare by themselves, such as charcoal, pens, inks, paper and inkstones, and clothes and food. The things prepared by themselves are always better than the things inside.

Zuo Shaoqing used a lot for breakfast, but he only ate dry rice and dried vegetables, so soup and water were avoided if possible, in case he went to the toilet too many times after entering the examination room and interrupted his thinking.

After breakfast, Zuo Shaoqing suggested: "Father, mother, my son wants to visit my eldest brother."

Zuo Yunwen and his wife shook their heads at the same time. The former reasoned that Zuo Shaoyan hadn't gotten up yet, so there was no need to bother him. In fact, he was afraid that Zuo Shaoqing would miss the hour.

The latter mocked Zuo Shaoqing for being ill-minded and wanted to show off in front of Zuo Shaoyan.

It has to be said that Xue's eyesight is still very good, and Zuo Shaoqing is not ashamed when her mind is punctured, and said along Zuo Yunwen's topic: "Since the elder brother is not up, then the son will not bother, I hope the elder brother recovers soon .”

Xue's teeth were itching with hatred, but she didn't dare to make it difficult for her. After all, Zuo Yunwen regarded him as a treasure now. Hmph, let's see what he does when his name falls to Sun Shan!

Luo Xiaoliu and a young servant carried out a box of Zuo Shaoqing's things. This thing and the box were sent by the Zhen Guogong Mansion. At first glance, it was not ordinary. This was the first time Xue Shi saw it, and his eyes were wide open. Spit out fire.

Zuo Yunwen grew up in Kyoto anyway, and knows more about the examination than Zuo Shaoqing, so he checked it for him and saw that there was nothing missing, including knee pads and wrist guards, which shows how complete it is.

"After the exam is over, Shao Qing has to go to the Duke's Mansion to thank him personally. These things are very valuable." Zuo Yunwen said with emotion with a ruddy complexion.

Zuo Shaoqing was rubbing a unicorn paperweight in his hand, and the corner of his mouth slowly melted into a knowing joke.

After getting into the carriage, Zuo Shaoqing took two servants and the housekeeper of the Zuo Mansion to the Gongyuan. The Zuo family was actually not too far away from the Gongyuan, but there were too many people and carriages on the street, so the carriage could only move slowly. It was already half an hour at the gate of the Gongyuan.

Zuo Shaoqing got off the carriage, looked up at the dark crowd, there were several long queues, being searched and inspected by the imperial guards of the capital, and there were supervisory examiners at the side.

Along the way, several streets leading to the Gongyuan were closed, and only candidates and their families were allowed to pass through, otherwise there must be more people who heard the news and came to see the excitement.

A well-built general ran up to Zuo Shaoqing, cupped his hands and asked, "But Third Master Zuo?"

"Student is right!" Zuo Shaoqing looked at this dark-faced and honest young man suspiciously. From his clothes, he could be recognized as a high-ranking general.

The young man whispered: "Please come down with me, the Lord ordered you to be taken into the examination room."

Zuo Shaoqing heard that it was arranged by Lu Zheng, and saw the badge hanging on his waist, so he waved away the housekeeper and another servant, and asked Luo Xiaoliu to follow him with his things.

The young man put Zuo Shaoqing's suitcase on his shoulder and led him to the passage on the other side. Only then did Zuo Shaoqing realize that compared with the other long queues, there were significantly fewer candidates queuing up here, and they were dressed in They are also extraordinary, it can be seen that they are all children of aristocratic families.

Zuo Shaoqing remembered that when he passed by an examinee just now, he murmured enviously: "It's good to have connections." He also understood that this passage might not be accessible to ordinary students.

"Which family is this son? Why haven't you seen him?" Many people in the crowd stared at Zuo Shaoqing's unfamiliar face and asked.

The young man led Zuo Shaoqing into the team, patted his head and said: "These civil servants are troublesome. They say they want to treat everyone equally. Apart from opening a special channel, there are many things that should be checked."

Zuo Shaoqing smiled at him, and defended the civil servants: "The imperial court should treat students equally when they open the imperial examination, otherwise it would be unfair to the poor students?"

From Zuo Shaoqing's point of view, having such a special passage already means to treat them differently. If the children of these famous noble families don't even need to search the venue, other candidates should doubt the authenticity of the imperial examination.

After all, in every imperial examination, there will be many students with cheat sheets.

The young general stared blankly at Zuo Shaoqing's smiling face, and muttered in his mouth, "No wonder, no wonder!"

Zuo Shaoqing was about to ask him why, when he heard a noise coming from the front, he looked around, and saw two imperial guards walking over with a young man in a fancy dress.

"Let go! What do you guys want to do, do you know who the young master is?" the young man in the fancy dress yelled loudly, but unfortunately he didn't attract many eyes.

In fact, there were too many voices like this this morning, so the inspector came over and said in a deep voice, "Master Zeng, according to the regulations of this court, if candidates are brought into the arena, they will be deprived of their identity, even if Mrs. Zeng came , the same statement."

Zuo Shaoqing took a serious look at the young man when he heard the word "Tseng Taifu". The current Taifu Zeng Bingsheng was a civil servant who supported the late emperor. It reached the height of Zuo's house back then.

It's just that there are no successors in the Zeng family, and Taifu Zeng's sons and grandsons don't have any useful talents.

Unexpectedly, the descendants of the dignified Taifu could even do such a thing. Many students who heard this scoffed, and some even shook their heads with emotion: The family education is not strict!

The young man knew he was wrong, and left bitterly. After that, the interrogation became more stringent. Not only did everything in the food box be carefully checked, but even the charcoal brought by the candidates was broken open.

Because the young master Zeng just stuffed the note in the middle of the charcoal, if it weren't for a little white edge of the paper, it would be really hard to find.

When it was Zuo Shaoqing's turn, the young general stepped forward and said something to the interrogating guards and inspectors. Zuo Shaoqing didn't hear what he said, but saw that those people looked at him strangely. .

Although the inspector still had a cold face, his voice became softer after reading Zuo Shaoqing's information: "You are the youngest Xie Yuan this year? Very good, take the exam!"

Zuo Shaoqing immediately responded with a student salute, "Students must go all out!"

Two imperial guards began to unpack and check, and another two were going to go forward to search. According to the usual practice, every layer of clothes of the candidates who were searched would be opened for inspection. If it was cotton clothes, every corner would be checked. clearly.

Seeing that his four hands were about to touch Zuo Shaoqing's body, the young general coughed twice, and shot his eyes sharply.

The two imperial guards trembled, and some didn't know where to start.

Zuo Shaoqing didn't make things difficult for them, and took the initiative to take off his coat for them to check. He purposely didn't wear a cotton coat today. He was wearing a thick fox fur coat, and a warm cashmere gown inside. Inside, there was only a pure white cotton coat .

The imperial guards breathed a sigh of relief for his cooperation. Although they don't know what the relationship between this young man and that master is, it is definitely not an ordinary person who can lead the way with a dignified fourth-rank captain.

Most of Zuo Shaoqing's things were reported by Lu Zheng in advance. Even if the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty did not like Lu Zheng, they would not question his character, so the items marked with the mark of the Duke of the Town were only read a little bit.

After everything was recorded, the inspector gave him a license plate and waved his hand to signal to let him go. Zuo Shaoqing saluted respectfully again, and then he walked into the Gongyuan with a box of things alone.

When he arrived at this place, Luo Xiaoliu couldn't follow him, and he would spend the next nine days here alone.

Find your cubicle according to the number on the license plate, inside there is a table and chair, a single bed, and a thin bedding.

This tribute court allows candidates to bring their own food and drink, but does not allow candidates to bring quilts, and uses uniformly distributed quilts.

The compartment is small, and a charcoal basin has been lit inside, but it may not be long, and the compartment is still cold and cold.

The Gongyuan only opens once every three years, and it is not popular at all on weekdays, so it is strange that it is not cold.

Zuo Shaoqing moved the charcoal basin back, so as not to accidentally drop the written test paper and turn into ashes, then he would cry without tears.

The students entered the arena one after another. Zuo Shaoqing just set up his pen and ink when he saw an old acquaintance walk into the opposite cubicle. When the other person turned around, he smiled and bowed his hands to the other party.

Received a surprised smile from the other party, Zuo Shaoqing thought to himself: It is really destined, Jiang Hengzhou.