Chapter 328

Jiang Zhan returned to the county guesthouse safely, and Du Ruo and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiong Er transferred all the soldiers who were guarding there.

By the way, he explained to Master Yan and the others: "It's nothing; Master Bi is just particularly interested in Jiang Zhan's articles and praised him for writing well, so he called him over to chat for a few words."

With such a big commotion, just to chat for a few words?

Only a fool would believe it.

However, since Jiang Zhan was able to return safely, it proved that the matter had been resolved, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiong Er soon returned to the county office.

When he left, he pulled Du Ruo aside and whispered a few words.

"This time, thanks to Prince Yu's arrival, we had a narrow escape. In addition, the Education Commissioner is about to leave Fengyang Prefecture. Without this backer, the Duan family shouldn't be able to make any waves, so Mistress Du can rest assured."

Du Ruo hurriedly expressed her gratitude.

"Don't thank me. Not to mention that Mistress Du is my savior, I'm afraid our two families will often come and go in the future." Xiong Er smiled.

"How do you say that?" Du Ruo was very confused.

The Jiang family is in Wutou Xian, and Xiong Er works in the county office; they are separated by hundreds of kilometers.

Xiong Er sold a pass. "Heaven's secrets cannot be leaked; I can't say it for the time being. Anyway, it won't be long before Mistress Du will know."

After a pause, he added: "It's a good thing."

As long as it's a good thing.

Du Ruo didn't continue to ask and politely sent him away.

That night, the family was locked in the room, and Jiang Zhan told the whole story in detail. Of course, he didn't mention that he had his clothes pulled off by Prince Yu.

He really found it hard to speak.

After listening, Du Ruo also told Jiang Zhan about the deal with Prince Yu. "... It seems that the medicine worked, which is why Prince Yu rushed to save you."

So that's how it is.

Jiang Zhan felt relieved.

Since it was a deal, and now the deal is done, both sides are clear. That Prince Yu with weird habits shouldn't come to pester him.

That night, the family slept well.

Early the next morning, the gate of the county guesthouse became noisy, and seven or eight bailiffs came to bring good news with gongs and drums.

Of the top three, Xiushan Academy took two.

The Prefectural Top Scholar was naturally Jiang Zhan, and Xiao Liangchen took third place.

Master Yan was so happy that he couldn't close his mouth.

Other students also stepped forward to express their congratulations.

Du Ruo was generous and had long prepared the reward money. Everyone who came to bring the good news got a share, two taels of silver each, which helped Jiang Zhan save face.

The bailiffs were naturally happy, like lucky birds, spitting out good words one after another.

In contrast, Xiao Liangchen seemed a bit awkward.

He only had a few pieces of broken silver left in his pocket. If he gave the reward money, he wouldn't have travel expenses to go home, but if he used his mouth to dismiss those bailiffs, he would only get a reputation for being stingy and mean.

In the end, Bian Dou Dou was the one who knew how to handle things, stuffing one tael of silver into the hands of each bailiff, which relieved Xiao Liangchen.

After the people who brought the good news left, everyone followed Master Yan straight to the prefectural school.

Jiang Zhan and Xiao Liangchen had settled down, but there were still a few people whose results hadn't come out, so they still had to go see the list.

Master Jiang got fourth place, ranking first on the white list.

It was quite good.

The other two candidates from Xiushan Academy also passed. Although their rankings were not very high, it was good to pass, and they were all satisfied.

At this point, the prefectural exam officially ended.

Now they just have to wait for the academy exam after the new year. Once the academy exam is passed, they will be proper scholars.

Don't look at the title of scholar as not so loud; the benefits are many. For example, you don't have to kneel when seeing officials, and you are respected as a master wherever you go. If you can pass the top forty in the academy exam, that is, get the so-called "government-sponsored student" qualification, you can receive four taels of silver and six dou of rice from the country every year, so you won't starve to death.

By the way, there is another bigger benefit.

That is, you can be exempted from corvée and taxes.

Like the Jiang family, whether it was selling Ghost-Duchong or selling chili peppers before, they had to pay 30% business tax, which was a painful amount.

As long as Jiang Zhan can pass, he won't have to pay these in the future, and whatever he earns will be his own.

Thinking about it makes me feel beautiful.

Taking advantage of the happiness, Du Ruo waved her hand heroically. "Let's go, let's find a place to eat something good and celebrate!"

Jiang Zhan, Master Jiang, and Lao Tietou had no objections; the exam was over, and it was right to relax.

The four of them happily went shopping, and by the way, looked for a suitable restaurant.

They hadn't walked far when they happened to pass by the Zhuangyuan Building.

It was here last time that Duan Xiu took the initiative to provoke and declare war, which led to all the messy things that followed.

Du Ruo suddenly remembered one thing.

According to the agreement between the two, Duan Xiu lost, and his family heirloom—that is, the double-fish jade pendant—should belong to Jiang Zhan.

Should she go to the door and ask for it?

Or give the Duan family some face and pretend it didn't happen, so as not to make them jump over the wall like a dog?

Hmm, this is a problem, need to think about it carefully...

At the same time, Du Ruo also noticed one thing: the Zhuangyuan Building, which was usually booming, was now deserted, with a few waiters squatting at the door, looking listless.

On the contrary, the "Muyun Pavilion" next door had a long queue.

Under normal circumstances, if there are many people queuing, it means the food is delicious.

Anyway, they had nothing to do, so the group joined the queue, intending to have a taste.

Lao Tietou poked the back of the man in front, then pointed to the Zhuangyuan Building next to him and asked curiously: "Brother, isn't the one next door empty? Why are you all crowding here instead of eating there?"

"Eat what ghost." The man rolled his eyes and said unhappily, "The food there was hard to eat and expensive to begin with. People used to go there for the sake of the old Grand Scholar Duan, wanting to get some good luck from the three-time champion. But now, his eldest grandson went crazy in the examination hall and bit people, and even his qualification to take the exam was stripped; it's simply shameful. Who would dare to go? That's not good luck, that's bad luck!"

So it was a chain reaction caused by Duan Xiu's accident.

Du Ruo touched her chin and laughed.

What is called "you reap what you sow"?

This is it.

A song of "Cool" for them, no need to thank me...

Just when Du Ruo was queuing and gloating, a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl with a round face walked straight to her and called with a smile: "Mistress Zheng."

It took Du Ruo a long time to react, and she opened her eyes wide. "Aren't you..."

"You can just call me Ziyu." The round-faced girl smiled. "How should I address you? Mistress Zheng, or Mistress Du?"

Ah, this, Du Ruo was awkward.

It seems Prince Yu had already figured out their background, and Ziyu also recognized her as the liar from last time.

She hurriedly changed the subject with a laugh. "Does Ziyu have something to do with me?"

"My master wants to invite Mistress Du to go over for a chat; there is something to ask." Ziyu said.

Go over?

The deal was already done; Prince Yu saved Jiang Zhan, and she offered two medicines. They were clear.

What else is there?

Seeing Du Ruo's hesitation, Ziyu hurriedly explained: "It's about those two medicines. Mistress Du also knows that the princess has a noble status. How to take the medicine, when to take it, how many times to take it, and what to pay attention to after taking it—these questions must be asked clearly, otherwise, the master wouldn't dare to take risks easily."

Du Ruo thought it was reasonable; if it were her, she would definitely be very cautious.

"All right, I'll go with you." No matter what, after-sales service still needs to be done well.

"Sister-in-law." Jiang Zhan hurriedly pulled Du Ruo aside, wanting to say something but stopping. "You have to be careful of that Prince Yu, he..."

Du Ruo was confused. "What's wrong with him?"

Jiang Zhan had to endure the shame and tell her about Zongzheng Yun's actions in a low voice. "And that Prince Yu also said he thought I was a girl, which is why he was touching me. It can be seen that he has bad character and is a lecherous person."

Du Ruo opened her mouth in surprise.

Before, she heard Jiang Li mention Prince Yu; Jiang Li's evaluation of Prince Yu was quite high, saying that he was unreliable on the surface, but deep in his heart, he was not an ordinary person.

How could he secretly molest a good young man?

"Okay, I have a count in my heart. Don't worry, I will pay attention."

Du Ruo didn't take it too seriously. Jiang Zhan is good-looking, so he encountered a lecher. She applied tanning cream, and now she is just a village woman with ordinary appearance. Prince Yu has seen all kinds of beauties; he shouldn't take a fancy to her.

It should just be about the medicine.

Besides, she has a portable system, and she has a lot of poisons. As long as she doesn't meet a top expert, self-protection is definitely not a problem.

Du Ruo followed Ziyu into the carriage, which swayed all the way for half an hour, and finally stopped in front of a house that was like a copper wall and an iron wall.

There were several Qilin Guards standing at the door.

After entering, there were patrolling soldiers along the way, and the defense was very strict.

However, when walking to the depths, the view suddenly opened up.

Birds singing and flowers fragrant, pavilions and towers, the scenery here is good.

Ziyu led Du Ruo into a water pavilion in the middle of the lake. "Mistress Du, please wait here for a moment; I will go and invite the master over."

She pointed to the plates of food on the table. "If you are hungry, you can eat at will."

After speaking, she turned and left.

Du Ruo first looked at the surrounding environment. It must be said that this location was chosen extremely well, with a wide view, which would not attract gossip, and there was no need to worry about assassins lurking.

She sat down at the table and looked at the food.

Big meat buns? Fried dough sticks? White porridge?

Du Ruo's mouth twitched. This Prince Yu's taste is really grounded; he is not hard to raise at all.

Just at this moment, her stomach growled a few times.

She didn't even eat before coming over, and she was really a bit hungry. Du Ruo was too lazy to be polite, tested it with the system first, confirmed there was no poison, and then picked up a big meat bun and stuffed it into her mouth.

Well, not greasy, the taste is just right.

Just as she was eating with relish, the man's gentle and magnetic voice suddenly sounded behind her. "Do you like it?"