Chapter Six: Three Years in a Flash

  Three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

  Wu Qing was now six and a half years old, sitting under the small apple tree, with a hint of indelible sadness in his eyes, this hint of sadness always made people feel that it should not appear on a child's face.

  At six years old, it should be the most beautiful time for a child, but for Wu Qing, these three years have been painful. The old soldier died more than a month ago.

  For three years, Wu Qing and Zhang Xing became grandfather and grandson. He often accompanied the old soldier, and the old soldier also taught Wu Qing many things, such as horse riding, archery, and some military survival skills. Although these skills were clumsy, they were all the old soldier's experience.

  At the end of his life, Zhang Xing handed over 300 taels of silver to Wu Qing, as well as the deed to this mansion and the deed to 30 mu of land. Although Wu Qing had initially approached Zhang Xing for personal gain, he now felt a deep sense of gratitude that he could not bear, and this kindness was something he would never be able to repay in his lifetime.

  At this time, Wu Qing was also quite famous in Xubei Village, known as the "prodigy". Of course, Wu Qing knew how much water was involved. What's more puzzling to him was that Wang Baishi had already recommended Wu Qing to study at the county school, and only by becoming a student through the county school and state school could Wu Qing have the opportunity to participate in the imperial examination and become a scholar. Of course, it was also possible to take the exam step by step and become a tribute student through self-study, but Wu Qing didn't think he had that ability.

  Wu Qing did not have a strong desire to participate in the imperial examination, he just wanted to grow up quickly. He was very clear that scholars during the Wu Zetian era were so miserable, let alone passing the imperial examination could make them rich? Passing the imperial examination still had to go through many assessments before being granted an official position, and receiving a salary, and moreover, the Tang Dynasty did not allow officials to engage in business.

  Although the Tang Dynasty had a strict class system, with scholars, farmers, workers and merchants, the social status of merchants was the lowest. However, the life of merchants was also very prosperous. Moreover, this time-traveler has many ways to get rich, enjoying a carefree life, why bother to fight for power in the official circle, only to end up dead. This does not conform to **Si Nan Wu Qing's current understanding**, but it is difficult to predict what will happen in life, and being in the world of Jianghu is also hard to control.

  Little apple tree, called Naizi in the Tang Dynasty. Wu Qing knew that the large apples were introduced from Western varieties during the Ming and Qing dynasties. At this time, these small apples could only be considered a variety from the Western Regions. Now the Great Tang Empire is rich and prosperous, with a vast territory, although there are no distant Western missionaries, but has close exchanges with countries such as India in the Western Regions. Unfortunately, these merchants are all in the capital Chang'an and Luoyang, as well as Yangzhou, Quanzhou, and Guangzhou. As for Pingzhou Wenshui, no, it should be Taiyuan Prefecture Wenshui County (the previous year, Emperor Gaozong had already changed it). That is definitely not visible. Wanting to improve apples is not a one-day thing, Wu Qing can only give up.

  Xu Beicun is too small, this place is not suitable for doing business at all!

  Wu Daigne's life has improved slightly in recent years, her body has become more even, and her face has also gained a few points of rosiness. It can't be said that Wu Daigne is not a beautiful woman. Seeing Wu Qing dazed in the courtyard, she couldn't help but laugh: "Mother's little genius, mother tells you something, do you agree or not?"

  Wu Qing knew it was about going to the county school, Wu Qing didn't want to go to the county school, but thought of going to Wen Shui County instead. However, if he didn't go to the county school, Wang Bai Shi wouldn't support him either, let alone this old woman. Only when he himself entered the county school would Wu Da Niang be willing to go to the county town.

  "Mom, I agreed."

  Madam Wu walked up and hugged Wu Qing, tears streaming down her face, saying: "My son has entered the county school, study hard and read well. If he can pass the imperial examination and become a scholar-official one day, I will die with a smile on my face."

  Wu Qing couldn't understand why Wu Dang was so sentimental, but he was still moved by this sincere and nurturing emotion. What else could he ask for in his second life?

  "Mother, I won't let you down."

  The education system of the Tang Dynasty was still quite perfect since the early Tang period. In order to encourage young men from humble families to study, Emperor Taizong of Tang established various levels of academies. The court set up the Imperial Academy, which governed six schools: the National University, the Imperial College, the Four Gates School, the Law School, the Calligraphy School, and the Arithmetic School. Locally, there were prefectural schools and county schools. Those who entered these two levels of schools were called students, and outstanding ones could be recommended to participate in the imperial examination.

  During this period, the imperial examination generally had two types: regular and special examinations. Among them, the regular examination was held once a year, with subjects mainly including Ming Jing, Jinshi, Ming Fa, Ming Shu, Ming Suan, etc., as well as Xiucai, Daoju, Tongzi, Yishi, San Shi, etc. The examinees for the regular examination came from two sources: one was students recommended by various schools and academies; the other was xiang gong, self-taught individuals selected through county-level examinations. Examinees mainly concentrated on Ming Jing and Jinshi, as these two subjects could become candidates for direct selection of officials by the imperial court. As for special examinations, they were set up to collect professional talents and were generally held every few years, with no fixed time.

  Since the Sui Dynasty established the imperial examination system, and during the reign of Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu, it was used to select talents on a large scale. However, after Emperor Gaozong frequently resided in Luoyang, education at all levels almost stagnated. Except for the annual Mingjing and Jinshi examinations, other subjects were basically nominal.

  Wu Qing was favored by Wang Baishi because of his "prodigy" halo and was willing to support Wu Qing to settle in the county town and recommend him to enter the county school as a student. For a poor scholar like him at that time, entering the county school as a student was a rare opportunity.

  Wu Qing was very clear about his own abilities, and as for the Confucian classics, to be honest, just looking at them gave him a headache, let alone trying to understand them. The Ming Jing Ke exam was all about memorizing the Confucian classics, and as for the Jin Shi Ke exam, Wu Qing would shake his head, unless he really had his own insights on governance, otherwise, it was also a mind-boggling problem when it came to writing essays.

  Lun Ce is an essay on the concept of governing the country and the way of being an official in this era. Wu Qing knew some general history of the Tang Dynasty, but he didn't know much about the thoughts of the scholar-officials during this period. However, living in this era, feeling his mother's eager expectations, shouldn't he also try it out?

  With such doubts, he locked the courtyard gate, carried the legacy of 300 taels of silver left by Old Soldier Zhang Xing, plus 100 taels of silver assisted by Wang Baishi, and held a letter of recommendation written by Wang Baishi to County School Husband Wang Fuzi, and walked into Wenshui County.

  Looking at the nearby Wen Shui County, the city wall is as high as 7 or 8 meters, giving it a somewhat majestic appearance. After stepping onto the streets, Wu Qing thoroughly despised them in his heart, and they couldn't be compared to those of over a thousand years later. The streets are narrow and bumpy, with few people flowing through, and many commoners wear tattered clothes; occasionally, some well-dressed individuals pass by, but that's about it. It turns out the prosperity of the county seat is only relative after all.

  The currency commonly used in the Tang Dynasty was Kaiyuan Tongbao, but what Wu Qing had was a silver ingot, which could only be exchanged for Kaiyuan Tongbao at some shops before it could be used. When Wu Qing first saw such a silver ingot, he was taken aback, as it didn't look as exquisite and beautiful as those on TV, but rather like a pancake. One silver ingot weighed about twenty-five taels, and Wu Qing had four hundred taels, which was definitely too heavy for him to carry, so he handed them over to Wu Dama.

  They went to the inn, exchanged twenty-five strings of copper coins under the white-eyed gaze of the inn's servant, which was equivalent to twenty-five taels of silver. Afterwards, at Wu Qing's request, they went to a ready-made clothing store, and after mother and son changed into clean and neat yellowish-brown clothes, they walked out.

  Ordinary people of the Tang Dynasty were generally only allowed to wear yellowish-brown hemp clothing in accordance with the law. Wu Qing couldn't do anything about this, after all, he was just a commoner. Of course, it wasn't extremely strict, as long as they didn't wear bright yellow clothes, it was fine.

  Through the introduction of a fellow villager, Wu Qing and his mother rented a three-acre courtyard house in the west of the city for 200 yuan per month. It was said that the landlord was eager to rent it out, and such a house would not cost less than 500 yuan normally. Wu Dama was grateful, while Wu Qing coldly smiled in his heart, thinking they had been taken advantage of. However, the price of 200 yuan was indeed very cheap, especially when he thought of the rent in his previous world, where a single room could cost several hundred yuan, let alone this house with two courtyards.

  The house is old, the furniture is also old, but fortunately there is a place to shelter from the wind and rain. Moreover, they paid a year's rent at once. Wu Qing was very fond of it in his heart, finally having his own private space. Wu Dama also arranged for two separate living quarters so as not to disturb Wu Qing's studies and affect his academic performance. Wu Qing lived in the backyard, while Wu Dama lived in the front yard.