Chapter 249: Chapter 248: Peacock Spreads Its Feathers

Qin Yao got up extra early and went straight to the escort agency as soon as it opened. She placed an order to have a letter and money sent back to Liu Family Village.

It was too early, and the Money Shop wasn’t open yet, so Qin Yao couldn’t exchange silver notes. She shifted fifty taels of her own silver to the escort agency to give to Liu the carpenter to expand the factory, purchase tools, and recruit workers.

The fifty taels might not be enough, so Liu the carpenter would have to cover the rest for now, and they would settle the accounts when they meet.

The escort agency charged a high fee for small orders like this one, leading Qin Yao to part with two taels of silver for the service.

Fortunately, the agency was efficient, promising to deliver the silver and letter to Liu the carpenter within two days.

Escort agencies generally cooperate with the government, paying a certain insurance fee annually. If something goes wrong, the government dispatches officers to recover the lost insured items.

In the case of major transactions, the government guarantees both parties and sends escorts along.

Thus, people feel secure entrusting their insured items to the escort agency for delivery.

Since escorting requires numerous carriages and horses, large escort agencies tend to run their own carriage businesses to cut costs and expand their operations.

After learning about this, Qin Yao thought that the escort agency was almost no different from a postal service in modern times.

Compared to modern conveniences, there were indeed many inconveniences here.

However, there were also many mature industries that met people’s daily needs.

When Qin Yao returned to the inn after finishing her tasks at the agency, the examinees had already set off.

To avoid delaying their exam time, the examinees had to queue at the entrance for identity verification before dawn.

The innkeeper advised that, according to the timing now, setting out by the end of the third watch (3-5 a.m.) was sufficient.

In the past, there were even less understandable practices, like queuing from the evening of the previous day, only to faint before even entering the venue.

Da Lang and Second Lang still remember the way back to the inn, and the four siblings were there to see Liu Ji off and gain some experience.

Seeing the vacant guest room, Qin Yao took a silver note, locked the door, and headed towards the examination venue.

Looking at the sky, the examinees should have already entered the venue.

Qin Yao thought of picking up the kids, exchanging some money at the Money Shop along the way, and didn’t plan on sending Liu Ji to the examination hall or uttering words of encouragement.

But Liu Ji didn’t think the same; he and Liu Li arrived later, and queued at the back, frequently turning to look back.

Not seeing any familiar faces made him restless!

Da Lang, seeing through his father’s thoughts, told him, “Aunt Yao is attending to something, she won’t make it, so stop looking.”

Second Lang added, “You’d better check your book box to see if anything is missing, or else you’ll delay the examinations.”

Sanlang and Si Niang looked at him with worried expressions.

The examinee Liu Ji remained calm, but his four children were more anxious than he was.

It was Liu Li who, after the reminder, quickly checked the book box again, ensuring that everything necessary was taken and nothing unnecessary was left there, and patted his chest in reassurance.

Liu Ji sighed with some resentment, “Look, those with parents have their parents seeing them off, and those without have their wives seeing them off…”

Sanlang blinked his innocent big eyes, “Father, aren’t you happy we came to see you off?”

Liu Ji forced a smile at Sanlang, the words “happy” sounding dry.

He lowered his head to check the book box again, ensuring that pen, ink, paper, and inkstone were all packed, along with two spare pens, and no unnecessary items were included.

Once the check was complete, the spot ahead was clear, and Liu Li called out, “Let’s go!”

Liu Ji patted the heads of the four children in turn, “Father’s going in. You all be careful on your way back.”

“Mm-hmm.” The four children nodded solemnly.

Liu Ji moved slowly towards the checkpoint, looking back three steps at a time.

The officers first verified his identity and insurance slip, confirming everything was correct before moving to check the book box and conducting a body search.

Even the soles of his shoes were not overlooked; the inspection was very stringent, creating immense pressure even before entering, unlike the ease of the preliminary exams.

Though many examinees lined up at the entrance, the air was so quiet that only breaths could be heard.

“Examinee, Liu Ji from Liu Family Village, Jinshi Town, Kaiyang County, has passed inspection and may enter!”

The officer, as per protocol, confirmed Liu Ji’s identity for the final time, then gestured towards the examination hall entrance, “Take blank answer sheets from the entrance on the left.”

Answer cards had already been sent to the Academic Administration Bureau by agents for safe-keeping to prevent cheating.

Upon entry, you simply needed to report your name to receive them.

Liu Ji had no hope as he looked back once more but unexpectedly saw a familiar silhouette approaching from afar. A brisk figure quickly reached the square in front of the examination hall entrance.

Noticing his intense gaze, the person suddenly looked up at him.

“Good luck!” Qin Yao raised her hand and clenched her fist.

Liu Ji beamed instantly, raised his hand in excitement, and after receiving a glare from the impatient officers, suppressed his smile, picked up his book box, and joyously stepped into the examination hall.

The other examinees following him appeared nervous, with pale faces and foreheads dripping sweat. Seeing such a radiant and cheerful examinee, they couldn’t help but take a second glance.

Upon this second glance, they were greatly amazed—such a handsome young man existed in the world!

Liu Ji turned slightly, his light blue scholar’s robe and held-up raven-black hair perfectly revealing his noble features.

His lips lifted, showing a row of neat white teeth, and he gave a friendly nod.

The surrounding examinees felt that this man’s smile was more brilliant than the sunshine in May.

“My wife bought me new clothes, she even came to see me off, hehe!” Liu Ji muttered to himself with a slight embarrassment, but the spinning motion of raising his arms revealed his desire to show off.

As Liu Li turned back and noticed that Liu Ji hadn’t followed, he retraced his steps only to find Liu Ji spinning in circles like a proud peacock, surrounded by pink bubbles.

Upon a closer look, the surrounding examinees were all staring at him dumbfounded, and Liu Li quickly tugged on him, lowering his voice in scolding, “Do you want to die showing off here? This is a critical examination ground; how dare we act presumptuously!”

The somewhat carried-away Liu Ji was brought back to his senses by these words, shivering, hurriedly suppressing his lifted lips, and kept his head down, scanning around cautiously. Sensing no officers coming to apprehend him, he sighed a long breath of relief.

The examination venue for the provincial exam was still within a few large rooms, and Liu Li and Liu Ji went separate ways, as they were in different examination sessions.

Upon entering, Liu Ji found the setup familiar, nearly identical to that of the preliminary exam.

First, he took the answer sheets, then found his designated seat.

As the examination began, the examiner distributed the question papers.

The hall was extremely quiet, with only the rustling sound of paper being turned, the ambiance solemn.

Upon seeing the questions, some sighed lightly, others took deep breaths and began writing, while some sat for a long time without picking up their brush, stunned.

Liu Ji looked at the questions on his paper, scratching his head, touching his face, and appearing puzzled.

The questions seemed familiar, as if his wife had given him similar mock tests to practice.

But!

He couldn’t write down a single word.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep