Chapter 100: Chapter 99: Reunion
Those responsible for the provincial examination, Lord Academic Administrators, set off from the Capital in August, heading to each prefecture, conducting exams along the way.
Song Wei calculated that the Lord Academic Administrator would arrive in Ningzhou around late September.
It was only early May now, with still a few months to go before the provincial examination.
With the high expectations from County Magistrate Lu and Prefect Chen before him, combined with his promise to Song Fang, Song Wei dared not slack off and doubled his study hours each day.
When Song Wei was engrossed in his studies, Wen Wan would sit quietly beside him practicing her calligraphy.
She was always so quiet, afraid of disturbing him, she tried hard to make herself as unobtrusive as possible.
After a period of practice, Wen Wan’s written characters finally became somewhat presentable.
To boost her confidence, she deliberately ignored the man next to her, refusing to compare her work to his, and only matched her current practice against yesterday’s work.
Upon doing so, Wen Wan felt she was quite talented, instantly feeling much more invigorated.
Song Wei had long noticed Wen Wan’s little moves, clearly wanting to see his writing, yet restraining herself. After glancing at her own earlier practice, her mood significantly improved.
He didn’t need to ask to know why his young wife experienced such peculiar psychological changes.
Song Wei didn’t expose her, just smiled lightly and withdrew his gaze from her focused face, continuing to concentrate on his books.
Granny Song sat in the courtyard cooling off, fanning herself with a palm-leaf fan, while Song Fang attentively massaged her shoulders and back, telling her about the opportunity Song Wei promised her in the Capital.
Granny Song turned her head to look at her, "Look at you being so smug. If Third Son doesn’t pass the exam, let’s see if you’ll cry at his doorstep."
"Mother~" Song Fang complained, "I’ve never seen anyone belittling their own son like this. Isn’t this like hitting your leg with someone else’s crutch? What kind of person is Third Brother? A genius who can easily take the top spot in both the county and prefectural exams. I believe he will be even better in the provincial exam."
"I carried him for ten months and gave birth to him. Do you think I, as his mother, don’t know if he’s excellent or not?" Granny Song waved the fan twice.
Being excellent is one thing, but fate is another matter.
For all these years, she had secretly gone to temples to burn high incense and prayed to countless Bodhisattvas, to no avail. The bad luck on Third Son seemed to come uninvited, taking one by surprise.
There hadn’t been any issues with the county and prefectural exams before, and Granny Song thought her luck might have turned. But soon after, he nearly got a scar from a trip to the neighboring county, leaving her with a chill in her heart.
With only a few months until the next exam, how could Granny Song feel at ease?
Song Fang didn’t think so. She believed that her Third Brother could always turn misfortune into fortune, indicating he was blessed. Perhaps one day he might even achieve the top scholar’s title and from then on be blessed with high fortune, rising step by step.
——
With Wen Wan carefully caring for him, the wound on Song Wei’s forehead scabbed over and fell off in just a few days. The wound wasn’t deep, leaving no marks.
Having been cooped up in the study for many days, Song Wei also felt tired, so he chose a day that wasn’t too hot to accompany Wen Wan to the county town to buy some light fabric for clothes.
The young couple hadn’t yet left the village when they saw Xie Zheng approaching, accompanied by that examinee from the Prefecture, Hao Yun, whom they had met in the prefecture city.
Xie Zheng, being straightforward, greeted Song Wei simply and then stated his purpose, "This brother is here to find you, Third Cousin. When he asked for directions to our village, it came to me. After inquiring, I found out you met in the prefecture, so I brought him to you."