Chapter 1043: Chapter 1042 Yayuan

But then she immediately snapped out of it and smiled, “Is it true?”

Lady Qi nodded repeatedly, “The official report came on the government ship and was delivered to us early this morning. Song Chongjin should be home in a couple of days! This is truly a great joy, a great joy indeed!”

Imperial Doctor Du’s mustache twitched with happiness, though he tried to remain calm, “It’s just the top scorer, the Imperial Spring Examination next year is the most important. What’s there to be proud of now? It’s best not to be arrogant or anxious!”

Lady Qi had no interest in listening to Imperial Doctor Du’s nonsense and grabbed Wang Yongzhu to discuss how best to celebrate. Would it be better to buy firecrackers and set them off, or throw a big banquet for guests?

Wang Yongzhu quickly held back Lady Qi, “Mistress, there’s no rush. Brother Song hasn’t returned yet! Let’s wait a couple of days until Brother Song is back. We can see what he thinks and then decide.”

Meanwhile, she couldn’t hold back her smile, “Master, Mistress, I’d like to take a leave for today. I need to go back and tell my mother this wonderful news. Since Brother Song went to the provincial capital, my mother has been praying to the deity every day. If she hears this good news, she’ll definitely be overjoyed.”

Naturally, neither Imperial Doctor Du nor Lady Qi stopped her and graciously nodded in agreement.

Wang Yongzhu rushed back home to find Old Granny Zhang sitting cross-legged on a mat, praying to the deity, “Oh deity, my son-in-law has finished the exams, and I’ve been burning incense for nearly a month now, haven’t I? Do you know how much I spent on this incense, 10 Bronze Coins per bundle, quite a bit of money.”

“Just show your spirit, bless my son-in-law, we don’t ask for first or second place, just let him pass! If he does, I’ll worship you every day. How’s that?”

…

In the midst of her prayer, she heard her daughter’s voice, “Mom, mom—”

Old Granny Zhang couldn’t remember the last time she heard her daughter sound so out of control and was startled. She quickly got up, ignoring the deity, and ran outside, not even brushing the dust off her clothes.

Before she reached the door, she ran into her daughter, who was rushing in with red eyes and a sweat-covered face, suddenly feeling alarmed. Her daughter crying? Could it be?

Then she heard her daughter say, “Mom, Brother Song passed the exams. He’s now a Graduate and even won the Yayuan—”

Old Granny Zhang didn’t understand what Yayuan meant, but hearing that he was now a Graduate, she breathed a sigh of relief, “This is a great joy, a great joy. Why are you crying, daughter?”

As she said this, she reached out to wipe Wang Yongzhu’s tears, and as she spoke, she herself couldn’t help but shed tears, too.

How merciful the heavens are, her son-in-law has finally made it! After so many years, Qilidun finally has another Old Master Graduate.

She remembered how Wang Yongan had promised to placate them into supporting his education, saying that once he became a Graduate, he could hold office, which was much more substantial than just being a Scholar, which only brought a good name and the privilege of not having to kneel before officials.

Becoming a Graduate meant not only receiving a stipend from the Imperial Court but also exemption from corvée labor for those under his name. Just for this reason, many people cried and clamored to register their fields under a Graduate’s name.

With just this alone, they could live without worry.

If fortune smiled upon them, they might rise during major court selections and get appointed to minor official positions, like an Instructor or County Magistrate.

There had been cases where someone with a Graduate origin managed to climb to the position of Magistrate.

Without a major selection, those adept at manipulating the system could get recommended and become lower to middle-tier officials.

It’s equivalent to having one foot in the officialdom already.

Thinking of this, Old Granny Zhang felt happy again. No matter what, now her Yongzhu was formally the Graduate’s wife.

The mother and daughter exchanged a look and burst into laughter.

Suddenly, Old Granny Zhang remembered something and hurriedly turned to run into the house. Wang Yongzhu followed her in, only to see Old Granny Zhang devoutly kneeling on the mat, “The deity has shown its spirit! Thank you, deity, it’s thanks to your blessing that my son-in-law became a Graduate!”

“Oh deity, rest assured, I mean what I say! From now on, I’ll offer you incense every day, quality incense. How could incense worth 10 Bronze Coins compare to you? Starting tomorrow, I’ll offer you incense worth Twenty Large Money! Please continue to bless my son-in-law, and if next year he becomes a Scholar, I’ll offer you incense worth Fifty Large Money!”

Wang Yongzhu…

So this was what her dear mother prayed for every day? Bargaining with the deity like this? If she were the deity, she might burst out laughing from being amused!

And as for Song Chongjin, if he found out that all his hard work securing the Graduate title was credited to the deity by his mother-in-law, who knows what expression he’d have.

Given this great news, Wang Yongzhu decided to give double pay to Old Granny Wu and the others, allowing them to share in the good fortune.

The three of them expressed their gratitude intensely, not just about their wages, but for the future, they were now servants of the household of an Old Master Graduate.

Who would have thought they could have such luck?

Especially Old Granny Wu, clutching the purse with Copper Coins, saw Gu Yu holding her own and staring into space, she reminded, “You silly girl, this is a great occasion for the master’s family, and a great joy for us as well. Why aren’t you smiling and just standing there dazed?”

Since returning, Gu Yu seemed to be preoccupied. Old Granny Wu and Old Granny Ding had asked, but Gu Yu gritted her teeth and said nothing. But who was Old Granny Wu?

With a few words, she managed to get a gist of the situation.

Upon seeing Gu Yu like this, she couldn’t help but pat her on the back, “You’re silly. You forgot that you owe your current situation to the Graduate’s wife’s kindness. You might have been sold off to who knows where, and you wouldn’t be living such a life! What happened with your third sister is not the Lady’s fault; it was your third sister and brother-in-law’s decision. The path they chose, even if it leads to blisters, they can’t blame others!”

“Besides, didn’t you take those good things back to your third sister? With you giving those things and the silver they received back then, your third sister can live her days well enough.”

“If you’re really concerned about your third sister, serve the Madam well, and if you receive rewards, you can help her out; otherwise, who are you pouting for every day? Now that our master has become a Graduate, we’re celebrating. Isn’t your behavior bringing bad luck to the household?”

Gu Yu’s face turned pale when she heard this, quickly explaining, “Auntie, you misunderstood me, I am not blaming the Madam. My third sister told me long ago that this was their own doing and has nothing to do with the Madam. In fact, it’s the Madam’s kind heart that ended up like this; they feel guilty towards the Madam and told me to serve the Madam well and not to worry about home.”

Old Granny Wu felt relieved hearing this but didn’t quite understand, “So then, why are you spacing out?”

Gu Yu awkwardly smiled, “I was just listening to you talk about how impressive the Old Master Graduate is, and I was stunned. In our village, the cost of studying is so high, and most people can’t afford it, so having a Scholar is already quite remarkable. I used to think that Scholar Masters were the highest officials next to the Emperor and County Magistrates…”

Old Granny Ding couldn’t help but giggle, and Old Granny Wu, too, was amused as she pinched Gu Yu’s now chubby cheeks, “You can’t go around saying that; it’s a small thing for people to laugh at you, but they might also laugh at us for not knowing how to train our servants!”

Gu Yu, realizing her blunder, hastily agreed.