C112 – The Student must Go All out
Just as Zuo Shaoqing put on his clothes, the steward knocked on the door, “Master San... Is San Ye up? The old master has been waiting in the front hall for a long time!”
Zuo Shaoqing frowned as he let Luo Xiaoliu open the door while he slowly washed his face and rinsed his mouth.
When the butler saw that Zuo Shaoqing was still washing up, he could not help but exclaim: “Master San, please hurry. Although Conference Test only starts in the second quarter of an hour of the morning, today’s Academic Institution entrance is definitely packed to the brim, and we still have to search ahead of time. If we’re late, we won’t be able to squeeze in.”
Zuo Shaoqing wiped his hands with a dry cloth. Then, he turned to the butler and smiled, “What you said is reasonable. The things have been packed. Let’s go.”
Outside, the sky was bright and misty. Even though it was early spring, it was still cold outside.
In the front hall, Zuo Shaoqing saw Zuo Yunwen standing at the door, waiting for him. Even Mrs. Xue was already sitting in the hall.
Before Zuo Yunwen could say anything, Zuo Shaoqing took the initiative to admit his mistake. “I’ve made father and mother wait for a long time. My son had some insomnia last night, so he woke up a little late.”
Zuo Yunwen originally wanted to scold Shao Qing, but he immediately swallowed his words and squeezed out a smile: “Shao Qing, thank you for your hard work. Quickly go in and eat breakfast. The kitchen has already prepared food for the whole day, we won’t be eating anything from Academic Institution today on the first day.”
Academic Institution had all the food and clothing that one needed during the exam, and it was provided free of charge, so those students who were short on money would usually enter with their hands empty, and use Academic Institution to deliver items.
However, when there were conditions in the family, they liked to prepare their own food, such as charcoal, ink, paper, and clothing. The things they prepared were always better than the things inside.
Zuo Shaoqing used a lot of breakfast, but it was just dried rice and dried vegetables. He could skip the soup and water, in case there were too many times that he had to go to the toilet when entering the exam room, which interrupted his train of thought.
After breakfast, Zuo Shaoqing suggested, “Father, mother, son wants to go see brother.”The source of this content nov(el)bi((n))
The couple shook their heads at the same time. The former reason was that they didn’t need to disturb him since Zuo Shaoyan hadn’t woken up yet. In fact, they were afraid that Zuo Shaoqing would make a mistake.
The latter ridiculed Zuo Shaoqing’s improper attitude and wanted to show off in front of Zuo Shaoyan.
It had to be said that Mrs. Xue’s eyesight was quite good. Zuo Shaoqing wasn’t shy to be seen through so he went along with Zuo Yunwen’s topic, “Since Big Bro didn’t wake up, then your son won’t disturb you. I hope Big Bro will recover soon.”
Mrs. Xue hated Zuo Yunwen to the point that her teeth itched, but she didn’t dare to make a move against him. After all, Zuo Yunwen treated him as a treasure.
Luo Xiaoliu and attendant brought out Zuo Shaoqing’s luggage. The luggage and the luggage were all sent by the Liu Steel Manor. It was obvious that they were not ordinary goods. This was the first time Mrs. Xue saw it.
Since Zuo Yunwen had grown up in the capital, he had more understanding of Conference Test than Zuo Shaoqing. After helping him inspect it once, he found that there was nothing that he had missed, even things like knee and wrist guards.
“After the exam is over, Shao Qing will personally go to the Wu Steel Manor to express his gratitude. These things are not cheap.” Zuo Yunwen said with a red face.
Who would have thought that the grand tutor’s grandson would be able to do such a thing? Many students scoffed at his words and even shook their heads with emotion, “My upbringing isn’t strict!”
The youngster knew that he was in the wrong and left hatefully. After that, he began to investigate even more closely. Not only did he carefully inspect everything in the food box, even the charcoal brought by the examinees had been pried apart.
This was because Young Master Ceng had stuffed the slip of paper in the middle of the charcoal. If it wasn’t for the bit of white paper that was exposed, it would have been difficult to find.
When it was Zuo Shaoqing’s turn, the young officer said something to Janissary Guard and the overseer. Zuo Shaoqing didn’t hear what the young officer said and only saw that those people were looking at him strangely.
Although the overseer’s face was still cold, his voice became softer after looking through Zuo Shaoqing’s information: “You are this year’s youngest Top Scorer? Very good, take the examination!”
Zuo Shaoqing immediately replied with a student salute, “This student will definitely give it his all!”
Two Janissary Guard began to open the box to check, while the other two went forward to search. According to the convention, the examinees who were searched would have their clothes ripped off to check, and if it was cotton clothes, the edges would be clearly checked.
Seeing that his four hands were about to touch Zuo Shaoqing’s body, the young officer hurriedly coughed twice and looked over with a sharp gaze.
The two Janissary Guard shook and didn’t know where to start.
Zuo Shaoqing didn’t make things difficult for them and took off his jacket for them to check. Today, he intentionally didn’t wear any cotton clothes, instead, he wore a thick fox fur coat.
Janissary Guard heaved a sigh of relief. Although he didn’t know what the relationship between this young man and the old man was, a fourth grade light carriage lieutenant who could lead the way definitely wasn’t an ordinary person.
Most of Zuo Shaoqing’s things had been prepared by Lu Zheng. Even officials who disliked Lu Zheng would not question Zuo Shaoqing’s character. Therefore, the items marked on the door were only slightly read through by Wu Steel.
After everything was recorded, the overseer gave him a plate number, and waved to let him pass. Zuo Shaoqing respectfully bowed again, and then walked into Academic Institution with a box of items in his hand.
After arriving at this place, Luo Xiaoliu would not be able to follow them in. He would spend the next nine days here by himself.
He found his own cubicle according to the numbers on the numbers. Inside, there was a table and a chair, a single bed, and a thin mattress in the shop.
This Academic Institution allowed the examinees to bring their own food and drink, but it did not allow the examinees to bring quilts.
The cubicle was very small, and they had already lit up the charcoal brazier. However, it didn’t last long, and the cubicle was still cold and gloomy.
The Academic Institution was opened only once every three years, and normally, there was not even a little bit of popularity.
Zuo Shaoqing moved the brazier backwards, in case the written exam papers were accidentally thrown into ashes. Then, Zuo Shaoqing would be too deep for tears.
As the students entered the room one by one, Zuo Shaoqing was just about to set up his brush and ink when he saw an old acquaintance walk into the cubicle. When the student turned around, Zuo Shaoqing cupped his hands towards him with a smile.
Receiving a surprised smile from the other party, Zuo Shaoqing thought to himself: What a coincidence, Jiung Hengzhou.