Do you know: I am Xu Jiazi

Chapter 757 Thank God! [Thank you! Thank you again! 31k words owed]

Autumn Sound Garden
Under the porch of the main house,

After looking up at the blue sky with his hands behind his back, Chai Zhengzheng continued pacing back and forth at the door for a few more steps.

"Miss, perhaps our servant hasn't returned yet. Why don't you come inside and wait?" Zi Teng said from the side.

Chai Zhengzheng shook her head.

He brushed his clothes and said, "Then, young lady, shall we go to the second gate?"

Chai Zhengzheng tilted her head: "I'm not in a hurry, why would I go to the second gate!"

Fuyi was stunned upon hearing this, exchanged a glance with Ziteng who was trying not to laugh, and said with pursed lips, "It was this servant who spoke out of turn!"

"Ah."

At this time.

"girl!"

"girl!"

Yunmu's shouts came from outside the courtyard.

Upon hearing this, Chai Zhengzheng immediately strode towards the entrance of Qiushengyuan without saying a word.

Before the three of them, master and servant, even reached the courtyard gate, Yunmu trotted into the courtyard.

Seeing Yunmu's smiling face, Chai Zhengzheng quickly stepped forward: "How did it go? What place did you get?"

Panting, Yunmu, supporting Chai Zhengzheng's hand, said, "Reporting to Miss, the top scholar! Young Master Xu is the top scholar!"

Upon hearing this, Chai Zhengzheng's eyes widened, and she gripped Yunmu's hand tightly, asking, "First place? You're actually first place!"

Yunmu breathed a sigh of relief: "Yes, young lady! Our two servants saw it with their own eyes!"

Chai Zhengzheng smiled and nodded repeatedly.

“Huiyuan,” Chai Zhengzheng repeated.

Seeing Chai Zhengzheng's great joy, Yunmu sincerely exclaimed, "Miss, it was worth it for you to prick your finger and pray for him, asking the gods to bless him."

Chai Zhengzheng shook his head: "He studied hard for many years and had famous teachers to guide him. My prayers and blessings didn't have much effect."

Wisteria, standing to the side, retorted unhappily, "Girl! Your sincerity is as clear as day and will surely be of use! How can you be so self-deprecating?"

Chai Zhengzheng smiled and said, "As long as he passes the exam, we won't talk about these things anymore! By the way, how about my cousin Qi Heng? How did he do? What was his ranking?"

Upon hearing this, both Zifeng and Fuyi looked at Yunmu.

After catching his breath, Yunmu said, "Miss, our servant said he didn't see Young Master Qi's name."

"Huh?" Chai Zhengzheng frowned slightly.

"Miss, do you think those two gatekeepers came back immediately after seeing the first name on the list?" Fuyi asked uncertainly.

Yunmu nodded in agreement, "Those two are clever! They probably knew that the first one to return would be rewarded, which is why they rushed back together without even looking at the whole list."

Chai Zhengzheng remained noncommittal: "Send someone to take another look and find out more about the matter so that our family can act more smoothly later."

"Yes, girl."

As Xu Zaijing and the others squeezed into the crowd and moved forward with difficulty.

Near the carriages and horses of the Xu and Gu families.

Sun and Bai sat on chairs, looking at the crowd in front of the tall screen wall from afar, with their daughters-in-law standing behind them.

"mother."

Despite the noise around her, Ms. Sun immediately recognized who was calling her.

Turning his head towards the direction of the sound, he saw An Mei being escorted by Hu Yanjiong.

"Tsk! What brings you here, child! Didn't I tell you I had news to tell you?" Madam Sun frowned as she looked at Anmei.

"My daughter can't wait!" Anmei said with a flattering smile, her hands covering her lower abdomen.

Standing behind Sun, the eldest daughter-in-law Xie hurriedly waved to the carriage beside her.

Upon seeing this, the tall and long-legged Hua Qing quickly took a chair from the Xu family's carriage and placed it near Xie Shi.

After smiling at Hua Qing, Xie's personal maid placed her next to Sun.

"Little sister, come and sit down!" Madam Xie said with a smile.

Anmei quickly waved her hand: "Sister-in-law, no need! I'm fine standing! You and Sister-in-law Hualan haven't sat down, how can I sit!"

Hua Lan turned her gaze away from her brothers and looked at An Mei, saying, "Little sister, sit down! We're not pregnant!"

Everyone laughed upon hearing this.

“Your sister-in-law is right! Come and sit down!” Sun said to Anmei.

Seeing this, Anmei smiled somewhat embarrassedly and sat down half a step behind Bai and Sun.

After sitting down, An Mei smiled and greeted Ping Mei, Yan Ran, and Ting Yi behind Bai Shi on the other side.

The children standing to the side also started calling her "Auntie" and "Little Aunt".

Anmei smiled and nodded, then pulled her niece and grandniece aside and praised them for a while.

Then, Anmei looked at Bai Shi and Sun Shi and said, "Mother, Aunt, actually, the reason I came here this time is to let the baby in my belly absorb some literary energy!"

"That's a very good idea," praised Mrs. Sun.

"My brother-in-law didn't come?" Anmei asked, puzzled.

“Your brother-in-law is at court,” Pingmei replied, who was standing.

Behind Bai Shi, Granny Chang, with a smile on her face, looked at the group of people talking.

Looking around, Granny Chang's gaze sharpened, and she said to Pingmei beside her, "Madam, do you think that's the young master of the Duke of Lian over there?"

Upon hearing this, Pingmei followed Granny Chang's gaze and then said, "It really is Brother Zong!"

As she spoke, Pingmei waved to Lu Zezong, who was in the distance.

As Lu Zezong walked towards them, Pingmei whispered, "Mother, Mother, is the girl next to Zong-ge'er from the Cao family?"

"Not bad!" After Sun finished speaking, she looked at Xie and Xie nodded in acknowledgment, and had already sent someone to bring out a chair.

Upon approaching, Lu Zezong bowed and said, "Greetings, Aunt, Sister-in-law, and Elder Sister."

Following behind Lu Zezong, Sister Zhi also smiled and gave a curtsy.

"Good children, what brings you two here?" Madam Sun and Madam Bai stood up and asked with smiles.

“The elders in my family said that today is a big day for my sworn brother, so as his younger brother, I naturally have to come,” Lu Zezong said with a smile.

As he spoke, Lu Zezong looked around and asked, "Where is my sworn brother?"

Sun smiled and pointed to the crowded people in the distance, saying, "They're squeezing towards the screen wall."

"Zhi'er, come and sit down." Madam Xie said with a smile.

Cao Jiazhi glanced at Lu Zezong, then at the others who were standing, and shook her head with a smile: "Sister-in-law, I won't sit down!"

"Come here!" Hua Lan smiled and walked over, taking Zhi Jie'er's hand as they came together.

"Sister-in-law, none of you are sitting, how can I sit!" Sister Zhi continued to refuse.

“Hey! Sister Zhi, you’re different from us!” Xie said with a smile as she stood to the side.

Zhi'er smiled at Xie Shi, then shook her head again, saying, "I'd rather not sit! All the elders and sisters-in-law are here. If my aunt finds out I'm sitting, she might scold me!"

"Besides, I just sat in the carriage for a while, and my legs are still a bit stiff. I'm fine standing."

Anmei smiled at Zhijie and said, "Zhijie, if you don't sit down, he'll get scolded!"

As she spoke, Anmei gestured to Lu Zezong, who was looking towards the screen wall.

"Sister Zhi, sit down! It'll save you from having to stand and suffer when you come out with this boy," Madam Sun said with a smile.

“Aunt, being able to hear the good news from my brothers here is not a hardship,” said Zhi’er.

Upon hearing this, Madam Sun nodded approvingly: "Good child, please sit down!"

Bai, who was standing to the side, also nodded with a smile.

“Then I will respectfully accept your offer,” said Sister Zhi, sitting down, but only occupying half of the chair.

Seeing this, the women standing around exchanged smiles.

This noblewoman from the Cao family has an aunt who is the Empress and a cousin who is the Crown Princess. She is of extremely high status and is a true member of the royal family.

However, upon seeing her today, I found that this noble lady not only has a gentle temperament but also a friendly attitude, without the slightest hint of arrogance.

An Mei looked at Lu Zezong not far away and said, "That kid, Zong-ge'er, is really incredibly lucky."

Upon hearing this, Cao Jiazhi asked curiously in a low voice, "Sister Anmei, why do you say that?"

Anmei didn't speak, but just looked at Zhijie with a smile, raising her eyebrows a few times as she did so.

The noblewoman of the Cao family was very clever. Seeing Anmei's expression, she instantly understood what Anmei meant.

Feeling the gazes of the noble ladies around her, such as Pingmei and Xieshi, Zhijie managed to hold on for two breaths before shyly lowering her head.

The screen wall outside the Ministry of Rites' examination hall is over ten zhang long, and with the platform, it is more than three zhang high.

People who came to the vicinity to see the list all had to look up at it.

The three Lans who had just walked in front of Xu Zaijing and the others were still more than ten feet away from the screen wall, and the area within that distance was filled with surging figures.

The servants of the Sheng family were simply not capable of pushing through the crowd while protecting the three Lans to the screen wall.

Pinlan and Minglan kept glancing back, and when they saw Xu Zaijing and his men approaching with Qingyun, Alan, Shitou and other strong attendants, they quickly pulled Rulan and the maids over to them.

Seeing that the three Lans and Xiaotao Xique and others were coming over, Lin Qinshuang quickly pulled Mo Lan, and led Zhou Xueniang, Lu Zhong and other maids to follow.

With the tall and strong Xu Zaijing, Gu Tingye, and Qingyun and other close attendants present, those who stood in front of the crowd were easily pushed aside or dragged to the side.

The servants followed behind the group, protecting the women on the inside.

"Make way, make way!" Qingyun and Shitou shouted from the front.

People kept turning around to look, and when they saw Qingyun and Shitou's attire, as well as Xu Zaijing, Gu Tingye and others behind them, they all chose to make way for them.

As they moved through the crowd, people would occasionally glance at the four blue figures.

All four Lan were girls raised in wealthy and official families, and they all possessed a refined air and good looks, especially Mo Lan and Ming Lan.

So even after they passed by, some people still stood on tiptoe, their eyes lingering on their departing figures.

However, the four Lans didn't seem to notice anything. The reason was simple: as they walked, the rather tall Gu Tingye, Zai Zhang, Xu Zaijing, Changbai, and others also moved slightly outwards, following their personal attendants.

In this way, the group created a gap behind them that was two or three people wide.

The four Lan Bian and Lin Qinshuang used their sleeves or handkerchiefs to slightly cover their faces as they walked through the gap.

The four Lans were all short, hunching over and following behind the group, their eyes filled only with the tall backs of their older brothers.

suddenly,

A voice nearby shouted with wild joy, "I passed! I passed! After more than ten years of hard study, I finally passed!"

These words caused a great stir, and the crowd in front of the screen wall all craned their necks to see what the lucky person looked like.

Someone in the crowd immediately shouted, "Where is he? Where is he! Go over there quickly! Ask him if he's engaged! Is he willing to be our son-in-law!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Another voice shouted, "What are you all standing there for! Hurry up and go ask! No matter what the He family's conditions are, our Li family is ten percent better than them!"

"Yes! Make way, make way quickly!" The servant responded and began pushing and shoving the nearby crowd toward the newly appointed tribute student.

This unexpected turn of events caused a fluctuation in the crowded people watching the results in front of the screen wall, and the formation of Xu Zaijing and his group was also affected.

Previously, when the results of the imperial examination were being released, Xu Zaijing was in a teahouse outside.

I don't know what it felt like to stand in the crowd in front of the screen wall when I heard someone shout "I won!", but this time I experienced it firsthand.

Changbai and Zaizhang on one side were so unsteady that they almost knocked down Rulan and Xique behind them.

Xu Zaijing, who was walking beside Qingyun, turned around and saw this scene, and said, "Fifth sister, you and Xique hold on tight to Changbai and the others' clothes."

"Oh, oh!" Rulan and the magpie quickly did as instructed.

Xu Zaijing then said to Pinlan, who was standing beside him, "You should do the same."

"Okay!" Pinlan nodded enthusiastically and grabbed Changfeng's clothes.

Xu Zaijing turned around and looked at Minglan, who was closest to his back with her arms clenched into fists and hugged to her chest, and said, "What are you looking at? Hold on tighter!"

Minglan looked up at Xu Zaijing and quickly nodded repeatedly, "Oh, oh!"

Then, Xu Zaijing felt a light touch on his lower back.

Feeling the flow of people in front of him, Xu Zaijing turned around helplessly: "Didn't you eat breakfast? Hurry up!"

"Oh!" Minglan and Xu Zaijing exchanged a glance and then quickly gripped each other tightly.

As Xu Zaijing walked forward, he would occasionally turn his waist and back to push through the crowd.

Minglan, who was tightly gripping Xu Zaijing's clothes, could feel the movement of Xu Zaijing's back muscles through his clothes.

This made Minglan's heart race.

Feeling her cheeks begin to heat up, Minglan quickly loosened her grip and instead opened her palms to hold them back.

But this made Minglan feel the pain in her palms even more clearly.

"This, this is so embarrassing! Let go right now!" A rational voice cried out in Minglan's heart.

"There are so many people around, what if I let go and fall? I can't let go!" another voice in my head retorted.

"If you don't let go, our faces will turn bright red! If someone notices, we'll be dead!" Minglan's rational voice rang out again.

"I only realized how tall he is when I got closer!" another voice exclaimed.

Before Minglan could speak rationally again, she noticed that there were two hands beside Xu Zaijing's back.

Looking to the side, Minglan realized that Pinlan had moved over there.

Xu Zaijing also looked back.

“It’s still better here, Fifth Brother Xu. Third Brother can’t even stand up straight!” Pinlan said to Xu Zaijing with a smile.

Xu Zaijing glanced at Changfeng, who was panting heavily, and nodded to Pinlan.

"Phew!" Pinlan breathed a sigh of relief, then pushed hard on Xu Zaijing's clothes to give him some help to walk forward.

At the same time, Pinlan looked at Minglan, whose face was flushed and head was down, and said, "Sixth sister, helping to push and assist is quite tiring."

Upon hearing this, Minglan nodded quickly and, like Pinlan, pushed Xu Zaijing's waist forcefully, saying, "Yes!"

Mo Lan followed behind Chang Feng, watching her brother's retreating figure. Filled with regret, she thought, "If only Brother Yuan Ruo had come to see the list with me! Maybe I could have..."

Thinking about all this, Mo Lan pushed Chang Feng hard, almost causing him to bump into the old woman in front of him.

Just as Changfeng turned around angrily, Molan pointed ahead with a handkerchief in her hand: "Brother, we're at the very front, come and take a look!"

Upon hearing this, Changfeng frowned and said, "I know! I don't need you to remind me, little sister!"

As he spoke, Changfeng turned to look at the list.

With the help of Zhou Xueniang and Yun Zai, Lin Qinshuang and Mo Lan also squeezed to the front.

Lin Qinshuang looked at the tall screen wall and said, "Quick, quickly find your brother's name!"

“Mother, you don’t need to say it!” Mo Lan said, glancing at the writing on the screen wall.

Before they could even take a second look...

"Ah!!! Brother-in-law, you won, you won!" Rulan jumped up and down with joy on Changfeng's other side.

"Where? Where?" Pinlan looked at the screen wall and asked in a daze.

Minglan also turned her head to look curiously.

“There!” Rulan pointed to the last row under the screen wall.

“Brother-in-law, it really is your name!” Minglan turned her head and smiled as she called out to Zaizhang.

Xu Zaijing and the others, who were scanning the lists at the top, also looked over.

"I won! I actually won!" Zai Zhang shook his head with an incredulous smile.

"Congratulations, brother-in-law!" Rulan said with a smile.

Zai Zhang stared at his own name and laughed: "Fifth Sister, you have a really sharp eye!"

"Hehe!" Rulan laughed happily, "I'll look for the other brothers' as well."

Passersby who overheard the conversation began to spread the word, "Another scholar has been selected for the imperial examination!"

"Go ask them quickly!" someone in the crowd shouted urgently.

But when the servants of the wealthy household came up, they were greeted by strong men such as Qingyun, Alan, and Shitou.

As soon as Rulan finished speaking, Minglan, who was looking at the screen wall, widened her eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "Second Brother, you passed too! Over there! In the top row!"

Gu Tingye withdrew his gaze from elsewhere, glanced enviously at Changbai, and then looked up at the top with Xu Zaijing.

When Changbai saw his name, his tense expression immediately relaxed, and he sincerely muttered to himself, "Thank God—!"

Not far from Rulan, Changfeng, Molan, and Lin Qinshuang all heard Minglan's voice.

Lin Qinshuang instantly clenched her handkerchief, her eyes filled with a look of 'God has no eyes'.

Mo Lan glanced at Chang Bai, then turned her head to continue searching for Chang Feng and a certain young master's names on the screen wall.

Changfeng took a breath and perked up to continue looking at the list on the screen wall.

"I'm going back to tell Mother! My brother-in-law and second brother both passed!" Rulan said happily, turning to leave.

But after glancing back at the crowded throng, Rulan turned back and said, "Let's wait a little longer!"

Gu Tingye patted Changbai on the shoulder with a smile. Just as he was about to continue looking at the list, he saw Xu Zaijing looking at him from the side.

"Erlang, here you go!"

Xu Zaijing pointed to the place on the screen wall furthest from them and said.

"Huh?" Gu Tingye looked at Xu Zaijing blankly: "Fifth Brother, what are you talking about? I saw your name?"

Upon hearing this, Zai Zhang, Chang Bai, and the three Lans all looked over.

Minglan glanced at Xu Zaijing's eyebrows.

Zai Zhang looked in the direction Xu Zai Jing was pointing, narrowed his eyes and said, "Hiss, Xiao Wu! Why does the top scholar on the list seem to have the surname Xu?"

Changbai also narrowed his eyes.

"Huh?" Gu Tingye was taken aback, and looked at it carefully: "My God! It's not just the surname Xu, it's Wu Lang's name!"

Xu Zaijing couldn't help but laugh and said, "Second Brother, is the character 'Gu' at the bottom of my name?"

"Gu?" Gu Tingye quickly looked over.

After a while,
"Ah—!!!" Gu Tingye let out a long roar and shouted with wild joy, "I won too!"

After saying that, Gu Tingye turned around, grabbed Xu Zaijing's shoulder, and jumped up with all his might. Gu Tingye, who was half a body taller than everyone else, waved vigorously at Bai Shi, who was sitting in the distance.

"Mother, I won too!"

far away,

Looking at Gu Tingye jumping around, Madam Sun smiled enviously and said, "Sister, judging from how happy Erlang is, he must have won!"

Madam Bai nodded with a smile: "This child! He's a father now, and he still doesn't act properly!" As she spoke, Madam Bai, Granny Chang, and her two daughters-in-law smiled.

Anmei frowned and said worriedly, "Did Xiao Wu win? If he did, he should jump around a bit! Honestly!"

(End of this chapter)