A Maid's Survival Story in a Noble Family Mansion? Rich Landlords Are More Appealing.

The news that Zhang Youcong had passed the imperial examination and become a scholar spread throughout Xiahe Village the very next day.

When the messenger went to deliver the good news, Zhang Youcong hadn't even arrived home yet. By the time he got to Xiahe Village, he was blocked at the village entrance before he even got home.

Chen Yongde and the clan elders waited for him in the village, and he was only able to leave after offering them repeated compliments.

The old locust tree at the village entrance has once again become the center of gossip.

The village women, one by one, used the excuse of borrowing salt or soy sauce to run to the Chen family, and then went back to embellish their stories.

By the next day, people from neighboring villages were even coming to inquire about the Chen family's son who had passed the imperial examination and become a scholar. They were asking how old he was and whether he was engaged.

"Have you heard? The eldest grandson of the Chen family's eldest son passed the imperial examination and became a scholar."

"How come I haven't heard of it? There's no one in our village who doesn't know about it now."

"It's only been a few years, and the Chen family has really become remarkable."

"Yes, their whole family is successful now. Their grandson-in-law is a scholar who passed the imperial examination, and their great-grandson is a scholar who passed the county-level imperial examination."

And those two girls, Qiuju and Qingsui, are doing business in Kaifeng now, and I heard they're making a fortune.

"Going into business? Aren't those two girls getting married?"

"Get married? They don't care. I heard that Aunt Peach Blossom has been running around to their house for the past few years, trying to find marriage partners for the two girls, but they both turned it down, saying they wanted to focus on their business and didn't want to get married so early."

"Tsk tsk, these days, even young girls can be so tough."

"What's with the arrogance? She's capable. Qinghui was clever when she was little. She learned accounting from Wanxing, and now she manages all the accounts."

Needless to say, Qiuju's embroidery skills were already outstanding when she was around ten years old, and now they're probably even better.

"That's true. By the way, I heard that Chen Lao Er's son, Yan Xin, is now a shopkeeper in the county town?"

"That's right. The head manager of Yuelai Restaurant, I heard the owner values ​​him highly. He got married last year, and his wife is from the county town."

"What about Yanbao and Yangui? Those two didn't seem particularly remarkable when they were little."

"You don't know this, do you? Yanbao later went to learn carpentry, and now he runs a carpentry shop in town, taking on big jobs."

Yan Gui is even more remarkable. He worked as a medicine apprentice in the pharmacy for six or seven years, and now he's a doctor. A few days ago, I had back pain, and he was the one who treated me, prescribed some medicine, and I felt better after taking it.”

"My goodness, this family is incredibly lucky!"

"What do you mean by ancestral graves emitting auspicious smoke? That's because they know how to raise their children. Didn't Sister Chen have a hard life when she was young? Who would have thought that her children would be so successful? That's all thanks to her skills."

"Yes, yes, Sister Chen is so lucky. Wanxing took her over to enjoy her life, but she refused and insisted on staying in the village, saying that she was used to living in the village and couldn't bear to be apart from these old neighbors."

"But even in the village, we can't compare to their lives. Sister Chen lives in the countryside, and she has the whole Han family serving her. What a wonderful life she lives!"

"Your mindset is wrong. What are we comparing ourselves to others for? Our village has already gained a lot of advantages compared to other villages."

All the clan land in our village is registered under the name of the scholar who passed the imperial examination, so we pay significantly less tax each year. A few months ago, I heard the clan head say that our clan's public school has saved some money and they want to open a clan school. Maybe our children and grandchildren can benefit from that and learn to read a few words.”

"Wow, this is fantastic news! Is it accurate?"

"Why wouldn't it be allowed? The clan chief said it himself, how could it be false?"

They were chatting animatedly when a young woman who had recently married into the family leaned over and asked in a low voice, "By the way, I heard that Wanxing's daughter's surname is Chen?"

"You know that?"

"I only heard about it; I never had a chance to ask before. Is it true that her daughter really took her mother's surname, Chen? And Mr. Wang was willing to accept that?"

"Isn't it strange? This story circulated in the village for a long time. Some people said it was Wanxing who asked for it herself, while others said it was Wang Juren who agreed. Anyway, they're doing quite well now, and they dote on their daughter like the apple of their eye."

"Oh my goodness, that girl Wanxing, how come she's so lucky?"

The group chattered on and on until the sun began to set, at which point they dispersed.

Meanwhile, inside the Chen family courtyard, everyone was gathered in the main room, their excitement no less than that of the gossipers outside.

"That's good." Grandma Chen nodded, a smile spreading across her face, deepening her wrinkles with her joy. "Good child, sit down and tell Grandma what happened."

Zhang Youcong sat down next to her, a smile in his eyes, but he remained composed and said politely, "Thanks to Grandma, I managed to pass the imperial examination this time."

Grandma Chen held his hand, looking him up and down, muttering, "You've lost weight, you've lost weight. Did the exams take a lot of work? Did you not eat properly again?"

Zhang Youcong laughed and said, "I did eat, but I was so nervous before the exam that I couldn't eat much. But now that the exam is over, I can come back and eat my grandma's cooking."

Grandma Chen was amused by his words, patted his hand and said, "You're just trying to flatter me. Your mother cooks delicious food for you every day, why would you care about what an old woman like me makes?"

"That's rare," Zhang Youcong said earnestly. "My mother's cooking is delicious, but my grandmother's cooking is the kind I've eaten since I was a child. The taste is different."

Grandma Chen's eyes crinkled with laughter, but she said, "Alright, alright, stop joking around. Tell Grandma, how did you do on the test? Were the questions difficult?"

Zhang Youcong then picked out what he could say and talked about it: which book the questions came from, how he solved them, how tricky the questions were from the examiners, and how many of the other people in the room looked worried.

He was already eloquent, and now, wanting to make his grandmother happy, he spoke with exceptional vividness, making Grandma Chen laugh non-stop.

"Good, good, another scholar has emerged in our family."

Zhang Youcong shook his head and said earnestly, "Grandma, don't worry, your grandson will definitely work hard and will try to pass the imperial examinations to become a Juren and then a Jinshi. You must take good care of yourself and wait for me to take care of you."

Grandma Chen looked at him, her eyes suddenly welling up with tears. She reached out and touched his head, just like she had when he was a child. "Good boy."

In the courtyard, several grandchildren were coming and going, their footsteps and voices blending together.

Qiuju and Qingsui had just returned today, carrying large and small bags of things, and were distributing them to everyone.

Yanxin stood beside them talking to them, with his wife by his side. Yanbao and Yangui were not here today; one was busy at the shop, and the other was seeing patients at the pharmacy. They wouldn't be back until evening.

Grandma Chen looked at the people in the courtyard, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved up.

The sun was shining brightly, warming everyone, and you could hear the laughter and chatter of the village women coming from the village entrance in the distance, intermittent and indistinct.