The return trip was much faster, nearly 1,100 miles, and only took half a month. The two southwest horses finally came in handy.

The caravans I met along the way expressed their congratulations when they learned that Wu Zongrui had passed the rural examination for high school, and took the initiative to speed up their journey.

When I returned to Xinlongli, it was already October 25th.

When attending the Luming Banquet, Wu Zongrui already knew that the joint examination would be held in the capital on February 15th of the following year. The ninety-five candidates who passed the Jiangxi examination were eligible to go to the capital to take part in the joint examination. All new imperial examination candidates and

In the past, candidates had to rush to the capital before the tenth day of February and report to the Ministry of Rites before they could participate in the examination.

Anyuan County is too far away from the capital, about four thousand miles. According to the current traffic conditions, it will take Wu Zongrui at least two months to get there. In other words, he must set off for the capital by early December at the latest.

Participate in the examination.

This also means that Wu Zongrui must spend this Spring Festival on the road.

Of course, during the Ming Dynasty, those who served as officials rarely had the opportunity to go home to celebrate the New Year. According to the regulations for serving as officials in other places, most of the first-class and second-class scholars among the two rankings stayed in the capital and entered the Hanlin Academy directly.

, most of the remaining second-class Jinshi and third-class Jinshi were sent to serve as county magistrates in various places, and these places were usually far away from their hometowns.

According to the regulations of the imperial court, officials have three days of rest per month, plus the emperor's birthday and other holidays, a total of eighteen days. In addition, there is about a month of vacation, concentrated around the Spring Festival.

As for going home to visit relatives, the court has no regulations in this regard. Unless the parents are mourned, they must go home to observe mourning for three years. It is impossible to go home during the rest of the time.

Of course, there are also people who are officials in the capital and their family members live with them in the capital, but they are all high-ranking people. Officials below the fourth rank should not have such extravagant expectations.

After traveling for more than half a year, Wu Zongrui has become accustomed to such traffic conditions. Thinking about it a few hundred years later, starting from Anyuan County to Beijing will only take about a day at most.

At the entrance of the village, a large group of people were already waiting.

Standing at the front of the team were Wu Shungui, Mr. Zeng and Wu Shunfu.

A long way away, Wu Zongrui quickly dismounted his horse, walked forward quickly, clasped his fists and bowed his head in salute.

"Zong Rui has met his father, met Mr. Zeng, met the patriarch, met all of you..."

Wu Zongrui's humility made Mr. Zeng nod his head repeatedly, while Wu Shungui and Wu Shunfu had flattered expressions. In their hearts, they had a natural respect for Jinshi and Juren, even if Wu Zongrui was their son and nephew.

The group of people walked slowly towards the direction of the enclosed house. Mr. Zeng and Wu Zongrui walked at the front. Wu Shungui and others kept a few meters apart so as not to disturb the conversation between the two.

"Zong Rui, you have already passed the examination in high school, but you have not taken the exam. It's time to take the exam."

"Sir is Zong Rui's first mentor, so Zong Rui asked his mentor to help him pick up the characters."

"Oh, Zong Rui, do you really think so? Then I won't be polite. You are smart, steady, and have an extraordinary temperament. The so-called Jinlin is not a thing in the pond. When the storm changes, you will become a dragon. You are very good at the provincial examination and high school.

I will soon go to the capital to take part in the examination. I am looking forward to your name on the gold medal list. I thought about your character for a long time and chose the character Ruichang..."

"Chang Rui thanks my mentor."

"Fu Rui Long", the word Mr. Zeng gave to Wu Zongrui, has a very clear meaning without too many allusions. It is purely a personal blessing and expectation, which is completely in line with Wu Zongrui's ideas.

...

In front of the enclosure, there were already many people waiting. They all looked at Wu Zongrui who came over with awe in their eyes. Wu Zongrui still held his fists and saluted the waiting people. The people standing in front saw Wu Zongrui salute and quickly knelt down.

, the people behind also knelt down.

Wu Zongrui quickly stepped forward, helped up the people kneeling in front, and called all the people kneeling to stand up.

After graduating from high school, Wu Zongrui already had the status of a master. It was perfectly acceptable for ordinary people in the family to kneel down and worship, but Wu Zongrui was not used to such etiquette.

The floor was very clean, and when Wu Zongrui entered the enclosed room, he felt an unusual atmosphere.

The red velvet carpet is spread all the way to the sacrificial hall in the south of the enclosure, which is the most serious and mysterious place in the enclosure.

During the Qingming Festival, Wu Zongrui also came here, but at that time, there was still a grudge between him and the patriarch Wu Shunfu and others. Therefore, Wu Zongrui did not receive attention during the Qingming ancestor worship. But this time it was different. Wu Zongrui was

The absolute protagonist, and the purpose of ancestor worship is to comfort the ancestors of the Wu family.

Wu Shunfu stood at the front, followed closely by Wu Zongrui and Wu Shungui, Mr. Zeng stood beside him, and the rest stood in awe outside the sacrificial hall.

Wu Shunfu walked to the futon and knelt down respectfully.

"The ancestors of the Wu family, Wu Shunfu, the patriarch of the Wu family's cistern generation, led Wu Shungui and Wu Zongrui to pay homage, and asked Mr. Zeng, the sociologist of the Wu family, to witness."

"Wu Zongrui, a descendant of the Wu family, ranked 18th in the Jiangxi Wuchen Kexiang Examination in high school. Today I came to inform my ancestors and pray for them to bless Wu Zongrui and my Wu family."

...

Wu Zongrui walked forward and knelt down.

Even though he was a person who traveled through time, he still felt awe in his heart when facing the ancestors of the Wu family. He originally didn't believe in gods or ghosts, but his mind changed subtly after time traveling. There are still some forces in this world that are elusive to humans, and they are worth it.

Awe-inspiring.

After praying silently in his heart, Wu Zongrui spoke.

"Wu Zongrui of the Wu family won the 18th place in the Jiangxi Wuchen Science and Technology Township Examination. This is the blessing of his ancestors. Today I am here to tell you that I would like to thank my ancestors for their blessing in heaven. Wu Zongrui will soon rush to the capital to participate in the examination and beg his ancestors to continue to bless him. If Wu Zongrui is

If you are named on the gold list, you will definitely return to your hometown to pay homage to your ancestors..."

After Wu Zongrui paid homage, Wu Shunfu stepped forward and knelt down again.

"Wu Shunfu informed his ancestors that the Wu family has decided to worship Wu Shungui as the family elder and enjoy the family's worship. Today, Mr. Zeng is invited to witness. This is an important decision for the family. When paying homage to the ancestors, I specially informed..."

Wu Shungui obviously didn't expect it, his face turned pale and his body was trembling slightly.

Wu Shunfu stood up and walked to Wu Shungui's side, reminding him softly.

Wu Shungui walked to the futon and knelt down respectfully, his body still trembling slightly.

Mr. Zeng walked to Wu Shungui's side.

"Brother Wu, calm down. Father is more important than son. When facing your ancestors, you have to thank your family for their kindness."

Wu Shungui looked at Mr. Zeng, Wu Shunfu and Wu Zongrui, and finally calmed down a little.

After kowtow, he stammered and spoke.

"Grateful, thank you to the Wu family. I, I will definitely listen to the words of the clan leader and do things for the family honestly. I beg my ancestors to bless Wu Zongrui and bless the Wu family..."

Wu Shungui's excitement did not arouse everyone's surprise. Besides, Wu Shungui's statement was also Wu Shunfu's favorite words. Although the relationship between Wu Zonglin and Wu Zongrui was already extraordinary, Wu Shunfu was still a little worried. If Wu Zongrui was named on the gold list, Wu Shunfu would

The family has become a real gentry family in Anyuan County. Wu Zongrui has more say in the family than the patriarch and can directly decide many matters of the family. At that time, if Wu Zongrui does not support Wu Zonglin, how will the position of the patriarch belong to him?

It's really hard to say.

Wu Zongrui passed the exam, which was beyond Wu Shunfu's expectation. According to his prediction, Wu Zongrui had almost no hope in this provincial examination. After all, the family's various previous behaviors had disturbed Wu Zongrui's emotions. Compared with those students who were seriously reviewing their homework, Wu Zongrui

There is no advantage at all.

But Wu Zongrui passed the exam and ranked high.

According to Mr. Zeng's prediction, the 18th place in the Jiangxi Provincial Examination will basically have no problem in the General Examination. In other words, Wu Zongrui has a high possibility of being named on the gold list.

Under such circumstances, if Wu Shunfu didn't know how to quickly make friends with Wu Zongrui, there was something wrong with his brain.

Now it seems that the effect is quite good.

After the worship ceremony ended, the group of people walked out of the worship hall.

The banquet has been set up, waiting for everyone to sit down.

Wu Zongkun stood outside the worship hall. When he saw Wu Zongrui coming out, he quickly stepped forward and the Jishou spoke in a low voice.

"congratulations..."

After working in the county government for more than half a year, Wu Zongkun has become much more experienced and understands the importance of power. If he wants to gain a good foothold in the county government, the backing behind him is crucial. The Wu family is really nothing in Anyuan County.

, so Wu Zongkun, as a household secretary, is still struggling. He must pay attention to all aspects of relationships. If he is not careful, he may encounter other people's schemes.

However, all this has changed significantly after Wu Zongrui passed the examination. Wu Zongrui ranked 18th in the provincial high school examination. This ranking is highly guaranteed to be on the gold list. Once Wu Zongrui becomes a Jinshi on the two lists, the Wu family will

To become a real gentry family in Anyuan County will definitely attract the attention of the magistrate of Anyuan County.

Wu Zongkun was very fortunate that he exhausted all his strength and allowed Niu Er to work in the county government. Later, he seized the opportunity and made Niu Er an official in the county government. When he did this, he still had a certain degree of confidence in his heart.

I felt resentful and unworthy, but now it seems that this was a very wise thing to do.

"Zong Kun, we are brothers, there is no need to be so polite. You work in the county government and help the family a lot. Brother Zong Lin told me that Lord Bo followed your advice during the autumn field tax collection.

, there was no forced expropriation, so the situation in Anyuan County is stable, which is a great contribution, and I think the Ganzhou government office also knows this."

"This, this is what I should do, and I also follow your advice..."

"No more words. If anything happens in the future, we will take care of each other."

When facing Wu Zongrui, Wu Zongkun has already placed himself in an inferior position. This is normal. Wu Zongrui was a high school candidate and has already become a master of people selection. Wu Zongkun is just a clerk in the county government. Compared with scholars with meritorious titles, Wu Zongkun is just a county official.

, the gap is too big.

Wu Zongrui unknowingly gained the aura of a superior, and when facing Wu Zongkun, he behaved very calmly.
Chapter completed!