The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 383: Heartfelt Gifts
Xue Ke went to the Jiangnan Imperial Examination Hall to wait for the results to be announced early this morning, so he didn't know Wang Ren was visiting him. In addition, the latter's reaction was so big and he jumped up suddenly, which scared him. It took him a moment to come back to his senses and hurriedly greeted him, "It turns out to be Mr. Wang. How early and late did you arrive in Jinling? I didn't even know."

Wang Ren then realized that he had lost his composure, and hurriedly sat down, saying awkwardly, "I just arrived yesterday. Um, Master Ke just said that Jia Huan won the first place in the imperial examination?"

Xue Ke immediately put on a beaming expression and nodded, "Isn't it? The list has been posted in front of the Jiangnan Imperial Examination Hall. Tsk tsk, the streets in front of the Imperial Examination Hall are really empty now. I was a quarter of an hour late, and I waited for more than an hour before I got to the list. As a result, I saw that Master Huan San was at the top of the list and won the first place in Nanzhili. Master Huan San is really amazing. He always wins the first place in the case. If he wins the first place in the joint examination and the palace examination next year, he will become a unique god who has won both the big three prizes and the small three prizes in one person!"

Xue Ke's expression and tone were full of excitement and admiration. There was no doubt that Jia Huan's image in his mind was infinitely elevated.

Mother Xue was also very happy at this moment, smiling from ear to ear, and clasped her hands together and chanted a Buddhist saying: "Back then, I thought Huan'er was a good scholar, and now he has really passed the imperial examination, and he is the top scholar. He is truly the literary star from heaven who has come down to earth."

Wang Ren's face turned gloomy and changed. He had previously received a positive answer from his uncle Wang Ziteng that Jia Huan would never pass the imperial examination this time. However, the third Jia Huan not only passed the imperial examination, but also won the title of Jieyuan.

Now my aunt (Lady Wang) and sister (Wang Xifeng) are in big trouble. When they return to the Jia family, the status of Jia Huan must rise. Mei Yucheng is such a waste. He was obviously a co-examiner of the Nanzhili provincial examination, but he let Jia Huan pass the examination and even won the first place. Ugh!
Seeing Wang Ren's grim expression, Xue Ke thought about the latter's out-of-control behavior just now, where he almost let the cat out of the bag. He couldn't help but secretly become suspicious. Could it be that the Wang family had secretly done something to make Master Huan San fail the provincial examination?
Thinking of this, Xue Ke couldn't help but gasp. Manipulating the imperial examination is a serious crime. But fortunately, no matter whether the Wang family had done something, Master Huan San had passed the provincial examination with the first place. Well, this is none of my business, and I can't do anything about it!
Aunt Xue was obviously a little suspicious, but as a married daughter of the Wang family, even if she knew that her second brother Wang Ziteng had done something to prevent Jia Huan from passing the imperial examination, she could not come forward to report him for the sake of justice. She could only pretend that she knew nothing about it. At most, she felt guilty and tried her best to compensate and appease Jia Huan.

At this time, in the backyard of Xue's mansion, Baochai and Baoqin also learned the news that Jia Huan had won the first place in the imperial examination, and they were all very happy.

Little Sister Xue said with a smile: "Congratulations, sister. Brother Huan has won the first place in the imperial examination. He may win the first place in the imperial examination next year, and become the top three in the imperial examination, which will be passed down through the ages."

"It's not that easy...Brother Huan has passed the imperial examination, why are you congratulating me? You are asking for a beating!" Xue Baochai came to her senses and her cheeks flushed.

Xue Baoqin chuckled and said, "Oh, I was just too quick to say it and made a mistake. Don't be angry, sister. By the way, Master Huan San is really amazing. I originally thought that it would be great if he could make it into the top ten, but I didn't expect him to take first place directly."

Xue Baochai smiled calmly upon hearing this: "He is just like this, always surprising others and able to do what others cannot. When he took part in the county examination only one month after starting writing, everyone thought he would not pass it and just treated it as a practice. As a result, he directly won the first place. After that, he became more and more courageous. Within half a year, he won the first place in the prefectural examination and the imperial examination, and became a junior high school student."

Xue Baoqin said admiringly: "I have always prided myself on being smart and as talented as any man, but compared to Brother Huan, I am so ashamed!"

Xue Baochai smiled and said, "Well, now you have someone you respect."

Xue Baoqin turned her bright eyes playfully and asked, "Sister, are you dissatisfied with Brother Huan?"

Xue Baochai said with a smile, "What's there to be convinced of? It's a great blessing for us girls to be able to read a few words and read a few books. We should be serious about knitting and sewing. Why should we compete with men in talent and learning? I have never had such an idea. But you have been traveling around the country with your uncle since you were a child. It's a good thing that you have broadened your horizons, but it also makes you wild and arrogant. Everyone is mediocre in your eyes. Now it's better. You don't have to be arrogant all day long, complaining without reason, and sighing that you are not a man."

Xue Baoqin stuck out her tongue, covered her face and said, "Sister, I feel even more ashamed when you say that. When did I ever become arrogant and whining for no reason?"

Xue Baochai stretched out her slender finger and gently poked Baoqin's forehead, smiling and saying: "Look at the poems you usually write. You haven't told me yet? How about I read one to you?"

Xue Baoqin burst out laughing and shook her head, saying, "Stop reading it now. I'll burn it later. From now on, I'll just write about the sorrows of spring and autumn and the wind and moon."

As the two were chatting, a maid walked in and said happily, "Master Huan San has won the first place in the provincial examination. A messenger just sent an invitation to our family to attend a banquet to celebrate. Madam asked if the young lady would like to go with us."

Xue Baochai shook her head and said, "I won't go. Let the eldest and second masters represent us. Give us a generous gift. Just say that my sister Qin and I congratulate Brother Huan on his success in high school. There's no need to say anything else."

The old woman agreed and went out to reply to Aunt Xue.

Xue Baoqin asked in confusion: "I am in deep mourning and cannot go there in person. Why doesn't your sister go?"

Xue Baochai smiled and said, "Brother Huan's place is small, and it's troublesome enough to deal with the front. It's not easy for us women to go and make arrangements. It's better not to go, so as not to make it difficult for him. We can invite Brother Huan to come and congratulate him in person another day."

Xue Baoqin suddenly realized, "That's true, sister is really thoughtful. But if sister doesn't go, will brother Huan be unhappy?"

Xue Baochai shook her head and said, "Brother Jia is not that magnanimous."

Xue Baoqin said with a smile: "Even though you say that, even if you don't come, you still have to send gifts. I'll go back and think about what gift to send." After that, she hurried away. Ying'er said hurriedly: "Miss Qin has sent gifts, so there is no reason for you not to send gifts. Oh, what special things do you plan to send?"

Xue Baochai hesitated for a moment, and Ying'er smiled and reminded her, "Miss, have you forgotten the pair of Buyun shoes? Aren't they for Master Huan San?"

“It’s not ready yet!”

"It's almost done. Let's hurry up and finish it before I leave. This is the Buyun Shoes made by the girl herself. It's not better than other things, and the meaning is good. When Master Huan San passes the Liyuan level, he will wear the Buyun Shoes made by the girl and rise to the top from then on."

Xue Baochai hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded. The master and servant raced against time to do needlework, and Xiangling helped beside them.

……

It was noon, and the entrance to the Jiangnan Imperial Examination Hall was still bustling with people coming to see the list. At this time, two tall and strong men wearing bamboo hats passed by the entrance to the Imperial Examination Hall. One of them whispered, "Brother, it's so lively here, I wonder what's going on."

Another strong man shook his head and said, "I don't know. There seems to be a notice posted on the wall. We will know when we go up and take a look."

Two strong men mixed in the crowd and came forward to take a look, only to then realize that it was the announcement of the provincial examination results. When they saw the name at the top of the list, they were all surprised.

"Let's go!" The burly man in the lead lightly touched his companion's shoulder, motioning him to leave.

The two strong men walked away quickly, gradually coming to a place where there were fewer people. The younger strong man breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Brother, did you see that? The first place winner of the Nanzhili County Examination is actually called Jia Huan. Could it be him?"

The sturdy man in the lead nodded and said, "It's almost certain. This boy is both civil and military, and he will definitely be a strong rival for our Great Jin in the future."

"It's a pity that we couldn't shoot him in Datong Mountain that day." Another strong man said in annoyance.

It turned out that the two strong men were Ajige and Dorgon, who used the aliases Zhu Jinfu and Zhu Jincheng.

It is said that on that day, Ajige and Dorgon led a group of pirates to break out from the south of Datong Mountain. Unexpectedly, this was a trick of Li Hongji. He tried to use Ajige and Dorgon's group as cannon fodder to attract the attention of officers and soldiers, and then escape from the gap in the north.

Although Ajige and Dorgon were deceived, they were both powerful figures in history and one of the eight great beiles of the Qing Dynasty. Although almost all of their troops were wiped out, they eventually managed to break through the siege and escape from Datongshan.

However, after breaking through the encirclement, Ajige and Dorgon did not flee for their lives. Instead, they did the opposite and retreated back to the depths of Datong Mountain to hide again. They miraculously evaded the subsequent search by the officers and soldiers.

The two men were highly skilled in martial arts and archery. They hid in the mountains by hunting and picking for nearly two months. Only when the storm had passed did they sneak out of the mountains, disguise themselves, cross the Yangtze River, and head straight for Jinling City.

Nanjing was the capital of the Jin Dynasty and was heavily guarded. However, these two men were so skilled and bold that they went against the grain again and came to Nanjing. One could not help but admire them.

Of course, these two men were not short of life. The reason they came to Nanjing was, firstly, they wanted to personally spy on the strength of the Jin Dynasty's capital, and secondly, there were spies in the city who could help them go out to sea and return to Liaodong by sea.

The two did not expect that soon after they entered the city, they would encounter the announcement of the results of the Nanzhili provincial examination, and Jia Huan turned out to be the first place, which made them extremely depressed.

After the previous contest, the two brothers have realized how powerful Jia Huan is. You know, this kid is only about twelve or thirteen years old. Now that he has passed the imperial examination, it is basically a foregone conclusion that he will become an official in the court in the future. As long as the Emperor of the Great Jin Dynasty is not blind, how could he not use such a rare talent?

Ajige and Dorgon were naturally unhappy when they thought that this person would grow into a powerful enemy of their country in the future. The latter was even more upset that he had not been able to rescue Jia Huan from Datong Mountain.

(End of this chapter)