Do you know the long song of laughter?

Chapter 160 Yang Tao comes to visit

"I originally wanted to open branches in surrounding counties, but after hearing this, I gave up the idea." Li Ping said.

Li An was not surprised by what Li Ping said. This kind of thing was common even in later generations, let alone ancient times.

In the final analysis, the Li family are just ordinary people. Although Li An has a literary official from the ninth grade, it really doesn't matter.

Moreover, he and Liu Xuewen were just masters and apprentices, so they couldn't scare so many people.

What's more, no official has any personal connections.

As the saying goes, the county magistrate is not as good as being in charge. As long as people don't leave any clues when they deal with you, Liu Xuewen can't help him.

"Tieniu, why are you telling Aniu this? Now that I earn several thousand taels a year, what's left to be dissatisfied about? Come, let's have a drink together, father and son." Li Nan interrupted Li Ping.

Li Nan is the kind of person who is content with a small amount of money and is very satisfied with his current life.

And rather than making money, he wanted Li An to pass the Jinshi examination and become an official, so as to honor his ancestors.

The two brothers didn't say anything after hearing what their father said. They picked up their wine glasses and drank.

"It's sweet in the mouth and has a long aftertaste. It's really a good wine." Li Ping took a sip and tasted it carefully.

Li An was a man of two generations, and he was somewhat insensitive to wine.

His perception of wine is that it is spicy, and the difference between good and bad wine is the degree of spiciness in his opinion.

Li Nan was also full of praise for this wine.

Li Ping soon finished the wine in the glass, smacked his lips, picked up the wine jar and poured another glass.

This made Li Nan feel very distressed. Li An brought him two small jars of wine, each of which weighed only a kilogram. He was reluctant to open it after taking it for so long.

When Li Ping put down the wine jar, he quickly took it over, poured some for himself, and then sealed the jar.

"Dad, we have just started drinking. Why are you sealing it up?" Li Ping said.

"Drink whatever you want. Just try the taste of such a good wine. How can you keep drinking it? If you want to drink it, go get the wine yourself. My son brought it to me." Li Nan said angrily.

Li Ping: "..."

However, he was not very enthusiastic about wine. He just thought this wine was good, so he wanted to drink a few more sips. His father didn't give it to him, so he didn't say anything.

Desheng sent over the roasted vegetables and went back to take some pig trotters and put them on them to roast.

When the pig's trotters were roasted and delivered, Mrs. Liu and the others were full of praise after eating them.

Fortunately, Li An prepared a lot, which was enough to eat.

The family ate barbecue and chatted until it got completely dark.

……

The next morning, Li An was reading in the room. Desheng came in and saluted: "Second Young Master, there are guests at home. I call the Young Master to go down to the front hall."

"understood."

Li An put down the book, stopped Ta Xue who wanted to follow, locked him in the room, and came to the front hall.

Entering the front hall, I saw my father chatting with a young man about twenty years old.

The young man was dressed in Tsing Yi and had a futou on his head, looking very elegant.

"Aniu, this is Young Master Yang Tao, who is also a candidate for this county examination."

Li Nan saw Li An coming in and introduced him.

During Li Nan's introduction, Yang Tao also stood up, cupped his hands at Li An and said, "Your Majesty, Yang Tao, Yang Zilian, this is brother Li Ziqian and Li Xian, please don't be offended by the intrusion."

Li An hurriedly returned the greeting and said, "Exactly, Brother Yang is an honored guest, how can you say that you are disturbing me."

There is a strong voice in Yangzhou for Yang Tao to win the county examination case title. His name has been mentioned by many people during this period, so naturally he is no stranger to it.

Moreover, he had also heard people say that Yang Tao was Yang Wuduan's nephew.

Yang Wuduan was the number one talent in Yangzhou in his early years. Many people said that he had the talent of being the number one scholar. Later, because he annoyed the officials, he was asked to take the exam again at the age of fifty, and died in depression.

"Aniu, I'm leaving early, you guys can talk." Li Nan said.

"Dad, walk slowly."

"Uncle Li, walk slowly."

After seeing Li Nan off, Li An called Yang Tao to sit down and sat down opposite him.

For a moment, he didn't know how to speak. He had no contact with Yang Tao, and he didn't know why Yang Tao suddenly came to his door.

Yang Tao smiled slightly and took the initiative to say: "Zi Qian, did Zicheng fail the county exam this year?"

"Zi Lian knows Brother Zecheng?" Li An was a little surprised when he heard this.

He and Sheng Changbai had known each other in Yangzhou. He had never heard of any contact between him and Yang Tao, and he had never heard Sheng Changbai mention Yang Tao.

Yang Tao showed a bitter smile and said: "Zi Qian should have heard about my uncle. Zicheng and I knew each other before you, but Shanda people are not willing to let Zicheng and me get along, and I am afraid that Zicheng will be harmed. Therefore, we are all personal friends and have never mentioned it to outsiders.”

Li An suddenly understood after hearing this. With Sheng Hong's cautious character, it was normal to prevent Sheng Changbai and Yang Tao from interacting with each other.

Sheng Changbai is very independent, so it is not surprising that he interacts with Yang Tao in private.

"I have also exchanged letters with Zicheng over the years. A few months ago, he wrote that he would take the county examination this year," Yang Tao said.

"Well, Brother Cheng has really come to an end this year. It shouldn't be difficult to pass with his knowledge." Li An said.

"Yes, Zecheng is a few years younger than me, and I admire his knowledge. I replied to him before and agreed to take the exam together, but now it seems a bit ridiculous." Yang Tao said with a bitter smile.

"Brother Zilian, didn't he pass the exam? Even if there are some changes now, even if he has to retake the exam, he will definitely be on the list. How can you say that?" Li An said strangely.

"My uncle made wild and rebellious remarks, which made the officials unhappy. My grandfather was worried that I would be implicated by my uncle, so he was very strict with me. I must get three yuan to get the highest rank." Yang Tao said with a bitter smile.

"Three-yuan qualification is not..."

Li An originally wanted to say that the three yuan exam did not include the county examination, but he quickly realized it.

The so-called three-level examination means winning the first place in the provincial examination, the joint examination and the final palace examination.

If the imperial examination involves thousands of troops crossing a single-plank bridge, the chances of passing the three-yuan exam are smaller than the lottery tickets of later generations.

Because the first name in the palace examination is the number one scholar, who is hand-picked by the officials.

It doesn't mean that you can become the number one pick just by trying to win the top spot.

Li An remembered that during the two Song dynasties, over three hundred years, there seemed to be only five people who passed the third grade, which shows how difficult it is.

Yang Tao said that his grandfather asked him to pass the three yuan examination, but he also included the county examination. That was because the first place in the palace examination required official approval.

Before choosing the top pick, the official will definitely investigate the ones he is more optimistic about. Otherwise, if the top pick is determined, if the person's identity does not match the status, or there are some moral problems, it will be a joke.

Upon investigation, it will be found that Yang Tao is Yang Wuduan's nephew. It is unlikely that he will be deprived of his title, and he will definitely have no chance of becoming the number one scholar.

In the original drama, Gu Tingye once complained on behalf of Yang Wuduan, and he was directly rejected by the officials because he could have won. They also asked him to be fifty years old like Yang Wuduan before he could take the imperial examination.

Looking at it this way, the Yang family's worries are not unreasonable.

And if you win the first place in the county examination, township examination and joint examination, it is also called Xiao San Yuan. Although it is worse than the real San Yuan, it is still a great honor.

Li An didn't know how to comfort Yang Tao for a while. After all, he was the one who stole Yang Tao's case.

Although it is said that in the county examination, except for the head of the case, the rest of the people are not ranked, but in fact the arrangement of the names is the ranking.

When the list was published, Li An's name was at the top, in a row alone, and the first one at the bottom was Yang Tao.

In other words, Yang Tao ranked second in the county examination.

Li An didn't know what purpose Yang Tao came with.

(End of this chapter)