GBP Chapter 377 Frustrated in the Exam, Triumphant in the Casino
Chapter 377 Frustrated in the Exam, Triumphant in the Casino
Chapter 377 Failure in the Examination, Success in the Casino
Jiang Wenhai naturally rewarded the servant who had delivered the message to the Jiang family. He didn't cry, but he was filled with emotion.
Since his younger brother's fate was not yet settled, he couldn't show too much joy.
Seeing his elder brother's reaction, Jiang Wenhan patted him nonchalantly, "Brother, congratulations! Heaven rewards those who persevere!"
"Yes, second brother, you are more knowledgeable than me. Perhaps the messenger will arrive soon. Let's wait patiently."
Jiang Wenhan smiled, showing little anxiety. He felt that it was already quite good that his older brother had passed the exam, so how could he expect so many people in the Jiang family to do the same?
Several thousand students took the exam this time, but only three hundred were selected. The competition was fierce, with talented people from all over the country gathering in the capital. He wasn't as optimistic as his older brother.
With only one person left in the family, the trip to the capital wasn't in vain. It's likely that the elder brother will stay in the capital with the father, while he can return to Xinghe Prefecture to continue his studies.
Several groups of messengers delivering good news had already arrived in the teahouse hall, and judging by the time, they were probably among the later ones in the process.
Jiang Lin thought to himself that he wasn't at the bottom, which was good. But at the same time, he was worried about his cousins.
Jiang Yan and Jiang Hao did not rank high in the provincial examination, and neither of them had high expectations. They just wanted to gain some experience this time.
Many of my uncles took the exam multiple times; even my great-uncle Jiang Changqing didn't pass on his first try.
So, the two of them were relatively calm. If they won, they considered it a stroke of luck; if they didn't, they would go back and try again for three more years. After all, they were still very young.
Jiang Changgeng and Jiang Changfeng showed no signs of anxiety, calmly drinking tea and eating snacks, but their slightly trembling hands betrayed them.
They felt they had no regrets, as they could still fight alongside young people before reaching the age of fifty.
However, we should still have hope and dreams; what if they come true?
The Jiang family already had five memorial archways for successful candidates in the imperial examinations, and they wouldn't mind adding five more.
The servants who had been checking the results for the Jiang family gradually returned, bringing back the news that Jiang Xiaoqi had won the Asian Grand Prize.
"Asian champion?! How can it only be an Asian champion?! Mingfei has already won four championships in a row, how come he only got an Asian champion! Who is the champion?"
Jiang Wenhai felt a little regretful and indignant. Why wasn't he the top scholar in the imperial examination?
If he were the top scholar in the provincial examination, he would definitely be awarded the title of top scholar in the palace examination, as long as he didn't write rubbish. What a pity!
"Huiyuan is Liu Peng, the son of the Liu family."
The Liu family? Could it be...?
Jiang Wenhai shut up; it was too difficult to say such things. If it really was this Liu from the Prime Minister's family, he really wouldn't know how to take a stand.
After all, her mother, Liu Yuhuan, was a young lady from the Liu family. Although she was born out of wedlock, she was still part of the main branch of the family.
It's true that I'm on the side of the Jiang family, but I really can't say anything bad about the Liu family's son.
Jiang Wenhan's emotional intelligence is even lower than Jiang Wenhai's. At this moment, his face was almost turning red, and he was caught in a dilemma.
Jiang Xiaoqi could see the dilemma between Jiang Wenhai and Jiang Wenhan, and guessed that the top scholar was most likely a junior member of Prime Minister Liu's family.
This confirmed his previous suspicions. Fortunately, he had bet on himself to win the second-place prize in the teahouse gambling game.
This could be considered a case of failing in the exam but winning at the casino—at least the odds aren't low, and my 10,000 taels are about to multiply several times over, hehe~
It's practically like finding a lost property; you could buy another house in the capital.
If a large number of people from the Jiang family make the list this time, they will basically all be guaranteed the title of Jinshi (进士) by the time of the palace examination, or at the very least, a Tongjinshi (同进士).
Those who stay in Beijing can temporarily live in a large house, and the rent will be reduced.
After all, the Chiang family would feel embarrassed if they stayed there for free.
Of course, the two uncles, Jiang Wenhai and Jiang Wenhan, are not needed. After all, Jiang Changqing has a house in the capital, which was part of Liu's dowry. The family will definitely live together in the future.
Jiang Xiaoqi mentally went through how to use the money she won from the betting, and as her thoughts returned, she saw that several tall guards from the Jiang family had also returned.
This time I finally got to see the whole list; instead of them popping up one by one, making me anxiously wait.
This was all thanks to Li Mo. He had the best lightness skill and found an opening to leap to the front. Several guards surrounded him from behind, preventing anyone from pushing Li Mo aside.
Besides the original Jiang Lin, Jiang Wenhai, and Jiang Xiaoqi, the remaining Jiang Wenhan, Jiang Changgeng, Jiang Changfeng, and Jiang Yan are also on the list.
Of the seven members of the Jiang family and one Wang Jue, eight out of the twelve in their group passed the exam.
Jiang Hao, who was only two years older than Jiang Xiaoqi, and three other Jiang family uncles in their thirties failed the exam. However, after a brief period of disappointment, they all accepted it.
Eight out of twelve families have a success rate that no other family in the world can match. They should be content.
What is a clan? It is a community where everyone prospers or suffers together. Just like now, if they hadn't studied together with the Jiang family for a few months after arriving in Beijing, it would have been good if two of them had passed the exam.
Similarly, when a member of the clan has a bright future, they share in the glory. A family will always help each other out, and the more people in the family who become officials, the better.
Jiang Xiaoqi instructed the housekeeper to give everyone red envelopes as a reward for their hard work, and to make them several more sets of clothes and pairs of shoes.
He saw it for himself; several servants and guards were barefoot going upstairs. No wonder the sound on the stairs was muffled earlier.
Even though they already knew the result, no one was in a hurry to leave. What if they got separated from the messenger who was supposed to deliver the good news?
We left the addresses of teahouses at the time, and since we had already waited for so long, we figured we might as well share the good news a little longer.
Sure enough, as the "ding-ding-ding" sound came, the gong was struck.
"TUANG!"
"Congratulations! Master Jiang Yan of Xinghe Prefecture has achieved the 278th place in the imperial examination!"
This ranking wasn't high; by the time he reached the palace examination, he would likely only be a junior scholar. However, Jiang Yan still happily accepted the good news and gave the constables a reward.
The constables were very skilled at their job, and they could churn out nice words in bulk.
Congratulations! Master Jiang Lin of Xinghe Prefecture has achieved the 232nd rank in the imperial examination!
After Jiang Yan and Jiang Lin, the only "outsider" was Wang Jue, who ranked 230th, even higher than Jiang Lin.
Jiang Xiaoqi couldn't help but secretly admire him. To be so unlucky as to get a dirty test paper and still manage to turn things around—that's incredible!
The brothers Jiang Wenhai and Jiang Wenhan were ranked very close together, at 178 and 196 respectively.
Besides Jiang Xiaoqi, Jiang Changgeng ranked the highest at 99th, and Jiang Changfeng ranked 108th.
Jiang Xiaoqi felt that once the palace examination was over, his family's several memorial arches for successful candidates in the imperial examinations would definitely be added.
Finally, after Jiang Xiaoqi received the good news, everyone returned to the Jiang residence in a grand procession.
The Jiang family had prepared copper coins beforehand and threw them out without a second thought. When the neighbors learned that this family had won eight prizes, they went crazy scrambling to grab the coins.
It wasn't about being greedy for a few coins; after all, the people living in this area were all quite well-off, or were families of scholars. The neighbors just wanted to bring good luck and hope that their own scholars would also be successful.