Chapter 10, mathematics and the eight-legged essay have no connection whatsoever

Zhang Shou taught a young man who successfully became a minor official at the Shuntian Prefecture. Originally, it was certainly to investigate his background! Now, for her sake, he has even neglected to look into his own origins, and instead, he first went to inquire about their engagement.

You have also said that the young lady you wish to marry is a delicate beauty. The scripts are filled with tales of virtuous wives supporting impoverished scholars, and after achieving success, the scholar finds a new love while the first wife remains selfless and uncomplaining, but that is all fabricated! A man of stature, even if he needs to study, should not rely on a woman for support; is that not shameful? If you truly care for her, you should allow her to shine and take pride in you

By the way, Xiaodai, you have entered a household registration this time, right? If you can check the household registration records of the capital, could you do me a favor and look into the marriage certificates of the children from those noble families in the capital? I remember my mother mentioned that according to the system of our dynasty, marriage certificates must be reported to the authorities. A capable relative of mine in the capital claims to have found me a good match among the top noble families, which has frightened me so much that I can't even sleep.

Qi Liang smiled wryly and said, "The classical texts are indeed too difficult. My father spent his entire life as a student, and he started teaching me these texts when I was very young. However, he himself only grasped the Four Books to a limited extent. What use is it to thoroughly understand just the formats?"

She has just left

Zhang Shou has never doubted the integrity of his three servants—despite having suffered from an illness that led to a time travel, both his wife, whose husband is unknown, and he, whose father is unknown, have lived a peaceful and stable life in this countryside until now, largely thanks to the significant efforts of the three servants

Uncle works as a clerk in the Shuntian Prefecture Yamen. Deng Xiaoai, known by the nickname Deng Xiaodai, is somewhat well-connected and grew up in the village.

Such a simple three-character phrase would leave anyone else utterly confused, but Zhang Shou, having interacted with people for three years, managed to piece it together through a mix of guessing and deduction. He realized that A Liu was probably referring to that young lady. However, from Zhu Ying's temperament, he quickly inferred that the so-called departure was not a return to the Zhao Duke's residence in the capital, but rather that she had just been here and then suddenly left.

From what I just saw of A Liu, it seems that he does not regard Zhu Ying, the true young lady, as more important than himself

Upon seeing A Liu nodding, he turned around and left without saying a word. Zhang Shou, who had already grown accustomed to this silent servant, turned back but soon recalled that Zhu Gongquan had previously revealed something—besides the estate, even the servants of the Zhang family were provided by Duke Zhao.

Outside the door, Zhu Ying had already come and gone. Initially, she was secretly annoyed that Zhang Shouming had clearly heard her laughter yet pretended not to notice. It was only upon hearing this final remark that she suddenly realized the truth.

Alright! Deng Xiaodai readily agreed, "As brothers, Xiao Qi, you can rest assured, I will definitely seek diligently!"

The two boys in the room did not pay any attention to what he and A Liu were discussing. At this moment, when Deng Xiaodai saw Zhang Shou returning, he hurriedly approached and said: "Young Master, my parents said they will hold a banquet to thank you in the next couple of days! Additionally, in the past, you supported my family quite a bit so that I could study with you, and I will definitely repay you for that tomorrow!"

After I made my appearance, I noticed countless people sighing in despair, and almost no one could provide an answer. However, I was confident that I had answered correctly! Therefore, over the years, I have both studied and learned diligently, and now I have successfully passed the civil service examination to become a historical official. Naturally, I should express my gratitude to my esteemed teacher!

Reflecting on the recent celebration in the house, he pondered carefully and soon understood. He smiled lightly, dismissing the matter: "A young lady from a wealthy family naturally cannot comprehend what is so joyous about a rural farmer's son passing an insignificant local official examination. Let her think as she wishes; after all, I am not the one asking her to stay in the countryside. You should quietly follow her to prevent her from encountering any trouble."

He raised his head, his face filled with pride: "In this year's civil service examination, several questions were ones that the young teacher had previously discussed. One question was about identifying monks with bowls, which was slightly different from the young teacher's original question. It involved four monks sharing one bowl of rice, five monks sharing one bowl of soup, with a total of two hundred ninety-seven bowls. The question asked how many monks there were in total.

Let us set aside the matter of repayment for the time being; after all, it is not about the money. I am merely providing you with a little support in terms of provisions and meat.

In addition to this problem, there is another one involving vines entwined around a withered tree for five complete circles, with the withered tree standing four zhang high and having a circumference of six feet. The question asks for the length of the vines. There is also a problem regarding Han Xin counting soldiers, where there are two remaining when counted by threes, four remaining when counted by fives, and five remaining when counted by sevens. The question asks for the minimum number of people.

Hearing such a crisp laugh, Zhang Shou couldn't help but be taken aback. He could certainly tell that the laughter belonged to Zhu Ying, but hadn't A Liu said that this young lady had already left

But what does it mean to claim to have found a good marriage, yet be so frightened that one cannot even sleep? It is infuriating; is she some kind of monstrous disaster?

Zhang Shou could not help but sigh. Nowadays, this Ming Dynasty is quite different from the historical Ming Dynasty in many aspects, yet the literary examination still serves as a stepping stone for the imperial examination. One cannot help but wonder what was going on with that founding emperor.

However, in the face of the overly excited two, he had no choice but to pour a bucket of cold water: "Xiao Dai, congratulations on being accepted into the prestigious school, but you must not become complacent. The number of clerks in the Shuntian Prefecture is as numerous as the stars in the sky. As a newcomer, even with your uncle's support, it is easy to be overlooked. You must diligently learn your skills while also taking the time to study interpersonal relationships."

In the room, Zhang Shouzheng was smiling as he watched the two boisterous youths. Normally, he would have used his teaching stick to maintain order in the classroom, but at this moment, he did not stop these two happy peasant boys. Burdened by the weight of life, they rarely smiled, but at this moment, they appeared to be a bit like sixteen-year-olds.

Thus, he quickly set aside this doubt and returned to a few students of similar age.

Before Qi Liang could express his gratitude in surprise, Zhang Shou changed the subject

Moreover, what he left me upon his passing was nothing but a mountain of debt and a pile of nearly tattered documents. If it weren't for the young gentleman, I might have been driven to death by my creditors long ago, let alone being able to study or even pass the county examination. Truly, I am already very grateful

Indeed, at this very moment, the two individuals in this room both come from farming families and are of the same age as him

As for you, Xiao Qi, you are preparing for the scholar examination, and my ability to assist you is limited. The old gentleman who quietly taught me in the past helped me memorize the Four Books and Five Classics, and I have gained considerable insight into mathematics... cough, I mean arithmetic, which I have also studied quite thoroughly. However, as for the current literary examination, he knows me, but I do not know him. It is entirely different from the civil service examination and the student examination; mathematics and the eight-legged essay truly have no connection at all

However, the two people in the room merely thought that it was yet another mischievous child from the village eavesdropping outside, and they did not take it to heart

The ancestors of the Deng family have been engaged in farming for generations, and they own only about 10 mu of land. With a large family, they struggle to make ends meet, thus they are tenants of the Zhang family—of course, Zhang Shou now understands that the Deng family should probably be considered tenants of the Zhao Guogong family.

Zhang Shou was instantly rendered speechless and laughed. This kind of arithmetic problem, even in later generations, would only be at the elementary school level, and it might not even qualify as an Olympiad problem. Yet, in the present, it is considered a top-tier challenge. Seeing Qi Liang quickly calculating in his mind and soon reporting the correct answer, he couldn't help but nod, while also feeling quite curious about the person who posed the question

Zhang Shou interrupted before Qi Liang could finish expressing his heartfelt gratitude, saying: "Passing the county examination is due to your family's scholarly background, and it has little to do with me. The provincial examination will be more challenging. Xiao Dai, since you have entered the Shuntian Prefecture as a clerk, you should help Xiao Qi inquire properly and see if his essays can be reviewed by a good teacher. If there is a chance for correspondence, even if face-to-face teaching is not possible, it can be done through correspondence courses."

As he watched the two people laughing and joking, he suddenly had a feeling and turned his head to look, only to find that A Liu had appeared at the door at some unknown time. In the past, this fellow was also so elusive, so he merely thought there was something happening at home and immediately left the crowd to head to the door

At this point, Zhang Shou looked at the frail young man Qi Liang beside him. If age were not mentioned, no one would be able to tell that Qi Liang was even a year older than him; it was just that he had suffered from severe developmental issues in the past

Mr. Xiao, your statement is incorrect! Since I have received the nickname "Xiao Dai," it is not only because of my cleverness but also due to a certain stubbornness. I shook my head like a rattle drum, "My uncle has three sons. If it weren't for the fact that I learned arithmetic and literacy from my teacher, and developed a decent handwriting, and could handle documents, how could I surpass them to have the opportunity to take the imperial examination? Moreover..."

Puff—

Although it is an official examination, it is indeed rare to encounter an official who poses mathematical problems to challenge the candidates