No matter how attentively Duan Yujin listened, his father's emotionless recitation for half an hour was more hypnotic than the monks reciting sutras in the temple, and it was inevitable that his mind would become dizzy.
The younger brothers and sisters couldn't hold on any longer and had already fallen asleep. He couldn't hold on, so he had to hold on.
Noticing his father's gaze, Duan Yujin quickly straightened his back to show that he was listening very seriously.
The oil lamp that had been burning for a long time had a unique burnt smell, and thin smoke was floating in the room.
It was already very late now. Duan Mingjing glanced at the two sleeping children, and finally put the book gently on the table, walked to the other side of the table, and hugged his youngest daughter who was lying on his eldest son's lap.
stand up.
Duan Yutao fell asleep lying on the table.
"Send your brother to bed to sleep." Duan Mingjing said.
Duan Yujin nodded, picked up his younger brother and put him on the bed.
"Father, wait for me. I'll take the lamp to see him off." Duan Yujin said as he pushed his brother to the bed.
There was no lantern in the backyard, it was pitch dark, and my father was still holding his sister in his arms, so it would be bad if she fell.
The door creaked open again, and Mrs. Wang was feeling a little dizzy as she accompanied Mr. Shang to work under the light.
The courtyard was quiet, and the sound of opening the door was particularly abrupt, which made Ms. Wang feel much more energetic.
"Brothers and sisters, the second master should have finished studying." Mrs. Wang stopped her embroidery work.
"Yes, I'll go out and take a look." Mrs. Shang quickly put down her sewing.
The two of them walked out of the house and took a look, just in time to see Duan Mingjing carrying his daughter out of the door, followed by Duan Yujin holding an oil lamp.
Mrs. Shang hurried back to the table to tidy up her sewing work and thanked Ms. Wang.
"I stayed here for a long time tonight, sister-in-law. Thank you very much, sister-in-law."
"They are all family members, why are you so polite?"
Mrs. Shang whispered her husband's name and hurried to greet him. The family walked under the dim oil light.
Mrs. Wang stood at the door railing and looked at it, somewhat envious in her heart.
When I saw this, I was filled with emotions. If it hadn't been for this many disasters, my family would not be in such a situation.
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On the other side, inside the Gongyuan in Tongzhou.
The cold moonlight shone in the cramped examination room. Each examinee lay huddled on the cold straw mat, surrounded by shouts one after another.
The weather in August is neither too cold nor too hot. It is a pleasant season. It is enough to lie in bed and cover yourself with a thin quilt.
But the examination room used for the examination is different. It is seven feet high, six feet deep and four feet wide. It is surrounded by walls on three sides. You can touch the eaves with your hands. The other one is empty. In order to ensure the examiner's inspection and the fairness of the examination, there are no
Any obstruction.
It is difficult for tall candidates to even stretch their legs when they lie inside. If it is a windy and rainy day, the eaves of the examination room will not be able to protect against the wind. Not to mention the candidates getting wet, if the examination papers are all wet, this will
Ten years of hard work will be in vain.
It takes six days to pass the exam, and all six days of eating, drinking, sleeping, sleeping, etc. are in this exam room. It is undoubtedly a kind of torture for the candidates.
Those who can pass the scholar examination and have the confidence to take the examination, no matter how poor their family background is, will still have a mattress on the bed. But there is only a thin layer of straw on the floor of the examination room, and with the cold wind blowing at night, if you don't bring some quilts, I'm afraid
I got cold after sleeping all night.
The Duan brothers just entered the examination room today.
During the day, I wrote a day's test papers, ate two meals of vegetable porridge distributed in the Gongyuan, and finished today's test.
The vegetable porridge in Gongyuan doesn't taste very good. It's just clear water porridge with some vegetable leaves of different sizes, not pickles, and the taste is as bland as porridge.
As for the meal in the evening, Gongyuan doesn't care about it. Experienced candidates will bring some dry food, as well as stoves and charcoal fires. They cook it in their own narrow examination room. They can't make delicious food. At most, they can fill their stomachs.
Full stomach.
No matter how well-prepared he is, staying in such an environment for a few days will make even a handsome young man haggard.
Like most people in the examination room, the Duan brothers all brought stoves.
Steamed buns, cakes and the like are easy to carry and are generally not allowed to be brought in, but rice is allowed.
The brothers packed a bucket of their own fresh rice in a bamboo tube and a bucket of fried rice.
The Duan family ate fried rice when they were fleeing the country earlier. After they started farming at their old home, fried rice returned to the Duan family’s dining table. However, this fried rice was different from what they ate when they fled. Today’s fried rice is mixed with fried peas.
grain.
The oily beans fried in oil and mixed with salt are so fragrant that every month the kitchen will make a small jar. When eating noodles and porridge, take out a bowl and scoop a spoon into each bowl.
The porridge and noodles in it have a lot of flavor, and the children at home like it very much.
Fried peas and fried rice are easy to store. As long as the bamboo tube lid is closed, they will not go bad after a month.
Wang then packed a bamboo tube for each of the brothers.
Not only can I satisfy my hunger when I’m hungry while writing an article, but it can also be used as a meal if the food doesn’t taste good.
In addition to these, there are also crispy pancakes and a small snuff bottle of condiments prepared by Qiao Lan for the two brothers.
There is no doubt that the crispy pancakes are delicious. As for the small jar of seasonings Qiao Lan gave them, the two brothers sprinkled a little on them when they finished cooking the porridge.
Slightly salty with a bit of sweetness, the texture is different from anything I eat in daily life. With this seasoned porridge, add a handful of fried rice and two crispy pancakes.
The dinner of the Duan brothers was particularly delicious! They were very full!
After dinner, it was almost dark.
There were no books to read in the examination room, only bare tables and a cool night breeze. Most of the candidates went to bed early to recharge their batteries and make adequate preparations for tomorrow's exam.
There is also a small part...
Mixed with the snoring one after another were slight sobs and cries.
Duan Mingqing opened his eyes, and the sleepiness that had finally brewed disappeared a lot.
Every year there are people who come out of the examination room crying and some who jump into wells.
This is only the first day. This is the first day. How can I survive the next few days?
After all, this is someone else's business and has nothing to do with him. Duan Mingqing put aside the distracting thoughts in his heart and tried to fall asleep.
But when those distracting thoughts come together, I can't control them no matter what.
Listening to the noisy sounds in his ears, Duan Mingqing tossed and turned and thought about many things, including his deceased biological father and his wife, children and family waiting for him at home.
Even if he got rid of distracting thoughts, he still couldn't get rid of the noise around him.
Duan Mingqing sat up, groped around in the dark night, dug out a small sachet from the pillow, took out the earplugs the old lady had prepared for him, and put them in his ears.
After a while, the surrounding noise faded a lot.
Although it's still a little noisy, it's much better than before.
With the help of earplugs, Duan Mingqing fell asleep quickly.
Duan Mingchen, who was not far away, went to bed after eating. He wore the earplugs given to him by his mother and slept soundly.
There were many candidates in the examination hall who were tormented by the snoring around them and could not sleep.
When the moon reached its zenith, the sleepiness in my mind finally outweighed the noise.
Some candidates are vaguely thinking that they must go to bed early tomorrow, earlier than these snorers!