Chapter 16: Did You Go to the Bathroom?

Sure enough, within a couple of days, the Ning family arrived at the inn and invited all the candidates who had taken the prefectural exam to their manor outside the city for a flower viewing.

Li Yu paused with the teacup in his hand. "A hundred candidates all going?"

Then their garden must be enormous.

"Of course."

Wu Jingcheng was quite excited. Although his family was reasonably well-off, they certainly didn’t have a residence big enough to accommodate a hundred guests for flower viewing.

"Let's just go and see how the world looks. At worst, we lose nothing by going."

He had heard that the snacks in wealthy households were different—just making the trip for that alone was worthwhile.

Li Yu nodded. Whenever there was a chance to broaden one’s horizons, it was definitely worth taking.

The Ning Family’s Private Garden.

Wu Jingcheng and Li Yu brought some pastries as gifts. Most of the other candidates also brought pastries or calligraphy scrolls. After presenting their exam credentials and registering, they were welcomed inside.

However, Ning the Instructor himself was nowhere to be seen. Instead, his fifteen-year-old third son, Ning Yuan, along with several younger sons who hadn’t yet taken the exam, received the guests.

Though young, Ning Yuan had a remarkable memory. After hearing the two introduce themselves, he could instantly recall their rankings in the county exams.

Since educational resources varied greatly from county to county and their academic abilities were unknown, apart from being friendly and polite, there was little else in their attitude.

Everyone chose their seats as they pleased. Li Yu, having arrived early, picked a spot under a peach tree in a corner.

Wu Jingcheng was a bit puzzled. "Why are we sitting here? What if Ning the Instructor shows up later and can’t see us?"

At a moment like this, it was definitely important to make an appearance.

"Ning the Instructor won’t come."

Li Yu took a sip of tea brewed by the Ning family servants, thinking that tea drunk by the wealthy was indeed more fragrant than what they usually had. It must be expensive.

The teacups were made of Ru kiln porcelain—such pieces would likely become priceless heirlooms.

"This year, Ning’s third son is taking the prefectural exam. To avoid any bias, Ning the Instructor didn’t participate in setting the exam questions and has been keeping to himself for half a year."

Since the prefectural exam was still ongoing, Ning the Instructor probably wouldn’t be seen.

"True," Wu Jingcheng agreed. Since they wouldn’t see him, the seating didn’t really matter. "Drinking tea beneath the peach blossoms is quite elegant."

Whether elegant or not, Li Yu didn’t care much; his focus was on the two exquisite plates of pastries before him.

"Snacks in wealthy households are all this good. I wonder if palace pastries are even more exquisite."

When he was young, he’d seen on television how the emperor and empress ate—their food was so delicate and refined, even a block of tofu looked like a work of art.

When the opportunity arose, he was determined to try it.

After the final imperial exam, there would be the Qionglin Banquet. Surely then he could fulfill his wish.

Wu Jingcheng wholeheartedly agreed. Before they even exchanged a couple of lines of poetry, they had already shown off several plates of pastries and drunk several cups of tea.

Fortunately, the Ning family servants were well-trained, serving with warm smiles and not the slightest hint of disdain.

Not far from the gathering was a pavilion where a winter plum blossom folding screen stood. Behind it sat four noblewomen and a young maiden.

The maiden wore a flowing pink gown, her waist cinched with a plain-colored satin ribbon adorned with a pink scented sachet. Her hair was styled into three small buns, decorated with various pearl pins and rings.

Her plump, radiant cheeks bore little makeup; her face was round like a full moon, her skin lush and vibrant—a picture of a healthy, prosperous young beauty.

"Third sister, come on, don’t be shy," called Wang, the elder sister-in-law, tugging the young maiden forward and pointing to the courtyard filled with promising young talents.

"Quickly look and see if there’s anyone you like. Anyone using Ru kiln teacups hasn’t been betrothed yet, so you can keep an eye on them.

The more blossoms on the pastry plates at their table, the higher their ranking in the county exam.

See that handsome youth in blue? He’s the top scorer in this year’s Yingshan county exam.

The dish in front of him has a single peach blossom, while the youth beside him has three, just like your eldest and second sisters."

Ning Zhaoan blushed as she called out to the elder sister-in-law and then followed her gaze, carefully scanning the teacups and pastry plates laden with meaning.

Her two elder sisters and their husbands had all been chosen this way.

The other noblewomen exchanged knowing smiles, curious to see which young man would catch the third sister’s eye.

After surveying the candidates, Ning Zhaoan’s gaze finally settled on Li Yu. She thought he was not only handsome but also steady and had a good appetite.

Is a hearty appetite a blessing?

Moreover, in such an environment, he focused solely on eating, not rushing to make friends or curry favor—definitely someone reliable.

Eldest sister Ning Zhaoqing knew her younger sister well. She browsed the roster and frowned.

"This person changed his surname to Li after his mother remarried. His original relatives are poor farmers—not exactly a straightforward background..."

Though the Ning family didn’t care much about wealth or status, as long as the young man could succeed, at least the family background should be simple and respectable.

Ning Zhaoan pursed her lips. "Since he’s already taken the Li surname, he’s part of the Li family. Why worry about his original kin?"

Their father had said that if a suitable match wasn’t found, he intended to betroth their stepmother’s nephew to her.

She was determined not to marry into her stepmother’s family—she wouldn’t be able to cry even if she was mistreated.

Ning Zhaowei smiled. "This young man’s poetry may be ordinary, but his prose is excellent. Father has seen his exam papers and praised him."

What good is good poetry? If it’s good, people send it to courtesans in brothels.

She lightly patted the eldest sister’s shoulder. "You know well, Father prides himself on being aloof and prefers sons of humble origins."

What aloofness?

He just wanted others to praise him for not chasing wealth and status. Besides, both the previous and current emperors favored selecting officials from humble families.

Second sister-in-law Liu hinted, "I heard this youth had a very hard childhood. I wonder if his health has suffered."

If so, it would be hard to bear the hardships of marriage.

Ning Zhaowei waved it off. "Before the prefectural exam, candidates must undergo a body check. Just have the third son go with him for inspection."

At these words, except for the unmarried Ning Zhaoan, the other ladies chuckled softly. Wu Jingcheng, nearest to the pavilion, faintly caught sound of their laughter.

Suddenly recalling something, he put down his teacup and whispered.

"I heard the Ning family likes to choose sons-in-law at elegant gatherings. The last two sons-in-law were chosen this way. The third daughter, who shares the same mother as Ning’s third son, just held her coming-of-age ceremony this spring."

They were a pair of dragon and phoenix twins. He suspected this elegant gathering was arranged by the Ning family to select a son-in-law, and the Ning daughters might be watching from the pavilion.

Li Yu was utterly indifferent. His poor poetry had nothing to do with him.

But Wu Jingcheng was quite self-absorbed, daydreaming openly in broad daylight.

"My heart only holds Sister Ying. But what if Ning’s third daughter takes a liking to me? If I refuse, might the Ning family make things difficult for me?"

Just like in the stories, star-crossed lovers often ended in misery.

Li Yu asked, "Did you pee when you left the house this morning?"

What on earth had Sister Ying seen in him?

Wu Jingcheng was puzzled. "Of course I did. Who doesn’t pee in the morning? After holding it all night, how could I not?"

Li Yu couldn’t help laughing. "After you peed, did you even look in the mirror?"

His poetry wasn’t much better than Li Yu’s, so where did his confidence come from?