Rebirth: From being expelled from the imperial court to becoming a high-ranking official

Although she kept urging Lin Zhaotang to set off quickly, his wife was still standing there looking in the direction of the ox cart until it had gone a long way, and she seemed reluctant to let it go.

Lin Zhaotang waved his hands several times, signaling to his wife that she could go back. Then his wife took the child's hand, turned around and slowly walked back.

The official road in early spring was deserted and empty. Lin's wife and children were all alone, looking quite desolate and lonely.

Lin Zhaotang was sitting on the ox cart and looking back, seeming reluctant to leave.

Qin Yunhe couldn't help but say, "Sister-in-law Lin is reluctant to part with Brother Lin."

Lin Zhaotang said softly: "Yes. You must come back quickly after the exam."

It was the coldest month of the year and even though they were wearing thick cotton-padded clothes and shoes, several people were still shivering from the cold.

Such chillness made them start to worry about the situation after entering the venue.

The ox carts could not travel too far, and it was impossible for the drivers to take them all the way to the capital.

They agreed with the coachman to take them to the nearest town in Lin County and then return. After that, they would find a suitable ox cart locally or walk to the county seat of Lin County.

When we arrived in the town in the afternoon, we found an inn, put our luggage away, and then hurried to find a suitable ox cart.

The following days were basically the same. Every time I arrived at a station, I would quickly look for the oxcart for the next section of the road. Sometimes I could find it, sometimes I couldn't.

If you find it, take a bus and continue forward. If you can’t find it, you can only walk.

Although walking is slow, it doesn’t make you feel very cold because you are moving your body; although taking a car is faster, it makes you very cold because you sit stiffly for a long time.

I had only heard about how tough it was in the examination hall, but I had never thought that the first test would be on the road. I really didn't know how difficult it would be for those candidates in more remote areas to go to the capital.

Before setting off, they asked someone about the distance, and were told that it would only take about ten days by bus from the capital to get there.

However, they traveled so fast every day, occasionally walking. Although they did not have to sleep in the open air, they were still quite dusty and dirty. By the time they arrived in the capital, it was already the third day of the second lunar month.

When they saw the city gate of Beijing, several people breathed a sigh of relief: Fortunately, they set out early, otherwise they really don’t know whether they could arrive on time.

The few people knew about the prosperity of the capital, but when they actually arrived in the capital, they found that the prosperity of the imperial capital was even greater than they had imagined. It took nearly half an hour to queue up at the city gate to enter the city.

After finally entering the capital, we found the streets extending in all directions and the crowds of people coming and going to buy and sell, which was simply dazzling.

Originally, Mr. Gu said that he could go to see Gu Zhi when he arrived in the capital, and he should also live in the official post house not far from the Imperial Examination Hall. But in the current situation, he could only find a place to settle down first.

Several people looked at the endless stream of people on the street. Qin Si stopped a pedestrian who looked like a scholar and asked, "Young man, do you know how to get to the Imperial Examination Hall?"

The man pointed to the east and said, "Go east and you will arrive."

Several people slowly walked towards the road the man pointed to in the east.

A few people wanted to live somewhere closer to the Imperial Examination Hall so that it would be convenient for them to come and go, so they planned to find the Imperial Examination Hall first.

After walking for a long time, there seemed to be more and more candidates around me, and I knew that I was on the right track.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, they finally saw the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall.

Lin Zhaotang sighed and said, "That's good. Let's go to the nearby post stations and inns to have a look."

The few of them had a simple idea. They just needed to find a place to stay near the inn. If it was too expensive, they could just look for a place a little further away.

But when a few people really started looking, they found that the nearby inns were not only expensive. Not only were they ridiculously expensive, they were also already fully booked and there were no rooms available.

I heard that there are more candidates this year than in previous years, and many of them cannot find accommodation.

The three of them were at a loss. Qin Yunhe said, "Let's first ask about the location of the official post station. If we find Senior Brother Minqian, maybe he has a solution."

It was not until dark that the three people finally found the official post station. After asking the innkeeper, they were confirmed that Gu Zhi indeed lived there. They finally breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, they had been wandering around the city for nearly an hour.

Qin Yunhe hadn't seen Gu Zhi for many years, but as soon as he came out, Qin Yunhe recognized him at a glance.

Qin Yunhe was so happy that he almost cried. He quickly stepped forward and saluted: "Senior Brother Minqian."

Gu Zhi was slightly stunned when he saw Qin Yunhe carrying his luggage, and then asked uncertainly: "Yunhe?"

"That's right. Yunhe greets you, Senior Brother."

"Haha, you've grown so big. The last time I saw you, you were still a child. Now you're taller than me."

Gu Zhi quickly asked a few people to sit down. When he saw that they were all carrying luggage, he knew what was going on: "Did you just arrive in the capital?"

Qin Yunhe was a little embarrassed: "Yes, we set out on the 20th of the first lunar month. We heard that we would be able to reach the capital in ten days, but we didn't expect it to be delayed until today."

"Luckily you set out early. If you were later, not to mention finding an inn, there would be no place to stay in the surrounding temples."

After hearing this, several people felt worried again, but they didn't dare to ask Gu Zhi to help them find a place to live.

Gu Zhi took the initiative to say, "You didn't find an inn with vacant rooms? Now that the exam is approaching, the nearby inns are probably fully booked. How about this, you can squeeze in here tonight, and I'll take you to look for a place farther away tomorrow."

Although they were very embarrassed to disturb Gu Zhi, they had no choice. It was getting late, and if they didn't stay here, they would probably have to sleep on the street.

Several people felt a little embarrassed.

"I am sorry to bother you, Master Gu..."

Gu Zhi looked at the few people who were a little embarrassed and couldn't help but laugh and said, "It's okay. We are all from the same hometown. How come you are my father's disciple? My father sent me a letter a few years ago, asking me to take good care of him when I am in Beijing. If I let you live on the streets, I don't know how you will be scolded when you go back."

Qin Yunhe knew he was joking and finally felt relieved.

Gu Zhi asked someone to prepare some food for the few people, and only after they finished eating did he lead them to his room.

Fortunately, Gu Zhi's room was not small and had two rooms, an inner room and an outer room. In the end, Qin Yunhe and Gu Zhi stayed in the inner room, while Qin Si and Lin Zhaotang stayed in the outer room, and they managed to get together for the night.

This time, Gu Zhi only brought one follower and a servant. After dawn, he asked them to go out and ask a few people if there were any suitable inn rooms farther away.

Then he comforted a few people: "Don't worry, if you ask carefully, there will always be some vacancies left. Some stores will also reserve one or two rooms, but now that the exam is approaching, the price may be a little higher."

Soon the attendant came back and said that he had found an inn. Although it was not very close to the Imperial Examination Hall, it was clean and tidy, and had just two rooms, which he had already booked.

"Where exactly is it? How long does it take to walk to the Imperial Examination Hall?"

"If you walk fast along Xingcong Street, you should be able to reach the Imperial Examination Hall in three quarters of an hour."

Gu Zhi looked at Qin Yunhe and the others and asked for their opinions.

"I just don't know how much it is?"

"Three taels of silver a day."

Although the price is not cheap, several people searched for a long time yesterday and knew that it was really cheap compared to the guest rooms near Gongyuan.

Several people just wanted to find a place to stay quickly, so they quickly agreed: "No problem, this is it, thank you, Senior Brother."