Chapter 668: Chapter 668: The Top of the County Town
Principal Gu appreciated Qiao Xiaomai’s gesture of delivering food once again, beaming with approving delight like an elderly fairy in New Year’s paintings.
After tasting the dried sweet potatoes, he couldn’t help but give Qiao Xiaomai a thumbs up. This girl was impressive; the food she brought was not only delicious but also suited his palate.
Now that Bailu Town had a Qiao Xiaomai, he was one lucky man!
On the day of the rural examination, he had already reviewed the papers and had them sent to the Capital City as a matter of urgency. Now, as he saw the look of curiosity on the faces of Xiaomai and Tong Sanlang, he laughed and said, “I placed Sanlang first. As for the rest, we must wait and see what His Majesty says.”
However, the chances were high. After all, even the old emperor had commended Tong Sanlang before. Original content can be found at NoveI-Fire.ɴet
Upon hearing this, Xiaomai and Sanlang were overjoyed. Xiaomai started rubbing her hands together in excitement, a habit she had picked up from Qiao Changshun. “Principal, t-thank you. Thank you so much!”
“You need not thank me. Sanlang did well on his paper; I simply made an honest judgement,” Principal Gu said, waving a humble hand. He then picked up another piece of dried sweet potato, merrily biting into it.
“His self-study efforts are commendable.”
Unbeknownst to Principal Gu, he had made the same assumption as Zhang Family and others that Sanlang had been self-studying all these years.
Qiao Xiaomai and Sanlang exchanged a glance, both of them smiling modestly.
Principal Gu continued, “Keep studying when you get home. The Imperial List will be out in a few days; you should start preparing for the provincial examination.”
Sanlang nodded in agreement.
The provincial exam would be held in Prefecture City one month after the rural exam results. The schedule was quite tight.
After offering Sanlang a few more words of advice, Principal Gu let them leave.
They left Principal Gu’s courtyard and went to find Xiaoyang, a guard left behind by Yang Ye.
Xiaoyang tasted the dried sweet potatoes, and just like last time, he wanted to fetch a big piece of ice. Qiao Xiaomai quickly stopped him.
These dried sweet potatoes could be stored in normal conditions; there was no need for freezing.
Upon hearing this, Xiaoyang, without hesitation, took the 20-kilogram load of dried sweet potatoes to the post house—Qiao Xiaomai had gifted him 5 kilos.
On her way back from the Academy, Qiao Xiaomai struggled to contain her excitement, her face aglow with joy. “I feel like I just topped the hard-fought college entrance examination!”
“It’s just a county level achievement, so you’re merely the county topper,” Tong Sanlang said, “Besides, the final decision lies with the Emperor. Principal Gu only provides advice.”
At these words, Qiao Xiaomai’s smile froze. Right, how did Emperor Yong’an view the Tong family?
But then the retired emperor didn’t oppose Tong Sanlang sitting the Imperial Examination, which implies that the Yangs didn’t object to the Tong family earning an official title, right?
“Let’s not overthink it. We’ll soon get the results anyway.” If Sanlang earned the title, it would be an added bonus. If not, life would continue as normal.
“Let’s go to Jiwiju; I’m going to make a fortune from these dried sweet potatoes.” Thinking of the delicious dried sweet potatoes, Qiao Xiaomai was once again excited.
Sanlang smoothly changed the subject, “It’s a pity we only planted fifty acres this year.”
The sweet potatoes had a high yield per acre, with one acre producing around 3,000 kilos. With this, the fifty-acre yield would amount to 150,000 kilos of sweet potatoes.
150,000 kilos sounded like a lot, but when she considered the low price at which the raw material was sold, the figure didn’t bring much joy.
A delicacy like Buddha-jumps-over-the-wall-cost around 3,000 taels of silver!
“Don’t worry, there are plenty of rich people in Daqi. I’ll sell at a high price,” Qiao Xiaomai reassured him, thumping her chest.
“Are you really planning to sell them for 300 Wen per kilo?” Sanlang asked, surprised.
[Note: I checked it out. Currently, sweet potatoes yield around 6,000 kilos per acre, but since the olden days lacked fertilisers etc., I’ve halved the yield. Don’t take this too seriously!]