He said to Xie Yan, “Zhuangyuanlang, there’s a way to exercise while lying on the bed. Do you want to know?”
Zhuangyuanlang had already been corrupted by him. When asked about the method of lying on the bed, Xie Yan blurted out, “Stewing chicken soup? Taking the imperial examination?”
Lu Yang paused.
He hadn’t been intimate with Xie Yan in a long time. Since he started taking medicine, the number of times they had been intimate could be counted on one hand.
First, he was busy, and second, he didn’t have the energy at night.
Today, they had been sitting at the Wu family’s house eating and drinking, without much effort or exertion, and he hadn’t moved much, so he wasn’t tired.
He still had to wait a while before getting up to take his medicine.
He had nothing else to do, so why not take the imperial examination first?
Lu Yang reached out to him: “Come here.”
Xie Yan came over and sat next to him on the bed.
He wanted to paint a portrait in the evening, but he hadn’t tidied up or washed yet.
Lu Yang leaned close to his face and kissed him.
Xie Yan pursed his lips, grabbed his wrist, and squeezed it—it was so thin—not wanting to make soup.
Lu Yang didn’t answer: “Don’t you want to make soup?”
Xie Yan thought about it, but didn’t want to bother him.
In the silence, Lu Yang kissed him again.
This time it was a long kiss, lightly touching his lips, occasionally using his tongue to gently probe his teeth.
In the past, their nights had been too rough. Lu Yang didn’t know much and liked to take the lead, so they would start with stewing soup, and their kisses were always hurried.
Xie Yan’s attempts to please him were also rough and lacking in refinement, with little tenderness.
They had been intimate less frequently lately, but Lu Yang loved teasing Xie Yan. He had made Xie Yan read through all the books on making soup at home.
They learned together that even matters of the bedroom could be tender and lingering, and could be taken slowly.
Xie Yan took a while to respond, but when he did, Lu Yang couldn’t help but laugh, teasing him with a joke: “I thought you were like a monk, reciting sutras on the spot and ignoring me.”
Xie Yan responded with actions, wrapping his arms around Lu Yang’s waist and pulling him tightly into his embrace for a deep kiss.
Lu Yang felt a bit breathless and bit him, but Xie Yan didn’t care and continued to explore inside his mouth.
Lu Yang felt that this was more embarrassing than drinking chicken soup.
He felt he couldn’t lick his mouth. Although he hadn’t taken his evening medicine, his mouth still tasted bitter, and the taste was unpleasant.
When he pushed him, he opened his eyes. At such a close distance, looking into his eyes, Lu Yang felt shy again and loosened his grip.
He didn’t get to drink the soup tonight, and his mouth was swollen from kissing.
Xie Yan said, “Once we get the pills back, you’ll be able to eat properly, and then we’ll drink the chicken soup.”
Lu Yang hummed without responding, but his heart warmed.
The temperature on the bed was just right, so they didn’t have to keep moving around and could both sleep soundly.
Lu Yang savored the bitter taste in his mouth and asked Xie Yan, “You kissed me for so long just now. What were you kissing?”
Xie Yan couldn’t explain it.
Then he didn’t kiss properly.
Lu Yang thought that tomorrow he would drink a bowl of sugar water to make his mouth sweet and kiss again.
The next day, Xie Yan had to visit his mentor.
Lu Yang was afraid that he would meet his former classmates and be bullied, so he originally said he wouldn’t go with him, but now he was following him.
Xie Yan didn’t know the real situation, but he was quite happy that Lu Yang was willing to go out with him.
They paid their respects in the evening, and no one was there.
The bad news was that the students from several academies had already found sponsors, so Xie Yan had to look elsewhere.
The date for this year’s county exam had already been announced: February 17.
Xie Yan knew of a few private schools, so he didn’t bring Lu Yang along with him. He went to inquire about the situation himself.
However, acting as a guarantor for a scholar carries risks. If the scholar fails the exam, he will be held jointly liable.
Those found outside are not as reliable as those introduced by the academy.
Before making a decision, he went to the Wu family and asked Wu Pingzhi to take a look.
Wu Pingzhi accompanied him on the trip, staring at him with a look of astonishment the entire way.
Xie Yan didn’t understand: “What are you looking at?”
Wu Pingzhi said: “You’ve really changed a lot.”
Xie Yan said: “I want to make money.”
Wu Pingzhi understood.
Xie Yan continued: My husband is ill. The silver I have is enough to buy medicine, but he drinks three bowls of medicine soup a day and has no appetite. He’s skin and bones. After the fifteenth, we have to go buy medicine, but I’m short a little silver. If this doesn’t work out, please lend me some, and I’ll repay you once I earn money.”
Wu Pingzhi agreed and sighed, ” I understand. My father fell ill recently, and I was also worried that we wouldn’t have enough silver to buy medicine. When we were in the provincial capital, we went to buy medicine, and the doctor prescribed ginseng and lingzhi to keep him alive. The medicine shop didn’t have any good-quality ginseng, so I used my connections to buy a root, spending 200 taels of silver on it. But the ginseng was so old that it had turned to ash, and there was nowhere to complain. The next day, we had to host a banquet to thank them.”
Wu Pingzhi told Xie Yan, “People like us must achieve official rank. I’m glad you’ve managed to pull yourself together. You can’t give up now. If you need money, just ask, and I’ll give you whatever I have. But you have to help me with my studies.”
Xie Yan patted his shoulder. They had known each other for a long time, but it was only this year that they truly opened up to each other. Both of their fathers had fallen ill one after another, and they had experienced the coldness of human relationships, the harshness of the world, and the wickedness of human hearts.
When they arrived at the place, they met five young scholars.
These five young scholars were of different ages, the oldest being thirty-seven and the youngest only fifteen.
They couldn’t afford private tutoring, so they had all studied under a scholar in the village.
In Sanshui County, besides the four villages in the west of the county, there were nine other villages. It was a county with thirteen villages.
Wu Pingzhi asked them many questions, jumping from one topic to another. Each person answered without issue, and their answers matched one another. He nodded to Xie Yan. They could be guaranteed.
Xie Yan was short eight taels of silver for the medicine, charging one hundred and sixty cash per person.
This was slightly more expensive than the usual price of 120 cash coins.
Wu Pingzhi noticed they were hesitating and introduced Xie Yan to them: “He is our county’s top scholar, having ranked first in the county, prefectural, and imperial examinations. He has a unique approach to answering questions. In February, he will give each of you a handbook on answering questions. Study it carefully, and you’ll feel more confident when taking the exam.”
Scholars are different from scholars. The five of them looked at each other and reluctantly paid the money.
Eight hundred coins—a heavy string of them.
Xie Yan held them in his hands, overjoyed.
He had earned enough money for medicine through his own abilities.
Wu Pingzhi told him, “You’re too stubborn. What time of day do you need to get the medicine? It’s almost time, so take your husband with you. Get better medicine sooner so your body can recover faster. Now that you have the money, go get it right away.”
He was going to take Lu Yang to get the medicine today!
Lu Yang naturally refused to go. The herbal medicine at home hadn’t been finished yet. How could they waste it like that?
As the two of them argued, Zhao Peilan reminded them, “The pills take a few days to make. If you go today, you can finish the herbal medicine and start taking the pills at the same time.”
Now Lu Yang had no reason to refuse. He couldn’t suppress the smile on his lips, feeling a bittersweet joy.
Lu Yang lagged behind him by a step, feeling the strength of Xie Yan’s arm. He couldn’t help but smile and follow him, praising him, “Mr. Zhuangyuan, you’re truly talented. Treating illnesses costs a lot of silver, but you’ve earned it in such a short time. I’m so lucky to marry you. You’re a man of ability!”
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