They've all become top scholars in the imperial examinations, and you're telling me this i

Chapter 3: I was too busy watching the monkeys at the time.
"what happened?"

The postmaster watched Chen Guangrui cautiously. He noticed that the newly appointed top scholar seemed to be rummaging through his sleeves again, as if he had lost some money.

The postmaster's Adam's apple bobbed; he wanted to say something but dared not, fearing he might say the wrong thing and lose another hundred or so coins.

At this moment, Chen Guangrui remained calm and asked with a smile,

"You don't know, but I've loved eating peaches since I was a child."

Hearing this, the postmaster breathed a sigh of relief, as long as you don't lose any money.

These peaches aren't expensive, and these were originally a gift he gave to Chen Guangrui. He just wanted to buy something nice.

"If that's not enough, I have more."

Chen Guangrui nodded, "That would be perfect!"

Yi Cheng:......

While eating a peach, Chen Guangrui continued, "I just ate this peach and I thought to myself, our inn really has good stuff. This peach is delicious!"

"I just didn't expect there to be peaches even tastier than these? What place were you talking about?"

"Oh, Liangjie Mountain." The postmaster thought for a moment and said, "I've only heard about it."

What kind of place is Liangjie Mountain?

"I'm not entirely sure of the exact location, but I do know that it's west of Chang'an."

"Is there a Five Finger Mountain?"

"Yes, Wuzhishan!"

"Is there a monkey trapped at the foot of the mountain?"

"There is a monkey!"

"Hairy face and thunder god's mouth?"

"I've indeed heard that he has a hairy face and a thunder god's mouth."

Chen Guangrui slammed his hand on the table, startling the postmaster.

Chen Guangrui quickly said, "Please don't misunderstand. I just feel it's a pity. You've heard about this even in Chang'an, so people in other places must know about it too. Those delicious peaches have probably all been eaten up, right?"

Seeing that Chen Guangrui was troubled by this matter, the postmaster breathed a sigh of relief and comforted him, "Scholar Chen, you can rest assured!"

"Oh? How do you say this?"

"I learned about this from a distant relative. He, on the other hand, met an old woodcutter a few years ago who told him about it and gave him a peach from Liangjie Mountain."

The postmaster recalled, “My relative just thought it was a hoax and never told anyone about it until last year when he came to Chang’an and ate my peaches. That’s when he told me this interesting story. However, he said that the story was probably fake because he had been to Liangjie Mountain and there was no Five Finger Mountain or monkeys with hairy faces and thunder mouths.”

……

For some reason, Chen An was surprised that Chen Guangrui's expression turned sour this time when the postmaster brought delicious peaches. He spun around in circles several times before finally asking, "..."

"Brother, why are you doing this?"

Chen Guangrui didn't want to say anything, but he had so much to say that he couldn't control himself. After thinking for a moment,
Do you remember when I took you to see a monkey show when you were little?

"Of course I remember. Back then, every summer, around July or August, you would take me to see monkey shows. The monkeys would hold sticks and flip them around, it was so exciting to watch."

Chen Guangrui nodded. "Do you remember whether the person who performed the monkey show with the monkey was a man or a woman, old or young?"

"what?"

Hearing this, Chen An couldn't help but scratch his head and laugh awkwardly, "I was so focused on watching the monkeys back then, I didn't pay attention to anything else?"

Hearing Chen An's answer, Chen Guangrui visibly breathed a sigh of relief, muttering, "Yes, I was so focused on watching the monkeys that I didn't pay attention to anything else."

"Why did I only watch the monkeys back then? I don't remember anyone else around me at all."

Chen Guangrui sat in the chair and muttered a few words.

Seeing that his expression was off, Chen An couldn't help but ask, "Brother, are you going to beat up that monkey performer? Then wait until I get back to Hongnong, and I'll take action as soon as I see him."

陈光蕊看向陈安，目光闪烁了一下，“揍那个演猴戏的？那你想没想过，如果有一天，你遇到一个你打不过的人呢？”

"Someone you can't beat?"

Chen An seemed to understand something. "Then I'll practice some more. Didn't you say that as long as I master my fists and feet, no one in this world can beat me?"

He was very confident because Chen Guangrui had said, "As long as he trains his martial arts to be the best in the world, no one will be able to bully him anymore."

However, when he saw Chen Guangrui's hesitant expression, he sensed something was wrong.
"Brother, what's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything again?"

"No, I was just thinking about something else."

Chen Guangrui didn't continue the topic. Instead, he ate the peaches on his plate. After he finished all the peaches, he said, "Ten days from now is the selection of Yin Kaishan's daughter at the Cailou Pavilion?"

"Yes, don't worry, I've found all the people. They're all strong and healthy. When they stand under the decorated tower, I guarantee no one else will be able to squeeze in."

Upon hearing this, Chen Guangrui's face grew even more bitter.
"Did we give them the money?"

"A 30% deposit was paid."

"Let's see how much of this money we can get back. We won't participate in the 'Banner Tower Selection' in ten days. Ask around where that 'Banner Tower' is, and we'll take a detour."

Upon hearing this, Chen An was somewhat puzzled.

"Brother, didn't you say that Yin Kaishan needs your son-in-law to protect his family, and that you also need him to find a good official position?"

Chen Guangrui waved his hand, "It's best if we don't get involved with the Yin family right now, just stay far away from them."

Even though Chen An was a martial artist, he felt that Chen Guangrui's statement was somewhat contradictory, but he didn't understand why.

"Then I'll go find those people and get my deposit back."

As he spoke, he patted his chest, confident that with his martial arts skills, he wouldn't have to worry about not getting his deposit back.

Chen Guangrui sat there, staring blankly at the peach pits on the plate, then seemed to suddenly remember something.
"Wait, I remember you mentioned today that there was a fortune teller who was quite accurate?"

Chen An thought for a moment, "Yes, I heard there's a fortune teller in Chang'an who teaches fishermen how to cast their nets every day, and he's incredibly accurate. Plus, his price is quite interesting; I heard it's just one golden carp."

Chen Guangrui nodded. "If possible, ask around about this fortune teller."

"What, brother, are you going to have your fortune told too? You've never believed in these things before."

"I believe it now."

Chen Guangrui got up, looked at the plate of peach pits that had been eaten clean, took two, wiped them on his clothes, and twirled them in his hands twice.

After a moment of silence, he tried to make his smile as natural as possible, and stepped out the door full of energy.

The postmaster was just feeling uneasy because he had said the wrong thing, but seeing Chen Guangrui's smile, he breathed a sigh of relief and greeted him with a smile, "Scholar Chen, going out again?"

Chen Guangrui nodded. "Yes, let's go out and have our fortunes told."

"Scholar Chen, you believe in this too?"

"Yes, I believe, but I don't know whether to believe in Taoism or Buddhism."

(End of this chapter)