In the Ming Dynasty 1498, my restaurant connects two worlds.

The poem reveals that Tang Bohu was overjoyed and full of confidence, comparing himself to gold and jade, and brimming with confidence that he would win the imperial examination in the capital the following year.

This action revealed Tang Bohu's lack of composure, or rather, his naiveté, but Liang Chu did not care.

As Liang Chu read the poems and essays, he stroked his beard and nodded. "Good! You have ambition! When you achieve the highest honors in all three levels of the imperial examinations, I, your teacher, will certainly congratulate you."

Before Gu Lan, the nobody standing to the side, could even speak, another group of newly listed scholars arrived one after another outside the door. The first one to rush in was named Du Yuanjing, one of Tang Bohu's friends in Suzhou.

Originally, Du Yuanjing came to Yingtian Prefecture with Tang Bohu, but Yan Jun of Taoye Ferry was rather eccentric and disliked Du Yuanjing's character. Using the excuse that his family's housing was insufficient, he pushed Du Yuanjing out of the house, and Du Yuanjing could only stay at his cousin's house, which was far from the Confucius Temple.

Later, Tang Bohu was "confined" by Song Xiaoyi and Zhu Zhishan. Transportation in the Ming Dynasty was inconvenient, and Du Yuanjing had not seen Tang Bohu for a long time.

Du Yuanjing was fortunate enough to be selected as the last student and came with other students to express his gratitude to his teacher.

Upon seeing Tang Bohu in the reception hall from afar, Du Yuanjing rushed there in three strides, knelt down abruptly, and shouted in a loud voice, "This student, Du Mu, courtesy name Yuanjing, has been as close as brothers with Brother Bohu since childhood. I am deeply grateful for your kindness, sir, for you have not abandoned me and have included me on the list of successful candidates. Brother Bohu and I thank you for your great hospitality!"

Du Yuanjing was just that kind of person, fond of scheming and opportunism, which Yan Jun disliked. His words and actions were awkward, and the students who followed him in stood awkwardly outside the door, their faces practically saying: We don't know him.

Liang Chu's good mood was spoiled, but he couldn't show it on the spot. He frowned, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes, and said coldly, "Get up immediately! There's no need for you to kneel like this!"

Tang Bohu, unable to bear it, smoothed things over, saying, "Master, Yuanjing is excited after passing the imperial examination for the first time and behaved inappropriately. I hope you will not take it to heart."

"Hmm." Liang Chu snorted coldly. "You all go back first, Bohu. Come find your teacher in the capital and we can catch up."

Tang Bohu bowed as instructed, pulled Du Yuanjing along, gave Gu Lan a wink, and the three of them left the reception room together.

When Gu Lan arrived outside, she didn't see Xu Zhenqing, which puzzled her. Then she saw Du Yuanjing asking Tang Bohu all sorts of questions, which made her even more displeased.

Finally, Gu Lan glanced coldly at the incessantly chattering Du Yuanjing, decisively summoned a two-person carriage, and called Tang Bohu back. Du Yuanjing was a little annoyed by Yan Jun, thinking that they were still staying at the Yan residence. Seeing that the carriage could only carry two people, he hesitated and ultimately did not dare to ask to go with them.

Xu Zhenqing, who was waiting outside, did not leave on his own.

Along with the second group of people who came to pay their respects to their master, there was also Xu Jing. Xu Zhenqing kept in mind Song Xiaoyi's instructions. Seeing Xu Jing waiting outside the door, and to prevent Tang Bohu from coming out and being bothered again, he pulled Xu Jing away to another place.

Xu Zhenqing pulled Xu Jing away, and Gu Lan blocked Du Yuanjing. The two unintentionally helped Tang Bohu avert yet another life crisis.

Wen Zhengming was a calm and composed man. After reading the family letter, he quickly recovered from his emotional slump. Under Song Yunqiu's arrangement, two cooks prepared a delicious meal, and the group drank and made themselves very drunk at the Song residence.

Although Song Xiaoyi was not at Taoye Ferry, he had long seen through Tang Bohu's personality. He was eccentric and high-profile, and if he became the top scholar, he would be even more dissolute. Therefore, he had made preparations in advance, arranging for Zhu Zhishan and Song Yunqiu to strictly control the money in the house, and for at least two people to accompany him when he went out, to remind him from time to time and to be on guard at all times.

------------

Songjia Village, Moling.

With money paving the way, Song Xiaoyi hired craftsmen to work day and night, and the renovation of the old house was finally completed after a month. He then rushed back to Taoye Ferry, returned to the modern world through the kitchen, and drove to explore the area around Moling Street.

As expected, the newly formed Songjiadu and Qianjiadu on the opposite bank face each other from afar, but the modern Songjiadu has been abandoned for a long time.

Moling became Moling Street, and Songjia Village became Songjiatou Village, but Song Xiaoyi's old house is still there, only dilapidated. Song Xiaoyi hired a renovation company, and the preliminary estimate for repair costs was more than ten million yuan.

I never imagined my house would need to be repaired twice. Fortunately, I still own the property rights to this old house, which is the best news. The repair cost is over ten million yuan. Should I do it?

Forget about repairs for now; Song Xiaoyi's new plan is to find a reasonable source for those dozens of boxes of Ming Dynasty copper coins.

Returning to Taoye Ferry, it was already close to National Day, and the Confucius Temple and Taoye Ferry were gradually becoming lively.

Just as Song Xiaoyi was about to go downstairs, his phone rang in his pocket. He took it out and saw it was Wu Fei.

"Brother Fei, what's up?"

"Xiao Yi, wait a moment, your master has something to say to you," Wu Fei called out after speaking. "Master, the call is connected."

"Hey, Xiao Yi."

"Hello, Mr. Wu."

"Xiao Yi, I received a Ming Dynasty painting that appears to have been mounted using the Wu family's Xuanhe mounting method. It's quite badly damaged. I remember your cousin, whom you brought last time, is quite skilled in this mounting technique. Could you perhaps invite her over to take a look?"

"It's almost National Day, so I'll have Xiaofei show you around Beijing."

"Sigh, it's packed with people during the National Day holiday, especially the Forbidden City. I'd rather go on a weekday. But mounting paintings is an option. My cousin should be free during the National Day holiday, I'll ask her first."

"..."

It just so happens that Song Yunqiu also wanted to confirm Wu Lao's identity and pass on the Wu family's Xuanhe mounting technique, so this was a good opportunity.

The second time, he drove hundreds of kilometers to take Song Yunqiu to the capital. The purpose had changed, Song Yunqiu's understanding of modern times had changed, and her feelings had naturally changed as well.

Song Xiaoyi set off in the morning and arrived at Wu's old courtyard house in Beijing in the evening. After reporting the arrival, the car drove directly into the underground parking garage.

After a simple dinner, Old Wu led Song Xiaoyi and Song Yunqiu straight to the point.

In the study, Song Xiaoyi and Song Yunqiu saw the "severely damaged Ming Dynasty painting that appeared to have been mounted using Wu's Xuanhe mounting method" that Wu had mentioned on the phone.

Upon seeing the ancient painting, Song Yunqiu, dressed in traditional attire, gently stroked the scroll with her delicate hand, her gaze suddenly becoming focused, radiating a calm aura. Old Wu quietly took half a step back, his eyes revealing a hint of respect.

Song Yunqiu focused on her research, and Wu Lao naturally followed behind, occasionally offering reminders or asking questions, which Song Yunqiu answered earnestly.

Wu Fei leaned against the doorframe, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the wooden frame. His gaze frequently drifted into the study, and he lowered his voice, saying, "Where did you find this beauty? She seemed so quiet and gentle at the dinner table, but once she entered the study, her aura completely changed. I feel like even Master is being careful around her."

"Brother Fei, what do you mean by 'found her from somewhere'? This is my real cousin, okay? My name is Song Xiaoyi, and her name is Song Yunqiu, both Songs."

"You can call me any name you want; I didn't see your ID card."

"Forehead……"

Wu Fei's words reminded Song Xiaoyi that they really needed to find a way to get modern ID cards for Sister Qiu and Qiu Ying. But with China's strict household registration system, it didn't seem like that would be easy.

"Brother Yi, come in." After looking at it for more than ten minutes, Song Yunqiu turned to Song Xiaoyi and called out, "Take a look at this painting. I feel something is off about it."