Quick Transmigration: When Can I Just Lay Down and Wait to Die?

Chapter 318 Ancient Farmer Scholars 10

The provincial examination was held twice every three years. In the tenth year of Jiale, the third son, Liu Zisen, passed the county-level examination and became a Xiucai. In the twelfth year of Jiale, the eldest and second eldest sons also passed the county-level examination.

By this time, the three sons were fifteen years old, which, according to local custom, meant they were old enough to be introduced to potential wives.

Liu Yuxi really couldn't handle this matter himself, but because he had said in his diplomatic dealings that only children in the Liu family who were over thirty and had no children could take a concubine.

Therefore, many of his classmates and peers wanted to marry their daughters or nieces into his family.

After conducting a private investigation, Liu Yuxi selected three women from the list of people mentioned by these individuals, all of whom had outstanding family backgrounds and character. He then asked his teacher's wife to take a matchmaker to propose marriage.

Because these families were all of better background than the Liu family, and were all branches of official families, the Liu family only had so much money. There was nothing Liu Yuxi could do but rummage through his spatial storage to add some things to the betrothal gifts.

Small glass ornaments and modern gold and silver jewelry were among the items, but the eldest daughter-in-law's dowry was slightly more substantial, since she was to be the head of the household after marriage.

The wedding date was set for three years later, specifically the 16th day of the third month, the 12th day of the sixth month, and the 8th day of the tenth month of the fifteenth year of Jiale. The reason for setting the wedding date so late was twofold: firstly, they didn't want their son to have children too early; secondly, their current home was too small, and Liu Yuxi needed to buy a larger house and have it renovated before the wedding. Therefore, the arrangements for the wedding gifts were entrusted to his master's wife.

After his sons all got married, Liu Yuxi handed over the management of the household to his eldest son's wife, and he himself lived on the estate for a long time. Except for Qingming Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Chinese New Year, he would only come home for a period of time when a grandchild was born or when his son took the imperial examination.

Aside from societal changes, the lives of each generation seem to follow a cycle.

In the eighteenth year of the Jiale reign, the third son passed the imperial examination and became a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations). In the twenty-first year, the eldest and second eldest sons followed closely behind.

The three brothers participated in the imperial examinations three more times, but it only took them seven years. In the winter of the twenty-seventh year, Emperor Jiale died and the third prince succeeded to the throne. The following year, the reign title was changed to Shunhe. In the same year, the new emperor held a special imperial examination, which was the first year of Shunhe.

This time, the third son, Liu Zisen, passed the imperial examination with the rank of second-class Jinshi and entered the Hanlin Academy, becoming a Shujishi (a probationary official in the Hanlin Academy). Since the probationary period for Shujishi was generally three years, Liu Yuxi sent his third son's wife to the capital as well, leaving only their children at home.

After all, whether the third son would stay in the capital to take up a post or be sent to a post outside the capital three years later would depend on his performance in the final examination. Their eldest son was about to take the preliminary examination, so they couldn't keep moving him back and forth.

The eldest and second eldest took the exam twice more, but still failed, so they stopped taking it.

Two years ago, Master Zhao was too old to run his family's private school anymore. Liu Yuxi spoke with him and then opened a private school for his eldest son.

The second son was quite interested in trading. Relying on his good skills, he had the servants in his family form a caravan, and he followed the caravan all over Daqing, doing buying and selling, which made the Liu family quite a bit of money.

The children from all three families are taken care of by the eldest daughter-in-law in their daily lives.

Liu Yuxi had considered separating the family, but firstly, the family was small, and secondly, the family was poor. It was better to live together for now. If they separated, how could the second and third sons feel at ease leaving the children behind to busy themselves with their own affairs?

In the early days of the family's rise to prominence, every family member had to work hard. When the third son was sent to serve as a county magistrate on the southern coast, Liu Yuxi's grandsons embarked on a new round of scientific expeditions.

There is no such thing as a closed-door policy in this world, so coastal counties are relatively prosperous, after all, they have ports. Since coastal areas are vulnerable to external threats such as pirates and Japanese pirates, these counties usually strengthen their defenses.

Liu Yuxi only mentioned it briefly in a letter home, expressing great interest in the things brought by the foreign merchants, especially the edible and ornamental plants.

His third son collected all the plants that the foreign businessman had brought and sent them back to him.

And so, we have sweet potatoes and potatoes now. However, after they were transported back, many of the potatoes sprouted, and most of the sweet potatoes went bad.

What followed were various planting experiments conducted by Liu Yuxi on his own estate. When Liu Zimu had one year left in his term, he sent him a detailed set of experimental data, including the best planting methods, soil requirements, maturity cycle, yield per acre, and so on.

After receiving his father's letter, Liu Zimu reported the experimental data to the local prefect. Because the yield per mu was so astonishing, the prefect ordered him to buy another batch of sweet potatoes and potatoes from the foreign merchants and plant them locally for a season according to the planting methods written by his father.

When it was time for harvest, the prefect went to the fields to confirm that the two grains were indeed edible and high-yield. He then submitted an urgent memorial to the emperor, mentioning Liu Yuxi's estate in the memorial to facilitate the emperor's on-site inspection.

Then, Liu Yuxi received the two princes, some officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works in charge of agriculture, and the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Fengzhou Prefecture at the estate.

Once the yield per acre was confirmed, all the potatoes and sweet potatoes were taken away.

Liu Yuxi received the title of Earl, a Earl's mansion located in the capital, and some other rewards. Don't think that the title of Earl is low. In each dynasty, only at the beginning of the country are there more Dukes and Marquises. After a few decades, you'll see how many you can still find, apart from those that are hereditary.

That year, Liu Zimu was promoted four ranks and directly became a fifth-rank official, Tongzhi, and was transferred to Jizhou Prefecture to be in charge of the cultivation and nationwide promotion of sweet potatoes and potatoes.

Because of the impact of this conferment of titles, the descendants of the Liu family would ponder over any object they had never encountered before. Although most of the time they did nothing of substance, they still achieved quite a few results.

With the Earl's Mansion in hand, Liu Yuxi often took his family to stay in both the capital and Fengzhou.

When the grandchildren in the family reach the age where they need to find partners, the eldest daughter-in-law is asked to take the children to a banquet, and the family will also host a banquet to invite other families to attend.

However, building interpersonal relationships takes time, so it can only be said that the Liu family is slowly getting better.

Since the title of Earl of Liu Yuxi is not hereditary, Liu Yuxi's most important task now is to take care of himself. As long as he is alive, his family's children will have many advantages in all their endeavors, whether it's in business or marriage.

Liu Yuxi decided to live as long as possible, and that each of his three sons would have a capable successor in their family. This was not difficult for him, as the deeper his internal energy cultivation, the longer his lifespan would be.

And so, Liu Yuxi outlived his son and grandson, living to the age of 128, a true five-dynasty elder, a centenarian. After he turned 90, he received many gifts on each of his birthdays, since the emperor himself led the way in giving them!

Because he lived so long that his sons and grandsons had all passed away, the emperor, by a stroke of leniency, allowed his title to be inherited by his eldest grandson without being demoted.