After going down the stairs, Li Xianyuan saw the waiter and a beggar arguing in front of the door. He paused for a moment, then walked straight past without stopping.

The beggar and the waiter were so entangled that they didn't notice Li Xianyuan walking across the aisle.

Going down the stairs to the first floor, the waiter who had led Li Xianyuan into the guest room with his donkey came up to him and asked Li Xianyuan if he wanted to eat something. Li Xianyuan said no.

But the waiter didn't let him go, rubbed his palms and laughed: "Look, I look like a scholar, but are you here to take the exam?"

"That's right."

"This examination room is in front of the county government office, just to the east after leaving the inn. Why don't you go and have a look. I think it will be easy for me to pass the exam as a boy with my little brother's qualifications."

No matter how stupid he was, he could still see what the waiter meant. Li Xianyuan reached into his sleeves and groped for a while, and under the waiter's eager eyes, he took out two pennies and handed them over.

He only had about twenty copper coins in his body, but Li Xianyuan didn't have to be stingy for a few pennies.

After receiving the money, the waiter immediately felt very happy. He threw the white handkerchief over his shoulders, nodded and bowed: "Thank you, sir. If you need anything, remember to call us and go get started."

After saying goodbye, the waiter opened the curtain and walked out of the inn. The aroma of wine and meat was blocked inside the curtain, and the bright sunshine poured onto the green bricks on the street. Passers-by were rushing in unnoticed. It was much more prosperous than in the countryside.

Li Xianyuan first went to the backyard of the inn to see Xiao Qing, who was eating hay in the stable. When he saw Li Xianyuan coming over, he picked up the hay and snorted. In desperation, Li Xianyuan picked up the hay and fed it to it before giving up.

At this time, on the second floor of the inn, two guests sitting by the window poured wine and food to each other, talking in low voices from time to time.

"There's no hope... By the way, have you heard that the Li family is seeking a secret marriage for their second young lady?"

"This matter spread throughout Wuhou County a few days ago. Looking for a man for a dead man... Hey, it's hard to guess the thoughts of rich people. Why, is there any new news?"

"It would be great if there is some new news. Miss Li Er is about to arrive on her seventh day. It would be unlucky not to bury her. The son-in-law who came to the house has been missing for a long time."

"You are too high-minded and you can't blame others. Recently, all the young talents from the surrounding areas who were rushing to take the exam came to the Tongsheng Examination. Even the county magistrate's young masters went. After Waiguaipazao was kicked out, there were still dozens of people left. I heard that in the end

The old lady of the Li family chose Mr. Xiao from the next county. But who would have thought that Mr. Xiao could not pass the test of the old lady of the Li family, but could not pass the test of the second Miss Li who became a dead ghost."

"Eh? What's going on? Come and tell me."

"You must be ignorant. The Xiao family is a big silk and satin company, and Mr. Xiao has been admitted to the Tongsheng Examination at a young age. I heard that he plans to be admitted to the Scholarship Examination next year. It can be said that he has a bright future. He is handsome. But Miss Li Er still looks at such a person.

Not on."

"You don't like the Li family girl? Isn't she dead?"

"Who says it wasn't the case? After the ceremony, Mr. Xiao was sent to the boudoir. As a result, he was frightened before he was born. His face turned pale, and he fled home that night. I heard that he peed his pants because of the fright..."

"Hahaha, feelings are still haunted?"

"Who knows, I heard that Lu Dongbin, the founder of the Chunyang Sect and the leader of the Eight Immortals, and Han Xiangzi were drinking at Shiweitian in Xinjing two days ago. Although we only met Tu Gong once when we were children, the rumors are probably true.

Since gods can come down to earth to drink, it is reasonable for a ghost to want to find a husband..."

"Then what?" A voice cut in from the side.

After spending a lot of effort to find the little beggar in Room 13, he was rejected. When he went downstairs to look for Li Xianyuan, he happened to hear the words "Chunyang Sect" and couldn't help but come over to eavesdrop.

The two guests saw a little beggar in ragged clothes, so they shouted impatiently: "Where is the little beggar from? Go, go, go."

Another guest picked up a peanut and threw it into his mouth. He stepped on the bench and poured wine into the bowl. He opened his mouth and smelled of alcohol: "Continue, what are you talking about?"

"Later, Mrs. Li retired and chose several young masters one after another, but the results were the same. Some of the timid ones were so scared that they peed their pants. I heard that even after Mr. Xiao ran back, the Xiao family refused to give up.

They invited a famous scholar to come and cast down the ghosts, but the Taoist priest from Laojun Temple persuaded him to stop, saying that it would be detrimental to their moral character. The Xiao family then gave up." The man paused and continued.

"So...we, the Li family, don't like us. Those that the Li family likes are either scared away or unwilling to come. As time goes by, no one dares to become a son-in-law in the Li family. There are only a few people in the family, and even the business has dropped a bit.

.Hey, tell me, this girl from the Li family doesn’t show her face very often and is rarely heard from. Why is she so troubled by her death?”

"yes……"

…

The Wuhou County Government Office is located in the center of the city. Those who can live near the county office are all well-known and wealthy businessmen. Except for the servants who go out to run errands and the young ladies sitting on sedan chairs when out for fun, this place is less crowded than the noisy and prosperous area of ​​the inn.

Somewhat clean.

Li Xianyuan has lived in the mountains all year round where no one has ruined the temple. He rarely sees people or animals and is used to being lonely. Walking here feels more comfortable.

Turn into a street, and according to what the waiter said, not far ahead is the examination room.

Stepping into this street, Li Xianyuan slowed down slightly, with a bit of surprise in his eyes.

The current season is obviously full of spring, but at this time, it gives people a sense of autumn with the rustling autumn wind.

A breeze blew by, and a few fallen leaves mixed with paper floated past his eyes. Li Xianyuan reached out and grabbed a piece of paper, unfolded it and looked at it. The round, pale, hollowed-out thin piece of paper seemed full of foreboding at first glance.

Paper money for the dead.

Frowning slightly and throwing away the paper money, Li Xianyuan looked up and saw a team approaching at the end of the street, accompanied by the harsh sound of suonas blown by the wind.

Li Xianyuan raised his head slightly, not sure if it was a coincidence or something. A cloud blocked the sun and cast a large shadow. The breeze made people feel a bit chilly.

He turned around again and found that there was no one else on the street. It was just him and the oncoming team.

"What a ghost in broad daylight." Li Xianyuan murmured and stared at the approaching team.

There were more than a dozen people in the team, lined up in two rows. These dozen people had their heads wrapped in white silk and linen cloth. As they walked, they played suonas and threw paper money into the sky. A few men in the middle of the team were carrying a small and elegant black wooden coffin.

Come.

What is extremely strange is that there is a girl sitting on the black coffin.

The girl is about fifteen or sixteen years old, wearing a satin robe with a dark pattern and a diagonal placket. She sits with her legs crossed. A smooth calf stretches out from the satin robe, and her white and tender feet sway with the coffin. The girl's face is extremely pale, but her lips are smeared with rouge.

Brilliantly vivid.

This procession is strange and unusual. It is obviously playing music for joy, but instead it is carrying a coffin with a famous girl sitting on it. The procession is also wearing white linen. Happy events don't look like happy events, and white events don't look like white events.

Li Xianyuan retreated to the side of the road and looked at the girl on the coffin with some curiosity in his eyes. The girl was also looking at him, her long and narrow black eyes were bottomless.

Paper money was flying in the air. As they looked at each other, the two parties passed each other. The team gradually walked away, leaving only paper money on the ground.

"Is it a ghost collision or something big happened in Wuhou County recently? Or is this the normal state of this world and not surprising?" Li Xianyuan, who had lived in the mountains for a long time and rarely communicated with the outside world, was puzzled and couldn't figure out the reason. He shook his head slightly and brushed it away.

The paper money fell on his shoulder, turned around and walked away.

Getting into the Tongsheng examination is a top priority, and other trivial matters will not be considered for the time being.

I thought it would be difficult to find the examination room, but I didn't expect that I hadn't gone very far when I saw a tall mansion with a majestic stone lion standing in front of the door and a thick red lacquered door open. There was a table in front of the door with the word "Registration Office" written on it.

, a servant was dozing on the table behind the table. There was a gilded signboard on the street with the two characters "vigorous and simple".

[examination room]

For fear that others would not know it, the signboard was erected in the middle of the street, very conspicuous. The examination room was a little different from what I imagined, more like a mansion.

Li Xianyuan did not doubt that he was there. After a moment's hesitation, he stepped up the steps and tapped the table to wake up the servant who was dozing.

The servant was awakened, rubbed his eyes and stood up in panic. Seeing that the stranger looked unfamiliar, he breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Who is this young master looking for?"

Li Xianyuan said: "Two questions. Do you want to register here? Can you register today?"

The servant was startled for a moment, looked up and down with a very strange look, and immediately put on a smile and said with a warm welcome: "Are you here to sign up? Of course, sir, please come in quickly."

This servant must have misunderstood something. Li Xianyuan thought that he was too polite to him.

He couldn't help but look down at the washed white linen gown, and then touched his face, feeling a little clearer. Perhaps his face made the servants mistake him for a certain young master.

Li Xianyuan followed the servant into the house. Not long after, the door of a house across the street suddenly opened, and a young man hurriedly ran out. There were urging sounds from behind the door.

"Tomorrow is the registration date, why don't you hurry up and send the sign to the county government!"

"Let's go right now. If the housekeeper hadn't called me just now, I would have delivered it by now." The young man responded, ran to the sign, picked up the sign and ran away.
Chapter completed!