Li Xia immediately responded: "What is it, Sixteen, just say it." He didn't ask what the request was, nor did he leave any room for retreat, and simply agreed so readily.

  Xia Zhi thought Li Xia was very straightforward and quite a friend. She didn't mince words when speaking to Li Xia either. "My dad's salary is not enough, he must borrow money from colleagues and students. Li Xia, I see you have a lot of influence in the academy. Can you quietly tell those who might lend my dad money not to lend him any?"

  Xia Zhi has just blocked Xia Xiucan's way of borrowing money in advance, and now he also wants to cut off his possibility of borrowing money from the academy. Except for the academy and Xia Dagou's place, Xia Xiucan cannot borrow money anywhere else in the prefecture city.

  That's right, the Summer Solstice is exactly when Xia Xiūcái can't borrow money for the Tian family.

  Li Xia thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement. "Alright, I'll spread the word. If someone lends money to Mr. Xia, I'll make sure they get it back." As he spoke, Li Xia assumed an air of arrogance. Then he laughed at himself. "My words still carry some weight in the academy. But I wouldn't dare say it's my own prestige. I'm just relying on my father's influence."

  "Haha, Li Xia, you shouldn't be so straightforward." Xia Zhi was amused by Li Xia.

  Li Xia smiled: "How can I not confess? Sixteen, Uncle, last time in Linshui Town, I didn't say my identity, you won't blame me, will you? I wasn't intentionally hiding it, I just didn't know your relationship with Mr. Xia."

  He was quite meticulous and remembered to clarify this matter. In fact, Xia Zhi didn't take this to heart at all.

  "It's not your fault. I didn't mention that my dad was in the academy either." Xia Zhi said, "At that time, I didn't think you were the young master of the academy either."

  Li Xia waved his hand: "Don't say that, what's the point of being a master, I'm also scolded by my dad every day, just a poor bookworm." He had just agreed with his father to study hard and not only pass the county exam, prefectural exam, and imperial exam but also get a good ranking. His father expected him to be the top three in the imperial exam. In order to make his father agree to Xia Zhi's request, he nodded at that time.

  While speaking, the young man carried in a large tray and placed three bowls of noodles and three empty bowls in front of the three people. The bowls were specially made large sea bowls, bigger than the largest bowl at home by one circle, and the noodles in the bowls were piled up high, this amount was quite substantial.

  The little black fish's eyes lit up as soon as he saw the big bowl.

  "Anything else, young master?" The shop assistant asked Li Xia, apparently familiar with him.

  "No more. Oh..." Li Xia saw the big green dog lying at the feet of Xiao Hei Yu. The big green dog was well-behaved, and when it smelled the noodles in the noodle shop, it only let out a low "woo woo" sound twice, without making any begging movements. "See if there's anything dogs can eat, huh? You go help buy three steamed buns, and also get a bowl of meat soup with more meat and less soup."

  Xia Zhi and Xiao Hei Yu'er both nodded.

  The young fellow answered and went, soon came back with a large food basin, inside was thick meat soup, three white steamed buns were emitting the fragrance of wheat flour.

  Looking at Da Qing burying his head in the food bowl, all three people were very satisfied. In the restaurant where the villagers eat, it is impossible to have pork. Da Qing's bowl of meat soup was mutton soup, which he rarely had before.

  Li Xia and Xiao Hei Yu had beef noodles in front of them, while Xia Zhi had mushroom chicken noodle soup. Xia Zhi picked up two mouthfuls of noodles from her own bowl and put them into an empty bowl, then pushed it to Xiao Hei Yu's side. Xiao Hei Yu also picked some of his beef noodles and put them into the empty bowl for Xia Zhi.

  Li Xia finally understood the reason why Xia Zhi had an empty bowl.

  Xia Zhi asked Li Xia if she wanted to try the mushroom chicken noodle too. "This is the advantage of eating with a group." If it were just one person, no matter what, they couldn't finish two bowls of noodles and could only order one bowl. Since there were many people, each person ordered one bowl, so everyone got to try multiple flavors of noodles.

  She was a single dog in her previous life and often had complaints when eating out alone.

  Li Xia nodded and handed over a bowl of noodles to Xia Zhi, then accepted the bowl of mushroom chicken noodles that Xia Zhi had handed over, nodding and saying this method is good. From now on, we should eat like this too.

  "Li Xia, who do you usually eat with? Is it your cousin?" Xia Zhi asked casually. The three of them were very comfortable and casual together, so they didn't bother with formalities like not talking while eating.

  Li Xia suddenly remembered Tian Kuai. "Where did he go? I just thought of it, and when I went back, I didn't see him."

  "He went with two women," Little Black Fish told Li Xia.

  Li Xia's expression twisted for an instant.

  Xia Zhi smiled secretly and quickly told Li Xia the situation at that time. Li Xia asked about the appearance of the master and servant, then thought for a moment and said: "It's probably Mr. Lu's family members, they just arrived, don't know the way, should be lost."

  "Family members?" Xia Zhi asked Li Xia again, and only then did he know that the Wenshan Academy was very large, with several smaller academies inside, each teaching students of different levels. In addition to the classrooms for teaching courses, the Wenshan Academy also arranged accommodations for both students and teachers.

  The dormitory fees for the students are all included in their tuition, while the accommodation provided to the teachers is free. The living conditions arranged by Wenshan Academy for the teachers are not bad, and single teachers generally live six to eight people in a quadrangle courtyard, with one bedroom per person and two or three people sharing a living room cum study.

  There are also masters who live in the academy with their families, but not many. This requires ability and seniority. Mr. Lu has some seniority in Wenshan Academy, but he didn't bring his family to live together before. It was just a few days ago that his wife brought their children over to visit, and the academy arranged another courtyard for them.

  Because there are many students and teachers, the number of houses in the academy is also very large. The layout of the teachers' courtyards is similar, and unfamiliar people sometimes get lost inside.

  At the summer solstice, they were able to find Li Shanzhang's courtyard smoothly, thanks to Tian Kuai leading the way. She also casually asked Li Xia a sentence: "Do you know the family members of the gentlemen?" He only roughly described the appearance and dress of the master and servant, and Li Xia recognized that it was Mr. Lu's family.

  "Mr. Lu is a good friend of my father's, he has been in the academy for nearly twenty years. His family came, and my parents had set up a banquet to welcome them, I accompanied them, so I know him." Li Xia explained, then asked Xia Zhi, "You've come, do you want to meet Mr. Xia? I remember Mr. Xia should be living in Nanjiazi... what number was it...?" He couldn't recall. He had an impression of Xia Xiuren, but hadn't paid special attention to him.

  There were originally too many courtyards, and the academy compiled numbers for easy management.

  "There's no hurry." Xia Zhi said, "I heard from my aunt that many students in the academy are preparing for the exam, so Father should be very busy."

  "That's true." Li Xia lowered her head and ate noodles.

  Xia Zhi suddenly thought of another thing: "Li Xia, are you also going to take the exam? Or have you already become a Xiucai?"

  Li Xia replied: "This year I'm going to take the exam."

  "Ah, Li Xia, does that mean you can't play with us anymore?" Little Black Fish said with some disappointment. He was thrilled to see Li Xia in the city and had been looking forward to having him accompany them on a stroll.

  Between Changsheng and Li Xia, Xiao Hei preferred to be accompanied by Li Xia.

  Li Xia showed a hesitant expression: "I can always find some time..."

  "Li Xia, don't force yourself." Xia Zhi immediately interrupted Li Xia's words. Joking aside, the imperial examination was the top priority for scholars in this era, affecting one's future and destiny. "We're not going to come here just once and then never again. You focus on passing the exam and becoming a xiucai, and next time we come to Fu City, you can accompany us."

  Li Xia put down his chopsticks and gazed at Xia Zhi with a hint of melancholy: "If I don't pass the imperial examination to become a scholar..."

  "Didn't you get in?" Xia Zhi was slightly stunned, she hadn't really thought of this possibility before. On the one hand, she had a good impression of Li Xia, on the other hand, Li Xia wasn't just anyone, he was the son of Li Shan Chang and a descendant of the East City Lis.

  It shouldn't be difficult for Li Xia to pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, whether in terms of innate talent or environmental influence.

  But there is always an exception.

  "Li Xia, don't you want to take the imperial examination?" Xia Zhi stared at Li Xia.

  Li Xia lowered his head and picked up the chopsticks to eat noodles, saying somewhat vaguely: "This scholar will definitely take the exam." He seemed unwilling to discuss this topic further.

  Xia Zhi nodded and withdrew her gaze from Li Xia after a while. The first time she saw Li Xia, she thought he was a problematic teenager trapped in a love triangle. This time when she saw Li Xia again, she realized that Li Xia might be a problematic teenager who dislikes studying.

  But he said that Xiucai must take the exam, and there should be no problem in such a short time. Xia Zhi is to persuade Li Xia, but also not urgent at this moment.

  Three people finished eating noodles, and Da Qing also licked the food bowl clean. Xia Zhi then called a young man to ask if he wanted to buy some sauce beef, saying that he would take it back for Xia Dagu's family to taste.

  The young shopkeeper looked embarrassed, they had never sold braised beef alone before.

  "So, your boss is here, I'll talk to him." Li Xia then consulted with the young man. Whatever summer was going to do, he always wanted to help.

  The young fellow was quite clever and didn't seem to be just a hired hand, he could do some things on his own. When Li Xia spoke up, he readily agreed to go out and when he came back, he already had a package of braised beef wrapped in oil paper in his hands. "It's still best paired with our noodles."

  Xia Zhi happily paid the bill. Three bowls of noodles, plus Da Qing's dog food and this pack of sauce beef, totaled sixty cents.

  Xia Zhi thought the food was good and understood in her heart that Li Xia should be doing it to save them money.

  Three people and a dog came out of the small restaurant, Xia Zhi and Xiao Hei Yu'er were not in a hurry to return to Xia Dagu's house, Li Xia was also not in a hurry to return to the academy, just taking a leisurely stroll after dinner.

  There are many houses on both sides of the entrance to Wenshan Academy, and many of them sell food. Li Xia seems to be familiar with this place, he tells Xia Zhi that in addition to the beef noodle shop they just ate at, Wang Shu's congee, Lao Sun's buns, Hei San's wontons are all very delicious.

  "You come, I'll take you all to try." Li Xia said with a smile.

  Around the summer solstice, I took a look and understood. These large and small wine houses and restaurants should have risen because of the academy, mainly doing business with students and teachers in the academy. This is also the food street of Wenshan Academy, or a snack street.

  Li Xia pointed to the back, after the food street there are many houses. Many of them were rented out to students and teachers of the academy. Although the academy provided dormitories for everyone, many people still felt uncomfortable or inconvenient. Not only teachers but also students lived in rented houses here. And almost all kinds of houses could be rented, from expensive courtyards to cheap houses.

  After strolling outside for a while, Li Xia was about to take Xia Zhi and Xiao Hei back into the academy. Xia Zhi looked at the time and it wasn't early, thinking that Li Xia still had to study for the exam, so he suggested going back.

  "You two are still young after all, and it's been a long time since you came out. I'm afraid your family will worry." Li Xia also thought of this and didn't keep the two people back.

  I plan to rent a car and go back on summer solstice.

  The entrance of Wenshan Academy is crowded with people coming and going, where you can hire carts, porters, and even sedan chairs.

  "Li Xia, go back and study," said Xia Zhi to Li Xia. "I and Uncle will come visit you again later."

  Li Xia, however, refused to let them go back alone: "I'll see you back." He beckoned a young servant over and instructed him thus and so, also giving the servant a few coins. The servant happily ran into the academy.

  "My family's car is just inside, it'll be here soon. I'll send you back and take the opportunity to get some fresh air." He said this, if Xia Zhi refused again, he wouldn't give him a chance to relax. As if knowing what Xia Zhi was worried about, Li Xia smiled at Xia Zhi, "Xia Zhi, don't worry about me. I'm not bragging, but as a scholar, I can still pass the exam, it's just a matter of ranking."

  Xia Zhi no longer refused and also told Li Xia to review her lessons in a balanced manner. Li Xia nodded in agreement with her words: "That's the principle."

  After a while, a young servant indeed drove out a horse carriage. The carriage stopped in front of Li Xia and the little boy who had just gone to deliver the message came down from the carriage shaft and smiled at Li Xia. Li Xia took out some more money from his sleeve and gave it to him. That little boy was a child from a nearby household, and in a short while, he earned a considerable amount of extra money, bowed to Li Xia, and ran away with excitement.

  The young servant had already gotten off the carriage, bowed to Li Xia and called him "young master", then took a stool from behind the carriage and placed it under the carriage. Li Xia first helped Xia Zhi and Xiao Hei'er onto the carriage, then instructed the young servant to go to Xishi Street, before also getting on himself and sitting beside Xia Zhi.

  The little servant picked up the stool and drove the carriage westward.

  Li Xia's carriage looked ordinary on the outside, but inside it was spacious and comfortable. Along the way, the three of them chatted as they went. Li Xia first asked about the situation at Xia Dagu's house.

  "...it's quite convenient and lively there, but I'm afraid it might be a bit noisy and not quiet enough." Li Xia said this and then anxiously asked Xia Zhi, "If Xia Xiu can't borrow the money, what will she do when she gets back? Most importantly: 'Sixteen, are you going to be in danger?'"

  (。)