Chapter 400 God Will Make Snow
Just after the Chinese New Year, Xin Zhen packed his bags and went to Beijing for the imperial examination with a little servant.

Xin Zhen originally did not have a little servant, but his parents and people in the clan thought that a gentleman who was going to Beijing to take the imperial examination should not have no servant.

In particular, Xin Zan arranged twenty strong men and four or five maids for Xin Zhen, saying that he had to pay attention to safety or something, but Xin Zhen refused and finally agreed to only bring a little servant.

Xin Zan and Li were relieved because Xin Zhen knocked down twenty strong men to the ground one by one in front of them. What was there to worry about?

So he selected a boy of about fourteen or fifteen years old from a branch of the Xin family to serve as a book boy.

The bookboy's name was Xin Qi. Although he was also a member of the Xin family, he was from a branch of the branch and was already five generations away from Xin Zhen. Therefore, he was not in terms of seniority with Xin Zhen and was just called "Young Master" by Xin Zhen.

Xin Qi did not have any resentful thoughts like "we both have the surname Xin, but you are a master and I am a servant". On the contrary, being selected to follow Xin Zhen to Beijing for the imperial examination was a rare opportunity for him to rise.

Now he can follow Xin Zhen to Beijing to take the imperial examination. In the future, when Xin Zhen becomes the head of the family, can he become Xin Zhen's confidant, or even the housekeeper of Xin Zhen's house?
If Xin Zhen could pass the imperial examination and become a county magistrate, he would also be a servant at the door of an official's family, and a person of status.

Even if Xin Zhen did not pass the imperial examination and remained only a juren all his life, it would not matter. A juren was also very remarkable. If he could be a servant in a juren's house, it would be a class leap for him.

Therefore, Xin Qi was very concerned about serving Xin Zhen. Since he took up the post before the New Year, he had been busy and diligent.

Xin Zhen was quite satisfied with Xin Qi, the little book boy. He was very hardworking, had a clear mind, and was also proficient in literature, which was rare.

Xin Zhen didn’t think he needed a little servant before, but after having one, he found it convenient, so he just did it.

To go to Beijing for the imperial examination from Jiangnan, one does not have to travel by land. One can just take a boat north along the canal, which is very convenient.

The ship that Xin Zhen took was one he rented himself. Merchant ships heading north were very happy to carry juren like Xin Zhen. All they had to do was raise a flag on the bow of the ship indicating that the juren was taking the imperial examination, and the merchant ship would be tax-exempt, which was very cost-effective. Some merchant ships even carried juren to Beijing for the imperial examination. Not only was the ride free, but they also had to pay the juren a gift.

Xin Zhen's family is wealthy, so there is no need for him to take advantage of this. According to Xin Zan's words, his son only needs to serve as an official with integrity to bring honor to the family. Why should he take advantage of this? After becoming an official, there is no need to be corrupt. As for money, can't I, Xin Zan, earn it?

Speaking of Xin Zhen's father, he was really a remarkable man. The Xin family was a family that passed down poetry and literature, but Xin Zan failed in his studies and turned to business, where his talent suddenly burst out.

Xin Zan had been engaged in business for twenty years and had accumulated great wealth. Although he was not a well-known businessman in Jiangnan, he was considered a famous businessman in Wujiang County.

You know, Xin Zan's father died early and did not leave Xin Zan much capital to do business. Xin Zan started his business with the dowry that Li brought when she got married, which can be said to be very impressive.

Sometimes Xin Zhen found it funny. Although there were many ups and downs in this life, but in terms of family background, this life was really unique.

The two of them boarded a boat from Wujiang County and entered the Yangtze River through the waterway. Xin Zhen then took Xin Qi off the boat in Jiangbei.

At the dock, Xin Qi said worriedly, "Master, if we take the land route to the capital, I'm afraid the time will be different. It would be much better to take a boat. We will definitely arrive at the agreed time, and it won't be so hard."

Xin Zhen smiled and said, "If you are afraid of the hardship, you can take the boat north. I will go over by land, and we will meet in the capital when the time comes."

Xin Qi frowned and said, "How can this be true? Besides, I am not afraid of hard work. To someone like me, a little hardship is nothing. But I am afraid of delaying your exam!" Xin Zhen smiled and said, "Today is only the fifth day of the first lunar month. The Spring Examination will not start until the ninth day of the second lunar month. It will take a full month. No matter what, it is enough.

I wanted to see the scenery along the way, just as if it were a study tour. If I took a boat north, how could I see the sufferings of the people?

I, your young master, am going to be an official in the future. How can I be a good official if I don’t understand the situation of the people?”

When Xin Zhen gave this reason, Xin Qi was speechless.

As for why Xin Zhen brought only a little book boy to Beijing to take the imperial examination and had to travel by land to the capital, it is understandable that he wanted to understand the sufferings of the people, but he did not do so to become an official. Instead, he wanted to investigate the demons and monsters in this world, as well as the gods, Buddhas, and the Taoist forces in the world.

He wanted to cultivate immortality and seek the truth, but diving into it headfirst was not a good idea. He had to plan before he acted, and first understand the various situations in the human world before he would know where to seek the truth and what truth to seek.

Xin Zhen smiled and looked up at the sky. The sky had been gloomy these past few days, with dark and thick clouds. Today, the temperature dropped a lot and a strong wind blew, making it look like it was going to snow.

Sure enough, snowflakes began to float in the sky after a while.

The master and servant hurried on their way. The place where they landed was sparsely populated, and they needed to get to the city as soon as possible, otherwise it would be too dangerous to spend the night in the wild on a snowy day.

Xin Zhen could hold on, after all, he had strong internal strength. But Xin Qi spent a night in the wilderness on such a snowy night, and became a hard lump the next day.

As the two were hurrying on their way, Xin Zhen suddenly looked up at the sky and asked in surprise, "Xin Qi, did you hear anyone playing drums?"

"What!" In the strong wind, Xin Qi couldn't hear what Xin Zhen was saying.

Xin Zhen used his inner strength to transmit his voice: "I say, did you hear anyone playing the drums?"

Xin Qi heard it now and shouted, "I didn't hear any drums, only the sound of the whistling wind."

As soon as he finished speaking, there were two more drum beats, and then the drum beats gradually became more frequent. Even in the strong wind, the drum beats still resounded through heaven and earth. The drum beats were so loud that they had long drowned out the sound of the wind. In Xin Zhen's ears, he could only hear the drum beats and not the wind.

However, when Xin Zhen saw Xin Qi's expression, he knew that Xin Qi did not hear the voice.

Xin Zhen looked up at the sky and saw two huge dragons flying through the layers of dark clouds.

On one of the dragons, there was a golden-armored general beating a drum, while on the other dragon, there were several huge jars on its back. Next to each jar, there were several people holding ladles, scooping snow from the jar and throwing it down, which turned into heavy snow.

Or maybe Xin Zhen's staring attracted the attention of the golden-armored general.

(End of this chapter)