Article 119 Zhao chose to remain.

Old Mrs. Cheng's face turned ashen.

She roared angrily, "Even if my eldest grandson can only ever be a student, you are not qualified to have my Zhao'er as your teacher! My Zhao'er is exceptionally talented. The people on the mountain at Nanfu Academy have personally said that he will pass the county-level exam in one go, then the provincial-level exam, and finally become an official! None of you are worthy of having our Cheng family's eldest grandson personally teach him to read and write!"

The villagers fell silent at the old woman's roar.

Although Cheng Zhao failed the imperial examination for the lowest degree, he was still a student of the lowest level. Dahe Village had not produced a student of the lowest level in all these years.

Moreover, during their time with Cheng Zhao, the villagers realized that there were countless mountains between them and scholars. Their lives were already predetermined, and they could see the end of their lives before they knew it. However, they hoped that their children and grandchildren could be like Cheng Zhao, not seeking to pass the imperial examinations, but simply to be able to read and write. Through this influence, they hoped to cultivate some of the temperament of scholars.

Their hope was simply wishful thinking.

Cheng Zhao didn't look down on them, but Old Madam Cheng's words were full of contempt and disdain, and they were powerless to refute her.

“Cheng Zhao is an adult. Let him decide whether to stay or leave,” Cheng Wanwan said calmly. “Zhao’er, you tell him yourself.”

Cheng Zhao pursed his lips and said each word clearly and firmly, "I can no longer take the imperial examination for the title of Xiucai. If my second aunt and Dahe Village still need me, I will naturally stay."

Cheng Wanwan laughed: "From the first day I kept you here, I knew you had no chance of taking the academy exam. Of course, your second aunt hoped you would stay."

The rest of the village immediately echoed his sentiment.

"Cheng Tongsheng, we also hope you will stay."

“I’ve already paid the tuition fee, so naturally I hope that Cheng Tongsheng can teach my grandson to read and write.”

"What does it matter whether you're a scholar or not? We respect you as a person, and in our hearts you are a scholar."

"Forbidding you from going to Huzhou to take the imperial examination is a loss for the imperial court, but also a stroke of luck for our Dahe Village."

"Cheng Tongsheng, you can stay here."

"..."

Cheng Zhao's eyes felt a little hot.

He thought that the villagers would look down on him after he told them he had been fired.

Unexpectedly, they still looked at him with respect and even greater expectations.

He nodded: "I'll stay, I'm not leaving."

Old Mrs. Cheng was furious. The future scholar whom their Cheng family village cherished was being used as a schoolteacher in Dahe Village.

She initially thought she was being forced by Cheng Wanwan, but judging from the situation, her eldest grandson was clearly enjoying it as well.

After the New Year, she will be going to Huzhou to take the imperial examination. How can her Zhao'er waste her precious time in Dahe Village?

"Zhao'er, you're so unambitious!" Old Madam Cheng said, suppressing her anger. "I'm going back to invite the Cheng family head and the village chief!"

She turned and left.

The man she brought quickly followed: "Weren't you here to find me a wife? Aren't you taking that woman with you?"

"Marry your grandpa!" Old Mrs. Cheng roared. "Is my grandson's matter more important than yours? Wait until my grandson's matter is settled before I'll help you find a wife!"

If Zhao'er stops studying, what use will the three taels of silver she brought as betrothal gifts be?

This is a major event for their family, for the Cheng family, and for Chengjia Village. They must bring Zhao'er back to school as soon as possible.

Grandma Cheng's angry shouts gradually faded into the distance.

Cheng Zhao looked at everyone, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you all for your support. I will do my best to teach the children to read and write."

Originally, there were 29 students, but after Old Mrs. Cheng made a scene, many people in the village were tempted, and in the end, the number of students who could read and write was expanded to 43.

Cheng Wanwan's yard was half vegetable garden and half chicken coop and duck shed, and there was simply not enough room for more than forty students.

The village headman helped come up with a solution: "In front of our Zhao family's ancestral hall is a large courtyard, paved with bluestone slabs. It's flat and clean, and with a little tidying up, it can be used as a school. Families who send their children to study can send one person to tidy up the place, and each person can bring their own tables and chairs..."

Forty-three students, thirty or forty parents went to clean up.

The Zhao Family Ancestral Hall is only open once a year. Although there are bluestone slabs on the ground in the courtyard, the gaps between the slabs are full of weeds. A group of people pulled weeds and swept them up, then set up tables and chairs. Forty-three tables and chairs were set up, at different heights, which gave it a certain grandeur and made it look somewhat like a proper ancestral hall.

The village head, with his hands behind his back, said, "When the village has enough money, we'll build a school next to the ancestral hall. We can't let the children study and write in the open air all the time; if it rains, their studies will be disrupted..."

Whenever rain is mentioned, the villagers sigh. It's been so long since it rained; they've forgotten what rain feels like.

After the important matter of studying was arranged, a gossipy woman in the village pulled Cheng Wanwan aside and asked, "I vaguely heard that Grandma Cheng was trying to arrange a marriage for you?"

"That man who came with Old Mrs. Cheng, could he be the new man the Cheng family found for you?"

“Oh, this…” Granny Zhang said from the crowd, “That man is so ugly, with a big mole on his face. It makes people lose their appetite. Speaking of which, Zhao the hunter from our village has been living alone for so many years. Wouldn’t he and Da Shan’s wife be a perfect match?”

Cheng Wanwan gave her a cold look. This old woman was always stirring up trouble. By linking her to Hunter Zhao, she must have some other scheme in mind.

"If Aunt Dashan thinks Hunter Zhao is a good match, how about I act as a matchmaker?"

Mrs. Zhang said with a grin.

She believed she had seen through the affair between Cheng Wanwan and Zhao the Hunter, and spoke as if she were looking down on Cheng Wanwan from a superior position.

Cheng Wanwan curled her lips and said, "I heard that Da Gang's mother brought her niece over. Your niece isn't married yet, right? Wouldn't that be a perfect match for Uncle Zhang from our village?"

Uncle Zhang Liu is an elderly, widowed man in the village who has some mental issues and relies entirely on the village head for support.

To Granny Zhang, Cheng Wanwan's words sounded very malicious.

She suppressed her anger and said, "I can't even make decisions about my niece's marriage, so how can you, Aunt Dashan, be the matchmaker?"

Cheng Wanwan gave a forced smile: "Yes, you can't even control your own niece's marriage, so why are you interfering in mine?"

First, there was Old Mrs. Cheng acting as a matchmaker, and then there was Granny Zhang trying to find her a partner. For no reason at all, a man was trying to set her up with someone. Does she really need a man that much?

Mrs. Zhang opened her mouth as if she wanted to retort.

However, thinking of her own schemes, she forced herself to endure it.

Although Cheng Zhao can no longer be a scholar, the status of a scholar is still very valuable in Dahe Village. Once the school is established, he can live off the tuition fees alone for the rest of his life. It's not a bad deal for her niece to marry Cheng Zhao.

As Granny Zhang was pondering this, a group of people suddenly ran towards the ancestral hall from the other end of the village.

"Village head, something terrible has happened!"

"Locusts! So many locusts are flying over from the other side of the mountain!"

"Locusts have flown into our Dahe Village! The locust plague has really arrived!"

The village head, his face serious, shouted, "Calm down, everyone! Don't rush! Follow the method that Aunt Dashan and Cheng Zhao mentioned before. The whole village must mobilize to kill the locusts. We must act swiftly!"