In Meng Zhao's small classroom, the students learn very quickly. In just a few days, except for a few younger children, everyone else has memorized the multiplication tables completely.

To help them improve their memory, Meng Zhao found some thick paper, cut it into pieces, and wrote problems like 8+6, 5*7, 9*6 on them. Then he wrote the answers on the back of the pieces. He made a total of thirty or forty pieces.

She sat opposite the person answering the question, holding a piece of paper and constantly changing it. She used the numbers on the back of the card to indicate whether the answer was correct.

The requirement is to answer within three seconds. If you answer too slowly or incorrectly, it will be considered a failure. Each person has three chances per day. If you can answer all the questions smoothly, Meng Zhao will reward you with a small gift.

As for the gifts, most of them were brought by themselves. Since her small class started, very few children who come to audit the class arrive empty-handed.

Just like Li Hua'er's family, who sell tofu, their business thrives in winter when there are fewer vegetables available. They don't even close their shop during the Lunar New Year, as neighbors always come to buy from them. So every time Li Hua'er visits, she takes a piece. These past few days, they've been eating tofu every day, and they're getting quite used to it.

Song Dabao's family was well-off to be able to send him to school. He would bring snacks and candies when he came over, saying they were for Meng Zhao, the teacher. But Meng Zhao rarely ate them; he mostly shared them with the children attending the class or gave them to the students as prizes.

He had attended school and learned quickly. Sometimes he could even take the things he brought with him back. At first, Song Dabao's parents thought he was keeping the gifts, but later they found out what was going on, so they sent even more gifts.

Zheng Ying's older brother, Zheng Nan, was an apprentice carpenter and had not yet completed his apprenticeship. Because Meng Zhao sometimes brought Zheng Ying to attend classes, he asked Zheng Nan to make something for her.

It just so happened that it was the New Year, and Zheng Nan had plenty of time, so he agreed and quickly shaved many thin bamboo strips of the same size for Meng Zhao.

Meng Zhao originally wanted to make a deck of cards, but since playing cards are somewhat gambling-related, it was inappropriate. So she simplified the modern playing cards.

Only the numbers 1-10 were kept, and four pieces were made for each number. Meng Zhao placed the bamboo slips with the written characters next to the stove to dry them quickly. Then he called Shen Qingze, Zheng Ying, and his second sister over.

"Qingze, Second Sister, Zheng Ying, shall we play a game?"

The three responded in unison without hesitation, "Okay!" Anything prepared by Meng Zhao is fun.

Meng Zhao first separated the bamboo strips, showing them their structure. The backs were all polished and looked identical, while the fronts were marked with the numbers 1-10. Then he stacked the bamboo strips together.

“Each of us must first take two cards from these bamboo cards.” After saying that, she took two cards from the top and put them in her hand.

"Only you can see the numbers on the bamboo tiles. The game requires that the sum of the numbers on your bamboo tiles cannot exceed 21. If it does, you are out of the game."

Upon hearing this, the children all nodded, indicating that they had remembered the number twenty-one. Then Meng Zhao continued.

"If I decide to take a card now, I can take another one from the remaining bamboo tiles." Meng Zhao had a two and a three in his hand, so he took two more. When he got a ten and a five, Meng Zhao stopped.

"Now, I have four cards in my hand. I've decided not to draw any more cards. I'm revealing my cards now, so you can see what my numbers are."

As Meng Zhao spoke, he neatly laid out the four cards with the numbers facing up.

"These are two, three, ten, and five," the second sister said loudly, her eyes sparkling as she stared at the bamboo plaques.

Meng Zhao smiled and nodded, then continued, "So, how many cards do I have in total?"

Upon hearing this question, all three frowned slightly, but Shen Qingze was the first to give the answer, "It's twenty in total."

"Correct answer, very smart, it's twenty. So why didn't I keep asking for cards earlier?" Meng Zhao first praised Shen Qingze, then continued to ask questions.

Zheng Ying was a shy girl who usually spoke softly. At this moment, she lowered her head slightly and whispered, "If I draw another card, I'll be over twenty-one."

After hearing this, Meng Zhao reached out and patted her head. "Yingying is so smart. That's right. Our game rule is that you can't go up to twenty-one. If you do, you're out. So when you feel you have enough cards in your hand, don't ask for more."

"We will take turns drawing cards. Once everyone has stopped drawing cards, the game can begin. Whoever has the closest hand to twenty-one wins. Do you understand the rules of this game?"

After listening to Meng Zhao's explanation, even the second sister, who had never been very good at arithmetic, nodded in agreement. So Meng Zhao pushed the bamboo tablets to the center of the table so that the children could easily take them.

After everyone had taken two cards, Meng Zhao broke the silence first, saying that he didn't want any more cards. Since it was his first time playing, Meng Zhao would guide him through the process, so he asked Shen Qingze, who was to his right.

"Qingze, do you still want to play cards?"

"Yes!" Shen Qingze nodded emphatically and took another card from the deck.

Zheng Ying, who was opposite, also said she wanted a card, so she took one as well. Second Sister saw that the two people in front of her had taken one, so she also took one.

When everyone stopped drawing cards, Meng Zhao had two cards, Shen Qingze had five cards, and Zheng Ying, the second sister, had four cards each.

Meng Zhao started by revealing her own cards. She had a ten and a nine in her hand, and it would be easy for her to bust if she drew any more cards, so she stopped drawing cards.

The five cards held by Shen Qingze on the right are 2, 7, 3, 5, and 2, for a total of nineteen.

"Sister-in-law, our numbers are the same!" Shen Qingze said happily after looking at Meng Zhao's cards.

Meng Zhao nodded slightly, "Yes, so we'll have to see if there are any people behind us who are closer to twenty-one than the two of us."

Zheng Ying, sitting opposite him, was a little embarrassed. She slowly revealed the cards in her hand: one, nine, two, and nine, which added up to exactly twenty-one. Meng Zhao immediately congratulated her.

"Yingying, your card is exactly twenty-one! You calculated it so accurately, congratulations!"

Hearing Meng Zhao's praise, Zheng Ying felt as sweet as if she had eaten honey. She had only attended a few classes, and Meng Zhao had already praised her several times. Before, she always felt that she was not as smart as the other children, but Meng Zhao's constant praise made her feel that she was actually quite smart.