Chapter 128 School Starts

In the dim morning light, a faint fish belly white appeared on the horizon, and the soft light gently fell on every inch of Taohua Village.

Compared with the past, Taohua Village today seems to have more vitality and expectations, and there is a different atmosphere in the air.

"Erzhu! Get up quickly! You'll be late for school!" Erzhu's mother was busy in the kitchen. She skillfully fiddled with the pots and pans, preparing breakfast, while shouting at the top of her voice towards Erzhu's room.

The houses in the village were close together and had little sound insulation. When she shouted, the sound spread quickly around like an invisible wind.

Erzhu's mother's roar did not wake up Erzhu from his sleep, but instead scared Sandan from the next door.

Sandan turned over in a daze, intending to pull back the quilt and continue his sweet dream. But before he could fall asleep again, he felt a pain in his ear.

His mother had already stood by the bed, pulling his ears and angrily saying, "Sleep, sleep, sleep! If you continue to sleep, you won't have to go to school."

Sandan grimaced in pain, his sleepiness instantly dissipated by the sudden pain. He could only mumble sleepily, "Mom, I'll get up right away, I'll get up right away."

Such scenes are constantly being played out in every corner of Taohua Village.

But not all children need this kind of urging from their parents.

Sun Hai and Zhang Chuyan were already accustomed to waking up early for school. Before daybreak, they'd already climbed out of their warm beds. They quickly dressed, washed, and dressed neatly, then shouldered their small school bags and prepared to head out.

"Chuyan, it's still early. Why don't you have breakfast before going out?" Zhang Chuyan's mother, Zhou Zhu, walked out of the house with light steps.

Her voice is soft and gentle, like the spring breeze, which makes people feel particularly comfortable.

In Taohua Village, where most women have strong personalities, Zhou Zhu is undoubtedly an outlier.

She usually speaks softly and never yells at her children.

Everyone in the village praised her for her good temper, but little did they know that this was because Chu Yan was a well-behaved and sensible child who never gave her a chance to get angry.

"Mom, you don't have to worry. There is breakfast in the school. I am a senior student, so I wanted to go early to see if there is any way I can help the teacher." Zhang Chuyan carefully checked the books and stationery in his schoolbag to make sure there was nothing missing.

He turned and walked towards the door, saying, "Mom, I'm leaving."

Seeing this, Zhou Zhu hurriedly took two steps after him, his eyes full of concern: "Hey, slow down. Be obedient and don't cause trouble for the teacher."

"I know!" Zhang Chuyan's voice came from afar, accompanied by the morning breeze, and disappeared at the corner of the yard.

Gu Jiayue had already stood at the school gate early, waiting for her students.

At present, the only teachers who could teach cultural subjects in the school were her and the tentatively appointed Master Du. Therefore, she divided the more than one hundred boys into two classes, each with about fifty students.

"Good morning, let's come here to wash our hands first, and then have breakfast." Gu Jiayue smiled and patiently greeted every student who entered the classroom.

She led the students to a row of neatly arranged sinks at the door and instructed them on how to wash their hands properly.

Hua Chao followed behind, carefully examining each student's hands. If she noticed someone's nails were too long, she would take out the scissors she carried with her and gently help trim them.

For the girls, Hua Chao would even kindly hand them a bottle of hand cream and gently say, "If you want to learn embroidery well, your hands must not be too rough."

The children had played in the school all day yesterday and were already familiar with the layout of the school.

They walked towards the cafeteria without anyone leading them.

Zhang Chuyan and Gu Yuhe, who arrived at the school early, were already busy in the cafeteria.

"Two buns, a cup of soy milk, and an egg for each person. If you don't have enough after finishing the meal, take more. Don't waste it!" Gu Yuhe distributed the plates skillfully and gave instructions loudly.

His voice was clear and loud, echoing in the cafeteria and everyone could hear it clearly.

“I know.” The children responded.

These buns are all meat buns, which were made by Aunt Cai and all the women in the Gu family since last night.

Each bun is large and white, with a soft outer layer and filled with tender pork and sweet cabbage. The rich aroma hits your nose before you even take a bite, making you salivate.

For these children, they may not be able to eat such delicious food even during the Chinese New Year.

Therefore, everyone cherishes it and no one wastes it.

After finishing their meal, some children even licked their fingers, their satisfied expressions as if they were enjoying the most delicious food in the world.

"Those who are not full can get more." Aunt Cai stood aside, looking at these children, her heart filled with heartache.

They are all too thin, and it is obvious that they have not eaten enough for years.

But that's all in the past. From now on, as long as Aunt Cai is around, she will definitely keep them fat and healthy.

Thinking of this, she took the basin full of buns and distributed them to the children one by one.

"No, no, no... Grandma Cai, I'm full, I don't need it." A child who got the bun quickly waved his hand to refuse.

Although he was still a little hungry, his parents repeatedly warned him not to eat too much of the teacher's food before he went out.

The teacher has done them a great favor by allowing them to study for free, so they must not cause her any more trouble.

So we could only eat half full. If Master Gu went bankrupt, there would be no one to run the school.

"Yes, yes, we are full." The other children also echoed.

They had all been warned by their parents, so they declined Aunt Cai's kindness, then ran away hand in hand, skipping and jumping.

After breakfast, it was time for class.

These more than one hundred boys were between the ages of five and ten. Gu Jiayue assigned the five- to seven-year-olds to the first introductory class, which consisted of forty-eight students, and the eight- to ten-year-olds to the second introductory class, which consisted of fifty-six students.

Gu Yuhe and Zhang Chuyan, having completed their introductory studies, entered the imperial examination class directly.

Sun Hai was assigned to the Enlightenment Class 1.

All the girls are in Jinxiu Tower, and Hua Chao is responsible for their arrangements.

However, girls have a slightly different schedule than boys, as they only attend classes half a day each day.

The village chief discussed this matter with Gu Jiayue for a long time.

In this era of low productivity, every family is in urgent need of labor. Teenage girls undertake as much physical labor as adults in the family.

Nowadays, all the children in the family have to go to school, so there is no one to do many things at home and in the fields.

At first, Gu Jiayue firmly disagreed. She believed that girls should also receive a comprehensive education and should not be deprived of the right to study because of family reasons.

But the village chief said helplessly, "If we don't agree, some families won't be willing to send their daughters here. After all, no matter how good a girl's skills are, how many years can she help her family? Besides, learning embroidery is not something that can be done overnight. Once you learn it, you have to get married, and in the end, it's still the husband's family that enjoys the benefits."

That day, Gu Jiayue was furious after hearing these words and wanted to confront these parents directly.

But after returning home and calming down, she felt that this was not something she could change alone.

This is the sadness of this era, and it is difficult to change it in a short period of time with her own efforts.

She could only choose to obey first, and then slowly infiltrate new ideas bit by bit.

She knows very well that while how long a girl can study is important, it is more crucial to get her girls into school first.

As long as they can come to school first, and their parents see the benefits of learning, they will naturally change their minds.

So, Gu Jiayue had to make a compromise and agreed that the girls only needed to come to class in the morning, and afternoon classes were no longer compulsory. Those who had time could come, and those who didn't could not come.

After calming down, Gu Jiayue took a deep breath and walked into Enlightenment Class 1. She handed the first class of Enlightenment Class 2 to Zhang Chuyan.

As soon as Gu Jiayue entered the classroom, the once noisy space instantly fell silent. Dozens of dark eyes turned to her, their gazes filled with curiosity and inquiry, their innocent gazes seemingly able to see through everything.

Although Gu Jiayue already had a lot of teaching experience, she still felt a little nervous under these pure gazes.

She secretly reminded herself in her heart: Stay calm! This is the first lesson of the new semester. I have to establish my authority, otherwise it will be difficult to manage these naughty monkeys in the future.

Gu Jiayue smiled softly, a smile that held a hint of gentleness, yet remained dignified. Her eyes were sharp and resolute as she spoke slowly, "Hello, students! My name is Gu Jiayue, and I'm your teacher. From today on, we'll learn many new things together and face many new challenges. Are you ready?"

"We're ready!" Forty children answered in unison, their voices clear and loud, full of vigor and energy.