Rewards are indeed much slower than letters, and there was no use in Gu Yuzhi being anxious. After finishing his meal, he recited the Three Character Classic several times in his study before going to the main room to rest.

The next day, at the hour of Chen (7-9 AM), Gu Yuzhi woke up on time. As soon as he lifted the covers, he felt a chill that dispelled his last bit of sleepiness. He quickly shrank back under the covers and couldn't help but shiver: "It's so cold."

Xu Mama, who had been waiting outside, heard the commotion and whispered, "Your Highness, are you awake?"

Gu Yuzhi hummed in agreement, got up and started to get dressed. Xu Mama pushed open the door, carried Xueye in, and was about to help Gu Yuzhi get dressed when she saw him lift the bed curtains and jump down. She was startled: "Your Highness."

"Hmm?" Gu Yuzhi looked up after putting on his boots and saw Xue Ye. He reached out in surprise, "Xue Ye, are you all better?"

The wooden sticks on Xueye's hind legs had been removed, and her body had become somewhat chubby. What surprised Gu Yuzhi even more was that Xueye's eyes had opened, and they were a very deep blue.

Xu Mama helped Gu Yuzhi put on his outer garment: "Appointment Physician Qin said that Xueye has fully recovered. Chief Secretary Xie said that the snow wolf is quite brave, so Guard Qi should train it for a while. When Your Highness goes to Xinliang, the snow wolf can protect Your Highness closely."

He did want to stay and play with the snowy night, but after he returned, he needed to catch up on his missed lessons, learn martial arts from Guard Qi, and study agriculture and commerce with Manager Wen and Teacher Shu...

Thinking about it this way, Gu Yuzhi realized how busy he was and how he had no time to play with Xueye.

He felt a little sorry for both him and Xueye, having to do so much at such a young age...

Gu Yuzhi puffed out his cheeks and gently patted Xue Ye's head: "Xue Ye, you have to train hard. When we get to the fiefdom, I'll be relying on you for protection!"

Snowy Night: "Awoooooo..."

Gu Yuzhi smiled, her eyes crinkling: "Alright, alright, I know you agree. Have you had breakfast yet? Want to have some with me?"

As Xu Mama directed the maids to set out the meal, she happened to enter the room and overheard these words: "Court Physician Qin said that Xueye is too young and has a weak stomach, so he should be nourished with goat milk for the time being."

Gu Yuzhi then handed over Xueye, got up to wash up and eat, and then consciously took his things to the school to study.

The temporary school was set up in the east wing. Soon after, Chief Secretary Xie came in with books, and Gu Yuzhi stood up and respectfully performed the teacher's salute.

Chief Secretary Xie put the things down. "Your Highness has been out all this time. Have you forgotten the Three Character Classic?"

Gu Yuzhi shook his head, tilted his head back, and said confidently, "No."

"Very good." Chief Secretary Xie said with a stern face, "Then Your Highness, please recite it first."

Gu Yuzhi stood ramrod straight, swaying his head slightly, and began to recite, word by word, in a childish voice: "At the beginning of life, people are inherently good; their natures are similar, but their habits differ..."

Xie Changshi listened and nodded, and only after Gu Yuzhi finished reciting did he slightly raise his hand to signal him to sit down: "Your Highness is now able to recite the whole text very fluently. We will start learning its meaning now, and understanding its meaning will also help Your Highness to remember these words better."

Gu Yuzhi nodded repeatedly and sat down obediently.

"Let's start with the first part, which is about the benefits of education..."

As Xie Changshi spoke, he gave Gu Yuzhi examples to make it easier for Gu Yuzhi to understand without making the explanation too dry.

The lesson lasted a full hour. When the time was up, Chief Secretary Xie had almost finished explaining the merits of the lesson: "Your Highness, is there anything you don't understand now?"

Gu Yuzhi found it very interesting. He basically understood everything. He scratched his head and said, "I think I understand everything."

Chief Secretary Xie didn't say anything: "The worst thing in learning is to have only a superficial understanding. If Your Highness has any questions, please ask them promptly."

Seeing Gu Yuzhi nod obediently, he then assigned the homework: "Your Highness, go back and copy the part on the merits of education ten times. Submit it before the lecture tomorrow. I will quiz you on the meaning before the lecture."

Gu Yuzhi silently calculated for a moment, and ten times didn't seem like much: "Thank you for your hard work, Chief Secretary Xie."

Chief Secretary Xie put away his things, his serious expression replaced by a broad smile: "Your Highness has worked hard. Granny Xu has made some snacks. Would Your Highness like some? A little later, a few ceremonial attendants will come to the council hall to ask Your Highness for his specific opinions on this trip to Xinliang."

"Understood, I'll be there in a quarter of an hour." Gu Yuzhi stood up and bowed to Chief Secretary Xie. After Chief Secretary Xie left, he packed his things and returned to the main room.

There were pastries made by Granny Xu on the table, but Gu Yuzhi didn't have time to eat them. He put the pastries back in his study and was about to go to the council hall when he heard Shu Xiaohan say, "No, Your Highness, is this how you learn to memorize things by rote?"

Without any foundation, without the aid of pinyin, how can you just memorize it by rote?

That makes sense, though, as the Chinese phonetic alphabet movement in China began with the phonetic character movement at the end of the Qing Dynasty.

Shu Xiaohan suddenly said with great interest, "Young Prince, would you like me to teach you a simple method for recognizing characters? I guarantee your learning speed will be like a rocket, soaring through the air!"

She could tell that this young prince was quite clever; in this era of rote memorization, he had managed to memorize the Three Character Classic so fluently in just half a month.

She could honestly say that if His Highness were to learn using modern pinyin methods, it would absolutely astound everyone.

However, Master Xie is a real monster. This child has only just learned to write with a horizontal brush, and hasn't even mastered the basic strokes yet, but he's already starting to copy books.

The young prince is the one who's truly pitiful!

Gu Yuzhi was very interested in the method Shu Xiaohan mentioned, but unfortunately he didn't have time right now. He spread his hands helplessly and said, "But I don't have time right now!"

He told Chief Secretary Xie that he had a quarter of an hour, so he couldn't keep them waiting too long.

"Teacher Shu, you can talk to me after I finish my meeting with Chief Secretary Xie."

Although there's plenty of time and Shu Xiaohan doesn't need to rush, she really wanted the young prince to understand the benefits of pinyin. She smiled and said, "Of course you can. But I'll give you a little explanation of the benefits of pinyin now. Your Highness, just keep moving forward; it won't delay you."

Wen Xiuzhu, who was standing to the side, couldn't stand it any longer and coughed twice: "Teacher Shu, His Highness has important matters to attend to right now. Is it polite for you to be chattering away and disturbing His Highness?"

Shu Xiaohan scoffed, "Is interrupting others considered polite? Besides, isn't teaching the young prince to use pinyin a proper matter? The young prince is in his early learning stage; does he have to keep memorizing by rote? Why not use a faster method? That way, the young prince will have more time to learn other things."

She pushed up her glasses and squinted at him: "Or is it that you don't want the young prince to become a better person?"