Upon closer inspection, I realized that one of the three skinny children was an acquaintance.
Jiang Yimian found it amusing. Having found someone to help her, she wasn't in a hurry to go back. Instead, she stared at the person in the middle who was half-pressed against the door and curiously leaned over to ask, "What are you doing here?"
Seemingly unaware that anyone else had arrived, Sun Xiaohu merely frowned and made a shushing gesture, "Shh, don't speak, we can't hear you."
His dark, thin face was full of seriousness, but at this moment, with half of his body pressed against the door, he looked rather comical.
Jiang Yimian raised an eyebrow, her gaze falling on the crooked marks made with a twig on the ground. She looked at them for a long time but couldn't figure out what they were.
Instead, the little one beside her glanced at her fearfully and tugged at Sun Xiaohu, "Xiaohu, you..."
Sun Xiaohu was so focused on eavesdropping on the conversation inside that he didn't notice Da Mao's strange behavior. He just whispered, "Don't touch me, or we'll be found out."
Da Mao had no choice but to shut up, but his eyes, which were fixed on Jiang Yimian, showed a hint of fear, as if he were about to cry.
Jiang Yimian felt helpless and innocent; she hadn't scared the child.
Just then, Zhang Xiucai's voice came from inside the room, "Alright, you can practice on your own from now on."
Sun Xiaohu immediately frowned and muttered under his breath, "What's all this squeaking? How am I supposed to practice?"
He finally managed to sneak over when his mother wasn't around, only to hear a series of squeaking sounds from inside. He didn't even know how to write those words, and his brows furrowed in worry.
Just as I was getting annoyed, a clear female voice came from behind me, "You want to learn to read?"
These words startled Sun Xiaohu. He turned around and met Jiang Yimian's questioning gaze, which frightened him so much that he immediately stood up and ran away.
He suddenly darted away a long distance, not forgetting to call out to his friends who were still standing there, "Da Mao, Er Mao, run! Don't let Da Ya catch you!"
Jiang Yimian silently reached out and grabbed the two people beside her. Da Mao and Er Mao's identical faces instantly showed a wronged expression, their little mouths pursed, and they were about to cry.
She was somewhat helpless. Seeing that Sun Xiaohu had already been dragged over, she said, "If you want to learn to read, just go and tell Zhang Xiucai. You can't hear us clearly outside the door."
She had initially thought Sun Xiaohu was up to some wicked scheme, but it turned out he was just there to secretly study, which surprised her.
She had thought it was true when the village chief said that no one in the village wanted to go to school, but now it seems that's not the case.
If these kids didn't enjoy reading, why would they be eavesdropping?
Sun Xiaohu pretended to be fierce and struggled hard, shouting, "I didn't come here to learn to read. I, I, I just came to take a look. You, you let me go. I knew you were in cahoots with this girl."
I should have run away when I saw this person, otherwise I wouldn't have been caught.
Lu Cijian frowned, looking at the little brat in his hand, and said with dissatisfaction, "What do you mean by being in cahoots? Why are you talking so rudely?"
Sun Xiaohu was stunned for a moment before he finally blurted out, "You're all family, how can you not be on the same side? Let me go, I'm going to tell my grandma that you're bullying me."
Hmph, he didn't do anything this time, so don't even think about making his whole family apologize again.
Upon hearing the word "family," Lu Cijian's tightly furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and the strength in his hands unconsciously lessened. When his gaze fell on the girl not far away, a smile appeared in his eyes. "They've been here quite often these past few days."
He initially thought the boy was trying to harm some children, but later realized that wasn't the case, so he stopped paying attention.
Jiang Yimian understood, glanced at the two children beside her, and then looked at Sun Xiaohu and said calmly, "Wanting to learn to read is not a bad thing, why do you have to do it secretly?"
I never expected that this kid, besides being impolite, could be so studious.
Sun Xiaohu was taken aback, and asked incredulously, "You agree to let us learn to read?"
He had witnessed the fierceness of this young woman before. If he weren't afraid of her, he would have come much earlier. Why would he be so cautious as to eavesdrop?
Jiang Yimian simply let go of his hand and continued, "If you want to learn to read, you should ask Scholar Zhang, not me."
She had no objections; if all the children in the village were willing to learn to read, she would actually think it was a good thing.
The reason why Qingshi Village is the poorest among the villages is not only because of its limited land, but also because of its lack of literacy. If they could read more books and learn more characters, wouldn't that be a good thing for them?
It doesn't make sense for her to deprive others of the opportunity to learn just because of some minor friction.
Sun Xiaohu, Da Mao, and Er Mao were all somewhat incredulous, staring at Jiang Yimian for a long time without saying a word.
In the past few days, they had heard a lot about the Jiang family in the village. Everyone said that the Jiang family was not easy to mess with and not easy to get along with. Their family members also told them not to get involved with the Jiang family.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have run away as soon as they saw Jiang Yimian.
Jiang Yimian was unaware of what the children were thinking. When she saw Zhang Xiucai come out of the house, she said, "Uncle Zhang, these children also want to learn to read."
Zhang Xiucai paused, then smiled at the seven or eight-year-old children in front of him. "Alright, then come all of you tomorrow. You all need to be taught eventually."
He had wanted to gather the village children together to teach them to read before, but he was held back by his own family affairs. When he brought it up a few days ago, the village chief refused, so he gave up on the idea.
But I still hope that these children in the village can learn to read.
Upon hearing this, Sun Xiaohu's face broke into a wide smile. "Zhang, Scholar Zhang, really? I can learn to read too?"
He felt embarrassed when he thought about the misunderstanding last time. He was not only afraid of Jiang Yimian, but also a little afraid to see Zhang Xiucai. After all, he saw that Zhang Xiucai, who was usually not angry, had lost his temper that day, and it was clear that he was really angry.
He thought about it for a long time after he got back. If he were accused of stealing, he would definitely be angry and feel wronged.
Scholar Zhang simply smiled and nodded, "Alright, but from now on you must call me Master Zhang."
After saying that, he looked at the two children whose eyes had brightened and then dimmed, and continued, "There is no tuition fee. Anyone who can read is welcome. If you don't have time during the day, come in the evening."
These past few days, teaching Ono a few children has only reminded him of his days teaching at the academy.
Although he failed the imperial examination for a long time after passing the county-level examination, he was still happy to be able to teach at the academy. In particular, he was overjoyed to see his students take the imperial examinations step by step and pass them.
Now that he can teach again, he feels that sense of satisfaction has returned. Although not all of these village children want to participate in the imperial examinations, he is happy to see them grow from ignorant to literate.
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