Jiang Sheng lacked foresight and didn't know how to plan for the future, but she overheard the teacher at the school saying that the safest way for a person to stand out in life was to study and take the imperial examinations.
My elder brother is very talented. Every time they send copies of books to the bookstore, the bookstore owner will praise them, saying that the characters in the books are beautiful, have integrity and elegance, and must be a person with a lot of baggage.
A burden? Jiang Sheng didn't understand what that was.
But she knew that since her older brother had this talent, he should develop it in this direction and not let it go to waste.
Although the cost of going to school was a bit high, the family had saved up a few hundred coins during this period, and with the seven hundred coins left over from buying the cart, they had a small amount of savings.
I'm afraid my older brother won't agree.
As expected, Xu Mo remained silent for a long time. When he finally opened his mouth, he only said two words, "No."
He's the eldest, how could he use his younger siblings' hard-earned money to go to school? He couldn't do such a thing, and he couldn't bring himself to do it.
"So, does my brother plan to live like this for the rest of his life and never study again?" Jiang Sheng asked rhetorically.
Xu Mo fell silent again.
After a long pause, he said softly, "I will copy books to earn enough tuition fees before I go back to school."
The hatred from his parents and the pain of his broken leg remained undiminished in his heart. How could he not go to school? How could he not strive for a future?
“That’s settled then.” Jiang Sheng sat up. “You can earn two coins a day by copying, and by the time you’ve saved enough for your school fees, your beard will be all white. We’ll lend you the money for your schooling, and you can pay us back when you become a high-ranking official.”
“Exactly, exactly.” Zheng Ruqian also stuck his head out. “I’ve heard people say that it’s good to have a powerful backer. In the future, we can combine our official and business connections, hehehe…”
The more they talk, the less reliable it becomes.
Xu Mo's face darkened, but his heart felt warm.
Jiang Sheng's words, though rough, are not without merit, but it's a bit difficult for a strong-willed person to accept the hard-earned money of their younger siblings.
That night, Xu Mo tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
He woke up before dawn, but it was uncomfortable to keep his eyes open, so he got up and started cooking.
While the water was boiling to cook porridge, Chang Yan slowly sat up from the haystack.
The younger brother, who had the least presence in the dilapidated temple but always surprised everyone with his actions, stared at the flames and licked the bottom of the pot, speaking softly, "There are many people who can bravely refuse, but few who remember kindness and bravely accept it."
“The protection of a copyist is not the same as the protection of an official.”
Xu Mo was startled and raised his head to say something, but saw that Chang Yan had lain back down.
His heart was in turmoil, filled with mixed emotions.
When breakfast was ready, my younger brother and sister woke up yawning.
Xu Mo finally made up her mind, "I'll go to school."
Jiang Sheng was overjoyed. She had even been trying to persuade her older brother in her dreams all night, but she never expected that he would come to his senses on his own after waking up. It was truly a relief.
“It’s perfect timing since we’re not delivering vegetables today. Let’s go look around and see if there are any suitable schools,” she exclaimed.
Logically, it should be more convenient to go there when delivering vegetables.
Unfortunately, a flatbed cart can only carry a limited number of people; if it's loaded with vegetables, there's no room for people, and if it's loaded with people, there's no room for vegetables.
Fortunately, none of the six people had grown to their full height, so sitting on the flatbed cart didn't feel crowded.
The first place we went was Shili Town.
Although this place isn't very bustling, it's close to home.
After looking around, I found only one old scholar who had opened a small private school, teaching only three students, all of whom were very young.
Xu Mo had attended school before and had a certain foundation. His teacher even praised him, saying that if he focused on his studies for another year or two, he could take the imperial examination for the first degree.
They obviously couldn't get a better education in town.
Then you can only go to the county. There are many schools in the county town, and the education is good, but the tuition is also quite high.
A few people casually inquired and found out that the price was either three taels a year or five taels a year.
This amount of money isn't particularly expensive, but for them now, it's an astronomical sum.
Xu Mo's face grew increasingly dark, and his hard-won conviction began to waver.
Finally, after finding out the price of six taels, Xu Mo stopped and said, "I'd better not go."
“Brother, be patient. We’ve already gone from asking about three taels to six taels.” Jiang Sheng was not discouraged. “There will definitely be a cheaper school.”
Everywhere there are rich people, there are poor people; where there are schools with six ounces of resources, there are schools with one ounce of resources.
It's similar to selling cotton-padded coats. Some people like floral cotton-padded coats, some like gray cotton-padded coats, and some like exquisite embroidered coats. As long as there are people in this social class, there will be a market.
Jiang Sheng suddenly had an epiphany, feeling that her thinking had been elevated once again.
She happened to pass by Youranju, and after thinking for a moment, she spent five coins to buy a bag of pastries and rushed inside.
Manager Bai was inside checking the accounts when he saw her and smiled, "Didn't you just deliver vegetables yesterday?"
"Seeing the freshly baked pastries, I wanted to bring some over to Uncle Bai." Jiang Sheng's words were as sweet as honey. "I also wanted to ask Uncle Bai if there were any affordable schools or private academies in the county, as I'd like my brother to attend one."
"You little rascal," Manager Bai chuckled. "There's a small private school in the west of the city, why don't you go take a look? And you can keep these pastries for yourselves."
“That won’t do,” Jiang Sheng said righteously. “If it’s given to Uncle Bai, then it belongs to Uncle Bai.”
After she finished speaking, she put down the pastries and ran away in a flash.
As I passed by the entrance of Youranju, I made sure to greet the waiter at the weighing station.
He seemed to be a familiar face here.
Back on the donkey cart, Jiang Sheng pointed in the direction of the west of the city, "Let's go."
Fang Heng's skills in directing the donkey cart became increasingly proficient. The six siblings inquired along the way and finally found the cheapest private school in the entire county in a small alley in the west of the city.
One tael of silver a year.
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
