Chapter 94 When a dog stops barking, its nature changes.
Zhao Ergou's expression was very calm.
But only he himself knew how much he envied Cheng Zhao.
He returned wearing a new blue outfit, and everyone praised him, making him feel very proud.
However, the clothes Cheng Zhao was wearing were far superior to the blue robe bestowed upon him by the county magistrate, yet the villagers found them nothing special.
It seems that Cheng Zhao was born to wear such exquisite clothes.
"Big brother, second brother, third brother, dinner's ready!"
Zhao Sidan came out cheerfully to call for help.
He saw Cheng Zhao there, hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to call out or not.
Based on his mother's previous personality, she would definitely have dragged Cheng Zhao to the dinner table to eat together. He didn't understand what his mother was thinking now.
Cheng Wanwan came out and said, "Zhao'er, if you're hungry, sit down and eat with us. But as you scholars say, there's no such thing as a free lunch. A meal costs five coins. If you accept, then eat. If not, you'll have to take care of your own dinner."
Cheng Zhao frowned.
There's no such thing as a free lunch. This saying doesn't seem to be in books, and he'd never heard of it before.
However, what my second aunt said makes a lot of sense. Every meal in the world needs to be earned through one's own efforts; one cannot eat for free.
He nodded: "I have no money. I will pay my aunt back when I earn money in the future."
He followed them into the main room.
Since Wu Huiniang started her pregnancy, Cheng Wanwan has made everyone do their own thing. In the past, Wu Huiniang would serve the rice and put it on the table, but now everyone has to add rice to the pot themselves.
The four boys lined up to get their rice and sat down at the table. Cheng Wanwan also sat down with her bowl in hand.
Only Cheng Zhao stood there awkwardly. In the Cheng family, his parents wouldn't let him do anything, and he didn't even know how to serve rice.
Cheng Wanwan said calmly, "The bowls and chopsticks are on the stove. One bowl of millet porridge for each person, plus a flatbread."
Cheng Zhao nodded and walked into the kitchen.
He was a little flustered, but he sat down at the table with a bowl of millet rice in his hand.
Although the Cheng family was of modest means, whenever he stayed home for a meal, Old Madam Cheng would prepare the best food for him. Therefore, even when food was scarce everywhere, Cheng Zhao didn't find it strange that he could eat a full bowl of millet porridge.
The group of people at the table buried themselves in their food. After they finished eating, Zhao Dashan went to feed Wu Huiniang and also gave her the medicine pills dissolved in water.
Wu Huiniang's complexion has improved a lot, and her health has recovered considerably. She tried to get up to work several times, but Cheng Wanwan ruthlessly pushed her back down.
After finishing his meal, Cheng Zhao put down his chopsticks. At the Cheng family home, someone would clear and wash the dishes. At the academy, he only needed to place his plate in the designated spot. But at his second aunt's house, he didn't know what to do.
But he was observant and learned. Following Zhao Ergou's example, he picked up the bowl he had used and walked to the water vat in the yard.
A small wooden basin was filled with water. Zhao Ergou squatted by the basin washing the dishes. He didn't want to wash Cheng Zhao's dishes at all and said coldly, "Do your own thing. Wash your own dishes and put them on the stove."
Cheng Zhao nodded and used a gourd ladle to pour water and wash the bowls.
Zhao Ergou frowned: "Although there's no shortage of water, we can't waste it like this. Sigh, do you even know how to wash dishes? Never mind, I'll do it."
He snatched the bowl back from Cheng Zhao's hand.
Standing beside him, Cheng Zhao was even more at a loss for what to do.
Cheng Wanwan had been observing her nephew. In the original owner's memory, this nephew was well-behaved, sensible, and smart. She always felt that the original owner had added a filter to his image. But after spending some time with him, she realized that Cheng Zhao was really different from those bloodsuckers in the Cheng family.
She had an idea in her mind, but it wasn't the right time to say it.
She said, "Four Eggs, go and call Tiezhu over."
Zhao Sanniu, who was chopping wood, immediately looked dejected. His daily study time was about to begin, and this was the most difficult moment of his day.
Zhao Ergou was also a little nervous. He had been away from home for five days, and his study progress might fall behind. But it didn't matter. After he finished studying, he would learn more from Sidan. Sidan was probably the fastest learner.
Zhao Sidan happily went to find Zhao Tiezhu.
He loves learning because he learns faster than his older brothers. Once he learns something, he can teach his brothers in return, and this sense of accomplishment makes him very happy.
To get to the village head's house, you have to pass by Old Zhao's house. Zhao Sidan was stopped by Old Mrs. Zhao.
When the Cheng family came over during the day, the old lady asked Zhao Erwang to go and watch the commotion. All she knew was that the old lady of the Cheng family had been kicked out, and later she heard that the eldest nephew of the Cheng family had come over. She couldn't understand what all this was all about.
Zhao Sidan knew nothing when asked: "If Grandma wants to know, go ask my mother. I have other things to do."
He ran away in a flash.
Grandma Zhao was furious. If she dared to ask her eldest daughter-in-law, would she have bothered to question Si Dan?
Before the family was divided, the eldest son's wife secretly gave money to her parents' family. When she found out, she would question the eldest son's wife, but the woman was even more self-righteous than her. As the mother-in-law, she couldn't argue with this daughter-in-law, so she eventually gave up on arguing.
It would have been so much better if we had fallen out with the Cheng family. Life would have been so smooth. But now the Cheng family is taking the initiative to make amends, and the eldest daughter-in-law has softened her heart and started subsidizing the Cheng family again. What should we do?
Grandma Zhao was almost driven to despair.
Old Zhao, puffing on his pipe, said, "We can't control what happened in the past, and we can't control what will happen in the future. Why worry about things we can't control? It's pointless to create trouble for ourselves."
Grandma Zhao has some internal injuries.
Yes, she couldn't control her eldest son's wife before, but now that her eldest son's wife is capable, she's probably even less able to control her.
Forget it, children and grandchildren have their own lives. She's too old to care about so much.
Before long, Zhao Sidan led Zhao Tiezhu home quickly.
The sun had just set, and the village was still bathed in its afterglow. Hot water was being boiled in the backyard, and the house was brightly lit by the firelight.
Zhao Tiezhu really enjoyed this feeling, passing on what he had learned to others, as if he had been elevated. His face was flushed in the firelight as he shook his head and said, "Today I'm going to teach you that if you don't teach, your nature will change."
"If not taught, one's nature will change."
Everyone read it aloud together.
Zhao Sidan, fully embodying the spirit of asking questions when he didn't understand, asked: "Brother Tiezhu, what does that mean?"
Zhao Tiezhu scratched his head, coughed, and said, "If you don't teach a dog, it won't bark. If a dog doesn't bark, it's disobedient. That means if a dog doesn't obediently guard the house, its owner will throw it out..."
The dog outside barked a few times in response.
Big Black: "Woof woof woof!"
Little Black: "Waaaaah!"
Cheng Wanwan: "..."
This is truly misleading and corrupting the youth!
She glanced at Cheng Zhao.
Cheng Zhao stood at the gate of the courtyard, hands behind his back, admiring the sunset over the village. Upon hearing Zhao Tiezhu's words, he stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
This was the first time he had ever heard this sentence interpreted in this way.
He was a rigid student who had studied for many years, and he couldn't ignore such an absurd explanation.
He stepped inside.
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