When Jiaren saw his grandmother and sister coming over, he was overjoyed. Before he could even bow, he exclaimed, "Grandma, Mr. Peng took me to see Mr. Tang. Mr. Tang praised me for my talent. From now on, I will go to Mr. Tang to practice calligraphy for an hour every other day!"
The old lady was confused by his constant use of the word "Mr.", but she was happy because her grandson was happy, and she kept replying, "Okay, okay, I will definitely study hard in the future."
Zhao Yuru, having lived near the academy for a long time, knew it very well and was able to answer her mother-in-law's questions.
"Mother, this Mr. Tang is the calligrapher who is good at writing with his left hand. Many people come to the academy hoping to get his guidance, but I heard that Mr. Tang refuses to see anyone."
"I never expected that Mr. Tang would be willing to teach our child. He must really see Jiaren's talent and cherish his talent."
The old lady finally understood, and her face lit up when she heard it.
"Oh dear, shouldn't we prepare a thank-you gift? We can't let them teach our child for nothing!"
Jiaren was a little shy, but he smiled and replied, "Grandma, Mr. Tang said he's getting old and doesn't plan to take on any more apprentices, he just wants to give me some pointers."
"Silly boy, what we're giving you isn't tuition, it's just a thank-you gift." Grandma Li patted her grandson with a smile. "Think carefully, does the old gentleman have any preferences, like a fondness for paper, ink, or whose calligraphy or paintings he likes?"
Grandma Li thought that all scholars had such tastes, and was already thinking of asking Mr. Wen to help her choose.
After thinking for a moment, Jiaren said, "I've overheard my classmates gossiping about it, and they've mentioned it a few times. It seems that Mr. Tang likes to grow flowers, especially orchids, and is obsessed with them."
orchid?
The old lady and Zhao Yuru exchanged a glance, both looking somewhat embarrassed.
The Li family was born into a poor farming family; they were ordinary people.
To be honest, my family is struggling to survive; just having enough to eat and wear is a challenge. Let alone growing orchids, we've never even seen one before…
This is awkward!
But, there's still the all-powerful little chubby girl!
Jiayin clung to her older brother's leg and listened to the commotion for a while, then immediately set her sights on the space nursery.
With her magical artifact at her disposal, as long as she gets her hands on orchid seedlings or seeds, she can make the Li family's orchids bloom profusely within a few days.
Not only can you give someone a potted plant as a thank-you gift, you can even use the orchid leaves to cook a dish!
"Big brother, big brother, I can grow flowers!" Jiayin tugged at her brother's long robe, trying to make her presence known.
Afraid that his younger sister would pull off his belt, Jiaren quickly picked her up and coaxed her with a smile, "Okay, okay, big brother knows that Fu Niu'er can grow flowers. The flowers Fu Niu'er grows must be very beautiful. Big brother will go and see them when he comes home, okay?"
Clearly, he mistook the flower in his sister's mouth for a wildflower on the mountain.
On ordinary days, Jia'an, Jiaxi, and Maoge'er would go up the mountain to play around. Whenever they came across a pretty wildflower, they would dig it up and plant it at the base of the wall.
Jiaren saw it when he went home last time, so the two siblings are talking at cross purposes and are not on the same wavelength at all.
Grandma Li and her granddaughter had a great understanding of each other, and she immediately understood what her granddaughter meant.
Afraid that her granddaughter might say something inappropriate, she quickly snatched her granddaughter into her arms and said, "Don't worry about your older brother, he's gone crazy from studying too much. When we get home, Grandma will help you plant some flowers."
Jiayin promptly gave her grandmother a big kiss.
Let that idiot older brother step aside; Grandma is the only true confidante in the world!
Jiaren was unaware that his younger sister disliked him. He hurriedly ate lunch, played with his younger brother for a while, and then went back to the academy.
Grandma Li told him, "Don't worry about the thank-you gift for Mr. Tang. We'll send it to you as soon as we've prepared it at home."
"Thank you, Grandma."
Jiaren led Lige into the academy, and Lige was still a little reluctant to leave.
But thinking that his older and younger brothers would all be studying at the academy in the future, and that they could be together all the time, he happily went to class again.
Gou Sheng'er was left behind.
Firstly, Jiaren and the others were in class, and he didn't have anything urgent to do. Secondly, he wanted to spend more time with his parents, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
Soon, all the students who had come to eat left, and the shop quieted down. After a quick meal, everyone went to check out the new courtyard.
Li Laosan hurriedly returned from outside. When he saw his son, nephew, and niece, he stuffed the hot sticky rice cake into their hands, saying, "Eat up, it's fresh out of the pot."
Jia'an, Jiaxi, and Maoge'er immediately cheered, and Jiaxi happily shouted, "Thank you, Dad!"
Jia'an and Maoge jumped up and down, shouting, "Thank you, Third Uncle!"
Jiayin took a piece of sticky rice cake and climbed onto her third uncle's broad back.
In this way, she can hold the sticky rice cake in one hand and eat it steadily.
Li Laosan carefully avoided looking at his niece's injured hand, his eyes filled with heartache.
Jia Huan wasn't at the shop; the couple were busy with chores and taking care of their two nephews. They were too busy to find time to go home and visit their niece.
As the third uncle, he couldn't bear to suffer for his little niece, and he was extremely anxious.
With the heavy, chubby little girl on his back and listening to her munching happily, he finally felt a little better.
Dongmei and Yeshan, who had come along with us, stayed behind to watch the shop, while the rest of the group went out the back door.
Jia'an took two pieces of sticky rice cake from Gousheng'er, and then he, Jiaxi, and Maoge'er stretched out the sticky rice cakes and ran ahead, prompting Old Lady Li to shout, "Don't eat and run at the same time, or you'll get a belly full of air!"
The once quiet alleyway became lively because of the family of several people, young and old.
The group hadn't walked far when they arrived at the courtyard diagonally opposite the shop, which was also Li Laosan's newly purchased little home.
The town of Luoan is mostly inhabited by teachers of the academy or family members of students, and none of these families are large.
Therefore, the courtyard here is not very big.
In the entire town, there are only a few houses with three courtyards, a dozen or so houses with two courtyards, and the remaining hundred or so houses are all small courtyards with one courtyard.
The Li family's courtyard was very neatly built and well-maintained, with the doors and windows painted in very new colors.
Moreover, it has everything: the main house, the east and west wing rooms, and the side rooms that serve as the kitchen. There is also a well in the corner of the courtyard, so it can be said that although it is small, it has all the essential parts.
There are three main rooms and three rooms each in the east and west wings. Excluding the main hall for living and entertaining guests, there are six rooms available for people to live in.
Even if all five boys lived at home, it would be enough for them, let alone staying at the academy.
It's convenient and quiet to come back for lunch and dinner.
After Jia Huan and Wen Juan get married, leave them a room so that Wen Juan can easily go back to her parents' home whenever she wants.
Aunt Wu praised without reservation, "This courtyard is really nice; it must be very comfortable to live in."
Grandma Li looked around and was very satisfied. She couldn't help but sigh to her son and daughter-in-law, "No one can really see ahead of life. Back when we first arrived in Qingshui Village, we slept under a big tree at the village entrance. At that time, I was holding Fu Niu'er and thought that even a dilapidated thatched hut would be fine for us."
"Who would have thought that just a few years later, our family has a big courtyard in Suijintan, a small courtyard in the city, and now we've acquired another one here."
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