Fang Zhi's ears twitched, and a hint of doubt flashed in her eyes: Why was her brother laughing?
Did she just tell a joke?
Before she could ask, Qi Shen changed the subject, "Zhizhi, which subjects did you not understand today?"
Fang Zhi hesitated, "How can I explain this? I can't read Chinese, I'm barely passable in math, and English is like a foreign language to me!"
Will her brother think she's stupid for saying that?
Qi Shen raised an eyebrow, noticing the little guy's predicament.
"You can speak freely with your brother. He won't laugh at you. You can't hide anything from him."
Fang Zhi closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and mustered all his strength, saying, "I couldn't understand most of what the teacher said today."
She kept her eyes closed, but instead of being scolded, she received only the boy's gentle, soothing words of comfort: "Zhizhi's foundation is weak, so it's normal that she doesn't understand now."
Fang Zhi felt a warm current flow through her heart, and slowly opened her eyes to quietly look at the boy's smooth and delicate profile.
Her deskmate, Liu Siyi, praised her for being gentle.
But she thought that if Liu met her brother, she would understand that her brother was the gentlest and kindest person.
Back at the Qi family home, Wang Ma had already prepared dinner and was waiting for them. A sumptuous feast was laid out on the North American black walnut dining table, featuring four dishes and a soup.
After finishing their meal, Qi Shen took Fang Zhi straight back to his room and tutored the girl with her homework.
Chinese is the mother tongue, the foundational language.
Qi Shen's systematic teaching method taught Fang Zhi to spell, speak, read, and write.
Fang Zhi learned quickly in this area, mastering the use of pinyin in just half an hour. However, when it came to tutoring math and English, she began to struggle.
The little girl was deeply hurt and, revealing her childishness, asked, "Brother, why do we have to learn English?"
"Because English is an international language."
Fang Zhi still couldn't understand, "Why can't our language be used as an international language?"
Qi Shen: "......"
Meeting Fang Zhi's eager eyes, he explained calmly, "Britain used to be very powerful; they were among the first to..."
Fang Zhi seemed to understand but not quite, "So, when our country becomes powerful, will Chinese become the mainstream language?"
Qi Shen's eyes darkened slightly. "Hmm."
Of course, if you have enough strength, you can. This world has always been ruled by the strong.
Just like him and her now.
Fang Zhi glanced at the dreaded words in her English textbook and asked softly, "Brother, can I stop learning? I'll wait until our country becomes stronger."
Qi Shenjun's gentle smile paused for a moment. "No."
Fang Zhi sniffed. "Oh."
Seeing the girl's dejected expression, he knew that these things couldn't be accomplished overnight. "Zhizhi, let's stop learning English here for today. Next, we'll learn math."
Fang Zhi felt a great weight lifted off his shoulders and nodded rapidly, "Yes, yes, brother."
......
Qi Shen was intelligent and quick-witted from a young age, and to be honest, he didn't understand why anyone could not learn such a simple question.
Just like how Fang Zhi is being tutored now.
He really wanted to pry open her head and see what she was thinking.
He also began to understand how his classmates described the scene of being watched by their parents while doing homework: when there is no homework, the whole family is happy and harmonious, with mother and child being kind and filial; when homework is done, chaos ensues.
Faced with a variety of elementary mistakes, the boy almost lost his composure and gentle demeanor.
Fang Zhi pointed at Xiao Ming, who was going to the stationery store to buy pencils, and said innocently, "Brother, Xiao Ming doesn't have enough money. Can't he bargain with the shopkeeper?"
She went to the vegetable market with her mother to sell vegetables. Customers would always bargain with her mother, and the price would be cheaper after the bargaining.
Qi Shen forced a smile and said patiently, "Zhizhi, this is a test, you can't bargain."
"But Xiaoming really seems to want this pencil case, and I really want him to buy it for me."
The girl spoke softly, her delicate brows furrowing in disappointment because the person on the assignment couldn't buy their favorite stationery.
Even the most cold-blooded person would waver when faced with her like this, and Qi Shen's heart softened suddenly.
It's like someone has chiseled a hole in my heart with a soft nail, and a gentle breeze keeps blowing into it.
The words came out without thinking for the first time: "Zhizhi, do this problem according to your own idea."
After he finished speaking, he froze, cursing inwardly: "Damn, he must be crazy."
Xiaoming wanted to buy a pencil case that cost 25 yuan, but he only had 20 yuan. He bargained with the shopkeeper and got a 5 yuan discount, and then Xiaoming bought it.
The girl's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"
Qi Shen gave a blank "hmm" with his clean and handsome face, then patted his forehead to remind her, "Zhizhi, this is a one-time thing, don't let it happen again."
"Mmm!" Fang Zhi happily picked up the pen and carefully filled in the answer with her little hand.
Qi Shen looked at her quietly, his eyes dark and unfathomable.
The next day, when Teacher Zhang collected the homework, he was stunned when he saw the girl's answer to this question in her notebook.
Teacher Zhang initially doubted his own eyes, and then began to doubt the meaning of life.
no?
Didn't Qi say he would help his younger sister with her homework?
Did he actually provide tutoring?
When she went to class to teach, she made a point of looking at Fang Zhi, who was sitting upright in the fourth row.
His expression was indescribable.
It took Qi Shen from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. to finish all three assignments. He glanced at the time and said, "Zhizhi, it's getting late. You should go back and rest."
Fang Zhi was so sleepy that he could barely keep his eyes open. He rubbed his aching wrists and mumbled, "Okay, goodnight, brother."
Qi Shen said softly, "Good night."
I was so sleepy that I realized I hadn't been able to stand up properly and had bumped into a chair leg.
"Hiss." The pain instantly snapped her back to reality, and her small body involuntarily fell backward.
Qi Shen quickly pulled her up, and the slender, frail girl fell into his arms. She was as light as a feather, as if she could be blown away by the wind at any moment.
My arm felt faintly hot, as if it were being burned.
Qi Shen realized what was happening and quickly let go, subtly helping her to her feet. "Zhizhi, be more careful next time."
Fang Zhi nodded, still feeling lingering fear.
Thank goodness, if her brother hadn't pulled her back in time, she probably would have landed face-first on the ground.
Qi Shen gazed at the girl's face. "Does your leg hurt?"
This level of pain is common in Qingcheng Village. Her mother's beatings hurt much more than this, but she could actually endure it.
She didn't want her brother to worry, but he wouldn't let her lie, so she honestly said, "It hurts."
"You'll only learn from your mistakes if you feel pain," Qi Shen said calmly, then sighed softly. "I'll carry you back to the bedroom to rest."
The boy looked slender, but he was actually very strong.
He easily picked Fang Zhi up and walked steadily forward.
Fang Zhi rested his head on Qi Shen's chest, his nose filled with Qi Shen's fragrance, which was extremely light and particularly pleasant.
She blinked. If someone was willing to listen to her, she could boldly say that it hurt.
This is what it feels like to be cared for and loved.
What should I do? She seems to have changed; she can't help but cry over even the slightest pain and longs for her brother's care.
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