Chapter 60 Everyone is a businessman
Only Ji Yanli, who was present at the scene, could expose the lies she told, but she was not afraid.
She just bullied him because he was a gentleman.
Su Shengsheng pretended not to notice all this, looked away, and rejoined the discussion.
The men of the Su family had thought that if Ji Yanli passed the imperial examination and the two families got married, they would still have room to maneuver.
But I also know that if even my grandfather can't do anything about it, why should I sacrifice the Ji family?
Today, the Su family is half literary and half business, and has completely given up the imperial examination and official career.
My grandfather was good at teaching and educating people, but when it came to the national policies and theories he taught, I was afraid that even if he dared to speak, no one would dare to listen.
There is no freedom of speech here. Not to mention ordinary people, even the powerful and influential people dare not discuss state affairs openly.
Therefore, Su Shengsheng did not let her grandfather take up a position, and even if he founded an academy in the future, he would only dare to mention the issue of women's status with caution.
My great uncle is good at vocal music. His teaching not only meets the requirements of the upper-level examination syllabus, but also attracts aspiring people from the lower level, truly achieving integration between the upper and lower levels.
There is still a vacancy for the vocal music position, and the two of them are just right.
The Su family's Mid-Autumn Festival dinner ended in joy, and no one mentioned the affairs of the fourth room.
They understand that different paths will ultimately lead to different futures.
…
Outside Lingshan Fanyin Jingyuan
"Miss, why are there so few people coming up the mountain to eat vegetarian food this year? In previous years, even ten carts of rice wouldn't be enough."
"Where's the General?"
"I heard he's already returned to Scarlet Flame City..."
“…”
The next day, in the study, the scholars looked at Su Shengsheng on the stage.
Although they had already heard of her legend among students, they were still overwhelmed by the homework she left for the first class of the semester.
Su Shengsheng only had one math class per week. Since there were no weeks in this dynasty, she made her own schedule.
No one expected that in the first class of the library, she only left one task, which was to count the number of grains of rice in a liter.
Boring? Who could have imagined?
In short, the students who were full of expectations at the beginning were greatly disappointed and thought that Su Shengsheng was just a name for nothing.
Among this class of students, there are also three students who switched from memory classes to elective mathematics.
They did not think that Su Shengsheng was being difficult, but counted the rice very seriously.
However, in the end, he was so tired from counting that he became dizzy and lost his composure.
Just when they were worrying about how to hand in their homework, Su Shengsheng arrived.
"How is it? Have you counted them all?" Su Shengsheng glanced at the dejected students.
"Mr. Su, there is no correct answer. Even if we counted wrong, you wouldn't know!"
There are students who are fearless and stand up to speak.
Su Shengsheng looked around and found that the other students all showed expressions of approval.
"So no one's finished counting?" she asked.
The classroom suddenly fell into silence.
Just when the students were speechless, Ji Yanli stood up and said, "Mr. Su, a liter of rice here is about 20,000 grains."
He didn't say all the numbers, obviously knowing that Su Shengsheng only needed a rough estimate.
Su Shengsheng looked at him, nodded, then turned around and drew a 64-square chessboard on the blackboard.
The students looked at her in confusion, not understanding why a chessboard was used in math class.
"Today I will explain compound interest to you." Su Shengsheng wrote one in the first square, two in the second square, and four in the third square.
"The amount of rice in each subsequent square must be double the previous number. Please calculate how many grains of rice are needed to fill the last square?"
The students suppressed their impatience and began to solve the problem.
However, the more they calculated, the more frightened they became.
In less than half an incense stick of time, someone stopped writing and started scratching his head.
After a moment, almost all the students stopped writing, and even those who reluctantly held the pen had a look of astonishment on their faces.
Because even if they only calculated in liters, they had already calculated a number that could not be calculated using an abacus, and the same was true even if they changed the unit to dan.
How could they not be shocked by this number that is so huge that it is beyond their control?
Since Su Shengsheng dared to give them such a question in the first class, she definitely couldn't have no answer.
But they felt that there were only a handful of people in the entire Nanling Kingdom who could actually calculate the answer.
Therefore, they couldn't help but feel that Su Shengsheng was making things difficult for them.
"Mr. Su, even if we have calculated everything, the answer will not be of much use, right?" said a student.
The other students couldn't help but show the same expression.
How could Su Shengsheng not see the rejection in their hearts?
She turned and wrote the formula on the blackboard: "The initial value is R, the period is N, and the annual interest rate is K... Substitute the period N = 64. If the unit is tons, the final result is 400 billion tons."
She calculated as she wrote, and had already given them the tonnage conversion table.
Following her calculations, the students substituted the values of five, six, and ten grids into the formula and were stunned to find that the results were exactly the same.
They thought they would never know the answer in their lifetime, but Su Shengsheng taught them in less than half a cup of tea...
At this moment, all the new students no longer dared to look down on this female teacher who was recommended by many scholars.
Respect appeared on their faces, and they stood up straight, listening respectfully to her subsequent teachings.
Some students who lacked reverence murmured, "These teachers haven't taught us yet, so it's normal that we can't answer them!"
Although the other students did not agree, they couldn't help but secretly speculate in their hearts that Su Shengsheng's move was intended to suppress them.
Upon hearing this, Su Shengsheng put down the charcoal pencil in her hand.
"Have you ever heard the saying, 'A journey of a hundred miles begins with a single step?'" She slowly glanced around, noting the silence before continuing, "You see the end, but when you're halfway there, you realize you're still a long way off, and you're tempted to give up. But whether you're halfway there or about to reach the end, you're still halfway there. That's because you have no way of knowing where the end is in advance."
The students gradually raised their heads, as if thinking about something.
They were indeed intimidated by the tedious calculations before them, and even gave up because they knew the results would be wrong.
"Life is a long journey. If you give up easily when faced with setbacks, why endure the hardship of learning? It's better to live each day with laughter." Su Shengsheng's words were sharp, yet full of meaning. "This exponential formula not only tests your arithmetic skills, but also conveys a truth: every walk of life has its challenges. If you want to get involved in it, you must take a long-term view and not worry about short-term gains and losses."
She paused for a moment, then continued, "It takes a hundred days to learn a skill, a year of reflection, and three years of practice before one can achieve the state of unity of knowledge and action."
The students looked ashamed, but doubts still lingered in their hearts: "But even if students can calculate this number, what good will it do?"
Su Shengsheng didn't want to push her too much, but she still spoke earnestly: "If you can't even accurately calculate the rice you need for your own meals, how can you talk about working for the welfare of the people?"
When these words were spoken, the students' cheeks turned red and they were filled with shame.
"He who can calculate the expenses of a family can be the head of a family. He who can calculate the needs of a county can be the county magistrate. He who can calculate the expenses of a state can be the governor of a state."
Her words shook the hearts of every student like thunder, causing them to bow their heads in deep thought.
"No matter how high you want to reach in the future, the first thing you must do is to settle this account." After Su Shengsheng finished speaking, he turned around and wrote the homework requirements for this lesson on the blackboard.
At the same time, he said, "I am not forbidding you from seeking help from others. You can make full use of all the resources around you, including classmates, relatives and friends. Whether to work together or go it alone is entirely up to you."
Upon hearing this, a wealthy young man couldn't help but laugh: "I should go ask my father, because this is compound interest."
Su Shengsheng shook her head helplessly and did not respond to him.
She tapped the word "compound interest" on the board. "In reality, each of us is a commodity. What we sell is time. Time is equal to everyone. Its value depends solely on your ability to leverage it."
She left a preview of the next class on the blackboard—the lever—and had the students copy down their homework: "Calculate within seven days how many years it will take for the natural barrier to produce the amount of rice needed for the sixty-fourth grid."
Such words were sharp and insightful, leaving a deep impression on the students present.
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