Chapter 277 I Should Be Thanking You
He tilted the bottom of the bucket, scooped up the last half spoonful of milk tea and poured it into the bamboo tube. The fourth cup of milk tea was just finished, and Sang Xingjia was immediately delighted.
"Okay, that's exactly four cups. One cup is just right for each person in Master Chai's family."
He closed the lid of the last cup of milk tea and placed it steadily on a stone beside him before preparing to wash the utensils.
"Dad, I'll go back and deliver something later. You wait for me here."
As Sang Xingjia washed, he reminded her, "I'll find a reason to come out again when I get back. Let's go there while the kids get out of school."
Seeing him so happy, Sang Yongjing felt a little sorry.
He moved his mouth slightly, wanting to tell him the whole truth, telling him that Sang Yu had already known about this, but the words turned around on his lips and in the end only a long sigh could be found.
"well--"
Sang Xingjia thought his father thought that stealing and lying were not gentlemanly behavior, so he hurried to explain.
"Dad, don't sigh. I promise it'll be just this once. If my little sister brings this up again, I'll definitely decline it and promise not to do it again."
After washing the wooden barrels and other containers, Sang Xingjia carried the things home.
Afraid that he wouldn't be able to answer Sang Yu's detailed questions, he just said, "Dad and I are going to chop wood," and ran away without waiting for her to say anything.
The father and son crossed the river holding milk tea and sat on the stone where Sang Xingjia often stayed for a long time. They estimated that the children should have returned home from school, so they rushed to Chai's house.
Sang Yongjing had been to the Chai family once before when he sent his children to school, and he recognized the door of the Chai family.
When the two arrived at the door of the Chai family, the door was ajar and not completely closed. They thought the children had already left.
"Master Chai, is Master Chai at home?"
Sang Yongjing knocked on the door and shouted. Soon, there were brisk footsteps approaching. The half-closed door was opened and a little head popped out.
"You? You are Uncle Sang, please come in." Que'er felt that the man looked familiar. After thinking carefully, she finally matched the name with the face.
Sang Yongjing had a better memory than her. He could still call out her name after only meeting her once, but he didn't go in directly. Instead, he asked, "Your name is Que'er, right? Is your father home?"
Except for him, all the other people in Master Chai's house are women. If he is not at home, it is not convenient to go in.
"I'm here, busy planting bamboo. Please come in first." Que'er opened the door and welcomed him in.
Sang Yongjing had a plan in mind, so he stepped into the room. Sang Xingjia, who was two steps behind, quickly followed.
superior.
He had just been standing in the shadows beneath the eaves, and Que'er hadn't quite seen his face. But now, after taking a few steps forward, his face and the milk tea in his hand were exposed, and she recognized him instantly.
"It's you!"
Sang Yongjing, who had already walked a few steps forward, turned back when he heard the voice and looked at Sang Xingjia with some surprise. Jiaer knew Master Chai's daughter?
"It's me. I didn't know your identity before. I'm sorry for any offense. I hope you can forgive me." Sang Xingjia had recognized her a long time ago, but he didn't expect that she was Master Chai's daughter.
"There's no offense at all. I should be the one thanking you." Que'er replied.
Her words were by no means perfunctory; she was truly grateful to the Sang family.
Whether it was the milk tea sent by Sang Xingjia or the girls from their family coming to study, it was a great help to her.
Originally, Chai Yuanwei did not allow her and her sister to go to school. Although they could read, they really could not understand the classics without anyone to teach them.
Books at that time did not have punctuation marks like those in later generations.
Those who were more particular would leave blank spaces between sentences when copying ancient books according to their own understanding. But more often, they would connect the text into a whole, with no broken sentences visible on the entire page.
How to understand the meaning of a sentence and which allusions to use all depends on personal understanding. Without a teacher's guidance, it is like reading a book written in a foreign language.
This is also why almost all students who can pass the imperial examination have a mentor. No matter how talented they are, it is difficult to become successful through self-study.
This is also one of the important reasons why Sang Yu insisted that Sang Xingjia become his disciple.
Another reason is that books were also a form of wealth at that time. Every wealthy family had a library, which stored classics from famous scholars all over the world, which were nowhere to be found by ordinary people.
The Chai family's study is filled with classics, but Que'er and Ling'er rarely go there to read, as they really can't understand what they are reading.
Fortunately, this predicament was slightly alleviated after Xiaozhao's arrival. Although Xiaozhao cannot speak, she is extremely smart.
He could master anything he learned quickly. He could memorize an entire book and understand its meaning after reading it two or three times. His talent was even more outstanding than the disciples Chai Yuanwei had accepted in the capital before.
Que'er often saw her father sitting alone in the study, sighing and lamenting why she was born a girl.
With the outstanding Xiaozhao as an example, Chai Yuanwei's prejudice that girls should not study has gradually disappeared, and recently he even let the two sisters study together with Xiaozhao.
Ling'er, who is a little younger, may not quite understand the significance of this matter, but Que'er is very clear in her mind that this matter is beneficial and harmless.
She is twelve years old now. In a year or two, her family will probably start arranging a marriage for her. There are only two options.
First, marry into a family similar to theirs, take care of the husband and children and live a stable life.
Second, marrying into an ordinary family in the lower village means working hard on the farm all your life.
The former seems to be a good choice, but the problem is that families similar to theirs value women's virtues and have a lot of rules and etiquette.
Marrying into a family may seem like a way to lead a relatively comfortable life, but what you pay with is your freedom and self.
What's more, their family doesn't have much money, so they probably can't afford much in the way of dowry. It's inevitable that they will be looked down upon by their in-laws, and thus be even more displeased with them.
But that was in the past. Now her father is willing to let her read the classics and explain their meaning to her.
She felt that if she could learn a bit of her father's real skills, regardless of how much she could achieve in the future, she would at least be able to find another way out for herself instead of numbly accepting being a pawn for others to choose.
Que'er led the way. Sang Yongjing lagged behind a few steps and came to Sang Xingjia's side. He asked in a low voice, "How did you get to know this young lady?"
Sang Xingjia briefly recounted the incident of sending milk tea to the other party last time, and Sang Yongjing suddenly understood.
"Oh, that's right. If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have remembered that you don't have a teacher. The few cups of milk tea I had earlier were accidentally given to Master Chai's family."
He really didn't connect the two things together, mainly because the time interval between them was quite far.
"Dad, let's talk about these things later. Have you thought about how to talk to Master Chai?"
Sang Xingjia was now nervous and scared, fearing that Master Chai would chase people away as soon as he heard what he said. He also wanted to ask Sang Yongjing for help and advice.
"Me? What am I talking about?" Sang Yongjing was completely bewildered. Wasn't he just a figurehead? Why did he have to speak up?
桑興嘉看了看他，張口欲言又止，最終化成一聲長嘆：“……唉，算了。”他從一開始就不該對自家爹抱有希望。
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