Hearing the sound, Liang Shuyan came over and found two people standing at the door. One was Li Zheng, and the other was someone she didn't recognize. He was thin, with bright, dark eyes, and was wearing a clean gray-white robe.
"Li Zheng, what is this?" Liang Shuyan didn't understand what this meant.
"Oh, may we go inside to talk? This is a teacher I hired from elsewhere. I brought him here today to discuss matters concerning the primary school!"
Upon entering the house, Liang Shuyan led Mr. Li Zheng to sit on a stool to the side.
Li Zheng glanced around and found that Liang Shuyan's house was clean and tidy. Even the quilts and pillows on the kang were folded neatly, and there were several delicate porcelain cups on the table!
"Come, Mr. Lizheng, have some tea with this gentleman!"
Liang Shuyan filled a teacup with tea and sat on a stool.
"Oh, Auntie Shan, what kind of tea is this? It's so refreshing!"
Liang Shuyan casually pulled over a cardboard box, opened it, and said, "Lizheng, take a look. These were picked from the mountain, and I dried and processed them!"
"Mmm, delicious! Aunt Dashan, I came here today to talk to you about the primary school. All the children in our village have to go to school in a town dozens of miles away, which is inconvenient when it rains or the wind blows. So, I was thinking of renovating the two houses next to the ancestral hall so that the children can go to school in the village. What do you think?"
Liang Shuyan had already made up her mind about this idea, but she didn't have the funds yet. She wanted to save some money first and then build a school. She didn't expect Li Zheng to bring it up first!
Liang Shuyan coughed softly: "Alright, but the conditions are limited for the time being, so I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you, sir!"
The teacher chuckled and said, "Not at all! Since I was invited here by the authorities to teach, there's no need to talk about feeling wronged or not. As long as the children can learn diligently!"
Li Zheng glanced at Liang Shuyan's courtyard and said, "In our village, most families have many members but little space, but your family has a lot of space, so I'm going to swallow my pride and ask you for a favor!"
Liang Shuyan smiled and said, "What is it? Just say it, we're all from the same village, there's no need for me to ask for anything!"
"Could the gentleman stay at your house? Of course, the village will cover his food and lodging expenses!"
The gentleman was surprised by Lizheng's generosity and quickly said, "Lizheng, I absolutely cannot let you pay for this."
Li Zheng stepped forward and pressed down on the teacher's hand: "Alright, Mr. Su, it is a great honor for us to invite you to teach our children in Daling. How can we accept your money! From now on, we will need Da Shan's mother to take care of Mr. Su! I will go find some people to speed up the repair of the primary school!"
"Alright! Lizheng, please take care! I'll settle Mr. Su in right away!"
Li Zheng took out some loose silver from his pocket and threw it on the table!
How could Liang Shuyan accept this money? If it weren't for Li Zheng's help, how could Bei Bei have secured the exclusive 30 mu of land? Besides this land, the wasteland on the back mountain was also allocated to her family. How could she possibly accept Li Zheng's money?
"Lizheng, please take this money. Mr. Su can't eat much by himself, and our family isn't short of food."
Liang Shuyan forcefully stuffed the silver into Li Zheng's hand. Li Zheng shook his head and left!
From the courtyard came the daughter-in-law's voice: "Mother, dinner's ready!"
Liang Shuyan led Mr. Su towards the kitchen!
Da Shan and Er Niu exchanged a glance: "Mother, who is this?"
Liang Shuyan clapped her hands: "Alright, everyone stand up. I'm going to give you a formal introduction of someone. This is the teacher that Mr. Su has hired for our village. In other words, the children of Daling Village can go to school right at their doorstep from now on."
One day, Da Shan excitedly exclaimed, "Oh, is what Mother said true? If it is, Da Shan has decided to stay in our village."
Mr. Su glanced at Jin Dashan and found him to be quite handsome with a particularly gentle personality. Mr. Su took a liking to Jin Dashan at first sight.
"So you're Dashan? I've heard the magistrate mention you, saying your talent is extraordinary!"
Da Shan smiled awkwardly: "No, Your Excellency is too kind!"
Niu Niu and Bei Bei approached Mr. Su, looked him over, and finally said, "Sir, could we also learn to read with you?"
Sanwang asked earnestly, "Sir, can I learn arithmetic from you?"
Zhao Heng said indifferently, "You really have never seen the world. This is what a teacher looks like? He probably doesn't even know the most proper Four Books and Five Classics. How can he teach you? Look at you all, you country bumpkins. Have you never seen a schoolteacher before or what?"
Liang Shuyan raised her voice: "Zhao Heng, what are you saying? Apologize to Mr. Su right now!"
Zhao Heng snorted coldly and retorted, "Would I, the son of a dignified county magistrate, apologize to such a contemptible person?"
From beginning to end, Zhao Heng never put aside his status. Liang Shuyan knew that if Zhao Heng wanted to make any progress, he had to put aside his status so that he could look at people with normal eyes!
"Alright! Dashan, Erniu, lock Zhao Heng up in the woodshed. Don't give him any food or water for three days!"
Jin Dashan looked at his mother, his lips trembled, and he opened his mouth to say something, but he couldn't utter a word. Liang Shuyan's sinister gaze was like a sharp dagger, and Jin Dashan was so frightened that he didn't dare to raise his head. He had no choice but to drag Zhao Heng away.
Zhao Heng shouted, "Why? What did I do wrong? Why are you locking me up in the woodshed? You wait, I'll tell my father and make sure everyone in this wretched place suffers!"
Mr. Su's face immediately darkened. He looked at Liang Shuyan and stammered, "Is this really alright? If the magistrate blames us, won't it implicate the entire village of Daling?"
Liang Shuyan shook her head: "Mr. Su, don't worry. The magistrate has already taken care of this matter. He asked me to discipline Zhao Heng properly, so you can rest assured and stay here in peace. I'll have my son tidy up your room right away!"
"Sanwang, quickly make room for the master and clean it up. There are some new bedding that Mother bought in the room. Take out a set for the master to make up!"
Sanwang nodded: "Yes, I understand, Mother!"
Zhang brought over a plate of steaming hot steamed buns and placed it on the dining table. In a delicate little bowl, there was a bowl of sticky porridge, and on a small white porcelain dish with purple flowers, there was a plate of radish strips. This was the Jin family's most common breakfast.
Mr. Su was stunned. The kitchen was so well organized, the apricot wood cutting board was shiny, and the dining table was spotless. This was nothing like a farmhouse.
"Sir, please have a meal. It's just a simple home-cooked meal in a farmhouse. I hope you won't mind!"
Erniu rushed out of the woodshed in a panic: "Mother, something terrible has happened! Zhao Heng is missing!"
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