Chapter 1357 Comparison
Mr. Zhuang was holding the teacup and thinking. He tilted his head to look out the window, because the sun was shining brightly today. Although it was cold, this was the best time for the sun to shine.
Therefore, the windows were opened wide to let in air and sunlight, which shone perfectly on the table in front of Mr. Zhuang.
His hand holding the teacup was right in the beam of light, as if he was holding the sunshine.
Amidst the ethereal aroma of tea, Mr. Zhuang's voice also shone with a hint of ethereal energy. He said, "As you know, I'm currently accompanying Bai Shan and Bai Cheng. One of them is currently studying at the Imperial College, and the other is at the Imperial Academy. Given their family backgrounds, it's inevitable that they'll enter the government."
He said, "You don't have to worry about no one taking care of Ji An after he enters the officialdom. With the affection between our families, they will definitely take care of Ji An."
Mr. Zhuang raised his eyes to look at the thoughtful Zhuang Dalang and said softly, "Dalang, I'm not obsessed with being an official, nor do I have any great ambitions for my children to accomplish. Like you, I just want them to have a better life in the future."
"You are indeed living a stable life in the Zhang family now, but after all, you are dependent on others. This is not a long-term solution."
Seeing him frown, Mr. Zhuang stopped talking and said, "I still mean the same thing. If you don't want Ji An to go to the capital with me, why not send him to the county school for a few more years and take the mathematics exam? If you and your son really don't want to work in the county government, you can go to the Zhang family."
He said, "You are in your prime, and you can do this for another twenty or thirty years without any problem. Why are you in such a hurry to bring Ji An along to train with you?"
Mr. Zhuang said this, and Zhuang Dalang finally calmed down and thought. He hesitated and said, "But Ji An can't pass the exam to enter the county school..."
"I'll find a way to get him into the school as an auditor. Don't worry, just study as you need to." Mr. Zhuang said, "He might not fare well in other subjects, but academically he's not bad. As long as he can keep up with this course, the teachers and students here won't look down on him."
Zhuang Dalang hesitated for a moment before nodding.
Mr. Zhuang breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that convincing his son would be more difficult than teaching a few children to read for a month.
But this is also progress.
Mr. Zhuang said he would send Zhuang Ji'an to the county school and he was able to do so.
After he returned to his hometown, he ran his business for many years. At the beginning, some people did talk about him in private, but later no one mentioned it anymore.
He had friends in Luojiang County and even more friends in Mianzhou, otherwise he would not have been able to recommend Bai Dalang to go to the provincial school in Mianzhou.
After Mr. Zhuang came back, he found someone who could allow Zhuang Ji'an to attend the county school as an auditor for a sum of money.
However, he still avoided Zhuang Dalang and called Zhuang Ji'an into the study to instruct him, "Although you can audit classes at the county school, it's best to pass the exam on your own. Your abilities are limited right now, but if you study for another year, next year, no, the year after next, you'll be able to get in."
Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "You can try to take the entrance exam next spring."
He handed the five books he had sorted out to Zhuang Ji'an and said with a smile, "I've annotated them. You can take a look. If you don't understand something, go ask your teacher. When it comes to learning, don't be afraid to ask questions, okay?"
Zhuang Ji'an responded respectfully.
Only then did Mr. Zhuang let him leave.
Although Zhuang Dasao opposed her son leaving with his father-in-law, she did not object to his entering the county school. Instead, she was very happy and quietly asked Zhuang Dalang, "Father can let Ji An enter the county school, but what about Ji Ran?"
Zhuang Dalang: ...
He couldn't help but roll his eyes at his wife. "What are you thinking? How old is Ji Ran? Besides, the county school isn't run by our family. I don't know how much favors and money my father spent to get Ji An in. Forget it. If you want Ji Ran to be admitted, just let him study hard and take the exam himself."
He felt that it didn't matter if he failed the exam. As long as he could read and write and knew arithmetic and accounting, it would be easy to find a job.
Mrs. Zhuang couldn't help but ask, "Does it cost a lot of money?"
Zhuang Dalang said "hmm".
Mrs. Zhuang felt distressed, and then she leaned on Zhuang Dalang and asked, "How much did it cost? How much money does father-in-law have left?"
Zhuang Dalang glanced at her and said, "Didn't Dad give you fifty taels of silver when he came back? I've asked around at the brokerage these past two days, and no one around the county is selling land. I'll go look somewhere else, even if it's a little further away. I'll buy some land and find someone to farm it. Please take care of the house. How are the spring clothes I asked you to make for your father doing?"
That changed the subject.
When Mr. Zhuang came to Beijing, he sold all the land in his family. In recent years, the money he earned was used to buy land in addition to the children's education.
Even if Zhuang Dalang didn't farm, he could give the crops to the tenant farmers. Although the crops were not much, they were still a family fortune.
Although Mrs. Zhuang was dissatisfied, she didn't say anything else. She knew that although they accepted gifts from outside, her husband didn't like her asking her father-in-law for money.
The Zhuang family did not stay up all night to celebrate the New Year, but the Zhou family all stayed up all night in the main hall.
There are too many people at home, especially the children, and they are so noisy that I can hardly hear what the adults are saying to each other.
Zhou Dalang got angry and waved his hand to tell the children to go back to their rooms to play.
It was impossible to go back to their own room, so the children grabbed their candies and ran outside, running to the yard to play together. Manbao was not very old, so he followed them.
The main hall, which was once as bustling as a vegetable market, was suddenly filled with only adults, and not a single child was to be seen.
San Ya also helped to carry the youngest baby, Ba Tou, over to play.
Manbao's room was the most spacious, so everyone went into her room together. Santou took a brazier from the kitchen and warmed himself by the fire directly in the room.
Sitou dragged out a small bag of yam beans from somewhere, picked up a dozen and roasted them in the brazier.
He assured Manbao, "Roasted yam beans are especially delicious."
Apparently they grilled secretly quite a bit.
Although he had just eaten, Manbao still swallowed his saliva.
The five younger ones took toys from their aunt's shelf and played with them in their own group, while the older ones like Manbao sat by the brazier, roasting yam beans and talking.
Zhou Liwei asked, "Kaichun Lixue wants to go to the capital with us?"
Manbao nodded and said, "I want Lixue to go to the capital to study and take the Imperial College entrance examination in the future."
There are so many children in their family, and the only boy who seems to be doing well in studying is Zhou Lixue.
San Ya, who was standing by, looked up at her brother and said complacently, "Second brother, I want to go to the capital with my aunt, too."
Zhou Liwei was stunned. He really didn't know about this.
Manbao also patted his head and said, "I forgot to tell my second brother and his wife. I'll tell them tomorrow. Sanya, remember to remind me."
Sitou, who was waiting for the yam beans to ripen, was startled. He looked at his third brother, then at his third sister, and asked in disbelief, "So I'm the only one left at home?"
"Aren't the Five Heads human?"
Sitou said unhappily, "They are so young, it's impossible for them to go to school with me."
The fourth child, Zhou Ligu, is only a few months younger than the third child, Zhou Liru. They grew up together and were classmates.
Manbao looked at Zhou Ligu, then at Zhou Lixue, and said, "How about Sitou go too?"
I recommend a book, "Quickly Wearing the Daily Life of Struggling for Survival in the End of the World" by Zi Su Xiao Xiao. I think it's pretty good. Friends who are short of books can go and have a look. It's already very fat.
PS: The next chapter will be around 8pm
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
