Shen Qinghe was lecturing, and Meng Zhao was listening with great interest. In ancient times, people valued literary achievements more and did not pay much attention to mathematics. For a long time, mathematics was not even included in the scope of the imperial examinations.
But people still have to live. Mathematics exists in every aspect of your life. If you don't know numbers, you can't tell time, you can't buy or sell goods, and you won't even know how big your field is or how much grain it can produce.
Being illiterate may have some impact on your life, but being unable to count basically means saying goodbye to normal social life.
Therefore, starting from the previous dynasty, mathematics was included in the imperial examination subjects, and there were a large number of excellent works in ancient times. As early as thousands of years ago, our ancestors had already come into contact with very deep mathematical knowledge.
Furthermore, this mathematical knowledge is not lofty and unattainable. On the contrary, our ancestors cleverly connected this profound mathematical knowledge with real life through simple examples, solving many problems in people's lives.
What Shen Qinghe is talking about now is the ancient method of measuring land. Once you learn this, you will know how big your land is and how much tax you need to pay each year, so you won't be cheated by some tax officials.
Ancient books are inherently obscure and difficult to understand, especially mathematics, which is a subject that requires a lot of talent. Although Meng Zhao felt that Shen Qinghe had tried his best to explain in simple language, the people below still didn't quite understand.
Shen Qinghe probably realized this too, so after explaining the first two math problems, he switched subjects and taught everyone to read.
Since these are all commonly used characters, they are easier to teach. After today's lessons ended, Shen Qinghe assigned homework.
"Before the next class, I hope everyone can write down all the words taught in this class from memory."
Shen Qingze and Shen Qingyu had some skill and were not afraid, but the other three were quite nervous.
Shen Yun gently tugged at Shen Qingyu's sleeve and asked in a low voice, "How could I have forgotten so quickly what the difference was between 'water' and 'fire'?"
Shen Qingyu took a tree branch and squatted down with Shen Yun, head to head, to demonstrate how to write.
At the same time, Aunt Feng'e quickly started cooking extra meals for Shen Qingze.
Seeing that both children were busy, with only Shen Qinghe tidying up his books, Madam Gu went up to him and tugged at his sleeve, asking, "Master Shen, how do you write the character for 'fire'? I've forgotten."
Shen Qinghe rubbed his forehead, chuckled twice, and said, "Mom, after class, just call me Qinghe."
Gu then realized she had been too nervous. "Oh, Qinghe, how do you write the character 'fire'? Tell me again."
Shen Qinghe picked up a pen and demonstrated to Gu Shi how to write.
Seeing that everyone was busy, Meng Zhao went back to her room alone and wrote something down from memory. She actually understood that the Gu family and the others remembered the prices of the ingredients in the shop quite well, but they struggled when it came to multiplication and division.
For example, they remember that a pound of braised beef costs eighty coins, but they can't calculate the price when a customer orders three ounces. They also tend to get nervous when calculating, which ultimately comes down to a lack of practice.
The things that spread the widest and are most memorable are naturally the catchy rhymes and witty sayings that have been said many times.
Then we have to mention the multiplication table, which can be memorized by everyone from eighty-year-old seniors to toddlers.
After writing it down, Meng Zhaomo didn't rush to take it out. Instead, she put it away first. This was definitely not something she could have written with her level of education. To avoid arousing suspicion, she decided to take it out at a suitable opportunity.
When Meng Zhao went out, the group had already finished their lessons. "Auntie, Xiao Yun, would you like to stay here tonight? There are bedding available in the house."
Aunt Feng'e replied, "No need, Zhao Zhao. It's not dark yet, let's go home. It's not far anyway, Xiao Yun and I can walk and chat, we'll be there soon."
Meng Zhao nodded slightly, "Okay, then you can bring some frequently used items with you next time you stay here, so it will be convenient."
The two nodded and returned to Shenjia Village together as the sun set.
As Meng Zhao had predicted, when the three-day opening event for Meng Ji Braised Pork ended, the price per unit was indeed reduced significantly. Nearly half of the customers who bought more than 50 coins each purchased the product, with most buying between 20 and 30 coins.
However, Meng Zhao was not in a hurry. Although the unit price had been reduced, the profit had increased significantly after the discount ended. The flow of people had not decreased much, and there were still queues at the door from time to time. The braised meat prepared every day was basically sold out.
She also adjusts her preparations accordingly, seeing which items sell well and preparing more for the next day; if an item is the last to sell out for two consecutive days, she prepares less for the rest of the time.
The boxed lunch stalls at the dock have resumed operation. The four of them, along with three helpers, are managing to keep the business running smoothly. Meng Zhao is now earning at least 2-3 taels of silver a day, and her purse is finally starting to bulge.
“Zhaozhao”.
Hearing someone call her, Meng Zhao looked up and saw it was Li Xing'er from the starch workshop. She smiled and replied:
"Xing'er, what brings you here today? Is something the matter?" Usually, when they come to the county to sell starch, they would come to her for help if they encountered any problems.
Li Xing'er shook her head somewhat embarrassedly, "It's nothing else, I just signed a contract today and want to buy some braised meat to take home for Dali to eat."
"Wow, that's great news! You really should treat yourself. What do you want to eat? I'll get it for you."
Seeing Meng Zhao say this, Li Xing'er was also very happy. Although they were from the same village and she was older than Meng Zhao, Meng Zhao was still the owner of a starch workshop. She had been a little nervous talking to her before.
After getting to know her, I realized how kind she was, and I gradually started to dare to call her by her name directly.
Meng Zhao carefully packed the braised meat that Li Xing'er had ordered, then turned to Shen Qingze beside him and asked, "A whole pig's trotter, a large intestine, and two rabbit legs, Qingze, how much is all of this?"
Upon hearing his sister-in-law's question, Shen Qingze, who was standing by the counter, immediately began to calculate, muttering to himself. After a short while, he gave the answer: "It's forty-two coins in total."
She was still a little unsure of herself after saying that, and looked up at Meng Zhao's expression.
Meng Zhao smiled and said, "That's right, it's forty-two coins." Shen Qingze then smiled happily.
Li Xing'er took out a copper coin and handed it to Shen Qingze. Watching him count the money, she thought he was very well-behaved. He was about the same age as her Dali, but he seemed much smarter.
When Li Xing'er brought the braised meat home, she kept thinking about the difference between her Dali and Shen Qingze. Both of them grew up in the village, and in terms of conditions, Shen's family was not much better off than hers. What really made the two different was that Shen Qingze had an older brother who could teach him to read.
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