Chapter 9 Chapter 9
On the day the primary school opened, Qinglian brought over a dark-skinned girl, saying she was her older sister, Qingcao.
Qingcao was shy by nature, and her ten fingers were covered with calluses from working. She refused to touch the brand-new book, waving her hand and saying, "It will get dirty."
Luo Yan led the two sisters to sit down and gestured for them to look at Liu Changsheng, who was tossing books around: "That book has fallen on the ground twice already, who can be dirtier than him?"
With the contrast, Qingcao finally relaxed, carefully opened the title page, and whispered, "Three?"
"The Three Character Classic." Luo Yan's eyes lit up. "So you can read."
“My mother taught me a few when I was young.”
She had heard a little about the situation of Liu the carpenter's family and guessed that Aunt Cui had also studied before getting married, but after marriage she was busy every day and had no time to teach her daughters.
But for Luo Yan, it was an unexpected joy. As she ground the ink, she exclaimed, "Originally, only Gu Yu was willing to learn, but now Qing Cao has joined in. I am so happy!"
Jia Yufang put the two square tables together and set up a shelf to hold tea and pastries.
Luo Yan stood in the middle, with Qingcao and her sister on her left, Zhu Yun and Gu Yu on her right, and the Changsheng siblings, who had no interest in studying, and Gu Yang, who was out of reach, standing opposite.
She gestured for Zhu Yun to distribute the paper and pens, then took out her own textbook and announced loudly, "Today we will learn numbers first."
First, teach numbers, then roof tiles, cattle, and sheep, and then sky, clouds, thunder, and rain. After teaching the things in daily life, then teach the words on land deeds and personal contracts.
This was my grandmother's suggestion.
She had been a slave in the Luo family for decades. Her poetry and prose were unrelated to the lives of the servants, but if she knew how to keep accounts and read contracts, she would be valued by the mistress who had the power to manage the household, and she would not be deceived.
Luo Yan wholeheartedly agreed, after all, she had only studied a few dozen classical Chinese texts and didn't know any more advanced ones.
...
Gu Yang was young, and after writing a few strokes, he started chewing on the pen. Liu Changsheng was also sweating profusely, but after being glared at by Luo Yan, he obediently copied the text.
The most outstanding one was Gu Yu, who used to practice with his older brother's old books, and his writing was steady and fluent.
Luo Yan then went to check on the absent-minded Zhu Yun and found that he had finished writing long ago. Although his handwriting was immature, his memory was quite good.
Qinglian and Changyi gradually leaned closer together, looking at each other with worried expressions. Fortunately, Qingcao was completely undisturbed; she wrote the words in very small letters so that she could write them several times.
Seeing that it was almost time, Luo Yan said, "Those who are tired can eat something now, and those who are not tired can bring a chair over and continue writing."
There were quite a few people, and not enough room to sit, but by leaving only Guyu grass and green grass, the shed suddenly felt spacious.
Zhu Yun also lifted her foot to leave, but Luo Yan grabbed her: "What are you doing?"
"......"
Being able to remember those words doesn't mean he'll like them; if he can slip away, he'll slip away.
"You're not allowed to leave." Luo Yan spread out the Three Character Classic and said, "I know you think it's too easy, why don't you learn this one instead?"
Zhu Yun glanced at Liu Changsheng, who was beaming with smiles, and said impatiently, "Why should I?"
She said matter-of-factly, "I would be restless if you went out to play, but I am a teacher, how can I leave before my students?"
“Okay.” Zhu Yun pulled up a chair and sat down, staring intently at Gu Yu, who was engrossed in her practice.
Cold sweat beaded on Gu Yu's forehead.
He turned to scare the grass, but Luo Yan grabbed his face and turned him back: "Big brother, I won't force you to learn, okay?"
The girl's palm was soft and warm, and Zhu Yun was instantly frozen in place. When he regained his senses, he subtly broke free, raised the Three Character Classic to block their view, and said in a deep voice, "Teach me."
"?"
Never mind, this isn't the first time she's witnessed someone going back on their word.
Luo Yan snatched the book back and read it to him slowly. After reading it twice, Zhu Yun had already memorized it.
Just as she was about to teach the next page, Qingcao stood up and said, "Sister Yan, I should go."
She still had farm work to do at home, so Luo Yan took out a cloth bag she had prepared in advance and saw her to the fork in the road: "These are my old things, you can take them back and play with them. Also, please thank Aunt Cui for making the pancakes for me."
Qingcao was only thirteen years old and very easy to coax. When she said it was an old item, she accepted it without hesitation.
Luo Yan was also afraid that she would work too hard, so she reminded her like a little adult: "You are not allowed to look at it after dark, so as not to damage your eyes."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Yun, who was following behind, pointed out, "Who is it that insists on reading storybooks in the middle of the night? Not even eight oxen could stop them."
"Keep your voice down." Luo Yan glanced quickly at the grass that had walked away, then turned around and kicked him. "You're so annoying. You have to protect my reputation in public."
Gu Yu also came out of the shed, blushing, and said, "I want to skip stones."
Zhu Yun seemed to have expected this, and took Luo Yan's hand, leading her towards the stream: "Alright, now we can finally rest."
"Did you tell Gu Yu to say that?"
"Ask him."
Gu Yu waved her hand in a panic: "It was my own idea to say that, really."
Luo Yan: "......"
Liu Changsheng had already gathered all the flat stones. When he saw them coming, he let out two monkey-like cries and boasted, "My stones can bounce two or three times in a row!"
Gu Yang couldn't throw it far, so he looked to his brother for help.
Gu Yu looked embarrassed and was about to say that she didn't know how when Luo Yan teased her, "Since you want to play, you must be very good at it."
"Watch me." Zhu Yun pulled her back to his side, flicked his right hand, and a pebble flew out with a "whoosh," bouncing seven times on the water's surface. He curled his lips into a smug smile, but his tone was regretful, "My touch wasn't good today."
Yi Luoyan thought that if he had a tail, it would be wagging high in the sky by now.
"Let me try."
She picked out the smoothest one from Liu Changsheng's "collection" and, following his example, managed to create four swirls as well.
Liu Changsheng: "......"
It must be because of the stone; he resolutely refused to lend it to Luo Yan again.
"You stingy girl." Luo Yan picked one up herself and turned to Zhu Yun, saying, "Teach me quickly."
Zhu Yun stepped forward, took her hand, pulled her back slightly, and then threw the pebble. The pebble bounced eleven times before sinking into the water.
Everyone was stunned, applauding and cheering, praising Luo Yan until she couldn't stop smiling.
Holding a handful of stones with nowhere to put them, Liu Changsheng nearly ground his teeth to powder. He secretly vowed to practice quietly and amaze the whole village.
*
With the official start of the plum rain season, activities like roasting meat and catching fish were no longer possible. After school each day, everyone stayed in the Jia family's shed.
A while ago, Liu Changsheng went to town with his father to deliver goods and brought Luo Yan a few popular novels. She was so engrossed in reading them that she stopped playing chess and just lounged in her rattan chair.
Zhu Yun had already been trained by her, and finding the victory too easy, she had Gu Yu take her place, and then took a mental cultivation manual and sat down next to Luo Yan.
He was still not good at writing, but he had memorized many words, and the dusty secret manual could finally be picked up and studied slowly. When he encountered something obscure or difficult to understand, he would nudge Luo Yan with his elbow.
Unexpectedly, Luo Yan was engrossed in her book and was disturbed twice, her lips pouting so much they could hang an oil bottle.
Zhu Yun sneered: "What earth-shattering story could possibly be worth your reaction?"
Her ears burned from his words. She placed half of the storybook on his lap and lowered her voice, saying, "It's about a scholar who took shelter from the rain in a dilapidated temple and met a rich young lady disguised as a fox spirit. The young lady was moved by the scholar and gave him money to help him take the imperial examination. The two eventually married. I haven't seen the rest of the story..."
Ordinary stories are not as dramatic as the love and hate in the martial arts world.
He flipped through it casually, not really understanding what was interesting about it, yet it captivated some people so much that they couldn't take their eyes off it for a moment.
Luo Yan noticed his disdain and retorted, "A gentle scholar paired with a spoiled heiress, how sweet! Besides, the scholar is really good; he remembers everything his wife says, and even defended her when she was accused of being a vixen."
Zhu Yun remained indifferent, his face clearly conveying the message, "What does this have to do with me?"
She reluctantly closed the storybook: "Alright, so you just want me to play with you, chess or werewolf?"
"Playing chess."
Gu Yu, who was dragged into the fray and then kicked out, was speechless.
Luo Yan glanced at the unfamiliar cultivation manual and casually asked, "Have you finished reading the previous ones? Was there anything you didn't understand?"
"No." Zhu Yun said smugly.
She immediately praised him, saying, "You're amazing! You're the smartest student I've ever had."
As they were talking, Liu Changyi heard a weak meow and quickly tugged at Luo Yan's sleeve: "Sister Yan."
Zhu Yun had exceptional hearing and recognized the noise coming from the corner of the courtyard gate. He told them, "There are two stray cats taking shelter from the rain under the eaves."
"Cat!" Luo Yan jumped up. "Take me to see it quickly."
"......"
She likes everything.
But the rain was quite heavy, so Zhu Yun didn't let her come with him. He went over alone with an umbrella and brought back two stray cats, one big and one small.
The big cat was shy and ran away as soon as it landed, while the little one stumbled and couldn't even get out of the long table.
Qingcao crushed some pastries to try and feed the cat, while Qinglian muttered, "It probably only eats mice."
Sure enough, the kitten sniffed the surface, then turned away without hesitation and lay down on the table, refusing to get up.
Zhu Yun had no interest in this, but Luo Yan was clearly mesmerized, plucking a blade of grass to tease it while calling out, "Mimi, Mimi."
He patiently examined it: "I estimate it's one or two months old."
"It's too small."
Gu Yu's family made a living by hunting, which was barely considered a match for others. He picked up the kitten and looked at it: "It's too young, it won't be easy to raise it."
Several girls burst into tears upon hearing this.
Fortunately, Luo Yan had outside help. She called Jia Yufang over and asked hopefully, "Grandmother, do you have any way to save it?"
Jia Yufang had no other choice, but not wanting the children to be sad, she agreed.
It was time for everyone to go home. Luo Yan stroked the kitten and said to her equally worried best friends, "I'll invite you all over to play after I've settled it in a couple of days."
"I'll feed it some meat broth first." Jia Yufang wiped the kitten with a dry cloth and thought carefully, "Since there's still a mother cat, I'll leave more meat outside. She'll nurse her kittens after she's full."
Luo Yan breathed a sigh of relief, moved closer to Zhu Yun, and said with a grin, "Ah Yun, Ah Yun, I found you around the same time today. You and Mimi are really destined for each other."
He was inexplicably angry when he heard this: "You pick up everything, you raise everything."
"?"
Jia Yufang, however, understood and, with a smile, instructed them to make a nest to avoid another argument.
Zhu Yun picked up a few pieces of dry wood, flattened them with a dagger, and pieced them together to form a simple bed frame. She then added a quilt made of old cloth, which looked quite presentable.
Suddenly, an idea struck her, and she pointed at Zhu Yun and said, "Big Brother."
Then, pointing to himself, he said, "Second Sister."
Finally, pointing to the kitten, he said, "Then let's name it Third Sister."
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