Just then, Lin Erxi walked into the yard with Da Xiaocao and heard her aunt praising her.
"Second Aunt, you have such good judgment. My mother always criticizes me. Mother, look, even someone as smart as Second Aunt praises me for being smart. You should stop criticizing me so much in the future."
She proudly raised her head, looking quite smug.
The two little grasses have changed into new clothes, no longer wearing their old, patched, ill-fitting garments. They are also eating very well at their maternal grandmother's house, and in just a few days, it seems that these two little rascals have already gained some weight.
The little grass looked up at her aunt with longing and said, "Auntie, you're so clever."
Big Grass also showed a row of small, white teeth and said, "Auntie is the smartest."
Upon hearing the two younger girls praise her, Lin Erxi laughed wildly in the yard: "Hahaha, that's for sure! Your aunt is the smartest girl in Linjia Village!"
Sitting in the main room, Song Anxin, Sister-in-law Lin, Song Mei, and Lin Fengshou and Fengnian working in the yard were all amused by Erxi's antics.
Sister-in-law Lin shook her head helplessly: "Sister-in-law, with your praise, my second daughter will probably be able to walk around Linjia Village with her head held high for days."
Upon hearing this, Song Anxin imagined the scene in her mind and couldn't stop laughing. If she didn't have to maintain a good image, she would have covered her stomach and laughed.
Lin Dadao said reproachfully, "Sister-in-law, you're still laughing. You have no idea how much it hurts to have such a worried daughter." But as he spoke, he couldn't help but laugh himself.
After laughing wildly, Lin Erxi led Da Xiaocao in. Da Xiaocao obediently went into Song Anxin's arms and Lin Dasao's arms, as the two were already very familiar with each other.
Lin Erxi sat down casually, picked up the tea and snacks on the table, gave one to each of Da Cao and Xiao Cao, and then picked up another one for himself, saying as he ate:
"Sigh, my second aunt Feng Yao is gone, Feng He is gone, my uncle An Bang and Grandma Song are gone, I feel so bored."
These snacks were made by Song Anxin during her free time. She felt it was a waste not to use the earthen oven she had at home, as it was useful for baking simple cookies and other desserts. It's just that she didn't have milk, otherwise she could have made even more variety and the flavors would have been even better. She also made snowflake crisps. The method for making snowflake crisps is quite simple; you don't even need an oven. Melt lard in a pan, add cooked flour, stir well, turn off the heat, sprinkle with sugar, knead into a dough, roll it out, and after cooling, cut it into small pieces.
Sister-in-law Lin hugged the little grass who was licking the snowflake crisp and patted her head, saying, "Yes, your yard suddenly feels much quieter, and I'm really not used to it."
Song Anxin felt the same way. After Liu Xiuhong's incident during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the family discussed it the next day and decided that it would be better for Song Anbang to go back to school in the county first.
He has learned almost everything that Song Anxin taught him. Song Anxin copied an entire thick math book for him, which is enough for him to study. If he has any questions later, he can come to Linjia Village to ask her during his days off.
After all, Song Anbang will be taking the exam next March, and he will be able to learn about the various political affairs in the county more quickly once he returns.
Lin Fenghe and Feng Yao, the two younger ones, were naturally sent to the academy by Song Anxin. Lin Fenghe, needless to say, was immediately assigned to Class A; this kid had a very good talent for studying. Although Lin Fengyao wasn't as exceptionally gifted as Lin Fenghe, he still did quite well in his studies and passed the Renshan Academy's entrance exam to study there as well.
"Hmph, it's that Liu Xiuhong. If she hadn't framed Uncle Anbang, Uncle Anbang wouldn't have left!" Lin Erxi was so angry that his teeth itched just thinking about it.
Sister-in-law Lin's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and she said to Song Anxin:
"That Liu Xiuhong is shameless. I heard that her family had to interrogate her for a long time before she would reveal who the father of her child is. It's like a toad pissing on its face—what pot has the lid to match! I don't know how much trouble Aunt Tietou's family is causing because of these two daughters-in-law. This is the first time I've ever seen someone in the village take a concubine. It's not like they're some landlords who have to put on airs. The Liu family has really lost face this time."
Song Anxin listened with a calm expression, only letting out a soft rebuke. This Lin Gangzi had always liked to mess around with women outside, so it wasn't surprising that he had gotten involved with the women in Linjia Village during his time there.
I wondered how Liu Xiuhong could come up with such a scheme to frame Anbang. It turns out it was Lin Gangzi who was behind it all. Her family had really had enough of him. He's so cunning and always runs away when something goes wrong, which means Song Anxin didn't even have a chance to teach him a lesson.
However, Lin Gangzi had shot himself in the foot by marrying Liu Xiuhong, who was known for bringing bad luck to her husbands, as a concubine. Liu Xiuhong was no good either! She had only wanted to marry into a high-ranking family and become an official's wife, but she ended up as a concubine in a rural household. She was not willing to accept this. Regardless of whether she was a jinx to her husbands, as long as she was in Lin Gangzi's house, she would never have a peaceful life.
She didn't want to mention those two troublesome people anymore, and slowly said, "Anbang didn't leave because of this. He was just staying here temporarily, and now that he's been here for a long time, it's time for him to go back to the academy to study."
Sister-in-law Lin immediately chimed in, "That's right. Anbang is someone who wants to pass the imperial examinations, so how could he stay here teaching forever? But Anbang is a really good person. He was worried about the children in the village who were studying, so he found a tutor for them."
Lin Erxi immediately chimed in, "The new teacher Peng is quite good, but he's not as good-looking as Uncle Anbang."
Sister-in-law Lin, with one arm around the big grass, casually flicked her forehead with the other: "Are you going to study or to see people! If you dare to say any more of this nonsense, don't blame your mother for smashing your head in."
"Oh dear! Mom, you're not old at all, come on, have a biscuit to calm down. You've damaged my smart head, where else can you find such a good daughter?"
Sister-in-law Lin was so angry she laughed.
Song Anxin sat to the side, laughing.
Lin Fengnian and Lin Fengshou are still studying in the ancestral hall of Linjia Village. Their dream is not to pass the imperial examinations, nor do they want to go to an academy.
The current teacher in the ancestral hall was found by Song Anbang. He is a white-haired scholar who has taken the imperial examinations for many years but has not even passed the county-level examination. He often writes letters and copies books for people in the Renshan Academy area, but he is always depressed and frustrated.
Song Anbang then invited him to teach in Linjia Village. This is what Song Anbang said to him:
“Teaching people to read and write gives one a great sense of fulfillment and allows one to see what one has learned from different perspectives. The villagers of Linjia Village don’t care whether you are a student or a scholar. If you don’t mind that the tuition fee is not high, I might be able to help you.”
The white-haired scholar thought Song Anbang's words made a lot of sense, so he came to teach in Linjia Village. He taught in the evenings as well, and spent the rest of the time studying diligently on his own.
The village head prepared a room for him in the ancestral hall, where the white-haired scholar slept. Song Anxin's family provided meals; they would have Lin Fengnian deliver a small portion of each meal as a tuition fee for Fengnian and the others. Of course, knowing that scholars had it tough, he also added some money for them.
Song Anxin sighed almost imperceptibly and said, "Yeah, I used to get annoyed looking at these kids every day, but now that they're gone, I'm not used to it."
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