Before learning embroidery, you must first take good care of your hands.
Yue Jiuyue wasn't stingy. Since Xiaoman'er wanted to take care of her hands, she decided to take care of the hands of the other girls as well, including the six girls from Zhou Daya to Zhou Liuya. The others could take care of their hands if they wanted, or not if they didn't.
Of course, once Xiaoman'er had taken good care of her hands, she would never have to do any more rough work again. But it wasn't so certain for the other girls. During the busy farming season, they would still have to help with the household chores most of the time. Even if they weren't allowed to work in the fields, they would still have to help with cooking, washing clothes, and so on.
The reason Yue Jiuyue thought this way was because she had planned that if more land was cleared and cultivated in the future, she would hire people to work. If she herself had to go to the fields, others would inevitably have to go to the fields with her. It wouldn't be right for her, the head of the household, to go to the fields to work while the servants could go around playing.
Yue Jiuyue would probably be vomiting to death!
Time marched on relentlessly, and everything at home was changing for the better. Huang Banxian, who had been lying in the west room for more than a month, was slowly recovering and could now get off the kang (a heated brick bed) and walk a few steps. Every day, he would have someone move him to the pavilion by the lotus pond to sit, where he ate all three meals and conducted his teaching. He was living a very comfortable life.
"What? I'm not leaving! I'm the teacher of Chao Nan, Chao Bei, and Xiao Man'er now, and I'm already being lenient by not asking you for tuition! How can you kick me out? You have no respect for your teachers at all!"
Huang Banxian was furious. He spoke with such spittle flying everywhere, as if he couldn't express his anger without spittle flying.
Is it easy for him?
After being destitute for over a month, he finally managed to earn a few coins and was able to drink a glass of baijiu that he had been craving for a long time but which tasted terrible. Because he had never tasted such bad liquor before, but he was really craving it, he couldn't help but drink a few more glasses. As a result, he was targeted by someone who took him to a deserted mountain ravine and robbed him of all the money he hadn't even had a chance to enjoy.
Because of his lack of cooperation, he was severely beaten. Fearing that he would be beaten to death and die quietly in a ravine, where no one would know if he rotted away, he mustered all his courage and fled when he heard a carriage and voices.
Although he was kicked several more times, which aggravated his injuries and left him paralyzed on the kang (a heated brick bed) for more than a month, it also allowed him to enjoy his current peaceful and stable life. Indeed, "misfortune may be a blessing in disguise," and the ancient sayings have been proven by time and practice, which he has personally verified once again.
He was just feeling fortunate that he had turned misfortune into blessing and that there was hope for the future when he was struck by such a devastating blow.
What? They actually want him to leave?
This angered the old man so much that he blurted out the local dialect he had been listening to for over half a month and was completely used to.
“Sir, my mother said that this past month, you've been teaching us to read and write, so consider it repayment for your medical expenses, lodging fees, and meal expenses. After all, we're not related, and I didn't cause your injury. At most, I accidentally worsened it. This way, you're actually the one who benefits. If it weren't for my family, you would… you would…”
The word "death" is hard to say, especially to an old man like Master Huang, who had taught them to read and write for a month.
But what his mother said made sense. They were not related, and it was unreasonable for them to let an old man live in their house for no reason.
Rumors about his mother circulated in the village every day and never stopped.
If his mother spoke to any of the uncles or elders in the village who were around the same age, people would spread unsavory rumors about her.
Magistrate Tang came over several times, and rumors spread like wildfire.
The gentleman moved directly into their home. There were words of praise for his heroic act before, but now that he's recovered, he won't leave, even though he's quite old and could be their grandfather. Rumors still fly everywhere.
That's why he was able to grit his teeth, listen to his mother, and come over to chase her away. He couldn't let his mother be criticized by the villagers. The idea of "not being afraid of a crooked shadow" wasn't suitable for a village where even the law was completely unknown.
"Many voices can destroy gold, and accumulated slander can destroy bones." If everyone says you're bad, no one will believe you're a good person, because there's also a saying: "Flies don't land on eggs without cracks!"
“Well, I’m so old now. My family all died in those natural disasters, and my house was flooded. I have no home! I have nowhere to go! Can I stay and be your tutor? You don’t have to pay tuition. Just like before, you can provide food and lodging. Where can you find such a cheap and knowledgeable tutor? Why don’t you go and talk to your mother about it?”
With red eyes, Huang Banxian feigned weakness to gain sympathy.
He was telling the truth, his eyes were genuinely red, and his desire to stay was real. He genuinely wanted to gain the family's sympathy so they would let him stay.
As a scholar, he believed he should "establish a heart for heaven and earth, establish a destiny for the people, continue the lost learning of the past sages, and usher in an era of peace for all generations." He thought he could no longer do it and could only spend the rest of his life in a daze. But unexpectedly, he found a glimmer of hope and was able to continue teaching the children, even though none of the students here had any official titles or even a junior scholar.
To be precise, the students he teaches now can't even recognize all the characters, and none of them can memorize all the primers they've learned.
In the past, he wouldn't have even given a second glance to this rotten wood, but now it has become his salvation.
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