The only temple Sanlang had ever seen was the ancient temple outside Yuzhou City. He remembered that there were many people there, and many wealthy families would stay there for the night.
Therefore, it seems there's nothing to worry about.
"The teacher doesn't know we're selling seafood in broth outside yet. Let me and Brother Stone come up with a plan, and then we'll..."
Sanlang couldn't continue speaking; Hu Zi poked his arm several times in a row.
He stopped the conversation and followed Tiger's gaze.
"T-Teacher...!" Sanlang cried out, his legs weak, and half of his body was hanging on Huzi.
Tiger had spotted the old man long ago. He stood there with his hands behind his back, exuding an indescribable aura. His eyes held a commanding presence without anger, and he was vigorous and full of wisdom.
The old man clearly knew that Hu Zi had discovered him, but Hu Zi dared not meet his gaze and had to repeatedly remind Sanlang.
Stone reacted even more strongly, throwing down his basket and tools with a clang and quietly standing behind Sanlang.
"Go back, all of you!" Mr. Xunmei shouted, then turned and left.
Saburo and Ishi looked at each other in despair, then hung their heads, utterly dejected.
“We’ll go with you! We’re brothers, we’ll share the good times and the bad!” Tiger decided immediately.
Inside the bamboo hut, a group of boys stood in a row, looking dejected like frostbitten eggplants, while Mr. Xunmei sat there, his face ashen.
"Teacher, I was wrong!" Sanlang was extremely guilty, his little fingers twisting the hem of his clothes incessantly, his eyes not daring to look to the side.
"Sir, it's my fault. I shouldn't have let Sanlang do the work for me, which has interfered with my studies!" It has to be said that Shi Tou understands Mr. Xunmei the best.
"Sir, it was us, we shouldn't have...!" Tiger wanted to help Sanlang take the blame, but he didn't know how to say it, and he was so anxious that he was sweating profusely.
"We shouldn't have robbed Sixth Brother's money!" Xiao Qi declared decisively, plunging the scene into a deathly silence.
Saburo turned his head and glared at him. How dare you talk like that? I already said it's not robbery, it's sharing!
Mr. Xunmei couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Sixth Brother?"
Well, this time there's no way to hide it anymore, there's no room for maneuver left!
Tiger wanted to say something, but Sanlang resignedly waved his hand, stepped forward, knelt down, and said to Mr. Xunmei, "Teacher, I was wrong! I suggested that Brother Shitou come with me to sell seafood with sauce in order to earn money to rent a shop for my sister. We met Brother Tiger and Seventh Brother when we were selling seafood, and the seven of us have already sworn brotherhood."
After he finished speaking, he turned to look at the crowd. The other six people, with great tact, knelt down and shouted in unison, "Sir, we know we were wrong!"
Mr. Xunmei couldn't hold back any longer. He forced his lips down and said, "Have you forgotten why your sister sent you here? Have you forgotten the expectations your sister and mother had for you? Look at the homework you've done these past few days. How can you face your sister?"
Saburo felt guilty for neglecting his studies during this time. He also knew that what he did was wrong and that it was a drop in the ocean, and he couldn't help his sister.
Thinking about it this way, he felt even worse. Although he had made some money these past few days, it was nothing compared to his teacher's disappointment in him. The only gain he could count was that he had made a group of sworn brothers.
"Teacher, Sanlang really knows he was wrong! I will study hard from now on and won't neglect my studies anymore! But there's one thing I'd like to ask you to grant me. I want Brother Stone to teach Brother Tiger and the others how to make some food so they can be self-reliant and won't go hungry anymore!"
Tiger's eyes reddened. He knew the old man before him must be someone of great ability, someone like him—a figure they would never even encounter in their entire lives. This was an opportunity, a chance for them to be transformed!
"Please, sir, give us a chance!" Tiger kowtowed heavily, and the other boys followed suit.
Xiao Qi nearly fell over from kowtowing. Dazed, he said to Hu Zi, "We want to learn skills from Sixth Brother. Please, sir, grant us your request!"
Mr. Xunmei's eyes flickered slightly. He looked at the group of teenagers, then at Sanlang, and said in a deep voice, "You are the one who brought these people here. From now on, you must teach them to be kind to others! If you don't teach them properly, it's the teacher's fault. If I find out that you have missed your lessons again, hmph, I will no longer acknowledge you as my disciple!"
Saburo bowed deeply and said with utmost solemnity, "Saburo will remember your teachings and dare not make any mistakes!"
That was the end of that matter.
Mr. Xunmei personally helped Sanlang and Xiaoqi up, his gaze sweeping lightly over Huzi's face, which was on the verge of tears, and said, "You live in a dilapidated temple on the back street? How could anyone live there?"
Tiger's face stiffened slightly, his eyes flickering as he tried to find the right words.
"The temple leaks everywhere when it rains, and that's how I caught a cold," Xiao Qi said weakly, glancing at Hu Zi's face.
Only then did Sanlang realize that the temple Huzi had mentioned was actually a dilapidated temple, not the ancient temple he had imagined.
“Teacher!” Sanlang grabbed Mr. Xunmei’s sleeve and shook it.
Mr. Xunmei glanced at his apprentice's anxious look and said, "There is a wine cellar behind the bamboo house, which is spacious enough. However, the roof is in disrepair. You can find some bamboo to repair it before moving in. It should be fine."
Overjoyed, Hu Zi led his brothers to kowtow to Mr. Xunmei again, expressing their boundless gratitude.
From then on, they no longer had to squeeze into the dilapidated temple and endure the wind and rain!
With so many more mouths to feed all at once, Shi Tou was happy but also a little worried.
The master is a man who doesn't manage things. He only tries to earn some money to support the family when they are about to starve. Now that there are five more people to feed, where is the master supposed to get so much money?
It seems that, just as Sanlang said, he really has to lead Tiger and the others to earn money through hard work to support their families!
The bamboo hut suddenly became lively. Several children were working enthusiastically to replace the roof of the back room with bamboo and thatch, then plastered it with yellow mud, cleaned the room, and placed a few bamboo stools and chairs inside. The whole room was instantly transformed.
Stone and Tiger chopped down some bamboo of various sizes, and the boys worked together to piece together a few decent bamboo beds.
"Here's my quilt for you. Make do with it tonight. Tomorrow, Brother Stone will take you to buy mattresses!"
That night, the five homeless children slept more soundly than ever before in their lives.
The next day, Sanlang was reading in his room while Shitou took Huzi and a few others to the market.
Tiger and his friends had been wandering around Yuzhou City for so many years, and they had explored every street they could find. But this was the first time they had truly seen what was being sold on this street.
They are no longer unrelated to them.
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