Lin Mo raised his eyes and met Wang Xiucai's smiling brows. He couldn't tell whether the emotion brewing in his eyes was true or false, nor could he tell how much sincerity was in his words.
As the saying goes, don't hit a smiling person. Lin Mo forced a smile and said, "Mr. Wang, you're too polite. I'm just lucky. I saved some money with my boss, so I'm planning to do some small business."
The village chief was even more excited to see Wang Xiucai than Lin Mo, and excitedly invited everyone to come into the house and sit down.
In a tone of praise, he said, "Sanlang, this Mr. Wang is a man who has seen the world, has read a lot, and has a wide range of knowledge. You should get to know him more often. You are doing business now. Not to mention taking the imperial examination, but knowing how to read is still necessary. Otherwise, you can't always go to the head of the village to write a contract."
There was no other ambiguity in the village chief's words. He was simply thinking about Lin Mo, even though Shang was ranked last.
The most unpresentable merchants who do big business are almost all literate, otherwise they would not be able to make such a big business.
Su Yunqiu glanced at Su Mu, who was sitting quietly beside Lin Mo, and felt annoyed at the sight.
She raised her head, deliberately met Su Mu's gaze, and glanced at him.
With an attitude that showed concern for Lin Mo, he said, "Amo... Lin Mo's current condition is to marry a daughter of a scholar. That's a real lady from a noble family, dignified and beautiful, literate, and able to help Lin Mo. I heard that the old scholar in the next village has an unmarried daughter."
Facing Wang Laoer's expression, Su Yunqiu immediately changed the way she addressed Lin Mo. She couldn't bear to see Su Mu doing well. Since he couldn't get Lin Mo, she didn't want Su Mu to do well even more.
Su Mu subconsciously looked up to see Lin Mo's expression. He had seen the daughter of the old scholar from the next village.
She was indeed pretty, fair and tender, almost like the young ladies from the wealthy families in the town, and her every move and gesture had a touch of the elegance of a scholar.
Looking at him again, he was tanned, ugly, and infertile. Thinking of this, Su Mu's inferiority complex almost overflowed.
A few days ago, he heard that a matchmaker was planning to marry the scholar's daughter to Lin Mo as his legal wife.
Now when he thinks of this person again, he still can't help feeling embarrassed. Compared with such an outstanding and beautiful woman, he is really embarrassed.
Lin Mo glanced at Su Mu's clenched fists, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he looked at Su Yunqiu with a cold gaze: "How funny! You despised me before and broke off our engagement, and now you want to find me a literate girl. I didn't know that you didn't want to marry me because you wanted to be a matchmaker for me."
Lin Mo's sneer trailed off, making Su Yunqiu so angry that he stiffened his neck and almost burst into a curse.
"Lin Mo, don't be ungrateful! I'm doing this for your own good. You don't know Mu Ge'er well enough to know him. You'll regret it later!"
Su Yunqiu spoke angrily, as if Su Mu was a very evil person.
Lin Mo ignored him and said to Wang Xiucai, who was watching the play with great interest, "I heard that Wang Xiucai, in addition to studying, also teaches every day?"
"Yes, my parents worked hard, and my education cost a lot of money, so I found a private school in town to teach."
The village chief couldn't help but nod his head, admiringly saying, "This scholar is truly extraordinary. He's much more capable of finding a job in town than us peasants. Whether it's being a teacher or an accountant, it's definitely something we commoners can't even dream of."
Lin Mo did not follow the flattery, but thought about the private school. There were not many academies in the town.
However, only students with high academic scores could enter the academy, and the teachers in the academy were either the top three scholars or old and successful candidates.
Most private schools are for children's enlightenment, and ordinary scholars and students can sit in the classroom.
He glanced at the elegant Mr. Wang, and then thought of Lin Wu and the others.
I still plan to invite a teacher back as soon as possible to teach everyone how to read and write. Reading does not necessarily lead to passing the imperial examination, but it can broaden your horizons and increase your knowledge.
"Mr. Wang, I wonder how much the tuition for a private school is? Or what are the requirements for hiring a student? I used to be just a rough man, but now that I have a business, I want to hire a teacher to teach my brothers how to read and write, so that the shop won't lose money in the future."
Wang Xiucai looked Lin Mo up and down. From the first time he saw Lin Mo, he felt that this man was out of tune with the men in the village.
Whether it's his expression or his gestures, Lin Mo doesn't look like a farmer, if you don't know his background.
He even suspected that Lin Mo was the son of a wealthy family, but he knew clearly that Lin Mo was just an illiterate fool, so he sneered at Lin Mo's pretense of imitating the son of a wealthy family.
Not everyone can read. He is indeed a farmer's son and has no idea of the immensity of the world.
He smiled and said, "Brother Lin, it's easy to find someone to teach you, but if you want to take the imperial examination, it's really not easy. The room is full of students, and the number increases every year. Not everyone can get good grades. It's very difficult to pass the examination for Tongsheng, and it's even harder to pass the examination for Xiucai. It's rare for one person to pass among dozens of people. I also studied hard for more than ten years before I was lucky enough to pass."
Lin Mo heard the contempt and criticism in Wang Xiucai's voice, and seeing that he still had a gentle smile on his face, he couldn't help but sneer in his heart. It seemed that Wang Xiucai was not a simple-minded person. He had read a lot of books and was indeed remarkable in this world.
After all, when he got there, there were a bunch of people surrounding him, just like a star meeting his fans. Lin Mo could feel it.
Mr. Wang has lofty ambitions and an attitude that he is unique in his own right. He is clearly not on the same level as the villagers who follow him around.
But no matter whether it is studying or doing anything, once people forget their original intentions and lose their original hearts, it will be difficult to make any progress.
Mr. Wang had been distracted and deviated from the right path during these years of being the center of attention and flattery from the public. Lin Mo even had a premonition that Mr. Wang had no hope of becoming a juren.
"If you don't go to a private school, you can hire a teacher to come to your home. The monthly tuition for a student should be no less than one tael. If you are a scholar, it should be no less than two taels. You also have to provide your own brush, ink, paper and inkstone. If you go to a private school, it only costs five hundred coins per month, and you also have to provide your own brush, ink, paper and inkstone."
Everyone gasped when they heard this, especially the village chief Liu Da, whose mouth opened in shock. In the past few days following Mr. Wang, he had even thought about sending his children to a private school. But now, after hearing this, that idea was completely gone in his mind.
"It's too expensive. We all know that this ink, paper, and inkstone are not cheap, but I didn't expect the tuition to be so high. With this money, I can exchange it for food and have enough to eat in the winter."
The village chief couldn't help but sigh and shook his head. He decided to learn a few more characters from the headman. It didn't cost any money, and he could teach them to his own children.
Su Mu also exclaimed quietly in his heart, his eyes widened. No wonder everyone said that if there is a scholar in the family, there will be trouble every year.
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