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Chapter 254 of The Farmer's Spring Field , Sand Table, Story

(Girls' Literature)

Fuyuan is the name that Shen Zian and Su Zhi gave to their own garden. The implication is naturally that they hope to be happy forever, but the people in Hebian Village still prefer to call this garden Shen's Garden.

After some renovation, the Fuyuan is no longer the desolate garden it once was. Although the flowers, plants and trees have just been planted, it already looks very grand. One can imagine how colorful and green it will be when the trees grow bigger and the flowers and plants grow out.

Shen Ziju knocked on the door and was let in by Old Man Lan.

"Are Father and Aunt Lan used to living here?"

Shen Ziju asked Old Man Lan. He knew that this was the current caretaker of Fourth Brother's house. He also heard that he knew Su Zhi before. He also saw that Su Zhi and Shen Zian were quite polite to them, so he was also very gentle and said a few words of concern. This was not difficult for Shen Ziju. Although he did not often walk around in the village, he had a good relationship with people because he was good at speaking and had a very good attitude.

Father Lan nodded and said, "Not bad."

Old Man Lan doesn't talk much to outsiders. Except for Shen Zian's family, he is not particularly enthusiastic towards anyone he meets. However, he gives people a very stable and honest feeling, making people feel that he is an honest man who just doesn't like to talk.

"I'll take you inside."

Old Man Lan said that every time he opened the door to let someone in, he would take the person to the front of the courtyard, announce it, and then return. If it was someone that Shen Zian and the others didn't want to see, he wouldn't let them in at all.

"Excuse me, Daddy Lan."

Shen Ziju said politely, following Father Lan forward. He also smiled and said hello to Aunt Lan beside him.

Now, in front of the gate of Fuyuan, there is a gatehouse, and there are gatehouses on both sides. Father Lan and Aunt Lan live on one side. The other side is used for storage. On the side, trees are planted. Not only trees, but also a thatched shed. This shed is round and looks like a big mushroom. This is Su Zhi's idea. There are several such thatched sheds in the garden. There are stone tables and round stools underneath, which are quite elegant.

There was no stone table or stone stool under the thatched shed next to the gatehouse. Instead, there were two chairs, where Aunt Lan was sitting, sewing clothes. One of the chairs was empty and was a rocking chair with a thin cushion and a bamboo fan on it. It was obviously the seat of Father Lan.

Shen Ziju looked at this peaceful scene. He thought that his fourth brother's family was living a very good life now. The gatekeeper they took in had such a leisurely life, which was much better than those farmers in the village. It was also much better than their family. You know, Shen Youfu still went to the fields with them. He was the only one in the family who didn't have to go to the fields. How could he have such a leisurely life?

Shen Ziju looked at the small cushion on the rocking chair and felt that it must have been given by Su Zhi. He thought that only a kind-hearted person like Su Zhi would make such a thing. In this country, people always sit on the ground, so why would they think of cushions? Many families even have their clothes patched up, and there are not even enough quilts at home. Shen Ziju thought that the fourth sister-in-law was really a kind person. She brought the old couple back and provided them with food, drink and shelter, and treated them so well.

I was thinking about this all the way until I arrived in front of the courtyard gate.

Old Man Lan walked in and saw Su Zhi sitting in the yard, and said, "Shen Ziju is here."

Su Zhi was sitting under the porch in front of the door, fanning herself. The weather was really hot, and people in ancient times were conservative and were not allowed to expose their arms and legs. Although she had the spiritual spring on her body, she did not feel that hot, but the children were hot, so she had to fan them.

Three kids were sitting under the porch. Each of them had a small table in front of them with a sandbox on it. They were writing something on it with bamboo sticks. Su Zhi said a word, and they wrote a word. They all looked very serious.

This is Su Zhi checking her children's literacy skills.

"Fifth brother, why are you here? Your fourth brother is in the bamboo forest! Father Lan, go and help call An and tell him that fifth brother is here."

Old Man Lan turned and left.

Shen Ziju looked at Su Zhi and saw that she was dressed differently today than she had been a few days ago. Perhaps because she was at home, she wore a light yellow top. Standing there, she looked particularly plain and elegant. He felt more and more that she did not look like a country peasant woman, and he also felt more and more that it was an injustice for her to marry the fourth brother.

"Fourth sister-in-law, I came to see Fourth Brother and you."

Shen Ziju smiled and said that there was no extra reason for the brothers to sneak into each other's house, and the questions and answers were just for show. He responded, walked forward and looked at the three kids.

Xiao Rixing'er and Yueyue were very polite. When they saw Shen Ziju coming, they stood up to greet him, and then sat down to continue writing and drawing on the sandbox.

"Sister-in-law, what are they doing?"

When Shen Ziju came forward, he saw that Xiaori and the others seemed to be writing. He was surprised. He thought that these three kids had already started to learn to write. They were really fast. When they were so young, he seemed to have not started to learn to write. However, this was not the main reason for his surprise. The main reason for his surprise was the sandbox on the table.

Shen Ziju walked closer and looked at the sandbox. It was a rectangular tray made of wood. It was very shallow, but you could put sand in it. The sand was very soft and tiny, very clean and flat, but now it was full of words. Shen Ziju was very surprised.

When Shen Ziju was young, his family was not very rich, and studying was really a very expensive thing. Pens, ink, paper, and inkstones were all expensive, and books were even more expensive. It took a lot of pen and ink for a kid to learn to write, and when he first started learning, his handwriting was very large, and he ruined one sheet after another. It was like throwing money into the water. Many students tried their best to avoid wasting paper before they could write well, and finally came up with a method of writing on a slate and then wiping it off with a wet cloth. Shen Ziju also used that method to practice his good handwriting.

The method of practicing calligraphy with a slate is good, but there is one disadvantage: you always have to wipe off the ink, which often makes your hands black. Moreover, the more you wipe, the darker the cloth becomes. If you don't wash it, the slate will also be black. However, once the cloth is stained with ink, it is difficult to write.

Shen Ziju naturally didn't need to wash the cloths himself, but he didn't like it when his hands got dirty just by wiping them. Now that he saw this method of learning calligraphy on a sand table, his eyes lit up. He thought this method was better than writing on a stone slab. All he had to do was wipe it lightly with his hand, and the words would all disappear, leaving a flat sandy surface again. Although it wasn't as natural as writing with ink, it was very suitable for people who were just starting to learn calligraphy.

Seeing Shen Ziju staring at their sandbox, Xiao Ri said, "Fifth Uncle, we are learning Chinese characters, and mother is testing us to see if we have memorized them."

Xing'er raised her head and said, "Uncle Wu, do you think our handwriting is good?"

Yueyue said at the side: "Of course it is good! Mother said that my handwriting is beautiful! Uncle Wu, do you think my handwriting is beautiful? I didn't write a single word wrong!"

Shen Ziju recovered from his surprise and said with a smile, "Yes, you are all good. When your age was yours, your uncle had not yet learned to read. In the future, Xiaori and Xing'er will surely pass the imperial examinations, and Yueyue will also become a lady from a noble family."

Yueyue pouted and said, "I don't want to be a lady from a rich family. I want to be my mother's little baby! Brother Xiaori said that people like Aunt Liang are ladies from rich families. I don't want to be like that!"

Shen Ziju asked curiously, "Why? Isn't that a good thing? Look at her, she has maids around her, and she doesn't have to do anything herself. Don't you want that?"

Shen Ziju was also teasing Yueyue. He knew that Su Zhi loved these three children very much. Although he was gentle with his nephews and nieces at home, he never took the initiative to play with them because he didn't like playing with little kids. But now he was talking to them patiently. He wanted Su Zhi to know that he was actually a good person. Even if they could only be uncle and sister-in-law in this life, he hoped that he was perfect in her eyes.

Yueyue said, "Aunt Liang walks like my uncle, and can't run. She can't climb trees, go into the pond, or sit on the ground with Xiaohei and the others. Brother Xiaori said that a lady from a wealthy family should be quiet, but I don't want that. Mother said Yueyue can run and jump as she pleases. Yueyue wants to be a heroine, a little dragon girl, and not a lady from an wealthy family!"

Shen Ziju thought that this little girl was wild at heart. Fourth sister-in-law was so gentle, but she actually raised such a little monkey. It seemed that she was really spoiled. However, looking at her little face that was somewhat similar to Su Zhi, he did not hate her. He felt that such a lively little kid seemed very cute.

"Who is Little Dragon Girl? Is she a female hero?"

Shen Ziju asked. He felt that there were many things he didn't understand when talking to this little kid, and he could learn more from their mouths, so he asked with a smile, showing great curiosity.

"Little Dragon Girl is a heroine who can fly around! Mom tells me stories about her every day! Mom's stories are so interesting, she can even tell me stories from Journey to the West!"

Yueyue boasted to Shen Ziju how great her mother was. She went over and hugged Su Zhi, blinking her big eyes at her, as if saying, "Mom, mom, I'm praising you, you praise me!"

Su Zhi really didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She thought this little girl was getting naughtier and naughtier. She looked at Shen Ziju's surprised look at her and said with a smile, "I've heard some stories from others before. When I had nothing to do, I told them to the kids. They remembered them very well."

Shen Ziju nodded and said, "Sister-in-law, was it you who came up with the idea of ​​the sand on the table?"

Su Zhi saw Shen Ziju asking this question and wondered why he asked this question. Then she understood. It was impossible that people nowadays could not even think of such a simple method. But she did not hide it. She thought that she could even say that she came up with the kang, so why couldn't she admit that such a small sand table was her own idea? It was not something amazing. So she nodded and said nothing else. RQ