Chapter 378 Brother, there is no land in our village

Even when it comes to poetry with strong emotions, people will only feel the urge to clap their thighs and applaud after experiencing it themselves. This is called empathy.

The young boys worked for a long afternoon and were tired and hot. They wrote their poems about wood planing with a lot of resentment, but the emotions between the lines were even more intense.

Xu Wan looked at Zong Jincheng's work and said to Su Xi, "Sir, you are really good at this. This is the first time that Jincheng has not boasted about himself. In the past, he would even talk about his graceful figure when he wrote about a scene."

Su Xi twitched his lips and said, "It's just that his mind is too idle. When he's too tired, he doesn't have the energy to mess around."

Xu Wan smiled: "That makes sense."

This kid is just too smart, and he can't suppress his pride.

After lunch, Su Xi looked at the scorching sun and decided not to let the boys go out as this was the hottest time of the day.

However, after this point, the boys were driven out whimpering to dig up the flowers. After a whole afternoon, they finally dug up all the flowers in the small garden.

Su Xi struck while the iron was hot and asked them to light a lamp and sow water spinach seeds in the ground that night.

Wei Xing was sowing seeds by the roadside and howled, "Xin Qiji was drunk and reading swords by lamplight, and we are planting vegetables by lamplight in the middle of the night. It's so unfair..."

Shen Yibai was amused and laughed out loud: "Xinglu, now you can not only make clouds come and go, but also chant. Isn't this like poetry?"

"Hurry up and write it down, or you may have to write a poem after you finish." Zong Jincheng joked with his brothers while grabbing a handful of water spinach seeds and scattering them on the ground. After scattering them, he skillfully kicked up a handful of mud with his feet and buried all the seeds in the soil.

Zong Wenxiu saw this and praised him, "Jincheng, you are getting faster and faster."

The little devil grumbled and said, "Practice makes perfect. This is also a skill. When we are old and resign from the court, we can go back to our hometown and farm our own land."

This sound silenced the other four people.

He Zheng reminded weakly: "Brother, our hometown is in Beijing, and we have no land in the countryside."

Zong Jincheng: “…”

It must be that Su Xi kept whispering these things in his ears, causing his mouth to become crooked.

Shen Yibai patted him on the shoulder and said jokingly, "It's okay, brother. Although we in the Great Chu don't allow the buying and selling of land, you can marry a country girl in the future. When you are old, you can farm her land."

The little devil tilted his head and thought about it, then said in agreement: "That makes sense. Maybe the most beautiful girl is in a place I haven't been to."

“Hula——”

Suddenly, two pieces of dirt came from behind and hit the two of them.

The two brothers were both furious. When they turned around, they heard Su Xi scolding, "You little bastard, you haven't even grown all your hair yet, but you're already thinking about the pretty girls in our countryside? And you're still thinking about land. Whose land is it for you to plant? With your poor skills, you've already planted a lot of seeds. The girls will starve to death if they follow you."

Zong Jincheng gritted his teeth and said, "Growing vegetables is such a simple thing, we can learn it once. Why are there so many exposed seeds? There are obviously only a few!" After saying that, he kicked the soil again and buried all the exposed seeds again.

Shen Yibai also hurriedly followed suit to sow the seeds. The color of his expensive shoes had long since disappeared as they were covered in mud.

He thought to himself: I won’t dress up so nicely tomorrow. Not only will this old man not appreciate it, he will also torture them for looking at the nice things.

The children started working again. After Su Xi had played with the children, he ran back to the pavilion and said to Xu Wan, "Did you hear that? Your precious son said he wants to go to the country and marry a beautiful girl in the future."

Xu Wan shook her head and smiled: "It was too far away, I didn't hear it. But what's wrong, is there any problem?"

Su Xi looked at her suspiciously: "Are you serious? In the capital, the family discrimination is so serious. He is the eldest son of a great general, and he married a country girl. Wouldn't the powerful people in the capital laugh at him?"

Xu Wan chuckled and said, "Sir, you are worrying too early. Jincheng is still a child and he talks nonsense every day. He even said that he wants to have a Cuju team in the future. Do you believe him?"

Su Xi: “…” He is indeed a child.

If he had a Cuju team, he would be so annoyed that he would die. Every day, they would be fighting or arguing with each other, and there would be endless family lawsuits.

Just when Su Xi thought she would not answer that question, Xu Wan suddenly said, "Besides, even if that day really comes, it doesn't matter. Our family doesn't care about it. As long as he likes it, that's fine. In a few years, when Jin Cheng grows up, he will have his own thoughts and opinions. I believe he can control his own life."

When Xu Wan said this, she still looked gentle and soft, but the firmness and trust in her words were very rare. Su Xi snorted and laughed, "You are also a strange person."

Xu Wan said with a smile: "Everyone has a shining point. It's a coincidence that you saw mine, sir."

Su Xi bowed to her to show his admiration.

That night, the teenagers who had been busy all day fell asleep as soon as they got to bed, without even reaching their usual sleeping time.

In the large study, Xu Wan was still arranging the work for the private tutors: "In the past month or so, the children have had less time to study the Four Books and Five Classics and policy essays. In your free time, the teachers can study how to guide them after the autumn examination."

When she said this, except for Jinshi Jiang Yan, the other four people were all shocked.

Yes, the four of them are just human beings.

If after the autumn examination, the five young masters failed, it would be fine, they could continue to teach for a few more years and wait for the next session; but if all five young masters passed, they would be failures just like them, how could they safely receive a monthly salary of 100 taels to teach the young men?

The four of them had been in the key class of the Marquis' Mansion for several years, and they were all amazed at Xu Wan's teaching methods, the abilities of the teachers, and the intelligence of the teenagers. The rapid improvement of the teenagers gave them a sense of crisis.

You may lose your job.

Xu Wan also made it clear to them: "One month later, when they enter the Gongyuan, our key classes will have a teacher's assessment during the nine days. Mr. Baili will set the questions, and the difficulty will be the same as the imperial examination. Those who pass will stay, and those who fail..."

Even if she didn't say it, they understood.

If you fail, your employment will be terminated.

The four teachers all looked unhappy. Although they were all hired with high salaries, it would be a shame if they didn't come. However, Xu Wan tried to explain gently, "I have been with you for many years. I am very grateful for your efforts over the years, but Jincheng and the others have to get the top grades in the exam, and there can't be any hindrance. For example, now, Jincheng's poetry is poor and he can't learn it. I know it's not the teachers' fault, but I didn't give up on him. Instead, I invited Mr. Su Xi to come. You have all heard of Mr. Su's name, and you can better understand the high hopes we have for these children."