After returning home, I packed up the things I bought and went to Su Xiaocui's house to pick up Pei Zhao and his sister.
Su Xiaocui didn't know anything about Ji Tingyou. She just thought she went to the town to sell embroidery and was surprised that she came back so early.
Su Li didn't explain much. Of course, she wouldn't say that her brother from her natal family had come. Su Xiaocui knew all her family members from her natal family.
"Mom! Did you buy us some candied haws?"
The brother and sister were so happy to see the candied haws that they each took a string and ate them with relish.
"Give this string to Xiao Huzi..." Although Xiao Huzi is only one year older than Pei Zhao and his sister, he is very sensible and often helps look after them.
"Mom, let's go find Little Tiger!" The brother and sister said as they took the candied haws and skipped out of the door, not even taking their nap.
"Slow down, don't fall."
It was already past lunch time. The two children had already eaten at Su Xiaocui's house. Su Li was too lazy to cook by herself. The buns she bought in town were still hot. The meat buns had thin skin and rich fillings, and the gravy was delicious. She ate three of them at once and still felt unsatisfied.
After filling her stomach, she went back to the study and took out the painting competition form.
She read it again carefully.
This is a painting competition organized by the Haohan Academy in Beijing, and the entry instructions are published in every provincial capital.
Anyone in the entire Jin Kingdom who can paint can participate in the competition.
The theme of the competition is "The Ascension of the Goddess".
The number of goddesses in the painting must be between two and eight, and the goddesses must have peerless beauty, etc.
The competition finally selected three pictures, with the first prize being three thousand taels of silver, the second prize being one thousand taels of silver, and the third prize being five hundred taels of silver.
She admitted that she was deeply attracted by the huge prize.
Three thousand taels! If she gets first place, she will get three thousand taels of silver. Then, she can live in a big house!
Not to mention three thousand, even if she could get third place, she would be satisfied with five hundred taels. She gets excited just thinking about it.
Cough cough!
Stop!
calm!
The Great Jin Kingdom is vast and rich in resources, and is full of talented people. She may not necessarily get a ranking, so don't be too happy.
Let's think about how to draw the picture first...
The instruction sheet also specified the size of the drawing paper for the Goddess Picture. She converted it and found that in modern times, it would require drawing paper that is one and a half meters long and one meter wide.
Drawing paper and paint can be bought anywhere in town, but you definitely can't find high-quality ones. Good quality drawing paper and paint can enhance the beauty of a painting. Since I'm going to participate in the competition, I have to use good quality ones. It would be a shame to lose because of the poor materials...
She thought about it and decided to go to the county town after the Mid-Autumn Festival.
"Mrs. Scholar! Are you home?"
As soon as I left the study, a woman's voice was heard outside the yard.
It turned out that it was Mr. and Mrs. Lin who came with a large cart of firewood.
Su Li didn't expect that they were so efficient. Su Xiaocui, who had just been dragged yesterday afternoon, had already brought in so much firewood in the afternoon today.
"Okay, Brother Lin and Sister Lin, please help me pull the firewood to the backyard."
There was no woodshed at home and the kitchen was not spacious, so the firewood chopped by the original owner was always piled up in the backyard.
Open the gate and let Lin Da's cart come in directly.
"My dear scholar, is this enough firewood?"
"Not enough." The family's original firewood was almost gone. She estimated the space where it could be piled up. "Five more carts, I think that will be enough..."
"Okay! Then we'll send it to you tomorrow!"
The same price, and she didn't have to transport the goods all the way to the town to sell, so Mrs. Lin was very happy.
After unloading the firewood, Mr. and Mrs. Lin left. Su Li wanted to pay them but they refused. They just said they could take it together after they had chopped enough firewood. So she let them do it.
Just as Mr. and Mrs. Lin left, Mr. and Mrs. Pei, the carpenter, also arrived. The table she had ordered a few days ago was ready.
It was also a large cart, pulling two tables and two chairs.
When Pei Zhao and his sister, who were playing next door, came back and saw this, they asked curiously, "Mom, what is this table for?"
Pei Zhao looked at the table and found it looked just like the desk in the study. "Is this for Dad to study?"
"It's for you two to study."
The two children are already five years old. According to city standards, it is almost time for them to start their education.
Pei Ji was busy with his studies and only came back for one or two days a month. He would tell the brother and sister some stories and morals from the books, but he had not yet started to formally teach them to read and write.
They will be living in the city in the future, and their children’s education cannot fall behind others.
"Really? Mom, can I go to the county to study like Dad in the future?" Pei Zhao's eyes sparkled.
"If you want to go to school in the county like your father, you have to study hard."
Pei Zhao vowed: "Mom, I will study hard!"
"Okay, Mom believes you!"
Su Li didn't expect them to be very good at studying, as long as they were not illiterate.
However, she would still be happy if the child was willing to study. After all, in this era, people all believe in "all things are inferior, only reading is superior."
After moving the two tables to the study, Su Li took out paper, pen and ink, and first taught them how to hold the brush correctly.
The two children were quick to understand and got the hang of it quickly.
She then wrote out the names of the brother and sister one by one.
Pei Chuer pointed to her own name and said affirmatively: "Mom, this is my name, this is my brother's name!"
She is illiterate, but her mother just said that these are her and her brother's names. Her brother's name has two characters, and her name has three characters.
"Ah! Our Chu'er is so smart. She will definitely be a talented girl in the future!"
"Hehe!" Pei Chu'er was very happy to be praised by her mother. She thought to herself that she must study hard in the future and strive to become a talented girl as soon as possible.
So in the afternoon, the brother and sister studied hard to write their own names. While Su Li was guiding them, he also conceived the "Goddess's Ascension Picture" in his spare time.
The next morning, after breakfast, she started painting again.
The adults whose portraits were taken today were more diverse than those in the past few days, including personal portraits, wedding portraits, family portraits, and full-moon portraits.
At noon, she took advantage of the time after lunch to teach the brother and sister a lot more words.
For the next five days, the children practiced calligraphy in the study while Su Li painted portraits of the villagers.
In modern times, Su Li became a landlady after graduation. She has never lived a nine-to-five office worker life, and she only treats professional painting as a hobby.
Now I finally understand what it feels like when a hobby becomes a job.
"Mom, let me massage your wrist..." Pei Zhao massaged her wrist considerately.
"Mom, drink some water." Pei Chuer also brought over a glass of water.
"Good boy!" Su Li took the cup and drank a sip of water. "Go to bed early tonight. Let's go back to grandparents' house tomorrow."
She has not accepted any painting requests for the next two days. The day after tomorrow is Mid-Autumn Festival, and she plans to take her two children back to the original owner's parents' home.
"Really?" Pei Chu'er's eyes sparkled, "I've never been to my grandmother's house before."
Her grandmother loved her and her brother the most. She often visited them and brought them delicious food!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
