Inside Fu Shuang Palace, Yun Duoduo was taking a nap on her bed. In her dream, she was feasting on all sorts of delicacies, such as braised pork intestines with vinegar, braised pork knuckle with soy sauce, and cola, Sprite, chocolate, and milk tea.
In her dazed state, she heard several old women talking.
"Have you heard? His Majesty wants to find a study companion for the little princess. I heard he has his eye on the Guan family. In order to invite Grand Secretary Guan to send the study companion to the palace, His Majesty specially ordered Eunuch Zhao to send a painting." A rather plump old woman was airing out bedding in the courtyard.
"Send a painting? What kind of painting?" A slightly thinner old woman took out freshly washed clothes from the bucket and handed them to the plump old woman.
"It seems to be called something like, something like, Wanli, Qianli, oh, I don't know how many li it is, it's something like the Landscape and Beauty Picture."
"His Majesty has certainly drawn a lot of paintings, so there's nothing surprising about it," the thin nanny said nonchalantly.
"Besides, His Majesty, as the Son of Heaven, often bestows gifts such as calligraphy, paintings, gold, and silver upon his ministers!"
"You don't know this, do you? I heard that this landscape painting is His Majesty's favorite, and it was created by a master from the previous dynasty." The plump old woman was a little embarrassed when she saw that her gossip had not aroused the other party's surprise and attention. She tried her best to explain, keeping the other party in suspense.
"His Majesty's favorite? The only one of its kind?" The thin nanny was indeed intrigued. She put down her work and pulled the fat nanny to sit on a wooden tub and chat.
“Of course.” The plump old woman raised her eyebrows, her expression completely natural.
"I'm thinking, it's just finding a study companion, why do I need to send a painting?" The thin old woman wiped her slightly damp hands with her apron.
"Are there any ministers in this palace who don't obey His Majesty's orders? Wouldn't they lose their heads immediately?" The thin nanny didn't understand. The emperor was the supreme ruler, and the whole world belonged to him. Why would he be so polite to a minister and even give away his beloved painting to someone else?
"You call yourself a blockhead? This Grand Secretary Guan is no ordinary person. He might not be willing to let his grandson enter the palace!"
"Why is that? Aren't all the people outside eager to enter the palace? Look at the young women entering the palace, they come in batch after batch."
"Ah, that's because they don't know the hardships in the palace. How could Grand Secretary Guan not know?"
"What kind of place is the palace? It's full of trouble and intrigue."
"However, since His Majesty sent the painting over personally, and it was Zhao Gonggong, a favorite of His Majesty, who went, Grand Secretary Guan must be in a difficult position. Even if he is unwilling, he has no choice but to send the painting into the palace."
"This is also how His Majesty treats his subjects."
Listening to the two nannies' conversation, Yun Duoduo finally understood that her father had given his favorite painting to a subject in order to find her a study companion.
[Daddy, Daddy, you spoil me too much.]
[Alas, Father's favorite landscape painting has been given to Old Man Guan just like that.]
No, she couldn't let her father lose what he loved most like this; she had to think of a way.
Yun Duoduo frowned, her mind filled with a myriad of thoughts.
Does this mean I'll be starting kindergarten and preschool soon?
[Who said that transmigrating into the body of a noble lady or princess guarantees a lifetime of wealth and a life of leisure as a parasite? That's utter nonsense!]
Yun Duoduo was wide awake. She got out of bed and went outside to find Sun Huohuo.
Yun Duoduo takes a nap every noon, but Sun Huohuo is different. He plays outside every noon and starts yawning all evening.
"Second fire!"
"Duo'er? Weren't you taking a nap?" Sun Huohuo was hugging the trunk of a big tree, his legs tightly gripping the trunk, and he was struggling to climb up.
"What are you doing?"
"Duo'er, come quick, let's go find bird eggs together."
[Stealing bird eggs?]
Yun Duoduo wasn't in the mood for that right now.
Sun Huohuo waved excitedly at Yun Duoduo, but this wave caused him to lose his balance and fall. His legs couldn't support his weight, and he crashed to the ground.
Fortunately, the ground was covered in damp mud, so Sun Huohuo wasn't injured.
"Are you alright?" Yun Duoduo ran to his side and helped him up.
"Duo'er, it hurts." Sun Huohuo pouted, looking aggrieved.
"Hold back your tears, I have some bad news for you." Sun Huohuo's gaze towards Yun Duoduo became even more resentful.
He silently watched the clouds.
"I heard that Father has arranged for a tutor to come to the palace. It seems you will have to start studying with me."
As if struck by lightning, Sun Huohuo was so shocked he couldn't speak; his pupils contracted.
"I, I, my father is a military general, I don't need to study!" Sun Huohuo raised his head, his expression seemingly saying that no one could force his father to study!
What kind of twisted and heretical theory is this?
"Who says military officers don't need to study?"
"If you don't read and can't read, you won't be able to understand military intelligence reports!"
"A military general indeed! He doesn't even recognize place names. How can he fight a war?" Yun Duoduo grabbed Sun Huohuo's hand and walked out of the muddy ground.
"Is studying hard?" Sun Huohuo asked, seemingly squeezing out the words through clenched teeth after a moment of silence.
Yun Duoduo nodded. "It's bitter."
She recalled that in modern times, she was sent to kindergarten at the age of four, preschool at seven, first grade at eight, junior high at fourteen, high school at sixteen, and university at nineteen...
Reading is a never-ending journey, and I've been reading for nearly twenty years now.
For the past twenty years, I have had to get up early every day to read aloud and attend evening self-study sessions. Every day I have to face books and exercises, interspersed with weekly tests, monthly tests, midterm exams, and final exams.
Every exam brings not only grades and rankings, but also a heavy feeling that weighs on one's heart.
"It's tough, Huo Huo doesn't want to suffer." Sun Huo Huo sighed, plopped down on the ground, and looked up at the vast sky.
"Erhuo, do you think practicing martial arts is hard?" Yun Duoduo also sat down on the ground.
The two little babies sat side by side, shoulder to shoulder, and the scene was very beautiful.
“It’s tough.” Sun Huohuo immediately nodded in agreement.
"Studying is also hard, but it's a completely different kind of hardship compared to practicing martial arts."
"After you've endured this hardship, you'll find it was all worth it."
...
Ten days later, a very famous teacher from Yuze arrived at the palace. Yuze was a place where many famous teachers emerged.
Mr. Wang was a highly respected scholar in Yuze. After putting away the personal items he had brought, he headed towards the school.
The schoolteacher was dressed in a faded gray coarse cloth robe and wore a rectangular cloth hat, the typical hat worn by a scholar.
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