Seeing that Zhao Xian was beginning to examine the gifts he had brought, he began to introduce them one by one.
"This is a 500-year-old ginseng, extremely rare and a very valuable medicinal herb."
Zhao Xian nodded, then opened an exquisitely packaged box. Inside was a thick glass, and he was stunned.
Why is there a glass here? Am I seeing things?
Seeing Zhao Xian in a daze, Ruan Zhenggang spoke up:
"This is a crystal glass. It was carved from a single piece of high-quality crystal and took half a year to complete. It can be considered a rare treasure."
Zhao Xian suddenly realized that this cup was actually carved from a single piece of crystal, no wonder he had misjudged it.
Zhao Xian opened another box, which contained a potato. This time he was no longer surprised; he knew it must have been carved from a peculiar stone.
However, he was very puzzled. According to records, potatoes did not exist at that time, so how was this potato carved?
Seeing Zhao Xian staring at the potato, Ruan Zhenggang said, "This is called a potato, and it is also carved from precious stone. I have a business friend who often goes to Southeast Asia to do business. He specially bought one for me. I heard that potatoes are popular in some overseas regions and are a staple food there. I don't know if that's true."
In Zhao Xian's market trading system, there are plenty of foods like potatoes, sweet potatoes, and taro, which can be grown.
These crops have very high yields, and once farmers plant them on a large scale, they can basically solve the famine problem. It's not that I don't want to introduce these crops, it's just that the time is not yet ripe.
Zhao Xian finally finished looking at the gifts that Ruan Zhenggang had brought. If these things were in modern times, they would be worth a lot of money; each one was a rare treasure.
"These gifts are too generous, Manager Ruan. I will accept them with my own respect."
Seeing that Zhao Xian had accepted the gifts he had brought, Ruan Zhenggang felt relieved.
"The villagers of Shuixian Village risked their lives to save the Ruan family from this ordeal. I've come here to thank them and to do something for Shuixian Village," Ruan Zhenggang said.
Doing something practical for the villagers is certainly a good thing, but we don't know where to start.
At this moment, Ruan Fang suddenly spoke up: "Father, I want to establish a school in Shuixian Village to teach the children in the village to read. It would be a good thing for Shuixian Village."
“Nonsense! Women can’t even get into school, how can we establish a school?” Ruan Zhenggang retorted on the spot.
“Father, you are mistaken. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Empress Dowager Deng founded a school, and it was a co-educational system, setting a precedent for women to establish schools.”
"If the ancients could do it, why can't we? Besides, I'm opening this school not for fame or profit, but entirely to repay the villagers. Why can't I?"
Ruan Fang's words left Ruan Zhenggang speechless. Ruan Fang continued, "Mr. Wu said that I am exceptionally intelligent. If I were a man, I would definitely be a scholar. But I cannot become a scholar. However, I can teach and educate people, nurture the children with potential in the village, and find a way out for the children in the countryside."
Ruan Fang's words were so eloquent that Ruan Zhenggang could find no reason to refute them, so he could only look at Zhao Xian.
Zhao Xian was very impressed by Ruan Fang's words. If Ruan Fang were to establish a school in Shuixian Village, it would be a great thing for the village.
Because Mr. Fang's abilities are limited and he is indeed not suitable for teaching, the villagers would rather let their children drop out of school than send them to his school.
However, there was only one school in Shuixian Village, which normally had more than 30 students. But because the children chose to drop out of school or transfer to schools in neighboring villages, the number of students in Fang's school was decreasing.
In ancient times, villages were very scattered, and the distance between villages was very far, making it difficult to go to school in a neighboring village.
Some time ago, Master Lin also founded a school, mainly to enroll girls from the village. Currently, his school has more than ten girls attending, while the Fang family school has suffered a severe loss of students, with only four or five students left.
The village does indeed need to rebuild a school so that the boys in the village can have a real place to study. If Ruan Fang establishes a school in the village, it will truly be a great thing for Shui Xian Village.
“Miss Ruan’s decision to establish a school in Narcissus Village is indeed a noble act, but you must discuss this matter carefully,” Zhao Xian said.
Ruan Zheng was initially hesitant. Once Ruan Fang set up a school in Shuixian Village, she would stay there, and he was really reluctant to leave.
But when he saw Ruan Fang's determined look, Ruan Zhenggang stopped insisting. This time, such a big thing happened to the Ruan family. If it weren't for the help of many kind people, the Ruan family might have ceased to exist.
Ruan Zhenggang finally nodded, and Ruan Fang was overjoyed. She immediately asked Zhao Xian for help to set up a school in Shuixian Village.
“Since you have decided to establish a school in Narcissus Village, I will take you to see the village head. We need to tell him this first, and he will definitely give you the greatest help.”
“Then let’s go find the village head now and discuss the matter of building a school with him,” Ruan Fang said impatiently.
Zhao Xian took Ruan Zhenggang and Ruan Fang to see the village head. Since Ruan Jingui was not interested in running a school, he stayed in the workshop to watch the soap production.
The three arrived at the village head's house. Zhao Xian first introduced Ruan Zhenggang and his daughter to the village head, and after explaining their purpose, the village head immediately became excited.
The fact that the village children couldn't find a suitable school to attend had always been a worry for the village head. He never expected that someone would come to Shuixian Village to invest in setting up a school. How could he not be happy?
“If Manager Ruan establishes a school in Shuixian Village, I will select a site in the center of the village to build the school. When building the school, I will have the village craftsmen help build it for free, without charging a penny of wages, and build the school.”
Ruan Zhenggang nodded and asked, "How much will it cost to build the school?"
The village head calculated for a moment and said, "Since the land and labor costs for building the school were free, Manager Ruan mainly paid for the bricks and tiles."
Based on this calculation, it is estimated that it will cost more than 20 taels of silver. After the school is built, it can enroll at least 50 students, which will be enough for our village.
In addition, after the school is built, it will be necessary to purchase desks, chairs, and teaching equipment, all of which will cost money. The exact cost will depend on the number of students enrolled.
Yuan Zhenggang nodded. He knew that the village head was calculating this way to save him money, but since his daughter would be living in the school in the future, he was determined to build the best school so that Ruan Fang would be more comfortable in both her studies and daily life.
Since Nguyen Phuong will be living in Thuy Tien Village in the future, and her family may come over often, they also hope to use the school as a place to stay, so the school must be built well.
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