"So Ouyang Nan is the Registrar's cousin. No wonder he's so intelligent. I've been teaching for over twenty years and I've rarely seen such a bright person. He's bound to achieve great things in the future," the landlord said excitedly.
Zhao Xian was surprised and delighted that the landlord, Liu, spoke so highly of Ouyang Nan.
"For more than 20 years, I have educated countless people. I can say that my students are all over the world. Several of my students are currently holding important positions in the imperial court. This time, I am far away from the capital to a small school in Shuixian Village to teach a group of naked children. They don't understand at all."
Little did they know the anguish in their teacher's heart; if he continued to stay in the capital, his life would soon end.
Perhaps it is a blessing from heaven that I have met Ouyang Nan here. I will certainly pass on all my knowledge to him, so that he may become a useful person.
Zhao Xian had no idea what major blow Fang Dongliu had suffered that almost drove him to his death. Even his best friend Wu Hao was unaware of what had happened to him.
Since the landlord Liu appreciates Ouyang Nan so much, it is the best way to repay him for taking in Ouyang Nan and his sister. No matter what difficulties he encounters in the future, he will raise them.
After chatting for a while, Zhao Xian invited the landlord and his wife to his home for New Year's Eve dinner.
Upon hearing this, the landlord laughed and said:
"Sir, you are too kind. My wife started preparing the New Year's Eve dinner in the kitchen after lunch. She has been preparing for so long that she must have made a lot of good dishes. We will not go over there. We will visit you another day."
Since Mr. Fang is already preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, they won't be going over. It's getting late, and they should head back.
“In that case, we won’t disturb Mr. Fang any longer. We’ll take our leave.” After Zhao Xian finished speaking, he left the academy with Ouyang Nan. Fang Dongliu saw them off to the door.
Soon, the sun set in the west, and the sky gradually darkened.
At this time, firecrackers began to sound in the village, and gradually more and more firecrackers were set off, one after another, as the villagers began to eat their New Year's Eve dinner.
There were quite a few people at home tonight, more than twenty. Zhao Xian had several tables put together to form a long table, and then all the food was placed on the long table.
Zhao Xian asked the brothers Zhao Xiaosheng and Zhao Xiaoshan to set off firecrackers. After a burst of rapid firecracker sounds, the New Year's Eve dinner officially began.
The New Year's Eve dinner was very lively. Everyone temporarily forgot their worries, ate and chatted, and were very happy.
There was a wide variety of delicious food on the table, as well as plenty of drinks, including baijiu (Chinese white liquor), rice wine, fruit wine, and some special beverages.
The soldiers all liked to drink baijiu (Chinese liquor), the girls preferred rice wine, and the children especially liked sweet drinks.
The family was enjoying their meal when Zhao Xian stood up, holding a wine cup in his hand, and said:
"Today is Lunar New Year's Eve, and everyone is very happy. We have all experienced extraordinary things this year. The most difficult period has passed, and things will only get better from now on. Let's toast together."
"Cheers!" Everyone raised their glasses, stood up, and drank it all in one gulp.
As soon as everyone put down their wine cups, Li Chun'e spoke up: "Today is New Year's Eve, and I'm giving everyone lucky money, no matter how much. It's just a small token of my appreciation as an elder, and I hope everyone will have a better year next year."
The crowd cheered. Although the practice of giving New Year's money had emerged in this era, it had not yet become a custom and was not popular among the people. They never expected to receive New Year's money while eating New Year's Eve dinner.
Li Chun'e took out a small basket filled with many money bags, and gave one to each person. The money bags were heavy, and it was unknown how much money was inside.
The adults took the money pouches, too embarrassed to open them, and put the money into their pockets. The children, however, didn't care. They opened the pouches, poured out the money, and started counting it.
The money bag contained copper coins and loose silver. Several children were carefully counting the copper coins, which made everyone laugh.
In ancient times, there were few entertainment activities. After finishing the New Year's Eve dinner, everyone chatted for a while and then went their separate ways.
At the beginning of the first month of the lunar calendar, every household has many things to do. The first is to worship ancestors, which is a very solemn matter. People worship their ancestors at home and also visit their graves to offer sacrifices.
Next came the welcoming of the God of Happiness and the exorcising of evil spirits. Because Shuixian Village was quite popular, some folk artists came to the village to perform, such as dragon lantern dances, lion dances, street singing, storytelling, Yangko dancing, stilt walking, and land boat races.
Shuixian Village has never been this lively before. This year is the first time. With the outside world so bustling, who would want to stay at home? So the village is even more popular than before the Lunar New Year.
People from neighboring villages came to visit, and even people from the town came, which further increased the village's popularity.
Some villagers started doing business, mainly selling food and toys, and found it to be very effective, so the villagers started making money again.
Since there was no farm work to do at this time, Li Guang spent his time playing in the village. For several days in a row, he saw the same few performances, and he got a little tired of them.
Qin Shiyu and the others wanted to go out to see the temple fair, but Li Guang was unwilling to leave the village, and they didn't know what to do.
He suddenly remembered that he hadn't finished reading the books Zhao Xian had bought for him. This was a good opportunity to read, so he headed towards the farm.
In his room at the farm, he opened the book and began to read it attentively. One illustration in the book caught his attention.
The illustration shows a child lying on the back of a cow, reading a book while herding the cow, looking quite relaxed.
Li Guang suddenly had a whim and wanted to experience reading a book on the back of an ox.
Without hesitation, he went into the cowshed and led out the largest water buffalo.
In winter, there is no green grass in the fields, and the roadsides and wastelands are covered with withered grass. If you take the cattle out to graze at this time, the cattle will not be able to eat their fill. So in winter, farmers keep the cattle in the cowshed and give them some straw to eat slowly.
But today Li Guang wanted to experience life. Whether the oxen ate grass or not was secondary. He just wanted to imitate the ancients by lying on the ox's back, herding the oxen while reading books.
Seeing that Li Guang was about to lead the ox out, the little fox Yu Hong immediately jumped onto the ox's back, while Xiao Hei, afraid of the cold in winter, stayed in the room and refused to go out.
Arriving at the wasteland not far from the farm, the water buffalo began to eat the withered grass. Perhaps it was tired of eating straw every day and wanted a change of pace, so it lowered its head and started munching on the withered grass on the ground.
Seeing that Li Guang also wanted to ride an ox, Yu Hong immediately jumped onto the ox's head, lay down on the water buffalo's broad horns, and gave up the ox's back.
Li Guangfei climbed onto the ox's back, lay down on it, and began to read.
This water buffalo has a broad back, enough for a person to lie down on.
Li Guang lay on the ox's back, feeling quite comfortable, and took out the book from his pocket and began to read.
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