An An is very stubborn, but he also knows how to be afraid. When he saw that everyone ignored him, he silently picked up a piece of steamed bread and ate it bit by bit. Although the taste was not good, he still forced himself to eat it.
After dinner, everyone went about their business, some cleaned up, some went out, leaving An An alone and at a loss.
Before leaving, Zhang Weifang assigned him another task:
"An An, you are also a member of the family. From today on, you will learn how to wash dishes from your father. Help put the dishes away first!"
Zhang Weifang glanced at Lu Shi again:
"Don't let him go out anymore. Teach him some pinyin and math. He should still have cornmeal for lunch."
An An couldn't sit still and didn't want to study. He just wanted to go out and run around, but Zhang Weifang had already made arrangements, so Lu Shi didn't dare to take him out.
Lu Shi locked the big iron door directly, and even though An An pushed it for a long time, he still couldn't open it. He pulled his father's hand and asked him to open it. Lu Shi told him:
"You'd better stay here and don't go anywhere. Otherwise, when your mother comes back, you'll be in trouble. Don't blame me for not warning you then. She will definitely beat you up and let you know the consequences of disobedience!"
An An just wanted to go out at this moment. He had long forgotten the pain in his buttocks, so he kept crying and shouting, making Lu Shi very upset.
Lu Shi was really upset and opened the door. He had a dark face:
"Okay, go out by yourself. Do whatever you want from now on. I won't care about you anymore."
An An turned a deaf ear to Lu Shi's words and ran out happily. Lu Shi said he didn't care, but he was still very worried. He followed quietly behind.
Fortunately, An An did not run out of the alley. He was digging in the soil next to the locust tree in the alley.
At this time, except for some elderly people, everyone went to work or school, so there were not many people under the locust tree.
An An stopped playing after a while and started poking the ant nest again. Not long after, he saw a little kid in the yard in front of him. He happily called him out to play with him:
"Brother, come out."
The person was holding a toy in his hand and ignored him. An An bravely walked into the yard and saw the white plastic pony in the child's hand at a glance. An An had never seen this kind of toy before, so he stared at the pony intently.
The little boy thought An An was going to snatch his toy, so he burst into tears. His cry made the other child's parents cry too.
When the child's mother saw her son crying, she thought that her son was bullied by An An, so she slapped An An twice without saying a word:
"Where did you come from, kid? How dare you just walk into someone else's house? Is there anyone watching over you? Where are your parents?"
As the woman was talking, she pushed An An to the ground. It was the first time that An An was beaten by an outsider, and she was completely terrified.
After venting her anger, the woman took her son back to the house. An An got up and walked home with tears in his eyes, as if he had suffered a great injustice.
When An An was beaten by a woman, Lu Shi almost rushed out, but later he held back. It was a good thing that An An could learn a lesson.
Sure enough, An An understood what fear was and knew to run home.
When he got home, An An started to cry. Lu Shi had already returned home and was waiting for him.
"Dad, my aunt hit me."
Lu Shi looked at An An, who was covered in dust, and asked seriously:
"Why did Auntie hit you?"
An An muttered for a long time, not knowing what to say. He wanted to say that he did not steal his brother's things, but he did walk into someone else's house.
Lu Shi looked at An An, feeling distressed and helpless:
"An An, remember, you can't enter someone else's home without their permission. Mom and Dad like you, so they allow you to make mistakes, but others won't. They will scold you and beat you."
In the following days, An An ate cornmeal steamed bread and noodles with tears in his eyes every day. Slowly, he adapted to the situation.
Zhang Weifang arranged a curriculum for An An, requiring him to recite numbers during the day and recite ancient poems at night. He would check on his lessons every three days, and if he didn't remember them, he would be punished by being made to pick beans.
An An is a very impatient child! Take counting, for example. Even if it's just a small bowl of soybeans, he often can't count the number accurately.
At the beginning, the kind and sensible Hu Zi would patiently accompany An An to study, but as time went on, Zhang Weifang felt that this could not go on any longer. She decided to let An An face the difficulties alone, hoping to cultivate his independence and patience in this way.
So, in the following days, An An could only rely on himself to solve the counting problem. He shed countless tears and the slap marks on his butt were often updated. It was not easy for him to learn math.
When it comes to memorization, An An does very well. Basically, he can completely remember a simple ancient poem after being taught three to five times.
Zhang Weifang would praise An An for what he did well and would also reward him with some toys or snacks.
Time flies, and An An has gradually changed. The naughty and troublesome little guy has now grown up and shown a different side of himself - he has become more stable.
Now An An is no longer easily swayed by emotions as in the past. Instead, he has learned to control his words and actions. He knows how to listen to others' opinions and can think about problems rationally.
When faced with difficulties and challenges, one can remain calm and look for solutions instead of complaining or acting like a spoiled brat.
What’s more worth mentioning is that An An will never act unreasonably again. In the past, he might lose his temper or cry over trivial matters, but now he understands that doing so will not solve the problem and may even cause trouble to others.
So when encountering unhappy or unpleasant things, An An will try to express his feelings in a peaceful way and work hard to overcome difficulties. This change undoubtedly makes everyone around him feel extremely relieved.
The end of another year is coming soon. This year is the most tiring year for Zhang Weifang. She works during the day and teaches An An at night. Now her temper has become better and better.
This year has been a turbulent and thrilling one for Lu Shi. Initially, he was full of hope for An An, but reality disappointed him time and time again, and the helplessness in his heart surged like a tide.
However, as time went on, he gradually learned to accept reality and his mood slowly calmed down.
It was not until Zhang Weifang took over An An's education that he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Now seeing the changes in An An, he was even more surprised.
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