The next day at noon, Jiang Shuyun returned from the academy.
After lunch, it was time to meet.
At the entrance of the manor, all the children whose names were called yesterday had arrived and lined up in an orderly fashion, waiting for someone to lead them into the manor.
When Xu An arrived, he saw the children lined up neatly. Although they were curious, no one looked around, which made him think that the children were quite nice.
"Let's go. You'll remain in this position, splitting into two lines, one after the other, keeping quiet, and following me."
Xu An led the way, with the others following behind.
In order for these children to learn to read, the village specially built a large square sunshade, inside which square tables and long benches were placed.
"Alright, children, let's get acquainted. This is my husband, you can call him Mr. Jiang."
Li Li introduced his father to all the children.
Jiang Shuyun looked at these bewildered children. They didn't really have a deep understanding of reading. Their most direct thought was that if they could learn to read, they could become shop assistants and earn two taels of silver a month.
This reflects the mindset of ordinary people: to escape the fate of toiling in the fields.
After all, relying on the weather for a living is really not that easy.
"You have the opportunity to learn to read, and whether you are a boy or a girl, I hope you will take this seriously."
Literacy will not only give you a chance to work as shop assistants in the city, but it will also help you avoid being cheated. I won't say more; let's begin the lesson.
Jiang Shuyun asked Li Li to come forward. He had already given a trial lecture, and it went well.
"The four of you sit at one table, facing that black board in front of you."
Xu An told the children to sit down, with the taller ones in the back and the shorter ones in the front.
Jiang Shuyun had someone paint a board black with ink and found some chalk-like stones to write on.
Li Li is not very good at writing with hard stones, and the characters he writes are rather stiff.
However, he also knew that the tenant farmers did not have the means to buy writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
Five characters were written on the blackboard: “人 (person), 口 (mouth), 手 (hand), 山 (mountain), 石 (stone)”.
These characters can be represented visually using pictures.
Xu An then placed a literacy booklet on each table and asked them to find the corresponding characters in the booklet based on what he had just explained.
Jiang Shuyun watched from the side. Li Li was a little nervous at first, but he relaxed later and spoke very well.
Xu An was also learning from the side; he could recognize characters, but only a limited number.
Compared to Li Li, the master's page, he was far inferior.
The fifty children below, boys and girls alike, all had longing on their faces, their eyes fixed on Li Li in front of them.
"You all know how to pronounce these characters. Look at the book and find these characters accordingly."
Each character has a corresponding picture above it. For example, the character "人" (person) has a small human figure drawn on it.
The character 口 (mouth) has a mouth on top, and the character 手 (hand) has a hand on top...
Li Li also held up a booklet, pointing to each word and picture with his finger, to show them how to use this literacy booklet when no one is teaching them.
Most of the children below understood and began to look up the words they had just learned and their corresponding pictures in their books.
Fifty children, each with a different expression on their face.
Some children looked excited and seemed to understand how to use the booklet, while others looked confused and didn't quite understand.
Li Li explained it several times, and most of the children understood.
"Okay, that's all for today."
Go back and each of you prepare a sand table, like this one.
Li Li took out a sand table he had prepared in advance and demonstrated how to practice writing on the sand table.
"Such a sand table can be made by yourself without money."
You must not only recognize the characters, but also learn to write them.
This may be tough, because you'll need to practice on your own during your breaks after finishing your work.
Alright, there are fifty of you, and you need to take ten books back. Have you divided into groups of five?
"Master, we've divided it up."
The one who stood up to speak was Zhang Dazhu, Old Man Zhang's eldest grandson.
"Alright, each group should take good care of their own books. If any of the group's books are damaged, everyone will be responsible for compensation."
Li Li finished explaining what he needed to say and told them to come back at noon the next day.
Xu An led them out of the manor in a line.
"Li Li, not bad. You haven't wasted your time reading these past few years."
"Thank you, sir. It's all thanks to your excellent teaching."
Li Li was particularly excited just now, seeing so many children calling him "Master".
Although he was never qualified to take the imperial examinations and could never become a true teacher.
However, as the master said, studying is not only for the imperial examinations and to obtain official titles; it has other meanings as well.
"Alright, you don't need to come to the academy with me during this period."
He stayed on the estate to teach the other children in the family to read and write, so that they wouldn't continue to be so undisciplined.
They also need to learn how to use the literacy booklets.
Yi An said that if Li Qiang, Jiang Mo, and Jiang Yan are trained well, they will become the children's capable assistants in the future.
"Master, I understand. I will definitely supervise them to study and learn to read."
When Xu An returned after seeing the person off, he saw Li Li's face full of joy and was also very happy, with a little bit of envy.
"Xu An, you should continue your studies, learn to read and write, and also learn arithmetic. While Accountant Song is at the estate, go and ask him for advice as much as possible."
This village is the foundation of our family; we must not only protect it, but also make it better and better.
Jiang Shuyun also praised Xu Anji a few times, saying that since they were both young people, they should be given more encouragement.
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