"Mother, I'm home from school. How are you feeling?"
The chubby little guy is less than 1.2 meters tall. He speaks with a babyish voice, mimicking the tone of adults, and even laughs.
"Mother is fine. Is Shaoming doing well at school?"
"Okay?"
Shao Yun held onto Mu Yi'an's skirt with one hand, waved to his brother with the other, and parroted his mother's words.
“My child is doing well. He learned four characters today and has already written them on the sandboard.”
Most of the children in the school were from the village, and their families had limited means to afford expensive writing materials like brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. They would make a wooden frame, fill it with fine sand, and practice writing with wooden sticks.
"Alright, let's go inside."
Mu Yi'an carried Chu Yue, with the two little ones following behind, and returned to the inner room.
After putting the younger one down, Mu Yi'an took out two pieces of pastry and gave one to each child. Children eat little and get hungry quickly. There's still some time before lunch, so let the two children have something to eat first.
Four-year-old Jiang Shaoming knew that he should wash his hands before eating. He not only wiped his own hands clean but also wiped his younger brother's hands clean. He wiped his hands very carefully, making sure to wipe every finger.
"Eat up, we'll have to wait a while before we can eat."
"Thank you, Mother!"
"Thank you, madam!"
Shao Yun would repeat whatever Shao Ming said, but he couldn't even pronounce it completely.
Watching the two little ones eat at a leisurely pace, Mu Yi'an felt that the etiquette education in ancient times was indeed quite strict and very effective.
Moreover, the eldest son in a family is truly given special education, and is exceptionally sensible and responsible.
She then changed Jiang Chuyue's diaper, fed her, and she fell asleep. Mu Yi'an thought to herself that she needed to be more careful with her children in the future, and not let them stray from the fundamental principles of society, as that would be very dangerous.
This is a society where imperial power reigns supreme, and she herself has to be careful. Important things must be said three times. Mu Yi'an silently repeated it five times in her heart, and added two more times just to be on the safe side.
"I'm back. How was your day?"
Jiang Shuyun pushed open the door and entered the inner room, where Mu Yi'an and the children were already there.
"You're back. Did you get things done?"
"It's all settled. The teacher agreed to let me study at home, but he requires me to go to the academy at least once a month so he can test me."
After passing the imperial examination at the county level, Jiang Shuyun studied at the county school.
"That's fine. You can't just stay at home and work in isolation. You need to understand the facts. It'll be good to go to the bookstore and read the latest collections of literature, history, and philosophy."
"Well, I plan to practice calligraphy for a while and continue copying books, including the Four Books and Five Classics, and the laws. It's not just to earn money, but also to gain a deeper understanding of those contents. After all, some things don't completely belong to me yet."
Jiang Shuyun possesses the original owner's memories, but she cannot fully integrate them yet. She needs time and diligent study.
“Okay, as long as you have your own plan. Go change your clothes and play with Shaoming and Shaoyun for a while. Boys should spend more time with their fathers; it will broaden their horizons and change their perspectives. This is a limitation of our times. Mothers find it hard to step out of their own little world.”
"I understand, and I will do my best. We are both beginners, so we will learn slowly, remind each other, and we won't be much worse than before."
When Jiang Shuyun talks about the past, she is referring to the space before they came here, a place they want to go back to but can't.
Mu Yi'an couldn't help but roll her eyes. What nonsense are you spouting? Are you trying to fool me? It's not much different from before! Putting everything else aside, just traveling is difficult enough; she's trapped in this world.
Jiang Shuyun didn't dare to say anything more. Mu Yi'an's irritable appearance left a deep impression on her, and she didn't want to provoke him easily.
After taking off her scholar's robe and changing into casual trousers and a short-sleeved shirt, Jiang Shuyun played games with her two little boys while Mu Yi'an went out to help set the table.
"Shuyun is back?"
"I'm back. I just got home and I'm changing my clothes."
Mu Yi'an replied to her mother-in-law and went into the kitchen to help.
"Sister-in-law, I'll take it with you."
"Sister-in-law, thank you."
Sister-in-law Jiang had already prepared the school's meals: a bucket each of rice, vegetables, and soup. She carried them to the side gate between the school and the courtyard. Brother Jiang would bring the older students to collect them, as women were not allowed to enter the school.
After lunch, Mu Yi'an took the child back for a nap. The kitchen duties were divided among those who cooked and those who cooked, one person per day.
Jiang Shuyun was telling stories to the two boys in their room, while Mu Yi'an was feeding the little girl who had just woken up.
Some things may feel awkward at first, but after doing them a lot, you get used to them. For example, Mu Yi'an breastfeeds her child; she's become numb to it and it's become very natural for her.
After their afternoon nap, the four-year-olds no longer need to go to school and can play freely.
Mu Yi'an also took a short nap, then got up to change Chu Yue's diaper and feed her. The little one pointed outside, and at first Mu Yi'an didn't know what that meant, but later she realized that she wanted to go out.
I glanced at the sun; it was probably a little after 3 p.m., not too hot.
Mu Yi'an carried the little girl out of the inner room, "Ah, ah..."
"That's beautiful! You really enjoy coming out, huh?"
Mu Yi'an saw Shao Ming, Shao Yun and Shao Ning playing in the yard. Jiang Dage's eldest son, Jiang Shaoqin, was already eight years old and had officially started school, attending classes all day.
Brother Jiang's family also has a daughter, six-year-old Jiang Chutong, but his sister-in-law is very strict with her, and the little girl has already started learning needlework and rarely goes out to play anymore.
In ancient times, it was customary for boys and girls not to sit together after the age of seven, a rule imposed by wealthy families. In rural areas, this wasn't so strict; children still had to do chores. Gathering wild vegetables, cutting pig feed, and washing clothes by the river were daily tasks.
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