Chapter 164 Chapter 164 Daily life of studying abroad
Bai Manman never thought that one day she would leave her parents and go to Da'an to study abroad.
She even heard the word "study abroad" for the first time ten days ago. It turns out that these two words combined mean going to another country to study.
Bai Manman was no stranger to Da'an. She had always loved the novelties Da'an brought her: beautiful shell and glass hairpins, soaps, perfumes, and soft, comfortable cotton fabrics.
Even though the things are good, it doesn’t mean she wants to go to Da’an!
Father Bai told her earnestly that this was Princess Mennuo's decision. Their family was only a minor official, their influence was insignificant, and they had no room for refusal.
Bai's mother looked at Bai Manman, tears streaming down her face: "My son is so young, only twelve years old, still a child. She is not allowed to bring servants with her. How can she take care of herself? How can she take care of herself!" After saying this, she seemed to be about to faint from crying.
Although Father Bai was extremely reluctant, he was helpless. He could only sigh and instruct Bai Manman, "Since going to Da'an is a foregone conclusion, then study hard. When you return after completing your studies, you can serve Her Royal Highness the Princess."
Bai Manman pointed at herself, a look of disbelief on her face: "Study hard? Me?"
Even though she is now in Anjing, the capital of Da'an Kingdom, Bai Manman still feels that everything is as unreal as a dream.
Even worse, she was the oldest of all the Nanzhao students studying abroad. Before leaving, Princess Menuo specifically instructed her that as the elder, she must lead everyone in their studies in Da'an.
Bai Manman couldn't understand why one day she, at the age of twelve, could be called the eldest child.
But now that things have come to this, she can only bite the bullet and take on this burden.
Having left her hometown and come to this unfamiliar foreign land, Bai Manman could only console herself by thinking that at least here, she could read serialized novels that were newer and faster than those in Nanzhao.
You should know that in Nanzhao, Da'an's novels are rare and hard to come by.
The officials of the Ministry of Rites finally had other things to do besides writing manuscripts, so they naturally arranged the study abroad matter in an orderly manner.
Needless to say, schools and classes were the responsibility of the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Rites was responsible for receiving these young international students and arranging accommodations for them.
Initially, we wanted them to live on campus, but the primary school in Anjing didn't have student dormitories. After much deliberation, we chose a house in a safe location not far from the primary school and converted it into a dormitory for international students. We also assigned a tutor to look after their daily needs, and it was conveniently within walking distance of the school.
As soon as Bai Manman dismounted from the carriage, she was dazzled by the prosperity of Anjing. The road in Anjing was surprisingly gray, flat and wide, completely different from the gravel roads of Nanzhao. The entire city was filled with an uplifting atmosphere.
The rest of the children were slightly younger, with the youngest being only eight or nine years old. Consequently, all the Nanzhao students hid behind Bai Manman without prior agreement.
At this moment, Bai Manman felt like an old hen protecting her chicks.
Fortunately, the official from the Ministry of Rites was understanding and kind: "Young ladies and gentlemen from Nanzhao, don't be afraid. We will take you to the international student dormitory right away."
There are so many new words in Da'an. Bai Manman thought that the international student dormitory is probably a place specially provided for international students like them to live.
But she soon thought of another question: Would the people from Xiping also live with them?
It was not until she entered the international students' dormitory that Bai Manman's doubts were completely dispelled.
This house must have been renovated. Not only are they divided into men's and women's dormitories, but each dormitory also has different rooms. I guess they don't live together.
It was Bai Manman's first time living in a dormitory, and also the first time she saw this kind of layout with a bed on top and a table on the bottom. She felt it was novel and put down her luggage to take a closer look.
The house is equipped with daily tutors, all of whom are girls.
A life teacher introduced himself and told them the rules of dining in the cafeteria, and that the international students from Xiping would arrive in a few days.
Bai Manman was experiencing group living for the first time, and everything seemed new to her. When it was time for dinner, everyone lined up with their bowls to get their food.
The food in Da'an is different from that in Nanzhao. Although the food is delicious and fresh, people are not used to it for a while.
After dinner, everyone started packing their luggage.
This was no easy task, especially for a child born into an official family who had never taken care of household chores. Fortunately, two of the five maids were from commoner families, and with their help, the bed was quickly made.
Bai Manman lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling in a daze, still feeling that everything was vague and unreal.
Several young girls tossed and turned, muttering to themselves that they missed home.
Bai Manman also tossed and turned, wondering, can she really learn Da'an's knowledge?
After all, Her Royal Highness the Princess said that all of them must be admitted to Anjing University. What if they fail?
Her thoughts were in a mess, and as she thought, she finally fell into a deep sleep.
Early the next morning, they had to fetch water to wash their faces and then line up to go to the cafeteria for breakfast.
Two little girls and a young man from commoner families ate very seriously.
These foods were particularly precious to them. The soup noodles were delicious and contained meat and vegetables. When they were in Nanzhao, they would never be able to eat such good food.
For them, studying abroad is an opportunity to change their destiny.
The teacher said that it was forbidden to waste food, so everyone ate up all the food in their bowls.
After dinner, someone from the Ministry of Rites came to pick them up and familiarize them with the surroundings. They also brought something else: a Da'an-style messenger canvas bag.
Bai Manman had seen those students carrying this thing yesterday. At that time, she was very curious where to buy it. She would buy a few and give one to each of the girls.
"This is the backpack that all children who go to school in Da'an carry to carry their textbooks."
Bai Manman and others took it and tried it on their backs. It really looked like a Da'an student.
When they went out, they happened to meet some parents taking their kindergarten children to school.
Bai Manman was surprised and said, "Such a young child also needs to go to school? Isn't it said that you have to be at least seven years old to attend elementary school?"
An official from the Ministry of Rites explained: "These children attend pilot kindergartens, not primary schools. Kindergartens are not there to teach children to read, but to allow them to unleash their nature and learn self-care skills."
Pilot kindergarten? Another new term.
Bai Manman mostly encountered goods from Da'an in Nanzhao. Goods could still be brought in through trade routes, but Da'an's delicacies could not be transported across the trade routes.
Not long after walking, Bai Manman smelled the aroma of various delicacies.
She also saw people walking hurriedly past them carrying food boxes.
The official from the Ministry of Rites enthusiastically explained, "He's an idle man who makes a living by delivering food."
"Food delivery?" Bai Manman was curious.
"Yes. On this street, just call a random guy, tell him which restaurant you want to eat at, pay a delivery fee, and he will deliver the food to your door."
Bai Manman and several officials' sons couldn't help but sigh: "It's so convenient!"
The dormitory for foreign students was very close to the primary school. After they arrived, the officials from the Ministry of Rites asked them if they remembered the way. If not, they were to turn back and walk again.
Repeat this several times until they know the way.
When we returned to the international students' dormitory, the international students from Xiping had also arrived.
The two sides met at the door and the scene was very quiet for a while.
As the leader of the Nanzhao international students, Bai Manman naturally did not want to lose in terms of momentum, and his face showed disdain and indifference.
The people of Xiping were not to be outdone, and each of them looked arrogant.
Bai Manman led the Nanzhao international students into the dormitory, completely ignoring them.
After they had walked away, a young official spoke freely, "I really don't want to live in the same courtyard with the people of Xiping."
"That's right, I don't know what the heck is going on with that braid. It's completely lacking in aesthetics. It's just so ugly."
"Can people from Xiping learn the knowledge of Da'an?"
"I don't think they're educated. They don't look like they are."
"That means we have to study even harder. It would be shameful if we lost to the Xiping students in the midterm and final exams."
The people of Xiping have the same idea.
The five people whispered at the door:
"Your grades may not be as good as those of the Da'an students, but you must never lose to those people from Nanzhao."
"That's right."
"Let's go in first."
After settling in for a while, the people of Xiping went to the cafeteria for dinner.
The canteen is public and everyone eats here.
The people of Xiping and Nanzhao once again staged a drama of "treating each other as air", eating their own food and ignoring each other.
In this way, the two groups ignored each other until the day the elementary school opened.
During this period, international students from Xiping and Nanzhao all changed into Da'an clothing.
However, the people of Nanzhao still wore silver jewelry, and the people of Xiping still had braids in their hair.
This was the first time that the Nanzhao and Xiping international students had a formal experience of Da'an's education. Everyone felt a little nervous as they sat down.
The most embarrassed one was Bai Manman.
This is the first grade. Looking around the entire class, there is no one of her age.
There seemed to be no pattern in the class division. There were only her and two other Nanzhao international students in this class. The others were probably assigned to other classes.
Of course, there were also the Xiping people in the classroom whom she hated the most.
Bai Manman wasn't troubled by her first Chinese class. Nanzhao and Da'an used the same writing system, and although she hadn't read much, learning to read wasn't a problem.
The teacher started teaching from the simplest characters, and Bai Manman even had room to daydream.
But when it came to math class, Bai Manman was not so calm.
She couldn't understand those winding tadpole symbols at all.
While studying, she secretly observed the expressions of the two foreign students from Xiping in the class.
Seeing that they were more anxious and confused than herself, Bai Manman felt slightly relieved.
It doesn’t matter whether I can learn it or not, as long as I don’t lose to the people of Xiping.
The first math class was about simplifying numbers. After some effort, Bai Manman finally memorized all the numbers, although her handwriting was still a little crooked.
When the teacher asked questions, she even raised her hand to answer.
When she finished answering the questions and sat down, she caught a glimpse of the two Xiping people with "broken" expressions on their faces.
Bai Manman became even more determined: she would try harder to answer questions in the next math class.
I'll make them mad to death.
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