Reading is difficult. There are too few literate people in this world. One is because they have no money, the other is because they have no opportunities, and the third is because they are not smart enough.

In the past, there were no schools in several villages. Children had to go to the county town to study, but they barely had enough food and clothing. Even wealthy families could not afford to provide for their children.

It was Master Bai who moved his family to Qili Village. His two young men needed to study, so he went to the county town to hire Mr. Zhuang.

Although Mr. Zhuang did not pass the Jinshi examination, he was still a person who passed the imperial examination and had good moral character. If it was just an ordinary salary, how could he be willing to teach in a small mountain village like Qili Village?

Mr. Bai was reluctant to pay Mr. Zhuang such an exciting reward, so he finally thought of a way. The Bai family would pay to set up a school for Mr. Zhuang, give Mr. Zhuang's repairs to his family, and then give the nearby ones to others. All the children who are suitable for school are recruited, and each child also pays a share of the education. This money adds up to a lot, and the reward is rich.

This school was built by Mr. Bai, but it belongs to Mr. Zhuang. Mr. Zhuang has always been responsible for the education of students. Naturally, he has the final say on which students to accept.

But whether it was out of etiquette or because of his cooperative relationship with Mr. Bai, whether Man Bao could enter the school or not, he had to talk to Mr. Bai.

However, Mr. Zhuang feels that there is no need to rush this matter, because Man Bao is still young, so he can slowly learn some basics from him now.

After the Chinese New Year, when she is older, she will enter school.

It is already rare that the Zhou family is willing to let Manbao go out to study.

When Mr. Zhuang first came here, he enrolled students in several nearby villages. The adults also knew the benefits of studying. They raised their heads and advised their nephews to work hard to make money in the future and go to school if they had the chance. When he lowered his head and saw the desire in the eyes of the girls, But he was admonishing and scolding, "Why are girls joining in the fun? Go home quickly, are you allowed to watch this academic thing?"

Man Bao lay outside the window and eavesdropped, which caused an uproar in Qili Village at first. This child was young and didn't know anything.

But Mr. Zhuang knew that a clan elder in Qili Village came to Mr. Bai and asked him to dismiss Xiao Qian from his post, so that Man Bao would not always eavesdrop on classes and ruin the atmosphere of the village.

It was he who stopped him.

Firstly, Xiao Qian was indeed diligent and not too busy. Secondly, he liked Manbao very much at that time.

Therefore, it is said, “Everyone has the desire to learn, why should we stifle it?”

Then more children came to the windows to eavesdrop. At most, the two windows were full of people, all boys.

This is a very immoral behavior among scholars, but it was Mr. Zhuang who said it, so he naturally cannot differ from person to person.

Because of this incident, several students immediately dropped out of school. Their parents came to pick up the children, then turned around and rushed their children to the window to study secretly.

Mr. Zhuang was furious at the time, but he could only keep his anger in his heart and pretended that he could not see the people outside the window.

But not everyone is like Man Bao.

Manbao was just over a year old at the time. She had just learned to speak and was still unsteady on her feet. She didn't know enough about the outside world and was not playful. She could sit on the doorstep and play quietly all day long. When she was happy, she would follow the classroom The children there read a few sentences, and when they got upset, they poked the ants with a small stick and played for a long time.

But the children outside the window were the youngest seven years old and the oldest ten years old. They were the most restless and playful at the time.

In less than five days, they were almost done by themselves. The parents of the students who dropped out did not say anything when they saw that their children had stolen nothing, and they had almost forgotten all the words they had learned before.

I was so angry that I had no choice but to send the child back again.

From then on, few boys came to eavesdrop, but one or two girls began to lie cautiously outside the window.

But before Mr. Zhuang could react, the parents of the girls were the first to get angry.

They would first pull the girl away, then beat and scold her, "Can you listen to reading? I think you are too arrogant. If you have time to cut pigweed, pull weeds in the fields, and collect firewood from the mountains, you

How come there is no work at all in my eyes, how can I get married in the future..."

In fact, some of the ideas here were also those of Mr. Zhuang.

For example: it is more important for boys to study than for girls, and he also values ​​boys more.

But I don’t know if it’s because he’s older that Mr. Zhuang thinks more; or if it’s because people tend to have a rebellious mentality when they encounter things they don’t understand.

Anyway, before he knew it, he changed his mind a lot.

In particular, Manbao is getting bigger and bigger day by day, showing that he is getting smarter and smarter every day.

She leaned against the window and memorized more books than the students studying in the classroom, and she recognized no fewer words from his manuscripts than the students studying in the classroom.

She was also filial, knowing that after listening to his lessons, she knew to call him sir, knew to clean his yard and clear his desk...

He was sick, and the serious students ran out as soon as they heard that they could have a holiday, but she knew that she was wandering around the yard to pour him a cup of hot water, and even took his clothes back to clean for her sisters-in-law...

She would also pester her mother to bring him an extra egg.

He knew that the Zhou family loved their youngest daughter, but he was not sure whether they would allow her to study.

Therefore, in order to increase this possibility and allow this incident to develop in a healthy way, he would not ask Shu Xiu or even ask the Zhou family to buy pen, ink, paper and inkstone for Man Bao.

He was pleasantly surprised by the importance the Zhou family attached to it.

Because they not only brought a piece of bacon, but also a suit of clothes and a pair of shoes.

Mr. Zhuang couldn't help but laugh. It seemed that the Zhou family really valued this young disciple enough, so he accepted it with a smile.

Lao Zhou was relieved to see him and quickly asked Man Bao to kneel down and kowtow to Mr. Zhuang and serve tea.

Mr. Zhuang took the tea, took a sip, and gave Man Bao a set of pens, ink and inkstones he had prepared early in the morning, and, oh, a handful of chopped green onions from the backyard.

Mr. Zhuang was very happy to have accepted such a smart disciple.

Old Zhoutou and his two sons were also very happy. After listening to Mr. Zhuang's words, Manbao didn't need to buy any more books for the time being. He could just copy whatever he needed when the time came.

The three of them glanced vaguely at the things Man Bao held in his arms, thinking that they already had pens, inks and inkstones, so they could buy some paper for the child later and everything would be done.

Although the family has an extra expense, it is much less than they expected. Of course, the three of them are very happy.

Manbao was also very happy. Everyone was happy to receive a gift, not to mention that it was from Mr. Zhuang, whom she liked.

Everyone was delighted.

Lao Zhoutou wanted to invite Mr. Zhuang home for dinner, which could be regarded as a celebration of Man Bao's apprenticeship.

Mr. Zhuang shook his head and refused, saying: "There are still classes today, so I'll come and bother you another day."

Only then did Lao Zhou remember that Mr. Zhuang still had classes, and he immediately felt uneasy.
Chapter completed!