BXBX NOVEL Chapter 327 - 327: Disciple
Zhou Jia saw the girls standing upright with bright eyes and irrepressible smiles on their faces. He looked at Li Yu. “Are those children going to school
Li Yu smiled and nodded. “Yes! They’re learning needlework from Auntie Xue and Auntie Lin now. I want them to recognize a few more words and learn some arithmetic. When they’re released in the future, they’ll be looked up to. Sigh!” Li Yu sighed again. “Someone taught the girls needlework, but it’s too difficult for those boys to learn skills. Ruyi asked a few craftsmen, but they were unwilling to come to the farm to teach these children.”
Zhou Jia looked at Li Yu’s troubled expression and then at the children in the classroom who had changed. Thinking of how those children looked when they first came, he sighed and said, “Only you would treat these children so sincerely and think so carefully for them. You don’t have to worry about those craftsmen not being willing to teach you skills. They would learn calligraphy, arithmetic, and some methods of accounting. After learning them, it’s much better to go out and be an accountant than to be a craftsman.”
Li Yu’s eyes lit up. “That’s right! Why didn’t I think of that? You’re still the smartest. ”
Zhou Jia chuckled proudly. “Of course. Don’t you know whose husband I am? Li Yu rolled her eyes at him. “You sure know how to accept praise.”
Aunt Xue, who was standing at the side, whispered to Old Madam Yun, “Master and Madam are really a match made in heaven!”
Old Madam Yun smiled and nodded. “That’s right! Madam and Master are fated from their previous life!”
In the classroom, Mr. Lu and Mr. Liu finished lighting the children’s cinnabar moles. When the two of them saw Zhou Jia return, they hurriedly walked out of the classroom and greeted him. “Greetings, sir.”
“Sirs, there’s no need to stand on ceremony.” Zhou Jia smiled and helped the two of them up. “Madam has already prepared food and wine. Mr. Lu, Mr. Liu, follow me. Let’s celebrate.”
This was Liu Hanmin’s first time interacting with Zhou Jia. Seeing that he was easy-going and amiable, he bowed with Mr. Lu excitedly and said, “Yes, sir.”
Zhou Jia left with the two of them. The children came out of the classroom and pointed at the cinnabar mole on their foreheads for Li Yu and Auntie Xue to see. “Madam, Granny Xue, look at what Sir has done for us. Sir said that this is a cinnabar mole to enlighten us.”
Li Yu smiled and said to them, “You have to study seriously. Go back and eat now. Come to the classroom on time tomorrow morning.”
“Yes, Madam.” After the children agreed in unison, they followed Auntie Xue and the others back to the main room to eat.
Yangyang ran to Li Yu and pointed at the cinnabar mole on his forehead. “Mother, look, I have another one. Does that count as me becoming a student twice?
Li Yu looked at the cinnabar mole on Yangyang’s forehead and held his hand as they walked back. She smiled and said, “Last time, Mr. Lu did it in order for you to become his student. This time, Mr. Liu did it. This is equivalent to acknowledging two teachers and not becoming a student twice.”
“Oh!” Yangyang looked up at Li Yu and smiled proudly. “Mother, Sir even said that Brother Seven Pounds and I are Brother Shuisheng’s senior brothers!”
Li Yu looked at his smug expression and smiled. “Alright, after becoming a senior brother, you have to set a good example for your junior brothers. When I
call you to cultivate in the morning, you can’t stay in bed anymore.”
Yangyang lowered his head and hesitated for a while. He nodded and said,
“Alright, I won’t stay in bed anymore.”
When Seven Pounds heard this from the front, he turned around and looked at
Yangyang scratching his face with his fingers. He smiled and said, “Young
Master, you just stayed in bed yesterday morning.”
“Brother Seven Pounds, you’re so bad. You also stayed in bed last time.” Yangyang ran forward and grabbed Seven Pounds’ shy fingers. “Look, I won’t stay in bed tomorrow.”
Seven Pounds held Yangyang’s hand. “Alright, I’ll wake you tomorrow morning. You can’t go back on your word.”
“Yes!” Yangyang nodded heavily in agreement. The two of them ran off hand in hand.
Xiaoyu looked at their backs and turned to look at Li Yu with a smile. “Madam, Young Master is almost four years old. Why don’t you give him a brother or sister?”
When Li Yu heard this, she thought to herself that she hadn’t used contraception after giving birth to Yangyang. For some reason, she hadn’t been pregnant in the past few years. Perhaps fate hadn’t arrived yet! Li Yu smiled at Xiaoyu. “Let’s leave it to fate!”
Xiaoyu smiled and nodded. “Yes! My father often said that children are fated in their previous lives. Some are here to collect debts, and some are here to repay them. My mother often said that we’re debt collectors.” Xiaoyu touched her stomach and said with a melancholic expression, “Seven Pounds is already so old, but he hasn’t met the two elders and his uncle. I wonder how my father and mother are doing?”
Li Yu looked at Xiaoyu’s melancholic expression and missed Li Mei and Ah
Qing. “They must be fine. Let’s go back and see them when we have the chance.”
Xiaoyu wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked at Li Yu with a smile. “Madam, I’m fine. I just suddenly miss them.”
Li Yu smiled and shook her hand. The two of them split up in the courtyard.
After Xiaoyu returned to the house, Ruyi saw that the corners of her eyes were red. He looked at Xiaoyu worriedly and asked repeatedly, ‘Xiaoyu, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Old Master hasn’t returned yet. I’ll go find Master to take a look at you first.”
Xiaoyu hurriedly pulled him back and said with a smile, “I’m fine, silly. When I was chatting with Madam just now, I suddenly thought of my parents far away in Tongzhou. For some reason, my tears fell. Ruyi, ever since I got pregnant with this child, I feel that it’s different from when I was pregnant with Seven
Pounds. I think this child might be a daughter.”
Ruyi sat at the table with Xiaoyu in his arms and said happily, “Hello, daughter. When you grow up, you’ll be obedient and considerate. You’ll even make shoes and clothes for us. There’ll also be old wine to drink. You’ll be unlike that brat Seven Pounds, who often runs away without a trace. Xiaoyu, don’t worry about In-laws. When the child grows stronger, we’ll go back and visit them when we have time.”
When Xiaoyu heard Ruyi’s words, she smiled happily. “Yes! Hurry up and eat!
Did Seven Pounds follow Young Master to the main courtyard to eat again?”
Ruyi scooped a bowl of green bean porridge and placed it in front of Xiaoyu. “The brat hurriedly drank a bowl of porridge and ran away in a hurry with an egg pancake. He said that he had an appointment with Young Master to go to the drying field and play with Shui Sheng and the others.”
“This brat.” Xiaoyu smiled and picked up her bowl. “Let’s not care about him.
It’s not like he won’t be able to eat his fill when we go to the main courtvard?”
Ruyi laughed too. “That’s true.”
After Zhou Jia, Mr. Lu, and Mr. Liu ate and drank their fill, he brought the two of them to the study and said to them, “These children in the manor will be released to start a family when they reach a certain age. Teach them how to read and calculate. Teach the boys some ability to keep track of accounts. After they reach adulthood, they will also have the ability to settle down and support their families when they leave this place.”
Mr. Lu and Mr. Liu stood up and bowed to Zhou Jia. “Sir, you’re so righteous.
These lonely old people and children on the farm are all blessed..”