"Come on, Rui'er, time is precious. Your brother-in-law will start tutoring you now. Your brother-in-law will give you a question first. As the saying goes, it's best to start well and end well. Your uncle tested the opening sentence of your "Petition to the Emperor" this morning. So tonight your uncle will most likely test the ending sentence of your "Petition to the Emperor", which is 'If I live, I will die with my head cut off. If I die, I will tie a grass knot. I am overwhelmed with fear and trepidation, so I respectfully submit this petition to let you know.'"
At the desk, Zhu Ping'an sat next to the naughty kid Rui Ge'er, unfolded a book, and spoke in a gentle and elegant manner.
"Well, my brother-in-law is right about starting well and ending well. My father likes to test me by picking the beginning and the end."
The naughty kid thought about what his father had done before, and nodded vigorously, agreeing with Zhu Ping'an's words.
"'If I live, I shall die with my head cut off; if I die, I shall be buried with grass. I am so frightened that I am like a dog or a horse, and I respectfully submit this memorial to your attention.' What does this sentence mean?"
Zhu Ping'an looked at the naughty kid and asked with a smile.
The naughty kid shook his head and replied honestly, "Brother-in-law, I didn't listen carefully in class, so I don't know what it means."
"No, you know." Zhu Ping'an put one hand on the naughty kid's head, touched it gently, and persuaded him kindly.
"I know?" The kid was stunned.
"Yes, you know." Zhu Pingan nodded, then looked at the naughty child seriously and said, "Brother Rui, you are very smart. These sentences are not difficult. You have to believe in yourself and follow your feelings boldly."
"Well, brother-in-law, you are right. I also think I am very smart." The naughty child nodded without blushing at all.
"So, you have to believe in yourself and just follow your feelings." Zhu Pingan advised.
"Believe in yourself and follow your feelings..." the naughty kid repeated, agreeing with it deeply.
"Come, let's look at this sentence again. Minister, what does it mean?" Zhu Ping'an asked encouragingly.
"Me." The naughty kid replied.
"That's right, Rui Ge is indeed smart." Zhu Pingan smiled slightly.
“Haha, I’m not that good…” The naughty kid tilted his head up at a 45 degree angle and laughed like a bulldog.
"What does 'sheng' mean?" Zhu Ping'an asked.
"Alive." The naughty kid replied without hesitation.
"That's right, what about 'dang'?" Zhu Ping'an encouraged the naughty kid and then asked.
"Should." The naughty kid blurted out with confidence, feeling proud of his quick answer.
"Where is 'Yun'?" Zhu Ping'an asked again.
"Yun? What does 'Yun' mean?" The naughty kid was stuck and couldn't remember what Yun meant.
"It doesn't matter if you don't understand the meaning. Think of words related to meteorites, such as falling..."
Zhu Ping'an gave kind and persuasive advice.
"Fall." The kid slapped his head, "Yun means to fall."
"That's right, Rui Ge'er is awesome." Zhu Ping'an encouraged with a smile, praising the naughty kid so much that he was at a loss.
In this way, Zhu Ping'an broke down the sentence word by word and guided the naughty child to translate it.
"Then, let's connect all the words together. What does 'If I live, I shall die with my head cut off; if I die, I shall be buried with grass. I am overwhelmed with fear and trepidation, and I respectfully submit this memorial to report this to you' mean?" Zhu Ping'an asked the naughty child encouragingly.
"If I'm alive, I should lose my head. If I'm dead, I should be made into a hay bundle. I have a horrified expression that is worse than that of a dog or a horse. I carefully wrote a table for you to hear..." the naughty kid translated with the encouragement of Zhu Ping'an.
"Well done, Rui Ge, you did it." Zhu Ping'an gave the naughty kid a thumbs up with satisfaction.
"That's not difficult." The naughty kid was so cocky.
"Remember the key points, believe in yourself and follow your feelings. Let's continue. When your uncle tests you on your homework, he will definitely not just ask one question. He will definitely ask you several questions in succession. Rui'er, what lessons have you learned during this period? Your brother-in-law will give you some urgent tutoring." Zhu Ping'an said gently to the naughty child.
Linhuai Hou was so angry at the naughty kid at the dinner table at noon today that he almost vomited blood. He will definitely find a way to beat the kid up to vent his anger tonight. Zhu Ping'an estimated that he would not be able to vent his anger without seven or eight questions.
Of course, although the naughty kid will get a beating, your father can vent his anger. Besides, this is also for your own good... I believe that after today, the naughty kid will never make these mistakes again.
"Brother-in-law, you see, ever since my father brought me to this broken place, I have been forced to learn the poem "Mang" from the Book of Songs, the poem "On Teachers", the poem "On Horses", and the poem "Reconciliation between Generals and Prime Ministers"... "
The naughty child opened the book and spoke to Zhu Ping'an as he flipped through it, his words full of accusations against Linhuai Hou.
"Okay, let's start with the poem "Mang" from the Book of Songs, or the first line, 'The Mang is so stupid, carrying cloth to trade for silk. He doesn't come to trade for silk, but to plot against me'..."
Zhu Ping'an was very serious and responsible. He didn't even drink a sip of tea, and raced against time to help the naughty child with his studies.
"Brother-in-law, you are so nice." The naughty child raised his fat face and said, "I won't call you a bumpkin anymore."
"Be good, you will thank me more in the future." Zhu Ping'an rubbed the naughty child's head and said meaningfully.
What a scene of deep affection between brother-in-law and brother-in-law...
"Let's continue. What does '氓' mean?" Zhu Ping'an continued to tutor the naughty kid.
"I don't know what you mean." The naughty kid shook his fat face.
"Remember what your brother-in-law just taught you. Believe in yourself and follow your feelings." Zhu Ping'an advised.
"Rogue?" The naughty kid touched the back of his head.
"Correct." Zhu Pingan nodded reluctantly, then continued, "What does 'zhi' mean?"
"Yes." The naughty kid replied.
"Well, what about 'Chi'?" Zhu Ping'an continued to ask.
The naughty kid shook his fat face.
"Remember what I just said..." Zhu Pingan said.
"Believe in yourself and follow your feelings." Even the naughty kids have learned to answer quickly.
Zhu Pingan was very relieved, and then he looked at the naughty child and persuaded him again, "I have said before that it doesn't matter if you don't understand the meaning. Just think about the related words and feel that it is right..."
After Zhu Ping'an's reminder, the naughty kid seemed to have his Ren and Du meridians opened up all of a sudden, "Chi... hmph?"
"That's right." Zhu Ping'an nodded. The feeling of this naughty kid had exceeded his expectations.
"Come on, let's continue..." Zhu Ping'an broke down the words one by one, just like the previous sentence, to guide the naughty child.
"Put it together, what does this sentence mean, 'The rabble are so stupid, carrying cloth to trade for silk. They don't come to trade for silk, but to plot against me'?"
Zhu Ping'an looked at the naughty kid expectantly, believing that the naughty kid would be able to give him a surprise.
"A gangster came with a piece of cloth to exchange for my silk, but the bandit not only wanted the silk, he also wanted to rob me..." Sure enough, the naughty kid lived up to Zhu Ping'an's expectations and translated it successfully.
"Pfft... Rui Ge'er, you did a great job..." Zhu Ping'an was almost hurt by the naughty kid's translation, but he held back, reached out and touched the naughty kid's head, and nodded approvingly.
... ...
In this way, Zhu Ping'an gave the naughty kid a intensive tutoring session, and instilled the idea of "believe in yourself and follow your feelings" deeply into the naughty kid's mind, opening a brand new door for the naughty kid.
"Brother-in-law, please come visit me often..."
When leaving, the naughty child waved his fat paws wrapped in bandages, just like Teacher Fan Wei who bought crutches.
"Remember the two principles your brother-in-law taught you today." Zhu Ping'an looked back with a smile.
“'No investigation, no right to speak', 'Believe in yourself and follow your feelings'... ... ” The naughty kid remembered it very clearly.
Zhu Ping'an nodded with satisfaction, turned around and left, keeping his achievements and fame to himself.