Mrs. Zhu was silent for a moment before she slowly spoke, "Old lady, we really don't have the money to send Jun'er to school now."
Aunt Wu wanted to fight for it again, but uncle pulled her under the table and signaled her with his eyes. Only then did Aunt Wu nod reluctantly.
Because Zhu Ping'an is young and short, he happened to see his uncle's little movements under the table. He had a better understanding of his uncle and realized that his uncle was a very thoughtful person.
Yes, uncle! Going to the private school in the neighboring village is not feasible, but I still have my uncle at home. Although he didn't pass the exam to become a scholar, he is also well-versed in poetry and literature. If I learn traditional Chinese characters, wouldn't that be a way to save the country
"Then can I learn from my uncle?" Zhu Ping'an raised his little face, stretched out his little paws and asked.
Before the eldest uncle of the Zhu family said anything, the eldest aunt was already angry and gave Zhu Ping'an a lecture, "Little pig, your uncle has to review his studies for the exam. He wishes he could spend two days studying every day, so he has no time to teach you how to read and write. You can't afford to blame yourself for delaying your uncle's exam and becoming the top scholar!"
In short, the aunt looked disgusted! She looked very much like Wang Dachui's mother-in-law.
"Wait until I pass the exam and become a scholar, then I will teach you." Uncle Zhu's words were much nicer than aunt Zhu's, but they meant the same thing: rejection. One was blunt, the other more tactful, there was no difference.
Although I am still young, I don't rely on you to teach me. I am just looking for an excuse to slowly show off my knowledge.
If you wait until you pass the exam, the flowers will be cold. If what I saw when I entered the door just now was luck, then it is estimated that my uncle will not be able to pass the exam in the short term. Although the white luck column on my uncle's head is stronger than that of other people in the family, it is still white after all. White is the air of ordinary people. Green is the air of an official.
Zhu Pingan complained silently.
Although the food was not tasty, in the spirit of saving is glorious and waste is shameful, Zhu Pingan ate the cake in his hand and the porridge in the bowl cleanly, and even licked the bowl a few times. Who made him barely a little fat paper
Zhu Ping'an's good appetite is in stark contrast to the picky Zhu Pingjun from his uncle's family across the street.
"The second son's family, go and serve half a bowl of porridge to the little pig." Although the old man favors the eldest and youngest son's families, he is still very protective of his own children. Seeing Zhu Ping'an eating properly, his face was full of satisfaction, for he was afraid that the child would be hungry.
Every time this happened, Mother Chen always looked very proud.
When dinner was almost over, someone knocked at the door and brought a message from the town saying that my great-grandfather and his family were going to live with their son who was doing business in the south, and would not be able to come to worship their ancestors during the New Year, so they had to come to worship their ancestors' graves and bid farewell to them three days later before leaving.
Grandpa Zhu has three brothers and sisters. Grandpa Zhu is the youngest son. He has an older sister who married into the town. My great-grandfather went to the town as an apprentice since he was young, and also moved to the town after he got married.
Although we were separated by two different places, we could always see each other during festivals or market days.
Now, when Mr. Zhu heard that his eldest brother was going to move to the South and they would never see each other again, he could not help but sigh and went back to his room without even eating.
After the old man left, Mrs. Zhu, who was worried about him, followed him to persuade him, and everyone gradually dispersed and went back to their homes.
The news that my great-grandfather's family was moving to the south had little impact on the family members except Grandpa Zhu. After all, after my great-grandfather's family moved to the town, although their relationship was good, it was not that close. At most, they just had one less place to stay in the town.
Zhu's Courtyard is a bit like the Siheyuan in modern old Beijing, but it is slightly wider and more complex than the Siheyuan. It is divided into the main house and the side rooms. There is a well in the yard. The main house has three large rooms, one is used as a living room, one is the bedroom for Mrs. Zhu and Mr. Zhu to rest, and the other is the residence of the uncle's family. There is a side room on each side. The east side room on the left is where Zhu Ping'an's family lives, and the west side room on the right is half the size of the east side room, separated in the middle, where the third aunt's family and the fourth aunt's family live separately. In addition, there is a kitchen and a firewood room on the side of the courtyard wall near the gate.
The moon was bright and the stars were sparse. In the left wing, an oil lamp was lit. The light was as dim as a broad bean, not as bright as the moonlight shining through the window. Although the wing was not bare, there was nothing valuable in it. However, Chen kept the room clean and tidy, and the household items were arranged in an orderly manner.
Mother Chen was sitting at the table mending Zhu Ping'an's pants under the dim light, while father was sitting beside her doing some simple carpentry work.
Chen turned her head and bit off the thread. She put the clothes in her hand next to Zhu Ping'an and said, "Try to see if it fits you."
"It fits, of course it fits. It must fit if my mother made it. Mom, you are so kind." Zhu Ping'an grinned, his mouth as sweet as honey. His protest finally worked, and he finally didn't have to wear open-crotch pants anymore.
"You little bastard only knows how to sweet-talk you three. I owed you three in my previous life!" The mother complained, but her kindness could not be concealed.
"You have light during the day but you don't use it, and you waste fuel at night."
When my grandmother passed by the window and saw the lights on in the east and west wing rooms, she couldn't help but yell a few words, "These daughters-in-law are such spendthrifts, they waste so much oil. If they had saved the oil lamps at night, the money would have been enough for my eldest grandson to go to school."
"Oh, I got it, mother. I'll turn off the oil lamp right away." Father Zhu Shouyi replied immediately.
I still have other clothes that haven't been mended. Mother Chen was so angry that she glared at father fiercely, but father just smiled foolishly, which made mother so angry that she could not vent her anger and stared at father.
"Laugh, laugh, laugh. You just know how to smile foolishly. Your wife and children have been bullied to death by your mother, and you can only smile foolishly!" Mother Chen couldn't stand her father's weak look, so she went up and pinched his arm hard.
Zhu Shouyi was a sturdy farmer, and Chen's pinching had no effect on him. He still had a silly smile on his face. It was like a punch on cotton, which made Chen very angry.
"I'm so unlucky to marry you!" Chen was so angry that she poked Zhu Shouyi's forehead hard with her finger.
"I must have accumulated virtue for eight lifetimes to marry such a good wife like you."
Zhu Shouyi usually looks like a dull farmer, but what he said was of a very high standard, which immediately refreshed Zhu Ping'an's three views of this cheap father. It turned out that his father, who was three times more dull than Guo Jing, also had a sweet-talking side. Yes, otherwise how could he marry such a good woman like his mother.
Chen's face turned red. She had no shame and was not afraid of leading the child astray!
Looking at the beauty under the lamp, especially the rare shy side of the bold Chen, Zhu Shouyi was stunned for a moment.
"Brother, I'm so sleepy." Zhu Ping'an laughed and pulled his elder brother, who was meticulously weaving bamboo baskets, to the small bedroom in the wing separated by wooden boards to rest.
Uh, what follows is not suitable for children.
The hibiscus tent is warm and smooth, and the chanting sounds like nature's music.