During the lunch at the Xiao family, most of the students of Jiuzhang Hall, except those from official families and well-off families, ate with their mouths full of grease. If Lu Sanlang and Ji Jiu had not set an example as seniors and the head of the dormitory, eating in moderation and reserve, those students who had not tasted meat for a long time might have burped.
Of course, the presence of the Third Prince was also the reason why everyone was afraid to eat as much as they wanted.
After all, since Lu Sanlang had already undertaken the exclusive printing of the Ge Yong-Zhang Shou series of books, talented poor students could read books in the bookshop or even copy books and then go back to study, so that they could be admitted to Jiuzhang Hall. Therefore, their number was far greater than that of the well-off and wealthy children who were secretly studying mathematics but were more interested in achieving something in the imperial examinations and did not want to take the Jiuzhang Hall exam.
As for the top wealthy families, the third prince, Lu Sanlang and Ji Jiulang are the only three remaining representatives.
One is the third prince, who has status, money, leisure and does not care about his future. He has always been very well protected by the emperor. He has never thought about his future status at a young age. Whether in Banshan Hall or Jiuzhang Hall, Zhang Shou strictly looks after him, and Ji Jiu is also ordered to watch out for him and prevent him from being "contaminated" by others. But rather than saying that he really likes mathematics, it is better to say that he admires Zhang Shou, this special teacher.
Another one is Lu Sanlang, who was not favored by his father since childhood, but really likes arithmetic and has great business talent. Now even the emperor praises him as a prodigal who has turned over a new leaf. The last one is Ji Jiu, who is not valued at home. Although he has talent, it is not the best. He came here completely for the attention of Jiuzhang Hall, the popularity of his teacher Zhang Shou, and his future prospects.
This is the case for the three of them. Therefore, among the new first-year students in Jiuzhang Hall, the few students from well-off families are often not the eldest sons and grandsons who need to inherit the family business. They have no worries about food and clothing, and they don't like the imperial examinations. Their elders are also open-minded. Most of them don't put on airs when getting along with a group of poor classmates.
After having a satisfying lunch and thanking a Shandong cuisine chef for his superb cooking skills, they returned to Jiuzhang Hall in the afternoon. They saw Zhu Tingfang stayed at Xiao's house, and Zhang Chen, Zhu Er, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu actually followed them back and occupied the last row, as if they were there to attend the class for free. They couldn't help but gather in groups of three or five with other classmates and whisper.
Although the first graders at Jiuzhang Hall had only been attending classes for a few days, because the course was based on the textbook and they quickly skipped over the parts they had already mastered, they had now reached the increasingly difficult stage of plane geometry. In their opinion, could Zhang Chen and the others understand
Sitting in the empty seat in the last row, Zhang Chen heard the discussions coming from the front and suddenly felt angry.
Seeing Zhu Er's thick-skinned look, he couldn't help but snort, then hooked his fingers at Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu, "Remember to listen carefully later. Don't forget that you are the ones running a business outside, don't be outdone by a bunch of students."
Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu felt confident after their trip outside, and nodded immediately. However, when Zhang Shou actually started teaching, they listened attentively at first, relying on their previous experience in Banshan Hall, and finally managed to understand what he was saying, but at least they knew what he was talking about.