sjar Chapter 117 Not convinced
Chapter 117 Not convinced
The village chief of Huangcun came to Xishan Village in person to ask to see Lu Linlang.
"Master Lu, thank you for your help. We will do our best to grow the yams. You have been so kind to us. Not only did you take us in and provide us with food, but you also taught us better farming methods. We have no way to express our gratitude, so we can only come here in person. Master Lu, from now on, if you need anything, we in the deserted village will not say no."
"You don't have to be like this. Since we've arrived in Chongshui, it proves that we're destined to be together. I hope that our villages can work together to help each other and live a good life together, so that we won't have to suffer from hunger anymore."
"Mr. Lu has great righteousness in his heart. Don't worry, we are not the kind of people who would be ungrateful. Life here is much better than in the north. At least, we have our own land to farm, and it's not as cold as in the north. Even in winter, it's not freezing. Our descendants will take root here for generations to come."
The people in the deserted village are indeed hardworking, and they have lived here for so long without any conflicts with the local villagers. This is all thanks to the good guidance of the village chief. Lu Linlang is also willing to be neighbors with such people.
Soon, people in the deserted village began to dig wild yams in the mountains and plant them in their own reclaimed land.
Dahua also began to promote her own reading club in the county. With the participation of Yunyi and Master Li, it became less difficult for them to promote it.
Two days before the reading club, the village became noticeably more lively. Dahua directed her friends in an expert manner to decorate the entrances and exits of Xishan Village. Even the faucets in the village were woven with garlands.
The adults looked at their enthusiasm and smiled happily, lending a hand from time to time.
"Sister, please help me see if there's anything I haven't considered carefully. This time, with the help of Master Yun and the others, we've invited private school teachers and students from the county and surrounding towns. I estimate that at least a hundred people will come this time. I didn't expect so many people to come, and I'm worried that I might have done something wrong."
At first, Dahua thought there were only a few dozen people, but now that the number was far beyond her expectations, she asked Lu Linlang for help.
"Dahua, you're already very capable. Let me help you with some more suggestions." Lu Linlang pointed out several areas that needed improvement. Thinking that they were short of manpower, she arranged for the servants in her house to go and help.
On the day of the reading club, the weather was nice and sunny. The children had already woven flowers onto the fences of each house. When you entered the village from the entrance, you could see the beautiful scenery along the way. Even the elders would stop the smaller ones from destroying the flowers that the children had worked so hard to weave.
The reading club is located in the school. The current school is twice as big as the one built by the villagers before. The children are divided into several classes and taught according to their age and learning progress.
Therefore, everyone who came today can participate in the school. Lu Linlang also asked people to move a lot of books in. These books were re-copied by her and placed in the school. The children in the school can read here.
Students who come to participate today can read books here for free.
Early in the morning, when the villagers heard that many scholars would be coming, they subconsciously put on their own good clothes to avoid being laughed at. The children also put on clean clothes. Some were responsible for welcoming them at the village entrance and leading them to the school, while others were responsible for serving tea and water in the school, and were as polite as possible.
There are two private schools in Dahe Town, one is run by Zhou Xiucai and the other is run by Sun Tongsheng. The private school run by Zhou Xiucai has more students. This time he brought ten of his favorite students with him.
There are few children here at Sun Tongsheng's place, and most of them have no intention of taking the imperial examinations. They just want to learn more words so that they can find an easy job in the future, so there are only three students brought here today.
Two groups of people came together from Dahe Town. As soon as they arrived at the village entrance, they saw the unique scenery of Xishan Village.
"Other villages are all in a mess, but Xishan Village is truly a place where everyone studies. Even the elders at the entrance of the village are tinged with literary spirit. I heard that Scholar Yun once taught the Emperor, and Master Li is the eldest son of Mr. Li, the Tongzhi of Hezhou. It truly is a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery."
Sun Tongsheng's status was lower than Zhou Xiucai's. When he heard that Xishan Village was going to hold a reading club, he also wanted to come and see for himself and see the knowledge of Xishan Village.
However, Mr. Zhou was somewhat dissatisfied. In his mind, if the emperor had settled in Dahe Town, it would not be certain who would have taught him. Moreover, since the private school in Xishan Village was opened, he had fewer students from Xishan Village, and therefore fewer tuition fees.
He had heard that many families in Xishan Village had made money. If they had not opened a clan school, many people would have chosen to study with him. He did not know who this Yun Xiucai was, and he had never interacted with other teachers before. He only heard that he was a teenager in his teens. Could such a teenager really have the ability to teach students?
Mr. Zhou felt that he was just a young man who was a little inflated by the praise from the villagers. When it came to the imperial examinations, he might have some ability, but teaching was not something that just anyone could do. Back then, Sun Tongsheng had to work as his assistant for a long time before he could teach a few students at home.
"I heard that several students from Xishan Village want to take the imperial examination. They have only studied for a few years, but this is simply nonsense. This is not good for the students, but it will ruin their original intention of learning and easily undermine their confidence. I want to see if this teacher from Xishan Village is just a name."
After hearing what he said, Sun Tongsheng could only smile awkwardly.
After a while, two girls came up to them and asked about their identities and wanted to take them to school.
"From what I heard from the two girls' conversation, are you also studying in school?" Sun Tongsheng heard the two girls talking in a meaningful and not vulgar way. He remembered the rumors he had heard that many girls in Xishan Village were also studying in school.
"Master Sun, the girls in our Xishan Village can study in school like the boys." The two little girls said proudly.
"This is simply nonsense. Girls can study in the same school as boys. Boys and girls sit on different seats after the age of seven. It seems that this Yun Xiucai is just a figurehead. He doesn't even know this." When Zhou Xiucai heard this, he actually let girls study together. How could this be so disrespectful?
"Master, perhaps you don't know the rules of our Xishan Village. All men and women are treated equally. If a family doesn't allow girls of school age to go to school, it's against the rules of the clan. Boys in the family are also not allowed to go to school. Besides studying, we also help with housework and won't be delayed at all."
Dahua had warned a few people about this before. There must be some pedantic scholars who don't like the rules of Xishan Village, but they don't need to be afraid, and there is no need to argue with these people. They just need to explain the reasons to them.
"Master Zhou, I heard that this rule was set by Mr. Lu. There is nothing wrong with girls studying. Maybe they are thinking about getting married in the future, and knowing how to read is an advantage." Seeing that he was angry, Sun Tongsheng had to persuade him. Now they were in someone else's territory, and if he spoke like this, he was really afraid that he would be beaten out.
"Alas, the world is going downhill, the world is going downhill." Master Zhou also remembered how Xishan Village started, and now the emperor is also a woman. If he said it again, he would probably offend people, so he could only sigh repeatedly.