Chapter 793 - 408: Simplicity is a Blessing

Chapter 793: Chapter 408: Simplicity is a Blessing

He had finished scrubbing the clothes and already carried them down to the river to rinse.

Juhua picked up Cong, wanting to take a stroll by the river, but when she saw Banli staring at her with pleading eyes, she dismissed the thought. She had Pu Pao help her move the little cart with Banli and Jing’er in it under the peach tree to the east. Pointing to the wild chrysanthemums at the base of the wall and the gnarled old tree root, she began teaching them words.

None of the babies were old enough to talk yet. No matter how much Juhua chattered until her mouth was dry, they just giggled happily, at most offering a few babbles and coos as if to humor the person talking their ear off.

Grandma Liu sat on a small stool, sewing a little piece of clothing. She would occasionally look up at the babies with a benevolent smile and say, "Young Madam, you have such patience, always teaching them like this. When they start talking, they’ll surely know a lot of new words."

She didn’t quite understand Juhua’s methods. ’Can such young children even understand what she’s saying?’ But seeing that the babies were all happy, and that the Young Madam never forgot about Jing’er when teaching Banli and his sister, she felt nothing but gratitude.

Juhua smiled. ’Some people start teaching their babies while they’re still in the womb!’ she thought.

One by one, those who had gone out in the morning started to return.

Huai Zi was the first to come back. He set down his back basket—which didn’t contain much wood ear fungus—and frowned at Juhua. "I think someone stole the wood ears."

Juhua froze, remembering what her brother, Qingmu, had told her the other day. "My brother said someone has been coming to our village to steal chickens and ducks," she said quickly. "We can’t leave the logs with the wood ears on the mountain anymore. We have to bring them back."

Hearing this, Grandma Liu stopped her sewing and sighed. "It’s the lean season between harvests right now. Life is getting hard for some."

Huai Zi and Juhua exchanged a look and fell silent. Their anger over the stolen goods faded. Huai Zi didn’t bring it up again. After breakfast, he found some time to call over two hired hands, and they carried all the logs to the backyard, stacking them under the fruit trees.

Heipi was the next to return. He had been out grazing the ox. He sat on its back with a basket strapped to his own, filled to the brim with mushrooms, wild bamboo shoots, and some mountain flowers.

Ever since he had brought back such things once while grazing the ox, and both his sister and the Young Madam had loved them, he started taking a basket with him whenever he went out, picking whatever he came across.

Juhua and Pu Pao went forward, took the basket, and began sorting through the mushrooms and other items with delighted expressions.

"Young Madam, look! These rhododendrons are yellow!" Pu Pao exclaimed to Juhua, holding up a bouquet of blooming yellow flowers.

Juhua had already seen them. The mountains were covered in rhododendrons, which were extremely hardy. However, the purple and yellow varieties were quite rare, which was why Heipi had bothered to pick them. He was very thoughtful, having tucked the flowers into the gaps of the basket instead of piling them in with the mushrooms and bamboo shoots, saving them from being crushed.

She smiled and nodded, telling Pu Pao to find a coarse earthenware jar, fill it with water, and arrange the yellow rhododendrons inside. She then placed it casually among the wild chrysanthemums at the base of the courtyard wall. At a glance, the pale yellow of the rhododendrons against the green chrysanthemum shoots made them look as if they had grown there naturally.

She then turned to sorting the mushrooms and wild bamboo shoots herself. Huai Zi squatted beside her with a grin, helping to peel the shoots. "I saw a lot of these when I was up the mountain, too," he said. "Just didn’t have time to gather them."

Just then, both Jing’er and Banli started shouting. It turned out they had seen Heipi lead the ox into the backyard and were immediately protesting—a little drama that played out every morning.

Zhang Dashuan strode into the courtyard with a hoe over his shoulder. Hearing the commotion, he laughed. "Banli, you miss Grandpa?" Without even putting down his hoe, he stood before his grandson and chattered away at him, not caring whether the boy understood a word.

Juhua hurried inside to get him a towel and other things. Huai Zi helped by drawing a bucket of water from the well for his father to wash up. At this time of year, they used peeled willow twigs for brushing their teeth. They would chew the end and dip it in a bit of salt, which got them quite clean. In the past, they often didn’t even have salt to use.

When He returned from washing the clothes, Juhua and Pu Pao helped her hang them to dry. Aunt Liu then brought the food to the tables, calling everyone to eat. One table was set in the main hall, another in the kitchen. Liu Heizi hadn’t returned; he was eating with the other hired hands. Two women were specifically assigned to cook for them over at the reclaimed wasteland.

After the meal, Zhang Huai went to the village schoolhouse to tell Scholar Zhou the news he had gathered yesterday, though he omitted what Manager Song had said.

"I suspect that the Teacher had someone escort Yangzi and the others away, but it was misreported as them being ’captured’," he said to Scholar Zhou.

Scholar Zhou stroked his beard and nodded. "I also suspected it was my Fourth Uncle, I just wasn’t entirely certain. A letter confirming it should arrive in a few days. Heh, you can rest easy now, can’t you? With your younger brother entering the Imperial College, his future is secure."

His thoughts turned to his Fourth Uncle, that peerless figure of the Zhou family. After several rises and falls, he was once again a pillar of the imperial court. Scholar Zhou became lost in thought, not hearing a word Zhang Huai was saying, only seeing his mouth open and close.

A few years ago, his Fourth Uncle had been framed and forced to retire to his hometown. But he never even returned to the family home, simply leaving behind a letter before vanishing without a trace. Scholar Zhou had lamented this for years. Who would have thought he was living here in seclusion all this time?

After a long while, he finally composed himself and looked at the young farmer before him with unconcealed envy.

The reason he had immediately regarded Zhang Huai with new respect upon hearing he had studied by his Fourth Uncle’s side for two years wasn’t because of what he might have learned in that time. Rather, it was an honor few could ever hope to receive—even he himself had never been personally tutored by his Fourth Uncle, let alone lived with him day and night for two whole years, learning from his every word and action.

Even when his Fourth Uncle did take on students in the past, he was a high-ranking official and naturally had no time to provide daily guidance. At most, he would occasionally give a lecture at the Imperial College.

Therefore, he both envied Zhang Huai and felt it was a pity that he hadn’t persisted in his studies, letting such a rare opportunity slip away.

Huai Zi saw Scholar Zhou gazing at him with a distant look and didn’t know what he was about to say, so he just sat respectfully, waiting for him to speak.

Scholar Zhou was silent for a moment before saying to Zhang Huai, "It’s the busy farming season, so you should head back for now. Do not speak of this matter to outsiders—my Fourth Uncle detests people using his name for personal glory or profit, which is why my Zhou family has always acted with caution. Although your brother and the others were able to enter the Imperial College because of my Fourth Uncle, given his character, he would never have arranged such a thing himself. I fear this was a directive from the Emperor."

The new Emperor would never let go of a disciple who, given Fourth Uncle’s knowledge and experience, had been personally taught for five or six years and was so brilliant from the moment they entered public life. (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, please come to Qidian.com to vote with recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)