Chapter 25

Chapter 25

The private school's target students were clearly defined: children who were just beginning their education or had not yet started. As Chen Qingyan himself put it, he hadn't yet attained encyclopedic knowledge and didn't wish to mislead anyone.

There were many children in town, but only a handful could afford schooling, a fact that troubled both of them.

Wang Ying promptly began writing flyers to recruit students.

"School Notice: The Chen Family Private School is now enrolling students aged five to fifteen.

Have you ever been deceived because you couldn't read? Have you ever been swindled because you couldn't count? Do you want your children to suffer the same fate?

Send them to learn to read! With knowledge, you can go anywhere.

Expert instructor, a *Tong Sheng* scholar teaching. Guaranteed learning. Three days free trial!"

After drying the ink, Wang Ying shook the rough paper and asked, "How does this look?"

Chen Qingyan covered his face, his ears burning with embarrassment. "Should we change 'suffer the same fate'? I'm afraid they might not understand it."

Wang Ying picked up his brush, crossed out the phrase, and changed it to "end up like you." "How about this?"

"Mhm, mhm, mhm." Chen Qingyan nodded hastily, too mortified to look a second time. It was simply too embarrassing.

"How much should we set the tuition at?"

"I'm not sure. You decide."

"Qing Song's current school charges two hundred *wen* a month. Let's set ours a bit lower, say one hundred and fifty *wen*. What do you think?"

"Sounds good."

"Then it's settled. I'll copy a few more and have Er Shun post them in prominent places and spread the word."

The recruitment flyers were posted, but on the first day, not a single person came to inquire.

On the second day, someone finally showed up, asked about the tuition, but shook their head and left upon hearing it was one hundred and fifty *wen* a month.

It wasn't until the third day that they welcomed their first student. The child's surname was Feng, named Feng Zhang, the son of the town's grain shop owner, just seven years old.

Proprietor Feng's purpose in sending his child was simple: he didn't expect him to become a *Juren* or *Zhuangyuan*, just to learn to read and count so he could understand account books in the future.

He had previously sent the child to two other schools, where the old masters taught nothing but classical texts all day. If he didn't learn, he'd be caned, making him hate studying and refuse to go.

Hearing about the new private school in town, he came to inquire.

Wang Ying patted his chest and guaranteed, "We absolutely will not hit the children. You can let him try for three days. If he truly can't adapt, it's perfectly fine if he doesn't come back."

Proprietor Feng nodded in satisfaction and said he would bring his child the next day.

*

Early the next morning, before dawn, Chen Qingyan began selecting his clothes for the day.

"How about this black one? Is it too formal? What about this green one? Is it too flamboyant? And this blue one... What if the students' parents see how young I am and don't trust me?"

Wang Ying lay in bed, propping his chin. "Don't worry, you'll look young no matter what you wear." At just seventeen, he was indeed quite young.

Chen Qingyan sighed with a hint of distress. "I wish I were a few years older."

"Wait, I have an idea." Wang Ying jumped out of bed barefoot, found a pair of scissors, cut a lock of hair from the end, and used pigskin glue to attach a fake beard to him.

"W-will this work?"

"As long as you don't pull it hard, no one will notice."

Chen Qingyan looked in the mirror doubtfully and was startled by his reflection. It was so ugly!

"Hey, hey, don't pull it off! As the saying goes, 'a beardless man is unreliable.' With this beard, people will trust you. Otherwise, if they see you're about the same age as their son, who would hire you to teach?"

After breakfast, they went to the classroom, swept the floor, and wiped the desks. It wasn't until the *Chen Shi* (mid-morning) that Proprietor Feng finally arrived with his son.

Feng Zhang looked as if he was carved from the same mold as his father: chubby, with two hair buns on his head, and dressed in a ginger-yellow outfit. He was so nervous upon seeing Chen Qingyan that he stammered.

"This is Teacher Chen. He will teach you to read and write from now on."

"I don't want to learn! I don't want to go to school! Waaaah!" The child wailed at the top of his lungs.

Chen Qingyan stood there, at a loss. It was the first time he had encountered such a situation.

Proprietor Feng was also a bit embarrassed. He had already made arrangements, and backing out now would seem untrustworthy. He simply pushed his son aside and said, "You have to learn, whether you want to or not. Otherwise, who will manage the shop in the future?"

The child cried even louder, like a bagpipe, making everyone's eardrums ache.

Seeing this, Wang Ying took a tomato from his pocket, knelt beside the chubby child, and said, "Little one, don't cry. Tell Uncle why you don't want to go to school."

"Th-the teacher always hits people."

"Our teacher doesn't hit people. Even if you can't learn, he won't hit you."

"Really?" The chubby child stopped crying.

"Of course, it's true!" Wang Ying handed him the tomato. "I can tell you're a brave, good child. This sweet fruit is a reward for you. If you can last the day, I'll give you another one tomorrow."

Little Fatty Feng curiously picked up the tomato, sniffed it, and couldn't resist taking a bite. The sweet and sour taste made his eyes widen instantly.

"Dad, this fruit is delicious!"

Proprietor Feng also swallowed. "What kind of fruit is this? I've never seen it before."

Wang Ying seized the opportunity and took out another one, handing it to him. "This fruit is called a tomato. You can eat it as fruit or cook with it."

Proprietor Feng held the fruit, examining it. "Where can I buy it?"

"You can't buy it right now. My fourth uncle brought it from Laizhou last time. We don't have much left at home."

"I see."

"However, when our shop opens soon, if you enjoy it, Proprietor Feng, you can come and buy some. They'll be fresh fruits transported directly from Laizhou."

"Oh my, transporting it from so far away must make it quite expensive, no?"

"With your family's wealth and business, is the cost of a few fruits really an issue?"

Proprietor Feng smiled and stroked his beard. "Alright, I'll come take a look when you open."

After seeing Proprietor Feng off, Little Feng Zhang's lip trembled, about to cry again.

Wang Ying took his small hand and led him to his seat. "The teacher truly doesn't hit people. I'll sit right here with you during class."

"Okay!" The child, won over by a tomato, immediately considered Wang Ying an ally. With him sitting nearby for courage, he was no longer afraid.

Chen Qingyan cleared his throat and began his first-ever lesson.

Many years later, when he was already of advanced age, he still vividly remembered this lesson. Wang Ying's determined gaze had supported him step by step as he walked to the podium and picked up the brush to write his own destiny.

*

Chen Qingyan's health couldn't handle excessive strain, so he only taught for half a day each day.

The first day of teaching was relatively successful. By noon, the little chubby boy had learned to write his own name and count from one to nine.

Feng Zhang, being young, was a bit playful and often zoned out after listening for a while, lost in his own thoughts. Chen Qingyan didn't get angry; instead, he would ponder with him, and when the child refocused, he would continue teaching.

When Mrs. Feng came to pick up her son at noon, Feng Zhang didn't cry or fuss. Instead, he held his mother's hand and said, "I want to come back tomorrow!"

Mrs. Feng hadn't expected her son to undergo such a change in temperament and actually take a liking to studying. As a mother, she was more than happy to support this, so the next day, Little Fatty Feng appeared at the door on time.

This time, he wasn't alone—he brought along his two cousins.

These two boys were in a similar situation. They had previously attended other schools for a few days but couldn't focus on their studies. Hearing that the new private school had a gentle teacher who didn't resort to physical punishment, they decided to give it a try together.

With more children in the classroom, Chen Qingyan taught with even more energy. His voice was pleasant, and his explanations weren't as convoluted as those of the old scholars. When the children acted up, he would only scold them a few times without resorting to physical discipline.

Most importantly, at the end of the school day, the teacher's husband would reward each well-behaved child with a red fruit.

And these fruits were absolutely delicious!

In ancient times, food supplies were limited, and tasty treats were even rarer. After tasting them once, the children couldn't stop thinking about them. Some even began asking when the Wang family's shop would open.

*

Seeing that the timing was about right, Wang Ying picked an auspicious day, and the shop finally opened.

He had previously moved the vegetables and fruits from the experimental field into bamboo baskets, covered them with burlap, and loaded them onto a mule cart. He then had Dun Zi drive the cart outside the town.

At daybreak, they re-entered the town from outside, pretending the goods had been transported from afar.

Shi Dunzi was simple and honest, not daring to question why the master was doing this. He simply followed instructions and understood his role.

Early in the morning, the whole family came to the shop to help.

Er Shun climbed a ladder to hang up the shop sign. On the bluish-green sign were embroidered four large characters: "Wang's Vegetable Shop."

The sign was sewn by the mother-in-law, with Qing Yun helping to embroider the characters. The fabric was of high quality, and once hung, it outshone all the other shops on the street.

As baskets of fresh vegetables were unloaded from the mule cart, people from nearby shops came out to see what was happening.

After all, it was already October, and frost had settled on the northern fields. The only vegetables ordinary people could eat at this time were stored radishes, cabbages, and sweet potatoes, along with some dried vegetables.

Such fresh vegetables were not only rare to eat—they were rarely even seen.

"Shopkeeper, where did these vegetables come from? How are they so fresh?"

Wang Ying replied, "They were brought from Laizhou. My fourth uncle is an official there, so we have some connections. We thought we'd bring some vegetables from there to sell."

Some people didn't believe this explanation. The journey from Laizhou to the town took seven or eight days—no matter how fresh the vegetables were, they would wilt after that long. Yet the vegetables in these baskets still had dew on them!

Whether they believed it or not, there was no way to dig deeper. After all, the family had official connections, so everyone just took it as an amusing story.

The owner of the neighboring sesame oil shop asked, "How much are these cucumbers?"

"Twenty *wen* per *jin*."

"Twenty *wen*? In the summer, they only cost two *wen*!"

Wang Ying smiled and said, "You said it yourself—that was in summer. What season is it now? Besides my shop, you won't find such fresh vegetables anywhere else."

"That's still too expensive. Are we eating gold?"

Those without money shook their heads and left. Wang Ying wasn't worried. These goods weren't meant for ordinary folks anyway—otherwise, how would he make money?

Besides, if he sold them too cheaply, the produce from the experimental field wouldn't be enough to sell.

After most people had left, Li Shi quietly asked, "Ying'er, where did these vegetables really come from? Wasn't Dun Zi still at home a few days ago?"