Chapter 11: Studying

Chapter 11: Reading

Gu Chaoning saw his reaction and smiled with satisfaction, his words carrying a hint of temptation. "Xue Geer, do you want to learn how to write your own name?"

Although Yin Hongxue was excited about his name, his gaze fell on the character that made him dizzy just to look at, and he hesitated for a rare moment.

Seeing that he wasn't taking the bait, Gu Chaoning raised an eyebrow, intrigued, and coaxed again, "Doesn't Xue Geer want to learn his own name? What about Papa's name, An Geer's name, and my name?"

As he spoke, he dashed off a few more strokes, not only completing Yin and Xue beside Hong, but also adding the names Gu Chaoning, Gu Muan, Chen Youyan, Gu Wen, Wang Xiuxiu, and Gu Daniu.

A piece of rough paper filled with names dangled and swayed before Yin Hongxue's eyes, the whole paper seeming to coax him.

"Chaoning Ge can teach Xue Geer whichever one he wants to learn~"

But even though Gu Chaoning pulled out all the stops, Yin Hongxue's mind kept conjuring the stern face of the private school tutor and the two-finger-wide bamboo ruler that fell on students' hands.

Yin Hongxue ventured cautiously, "Xue Geer doesn't have to sit for the imperial exams."

So, if he didn't need to take the exams, he didn't need to learn to write, right?

Gu Chaoning stopped waving the paper, his bright, clear eyes dropping to land on Yin Hongxue's shifty, guilty eyes.

Gu Chaoning's eyes crinkled, his smile warm and sunny, as if he completely agreed with what Yin Hongxue said.

Yin Hongxue, who had been sitting rigid and watching Gu Chaoning warily, slowly relaxed as Gu Chaoning smiled and began to smile too.

Seeing Yin Hongxue smile, Gu Chaoning's smile vanished just as quickly.

He quickly put on a straight face and said coldly, laying down the law, "Xue Geer has to learn whether he takes the exams or not. Starting tomorrow, you'll study with me for an hour every morning."

Yin Hongxue's smile froze. Watching this, Gu Chaoning's stern expression twisted into a wicked grin.

Then he said without a shred of mercy, with absolute certainty, "If you can't learn it, you'll get your palm smacked."

The image of the two-finger-wide bamboo ruler surfaced in his mind again. His worst fear had come true. Yin Hongxue clamped his lips shut, tears welling up in his big, pretty eyes.

But he didn't make a sound, as if he was stubbornly holding his breath. Yin Hongxue jumped down from the chair, grabbed his basket of peanuts, and stomped toward the door.

Stomp, stomp—two steps to the door, then he stopped as if remembering something, without turning back.

Maintaining that posture, he backed up to Gu Chaoning's desk, grabbed a handful of peanuts from the basket, and plopped them on the table. Only then did he stomp out, head down and fuming.

No more shelling peanuts for Chaoning Ge, ever! Yin Hongxue thought.

The little boy stomping off looked like a stubborn little bull. Gu Chaoning let out a chuckle and teased him deliberately, "You can ignore me all you want, but you still have to learn."

The little boy froze, then his heavy stomps turned into light, quick steps as Yin Hongxue took off running.

Gu Chaoning finally burst out laughing.

Yin Hongxue, look who's in this position now. In your past life, who was it who always looked down on my learning and called me a useless top scholar?

Gu Chaoning ground his teeth secretly, his resolve to teach grew even firmer.

Not just Yin Hongxue—Gu Muan had to learn too. Reading sharpens the wits, and he would never let his younger brother meet the same fate as in his past life.

Of course, if conditions allowed, it would be best for the whole family to read. But no need to rush it now; first, he'd start with the two little boys who were younger than him and easier to handle.

Gu Chaoning nodded to himself, quite satisfied with his decision.

Unaware that he had been given a new task, Gu Muan was walking home with Wang Xiuxiu, herding the ducks.

"Quack!" That was the duck strutting with its head held high.

"Quack quack!" That was Gu Muan imitating the duck's call.

"Oh dear, An Geer's imitation is so lifelike!" That was Wang Xiuxiu, beaming with joy at her little grandson.

*

Dry firewood sparked into blazing flames, with the occasional crackling sound of wood splitting.

In the covered large pot, chicken pieces simmered in a rich, savory sauce, sending up large clouds of fragrant steam.

Gu Muan sucked his fingers, standing at the kitchen door, drooling at the aroma wafting out.

He didn't mind the heat at all, craning his neck to peek inside.

Whenever he caught Chen Youyan's or Wang Xiuxiu's eye, he'd flash a fawning, ingratiating smile, hoping to score a piece of meat.

Chen Youyan found it both annoying and amusing, and once again shooed him away verbally, "You're like a little puppy! It's not cooked yet. Go help Xue Geer wash the vegetables!"

Yin Hongxue was sitting by the well washing vegetables. He took a deep sniff of the meaty aroma in the air, feeling like the lunch he'd eaten had already been completely digested.

Hearing Chen Youyan's words, Yin Hongxue smiled and raised his voice to call out, "An Geer, come quick! Xue Gege can't wash them all by himself. Can An Geer come help Xue Gege?"

Having received a plea for help from his Xue Gege, Gu Muan, who valued brotherhood greatly, answered loudly, "Okay!"

But even though he agreed, his feet seemed glued to the kitchen doorstep, unable to move an inch.

Yin Hongxue couldn't help but laugh and called out again.

"Okay!" Gu Muan replied just as readily. He took one reluctant deep breath, and only then did he leave, turning back every few steps with a look of deep sorrow.

Once he reached the well, the aroma was still strong, and Gu Muan was satisfied with that. He sat down on a small stool and began washing vegetables for his Xue Gege with great gusto.

Yin Hongxue found it amusing. He straightened up slightly and happened to catch sight of the figure practicing calligraphy by the wide-open window of the eastern wing.

It seemed only Chaoning Ge in the family was unaffected by the aroma of the wild mushroom stewed chicken, able to write with complete focus.

Yin Hongxue admired that, but the moment he remembered he'd be starting his own lessons tomorrow, he drooped his head in discouragement.

Gu Chaoning, who appeared to be the only one unaffected, slowly paused his writing, unhurriedly picked up a roasted peanut that had just come out of the pan, and popped it into his mouth before continuing.

Wang Xiuxiu and Chen Youyan timed things perfectly—just as Gu Daniu and Gu Wen arrived home, the wild mushroom stewed chicken was ready.

"Oh my, that smells amazing!" Gu Wen said, inhaling the air with great relish, loudly praising Wang Xiuxiu's and Chen Youyan's cooking skills. "I could smell it on the road and wondered who had such skill to make something so fragrant. Only when I walked in did I realize it was my own home!"

"Grandpa, Father." Yin Hongxue smiled as he greeted them and stepped forward to take the basket of utensils they'd brought on the cart.

Gu Muan had been listening to Chen Youyan go on and on all afternoon about how the chicken would be ready once Grandpa and Father came home, so seeing Gu Daniu and Gu Wen arrive made him excited.

He cried out happily and hurried over from the kitchen, but before he could throw himself at Gu Wen's legs, Gu Wen caught him by the shoulders and stopped him.

"Good boy, Father's clothes are dirty. I'll hold you in a bit."

With that, Gu Wen flashed a grin of white teeth, feeling quite pleased that the little boy missed his father so much.

The evening meal was lavish: besides the wild mushroom stewed chicken that had simmered for half the afternoon, there were stir-fried wild mushrooms with garlic, pan-fried tofu, roasted peanuts sprinkled with salt, cold wild amaranth tossed with hot oil, cold wild mint, and the usual two-plate combo of pickled cowpeas and water celery.

For the staple food, besides steaming fluffy white rice, Wang Xiuxiu also kneaded a batch of white-flour buns and set them on a rack over the rice pot to steam. Both staples came out of the pot together.

As soon as Gu Wen saw the steaming white rice and white flour buns being brought out, he praised loudly, "Oh wow, that's my mom for you! I was just craving some good white rice and buns."

Wang Xiuxiu smiled at his words, thinking, who wouldn't crave fine grains? When she was a kid and her mom made fine grains, she could eat a whole bowl plain.

But there was no need to say that out loud. Since her boy was praising her, she'd just smile and take the compliment.

The wild mushroom chicken had simmered for ages with plenty of seasonings. The chicken was fall-apart tender, rich with savory sauce and deep flavor. The chicken fat had rendered out completely, so it wasn't greasy at all, and thanks to the wild mushrooms, the meat had their unique umami aroma.

Paired with the freshly steamed, plump rice, one bite was so good you'd want to swallow your own tongue.

Everyone in the Gu family went for the wild mushroom chicken first. First bite was chicken, second was the mushrooms.

The wild mushrooms were already tasty, and after simmering so long with the chicken, they'd soaked up all that rich chicken flavor. One gentle bite and the juices burst out—they were every bit as good as the chicken.

Gu Muan was little, with only eight teeth in his whole mouth.

Luckily, the chicken was stewed soft, so Chen Youyan shredded the meat and mushrooms into small bits, mixed them with some broth, and stirred them into the rice for him.

Gu Muan, who'd been craving it all afternoon, ate with his head down the whole time.

Worried he might get sick of the taste, Chen Youyan picked up some cold wild amaranth salad and asked, "Want some of this?"

But ever since Gu Muan had started on solid food, there wasn't a thing he'd turn down.

Even though he asked, Chen Youyan had already brought the dish right to the edge of Gu Muan's bowl. Seeing him nod just as expected, he dropped it in.

Once everyone had gotten their first fix and slowed down on the eating, Gu Chaoning gave a little cough.

Then, like he was making a big announcement, he said, "Grandpa, Grandma, Dad, and Papa, starting tomorrow, I'm thinking of having Xue Geer and An Geer learn to read and write with me."

At that, everyone stopped what they were doing. Yin Hongxue's cheerful eating expression froze, and his raised brows sank.

Even his hand gripping the chopsticks started to ache faintly at the memory.

Gu Muan, happily eating, vaguely heard his brother call him and looked up, dazed. Seeing everyone staring quietly at Gu Chaoning, he looked at him too, all confused.

"Gege?"

Seeing his little brother's face as messy and colorful as a calico cat from eating, a smile crept into Gu Chaoning's eyes.

His little brother was so cute—if he learned to read and write and got some sense, he'd be even cuter.

Gu Chaoning: "An Geer, do you want to learn to read and write with your big brother from now on?"

Yin Hongxue looked at Gu Muan, sure his little brother would refuse just like he had...

"Okay!" Gu Muan agreed without hesitation.

For Gu Muan right now, as long as he was with his brother, anything was fine and everything was fun.

Gu Chaoning smiled, satisfied, while Yin Hongxue felt his world come crashing down.

Chen Youyan frowned at Gu Chaoning.

But before he could say anything, Gu Chaoning, knowing exactly what his dad was worried about, went on, "It won't hold back my own studies. Plus, while I'm teaching them, I can review what I've learned."

"Learning to read and write sharpens the mind and builds character. It's a good thing. If Dad's got free time this winter, he should learn a bit too."

Gu Wen agreed. He raised his brows, about to chime in, but Chen Youyan—who'd been driven crazy learning a few characters with Gu Wen—immediately looked away.

He jumped in first, "Alright, alright, let Xue Geer and An Geer study with you, just don't let it get in the way of your own work."

"Papa, during the winter..."

"Alright, alright, let's eat."

...