Chapter 76 Eating in the Kitchen
Three days later, Sun Boming, Sun Ershu, and Ming Ge'er followed the escort agency to the city, carrying large and small bags.
Huang and the village chief asked the three of them to carry all the local specialties they could bring back home. Since it was a rare opportunity for them to go down there, they must bring some authentic food from Sunjia Village for the He family to taste.
Before leaving, Huang gave three red envelopes, one for each of them, hoping that everything would go smoothly and they would be safe and sound.
Huang also secretly went to Uncle Sun's house and gave Ming Ge'er 2 taels of silver as his living expenses. She repeatedly told him to listen to his aunt, saying that his aunt was his only relative in the city and she was the only one who would not harm him.
Only after sending the three people to the village entrance did Huang and Aunt Sun feel willing to go home.
Sun Shan and his two companions were listening to Master Zheng sharing new knowledge in class.
On the surface, "Three Character Classic" has only 1,145 words, but each sentence contains a story and many truths.
Master Zheng first teaches you to recognize and read characters, and then tells you the stories behind them and the principles that are derived from the stories.
After listening to the Master's story, Sun Shan wrote down each story with charcoal pencil. If he forgot something, he would ask the Master for help.
Of course you have to write secretly, otherwise you won’t be able to explain it. You will know so many words, and many of them will be missing some parts.
After two months of teaching, Sun Shan had already taught himself the "Three Character Classic".
According to memory, secretly write down the story and moral of each sentence. When Master Zheng comes to this point, make corrections and see if there is any difference between your understanding and what he said.
Currently, Sun Shan has 4 books. He has finished learning "Three Character Classic" by himself and is preparing to read "Thousand Character Classic". He cannot read some characters in Beijing dialect yet, but that does not prevent him from reciting, recognizing and practicing characters in Guangnan dialect.
Sun Shan planned to finish reading the four books within one year, and then finish "primary school" in the next year.
At that time, I was 8 years old and officially transferred to the county town as a scholar to study the Four Books and Five Classics.
Go to Zheng Dalang's bookstore and pay to read books, because you have to pay. It's just like the novel rental and sales shops in the past, where the boss rents out novels. There is no free library here.
Sun Shan thought about what he could do to make some money.
Regarding the family's fields, Sun Bomin would not listen to Sun Shan's advice. He was very stubborn and would not believe what the boy said.
Want to sell some recipes? I don’t know if there are any restaurants that will buy them. I am a terrible cook. In my previous life, I either ate in school, in the company canteen, or went out to eat. I have never cooked before. So this path has long been ruled out.
I know how to make soap, but the materials are expensive and I can't sell them. Huangyang County is a poor county with low consumption. Others' free and natural soap nuts are also very useful, not to mention rice water and earth ash, which are essential household cleaning products.
The only thing Sun Shan could think of was to grow small potted plants in exquisite pots, and then go to the provincial capital to sell them when the New Year is approaching.
Sun Shan never thought of selling in the county town. There was no one to buy here, and only a few rich families bought them. But others had fixed channels.
Sun Shan thought that every time the New Year was approaching, he would go to the provincial capital to sell tangerines and local specialties of Sunjia Village to the He family.
Thinking of hitchhiking and going with them to sell.
As long as you make it exquisitely enough and cheaply enough, I believe people will buy it.
I remember that in my previous life, a head of lettuce, a few onions, a few stalks of celery, and a few small carrot seedlings were put into a small flowerpot. Many people who liked the luck would take two pots home and display them from New Year’s Eve to the fifteenth day.
It means: making money, being smart, hardworking and healthy.
Sun Shan thought that he could plant some small potted plants with good meaning, good looks and affordable prices, which would surely be sold. As for large plants like New Year oranges, he did not plan to plant them.
First, the training cost is high, and second, the transportation cost is high.
This plan had to be carried out secretly. If Sun Boming and Su knew about it, they would definitely stop it and think that I was dreaming and having unrealistic ideas.
He could only ask his sisters at home for help, and their sisters would respond to Sun Shan's every request.
After the morning class, Sun Shan and the other two went to the kitchen, took their lunch boxes, and ate directly in the kitchen. It was raining outside, and the stone steps were wet and no one could sit on them.
Zheng Bo invited everyone to the kitchen to eat, as he was worried that the students would catch a cold while eating outside.
Fortunately, the kitchen is big enough and there are not many students. Fourteen people squatting in the kitchen to eat is also a different experience.
Sun Shan took a look at De Ge'er's meal, which was sweet potato rice, a boiled egg and stir-fried cabbage hearts.
Sun Shan looked at his own food, fried shrimp, eggs and leeks. The bacon was finished, and it was impossible to buy fresh meat every day.
I took another look at Yang Qingbei. He was worthy of being the son of a landlord. He had meat for every meal. Today he had pork fried with bamboo shoots and lettuce.
De Ge'er was drooling with envy, but Yang Qingbei was not Shanzi, so he could not be greedy for his food. He turned his head away forcefully and did not look at his food.
Dingnan, the eldest grandson of the village chief, asked, "Ah Qing, is your eldest brother in Guangzhou?"
Qing Ge'er nodded and said, "Yes, I'll go with my father and my uncle. They should be here tomorrow."
Another student from a large class said enviously, "A-Ming has a good place to go. I will be leaving school next year, and I don't know where to go?"
Sun Shan could understand this feeling. After studying for so many years, he would always feel anxious and uneasy when he suddenly didn't have to study anymore and had to leave school.
Dingbei, the second grandson of the village chief, said: "A Ming is lucky to have a good aunt. We can only rely on ourselves."
My biggest hope is to find a job with a stable income so I don’t have to work in the fields like my parents did.
A student from the next village said, "Ah Qing, I heard that your eldest cousin passed the Tongshi exam and is now a Tongsheng. How old is he this year?"
De Ge'er was lively and answered first: "My eldest cousin is only 17 years old. His teacher said that if he passes the exam in August, he will be a scholar."
Hearing this, everyone was envious and admired.
Yang Qingbei asked softly, "Shanzi, your eldest cousin is only 17 years old, is he a student like your teacher?"
It's amazing! Master Zheng is considered a great scholar in the area, and I heard he is also a famous scholar in the county. But cousin Shanzi is even more amazing, he is only 17 years old and has a bright future.
De Ge'er answered first: "My eldest cousin is the best. He has been good at studying since he was young. Sooner or later he will pass the imperial examination and become a high-ranking official."
When everyone saw De Ge’er acting like an arrogant cousin who was so great, they really wanted to beat him up.
But what he said might really come true. He is a young master of Guangzhou Prefecture and was born into a scholarly family in the provincial capital. It is normal for him to become a high-ranking official.
Sun Shan had heard from Master Zheng that the He family, a direct branch of the Guangzhou family in the capital, had the highest-ranking official currently serving as a third-rank vice minister, and some of their children were in the Hanlin Academy.
My cousin really has a chance to pass the imperial examination and become an official.
Sun Shan had never met He Shujin. He had only come to Sunjia Village when he was very young, but after that his father and mother did not allow him to come with them.
After all, the road is long and mountainous, so it would be dangerous even if you follow the escort.
The He family doesn't want anything to happen to their most promising grandson.
Every time Aunt Sun came back to visit her parents, either the second cousin or the third cousin would come with her, but the eldest cousin was not allowed to go.
I heard that my cousin is more important to Mr. He, Ms. He, and the old lady of the He family than the eldest son of the He family.