Chapter 166: Friend Hong Jian
After lunch, Sun Bomin and Su sent Sun Shan back to the dormitory. They kept touching here and there, unwilling to leave.
Sun Shan looked at the sky and realized that if he didn't go back now, he might not be able to get home until midnight. He advised, "Dad, Mom, it's getting late. Go home quickly. If you don't leave now, you won't be able to leave."
If you can't leave, then you can't leave, which is exactly what Su and Sun Boming want.
Su rolled her eyes and said to Sun Bomin, "Master, do you want to find an inn to stay for one night? Stay here with Shanzi today. He has never left us."
Sun Bomin thought this was a good idea and nodded, saying, "Yes, we'll stay in the county tonight and go back tomorrow."
Then he said to Sun Shan, "Shanzi, your father and mother will accompany you tonight. This is your first time being out alone, so you will be scared."
Sun Shan was touched but helpless. He said firmly, "Father, mother, I am not afraid. You should go back soon. It will be too late if you don't go back. I can live in the dormitory by myself."
Even if I accompany you tonight, I will still be alone tomorrow night. It would be better not to accompany you so that Sun Boming and Su will not worry about you.
Sun Shan said, "Dad, Mom, I have classmates in the dormitory. I am not living alone. Don't worry, nothing will happen to me."
Then he added, "Dad, Mom, if my classmates knew that I was scared and needed my parents to accompany me, they would laugh at me."
Sun Bomin asked uncertainly, "Do you really not need your father and mother to accompany you tonight?"
Sun Shan shook his head firmly.
Su said worriedly, "Shanzi, you are still young, and you have to live in the dormitory alone. You don't know anyone here, it's too difficult."
Sun Shan shook his head like a rattle: "It's not difficult, I can do it, Dad and Mom, don't worry."
Sun Bomin and Su had no choice but to go back. Their son had grown up and was no longer in control of others. He no longer needed his parents.
Before leaving, Sun Bomin said, "Shanzi, when you are on leave, don't go back to Sunjia Village alone. Dad will come out to pick you up. It's dangerous to walk on the mountain road."
Sun Shan agreed with this point, mainly because he was too short and weak, and could not defeat the wild beasts.
Nodding, he said, "Dad, I'm waiting for you to pick me up. I won't go home alone."
Su held Sun Shan's hand and talked for a long time. Finally, under the leadership of Sun Boming, he reluctantly walked out of the dormitory and returned to Sunjia Village.
Sun Shan breathed a long sigh of relief. Sometimes love really is a burden, too heavy.
He shook his head and discarded all the messy thoughts. The only thing he could do now was to study hard and strive to pass the exam to become a scholar.
When I walked back to the dormitory, my roommate had not come back yet and I didn’t know where he had gone.
I have nothing to do and I dare not go out alone. The only thing that can make me calm is practicing calligraphy.
Sun Shan has been practicing regular script and has no intention of practicing other scripts. Chen Yaozhi of the Northern Song Dynasty was good at archery, and the oil seller could pierce copper coins with his oil. Practice makes perfect.
Sun Shan was still copying Yan Zhenqing's "Duobao Pagoda Stele" calligraphy, thinking that if he copied it tens of thousands of times, he would eventually get good at it.
Just like reading 300 Tang poems by heart, you will be able to recite them even if you don’t know how to chant poetry.
No matter how poor your talent is, if you persist in doing something, you will reach a qualified level.
Sun Shan was practicing calligraphy when he suddenly heard a voice from behind: "Hello, classmate."
The hand holding the brush paused and the writing became blurry.
Another voice came from behind: "Classmate, I'm sorry, did I scare you?"
Sun Shan stood up, turned around, and saw a boy about thirteen or fourteen years old, wearing a washed-out gown, with a slightly dark face and a thin figure.
Sun Shan put down his pen, cupped his hands and said, "Hello, my name is Sun Shan, and I just moved in today."
The boy opposite him cupped his hands and said with a smile, "My name is Hong Jian. I have been in Hong's Academy for three years and I am in Class B. From now on, we will be roommates."
When Sun Shan heard the surname Hong, he immediately felt that he was a relative of Mr. Hong.
As expected, Hong Jian said, "My family is in Hongjia Village, Shishan Town. I am 13 years old this year. We are classmates. I think you are very young."
Hongjia Village in Shishan Town is the hometown of Hong Xiucai. It seems that he is a distant relative of Hong Xiucai. If he is a close relative, he must live in Hong Xiucai's home instead of the dormitory.
Sun Shan smiled and said, "Brother Hong, I am 9 years old and I am from Sunjia Village in Mingyang Town. I am in Class C and I just transferred here."
Sun Shan’s actual age was 8 years old, but when referring to age here, people usually use the lunar age, so it would be said to be one year older.
Hong Jian nodded in understanding: "Brother Sun, you can ask me any questions you have. You just got here and you are not as familiar with the environment as I am."
Sun Shan hummed and said, "Thank you, Brother Hong. You can call me Ah Shan. We are fellow vegetarians from now on."
Afterwards, Sun Shan talked a lot with Hong Jian about dormitory rules, school rules, and life issues. He talked about everything that could be talked about, and planned to talk about the things that could not be talked about in depth when they were more familiar with each other.
Hong Jian looked at the sky and saw that it was about 6 p.m. He said to Sun Shan, "Ashan, it's time to go to the kitchen to get some food."
Sun Shan shook his head and said, "I didn't buy today's meal. I'll start tomorrow."
Hong Jian whispered, "I'll ask Aunt Zhang to cook you one. She's a very nice person."
He then explained that Aunt Zhang was the cook, in charge of the kitchen of Hong's School, and was also Uncle Hong's daughter-in-law.
Sun Shan thanked him and said, "Brother Jian, no, I want some cakes. My parents bought me a lot. We will eat together later."
Hong Jian saw that Sun Shan indeed had two bags of cakes, one bag of dried radishes and one bag of steamed cakes.
He nodded and said, "I'm going to go out and get the food. You can eat the cakes by yourself. I have food to eat."
He bowed, said goodbye to Sun Shan, and walked out of the dormitory.
Sun Shan looked at Hong Jian's departing figure and had a good first impression of him: a gentle young man who spoke softly and was willing to help.
It can also be seen that Hong Jian's family background is ordinary. From his face and clothes, he looks like a child from the countryside, with a strong farmer's air.
Being in Class B meant that they were taking the imperial examination. This was the first time Sun Shan saw a farmer's son choose to take the imperial examination.
If I don’t talk about eating, I don’t feel hungry. But as soon as I talk about eating, I feel hungry.
Sun Shan packed up his writing brush and took the kettle to the kitchen to get some hot water.
Hong Jian just said that hot water is provided during meal times, and drinking water must be drawn during meal times every day. If you miss it, you will only have raw water.
When he walked into the kitchen, many students were getting their meals inside. When they saw Sun Shan come in, they stared with wide eyes, extremely curious.
It was the first time that Sun Shan was stared at by so many people. He felt a little embarrassed and bowed, saying, "Hello, fellow brothers. I'm new here. My name is Sun Shan. You can just call me A Shan."
Uncle Hong said that there were originally 6 people living in the dormitory, and with Sun Shan, there were 7. Everyone present had arrived earlier than Sun Shan, so it was not an exaggeration to call him senior brother.
The brothers who served the food greeted Sun Shan one by one.
Hong Jian was just coming back with the food, and asked with a smile, "Ashan, do you want some hot water? Here's the pot, filled with freshly boiled water."
Sun Shan picked up the kettle and scooped water with a spoon. It took him several spoonfuls to fill the kettle.
One of the brothers chuckled, and the other brothers followed suit.
The talkative senior brother smiled and said, "Sun Shan, A Shan, right? Is your kettle too big?"
I was thinking that the little kid was so skinny and short, but he was holding a small bucket to get hot water. Was he drinking water like a cow?
Sun Shan said embarrassedly: "I usually drink a lot of water, so I bought a big kettle."
Sun Shan was also helpless. This was nominally a kettle, but actually it was a small bucket.
It looks similar to the bucket at home, but it is a smaller version. With a lid it becomes a large kettle. Su bought this one specifically because he said it can hold a lot of water. Once it is full, there is water to drink at any time.
Sun Shan’s kettle looks like this, hahaha.