Chapter 313 Book Boy
The dormitory of the provincial school is very similar to that of Mr. Hong.
The dormitory is composed of a series of small courtyards, and each small courtyard has 6 rooms.
Each student lives in one room and does not need to share a room.
Sun Shan checked the house number and quickly found his dormitory.
Hong Chengcai snatched Sun Shan's key and helped open the door, then Sun Boming and Su went in first to check.
The room is not big, about 30 square meters, divided into two rooms, the inner one is the bedroom and the outer one is the study or living room.
The room is divided into a bright room and a dark room, with a large bed and a small bed respectively.
Su asked curiously, "Why are there two beds in there?"
Sun Bomin didn't understand either, and asked in confusion: "Isn't it one room for each person? Is it two people per room? Is it better for our Shanzi to live inside or outside?"
Mrs. Su and Mr. Sun Bomin didn't understand, but Hong Chengcai did. He said with his beer belly, "Uncle, aunt, one room is for the scholar, and the other is for the book boy or servant. I see that scholars have their own book boys or servants."
In order to verify whether what he said was right, Hong Chengcai turned to Sun Shan and said, "Ashan, am I right?"
The Hong family had servants, but no one in the Hong family went to study in the school, so Hong Chengcai was not sure whether what he said was right.
Sun Shan saw the bedroom with one bright and one dark, and understood immediately. He nodded and said, "Brother Chengcai is right. You can bring a book boy or a servant with you to study at the mansion. This small bed should be used by the book boy or the servant."
Sun Boming and Su knew what a book boy was, as He Shujin had one. But they had no intention of finding a book boy for Sun Shan because, in their limited knowledge, they had never seen a scholar bring a book boy to study.
They thought that if they sent Sun Shan to study, he would just study and there was no need for a servant.
Besides, Sun Shan always gave them the impression that he was independent and did not need any servants to help him.
Su said nervously, "Master, should we find a book boy for Shanzi? If other scholars have book boys and our Shanzi doesn't, wouldn't he seem out of place?"
Sun Bomin thought the same thing and asked uncertainly, "Shanzi, do you want to find a book boy?"
Sun Bomin thought that when looking for a book boy, he must look for one who knows him well and has a close relationship with the Sun family.
Then I can only look for it within the clan.
The first person Sun Boming thought of was De Ge'er. After all, he grew up with Sun Shan and they were best friends, so it would be most appropriate to ask De Ge'er to be his servant.
Then he thought that De Ge'er was working in the county school and had a bright future, so he couldn't come here to be a book boy.
What's more, De Ge'er was too active. Sun Boming felt that De Ge'er not only could not take care of Shanzi, but also needed Shanzi to take care of him in return.
So De Ge'er was kicked out quickly.
Sun Boming thought about the boys in the clan again and again, trying to find a good boy to be Shanzi's servant.
Sun Boming plans to offer higher wages, and the clan members will definitely agree to it.
Hong Chengcai quickly responded: "Ashan must find a servant. Without a servant, it will be troublesome to do things. He has to do it himself. For example, washing clothes and serving meals can be left to the servant. Then Ashan will have more time and energy to study."
Hong Chengcai also suggested: "Uncle, aunt, it is troublesome to find a book boy now, and we don't know where to find one. Do you want me to send a servant over to help temporarily, and then replace him when you find a book boy?"
Hong Chengcai felt that his suggestion was perfect and looked at Sun Shan eagerly.
Sun Shan shook his head and said, "Brother Chengcai, I appreciate your kindness. I don't need a servant, I can do it by myself. I came to your school by myself, and I can come to the government school without a servant."
Sun Shan quickly shook his head to refuse. He was still used to doing things alone.
To put it bluntly, he feels embarrassed to let strangers wash his underwear.
He has no habit of ordering others around, and he can't do it at the moment.
Hong Chengcai tried his best to dissuade him: "Ashan, listen to me, without a book boy, it is inconvenient to do anything. For example, if you want to mail a letter, you have to run around yourself. It's different with a book boy. You can just arrange for him to go and you can use the time to read books.
By saving a little time here and there, you can save a lot of time for reading throughout the year.
Besides, all the scholars in the prefecture school have servants, but you don't have one, so it's inconvenient. If others send their servants to look for you, who will you send to look for others?
At this time, you have to go find someone yourself, which is very troublesome. "
Su and Sun Boming felt that what Hong Chengcai said made a lot of sense. What they and their husband thought of was that others had it but their Shanzi didn't, which made them very unsociable.
Going with the flow is the way to survive in life and work. You must never be a maverick and make people feel that you are too different.
Su persuaded him, "Shanzi, Chengcai is right. You must be given a bookboy. Other scholars cannot have one while you don't."
Sun Bomin said in annoyance, "Alas, we have no experience and couldn't think of this problem. If we had known earlier, we would have asked the elder sister."
Hong Chengcai continued to persuade him, "Ashan, you will be right if you listen to us. I will send a servant to help first, and then he will take over when your uncle and aunt find a suitable person. Don't be polite. We are not only relatives, but you are also my grandfather's disciple. We are related to each other, and it is only right that we take care of each other. Don't think it is a bother for us."
Su and Sun Boming looked at Hong Chengcai with gratitude, and felt more and more that Chengcai was a real talent. He spoke and acted very tactfully and made people feel very kind.
Sun Shan felt that Hong Chengcai was right, but he was still not used to using a servant, and felt that it was not necessary to use a servant at this time.
A stranger sleeping next to me felt uncomfortable and shook his head firmly, saying, "Brother Chengcai, I know you mean well. But I still don't need a book boy."
After a pause, he continued, "Father and mother, if you really need a book boy, I will speak up. Don't worry, I will learn well in the mansion by myself. You have seen the environment here. It is very safe to study here."
Seeing that Sun Shan really didn't need a servant, Su, Sun Boming, and Hong Chengcai said nothing more.
Hong Chengcai ordered: "Ashan, if you have anything, come to the Hong family to find me. You are not alone in Zhangzhou Prefecture."
Sun Shan was deeply moved and said with a smile: "Brother Chengcai, I will do it. Thank you."
Afterwards, Sun Bomin, Su, Hong Chengcai and Sun Shan cleaned and tidied the room, and it took an hour to get everything ready.
Because Sun Bomin and Su were always afraid that Sun Shan would have no education to attend, they urged him to register for the provincial school early in the morning.
Sun Shan's experience of taking the entrance exam for the Guangzhou Academy frightened them both.
At first, everyone thought Sun Shan had a chance of studying in the academy in Guangzhou Prefecture, but he came back empty-handed.
Sun Bomin and Su heard the rumor from somewhere and were afraid that Sun Shan's academic record would be replaced, leaving him with no place in the provincial school.
When it was time to report to the provincial school, I would get up early in the morning and rush in as soon as the school opened, reporting as quickly as possible to make sure everything was settled.
So by the time they finished cleaning the room, it was still early and only then did they see students coming to the dormitory one after another.
Sun Shan came out and greeted his neighbors politely.
Sun Bomin, Su is a little reserved.
Hong Chengcai claimed to be Sun Shan's elder brother. He chatted with the parents of the students very skillfully and asked them to take care of them.