Farmhouse Green Plum

Chapter 140 Shooting Your Own Foot

But in the eyes of others, her sister-in-law's family affairs were their own affairs, and they had to endure even this kind of humiliation.

The others were all shocked that Song Ying could learn to recognize words just by looking at them. They did not notice the change in Chen's expression, nor did they realize that there was something else behind Li's words.

Aunt Meihua suddenly realized, "I was wondering why your Yuanwa didn't come to see Ziliang later, it turns out that your Yingwa can read!"

After hearing what Aunt Meihua said, the villagers believed it more and expressed their amazement.

"Oh, your Yingwa is so smart. She can even learn to read just by watching. If it was a boy, your family might really produce a scholar!"

"Girls are not bad either. Look at the eldest girl from the Xu family. Isn't it because she can read that Master He chose her?"

"Yes, I think your Yingwa will have a good marriage in the future. She can do accounting and read, so she is capable!"

Li glanced at Chen again and said sarcastically, "How can she compare with the girl from the Xu family? She is the daughter of a scholar and a rich lady.

We are all peasants, even if we can read, we are still far behind them!"

Because the Xu family rarely interacted with the villagers, and they had never heard of any conflicts between them and the Song family, the villagers thought that Li was being modest and said with a smile: "What nonsense! Without us peasants growing crops and vegetables, those rich families would starve to death sooner or later..."

Faced with Li's slap in the face, Chen was angry and embarrassed. She wished she could go back and pull her sister-in-law Zhang to come and let her admit the humiliation herself.

At this time, someone with sharp eyes saw Song Ying and her brother and shouted, "Song Ying, Song Ying, come here quickly and tell everyone, can you really recognize words?"

Song Ying knew that this was a great opportunity. After today, she would be able to read and write not only at home but also in the village.

It was because of this that she deliberately stated that day that she understood the notice on the declaration booth.

She stepped forward and said modestly, "I don't know many words now, just some common words."

The village chief said: "That's also amazing!"

Aunt Meihua waved her hand, motioning Song Ying to come over and help her put down the backpack. She said, "If you know how to read, outsiders won't be able to fool you easily. Besides, knowing how to write your own name will make many things very convenient."

Hearing what Aunt Meihua said, Xiaoxiang's mother Zhang's mind moved, and she smiled and said, "Song Ying, you must study hard and help your aunt write letters to your parents' home in the future."

Luo Yanxing's mother Wang said, "Song Ying, you and Yanxing are good friends, so teach her too."

Li was a little unhappy. It would be fine if he taught his own family members with the tuition paid by his own family, but teaching outsiders would not help share the tuition.

But she couldn't refuse. They were all from the same village, and Song Ying didn't learn calligraphy by paying tuition fees in school. If she didn't allow him to teach her, it would seem that her family was very petty.

I don't know if the village chief was being kind or if he saw Li's displeasure, so he said to Song Ying: "Song Ying, you should also teach Mei Yue, Nan Xing and the other sisters. Once they have learned it, I will let them give you a thank-you gift."

After the village chief said this, people who came later mentioned asking Song Ying to teach them, and they all said they would give him gifts as a thank-you gift after they learned the subject.

Although it is not free teaching, there are conditions, and only the church can give a thank-you gift.

Li's complexion looked much better. If this could bring some extra income to the family such as sugar and eggs, that would be great. Song Ying didn't need to take the college entrance examination anyway, so as long as it didn't affect his work, it would be fine.

Song Ying had already taught Luo Yanxing and Zhao Xiaoxiang how to write their names. After they "learned" to recognize characters from Song Yuan, he began to teach them other commonly used characters. Naturally, no one objected.

She agreed with a smile, then turned to Chen at the side and said, "Aunt Chen, if Sister Yulan wants to learn, I can teach her."

Before Chen could speak, Aunt Meihua said, "I know you have good intentions, but I don't need you to teach me.

If Yulan wants to learn to read, she should go to her cousin. It's close, convenient, and she has plenty of time. You guys go home after the sun goes down every day, so you don't have time to teach her."

Chen's smile froze on her face, and for a moment she didn't know what to say.

Logically, after Aunt Meihua said this, she should have suggested that Yulan could learn from Yuzhi; but she was unwilling to give up and personally tried to find out what her eldest sister-in-law thought, but was rejected outright.

But if she rejected Song Ying's proposal, her daughter might not have the chance to learn to read. Thinking of this, Chen smiled and said, "That's great. Tomorrow I will go to the county and prepare a gift for you."

The villagers were stunned for a moment, and all turned to look at Chen. The straightforward Aunt Meihua was the first to raise doubts: "No, your niece has studied seriously with her father. If Yulan wants to learn to read, isn't it better to ask your niece instead of Song Ying?"

Er Ni Niang, who was closer to the Xu family's eldest wife, said in a joking tone, "Yes, I heard from your sister-in-law that Yuzhi's knowledge is good enough to take the examination for a scholar."

Ever since Xu Yuzhi arranged the marriage with the He family, Zhang no longer stayed at home like she used to. She would occasionally walk around the neighborhood, and after a few visits, she became familiar with several families living nearby.

After they became familiar with each other, they inevitably talked about each other's children during casual conversation. Zhang often showed off her daughter's abilities, which made the nearby families envious and jealous.

Chen smiled and explained, "Yuzhi's wedding date is set for next month, and she is busy embroidering her trousseau, so how can we disturb her?"

After a pause, he added, "Rich families have many rules and regulations, and they don't do things any easier than our peasant families. Not only do the wedding clothes, bed sheets, quilts, pillowcases and other dowries need to be embroidered by the girl herself, but she also has to make a set of clothes for each person in her husband's family."

"Rich families are indeed troublesome," Aunt Meihua said with a sigh, and then said, "But your niece's marriage was decided and it took five months at most. She has been embroidering her dowry at home the whole time. No matter how much dowry she has, she should have finished embroidering it.

Song Ying and her friends are so busy every day, and they always come home when it's almost dark. Your Yulan doesn't need to collect firewood, so why go so far away?"

Chen forced a smile and said, "Yulan will be bored at home alone. Let her stay with Song Ying and the others. Not only can she relieve her boredom, but she can also learn to read. It's killing two birds with one stone."

At this point, Chen looked at Song Ying and said, "Whether you teach one person or a group of people, you won't refuse to accept Yulan as your disciple, right?"

Song Ying was a little dumbfounded. She just mentioned it casually. After all, if Xu Yulan and Chen had not persuaded Zhang, her reputation would have been ruined by now.

But she only thought about teaching Xu Yulan in her free time, but didn't think about her joining them in the afternoon!

This is like shooting oneself in the foot!

Song Ying regretted it deeply, but she was the one who took the initiative to teach Xu Yulan how to read in front of so many villagers. Refusing now would definitely arouse suspicion. She could only smile and say, "I only know a few words. I am not qualified to take in an apprentice. Sister Yulan wants to learn, so of course I am willing to teach."