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墨書 Inktalez
The weather seemed to be playing tricks on people; just a few days ago, the sun was shining brightly, but now it had turned gloomy, with thick clouds covering the sky. The sun was like a mischievous child, hiding behind the clouds and refusing to come out.
The celebration was indeed a grand one; the Wen Family prepared a large feast, full of color, aroma, and flavor. Liu Qingxi didn't even know how to express her gratitude.
As time passed, the cold air swept in with unstoppable force. When people went outside, they bundled up like bears. Liu Qingxi and her brother often sought warmth at the Yang Family's home.
The Yang Family's high-quality charcoal never stopped burning, keeping the house warm and cozy. In other households, people were reluctant to spend money on charcoal or firewood for heating.
Liu Qingxi was naturally sensitive to the cold and had genuinely come to love the warmth of the Yang Family's home. Plus, with occasional hot pot meals together, she grew closer to them.
Now that winter had truly arrived, Liu Qingxi had been in this era for half a year.
People were idling at home, either resting indoors or visiting neighbors to chat.
And it was time for Liu Qingyan to fulfill the promise he had made!
After days of study, he could recite the Three Character Classic completely and had learned quite a few characters. Whenever there was a day off, he would run joyfully around the village.
The cold air couldn't dampen the children's enthusiasm for play; laughter filled the village.
When they got tired from playing, the children found a random spot to sit down, their bodies warm from running around, chatting about recent events happening around them.
One boy, dressed in blue cotton clothes and pants with a thick cotton hat on his head, raised his round face. His bright eyes seemed to sparkle with excitement.
"I have good news to tell you!"
"What good news?" asked a noticeably sturdier boy as he wiped his nose, looking expectantly.
"Brother Yang, from now on, I can teach you all how to read!" The boy was none other than Liu Qingyan.
At first, he wanted to teach a few friends how to read, but he was stopped by Yang Yichen, who reasoned that since he himself didn’t know many characters, he wouldn’t be able to teach others well. He suggested Liu Qingyan study for a while longer before teaching.
Thus, Liu Qingyan studied alone, and his only joy was teaching the characters he learned to Liu Qingxi.
Now that it was colder, Yang Yichen told him that he didn’t have to go every day; he could skip some days. What made him happiest was that he could finally be a teacher!
"Really?" One of the excited children jumped up.
They had been looking forward to this moment for so long; it made them happier than the thought of eating meat.
"Yes, yes! However, practicing writing requires brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, which are quite expensive. My sister suggested that each of your families make a large sand tray for you to practice writing with branches on it. It can be reused!"
At this moment, Liu Qingyan was merely relaying Liu Qingxi's words.
The intention was to help Liu Qingyan develop his skills with the brush and cultivate the essence of writing from the very beginning. She didn’t want him to be frugal just to save money; he had always used paper bought from the town.
To be honest, it was indeed expensive. A modern practice book costing one or two dimes would be worth many times that in this era. In just over a month, he had spent over a hundred coins on supplies alone.
This didn’t even include books or anything else; indeed, studying was an expensive endeavor.
As for the children in the village who only wanted to learn a few characters so they wouldn’t look foolish when going out, there was no need to waste money on supplies. Making a sand tray for practice was efficient and cost-effective.
"Okay, I’ll go home right now and ask my dad to make one for me!" Er Zhuzi exclaimed as he dashed off like the wind.
Then another child shouted, "I’ll go home and ask my dad too!" and ran after him!
One after another, soon only Liu Qingyan was left.
Kid was unhappy; no one was there to play with him. Pouting and looking conflicted, he kicked the stones on the ground as he walked, appearing quite gloomy.
At home, Liu Qingxi did not expect that Kid, who usually wanted to play all the time, would return so quickly. He pouted as if someone owed him a few coins and had not paid them back.
Before she could ask what happened, Kid recounted the events and then complained, "Sister, why is Er Zhuzi like this? He won't play with me anymore."
Liu Qingxi rubbed her forehead, thinking it was something serious, but it turned out to be for this reason. Was it worth it? Of course, she wouldn’t tell Kid that directly.
Instead, she chose a more tactful approach: "Alright, alright. Look at you; you can read and write now. Er Zhuzi and the others can't, so they naturally want to learn quickly. From now on, you have a task.
When you go to Brother Yang's house to study again, you must be serious; otherwise, your companions will laugh at you."
Liu Qingyan silently nodded, feeling much of his pent-up frustration dissipate.
It seemed Liu Qingxi's guidance had some effect. Kid wiped away the tears welling in his eyes, sniffled, and smiled again: "Sister, I'm going to practice my writing!"
He then ran to his room and sat down at the square table to start practicing earnestly, sitting upright like an old scholar studying knowledge.
At that moment, Liu Qingxi felt proud that she could provide better conditions for her only family member and give him more opportunities for greater choices in his future life.
Even if achieving this goal required her to put in more effort.
Shaking her head, Liu Qingxi began organizing the firewood at home, bundling it up and stacking it near the kitchen door to prevent it from getting wet when it snowed later.
In an era without gas or electricity, firewood was a necessity for life, especially in winter. Once it got wet, the severe consequences were easy to imagine; very few families had extra resources to help others.
At that moment, a commotion was heard, followed by hurried footsteps getting closer.
Before they could see anyone, they heard a voice: "Qingxi, what kind of sand table do you have? Hurry up and show it to me!"
With a cheerful tone and a hearty voice, there was no need to look; it was the village chief, Zhang Wuliang.
Immediately after, several strong men rushed into the courtyard, wearing tall hats and thick cotton clothes. Their breath formed puffs of mist in the air as they spoke.
Liu Qingxi gestured invitingly, "Uncles, come inside!"
Inside the house, Liu Qingyan's serious practice astonished the big men, their mouths agape. The neat strokes of ink on the paper were unfamiliar to them, but admiration welled up within them.
They completely forgot the purpose of their visit.
"Qingyan, what characters are these that you wrote?" Zhang Wuliang circled around Liu Qingyan, eager to decipher the paper.
The other big men stared wide-eyed as well; even though they couldn't recognize the characters, they still found them beautiful—truly beautiful.
Thinking this in their hearts, they couldn't help but voice it out loud.
Feeling like a panda being observed for the first time, Liu Qingyan's face turned red. Finally mustering her courage, she said, "Uncles, these are characters from the Three Character Classic: 'At the beginning of man!'"
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