Chapter 114: Teacher Lou

Afternoon, Yang Qing still didn't go out; he was like a well‑behaved baby, continuing to study diligently.

And Lou Xiao'e became more addicted as she taught, continuing to work on language.

After studying characters, words, sentences, and reading.

Lou Xiao'e asked Yang Qing to bring the dictionary out.

Seeing the dictionary in Yang Qing's hand, Lou Xiao'e was startled, then took it, flipped through it, and confirmed.

"This one is an old edition; nowadays everyone uses simplified characters. This kind of traditional script is outdated."

Yang Qing gave a helpless smile.

"Let's make do with it for now; when I bought it, there were no simplified versions."

"Can I tell you I did it on purpose? I recognize simplified characters myself, but many of these traditional characters I don't know."

"If we don't seize the chance to learn now, will we have to relearn later if an opportunity to go out arises?"

Hearing Yang Qing say that, Lou Xiao'e said nothing more; in fact, she was more familiar with traditional dictionaries—since simplified characters appeared in 1958, she hadn't used them much.

"Since that's the case, let's first use the traditional dictionary to learn how to use a dictionary; once you master traditional characters, simplified ones become much easier to recognize."

"Come on, let's start learning how to use this reference book, the dictionary."

"The dictionary, as the name suggests, contains explanations for all characters and words; once you learn how to use it, you can, through it, learn every character or word you don't know…"

…………

Time passed under Lou Xiao'e's explanation.

The elderly lady, sitting in the sunshine, listened to their lesson while mending her shoe soles, and her smile never faded.

During this time, people came by one after another to watch Yang Qing study.

Yang Qing's reputation as a prodigy began to spread throughout the courtyard.

Qin Huairu, with her belly protruding, brought Xiao Dang and gathered beside Yang Qing.

Xiao Dang, at home, kept studying hard to please Qin Huairu with something tasty.

But Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu were both half‑baked and had no idea how to teach.

And Bang Geng, because Xiao Dang was too proactive while his own studies were poor, was often used by Qin Huairu as a negative example; Xiao Dang also snatched many treats that were originally his, and teaching Xiao Dangdang was done without any care.

Now, listening to Lou Xiao'e's lesson, they felt a bit entranced; whether they understood or not, it was still exciting to listen.

However, she was still at a first‑grade level while others were already at second grade; she felt vague and dazed.

Fortunately, Yang Qing learned quickly; regarding how to use reference books, he had grasped some basics and now began to put them into practice.

Lou Xiao'e saw Yang Qing start practicing on his own, turned her head, and began teaching Xiao Dang.

But once she started teaching, Lou Xiao'e's joyful mood vanished.

Who knows how to teach a brat? After teaching the later ones, she forgot the earlier ones; the exhilarating feeling she had when teaching Yang Qing was fragmented by Xiao Dang.

But still, she couldn't refuse to teach; she could teach Yang Qing, so why not teach Xiao Dang?

The child is only three or four years old; what's wrong with being a bit slow?

Qin Huairu, a very clever person, saw Lou Xiao'e frowning and knew her girl was a bit stupid, which made Lou Xiao'e uncomfortable.

She volunteered to take the lead.

"Little Sister Xiao'e, Xiao Dang studies very diligently; after all, he's still young, so his learning is a bit slower."

Xiao Dang also thought Lou Xiao'e was teaching too fast; she dumped a huge amount at once, making their brain buzz.

Hearing her mother speak up for her, she immediately became much happier.

She wants to learn, yet fears Lou Xiao'e's interference.

Qin Huairu saw Xiao Dang's nervousness, grabbed their hand, and continued.

"So, Little Sister Xiao'e, keep speaking; you don't need to worry about Xiao Dang. I'll follow your lesson, and after we get home I'll slowly teach Xiao Dang. Does that work?"

"I also attended night school in our village, but my learning wasn't systematic enough."

"It's perfect to listen to your lecture and tidy things up."

Seeing the mother and daughter's reaction, Lou Xiao'e finally realized she was a bit impatient.

Not everyone is a genius.

And thinking back to her own childhood, she had been beaten many times in front of the private school teacher.

"It's fine; I'm idle anyway."

Qin Huairu is also someone who knows how to get along with people.

"Little Sister Xiao'e, if you have anything to mend or repair in the future, bring it over; I'll handle it—my house has a sewing machine."

Lou Xiao'e, because she went to school, perhaps in Lou Banchen never thought to let her own daughter learn these things, and never taught the female workers of Lou.

She really didn't know how to sew and mend.

Xu Damao went out every day, and his clothes tore faster than anyone's; when they ripped, Xu Damao himself mended them.

That just showed how useless Lou Xiao'e was.

When Qin Huairu said that, she immediately agreed.

"Then I'll trouble you, sister‑in‑law, from now on."

"Sister‑in‑law, is there anything you don't understand ahead?"

Qin Huairu stretched her neck.

"Teacher Lou, how do you spell this grape (po, tao)?"

Lou Xiao'e wrote on the ground: "p, u grape, t, ao grape, grape."

Qin Huairu: "Isn't it po, tao?"

Lou Xiao'e: "p, u grape."

Qin Huairu: "p, o grape."

"pu"

"po"

"......"

"......"

The two people fell into a battle of correcting pronunciation......

Yang Qing stood aside, pretending to learn how to use a dictionary, while watching the two people fight with the corner of his eye.

Everyone knows the weather has warmed, and bras are no longer popular; what's more in vogue are belly wraps and small tank tops.

Lou Xiao'e is a bit different; perhaps her belly wrap is more upscale, or perhaps it's small, and there's not much happening.

Qin Huairu, on the other hand, has a broad heart that can contain surging waves.

That greatly increases its visual appeal.

For a moment, watching made Yang Qing's waist look robust.

The two were once more correcting whether a person reads "ren" or "rer".

Xu Huizhen, holding a child, brought Cai Quanwu, Xu Manager, and Hou Kui to the Siheyuan.

Upon seeing the lintel, Xu Huizhen looked at Cai Quanwu and sighed.

"This courtyard is not simple at all."

Cai Quanwu also nodded. He works as a wanderer in the streets and is knowledgeable; this Siheyuan in Jingcheng is a mid‑to‑upper‑tier residence—on the modest side, a second‑ or third‑rank official's house; on the grand side, even a first‑rank official could afford it.

"It's a big courtyard."

Seeing this large courtyard gave Xu Huizhen confidence in her speculation.

This Yang Qing, being able to find out when she would emerge, must be no simple matter.

Now, at a glance, it seems to have passed the test.

She is now taking one wrong step after another; her previous management may be lost in a single day.

So Yang Qing's thread now appears important.

Sigh, I somewhat regret having taken part in this back then.

Just as Yang Qing's message said, being from a small household, I've managed so much; the matter is over a decade old, and I should have no problem.

Who let my cleverness backfire, dragging me into the mess.

Damn it, just thinking about it makes my chest tight.