Consent

Mǎn Bǎo ran to find her sister-in-law with her short legs, while Kē kē watched silently the whole time.

Mrs. Zhou was obviously startled. After repeatedly asking Mǎn Bǎo about Mr. Zhuang's words, she paused for a moment and then placed the items on the stove. She said, "Come, sister-in-law." "I will take you home first and then come back to tidy up later."

Mǎn Bǎo had a particularly good memory, and she could explain it clearly because it had just happened. But Mr. Zhou still asked three times. He then squatted on the threshold, took out some tobacco from his pocket, and put it in the pipe without saying a word.

No one said anything, and Mrs. Qian instructed Little Qian, "You should return to school and continue working." "This is not a small matter; we have to wait for the elders to come back to make a decision."

Little Qian responded and went back to school to continue working.

Mrs. Qian looked at Mr. Zhou and led Mǎn Bǎo by the hand into the house, lowering her head to look at her.

As she observed her round face, filled with confusion, she realized that she probably didn't understand its meaning.

After some thought, Mrs. Qian asked, "Mǎn Bǎo, do you want to study?"

Mǎn Bǎo said, "I have been studying all along." I have already learned the Thousand Character Classic, and Mr. Zhuang said he could teach me the Analects. "I can even count to one hundred."

Mrs. Qian patted her daughter's head and asked, "Do you enjoy studying?"

This time, Mǎn Bǎo nodded and said happily, "I do." Studying is interesting. When I'm in a good mood, reading the Thousand Character Classic feels like singing, and it enhances my mood even further. "When I'm not happy, I read the Thousand Character Classic, and then I become happy."

Mrs. Qian's gaze was somewhat distant, and after a while, she said, "It's such a pity…"

Mǎn Bǎo climbed onto the bed, leaned against her mother, and asked with her head tilted, "Mother, what's a pity?"

"It's a pity that you're not a boy."

Mǎn Bǎo pouted, "I don't want to be a boy." Boys are dirty, smelly, and not as pretty as girls.

Mrs. Qian couldn't help but smile. "Yes, our Mǎn Bǎo is clean and fragrant..."

But boys can carry on the family lineage.

Mrs. Qian thought she had a tough heart, but at this moment, she couldn't help shedding tears.

Mǎn Bǎo looked at her with great concern, quickly wiped her tears, and her own eyes turned red. With a trembling voice, she asked, "Mother, why are you crying?" "Do you not want me to study?" "Then, I'll study less in the future."

Mrs. Qian couldn't help but laugh while wiping her tears and pinching her nose. "You're such a little trickster, just like your father, always saying sweet words to coax people."

Mǎn Bǎo opened her mouth wide, finding it hard to imagine that her father was like that.

Mrs. Qian was only briefly saddened, and then she hugged her, saying, "Since you can study, then study." Studying has numerous benefits. Even though you are a girl, studying will give you more skills than others. In the future, you will not be deceived or harmed, and you can live a better life.

Although Mrs. Qian couldn't read and was just a village woman who had never left the county, she had her own insights. She said softly, "Look at those men." "Those who can read live better lives than those who can't." Those who are knowledgeable are more clever than those who are not. "It's the same for girls."

Mǎn Bǎo nodded vigorously, "Mr." Zhuang said that studying can bring enlightenment. Bai Er, that silly boy, said he wouldn't take the imperial examination but would inherit his father's land to collect rent and make a living. Mr. Zhuang criticized him. "It means that a person who understands will not feel guilty no matter where they go, will act righteously, and be unbeatable."

Although Mǎn Bǎo didn't quite understand these words, she thought that Mr. Zhuang was so tall and mighty at the time, and she blushed just thinking about it. She wished she could run around the village three times and shout loudly. Yes, she remembered it.

She looked at her mother with bright eyes and said, "Mother, I want to study and become enlightened!"

Mrs. Qian looked at her earnest little face and almost agreed, but considering the family's current situation, she kept all her thoughts to herself and decided to listen to the head of the household.

Mr. Zhou and the others returned at dinnertime. The sun was just about to set, but everyone was already very hungry because they had only eaten porridge for breakfast.

After a simple hand wash, they sat down at the dinner table. Mr. Zhou didn't rush to discuss the matter; instead, he waited until everyone had finished eating. Then, they sat in the courtyard and called the eldest, second, and third sons to talk to them.

Little Qian glanced outside, frowned slightly, and remained silent, holding a cloth in her hand. Mrs. Zhou also peered into the courtyard and couldn't resist whispering, "Could it be that the head of the family truly desires for the little girl to attend school?"

Mrs. He frowned and said, "It can't be." How much money would that cost? "Wouldn't the mother-in-law have agreed, sister-in-law?"

Little Qian held the cloth, and she didn't really want the little girl to go to school. However, she was the one who brought the little girl back home at noon.

Upon hearing the news at noon, her initial reaction was joy. The fact that the little girl could be taken as a disciple by Mr. Zhuang meant that she would have a bright future.

But when she returned to the school, she pondered it. Studying costs money.

Even if Mr. Zhuang took the little girl as a private disciple and did not charge tuition, there would still be the cost of the ceremony. During holidays, gifts would have to be exchanged. These were all small expenses, not to mention the cost of books, writing materials, and inkstones.

In fact, the tuition at Mr. Zhuang's school was not very high because the main expenses were covered by the local landlord. Before Mr. Zhou lost money gambling, the Zhou family couldn't afford to send any of their grandchildren to school. One reason was that their family was still too poor to support a student.

They couldn't afford it before, and now they definitely can't afford it.

And they also had a mother-in-law who needed to take medicine every month, which made the burden even heavier.

These considerations dampened Little Qian's initial joy, leaving her worried.

Of course, what Little Qian could think of, the other men in the Zhou family could contemplate even more thoroughly, especially the head of the family, Mr. Zhou. He had originally not wanted Mǎn Bǎo to go to school, but the conversation between his wife and Mǎn Bǎo in the afternoon made him hesitate repeatedly.

At dinner, he watched Mǎn Bǎo hold a big bowl in her two small hands, almost burying her little head in the bowl, and eating porridge with relish.

Then he saw his daughter-in-law, who had just put down her bowl and was about to clean up the table, wash the dishes, and tidy up the house. Mr. Zhou's heart slowly leaned towards the other side.

Mǎn Bǎo was frail, fair, and cute, and she was doted on by her father and brothers at home. But what about ten years from now, fifteen years from now?

At that time, would she have to marry a farmer like her brothers and become a farmer's wife like her sisters-in-law?

Mr. Zhou took a deep drag on his cigarette, coughed a little, and then pulled out his pipe to tamp down the tobacco. He said, "You all know about the matter." Speak up. What do you think?

Zhou Erlang and Zhou Sanlang glanced at each other, lowered their heads, and said, "We'll listen to Father and Big Brother."

Mr. Zhou glanced at them and then turned to Zhou Dalang, saying, "Dalang, it's your turn to speak."

Zhou Dalang gritted his teeth and said, "Since Mr. Zhuang is willing to take her, then we'll support it." "When she grows up, if she can marry someone from the town, she won't have to work in the fields like us."

"Yes!" Mr. Zhou slapped his thigh. "That's what I think." "How many girls in this world can read and count?" If you all count, who among our children is as smart as Mǎn Bǎo? The big egg in the house cannot be counted, no matter how you count it, but Mǎn Bǎo can count it. Our Mǎn Bǎo is not only good-looking now but will become even more beautiful as she grows up. Not to mention the town; she might even marry into the county.

Zhou Erlang hesitated, "That's true, but studying will cost a lot of money, and she's still a girl." She cannot take the imperial examination and become an official...

Under the gaze of his father, Zhou Erlang's voice gradually lowered, and he could only nudge Zhou Sanlang.

Zhou Sanlang said, "I'll listen to father and big brother."

Zhou Dalang and Zhou Erlang: "..."

Mr. Zhou couldn't help but take another puff of his cigarette and said, "Mr. Zhuang will definitely not charge Mǎn Bǎo tuition; we will simply give a gift for the ceremony or something.

Zhou Erlang said, "But we'll have to buy books, writing materials, and inkstones." If Mr. Zhuang takes Mǎn Bǎo as a disciple, he will have to provide these things. Father, we don't even know how much these things will cost.

No one in the family had ever studied, so they didn't know the specific prices, but books, writing materials, and inkstones sounded very expensive.

This was also one of the reasons why Mr. Zhou was most hesitant. He smoked with a heavy heart, not saying a word.

Zhou Dalang scratched his head and eventually mentioned that he had a headache. He decided that taking care of the family was his parents' responsibility. If there were any worries, they belonged to them. He just had to be obedient and take care of his own little family.