In Tang Xun’s eyes, teaching the whole family to write their names was much easier than attending classes. According to the System, once his Intelligence improved, he would become a genius with a photographic memory.
Since he couldn’t get rid of the System now, to suffer less, he had to seek some benefits for himself.
Looking on the bright side, working hard at the docks for a month might not even earn him five taels of silver. He might as well treat this as a cushy job.
When Tang Xun wanted to sweet-talk someone, his mouth could be quite persuasive. “Mother, how can we trouble my younger brother with such a trivial matter? I’ll teach Da-Ya myself.”
Yang Taohua had already climbed onto the ox cart by now. She placed the sack of silk fabric on her lap, hugging it with both arms, and rolled her eyes at her eldest son. “Do you even know how to write? Don’t hold A-Li back.”
Tang Xun hadn’t wasted those twenty lessons from yesterday—the character for “Li” in “dawn” happened to be among them. He declared, “Of course I know how to write!”
“If you don’t believe me, I’ll write it for you when we get home.”
His mother’s skeptical gaze left him with a subtle sense of displeasure.
Tang Li flashed a sweet smile. “I want Father to teach me how to write my name. I believe in Father’s ability! Father is so clever!”
“Father should not only teach me but also my younger brother—we can’t leave him behind. Oh, and Grandma, Mother…” She counted on her fingers, giving her father a helping hand.
Her father had been nearly traumatized by all the lightning strikes these past few days—poor thing deserved a little reward.
With her granddaughter speaking up like this, Yang Taohua reluctantly agreed. “Fine. Since A-Li trusts you so much, don’t let her down.”
It might be good to keep the eldest son occupied, lest he spend all his time hanging out with those idle men.
Listening to his daughter’s sweet voice and seeing her trusting, admiring gaze, Tang Xun felt a warm current slowly flow through his heart.
[System, look! This is my daughter! How sensible and considerate she is! When I have money in the future, I’ll buy her meat buns every day. Ah, you’re not human—you don’t understand the joy of having a filial little cotton-padded jacket. You probably can’t have daughters, can you?]
His daughter had even found a reason for him, sparing him the need to come up with an excuse. The two of them were so in sync—this must be what books call being “kindred spirits.”
In his delight, Tang Xun couldn’t resist provoking the System.
[Indeed, very filial! I’ve never seen such a filial eldest daughter. As long as you’re happy, congratulations.]
The System thought that even if it could have a daughter, it wouldn’t want one like Tang Li, who seemed to enjoy setting her father up.
Though the tone was emotionless, Tang Xun inexplicably sensed a hint of sarcasm.
Hmm, this lousy System must be jealous—jealous that he had such a lovely, filial daughter.
Motivated by the new task, Tang Xun was in relatively high spirits on the way home.
He pondered that since he would be attending classes long-term, even though the lessons from the great scholar usually took place in the Spatial Dimension, he still needed to put on a scholarly front in front of others to avoid being questioned when he displayed his talents later.
So, after returning home, he went to borrow books from his younger brother, Tang Zheng.
Upon learning that Tang Xun wanted to study, Tang Zheng not only dug out the Four Books and Five Classics for him but also gave him several calligraphy copybooks.
“Big Brother, why not enroll in a school? How about Siqi Academy?” This was the school he had previously attended.
Tang Xun wanted to refuse, but when it came to studying, one truly couldn’t become accomplished through self-study alone. His younger brother was currently focused on preparing for the Juren (Recommended Man) examination and really couldn’t teach him. With a shameless expression, he said, “I have no money.”
Tang Zheng said, “I’ll go pay the tuition fee tomorrow.”
Tang Zheng was now also a Xiucai (Licentiate) and had previously taken on a child from a wealthy family as a student, so he had some silver on hand. For him, even if his older brother wasn’t genuinely interested in attending school, it would be good for him to gain some exposure and learn a bit of etiquette and discipline.
Because he worried that if the silver ended up in his older brother’s hands, it might be squandered, and given his lack of trust in his brother’s character, Tang Zheng decided to personally pay the tuition fee. He had spent a few years at that school, and the teacher there was quite dedicated.
Tang Xun waved his hand, “Alright, then you can accompany me there tomorrow.”
As long as he didn’t have to pay, anything was fine. Tang Xun didn’t feel like he was taking advantage either, as his younger brother’s studies over the years had cost the family quite a bit of savings.
His words made Tang Zheng glance at him a few more times, but in the end, he said nothing.
…
After returning from Qingniu Temple, Tang Li’s treatment at home could be said to have skyrocketed.
For dinner, her grandmother, Yang Taohua, not only prepared a separate steamed egg dish for her but even slaughtered a chicken, giving one drumstick to Tang Zheng and the other to Tang Li.
To be honest, her grandmother’s cooking skills were quite good. The chicken soup and meat were so delicious they nearly overwhelmed Tang Li.
Tang Li’s younger brother, Tang Gouwa, stared longingly at the drumstick in Tang Li’s bowl. Gouwa was only five years old, and his facial features bore a striking resemblance to his father’s. “Sister, I want to eat the drumstick.”
If it were the Tang Li who hadn’t yet regained her memories of her past life, she might have shared the drumstick. As a child, she had a bit of a people-pleasing personality.
But the current her… no one was going to snatch anything from her bowl.
She quickly ate the drumstick and said to her brother with a smile, “You’re still a child. You can eat drumsticks when you’re older.”
Tang Gouwa was stunned for a moment, then turned to Tang Xun, who was eating with his head down and great speed, to complain, “Dad, sister won’t share her drumstick with me.”
If it were any other parent, Tang Li might have been a bit worried. But with her father, she knew exactly how to handle his mindset.
Tang Li put on a wronged expression, “Dad, I was wrong. As the older sibling, I should give all the good food to my younger brother and not eat it myself.”
Never mind that her brother was young and she, as the older sister, should take care of him. Children should be taught from a young age, and she couldn’t let her brother develop a mindset of taking things for granted, becoming someone who prides himself on leeching off others, like Yaozu.
Tang Xun, rushing to complete today’s lessons, didn’t even have time to eat much chicken. He shoveled rice into his mouth while attending classes in the Spatial Dimension.
Hearing the commotion outside, he paused his lesson and snapped back to reality just in time to hear his daughter’s words. To be honest, Tang Li’s words struck a chord with him.
Growing up as the eldest, he was often told that he had to give way to his younger siblings and take care of them. Back then, he often felt resentful—why should the eldest always be at a disadvantage? His mother should have let him be born a few years later.
When he and his siblings grew up, his younger brother showed a talent for studying. People didn’t talk as much about him giving way anymore, but they often compared the two of them.
Seeing his daughter’s wronged expression, Tang Xun instantly felt a sense of identification. Frowning, he said, “Gouwa, don’t you have chicken in your bowl?”
Gouwa held up his small rice bowl, “Drumstick meat is tastier. I like drumsticks.”
The brat next door said he gets to eat two big chicken legs at home every time, and he wanted that too!
Tang Xun asked, “Don’t you like eating chicken?”
Gouwa hesitated for a moment. “Right, I don’t like it.” Chicken legs were tastier.
Tang Xun said, “Since you don’t like eating chicken, then don’t eat it.”
As he spoke, he used his chopsticks to snatch the chicken from Gouwa’s bowl and, right in front of him, finished it off in a few bites.
He studied so hard, all for the sake of this family—he deserved to eat some chicken to nourish his body.
After finishing, he said with lingering satisfaction, “When your father becomes a Juren in the future, I’ll let you eat big chicken legs and throw them away one by one.”
Gouwa watched as the chicken in his bowl disappeared and was stunned. Only after he processed what happened did he start shedding golden tears. “Dad ate my meat! Bad dad!”
Tang Li didn’t feel the slightest bit of pity and said righteously, “Dad is teaching you a life lesson. See how upset you are when your meat is taken? I’d be sad too if you took my meat.”
Tang Xun, who had initially felt a bit guilty because his son was crying, couldn’t help but nod upon hearing this. Truly his considerate little darling—her words hit right where it mattered.
He nodded repeatedly. “Exactly, Dad is doing this for your own good! Next time if you still take from others, Dad will take from you. If you behave, Dad will buy you big chicken legs in the future.”
The more Tang Xun spoke, the more he felt filled with righteous energy, so wise and heroic—especially with his daughter looking at him with admiring eyes. He couldn’t have felt more pleased. He even convinced himself—yes, he did this for the children’s own good.
Gouwa didn’t continue crying, or perhaps he realized that throwing a tantrum was ineffective. He pouted and picked up his spoon to drink the remaining chicken broth from his bowl.
[Host, you did well just now. You promptly identified a bad tendency and guided the child to learn the correct perspective. Reward: two Intelligence points and one tael of silver.]
In the past, whenever Tang Xun heard the System’s voice, he would feel irritated. This time, however, the System’s voice sounded so pleasant and delightful to his ears.
[When did this mission appear?]
[This is a sudden hidden mission. As a parent, you cannot always let the eldest child suffer.]
So it was a hidden mission. He hadn’t expected to complete it unintentionally. It seemed even the divine beings thought he did the right thing.
This hidden mission was naturally assigned by Tang Li through the System. For her father, it had to be a mix of carrot and stick—only then could he be better spurred forward.
Tang Li leisurely drank her chicken broth—tomorrow, her father planned to go to school to study. She wanted to go study too!
The atmosphere in their Jing Dynasty was relatively open. A hundred years ago, girls’ schools began to appear. Their Gaojiang County also had one, called Zhiwei Hall. Girls’ schools charged more than ordinary schools, and most families couldn’t bear to spend that money to send their daughters to study.
Her grandparents weren’t particularly biased toward boys in this regard. Tang Li’s married aunt, Tang Mei, had also attended a girls’ school for two years.
Girls’ schools didn’t just teach reading and writing; they also taught needlework, arithmetic, and such.
Tang Li pondered that, given how much her grandmother valued her now, she probably wouldn’t oppose her attending a girls’ school.
That way, she could go to school with her father every day, and someone would look after her.
Meanwhile, Tang Xun, having completed the hidden mission, felt the sudden sensation of silver in his palm. Combined with the words that resonated so deeply with him, Tang Xun’s perception of the System subtly underwent a certain shift.
He quickly finished the remaining food, picked up his books, and returned to his room with renewed vigor to attend class.
For the rest of the day, he studied much more attentively than the day before. Without needing any remedial exams, he smoothly passed the day’s classroom test, completed his daily task, and earned another tael of silver.
Tang Xun calculated that today, just by completing tasks, he had earned three taels of silver. If he could teach his entire family to write their own names, there would be another five taels.
As for the ten taels of silver taken away for violating the System contract, Tang Xun could only grit his teeth and ignore the heartache.
[System, will there still be twenty classes tomorrow? I need to go to the city school to enroll tomorrow.]
He had to find a reasonable explanation for his newfound knowledge.
[Yes. In the initial stage of learning, as long as the host attends classes for ten consecutive days, the vacation function will be unlocked. After that, one day of vacation can be scheduled every seven days.]
With the lure of silver ahead, Tang Xun remained highly motivated.
He thought it over: renting a carriage to the city would take about two hours round trip. He could still attend classes during the carriage ride, so he should be able to complete his tasks on time. Speaking of which, the System was truly remarkable. Even though he attended classes in the Spatial Dimension every day without sleeping, he never felt tired. All he needed was a quarter-hour of rest to feel refreshed.
[Detected that there is a school-age child in the host’s household who is not attending school! Please take the out-of-school child Tang Li to a girls’ school within three days. Task completion reward: two taels of silver and two Intelligence points.]
Tang Xun’s eyes lit up—more money coming in!
All he had to do was send his daughter to school. Since they hadn’t yet divided the family property, the expenses would naturally fall on his mother. It wasn’t his silver being spent, so he had nothing to fear. He was determined to complete this task.
Author’s Note:
Intelligence won’t increase indefinitely without limit. It increases relatively quickly in the early stages.
Father’s current Intelligence: 115. Silver: 12 taels. Recording this so I don’t forget!