Chapter 84: Youth Team (I)
"Mr. Yu, our boss is ahead." The driver shouted to the inside of the carriage. Upon hearing this, Mr. Yu and his wife lifted the curtain in front of the carriage and saw a house in the distance on the road.
The wall of the house looked quite long. It was painted with white lime. Every so often, there was a wooden sign with some paper stuck on it. In addition, people were coming in and out of several doors near and far.
The car stopped in front of a field, and the driver opened the small door on the side of the car and lowered the ladder. Yu Xiucai climbed down the ladder first, then turned around and helped his wife get off the car. His wife's little feet were standing still on the steps of the ladder.
The couple stood still and saw donkey carts coming in and out of the venue. The style was exactly the same as the one they were riding. It was a two-wheeled vehicle with the front handlebars resting on a leather saddle on the donkey's back. Compared to common vehicles, this vehicle was much thinner and lighter, and could be pulled by a donkey. Some vehicles were pulled by mules, which seemed even faster.
The driver stopped at the door and handed a piece of paper with words written on it to the guard at the door. The guard looked at the paper for a while, then pointed at the words written on it and started talking to the guard. Yu Xiucai vaguely heard the two people discussing.
"What is a visitor?"
“A visitor is a guest.”
“Why not write about the guests?”
"Anyone who comes from outside is a guest."
“I’ve never heard of this term.”
"It's in the new lesson."
…
Yu Xiucai was a little confused. The driver was wearing a short jacket. A pair of normal trousers and a double-breasted jacket. If there was any difference, the buttons on the double-breasted jacket were larger and the collar seemed to be sewn in several layers. It looked particularly fair.
However, what these two guys said was completely different from their identities. The short-sleeved gang actually mentioned class again for the vocabulary discussion. Huo Chong and Master Huo's men seemed to be really different.
While he was puzzled, the driver had finished talking. Another person came out of the venue, came to Yu Xiucai, and said directly: "Hello, sir."
"Hello." Yu Xiucai answered hesitantly and politely.
"Please follow me." The man who came out of the venue said, and then he led the way.
Yu Xiucai noticed that this man was also wearing a double-breasted suit with large buttons and a collar made of multiple layers. Just this one difference made him look neat and clean.
Several people entered through the side door of the parking lot. The person at the door read the paper and said, " Enter through door number four."
After walking a short distance, I saw a door in front of me. There was a sign next to the door saying "Number 4". It was exactly what the man at the door said.
Yu Xiucai wanted to move forward, but he found that his wife was a little behind. He turned his head and saw that his wife was already unable to walk. Yu Xiucai was about to say something, but he saw the guide pointing to a bench by the door and said, "If you can't walk, sit here for a while."
Yu Xiucai then noticed that there was a wooden bench beside the road leading to Gate No. 4. The bench was really interesting, made of several long wooden boards three fingers wide, with some gaps between each board, but the gaps were only one finger wide. He helped his wife sit on it, and surprisingly, she didn't feel empty at all.
The guide stood quietly by. From time to time, people passed by in this passage, and they were all dressed similarly to the guide, except that some people had two pockets sewn under their shirts, and some had two pockets sewn on their chests in addition to the two pockets near the hem of their clothes.
In addition, two completely useless thick strips of cloth were sewn on the shoulders of these people. Although it looked useless, it gave me an indescribable feeling. It seemed to be a symbol of something.
Yu Xiucai's wife rested for a while and whispered, "I'm fine."
The couple stood up hand in hand. The guide continued to lead the way in silence. As they approached the wall, they saw that the courtyard was wide, with not only some trees but also some flowers and plants. It was already June, and the flowers were in full bloom. The air was filled with a faint fragrance. This fragrance made Yu Xiucai feel refreshed, and this ordinary courtyard seemed to be more pleasing to the eye.
After walking for a while, a large open space appeared in front of us. The sound of reading came from a row of houses next to the open space.
“Hello, Excuse me, Goodbye…” “One plus one equals two…” “The earth revolves around the sun, and the moon revolves around the earth…”
Different reading sounds came from different rooms, and Yu Xiucai was confused and didn't know what was being taught in this school. After waiting for a while, he saw a woman coming out, holding a hammer and hitting an iron bar hanging next to the yard.
The clanging sound startled Yu Xiucai. Soon, the door of the house opened, and students poured out of the classroom and entered the yard. There were students ranging from five or six years old to ten years old. Not only that, in addition to boys, there were also some girls.
Yu Xiucai was dumbfounded. He never expected that Huo Chong's school would accept girls. Just as he was surprised, his wife stepped forward and shouted, "Sister!"
Hearing his wife's call, Yu Xiucai looked over and saw a woman walking out of the middle right classroom. She was dressed in a normal blue cloth dress that was clean. Standing among the students, she showed the steadiness that an adult should have.
Hearing Yu Xiucai's wife's call, the woman turned her head and looked over. After a moment, tears filled her eyes.
Ten minutes later, Yu Xiucai, his wife, and the female teacher had already arrived at another courtyard. People coming in and out here were all adults, mostly women.
Yu Xiucai's wife and her sister were talking on one side , and on the other side, the director of Mengguan was chatting with Yu Xiucai.
Yu Xiucai has already determined that the director of the Mengguan is a Tongsheng. Tongsheng does not mean young. Anyone who has not obtained the title of Xiucai but has been registered with the government is called a Tongsheng. This Tongsheng is in his early thirties and has also studied for many years.
Although he looked down on the students, Yu Xiucai did not dare to offend the director. After talking for a while, Yu Xiucai could not help but ask, "Director Ding, why do you accept girls in your school?"
"I have never heard of a mother who can read but her children cannot," Director Ding answered frankly.
When Yu Xiucai heard this, he felt a little contemptuous. But thinking about it again, what Director Ding said was not without reason. His wife Xu Yushi's mother, Xu, could read, and all the children in the Xu family, regardless of gender, could read.
Although he thought this made sense, Yu Xiucai still felt something was wrong and couldn't help but say, "There seems to be something wrong with women studying."
"Something's wrong." Director Ding's tone was already somewhat unhappy.
Yu Xiucai quickly explained: "Director Ding is not surprised. I just think that for a woman to study is a little bit..."
"We only teach literacy here, not reading!" Director Ding replied unhappily.
"Oh... that's good." Yu Xiucai felt much more balanced.
At this moment, Yu Xiucai's wife Xu Yu asked loudly in confusion: "Sister, why don't you want to go back with me?"
"Sister, no need to say more. I won't go to your place." Sister Xu replied.
Yu Xiucai was in a state of turmoil. Since getting married, Yu Xiucai and his wife have been very affectionate. When his father-in-law's family was subjected to literary inquisition, Yu Xiucai resolutely chose to stay out of it. The male members of his father-in-law's family were killed, and Yu Xiucai dared not do anything except keep his mouth shut.
Even though he knew that the women were bought by a donating official named Huo Chong, Yu Xiucai did not dare to mention it. However, half a year later, it was heard that this donating official named Huo Chong asked the women he bought to teach people how to read, and did not stop the women's families from taking the women and their children home. He even did not charge any money.
Yu Xiucai couldn't help but tell his wife the news. His wife begged Yu Xiucai to take her sister back. Yu Xiucai and his wife had a good relationship, and he couldn't bear his wife's pleading, so he contacted Huo Chong. He learned that Huo Chong welcomed the relatives of these women to take them away, so he came.
Yu Xiucai was even a little happy to hear that his wife's sister was determined not to leave. He got rid of the trouble and proved to his wife how good he was to her. There was no better result than this.
Yu Xiucai had already thought about how to comfort his wife. Huo Chong's school looked pretty good, and his wife's sister didn't seem to be mistreated. Huo Chong didn't refuse to visit her. If his wife missed her sister, she could come and visit her at any time.
If she is still not satisfied with this situation, what else does she want? Yu Xiucai's own house is not big. If he brings his wife's sister and her children to live with him, the pressure of life will increase a lot...
"Sister, isn't it good for us to be together as a family?" Yu Xiucai's wife advised.
But Yu Xiucai's wife's sister pulled Yu Xiucai's wife up, and the two of them actually left the room. Yu Xiucai couldn't help but want to follow her out, but Director Ding stopped him, "Brother Yu, let the sisters talk a little bit."
Yu Xiucai also thought it made sense, so he sat back in his seat. Seeing Director Ding wearing a long robe and looking quite respectable, Yu Xiucai couldn't help but say, "This Mr. Huo... is really rich."
"Hmph!" Director Ding responded with some disdain.
Yu Xiucai could tell that Director Ding was disdainful of him. This made Yu Xiucai a little unhappy. Director Ding in front of him was just a student, and Huo Chong was just a reserve official who donated money to become an official. What was there to show off in front of Yu Xiucai who passed the imperial examination with his own strength?
Then Director Ding laughed and said, "Mr. Huo is indeed not a poor man. Mr. Huo is not only rich, but also kind and righteous. He will never stand idly by and watch the unfortunate people."
After saying that, Director Ding stared at Yu Xiucai. Yu Xiucai thought for a moment before he realized that Director Ding was secretly mocking Yu Xiucai for standing idly by when his relatives were in trouble. He waited until the storm had passed before he came out.
Feeling such ridicule, Yu Xiucai's face changed. But Director Ding did not give in and looked into Yu Xiucai's eyes calmly.
The men here were arguing with each other. In another empty room, Teacher Xu decisively said to his sister, "I won't go to your house with you. Your house is your home. If I go there, it will drive both of us to death!"
"Sister, my husband is not that kind of person." Teacher Xu's sister Xu Yu persuaded.
Teacher Xu shook her head, her expression bitter. "Sister, I know you are good to me. But I heard that two of the women who left Mr. Huo's place were forced to commit suicide. Three others left and returned with their children, begging Mr. Huo to take them in. I don't want to be like them."
