Reconciliation

Mr. Zhuang did not say much to them. He had many reasons to explain, but he also needed the two children to understand and absorb what he said.

In any case, the two children were still young, and Mr. Zhuang had plenty of time to speak to them. He was not in a hurry.

Mr. Zhuang checked Bai Shanbao's homework because he was new, and Mr. Zhuang needed to assess his progress to plan his lessons effectively.

Bai Shanbao had already memorized "The Analects", but he had not yet learned the meaning of the second half.

Mr. Zhuang asked and found out that he had studied with his previous teacher and Mrs. Liu. Nodding in satisfaction, he then let the two children go back to class.

For the first time, Manbao felt that there was a child who was even more talented than her. She said to him, "You read faster than me. I started reading at the age of one, and the only book I knew was the 'Thousand Character Classic.'"

Bai Shanbao felt that she was indeed a bit slow and said, "I started reading at the age of two, and it only took me three months to memorize the 'Thousand Character Classic.'"

Of course, Bai Shanbao did not tell her that he had only memorized the text and did not know the characters. It was not until he was three years old that he began to recognize and write characters from the textbook.

Due to having a clever classmate, Manbao listened attentively in class to avoid falling behind. She also enjoyed using her brain, which led to her asking many questions.

For example, when Mr. Zhuang explained the meaning of "gentle, honest, solemn, frugal, and modest," Manbao asked how to behave in a way that could embody these qualities.

Because she thought about it and felt that she met all five criteria, did that mean she was a saint now?

Seeing the shameless disciple, Mr. Zhuang had not yet spoken when Bai Shanbao interjected, "Leaving aside other matters, you do not meet the criteria for honesty, gentleness, solemnity, and modesty."

Bai Shanbao continued, "You were biased towards your nephew yesterday, which is not honest. You fought with me, which is not gentle or solemn, and you even bit me, which is not modest."

Manbao glared, "Then I can't say that you bullied my nephew and me." "I want to be a saint like Confucius, not a fool."

Seeing that the two children were about to argue again, Mr. Zhuang knocked on the table and said, "Are you two still not listening to the lesson?"

Bai Shanbao and Zhou Manbao sat up straight, obediently placed their hands on their knees, and listened attentively to Mr. Zhuang's lecture with their heads held high.

Mr. Zhuang then cited some examples of Confucius to illustrate how he embodied gentleness, honesty, solemnity, frugality, and modesty.

In the morning, they only had one class. After Mr. Zhuang helped them recognize characters and recite them independently, he went to teach the college students nearby.

Although the system had seen it many times, it couldn't help but admire the wisdom of the ancients. In terms of educational resources, ancient times lagged far behind the future.

However, it was precisely in this backward era that the teacher's profound knowledge and consideration of individual differences were unmatched for many years to come.

Especially with the later prevalence of the Eight-legged Essay, which directly standardized the writing style, education began to become uniform.

Of course, the system did not say these things to Manbao, but quietly watched her and Bai Shanbao boast. They claimed that they had simply memorized the text and retained the teachings of the teacher.

Bai Shanbao snorted, "I memorized it a long time ago and remembered it." "I memorized the entire text."

Feeling Bai Shanbao's pride, Manbao was filled with fighting spirit. "I will surpass you in the future."

She didn't just say it; she also did it. Manbao reopened the closed textbook and started reading the following passages.

She already recognized many characters, so she could read them on her own.

Moreover, when Mr. Zhuang copied this book for her, he had already broken the sentences, so she didn't need to do it herself. She continued reading with a nodding head.

The first time was difficult to understand, but the second time was smoother, and by the third time, it was much clearer. After reading it again, Manbao could recite it with a stutter.

Confident that she had remembered it, she opened the next passage to continue memorizing. In no time, Manbao had memorized three or four passages from the textbook.

Bai Shanbao was surprised and opened his mouth wide. He didn't have time to sneak away and play, so he quickly opened the book and started memorizing.

He couldn't let her surpass him.

When the lunch bell rang, the children rushed out, grabbed their large bowls, and lined up in the kitchen to receive their food.

Manbao was young and had short legs, so she ended up at the back. As for Bai Shanbao, it was his first day, so he was still getting used to it. By the time everyone had run out, he was still a bit slow to react.

Manbao was the one who noticed something was amiss at the door. She retraced her steps to retrieve his bowl and then urged him to follow along.

As a result, the two youngest children ended up at the back of the line.

But Manbao was not worried at all. She proudly told Bai Shanbao, "My sister-in-law is the one cooking, so if you follow me, you'll definitely get more to eat."

Initially, Bai Shanbao didn't think there was anything to be proud of. However, after hearing Manbao's words and seeing her pride, he couldn't help but feel a bit envious.

Sure enough, when it was their turn, Xiao Qian smiled at the two of them and served them a variety of dishes.

The students could eat in the classroom, but most of them preferred to eat in the yard. They stood or sat while eating, and some even ran to the grass on the other side of the road to play and eat.

Bai Shanbao squatted down next to Manbao to eat, feeling that the school's food was quite delicious, and he ate with relish.

After eating, the students could play near the school, but they were not allowed to go near the river. Every day at this time, Mr. Zhuang would sit in front of the courtyard gate and watch. If anyone got too close to the river, they would not only be punished by having their hands slapped but also by being made to recite and write.

Despite the temptation of the nearby river, no student had dared to run and play in it so far.

Of course, Manbao wouldn't go either. She ran back to get the box of bugs and wanted to practice courage with Bai Shanbao. She had already decided that when these bugs were no longer useful to her, she would give them to Keke.

Keke: ...

So, Manbao and Shanbao played with the dozen or so bugs until they died.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Manbao decided to take the bugs back to feed the chickens so they would lay more eggs. Then she would catch more bugs for Keke.

That's what Manbao thought and what she told Keke.

What could the system do? It could only agree. Could it force Manbao to catch bugs for it?

So, Shanbao and Manbao agreed to catch bugs together the next day.

Both children felt that they were no longer afraid of bugs, so, naturally, they had to catch bugs. Most importantly, if they lost the bugs, how could they not return them?

As if they had forgotten about their fight the day before, they made plans for the next day and discreetly glanced at Bai Erlang, who was lecturing in the classroom.

Bai Shanbao even complained to Manbao, "He's really bad." As soon as I arrived, he wanted to take my wooden horse. "When I didn't give it to him, he started rolling on the ground."

Manbao was curious, "What happened next?" "Did your mother give it to him?"

"No, she didn't," Bai Shanbao proudly said with his head held high. "My grandmother was going to give it to him, so I also rolled on the ground." Then my uncle beat him up. "Hmph!"

Manbao asked, "Did you get the horse?"

Bai Shanbao shook his head and said, "No, my uncle didn't give it to me either. I was too old for a wooden horse."

The two children seemed to have forgotten about their fight and were making plans for the next day, both secretly glancing at Bai Erlang, who was lecturing in the classroom.