Today, Third Yang accompanied Bai Lang to class. Upon seeing the arithmetic problems, oh, he’d done them before—easy!

Zhou Yu, holding a ruler, said, “You have to think for yourselves, write down your thought process, and hand it in tomorrow. Remember, no copying homework. If I find out you’re not being honest, you won’t want to know the consequences.”

Third Yang remained calm; these problems were too easy. He looked at Bai Lang provocatively.

Zhou Yu, “…”

Where was Third Yang’s face? Did he really think he was a beginner?

Zhou Yu laughed. Tonight, Third Yang would do ten more problems—that was settled.

Third Yang, “…”

He didn’t want to see his Jiefu smile at all!

Bai Lang didn’t recognize his classmates, but the students in the class wanted to get close to him. They knew Bai Lang was the son of a general, but unfortunately, Bai Lang was too arrogant.

The Ye brothers didn’t approach; they stayed with Third Yang, along with several children from the Liu family.

They coldly watched as the other students first flattered Zhong Xu and now turned to flatter Bai Lang, especially the Zhao brothers, who were the most obvious.

Clearly, the Zhao family knew there was a rift with the Zhou family and had their eyes on Young Master Bai.

Ziheng was suddenly picked up, startling him. Seeing it was his father, he was overjoyed. “Dad!”

Zhou Yu, holding his chubby son, knew his class wouldn’t be starting soon; his younger brother would be teaching him to read, so his son wouldn’t need to study. “Dad will take you back to the backyard.”

Third Yang also wanted to go back but couldn’t; he had to stay and keep an eye on Bai Lang!

Bai Lang frowned. He’d seen too much flattery and didn’t like being fawned over all the time. His face turned cold. “Get out of the way, all of you.”

Annoying! He still wanted to figure out how to do his math problems!

Third Yang observed this, noting the expressions on the Zhao family members’ faces. Tsk tsk, still so young.

Zhou Yu returned to the courtyard and found someone there. It was Sun Shi, who had brought Zhao Da Niang (Zhao’s eldest daughter).

Yang Xi gestured for her son to come down. “You’re so happy just from Daddy holding you?”

Ziheng was happy; he liked his current father. His father’s direct affection let him know how much he loved him. “Mom, I can do the problems Daddy gave me today.”

Yang Xi poured her son water. “Ziheng is great! Here, have a cup of warm water first.”

Ziheng obediently sat down to drink. Zhou Yu also sat down beside him. Sun Shi felt uncomfortable and quickly stood up. “Madam Yang, then we’ll head back.”

Yang Xi smiled faintly. “I won’t see you off.”

Sun Shi didn’t dare let Madam Yang see her off. “Please stay.”

Sun Shi left with her granddaughter. Zhou Yu finally spoke, “Why were they here?”

Yang Xi replied, “Liu Lizheng and Brother Wu didn’t hide the fact that they got something from us, so they came to test us after hearing the news.”

Zhou Yu asked, “The Zhao family and the Hu family are engaged?”

Yang Xi couldn’t help but chuckle when she saw her son listening intently. He was young, but he was very concerned. “They’re engaged. They’ve already started the betrothal ceremony, and they’ll get married after that.”

Zhou Yu glanced at her. “So soon?”

Yang Xi said, “Second Miss Zhao is also of engagement age. She should get engaged first, but the Hu family is also pressuring us.”

Zhou Yu pinched her son’s ear, and the little guy protested, but he couldn’t escape.

Zhou Yu said, “I remember you asked Xi Xuan to inquire. What did he find out?”

Yang Xi hugged her son, preventing Zhou Yu from bullying him. “Girls with bound feet from the Hu family are all sent to the city to be concubines. The tables and chairs I designed sold well, and the Huang family in the county town took a liking to them. They sent someone to the Hu family to inquire. So the Hu family set their sights on the Wu and Zhao families’ daughters. Brother Wu refused, but the Zhao family agreed.”

Zhou Yu, “Sent to be concubines?”

“Yes, the Hu family has always sent girls to the Huang family, and they get a lot of benefits from it. The Huang family will sponsor the Hu family’s scholars to take the imperial examinations.”

Zhou Yu, “…”

It was really hard to put into words.

Yang Xi felt disgusted too. “I meant well by giving Sun Shi a heads-up. Although I didn’t spell it out, I hinted that the Hu family wasn’t a good match, but unfortunately, Sun Shi didn’t react.”

“You’ve already given the hint. As long as you’ve acted in good conscience, that’s fine. The Zhao family must have inquired about the Hu family before the engagement. This was the Zhao family’s choice.”

Yang Xi just felt it was a pity. Eldest Miss Zhao was quite nice. Yang Xi asked, “Is Bai Lang paying attention in class?”

Zhou Yu replied, “Yes, he’s listening quite attentively.”   

“That’s good.”

Zhou Yu chuckled. “Xi Xuan doesn’t even want to bully him anymore, thinking Bai Lang is too naive.”

“That’s because he’s full of tricks.”

A few days later, the wedding date for Miss Zhao was set. Zhong Yan received a letter from his wife, saying they would arrive in Xiang County in two days. Zhong Yan was very happy.

During dinner, Zhong Yan took out the letter, somewhat embarrassed, “My grandchildren are coming with my wife.”

Yang Xi calculated in her mind that Uncle Zhong’s second son and youngest son each had three children, making six children in total from both families. When the time came, Brother Zhong would also send his children over, adding four more, making a total of ten grandchildren!

Madam Ye was stunned for a moment, then said, “Ran’er and I will live in the main courtyard. When Brother Zhong’s granddaughter moves to the main courtyard, it will make the main courtyard more lively.”

Zhong Yan was a little embarrassed. “It’s not good for them to live in the main courtyard. They can live with us in the small courtyard.”

There would still be room for several grandchildren to live in one room.

Yang Xi patted her son’s head. Once Uncle Zhong’s grandchildren arrived, her son could move back to the east courtyard.

Madam Ye shook her head. “There aren’t that many rules. I really feel there are too few people in the main courtyard. I wish I had more granddaughters, but as my elder brother has seen, I only have one grandson now, and another one is yet to be born.”

Zhong Yan thought about it and agreed; indeed, there was no need to follow the rules. “Don’t disturb you.”

Madam Ye smiled. “No, I’d love for it to be lively.”

In the end, it was agreed that because there were more children, the classrooms in the front courtyard would be separated.

Yang Xi asked, “How do you plan to divide the children into two classes?”

Zhou Yu hadn’t considered treating everyone equally. Some children were quick learners, while others were slower. Time was of the essence, and he couldn’t give individual attention to every child. “Exams and class division based on scores.”

The slower learners would be taught more slowly so that neither class would be neglected.

Yang Xi, “Alright.”

Zhou Yu helped his wife install the polished parts. “You can give me the questions.”

Yang Xi, “Okay.”

Zhou Yu touched the smooth parts. “The Wu sisters are quite skillful.”

“Polishing is hard on the hands, but these two kids are very reliable.”

Zhou Yu said, “Brother Wu and his wife know how to teach their children.”

Yang Xi nodded. “They’re also very sensible; they never ask what the parts are for when they’re polished.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

Yang Xi’s hands moved quickly, and the model was assembled in no time. “How is it? Not bad, right?”

“It’s pretty good. How do you plan to experiment?”

Yang Xi didn’t have the patience to weave, and the Wu sisters didn’t know how to weave. “I want my younger sister to try.”

“You tell Xiaomei.”

Yang Xi wanted to laugh when she mentioned her younger sister. “That girl has saved up some money recently.”

“Tell her to embroider less so she doesn’t hurt her eyes.”

“I’ve already given instructions; Mother is keeping an eye on it for me!”

The couple put the model away. It was getting late, and Yang Xi lay down, saying, “When do you think the Huang family will come?”

Zhou Yu replied, “After Miss Zhao’s wedding.”

He was wrong. The very next day, the Huang family arrived impatiently, bringing lavish gifts.

The head of the Huang family came in person, followed by his eldest son.

Zhou Yu didn’t receive them, and Zhong Yan certainly wouldn’t show up. Third Yang was responsible for receiving the Huang family head!

(End of Chapter)

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