Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

Looking at the young boy before him, who was so capable of designing a safety rope and explaining the ins and outs clearly, Mr. Wang felt a deep appreciation for his talent and his gaze softened: "Xingbao, do you usually go to school? Do you have books at home?"

Gui Xiang, unable to contain herself any longer, rushed to Mr. Wang before Xing Bao could even speak. Looking up at him with her big, watery eyes full of anticipation, she said in a clear voice, "Sir, we want to read! But Big Brother has so few books; we've already finished them all. Sir, can we look at your books? We promise to be careful and won't damage them!" Her eagerness and longing were undisguised, perfectly expressing Xing Bao's own long-held desires. Standing beside her, Xing Bao nodded slightly, his eyes also filled with the same expectation.

As soon as Guixiang finished speaking, Mr. Wang's eyes shone with satisfaction, and he immediately replied loudly, "Good! Good! Uncle will get you the books right away!" He then stood up and walked towards an old but neatly tidied wicker trunk in the corner. After taking a few steps, he turned back and asked with a smile, "Guixiang, tell Uncle, what books have you read?"

Gui Xiang immediately followed with small, quick steps, swaying her head as she walked alongside Mr. Wang, counting in her clear, crisp voice: "We read the *Three Character Classic*, the *Thousand Character Classic*, the *Hundred Family Surnames*, as well as arithmetic, geography, and history books, and also the *Tangtou Ge* and *Qianjin Fang*!"

Mr. Wang listened to the first few books, nodding repeatedly with approval on his face. But when he heard about the medical books, his hand, which was opening the box, suddenly stopped. He turned around and looked at Guixiang with a puzzled expression: "Oh? Why are you reading medical books? Can you even understand such profound books?"

Gui Xiang blinked her big, round eyes and answered earnestly, "I don't understand. Master told us to memorize it first, and then he'll teach us to understand it slowly when we grow up."

Mr. Wang breathed a sigh of relief, secretly amused at himself for overthinking things. Hearing Guixiang recite so many book titles, he simply assumed it was because the two children loved reading, so he didn't ask any more questions. He reached out and opened the wicker trunk, gently moving the clothes and miscellaneous items on top to the side, revealing the neatly stacked books at the bottom. "My treasured books are all here. Take whichever one you want to read," he said gently.

Xingbao and Guixiang quickly squatted down beside the wicker box, carefully examining the books, afraid of damaging them. Most of the books in this small box were thread-bound handwritten manuscripts, with neat handwriting. There were also a few foreign language books with unusual covers—Xingbao only recognized English and Japanese, so these were clearly not English or Japanese. The rest were books on physics and chemistry; judging from this, Mr. Wang must teach science and engineering. Guixiang was quickly drawn to a beautifully covered handwritten book of poems and began to quietly peruse it. Xingbao, meanwhile, carefully searched through the pile of books, when suddenly his eyes lit up. He pulled out a newer book, the cover of which clearly read "Principles of Mechanics, Volume 1."

Just what I wished for came true! With this book, the matter of making a threshing machine was on track. Xingbao was overjoyed and quickly turned to Mr. Wang, waving the book in his hand and saying with a smile, "Sir, we'll just look at these two!" He then pointed to the handwritten copy in Guixiang's hand.

Mr. Wang looked at the mechanical book in his hand, his lips twitching almost imperceptibly. He deliberately put on a stern face and teased, "Xingbao, I just heard Guixiang say that you were also reading medical books. Why did you choose a mechanical book instead? Children shouldn't be greedy. You should know that 'being a jack-of-all-trades and master of none is worse than being an expert in one.' The worst thing you can do when you're not focused on one thing.

Xingbao felt a pang of panic, realizing he was in trouble. He had only used this as an excuse to research a threshing machine; he couldn't let his teacher's good intentions go to waste. He quickly suppressed his excitement, feigning childlike innocence, and looked up at his teacher with a sincere tone, saying, "Teacher, I saw how hard Father and Uncle worked threshing the grain. It was so slow and tiring. This year, during the double harvest, a lot of grain was piled up in the drying yard, and when it rained, it couldn't be harvested in time and sprouted. It was such a waste. I was thinking, could we make something that could thresh grain faster so that the adults would have less to do? That's why I chose this book."

Mr. Wang was stunned when he heard Xingbao's words. He was speechless for a long time, his chest heaving violently. He was clearly touched by the boy's thoughts. He turned to look at the safety rope hanging on the wall, then glanced at the students chatting and eating sunflower seeds. His lips twitched slightly, as if he had a thousand words to say, but then he thought that the occasion was inappropriate and swallowed them back.

He suppressed the turmoil in his heart, gently patted Xingbao's head, bent down and carefully took the second volume of "Principles of Machinery," tracing the cover with his fingertips several times before solemnly handing it to Xingbao. "Xingbao, these two books were sent to me by an old friend from Tsinghua University two years ago for reference. Now I don't need them anymore, so I'm giving them to you. If you have any questions, you can come to the university to find me sometime. Also, if you make any progress on your threshing machine, be sure to let me know." He then patted Xingbao's head again, his eyes full of expectation, before turning back to sit down at the table. Several gentlemen nearby gathered around, whispering amongst themselves, their eyes frequently glancing at Xingbao with curiosity and admiration.

Xingbao held the two books in his hands, momentarily at a loss. He had only wanted an excuse to bring out the threshing machine, but he never expected Mr. Wang to give him the books directly. Now he was in a bind—the books didn't contain any threshing machine blueprints, so he had to find another way. However, upon further reflection, he realized that these two books would be extremely helpful. In his previous life, he had only graduated from high school and had never systematically studied mechanical knowledge. The materials he usually bought were only for the problems he encountered at work. With these books, he could build a solid foundation.

Thoughts flashed by, and seeing that Mr. Wang had already taken his seat, Xingbao quickly reacted, holding the book in both hands, and bowed deeply to Mr. Wang, his voice clear and respectful: "Thank you for the book, sir! Xingbao will definitely study it carefully and live up to your expectations!"

Mr. Wang smiled and waved his hand, indicating that there was no need for formalities. Xingbao and Guixiang then carefully carried the books to the counter, found a quiet corner to sit down, and Guixiang lowered her head, immersed in the world of poetry, her fingertips gently stroking the yellowed pages, softly reciting the verses; Xingbao, on the other hand, stroked the cover of "Principles of Mechanics," feeling both happy and worried. He was happy to have obtained the precious mechanics book, but worried because he had only made an excuse, and now that he had the book, he would have to think of a reasonable reason to take out the threshing machine, so as not to give himself away.