Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

Father glanced again toward Mother's room to make sure she was settled, then looked at his eldest brother, who was keeping Xingbao and Guixiang behind the counter. His tone softened considerably as he said, "Yanbang, what do you think about this? Don't worry about anything. If you don't want to, Father will push them all away. Don't force yourself."

The eldest brother pondered for a moment in silence, then raised his head and said firmly, "Father, I was originally planning to close the small classroom after the winter solstice. As everyone knows, my siblings and I have been copying and organizing books these days, and I also need to focus on preparing for next year's entrance exam. But since the uncles and elders trust me and want to entrust the children to me, I'll work a little harder—after closing the small classroom after the winter solstice, I'll open another class and teach for a month, just in time for the Lunar New Year. But judging from today's situation, there are quite a few people here, so we'll need to find a larger place to teach."

Father stared at his eldest son for a while, seeing that his eyes were firm and he didn't seem to have been forced to agree. Then, he turned around helplessly and said to the villagers in the main room, "Everyone heard what my son Yanbang said. Those who want their children to come to class, please have them bring their own things after the winter solstice. The children you brought today, please take them home first and come back after the winter solstice."

Seeing that their goal had been achieved, everyone's faces lit up with joy. They crowded around, thanking their father and eldest brother repeatedly, exchanging a few more pleasantries, before leaving one by one with their children. Once everyone had left, the second brother frowned, approached his eldest brother, and said urgently, "Brother, how could you agree to them? We're already busy enough; you still have to prepare for the entrance exam, and then teach another class—wouldn't that make it even more tiring?"

The eldest brother glanced at the second brother and said calmly, "How can I refuse? What they said is true. These villagers have been working with us at the breeding base for almost half a year. They are all diligent and hardworking and have never slacked off. If they can lend a hand, what's wrong with that? When it's time to teach, you can come and help me and teach them arithmetic. This way, it will lighten my burden, and when I go to school next year, you can keep them in check and prevent things from falling apart."

Upon hearing this, the second brother froze instantly, pointing at himself with his mouth agape, unable to utter a single word for a long time, his face filled with disbelief.

Seeing this, the older brother laughed and joked, "What, you don't want to? Then I'll ask Dashan to help. Although he's less knowledgeable than you, he can definitely teach the kids basic arithmetic for a month. If that doesn't work, we can ask Guixiang and Xingbao to help. They're much smarter than you, and they'll definitely teach better than you."

Upon hearing this, Gui Xiang immediately puffed out her little chest, looking eager to try. Her second brother immediately became anxious: "Brother Da Shan is one thing! Gui Xiang and Xing Bao are barely taller than the table, are you sure they can do it? It's just teaching arithmetic, I'll give it my all!"

"Second Brother, you clearly don't want to teach, so why are you insisting?" Gui Xiang immediately retorted, turning to Xing Bao, "I'm definitely a better teacher than him, Xing Bao, don't you think?"

Xingbao immediately nodded firmly, decisively siding with his sister. Seeing his second brother get his comeuppance would make his sister happy, so who taught them was no longer important at this point.

Seeing that his eldest brother had already made all the plans, his father felt relieved. His biggest worry was that his brother had been forced to agree, and he was afraid that his brother would be too tired. So he smiled and said, "Yanbang, there's no need to find another place. Let's hold the classes in the main room. The main room of the kitchen doesn't receive many guests these days, and it's usually empty, which is enough to accommodate these children. After class in the evening, we can put away the stools and planks, so it won't affect the guests' lodging or luggage storage. It's a win-win situation."

Upon hearing this, the eldest brother hesitated for a moment and said with concern, "Father, the main room is right next to Mother's room. The children will inevitably make noise during class. Won't that disturb Mother's rest? Mother is pregnant now and can't be disturbed."

Upon hearing this, Father quickly smiled and waved his hand, his tone gentle yet reassuring, allaying his elder brother's concerns: "It's alright. While you're in class, I'll go with your mother to the bamboo house in front. It's quiet there, so it won't disturb your mother's rest. Alright, you should go to class now, don't keep the children waiting!"

The eldest brother nodded, turned, and walked towards the small classroom in the backyard. Gui Xiang immediately skipped and hopped after him, while the second brother, though reluctant, followed slowly behind. Only Xing Bao glanced in the direction of the noisy classroom, then turned back to the kitchen—his dictation task wasn't finished yet, and Gui Xiang, who had no interest in science and was accompanying her friends to class, naturally wouldn't urge him. Xing Bao thought to himself, since there was still more than a month until the New Year, there was plenty of time. He might as well slow down and carefully memorize every point of knowledge, so as to avoid having to redo it later.

After dinner, my uncle and Da Shan came over for a leisurely visit. As soon as they entered, my uncle shouted in a loud voice, "Yanbang, I just got back and your grandfather told me that today those ingrates in the village came to force you to teach their brats to read?" His tone was full of indignation, clearly on behalf of his older brother.

The eldest brother quickly stood up and gestured for his uncle and brother Dashan to sit down, waving his hand with a smile: "Uncle, don't force me, you're being too serious. If I don't want to, there's nothing they can do. It's just that we're all from the same village, and they've been working diligently with us at the breeding base for almost half a year. We'll help them out if we can. By the way, when did you and brother Dashan get home? How did it go selling cabbages in Yaodu today?"

Upon hearing his elder brother ask about selling cabbages, the uncle's face instantly fell. He waved his hand, looking utterly frustrated, and said, "Don't even mention it! When I got to Yaodu, I realized there were cabbage vendors everywhere, stalls crammed together. Not counting the two biggest cabbages I brought, after paying the stall fees, I only earned a few copper coins today—a pitiful amount! If I weren't so reluctant to part with them, I would have fed the pigs with those unsold cabbages! And those two big cabbages I brought—if I hadn't run into Captain Li, they almost got taken away by the security team!"

Upon hearing this, Xingbao, Guixiang, and their second brother immediately crowded around, their eyes wide with curiosity, chattering and asking, "Uncle, what happened next? What happened after Captain Li arrived?"

Seeing the children's curious faces, the uncle deliberately dragged out his words, keeping them in suspense: "And then—" He paused, then smiled and continued, "And then Captain Li bought those two cabbages."