The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

Ya Ya stared at the row of calligraphy brushes, frowned, and thought about it seriously for a while. She decided to buy one for Grandpa Fang, and then one for Xiao Douzi and one for Xiao Shuanzi as well.

She had heard adults say that boys need to study so they can have a bright future.

"I need three more, one for Grandpa, and one for each of my brothers. Could you please help me carry them, sister?"

The little girl spoke earnestly and politely, which softened He Miao's heart. She smiled and helped her take down the other three calligraphy brushes, gently placing them into the small basket at the little girl's feet.

She glanced at the little girl's basket: a few bars of sulfur soap, a toothbrush and toothpaste, the cheapest paper for practicing calligraphy, an old-fashioned mirror...

It's all for home use and school; there's not a single little gadget that a little girl would like.

She looked down at the little girl's hair again. The two loose little tufts were not tied with rubber bands, but with rough, inelastic straw ropes. The ropes were so frizzy that they were a bit tight on her hair. Her head was bare, without even a small hair clip or a small floral rope.

"Little friend, you bought so many things, why don't you pick some for yourself? Look at these little hair clips and hair ties, aren't they cute?"

She pointed to a whole shelf of sparkly cartoon hair clips, styles that little girls couldn't resist.

Ya Ya subconsciously touched the straw rope on her head and said in a slightly embarrassed voice, "I can use a hair tie, I don't need to spend money to buy one."

He Miao didn't force him, but picked up a bucket of colorful elastic rubber bands and handed it to him: "Look at this, it's not a waste. These are elastic and won't tie your hair. There are several hundred in a bucket, so other people in your family can use them too. They're also convenient for tying things up, and they're sturdy."

She then pointed to the cute hair clip, "This is a hair clip. It can hold up stray hairs from the side so they don't block your eyes, and it's very pretty."

Ya Ya stared at the hair clip for a long time, clearly liking it.

After hesitating for a few seconds, she gently shook her head, took the bucket of colorful rubber bands, and put them into the basket.

Several hundred of these are worth buying!

……

Lotus Village.

In Grandma Liu's yard, two-and-a-half-year-old Xiao Shuanzi saw his older brother Xiao Douzi playing with Grandpa Fang, and wrapped in his little flowered jacket, he shuffled over like a ball.

"Does Xiao Shuanzi want to learn too?"

Fang Tiesheng smiled and reached out, picking up the chubby little dumpling and placing it on his lap.

Little Bean has been practicing here for almost half an hour. He learns quickly and can sit still. I think he has the makings of a scholar.

This little one is so small, he can barely walk, yet he's still coming over here. Could it be that two promising students are about to emerge from their Lotus Village?

His anticipation grew stronger with each passing thought, so he simply held up an old newspaper to Xiao Shuanzi, pointing to the pictures and words on it, "Come on, Xiao Shuanzi, take a look. Do you like this?"

Little Shuanzi's round eyes lit up as he stared at the colorful pictures on the newspaper. He stretched out his little arms and made two "ah-ah" sounds.

Fang Tiesheng found it amusing and pointed to the black characters next to him, saying, "These are characters. Only by studying and recognizing characters can you have a bright future."

Little Shuanzi blinked and stared at the horizontal and vertical black lines for less than two seconds before his head started to spin and his eyes started to wander.

The toddler, barely two years old, couldn't sit still. Once the novelty wore off, he reached out to grab the newspaper, startling Fang Tiesheng, who quickly moved it away. This was the written medium of that magical place; he couldn't afford to damage it.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Xiao Shuanzi twisted and slid to the ground and ran away.

Fang Tiesheng watched the little boy's retreating figure, couldn't help but shake his head and smile. He then looked at the little bean, who was quietly imitating the strokes of the stick, and his eyes softened.

It's a pity that there's no paper, no ink, and no proper pens in the village. You can't take the imperial examinations by just digging characters out of the soil.

Just then, a heavy footstep came from the side. Turning his head, he saw Zhao the hunter and his men coming over after they finished digging and tamping the earth for the cellar behind the house.

His trouser legs and shirt were covered in wet mud, and he looked exhausted.

Looking at the front yard, Zhao the hunter noticed that the previously uneven ground had become much smoother, and the simple shed was beginning to take shape. He looked up at the sky and thought the progress was not bad.

He put down the shovel from his shoulder and peered into the house: "Where's Ya Ya?"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than Ya Ya's voice rang out from inside the house: "Uncle Zhao, I'm here!"

Immediately afterwards, there was a rustling sound of plastic bags being rubbed together. Ya Ya's small figure appeared at the door, her two little hands clutching a big red bag, struggling to drag it out.

"Hey, slow down, slow down! Watch out for the threshold!" Hunter Zhao quickly stepped over, reached out and lifted the bag; it was quite heavy. "What's in this? It's so heavy!"

He casually picked up the bag, placed it on the table in the yard, and wiped the sweat from his face.

"I bought so much stuff at the two-dollar store, it cost me a whole banknote!"

Fang Tiesheng was taken aback. A two-yuan store?

"Ya Ya, which area's shop is this? Does it sell things for two yuan?" He knew that the currency there was called yuan.

Ya Ya nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, yes! Everything is two yuan! It's so big inside, bigger than our yard and house combined!"

She eagerly clung to the edge of the table, looking at Zhao Hu with delight: "Uncle Zhao, please help me take everything out of here and put it on the table. There's so much stuff! It's all so nice. We'll share it all when Grandpa Village Chief comes back!"

Zhao Hu and Fang Tiesheng immediately gathered around the table and carefully took things out of the bright red plastic bag one by one.

Little Shuanzi, who was playing in the mud nearby, heard the rustling sound of the plastic bag and saw the bright red bag. He became very curious and ran over, tilting his little face up and trying to grab it. However, his short arms couldn't reach it, so he anxiously spun around in circles.

Most of the items in the bag were unfamiliar to them, so they simply arranged them neatly one by one according to their similar appearance, and soon the table was full.

The first things I pulled out were a yellow bag of sulfur soap and a pink bar of soap, both square, somewhat heavy, and with a pleasant scent.

Zhao Hu arranged the six bars of soap together, followed by toothpaste, toothbrushes, a bucket of colorful rubber bands, and a very lightweight, bright red ladle, the material of which he didn't know.

There's also a pack of dishcloths.

When he reached the very bottom, Fang Tiesheng's hand trembled violently, and he froze.

There were two stacks of neat, clean calligraphy practice papers in a transparent bag; at a glance, there were at least several dozen sheets!

There were also four new calligraphy brushes on top, also packaged in transparent bags.

Fang Tiesheng picked up a pen with trembling hands, his rough fingertips gently touching the nib. The soft bristles made him feel as if it were not real.

Zhao Hu was also stunned. Ya Ya had actually brought back paper and pen!