Chapter 67: The Most Beloved Elder

Gu Nan watched as his own father grinned mischievously. It had been Old Third Gu who insisted he go to school; if he couldn’t learn to write his name, he’d even threaten to beat him. Names were difficult to write, weren’t they? Yet his father refused to listen to any explanations, convinced that Gu Nan was simply too stupid and unwilling to put in the effort. If given the chance, Gu Nan thought, he’d like his father to try, just to see if he could learn to write his own name.

Seeing the strange smile on Gu Nan’s face, Tang Xin immediately knew this brat was plotting something. Gu Nan was clever, but his intelligence always veered off the straight path; he was forever scheming, full of tricks and mischief. No one knew why, but for all his good qualities, he simply refused to go to school or learn to read and write. Not only was he unwilling himself, he often encouraged Li Jiang and Li Hai, telling them that studying was useless and only fools bothered with it.

For now, the three troublemakers had been tempted by Tang Xin’s generous conditions and pocket money, agreeing to enroll at school. But Tang Xin could see through Gu Nan’s temporary compromise; given the chance, he’d still try to rebel.

“Yes, everyone must learn. Our whole family will learn to read together,” Fang said, beaming with joy. “So, Nan, don’t worry, your father will learn, and your uncle will learn too.”

Gu Nan’s uncle, Li’s father, was also eager for the chance to learn to write his name. Even Fang understood that Li’s father had always envied scholars and wanted to learn to read, but the family had always been too poor for such luxuries.

“Heaven is against me,” Gu Nan thought, feeling the world had turned upside down.

But his sharp mind soon caught a flaw in Fang’s words: “What about you, Aunt? Will you learn with us?”

“I’m too old…” Fang began, but seeing her daughter-in-law’s stern expression, she quickly amended, “Precisely because I’m older, I should work harder. I love learning—learning makes me happy.”

A sudden burst of laughter erupted as Li Kai spat out his tea, spraying it directly onto Li Hai, who sat opposite him. Li Kai hurriedly pulled out his handkerchief to wipe his brother clean, secretly grateful that if he’d hit Li Xiyue, the madwoman, they’d surely have ended up in a fight.

The whole group, laughing and joking, continued to discuss the matter of learning. Fang’s words had livened the atmosphere, and everyone thought Tang Xin was simply joking.

Tang Xin smiled, saying, “Mother has the right attitude. We should all learn from her. As the leader once said, ‘Live and learn’—we must never give up.”

With the democratic debate concluded, Tang Xin made the final decision: “In a couple of days, I’ll take the three children to enroll at school. As for literacy, we’ll start tomorrow; everyone in the family must learn. Never mind the distant prospect of working in the city—right now, even the commune is hiring, mainly people who can read and do arithmetic. If you can land a job with a stable monthly wage, wouldn’t that be better than working the fields every day?”

It would be better, but—

“Sister-in-law, Li Xiyue wants to learn so she can work in the city and marry a city man. But I don’t want to be a worker, nor do I want to marry a city man. I don’t need to learn, do I?” Li Kai asked.

He’d gone to school years ago, but didn’t learn much and soon stopped going, preferring to stay home and help his parents on the farm. To this day, his only advantage over his mother was that he could write his own name—nothing more. He couldn’t even write his eldest brother’s name.

“You don’t need to learn?” Tang Xin’s tone was questioning, though Li Kai didn’t notice; as he relaxed, Tang Xin pressed on: “If you don’t want to learn, why do you dream of doing business someday? If I need to restock goods and ask for your help, how can you manage the accounts if you can’t read or keep the books? Why should I hand the business over to you?”

“I—” Li Kai gritted his teeth, arguing, “I can do calculations.”

“What good is just being able to calculate? You’d only be a wandering peddler. If you truly want to do business, you need basic knowledge.”

As Tang Xin finished, Li Kai’s expression turned serious. Stripping away his stubbornness, he knew she was right.

At first, Li’s father, Li’s mother, and Old Third Gu had joined the family meeting just for the fun of it. But as they listened, one by one, they realized Tang Xin spoke soundly. Even if the children were learning for their own futures, there was nothing wrong with the elders gaining some knowledge themselves.

Finally, Tang Xin declared, “Everyone in the family will participate in learning. The three children will go to school, and I’ll teach the rest. There will be rewards for the children, and likewise, rewards for your studies.”

The adults’ reward system would be similar, but Tang Xin sweetened the deal further: she possessed a bicycle voucher, and if everyone learned well, she promised to buy a bicycle for the family at New Year.

As soon as she said this, everyone was astonished and excited, gearing up for the challenge. A bicycle! In the whole Harvest Brigade, only the brigade office had one, mostly used by the leaders. If they had a bicycle—

Li Kai imagined showing off in front of his brothers. Li Xiyue thought her girlfriends would be green with envy.

Tempted by money and the promise of a prize, the matter was settled, and everyone’s enthusiasm soared.

Fang smiled warmly at the group and announced, “Tomorrow, you all go to work, and I’ll start learning from my daughter-in-law.”

She couldn’t read a single word, was older, and her memory was failing. Just as her daughter-in-law said, the slowest bird must start flying first.

Fang believed that if she set an example by actively supporting Tang Xin’s plan, she’d inspire everyone else to work harder. People are like that: with prizes, motivation follows; with competition, everyone strives harder.

Even Li’s father, usually stern and silent, wore a smile—though the children had long since told their sister-in-law that their father wasn’t strict at all, merely keeping a stern face to maintain his authority as head of the family.

Tang Xin just smiled, knowing well that her father-in-law was a gentle and kind man. In many ways, Li Sheng resembled his father: loving those his family loved. In Tang Xin’s heart, her father-in-law was the best elder she could ask for.