The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 234: Only Managed to Hold in a Fart (7)_1

Chapter 234: Chapter 234: Only Managed to Hold in a Fart (7)_1

"It’s been a month," Pei Qin said with open eyes, telling a blatant lie; she had eaten too many sweet potatoes in her previous life.

Old Scholar Fang, not versed in medicine, asked if they were all feeling well with no discomforts, but still insisted they go to the pharmacy for a proper pulse check by a physician.

The four siblings were all in good health and showed no signs of having eaten anything bad.

Old Scholar Fang was still somewhat worried as he watched the sweet potato shoots, frowning repeatedly.

"Grandpa, don’t worry! Since it’s food, there shouldn’t be any problems!" Pei Qin then sent Pei Qian to buy meat, inviting Old Scholar Fang to stay for a meal.

Old Scholar Fang had Pei Wendong recite his studies to assess his academic progress. In just half a year, attending school for only that short time, his progress had been remarkably swift, making Old Scholar Fang fear that in another couple of years, even his eldest grandson, whom he tutored personally, might not match up. He also asked Pei Yuan and Pei Qian about their studies, which mainly involved lesser recitation and focused more on arithmetic and handwriting practice.

After the meal and upon returning home, Old Scholar Fang started to consider whether to send his grandson to the school as well. He previously had little regard for Teacher Sun’s scholarship, and with his own literary title, he believed there was no need to send his son and grandson to the town school to pay tuition when they could be taught at home with more dedication.

However, seeing Wendong’s rapid improvement after only half a year at the county school made Old Scholar Fang hesitate.

Upon hearing of Pei Wendong’s good academic performance, Fang Li immediately suggested, harboring his own ulterior motives, that Fang Liuming should also be sent to the town school to study, "Having them together in school, studying in comparison, will surely lead to faster learning!"

Lady Yu frowned at Old Scholar Fang’s hesitation, sensing he was entertaining the idea, but couldn’t help feeling concerned. Although her eldest son was more sensible and well-mannered than her daughter, sending him to the town school and under the care of Sister Peiqin and her siblings would mean more trouble for them.

Old Scholar Fang then quizzed his eldest grandson about his willingness to attend the town school.

Fang Liuming actually liked the idea, welcoming the opportunity to discuss and compare with his classmates.

Thus, Old Scholar Fang decided to send him to the town school after all.

Fang Li blurted out that Fang Liuming should just move into Pei Qin’s house, "...after all, those seven or eight rooms, they can’t occupy them all! Liuming staying there could also help out with things!"

"The school offers accommodation, doesn’t it!? Staying at Qin’s place would only be a hassle for them!" Lady Yu was not in agreement.

Grandma Fang, on the other hand, found it to be a good idea, thinking that since their families hadn’t been close for many years, Pei Qin’s siblings didn’t have a strong relationship with them, and having the eldest grandson move in, as he was just a child, could help bring the younger generation closer.

Old Scholar Fang also thought it inconvenient and decided that Fang Liuming should stay at the school instead. However, he should visit Sister Peiqin and her siblings frequently after school and lend a hand with any work where he could, emphasizing the need to be diligent and knowledgeable about the crops.

Fang Liuming listened to all of this attentively.

When Pei Qin’s beans in the field were ready, Grandma Sun and her grandchildren thinned the seedlings, ending up with a bamboo basket full of green bean sprouts.

Grandma Sun suggested they sell them. Pei Qin delivered some to her family, kept enough for their own consumption, and blanched the rest, adding them to the dough for making he lao noodles.

The lush green bean sprouts were indeed quite appealing.

When everyone started to get busy planting corn, Pei Qin took a pair of scissors, cut the sweet potato shoots into sections, tied them into bundles, and brought them to Sun Quanliang’s family to teach them how to plant them properly.

After cutting all those sweet potato shoots, they only planted an acre and a half, leaving more than two acres unplanted.

The letter from Shen Songming also arrived, advising her to flip the sweet potato vines once they grew longer in order to prevent the shoots from being too vigorous, directing nutrients to the sweet potatoes beneath the soil instead. He mentioned performing well at home, managing to coax his mother’s dowry out, and successfully making money with the ice-making business. Now that he had earned some money, he told her to look forward to counting it, and after the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth of August, he would visit her again and bring other nice things for her!