The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 910 - 888: Where Did It Go Wrong? (Bonus - for the reward from the reader ’Si Jiang’)

Chapter 910: Chapter 888: Where Did It Go Wrong? (Bonus Chapter for the reward from the reader ’Si Jiang’)

Bai Shan stretched out his hands, trembling with fear, and Mr. Zhuang did not show him a kind face either. "You always have a plan, and you have been studying in the estate for a year. I thought you would be more sensible than your senior sister and junior brother, even thinking of letting you try for the capital in two more years. But now it seems I overestimated you, thus, you will be punished with six additional lashes."

Mr. Zhuang struck even harder on Bai Shan. By the time he got to Bai Erlang, he had little strength left, so he simply waved to call Daji, who was standing by the door, and said, "You do it; hit him twenty-five times."

Bai Erlang swallowed and asked in a low voice, "Sir, why am I receiving five more lashes?"

Mr. Zhuang glared at him and said, "Because you are the oldest, you grow in age but not in wisdom. These extra five lashes are your lesson."

Daji looked at the palms of the young master and Miss Man, quietly gauging the force to be used, and then endeavored to strike with roughly the same intensity.

Bai Erlang began to howl, shouting, "Sir, sir, Daji is stronger; it’s unfair for me to also receive twenty-five lashes."

Mr. Zhuang said sternly, "Hit!"

With an unforgiving expression, Mr. Zhuang watched as the three of them were whipped, their hands swelling red, before he finally sat down behind the desk and asked, "Tell me, do you know why you were punished?"

Manbao bowed her head and said, "We should not have broken our promise, and failed to return after five days."

Bai Shan said, "We should not have hidden in the town for fear of punishment, worrying you and our family all this while. This is cowardice."

Bai Erlang said in a soft voice, "We should not think of avoiding our studies by running away."

Smacking the table, Mr. Zhuang asked, "What else?"

Looking confused, Bai Erlang turned to Bai Shan. Bai Shan exchanged a glance with Manbao, then bowed his head and said, "A child of prestigious birth must not stand under a perilous wall. We should not have put ourselves in danger while concealing it from our elders."

Only then did Mr. Zhuang look at them gravely, taking a while before speaking, "You all understand, yet refuse to speak, what are you afraid of?"

The three lowered their heads together.

"Afraid of punishment; thus, allowing the mistake to stand unaddressed, letting it grow ever larger?" Mr. Zhuang banged the desk and continued, "Do you not know that your family would worry? Do you not know that too much worry can deprive the elderly of sleep, even cause illness? Where are your filial piety and the honesty I taught you?"

The three bowed their heads in shame.

Taking a deep breath, Mr. Zhuang asked, "Which page of the textbook have you reached this half month?"

Fidgeting uncomfortably, Bai Erlang and Manbao both felt nervous. They glanced cautiously at Bai Shan before he swallowed and said, "Sir, we have not read at all this half month."

"Very well, starting today, you will stand in the courtyard and recite your books. You may return inside to attend class when you have memorized the rest of the textbook."

The three gaped in shock.

Though the punishment sounded light, they quickly realized the painful aspect of it—they could move around in the courtyard but were not to sit, squat, or assume any improper posture.

They could only stand and walk while reciting, starting from 7 a.m., with a half-hour lunch break but no rest afterwards, continuing until it got dark.

In just two days, Manbao and Bai Shan felt like crying, while Bai Erlang had already cried; they had never imagined that standing while reading could be so painful.

Particularly for Bai Erlang, when previously studying, he would preview the material first, marking the characters he did not know. After the teacher explained their meanings, he would read and then start to memorize.

Understanding the meaning first made memorization much easier, but now the remaining parts of the textbook had not yet been taught by the teacher, making the reading feel awkward. After going through it twice, he felt sleepy.

His mind was groggy, and his limbs were weary. When the damp breeze of spring blew again, he felt sleepy and exhausted, and he began to cry. Before it even got dark, he held the book and started sobbing.

Bai Shan and Manbao looked at him sympathetically. They too felt their limbs tremble, but they quietly glanced at the teacher, who was reading beside the window in the study, not daring to squat or sit.

The two could only whisper comforting words to Bai Erlang, "How about I explain the interpretations to you? I’ve studied them already."

Bai Shan then said, "In a while, I’ll teach you how to memorize it the fastest."

While they talked, they covertly watched the teacher. Seeing that he didn’t even glance their way, they knew he tacitly agreed.

Both of them sighed in relief simultaneously, took Bai Erlang’s textbook, and went over the text. Then they started instructing him together, filling in each other’s gaps.

Bai Erlang wiped his tears while taking notes, but he still felt agonized, "But I just can’t remember. I think I need to sit down and memorize."

Bai Shan and Manbao then motioned for him to look at the teacher and said, "Go ahead, we’ll cheer for you from behind."

If Bai Erlang had that kind of courage, he wouldn’t be Bai Erlang. He hung his head and didn’t dare to go.

They hummed and asked, "Are you still listening or not?"

What could Bai Erlang do? Of course, he could only keep listening; otherwise, memorizing on his own would be even more challenging. He knew very well, despite Manbao and Bai Shan’s books being thicker than his, they were smarter and had better memories. In two days, they had already memorized three essays, while he couldn’t completely remember even one. He’d memorize it now but forget it after sleeping.

The teacher was sure to check everything at the last minute; who knew which text he might choose?

Bai Erlang dried his tears and listened to the two explaining. Holding the book, he carefully made notes with a fine pen and then continued to stammeringly recite.

It wasn’t until it grew dark that Mr. Zhuang, fearing that further memorization would harm their eyes, waved them off to go home.

Bai Erlang immediately walked out trembling, not heading to the main courtyard but directly to his room to throw himself onto his bed and cry heartbreakingly. Tomorrow was another day, and the day after that, and many more days to come...

Manbao and Bai Shan also walked out trembling. Since Bai Shan’s house was close, he asked Manbao, "Should I have Daji take you home in the carriage?"

Manbao replied indifferently, "It’s such a short distance. By the time you get the carriage ready, I’d have already walked home."

"Standing for five periods, aren’t you tired?"

Manbao was too tired to discuss it and after a moment said, "I’ll write you a prescription for a foot soak that could help alleviate it. Remember to copy it later and have someone send it to Bai Er, I’m too lazy to walk."

Manbao flipped through his books, didn’t see any paper, and simply said, "Never mind. I’ll recite the prescription and you just memorize it in your head, I really don’t feel like moving."

Manbao recited a string of medicine names and dosages, and after confirming that Bai Shan had memorized it, waved and walked away.

Zhou SiLang was just coming to pick her up. Seeing her slowly walking home, he approached and crouched down, "Come on, let SiLang carry you home."

Manbao leaped onto his back, "SiLang, you’re really kind."

"I’ve carried you plenty before; why didn’t you praise me then?" Zhou SiLang glanced at her hands and asked, "Does it still hurt?"

"It hurts."

Zhou SiLang said, "Mr. Zhuang is too harsh. Why did he have to hit so hard? Did you guys get punished by standing today too?"

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