Chapter 43

The whole family kept busy with their own tasks until evening, when things finally quieted down. Jiang Wan reported their earnings for the day, then deducted costs and divided the money between the two families.

Each family received forty-five coins.

Yin Huaishan watched enviously as his niece handed all the coins to his wife, feeling a pang of bitterness. It was clear that his wife was now the head of the household—his niece even recognized it.

“Uncle, since your leg is injured and you won’t be able to gather snails at sea tomorrow, you’ll still need to work. Make sure to get up early and sort out the snail meat we soaked today.”

Yin Huaishan quickly agreed, relieved to have a task. He didn’t want to be a burden on the family without contributing.

After they made plans for the next day, Jiang Wan and her mother took Yin Ning back to the stone house.

Just before reaching the water, Jiang Wan felt like she’d forgotten something, but she couldn’t remember what. It wasn’t until she was almost asleep that it suddenly hit her—Lian Yue hadn’t returned the bowl yet.

Meanwhile, at Lian Yue’s house:

“Do you know what you did wrong?!”

“Sob… sob…”

“Lian Yue… your little brother…”

Hearing this familiar start, Lian Yue’s face hardened even more.

“Grandma! Ah Di is almost five years old. We can’t keep spoiling him. Liking food isn’t a problem; I never said he couldn’t eat. But he went so far as to steal food, broke something, and then didn’t admit it. Worse, he even picked food off the ground to eat. Shouldn’t he be punished?”

It was rare for Lian Yue to be this angry, and his grandmother could only give a helpless look to the young boy.

The little one sniffled, then carefully scooted forward on his knees and pitifully admitted his mistake to his big brother.

“Big Brother, I’m sorry…”

Usually, just saying sorry like this would soften Lian Yue, but today his expression remained stern, showing no sign of relenting.

The little boy, with no support from his grandmother, anxiously reached out to tug on his brother’s trouser leg.

“Big Brother, I won’t sneak food again… I…”

Realizing he might not get to taste the delicious snail meat anymore, the little one burst into real tears.

“Big Brother, I promise to listen, please don’t ignore me…”

Watching his little brother cry his heart out made Lian Yue feel guilty. His little brother was a child their mother had nearly lost her life to bring into the world. Since he’d grown up without seeing their parents, both Lian Yue and their grandmother had doted on him. Without realizing it, he was already almost five. If they didn’t start guiding him properly now, it would be too late.

So, Lian Yue gave him a firm punishment, making him hold out his hand for a few slaps, then kneel in front of their parents’ memorial tablets for a stick of incense.

“Tomorrow morning, you’ll come with me to the Yin house to apologize. You always say you’re a little man, right? Well, a real man takes responsibility for his actions and bravely admits his mistakes.”

Hearing “real man,” the little boy puffed out his chest. Big Brother was right, and he trusted his big brother.

“Okay, Big Brother… Can I get up now?”

His knees hurt from kneeling.

Lian Yue sighed and picked him up, then applied a bit of ointment to his knees before sending him off to eat.

The next morning, the two brothers took a similar bowl from their own home and went to the Yin house together.

The tide hadn’t receded yet, so most of the villagers were still at home, except for those heading out to sea.

At that moment, Song Wenhui was in the kitchen, cooking the second batch of snails, and asked her daughter to answer the door when she heard someone calling outside.

“Lian Yue, is that you?”

Why was he here so early?

Lian Yue followed Yin Ning into the yard and gently nudged his little brother forward. The young boy didn’t hold back, honestly confessing to eating the food and breaking the bowl yesterday, then apologizing earnestly.

Yin Huaishan nodded approvingly.

“Knowing one’s mistakes and correcting them is a virtue.”

The little one looked at his brother in confusion.

“What’s ‘virtue’?”

He didn’t understand, and Lian Yue felt a bit embarrassed.

Why was the little guy looking at him? It’s not like he understood either. He knew a few characters, so understanding the first part of the phrase was already an accomplishment.

Wait—reading! Lian Yue’s eyes lit up, and he moved to squat beside Yin Huaishan.

“Uncle Yin, I heard you came from the capital. Do you know how to read?”

“Of course I do. How could I have been a government official otherwise?” Yin Huaishan said, proudly of his scholarly background.

“Why do you ask?”

“I want to ask if Uncle Yin could teach my little brother to read a bit!” Lian Yue pulled his younger brother forward, as if presenting a little calf for sale.

“Uncle Yin, I know your leg isn’t fully healed, and since you’re at home, perhaps you could teach him a few characters in your spare time? Little Round is clever and can handle simple chores like fetching water and carrying things. He can help you around the house too.”

“I don’t expect him to become highly educated; I just don’t want him to be completely illiterate when he grows up. Whatever fee you require, be it in money or supplies, I’ll try my best to provide.”

Since Lian Yue often dealt with townsfolk, he knew well the importance of literacy. He’d wanted to send his brother to learn to read for some time, but there was no school in their village. The nearest was either in Huaishan Town or in the city, which was too far and too costly.

Now, with a literate person in the village, he was eager to seize the chance.

The two brothers stood, one on each side of Yin Huaishan, eyes filled with curiosity and a thirst for knowledge.

Yin Huaishan felt a warmth in his heart; it turned out his years of scholarly pursuits were still appreciated by someone. This boy had a good spirit.

He considered that he had free time in the afternoons and was just about to agree when he suddenly heard…

Then his daughter spoke up.

“Father, I think this is a great idea. Since you need to rest with your injured leg, teaching the child to read won’t take much effort.”

Song Wenhui glanced at her daughter and agreed as well. She knew her husband well—he’d be more than happy to teach children to read. Keeping the boy occupied would also be good, giving her husband something to focus on rather than letting his mind wander and worry.

“Alright, starting tomorrow, he can come over in the afternoon to learn from me,” Yin Huaishan agreed.

Lian Yue was overjoyed and immediately had his younger brother bow and address Yin Huaishan as “Teacher.”

Yin Huaishan accepted the gesture with delight, then cleared his throat and laid out his conditions.

“Even with my injured leg, I still have morning chores to tend to, so I won’t be free. Your brother can only come in the afternoons.”

“Understood!” Lian Yue replied eagerly.

“And as for tuition, that’s unnecessary. This isn’t a formal school. But if you’d like, you can bring over some of these sea snails each day.”

“Of course!” Lian Yue agreed readily. Once the tide recedes, there are sea snails all over the rocks, and it’s easy to gather a bucket or two.

With their arrangement made, the brothers returned home in high spirits.

Little Round didn’t fully understand what learning to read meant, but he’d heard people in the village say that literate people were very capable, and he wanted to become one of them too. At this point, he had no idea that his carefree days were about to end. He was simply thrilled, feeling like he’d soon be the most impressive among his friends, and he eagerly ran off to share the news with them.

Lian Yue just let him go, thinking it wouldn’t hurt for his brother to enjoy his excitement for one more day.