Chapter 13: Stepping Stone

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A flash of excitement crossed Wang Xuewen’s face. “If it’s a competition, let’s compete—who’s afraid of whom!”

No sooner had he released his grip than Wang Xuezhou dashed ahead like a gust of wind. Wang Xuewen snapped back to his senses and immediately gave chase. “You’re cheating!”

Without looking back, Wang Xuezhou retorted, “You’re just slow!”

“Fine, just you wait!”

Old Mrs. Liu saw a smile break across Wang Xuewen’s face but hadn’t yet called out when she saw the elder grandson chasing the younger one. She immediately scolded, “Those two little rascals run faster than monkeys!”

Naturally, Wang Xuezhou’s short legs couldn’t keep up with Wang Xuewen’s speed. Nearing the village, Wang Xuewen caught up, yanking a handful of hair. Wang Xuezhou’s body instinctively leaned back, his scalp nearly torn.

“Hahaha! Caught you, didn’t I? Now, bark like a dog!”

Seeing Wang Xuezhou grimace in pain, Wang Xuewen laughed wildly, tightening his grip.

“Then let go first.”

This little brat was pulling his scalp painfully!

Wang Xuewen released him proudly, hands on hips and chin raised. “Bark! If you can sound like me, I’ll let you go.”

Wang Xuezhou rubbed his scalp and cleared his throat before mimicking Wang Xuewen’s tone: “Hahaha! Caught you, didn’t I? Now, bark like a dog!”

Wang Xuewen was momentarily stunned, then angrily snapped, “I told you to bark like a dog, not repeat what I said!”

Wang Xuezhou slipped away swiftly, tossing over his shoulder, “But I’m barking like a dog~~”

Wang Xuewen’s face flushed bright red. “You! How dare you insult me! I’ll beat you to death!!!”

Wang Xuezhou burst out laughing. “Big brother’s been at school for months, and yet you’ve made no progress at all.”

The two shouted and dashed home. Along the way, Wang Xuezhou greeted villagers loudly.

“Hello, Fourth Uncle!”

“Hello, Great Grandpa!”

Before they could reply, he sped past like the wind, followed by the wailing Wang Xuewen, prompting the village elders to shake their heads with a smile. “Kids these days…”

When they reached home, Wang Xuezhou went straight to his father Wang Chengzhi. Wang Xuewen glared furiously but dared not act out with the elders present.

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He obediently greeted the family, “Second Uncle, Grandfather, Mother…”

He had just returned after two weeks at school. Mrs. Gao’s face was full of joy as she immediately asked after his well-being.

Big Sister and Old Master Wang joined in warmly, and when Old Mrs. Liu returned, she did too.

Wang Chengzhi’s expression was unreadable. He patted his son’s head and asked, “How did it go this morning?”

Wang Xuezhou recounted how he sold the hairpins. Wang Chengzhi listened thoughtfully.

During a lull in their conversation, Wang Xuewen twisted his head to glare fiercely at Wang Xuezhou and silently mouthed a threat: “Just you wait.”

But soon, Wang Xuewen had no time to threaten Wang Xuezhou.

Old Master Wang gathered the family and insisted Wang Xuewen recite lessons aloud in front of everyone.

Though he didn’t understand the words, Old Master Wang wanted the whole family to hear the grandson’s progress, proving the money spent on his education wasn’t wasted.

“Look, my grandson has learned something!”

Wang Xuewen braced himself and began to recite: “Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li; Zhou, Wu, Zheng, Wang; Feng, Chen, Chu, Wei…”

Old Master Wang sat cross-legged, tapping his hand to the rhythm. Sweat began to bead on Wang Xuewen’s forehead.

“Jin… Jin, Wei, Tao, Jiang; Qi, Xie… Qi… Qi Xie… Grandfather, this is all we learned.”

Old Master Wang narrowed his eyes, looking seriously at his eldest grandson.

Whether it was because the lesson was this short or because Wang Xuewen couldn’t remember more, he heard every word clearly.

“Niu Dan, you are the eldest son and grandson. I sent you to school to study hard, to set a good example as the eldest brother. Did you apply yourself at school?”

“Of course!” Wang Xuewen’s eyes flickered with guilt. “Our teacher at school praises me for being diligent!”

Mrs. Gao smiled broadly. “Father, Niu Dan has had enough studying. Let the boy rest at home. From what I hear, he’s learned more than last time!”

She felt the lessons lasted longer this time—he must have learned new things.

Old Master Wang snorted and warned Wang Xuewen, “Choudan always begs to go to school but never gets the chance. If I find out you’re fooling around and not studying properly, you won’t get to go anymore. I’ll send Choudan instead!”

Wang Xuewen’s eyes widened. “Grandfather! I’m the eldest son and grandson. Why should I make way for him? He’s not allowed to go!”

“If you don’t study hard, the opportunity goes to someone else. You don’t know how to treasure it anyway!” Old Master Wang snorted coldly and went out to work.

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They skipped lunch. Wang Chengzhi volunteered to take the goods to town to sell.

Mrs. Liu thought for a moment and agreed.

Wang Xuezhou immediately asked to go along. Wang Xuewen also clamored to come, but in the end, neither went. They could only watch Wang Chengzhi leave alone.

Wang Xuezhou grumbled, “I’m going with Dad on important business. My brother didn’t say he wanted to come. Why are you making a fuss?”

Wang Xuewen folded his arms. “If I’m studying, why do you have to come? If you dare steal my chance to enjoy the good life, I’ll deal with you, believe it or not?”

Mao Dan, hearing his cousin threaten his younger brother, immediately became unhappy: “If you want to deal with my little brother, you’ll have to get through me first!”

“Pah! Then let’s fight! We can find a place to train. You two together aren’t a match for me!”

...

As dusk fell, Wang Chengzhi returned with a beaming face. He had sold all the silk flowers!

“I acted like a peddler, going through the better streets of town. I hadn’t finished one round before most were sold. People even praised my wife’s handiwork! After selling the headbands and silk flowers, I earned a total of twelve hundred wen.”

He placed twelve hundred wen on the table. The clinking sound smoothed out Mrs. Liu’s furrowed brow.

There’s no sound more delightful in this world.

“Did you really earn that in just one afternoon?”

“Absolutely! I raised the prices a bit, which is why I made so much. The next few days, you all make more. I’ll try to canvass the whole area soon.”

Mrs. Liu thoroughly checked Wang Chengzhi over to make sure he hadn’t hidden any money before she believed him.

For several days, the women busily made silk flowers and headbands to sell, while the men energetically cleared debris from the fields.

The whole family was immersed in joy, paying no attention to the children.

Wang Xuewen was pinned to the ground by Mao Dan, while Wang Xuezhou sat nonchalantly on his back, slapping his rear. “If you promise to teach me and my brother to read, we’ll let you go. How about that?”

Wang Xuewen’s face flushed red with anger. “No way! Mother said your father’s not as good as mine. You were born just to be stepping stones for me. Reading and literacy are not for your kind!”

Once everyone can read and write, all will enjoy the good life. Who would still want to do work for him?