Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Speaking of Little Shitou, Zhang Yang couldn’t help but say admiringly, "Man, Shi Tou is incredibly smart. Mr. Zhou is really fond of him. He’s young and a bit mischievous, so Mr. Zhou keeps him in check by making him stay after class every day. He has to finish his calligraphy practice and memorize an essay before he’s allowed home. But that kid doesn’t mess around; he gets it all done in a flash. It got to the point where Mr. Zhou had to give him more work. But then Shi Tou said his mom was about to have a baby and he wanted to go home early to be with her, so Mr. Zhou finally let him off the hook."

Zhang Dashuan roared with laughter. "Zhao San sure raised a fine son. Yangzi, you can’t let Shi Tou show you up."

Zhang Huai smiled at his father. "Dad, listen to yourself. Education depends on natural talent, too. Little Shitou is just a bit brighter, so why compare? Yangzi, just do your best, and don’t let it weigh on your mind. Mr. Zhou has always said that the point of studying isn’t just to earn a title. The important thing is to genuinely learn something useful. That way, no matter what you do, you’ll have a better chance of success."

Zhang Yang smiled. "I know. Mr. Zhou has told us that time and again."

He sat nearby, not quite understanding the conversation, but she listened with relish anyway, never growing tired or hurrying them along. The light from the oil lamp was dim and flickering, casting a soft, hazy glow on their faces.

Spring nights were clamorous. Outside, dogs barked intermittently, punctuated by the cry of a small child, while the croaking of frogs drifted in from the distant fields. The voice of Granny Hua from next door would also carry over now and then, making the family frown and solidifying their decision to move. ’That woman is so long-winded!’

「The next day」

Zhang Huai went to the schoolhouse. He and Qingmu had planned to find the village chief, Li Gengtian, after class to discuss raising fish. As luck would have it, the chief himself showed up to speak with Mr. Zhou, so Zhang Huai and Qingmu hurried over to share their idea.

Li Gengtian and Mr. Zhou were stunned for a moment, then they looked at each other and smiled.

He looked at Zhang Huai and Qingmu with a pleased expression. "It’s clear you two haven’t been studying for nothing. Your perspective has really broadened. This is an excellent idea! In the past, besides farming, our villagers have always just let nature take its course. We never properly tended to the fish, so how could we expect a big harvest? Now that you’ve brought this up, I’ll make the arrangements. Each month, we’ll assign a few families to cut some grass in the morning and evening to throw in the fishpond. It’s not much trouble, and by the end of the year, I’m sure we’ll have a much larger catch than before."

Mr. Zhou looked at his two students, also extremely pleased. He said, "It’s easy to cut grass this season. The best thing would be to find a way to store some of it come autumn. The fish in the pond are always short of food in the winter."

Zhang Huai nodded. "I wonder if the dregs from washing acorns to make tofu would work as fish feed. If they do, we could use that to feed them in the winter."

Li Gengtian nodded with a smile. "We can test it out when the time comes. Leaving aside the other ponds, Jing Lake alone is huge. It’s a real waste not to raise more fish in it. Sigh! It just goes to show our generation lacks perspective. Huai Zi, Qingmu, study hard. The future of our village rests on you young ones. We old folks already have one foot in the grave; there’s not much more we can do."

But Mr. Zhou countered with a serious expression, "I can’t agree with that. This village may be small, but it’s filled with all sorts of people. Even if these young men have good ideas, it’s all a waste of breath if others won’t accept them. Having a sensible person like you overseeing things saves a lot of needless argument, doesn’t it? Look, they came to you with their idea, and you immediately grasped the crux of it and made arrangements. What if they had run into someone muddle-headed and stubborn? Would they have ever gotten approval?"

Hearing this praise, Li Gengtian was so happy he couldn’t stop grinning. "You’re too kind, Mr. Zhou!" he said again and again. "My family lives right here in this village, so of course I want to see it do well."

As he spoke, he turned to Qingmu. "The other day, your father was also telling me that the bamboo grove needs to be managed. I was just about to arrange for some people to see to it. Oh, and Qingmu, Mr. Zhou mentioned that the dried chrysanthemums you gave him make for a delicious drink. Was it your sister who prepared them?"

Qingmu quickly replied, "Yes! My sister picks the wild chrysanthemums, washes them, steams them, and then sun-dries them. The ones for making tea are the buds that are only half-open. The fully bloomed flowers, she dries those directly and uses them to stuff pillows. It makes them fragrant and soft."

Mr. Zhou nodded. "These wild chrysanthemums are quite good. I think you could make them into chrysanthemum tea to sell. You should prepare a batch this autumn and have someone take it to Qinghui County to test the market. If it sells well, you can plant more next year."

Li Gengtian, however, had a different idea. "I think we should plant more this year regardless of whether it will sell. At the very least, our own families can use them to make tea or stuff pillows. Then, come autumn, we’ll prepare a batch and have Changfeng’s aunt try selling it in Qinghui County. If it sells well, we’ll already have the plants growing and won’t be caught unprepared. Plus, we’ll be able to plant even more next year."