Volume One, Chapter Fourteen: Entertaining Instruction—Is This Another Way to Read a Book?

Chen Pingchuan watched her scurrying away in panic, her figure like a frightened rabbit, and the corners of his lips curved into a meaningful smile. So there was indeed something fishy! He watched with narrowed eyes as everyone else happily divided up the delicate dishes, eating with relish.

“Pingchuan, why aren’t you eating? This fish is delicious!” one of the servants mumbled, cheeks bulging with food.

Chen Pingchuan waved his hand. “My stomach is a bit off today. I’m afraid I can’t handle anything greasy. Help yourselves, don’t stand on ceremony.”

Not long after, the cheerful atmosphere in the dining hall suddenly shifted.

“Ow! My stomach!”

“No, I can’t take it, the pain is terrible!”

“Me too! I think… I think I need the privy!”

Cries of pain erupted one after another. In the blink of an eye, chaos reigned in the hall. Many of the servants who had eaten the “rewarded” dishes clutched their bellies, faces twisted in agony, cold sweat beading on their foreheads. Several were already staggering unsteadily toward the outhouse.

Chen Pingchuan watched the scene quietly, a cold sneer in his heart. That sly and spiteful girl, just to get back at him for embarrassing her yesterday, had actually drugged the food! And judging by the effects, the drug was no weak concoction either. Luckily, he’d been wary enough to avoid the fate of spending half the day squatting in the latrine.

Steward Ren soon arrived in a hurry after hearing the commotion. When he saw the servants sprawled and moaning throughout the hall, and learned after repeated questioning that the food had been “rewarded” by the young lady, his face instantly darkened, the color of ink.

He silently lamented his fate: “Oh, my little ancestor, what drama are you putting on this time?” With a heavy sigh of resignation, he dared not scold that little mistress of theirs. All he could do was hastily instruct the attendants at his side, “Quick! Go to town and fetch Doctor Wang! Bring several people with you, and tell him there are quite a few cases of stomach trouble in the household—he must hurry!”

Once the orders were given, his gaze swept complicatedly over Chen Pingchuan, who sat in the corner as calm as a pine, his expression unflustered.

This boy… not only had he seen through the young lady’s schemes, but he had also played along, both steering clear of disaster and exposing her plot. At such a young age, he was remarkably shrewd.

…

The afternoon sunlight cast dappled, mottled shadows across the smooth bluestone floor of the study. Chen Pingchuan, cradling several thread-bound books in his arms, slipped silently into the room.

At that moment, Zhang Jinbao lay sprawled listlessly over the wide writing desk. An open copy of “The Three Character Classic” lay before him, and he stared blankly at the black marks on the page, his face the very picture of despair.

At the sound of soft footsteps, and seeing that it was Chen Pingchuan who entered, light burst into Zhang Jinbao’s previously dull eyes. He sprang upright from the desk.

“Big Brother!”

In a few quick steps, Zhang Jinbao bounded to Chen Pingchuan’s side, seizing his sleeve in excitement.

“You’re finally here! I was about to die of boredom!” he complained, his face twisted in misery.

Chen Pingchuan placed his books carefully on a nearby shelf. Then, moving unhurriedly, he pulled a small cloth pouch from his robe.

“Don’t fret, young master,” said Chen Pingchuan with a mysterious grin, dropping his voice to a secretive whisper. “I’ve brought you something good.”

Zhang Jinbao’s eyes lit up instantly with curiosity, his neck craning forward. “What is it? Let me see!”

Chen Pingchuan glanced around before speaking. “These are what I mentioned to you this morning. I guarantee you’ll fall in love with studying—much more interesting than anything the tutor has to offer!”

Zhang Jinbao’s head inched even closer, his small eyes round with anticipation. “Really? What is it? Hurry, show me!”

Only then did Chen Pingchuan leisurely untie the little cloth bundle. As he spread it out, a collection of brightly colored, intricately cut paper shapes was revealed: some like birds poised for flight, others shaped as galloping beasts, and still others snipped into suns, moons, and stars—each exquisitely lifelike.

Zhang Jinbao’s eyes widened in amazement, his mouth falling open in awe.

“Wow! Big Brother, did you make all these? You’re incredible!”

Chen Pingchuan puffed out his little chest with pride. “Of course! These are my secret weapons.”

He picked up a paper figurine shaped like a person and waved it before Zhang Jinbao’s eyes. “With these, you’ll find learning the ‘Three Character Classic’ far more fun than memorizing by rote.”

Zhang Jinbao’s face showed a trace of doubt, his brows knitting together. “But… but the tutor says we have to recite over and over again. Once it’s memorized, it’ll come naturally—there are no shortcuts!”

Chen Pingchuan gave him a mischievous wink. “That’s only because our tutor doesn’t know my method.”

“My way,” he said, “is called ‘learning through play’—you play while you learn, and reading becomes twice as rewarding.”

He pointed to the open “Three Character Classic” on the desk. “Take the opening line: ‘At the beginning, people’s nature is good.’ Do you know what that means, young master?”

Zhang Jinbao shook his head honestly, a little crestfallen.

Chen Pingchuan picked up two little paper figures. One wore a gentle, smiling face; the other, a fierce and scowling one.

“Look here,” he said, raising the smiling figure. “This stands for people. When a person is born, their nature is kind, good-hearted—just like this cheerful little fellow.”

Then he held up the fierce-looking one. “But if no one teaches them well, or if they fall in with bad company, they grow up to be like this angry little figure.”

Zhang Jinbao watched wide-eyed, a look of sudden understanding dawning on his face.

“Oh! So that’s what it means! I think I get it now!”

He eagerly pressed on, “Then what about the next line, ‘Their natures are similar, but their habits grow apart’?”

Chen Pingchuan took out several differently fashioned paper figures and lined them up on the desk.

“This line means that everyone’s nature isn’t all that different at first. But as they learn different things and grow up in different environments, people gradually become very different from each other.”

He pointed to a figure wearing a scholar’s cap and holding a scroll. “For example, if this person studies hard from childhood and grows up well-mannered and learned, he might become a great scholar, respected by all.”

Then he indicated another, brandishing a broadsword and wearing a crooked cap. “This one, with no one to guide him, idles away his days making trouble. When he grows up, he might become a bandit, feared and despised.”

Zhang Jinbao listened, utterly absorbed, nodding enthusiastically.

“I understand! I really understand now! That’s why learning is so important, isn’t it?”

Seeing the spark of comprehension, Chen Pingchuan gave a thumbs up. “Young master, you’re brilliant! You grasp things at once!”

Zhang Jinbao, cheeks flushing with pride at the praise, grinned broadly, showing two small tiger teeth.

“What about the next part? Big Brother, tell me more!”