Chapter 6: The Precious Smart Egg
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Seeing Qian Xiaoe frown, Song Zhidong became extremely nervous.
Qian Xiaoe looked up and smiled. "I'm fine. Are you still going to repair the river channels today?"
Song Zhidong nodded.
Qian Xiaoe felt a pang of sympathy. "Repairing river channels is heavy labor. For a man of your size to do such hard work, you must eat your fill. If you don't eat enough and there's no oil or fat in the food, how can your body withstand it?"
Her husband was naturally happy that his wife was worried about him.
He chuckled and said, "It's nothing. My body is very sturdy."
Qian Xiaoe went to the kitchen to make breakfast, just as she ran into Wang Guifang coming in with a bone.
"Mom, is this bone for soup?" she asked, feeling a bit happy.
Although there was very little meat on the bone, at least Song Zhidong could have some to nourish his body.
Wang Guifang nodded. "Zhuzhu hasn't had meat for a long time. I'll simmer this bone to satisfy her cravings."
The smile on Qian Xiaoe's face froze instantly. It turned out it was for her sister-in-law again.
"Ah, alright. I'll wash it right away."
"Forget it, I'll do it. You're pregnant, don't get up so early. Go back and sleep some more." Wang Guifang shooed Qian Xiaoe out of the kitchen and briskly made breakfast herself.
On one hand, Qian Xiaoe felt very lucky; since marrying into the Song family, her mother-in-law was open-minded and knew how to be considerate of her, and her husband treated her well.
But on the other hand, the way her parents-in-law doted on her sister-in-law was truly beyond her understanding.
Where was the logic in neglecting several sons to favor a daughter?
In whose house were the delicacies not given to the family's strong laborers?
She entered the room feeling somewhat distracted. Looking at Song Zhidong, she couldn't help but say, "Zhidong, you... do you think Mom is too good to Little Sister? What kind of girl gets to eat that well every single meal? You're doing such heavy labor; no matter what, you should be the one to have a sip of that bone soup."
Song Zhidong looked at her sideways, his eyes filled with surprise. "How can you think that? My mom only has one daughter, Zhuzhu; if she doesn't dote on her, who else would she dote on? I only have this one sister, too. How could I compete with her for a sip of soup?"
He couldn't pity Song Baozhu enough; he wished he could give her every good thing in existence. How could he possibly be coveting a bit of meat broth?
He warned Qian Xiaoe: "It's fine if you just say this in front of me, but whatever you do, don't say these things in front of Mom. If she gets angry, she’s very fierce."
The brothers weren't afraid of heaven or earth, they weren't even that afraid of Song Dezhu, but when it came to Wang Guifang, every single one of them was a coward.
His tone carried a lingering fear.
Finally, he added, "Actually, it's best if you don't say it in front of me either. I don't like hearing people speak about Zhuzhu that way. You're my wife, but if it were anyone else, I would have started a fight already."
Qian Xiaoe was stunned for a moment, feeling a bit wronged in her heart; she was only looking out for her husband’s best interests.
However, she was a smart woman; seeing that her husband sincerely doted on his little sister, she immediately changed her tune: "I understand, I won't say it again. I like Little Sister too; I just felt bad for you and let my thoughts wander the wrong way."
"Xiaoe, don't worry about me. You're the one who needs to eat well now that you're pregnant. Later, when I'm repairing the riverbank, I'll catch some fish and shrimp for you to make soup."
Qian Xiaoe let go of her slight unhappiness, feeling sweet and pampered by her husband's words.
Song Baozhu, completely unaware that her special treatment had caused her eldest sister-in-law to have some minor opinions, was still studying hard.
She had set a small goal for herself: to learn one hundred characters a day. The system's foundational curriculum required the host to learn ten thousand characters before unlocking the next course and the "Learning Space."
The so-called Learning Space was a space provided by the system where the host's consciousness could enter to study; the time ratio inside the Learning Space was ten to one.
The incomparably clever Song Baozhu used the math she learned from the system to count on her fingers, immediately realizing the immense benefit.
A curriculum that would originally take her ten years to learn would only take one year to master if she used the Learning Space.
Song Baozhu was full of drive, silently cheering herself on. For the sake of her family and everyone in the village being able to eat meat, she was giving it her all!
The Song family noticed that their precious darling had been a bit unusual lately. Previously, she loved to run out and play every day, either playing games with her little friends, running around everywhere with her brothers, or at the very least, chatting away for half the day with the uncles, aunties, grandpas, and grandmas in the village.
No one in the family was busier or more popular than her. But recently, this child had suddenly become a homebody, climbing out of bed early every morning to sit at the table writing and drawing, her mouth mumbling gibberish from time to time.
Wang Guifang felt her forehead: "Zhuzhu, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Song Baozhu held up the notebook in her hand for her to see: "Mama, I'm studying! Look, I've learned so many, many words. Soon, I'll be able to let you all eat meat!"
Wang Guifang was illiterate; even when she wrote her own name, it looked like it was missing arms and legs. She took Song Baozhu's notebook and looked it over repeatedly.
Although she didn't know what these words were, they were definitely characters.
"Oh my god, my Zhuzhu is too capable! Child's Father, come quickly and look, Zhuzhu can write so many words!"
This shout startled everyone in the Song family.
Although Song Dezhu knew a few more characters than Wang Guifang, he didn't even have half a bucket of knowledge.
On the other hand, the five Song brothers, though they hadn't had much schooling, had at least attended a few years of primary school.
After they looked through Song Baozhu's notebook, they were all beyond amazed.
"Zhuzhu, you're too smart! All these words are written correctly. There are even some I don't recognize!"
"How can you compare yourself to Zhuzhu? Of course Zhuzhu is smart; Zhuzhu is smarter than everyone. she's our family's precious smart egg!"
The five Song brothers surrounded Song Baozhu and showered her with praise.
Song Baozhu had grown up amidst her family's 'rainbow farts' (extravagant flattery) since she was little, so she wasn't the least bit embarrassed.
She puffed out her chest proudly with a look that said, "Yes, I am the smartest baby in the world," and her motivation to study grew even stronger.
As for where Song Baozhu had learned so many words, the Song family automatically filled in the logic for her.
Didn't Baozhu love to run to the school in the neighboring Shuisha Village with the other kids to play?
She was so smart; what was so strange about her learning to recognize characters just by listening to the school teacher's lessons?
The next day, Wang Guifang trumpeted the news of Song Baozhu learning to read to the entire village.
Previously, she would brag about Song Baozhu every day whenever she met people, and since Song Baozhu was indeed likable, the villagers would echo her with sincerity.
This only fueled Wang Guifang's desire to talk. Now that Song Baozhu had learned so many words on her own, Wang Guifang was even more unstoppable, bragging for a time that Song Baozhu was a talent unparalleled in heaven or on earth.
Someone joked with her: "Guifang, how old is Baozhu really? You truly treat her like a fairy descended to earth. Saying she knows every single word is bragging a bit too much; my kid has been in school for a year and still only recognizes a handful of characters!"
Wang Guifang gave a snort, "Can that silly kid of yours even be compared to my Baozhu?"
The others burst out laughing; that person's kid really was a bit of a simpleton.
Three months passed in this kind of atmosphere, and Song Baozhu finally finished the foundational curriculum required by the system.
Starting tomorrow, she could enter the Learning Space to study the truly useful knowledge that followed.
Song Baozhu, who had been completely immersed in her studies, didn't notice the increasingly heavy expressions on the adults' faces at home.
She fell asleep blowing snot bubbles, her heart filled with beautiful hopes for the future.
Given that she had been cooped up at home studying every day for the past few months, Song Baozhu hadn't walked around the village in a long time.
She decided to give herself a half-day off the next day.
After eating breakfast in the morning, she put on the red dress Wang Guifang had specially sewn for her and followed the Song family out the door.
The adults were all heading to the fields to earn work points. Song Baozhu took a lap around the village and found that her playmates either hadn't come out or were at home looking after younger siblings.
Strangely, many of the grandpas and grandmas who usually chatted under the big trees in the village were nowhere to be seen.
Song Baozhu felt a bit dejected; she had finally made it out for a trip. To ensure this half-day off didn't go to waste, she headed to the fields as well.
There were so many uncles and aunties in the fields; she could chat with them instead.
When she reached the fields, she saw that the villagers, who usually talked and laughed while they worked, were all bent over catching something in the soil.
Every person's face was anxious and heavy, completely devoid of the peaceful and joyful atmosphere of the past.
As she drew closer, she realized that everyone was catching insects.
Locust plague! I'm invested!
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