Chapter 227: Studying is Hard

Chapter 227: Chapter 227: Studying is Hard

Nan Zhi’s first two cooking classes generated a massive response online.

The first class, which focused on spring pancakes, integrated traditional cultural knowledge like the twenty-four solar terms into the lesson. It made learning fun and was highly praised by state media.

The second class on fried chicken wasn’t as sophisticated as the one on spring pancakes, but it still had its own unique flair, shedding light on some lesser-known facts. Nan Zhi’s fried chicken tutorial, in particular, took a novel approach and went viral across all major platforms. Nearly every food blogger recreated the dish, showering her tutorial with praise.

As a result, the expectations for Nan Zhi’s cooking classes skyrocketed.

Many people were eagerly anticipating what she would cover in her third cooking class.

Would she continue with the traditional culture theme from the first class, or would she take the more mainstream route of the second?

Whatever she chose, it seemed it would be difficult to top her first two classes. It felt like it would inevitably be lacking something.

And so.

Nan Zhi herself hadn’t reacted, but the people around her grew increasingly anxious—

"Zhizhi, if the pressure is getting to you, please tell us," Qi Pei’er said. "We’re all on your side, ready to help you shoulder the burden!"

"How about we put the cooking class on hold for a bit?" Fu Chao suggested. "The first two were so demanding. What’s wrong with taking a break? Hmm? The production team scheduled it? In that case, I’ll go have a ’chat’ with Director Xu..."

"If you need any help whatsoever, just say the word," Xie Yu added.

...

It wasn’t just them. Many others also came to Nan Zhi to express their concern.

While she could sense their sincere goodwill, she was also completely baffled.

’Did something major happen?’

Soon enough, Nan Zhi found her answer.

It turned out that one media outlet had published a lengthy article praising her cooking classes. But toward the end, the writer’s tone suddenly shifted. They began to feign concern about her next class, all but explicitly stating that they had no confidence in her and that her third lesson was doomed to be a disaster.

Nan Zhi simply couldn’t understand how these people’s minds worked.

’It’s just a little cooking class. Who cares if it succeeds or fails?’

’So ridiculous.’

Nan Zhi shook her head, turned off her phone, and shut out the clamor.

The spring day was bright and clear, set against a backdrop of lush mountains and pristine waters.

Nan Zhi wore a long linen dress, her freshly washed hair hanging loose down her back, still damp.

She didn’t seem to mind, though. With a little shake of her head, she stepped lightly over the high threshold of the old house and into the courtyard, where she looked up at the jujube tree.

Amidst the fresh, deep green of the leaves, she could spot scattered specks of yellow-green. Tiny, five-petaled blossoms clustered tightly together, dense and delicate, looking utterly charming.

"Jujube blossoms. It’s a shame we won’t be here to eat the fruit," Nan Zhi remarked casually.

A small, childlike voice piped up right behind her:

"Why won’t we get to eat them?"

Nan Zhi knew Nan Yi had followed her out. She turned with a smile.

"Because by the time the fruit is ripe, we won’t be here anymore."

Nan Yi’s eyes widened. They were as clear and bright as black gemstones washed clean by a stream.

"Can’t we come back?"

Nan Zhi paused, then suddenly broke into a smile.

"You’re right, we can come back. We’ll come back in the fall. And while we’re here, we can visit Teacher Zhang and your classmates, how does that sound?"

Nan Yi was delighted and nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah!"

Seeing his reaction, Nan Zhi’s smile widened.

She glanced over the top of Nan Yi’s head toward the house.

"Is your homework done?"

It was the weekend, so neither Nan Zhi nor Nan Yi had to go to school.

Furthermore, because Fu Chao and the others were exhausted, they had lodged a strong protest with the production team, demanding half a day off. As a result, Nan Zhi and Nan Yi also got an impromptu holiday.

Perhaps because the cameras weren’t rolling, Nan Zhi found the courtyard unusually quiet—so quiet she could almost hear a car engine on the distant mountain road.

Nan Zhi didn’t pay it any mind, though. Her only concern was for Yiyi, who stood right in front of her.

Nan Yi nodded obediently again.

"I’m done. Do you want to check it, Mom?"

Nan Zhi didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she felt a sense of disbelief.

She voiced the question that had been on her mind for some time:

"Yiyi, I feel like since we came to Cuishui Village, you’ve... changed a lot."

How had he changed? It was his attitude toward school, of course.

They had been in Cuishui Village for nearly a week. Aside from the two days Nan Zhi was sick, when he also stayed home, Nan Zhi hadn’t seen the slightest hint of resistance from him about going to school.

Back when Nan Yi was in kindergarten, Nan Zhi had felt that their morning goodbyes were a form of torture for him.

He would walk to school with his little backpack, looking utterly dejected. His small figure receding down the path seemed as lonely, forlorn, and pitiful as a leaf in the bleak autumn wind.

Several times, Nan Zhi had been on the verge of telling him he didn’t have to go.

But she always managed to stop herself, knowing that getting used to school was a necessary part of growing up.

And yet.

At the village school in Cuishui Village, Nan Zhi saw none of those issues in him whatsoever!

Every morning, he was full of energy, with no resistance at all to going to school!

Take homework, for example. Teacher Xiao Lin actually had no expectations for Nan Yi and Qi Zhang.

Even though she knew Nan Yi was a genius with a high IQ, she never considered forcing him to integrate into the life of an elementary schooler. Bringing them to the classroom was more of a convenient way to look after them.

Teacher Xiao Lin never required Nan Yi and Qi Zhang to do their homework, and even their classmates didn’t think they had to.

But as it turned out, Nan Yi diligently completed his homework every day, occasionally even asking Nan Zhi to check it for errors.

In just a few days, he had already taught himself the entire first-grade curriculum and had recently borrowed a second-grade textbook from a classmate to start reading.

...This behavior was a world away from the child who had dreaded kindergarten. He was like a completely different person!

So, Nan Zhi was very curious about what had prompted this change in him.

When she asked, Nan Yi fidgeted for a moment before answering honestly:

"Because... getting an education is difficult."

"What?"

Nan Yi summoned his courage and raised his voice slightly.

"Because getting an education is something very precious. I heard from Xiao Hu that he almost wasn’t able to go to school. Teacher Zhang had to go to his house and talk with his parents many, many times before they finally agreed to let him attend. So, Xiao Hu told me that we have to cherish the opportunity to learn."

’Xiao Hu?’ Nan Zhi recalled the boy. He was the most mature and level-headed one in the little class.

Because of his personality, Teacher Xiao Lin had deliberately seated Nan Yi near him, hoping Xiao Hu would look out for the younger boy.

Nan Zhi was familiar with cases like Xiao Hu’s, where parents didn’t allow their children to go to school. Although the country mandated nine years of compulsory education, and most regions enforced it...

...there were always places where, limited by the older generation’s mindset or the family’s financial situation, many children lost their right to an education.