Blossom in Adversity

C46. Teaching.

Chapter 46: Teaching

Apart from the afternoon class on the following day being the Book of History, Hua Zhi scheduled all her classes for the morning. She divided her time into two parts: one for teaching and the other for managing household affairs, without delaying either.

On the day of formal teaching, the first class was on the Analects for the junior students. Hua Zhi did not intentionally dress up as a teacher. Instead, she wore plain attire, lightly tied up her long hair, and wore no jewelry at all. She didn't feel comfortable sitting cross-legged like men, so she knelt with her legs folded.

The nine young students widened their eyes as they watched the approaching... um, teacher, waiting for her to speak. Bai Lin had warned that anyone who disobeyed would be disciplined.

Hua Zhi couldn't help but smile at the sight, realizing that in an era where most people got married at sixteen or seventeen, children were generally smart from a young age.

To ensure that future generations behaved well, the ancestors of the Hua family had established hundreds of family rules. One of them stated that children should leave their mother's side after turning two and live with their similarly aged brothers in a shared courtyard, where they were taken care of by servants, and no maidservant was allowed to get too close.

This upbringing resulted in children who lacked the exaggerated manners and frivolous behaviors commonly seen in society, as they were not exposed to things they shouldn't know at their age. Although they were still smart, they weren't as scheming.

Because of this upbringing, even the illegitimate children of the Hua family rarely had a bad reputation.

The behavior of her fourth uncle was an exception.

Thinking of her fourth uncle, Hua Zhi's expression dimmed slightly. Setting aside these thoughts, she opened the book and began her prepared lessons.

She had never been a teacher, but after being a student for so many years, preparing a lesson was not a challenge for her.

"After a brief hiatus, we won’t rush into learning new knowledge. Let's review what we have learned before…"

Hua Zhi's voice was gentle, and she always had a faint smile on her face, quickly winning the hearts of these children who had been separated from their mothers at an early age. Whenever she asked a question, they blinked their eyes eagerly, expressing, "Pick me, pick me," with their eyes.

Being so young, they hadn't developed the belief that a woman couldn't be a teacher like a man. Without the need for Bai Lin's threats, they quickly accepted this female teacher.

Mr. Mu listened outside for a while and realized that Miss Hua was extremely talented. He admitted that even he couldn't explain the Analects, a text that had been passed down for many years, in such a clear and understandable manner.

Every year in the capital, there were evaluations of talented men and women. He had also been curious about their poetry and writings, but he found that while there were some good works, most were not as impressive. Rather than forcing emotions into poetry, it was better to thoroughly understand books like Miss Hua did.

That was true talent.

It didn’t take much effort to win over the senior students in her class, as the Book of History was about storytelling. She had been telling stories with Bai Lin for several years, and when she had nothing else to tell, she created stories herself.

With this background, she made the intricate text of the Book of History even more intriguing. Mr. Mu managed to listen in a few times and, upon returning home, he looked through the book but couldn't find the rich and interesting content that he had heard from her.