Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 13: The Difference Between Talent and Genius
After lunch, once everyone had grown bored, people began coming over to tease Zhu Ping’an, with Great-Aunt leading the charge.
“An Ge’er, come play with your great-aunt.” She sat there waving, signaling Zhu Ping’an to come over.
Here we go again?
Zhu Ping’an was reluctant, but he still scampered over. What could he do? After all, he was just a child, and the most important thing was that his mother was watching with a beaming smile. With so many relatives around, he dared not throw a tantrum at that moment.
“Hello, Great-Aunt.” Zhu Ping’an’s chubby face was adorned with a smile, and his little mouth was as sweet as if it had been smeared with honey.
“An Ge’er is really well-behaved.” His great-aunt smiled widely.
“Aunt, you can’t praise him too much. This kid is quite mischievous, jumping around all day without any seriousness. If you keep praising him, he’ll go completely wild,” Chen said, demeaning Zhu Ping’an, yet her face was full of pride.
It’s a tradition for parents to downplay their children in front of others; don’t take it seriously. Most parents just use it as a polite gesture, publicly criticizing while privately praising. The main idea is to show humility and make other parents happy. Of course, sometimes parents say this to help their children recognize their shortcomings and not get too proud. Overall, parents mean well, and Zhu Ping’an understood this very clearly.
“I really like An Ge’er. Boys ought to be lively; the more lively they are, the cleverer they seem.” For some reason, Great-Aunt was especially fond of this round-faced little grand-nephew and felt an immediate affinity with him.
She rummaged in her pocket for a while, then held out her hands—one silver bean in her left hand and two silver beans in her right—starting to tease Zhu Ping’an.
“An Ge’er, I just heard you say you want to save money to marry a wife. So, your great-aunt will sponsor you a bit, but you can only choose one. Do you want the left hand or the right hand?” she asked, smiling.
Zhu Ping’an looked at the left hand, then at the right hand, and paused for a moment.
What are you thinking? Chen was getting a bit anxious; he should definitely choose the two silver beans. What’s there to think about?
His aunt was eager to push Zhu Ping’an aside and push her own son, Zhu Pingjun, forward. She thought to herself that Zhu Ping’an was such a silly child; why even consider it? Everyone knows to take the two silver beans.
Zhu Ping’an didn’t keep everyone waiting; under the eager gazes of several people, he reached out his hand.
Hahaha…
His aunts were first surprised, then couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Because Zhu Ping’an had just reached out to grab the left hand and said he wanted the left one.
His great-aunt was also quite astonished, trying to hold back her laughter as she asked, “An Ge’er, why do you want the left one?”
“Because Great-Aunt’s left hand looks nice,” Zhu Ping’an replied, quite willfully.
Chen’s face darkened, and she nearly wanted to give her foolish son a good beating. This child usually seemed so clever; why was he acting so stupid at such a crucial moment? Two silver beans could cover a poor household’s expenses for quite some time. Just look at how delighted Great-Aunt was. This little brat would see how she dealt with him later.
In no time, Zhu Ping’an’s silly choice of one silver bean over two spread throughout the entire courtyard like it had grown wings.
This news was so unbelievable that many people found it hard to believe. It was truly hard to accept; after all, the difference between one and two was significant, even a toddler could understand that. Thus, Zhu Ping’an’s choice made everyone feel like it couldn’t be real.
For example, right now.
“Little cousin, come on, choose one. Which one do you want?” An 8-year-old cousin, snuggling up to her father, stretched out her small hands, offering one silver bean in her right hand and two in her left.
Just like last time, Zhu Ping’an once again chose one silver bean.
“Haha, you see, Daddy? I didn’t lie to you! Little cousin really chose one silver bean!”
The little cousin told her father, feeling that her little cousin was indeed a bit foolish.
Then, the second uncle also teased Zhu Ping’an in front of other relatives at the second aunt’s home. Without a doubt, Zhu Ping’an once again chose one silver bean over two.
Next came Second Grandfather, Eldest Aunt, and the eldest cousin…
It was as though the entire family was trying to confirm that a little fool had truly been born. Nearly every relative took a turn. The better-off Second Grandfather and Great-Aunt used silver beans, while the other aunts, including Fourth Aunt, used copper coins.
In any case, everyone watched Zhu Ping’an’s choice with satisfied smiles, feeling a sense of intellectual superiority.
Eldest Aunt in particular smiled with open disdain. “He can’t even tell one from two, yet a child who spends his days digging around in the dirt still wants to study? Better give up that idea.”
As for Zhu Ping’an, while others laughed, he joined in the laughter, looking like a fool.
Finally, Chen couldn’t hold back anymore. She went up and grabbed Zhu Ping’an’s arm. If it weren’t for the presence of outsiders, she would have already taken him over her knee for a good spanking. How could this embarrassing child still have the face to laugh!
“Are you foolish? Why didn’t you choose two? You had to choose one?!” Chen pulled Zhu Ping’an’s arm, demanding to know, determined that if the boy didn’t give a decent answer, she would make him pay!
“If I chose two, who would come to tease me?” Zhu Ping’an answered seriously, protecting his chubby pocket with his little hands.
Choosing one or two was also the difference between talent and genius. A talent would choose two, but a genius would choose one.
The laughter in the room stopped abruptly, and everyone wore a different expression. Eldest Aunt and Fourth Aunt in particular looked as though they had swallowed flies.
Chen, both amused and exasperated, smacked Zhu Ping’an’s bottom, “What nonsense is this? At such a young age, you’re not learning properly and are being so greedy!”
Outwardly, Chen still looked exasperated, but inwardly she was enormously pleased. She shot Eldest Aunt and Fourth Aunt a look. They had just laughed at her son, hadn’t they? Let’s see them laugh now.
“Being clever when he’s little doesn’t mean he’ll amount to anything later,” Fourth Aunt said sourly, earning an eye roll from Chen.