Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 4: Ping’an Gives Up the Egg
Back to the main topic, as the meal was nearing its end, there was one piece of scrambled egg left. Grandma habitually picked up the egg with her chopsticks and placed it in Zhu Pingjun’s bowl. As a result, the egg was rather loose, so half of it stuck to the chopsticks, while the other half fell on the table. Grandma handed the half on the chopsticks to Zhu Pingjun, and when she saw the half that had fallen on the table, she noticed that Zhu Pingjun seemed to be a bit disgusted by it. Perhaps he recalled the earlier scene, or maybe it was about balance; Grandma decided to pick up the piece that had fallen on the table and placed it in Zhu Ping’an’s bowl.
It was truly a bit surprising!
This was the first time Grandma had served Zhu Ping’an food, even if it was only the piece that had fallen on the table.
“Thank you, Grandma.” Zhu Ping’an gave Grandma Zhu a foolish little smile.
Seeing her grandson being so understanding touched the biased Grandma’s heart a little, though it was fleeting. In her heart, her oldest son and youngest son’s families were the true darlings. The eldest son had a bright future due to his education and civil service examinations, while the youngest son was considerate. The remaining two sons had married and forgotten their mother, especially the second daughter-in-law, who was the most troublesome; the second son had almost forgotten his own mother.
Zhu Ping’an didn’t plan to eat this piece of egg, not because it had fallen on the table. Ever since arriving in this farming household, to maintain hygiene like in his past life would mean waiting to starve to bones; the conditions were what they were. Besides, the rural area was all-natural and harmless; just rinsing it off with water was good enough.
The main reason was the little girl Zhu Pingyu, who was next to him sucking her fingers. This was an era that favored boys over girls; although he was not spoiled by his grandparents, as a boy, he still received more attention from Grandma compared to little Yu’er.
Moreover, just before the meal, his mother had secretly given him an egg.
“Here, have it, little sister.” Zhu Ping’an gently picked up the egg with his chopsticks and placed it in little Yu’er’s bowl, speaking softly.
Zhu Ping’an’s action drew everyone’s attention. Scrambled eggs were a rarity in a farming household; eggs were usually saved to be sold for money. In the Zhu family especially, even when scrambled eggs appeared, Grandma Zhu mostly favored Eldest Uncle’s and Fourth Uncle’s households. Zhu Ping’an and the other children rarely got any, so for him to give his precious piece to little Yu’er was enough to surprise everyone. It was harder than Kong Rong giving up a pear: Kong Rong came from a wealthy household where pears were common, while the Zhu family might not see a plate of scrambled eggs for a month.
For Zhu Ping’an to give away the egg that was practically in his mouth was a real eye-opener for everyone! This child was truly understanding!
Little Yu’er stared with wide eyes, fixated on the scrambled egg, drooling.
However, at that moment, Third Aunt Zhang took the egg back and placed it back in Zhu Ping’an’s bowl. “Here, Yu’er, thank your brother Zhi’er. Zhi’er is really good, but you should keep it for yourself. This egg is for you from Grandma, so you should eat it quickly and grow taller to be filial to Grandma.”
Although little Yu’er was eyeing the scrambled egg greedily, she still behaved well and, while drooling, thanked Zhu Ping’an, saying, “Thank you, Brother Zhi’er. Yu’er doesn’t want to eat scrambled eggs.”
Although her little appearance was saying she didn’t want to eat, her eyes were still glued to the scrambled egg, and her mouth was watering.
The little girl was so adorably cute, a certain little brat thought, forgetting that he was also a short-legged kid.
Zhu Ping’an picked up the egg again and held it up with his little arm to little Yu’er’s mouth, looking very much like a big brother. He said, “I love watching my little sister eat scrambled eggs.”
As the egg entered her mouth, it was soft and delicious. What child could resist not eating? Besides, once it was in her mouth, could she really take it out to give to someone else?
Just having a tiny piece of scrambled egg, about the size of a fingernail, little Yu’er showed a very content and happy expression, even cutely sticking out her tongue to lick her lips, like a little cat drinking water.
“Is it delicious, Sister Yu’er?” Zhu Ping’an asked little Yu’er with his cheeks puffed up as he ate the millet flatbread in his hand.
“Delicious, thank you, Brother Zhi’er,” little Yu’er replied in a tender voice, her crescent-shaped eyebrows arched.
After the egg had already gone into Yu’er’s mouth, Third Aunt had no choice but to accept it. She found the lively Zhu Ping’an increasingly thoughtful, especially compared with his older cousin Zhu Pingjun, who only knew how to act spoiled and selfish.
Third Aunt lovingly patted Zhu Ping’an’s head, turning to tease Chen with a smile, “Second sister-in-law, I truly envy you for having two good sons. Zhi’er dotes on his younger sister so well; you taught him really well. When he grows up, he’ll definitely be a filial good child.”
No mother disliked hearing her son praised, and Chen had a bit of a show-off streak besides. Naturally, she was delighted. She repeatedly waved the praise away as nothing, but the pride on her face was impossible to hide as she laughed with Aunt Zhang.
On the other side, Aunt Wu was displeased. In her heart, her own son was the best. He was the one destined to study and sit the imperial examinations, and a fortune-teller in town had even claimed that he was the reincarnation of the Literary Star.
With that thought, Aunt Wu nudged her husband under the table, signaling him to raise the subject of sending Zhu Pingjun to school with Old Master Zhu.
Eldest Uncle lowered his head and continued eating, ignoring his wife’s hint. He thought her too short-sighted. After the commotion between his younger sisters-in-law that day, it was clearly not the right time to raise the matter. Besides, his own studies had already cost the household a great deal, and his younger brothers had begun to complain. If his son also went to school, it would be difficult to justify. Better to discuss it privately with his parents when the younger brothers were absent; once the decision was made, their objections would be useless.
Aunt Wu, unlike her husband, lacked the patience to wait. Still dreaming of her son becoming a successful scholar, she finally said, “Father, Mother, Jun’er is already seven. He can’t keep running around like this forever. What if we send him to the private school run by Old Scholar Sun in neighboring Shanghe Village? He could study and perhaps bring honor to our Zhu family.”
This statement caught Zhu Ping’an’s attention. Going to school was something he particularly needed. On one hand, he could study the Four Books and Five Classics for the imperial examinations, and on the other hand, it would serve as a cover to mask his experiences and insights that were centuries ahead of his time. After all, “there is beauty in books,” and in this era, scholars were highly revered. Once he attended school, any extraordinary understanding or knowledge he exhibited could be attributed to his education.
“Among all pursuits, reading is the highest,” was an unbreakable truth in this era. Even wealthy tycoons were too afraid to argue back when a poor scholar pointed a finger at them. Moreover, during this time, education was the main and most effective way for the children of poor families to rise in status.
Thus, Zhu Ping’an raised his chubby hand, “I want to study too.”
“You’re still so young; what could you possibly study? Besides, not everyone is meant for school. Our Jun’er had his fortune read by a master, who said he was the reincarnation of the Literary Star,” Aunt Wu objected at once. She knew the family could not afford to support two students. They were already living on millet porridge and vegetables; if both boys studied, the household finances would collapse.
Aunt Wu’s words belittled Zhu Ping’an while praising Zhu Pingjun, which naturally displeased Chen. Still, Chen was wary of Eldest Uncle’s household. If he succeeded in the examinations and became a xiucai—or rose even higher—the whole family might one day depend on him. She therefore only frowned, knowing someone else would object without her needing to offend Aunt Wu directly.
Sure enough, before Chen could say anything, Fourth Aunt Zhao spoke up in opposition.
“Eldest Sister-in-law, our family can barely make ends meet as it is. We don’t have spare money to support another student, do we, Mother? I think we should wait until we’ve saved some money before sending Jun’er to school.” Fourth Aunt Zhao’s argument sounded reasonable and cleverly drew Grandma Zhu onto her side. She opposed Jun’er’s schooling without rejecting it outright: the family was already paying for Eldest Uncle’s studies, and there was no money for Jun’er at present. Once they had money, he could study. As for when that day would come, no one could say.