Chapter 4

From the beginning, I had been determined to teach Qingning well. I wanted to prove that I could run a school and teach just as a man could, and that girls could excel at their studies too.

I had even imagined how splendid the reopening of Three Mountains School would be, with everyone’s eyes upon us.

I had never imagined it would all come down to a good voice!

That day, Qingning’s recitation drew the neighbors over, and they gathered outside our gate.

“Father, what’s she reading? It sounds wonderful!”

“Mother, that little beggar reads so well! I want to learn too! I want to learn!”

“Mother, I want to study like Erya.”

“Me too! I want to learn too!”

…

Village children chattered outside the gate, boys and girls alike.

The gate creaked as I opened it. A crowd of eyes, round as gongs, stared back at me.

Auntie Zhao craned her neck and spotted Qingning standing in the middle of the courtyard. She slapped her thigh. “Goodness, Ning! Is that really Erya, the little beggar? What a pretty girl she’s become!”

Now that Qingning had enough to eat, her complexion had indeed brightened, and she had grown taller. Her features had always been pretty; she really did look very different from before.

I smiled. “Auntie Zhao, what brings you all here?”

“Ning, was that really Erya reciting just now?”

“Well,” I said with a smile, “do you see a third person in this house?”

“Goodness me!” Auntie Zhao slapped her thigh again and pushed her son Ergou forward. “She reads beautifully! Could you teach my Ergou as well?”

Once Auntie Zhao broke the ice, the other families began pushing their children forward too.

“Teach my Zhuzi too!”

“My Sanmei will come!”

“And our Chuanzi! Teach him with the others!”

…

In moments, the gate was as crowded and noisy as a market.

My heart blossomed with joy.

And that was how Three Mountains School opened.

The next day, the children arrived of their own accord, carrying little cloth bags their families had made.

Including Qingning, there were ten children: seven boys and three girls.

Once everyone was there, I was about to close the gate when a large hand slapped against it. Butcher Ge’s face appeared around the door.

His heavy features twisted into an ingratiating smile. In his left hand he carried two cuts of pork nicely streaked with fat. “Ning, I’m just an ignorant butcher. Don’t hold what I said against me. Could you teach my boy as well?”

He pushed his chubby son forward.

I gladly agreed.

At once he shoved the pork into his son’s hands. “Quick, carry that in for your teacher. Be a bright lad, now!” He gave the boy a pat on the head.

And so eleven pupils sat down neatly and began their lessons!

I didn’t know then that Three Mountains School would steadily expand and one day become Three Mountains Academy.

Nor did I know that the academy would produce many students of both learning and character. Some would enter public service, some would trade, and some would become teachers themselves. Scattered throughout the land, they would have a profound influence on the entire dynasty.