Chapter 50: Chapter 50

"What? You're saying your little brother has memorized the entire Three Character Classic? And knows hundreds of characters?" In the main hall, the couple had just returned from the fields when they received this bombshell news. Xie Sanwa's father nearly dropped his hoe in shock.

What? He couldn't have heard wrong!

An Ning nodded naturally, as if wondering why her father was making such a fuss, while expertly giving her little brother a meaningful glance.

Thinking of the sweet potato strips in his sister's hand, little Xie Sanwa practically drooled with anticipation and immediately began reciting eagerly. Unlike Old Scholar Xu's rigid teaching methods at the village school, An Ning had taught classes for decades in her past life. With the help of the Intelligence-Enhancing Pill, training a little kid wasn't particularly difficult.

Hadn't everyone noticed how much "smarter" Chubby Boy had become since partnering with An Ning? At least he hadn't been called to school for disciplinary meetings or felt the sting of the teacher's rod lately.

But to Xie Sanwa's parents, Little Chen and Xie the Third, this seemed like something out of a fairy tale. Even if they didn't understand the content, hearing their son recite character by character made them feel it must be profoundly meaningful. Truly the legendary wisdom of sages!

As for whether there were mistakes? Impossible! Just look at how Chubby Boy kept nodding along, even commenting that not a single character was wrong.

Xie the Third exchanged a glance with his wife, both having the same thought.

That night, when the rest of the Xie family was already snoring, the couple tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Finally, Little Chen broke the silence, shoving her husband: "Husband, we've saved up some money over the years. Maybe we should send Sanwa to school."

Xie the Third and Little Chen had initially thought like Xiao Lin Shi - that their frail daughter should learn a bit, since even basic literacy could open some doors. Who knew both children would prove so bright?

Chubby Boy had said some of his classmates who'd studied for nearly two years still couldn't match Sanwa!

Little Chen grew increasingly restless: "It makes sense - Siya and Sanwa are full siblings. Siya's always been clever, the only one among all our girls who could handle Mother's temper and still get favors. With the same blood, how could Sanwa be any different?"

She'd never doubted her daughter's intelligence, especially after seeing how Siya could replicate embroidery patterns after just one glance - the pinnacle of cleverness in her eyes.

"Husband, let's try! Even if he just becomes a child scholar like Scholar Xu, that would be wonderful. Or an accountant in town - those are always in demand." Thinking of Sanwa's performance today, Little Chen grew excited.

Given the chance, what parent would want their children to toil in fields forever like them?

Though unspoken, Little Chen also worried - with Siya's frail health, unless her brother became successful, what family would want to marry what amounted to a delicate ornament?

Xie the Third exhaled heavily and turned over: "Easier said than done. Do you know how much school costs yearly? Just the teacher's fees and writing paper alone would drain our savings dry before he could achieve anything."

Everyone knew education led to success, but how many families in the village could actually afford it? Compare their situation to the village chief's family!

"But Sanwa's so bright! Should he really waste his life in fields? What about Siya's future?" In the darkness, Little Chen punched her husband's back in frustration, only to be answered with another heavy sigh.

The next day, seeing her parents - especially her father - showed no signs of relenting, An Ning wasn't surprised. Farming families had almost no financial resilience - their meager savings couldn't withstand the gamble of potential failure.

But this wasn't what she wanted anyway.

After that day, An Ning acted as if nothing had happened, continuing to take her brother to listen outside classes and teaching him personally afterward.

However, the seed had been planted. Little Chen stopped assigning chores to the children and often created quiet study environments for them. Even Old Chen, who loved ordering people around, began exempting Sanwa from tasks, sometimes giving the siblings extra eggs.

When Aunt Xie made some jealous remarks, Grandfather Xie reprimanded her harshly - the first time he'd ever lost his temper so severely since her marriage into the family, leaving her too frightened to speak for hours.

With Little Chen also being tactful by taking on extra kitchen work, Aunt Xie eventually dropped the matter.

Even the usually carefree Fourth Uncle Xie, when returning from town, would bring the siblings discarded paper - though mostly unusable, An Ning accepted it gratefully, thinking how no one in this family was truly foolish.

Around New Year, Xie the Third secretly made the children a sand table for writing practice, even pilfering some donkey hairs from the chief's stable to try making brushes - though the results were floppy and frayed, An Ning used them happily regardless.

Yet even with such crude tools, An Ning's "calligraphy" kept improving until it resembled printed text, leaving Chubby Boy - who witnessed the transformation - sighing in amazement:

"Siya, when will my father realize the gap between human minds is wider than that between humans and pigs?" How could anyone be as brilliant as Siya?

Though consoled that he wasn't the worst - glancing at Sanwa's similarly awful scrawl, Chubby Boy suddenly felt much better about himself.

"Tch, Host, what's the point?" the system remarked sarcastically. "If your brother had the 'photographic memory,' your parents would sell everything to send him to school. Why work so hard?"

Ignoring the system's taunts, An Ning kept practicing until her writing matched printed quality perfectly, finally allowing herself a small satisfied smile.