Studying costs money. In addition to the annual tuition, which is a considerable expense, the price of pens, ink, paper and inkstone is also very high, which is not something that ordinary families can afford.

In the end, the Gu family has only supported Gu Mingda, a scholar, in these years.

Although the eldest and third sons of Gu were sent to school, they gave up at the elementary stage and did not spend money.

When it comes to the grandchildren, they will be taught by Gu Mingda, a student, and there is no need to spend tuition at all.

Even learning to write is practiced on a sand table, which is even less expensive.

Among the grandchildren, only Gu Yan has really practiced writing on paper, and he still spent Gu Mingda's money.

In the end, the only cost of studying and learning to read in the Gu family is such a sand table.

The sand table of the Gu family has a wooden base, which is made into a low drawer, with a thick layer of sand spread inside. After writing a word with a branch, the sand can be spread flat at will.

Gu Mingda assigned homework every time, and how many times to practice calligraphy, in fact, there is no way to verify whether it is lazy or not, everything depends on self-consciousness.

At this time, Gu Zhao heard Niu Niu's question, tilted his head, and asked: "Why are you asking this? Do you want to make one?"

Niu Niu nodded and looked at the firewood room beside her. At this time, she could still hear faint crying coming from inside.

Gu Zhao glanced at his sand table and said: "I don't know, but it looks quite simple. Just add some sand on a board. Where can we get a board?"

Gu Zhao didn't even ask Niu Niu why she wanted to make a sand table. He had already racked his brains to help. His eyes fell on the door of the firewood room and said: "Let's take down this door."

Niu Niu was frightened, but she didn't have time to stop it. Gu Zhao had already started to act, rushing over like a small cannonball to remove the door.

Gu Daya, who was hiding inside and crying quietly, thought she was abandoned by the whole world, and had a miserable look on her face, cried and cried, and found that a beam of light hit her.

Gu Daya squinted her eyes and looked over, only to find that the firewood room had no door.

She hid here because she didn't want to be seen crying. Now that there was no door, people outside could see clearly how miserable she was.

Gu Daya didn't know whether she should continue crying.

Gu Zhao had already shouted at her: "Sister Daya, come and help, this door is too heavy, I can't hold it!"

Gu Daya hesitated for only two seconds, then she came forward with a twisted face, helped him hold the door, and didn't forget to remind him: "I wasn't crying just now, don't think too much."

Gu Zhao was a brainless person, and was easily fooled, saying: "Oh, were you singing in there just now? It was a bit unpleasant."

Gu Daya's fists hardened instantly, and she didn't know if this stinky cousin was being sarcastic, and she didn't even want to help him hold the door.

Niuniu also came forward to help, and the three of them lifted the door to the side and put it down.

"A Zhao, why are you tearing down the door? Aren't you afraid that our grandma will beat you?" Gu Daya asked.

Gu Zhao said, "My sister said she wanted to make a sand table."

Gu Daya paused after hearing this, looked at Niu Niu beside her, and asked softly, "Why are you making a sand table?"

Niu Niu whispered, "Sister Daya, if you and Sister Xiaoya have a sand table, you can learn characters with us."

Gu Daya's heart softened after hearing this. She originally believed what Chen Chunhua said and didn't like this sister who suddenly joined.

Niu Niu was so good to her. She was the first person in the family to take the initiative to help her solve the problem. Now Gu Daya's heart was full of shame.

Niu Niu said a little embarrassedly, "Sister Daya, I should have given you my sand table, but this is the first gift my father gave me. I'm sorry, I can't bear to give it away..."

As the oldest girl in the family, Gu Daya still has the demeanor of an elder sister when she doesn't go against her mother. She immediately said, "If it were mine, I would keep it too."

Niu Niu was relieved immediately after hearing this.

Gu Zhao, however, was obviously getting impatient while waiting for the two to talk. He kicked the door he had taken down and asked, "Shall I find an axe and split this thing?"

Gu Daya hurriedly stopped him and said, "No, if we really split it, grandma will definitely scold us!"

"But if you don't split it, you won't have a sandbox." Gu Zhao said with a simple face, touching the back of his head.

The movement here had long attracted the attention of Gu Mingda and Gu Yan.

Gu Mingda didn't intend to care about the children's affairs. Seeing Gu Yan's concerned look, he said, "Go and see what they are doing."

After saying this, Gu Mingda went back to the house.

In the house, Zhang Yunniang was sewing a small gray dress.

"For Niuniu?" Gu Mingda asked softly.

Zhang Yunniang said, "It's definitely too late to buy cloth to make clothes for her now. The eldest sister-in-law and the third brother's wife will also gossip. I will make the third sister's clothes smaller for her to wear. It's a pity that she has been in the Zhang family for so many years, let alone new clothes, and she hasn't even worn a slightly clean old clothes."

The clothes Niuniu is wearing now are also old clothes that others don't want, and they are full of patches.

Gu Mingda took out a purse, divided the money into two piles, and gave them all to his wife.

Zhang Yunniang also knew that part of this pile of money would be handed over to Old Lady Gu by her, and the other part would be kept for private use.

Gu Mingda is different from other men. He doesn't have the bad habits of eating, drinking, whoring and gambling. Instead, he has many ways to make money. Every time he gets money, except for a sum of money left for emergencies, he gives it all to her.

Zhang Yunniang used to worry about whether her husband, who was gentle, considerate and handsome, would face temptation outside. Since all the money in the family was given to her, her heart was settled.

"Since Niuniu has come to our house, we must pamper her like our own daughter. We can't let her down. Tomorrow we will go to the county together to buy some cloth for Niuniu to make clothes. Don't worry about the gossips of the first and third wives." Gu Mingda said.

Zhang Yunniang was stunned when she heard this. In fact, she has always been very uneasy. She brought Niuniu back to the Gu family without discussing it with her husband in advance. There was a little girl who was not related to her by blood in the family. If it was another man, he would have jumped up long ago.

Gu Mingda seemed to know what she was thinking. He looked through the window into the yard and said to Zhang Yunniang gently, "I have always hoped to have a cute little daughter, but we gave birth to three bad boys in succession. Now I have finally got what I wanted."

Zhang Yunniang felt bitter in her heart. Her husband always tolerated her like this. No matter what she did, she would get his support.

Gu Yan in the yard already knew what good things his brothers and sisters were going to do. He smiled and said, "I don't think it's a big deal. Isn't it just a sand table?"

The three little ones turned their heads instantly and stared at him with bright eyes.

Gu Yan said, "The sand table is used to hold sand. Wood is fine, and other things are also fine?"

After Gu Yan put the door of the firewood room back, he took a group of brothers and sisters to the reed marsh. Now it was autumn and the weather was cool, and the reeds were all withered and yellow.

Everyone immediately understood that they were going to use reeds to weave a frame to hold sand and use it as a sand table for Da Ya and Xiao Ya.

"Brother, but we don't know how to weave..." Niu Niu said in a low voice.

Gu Yan, as the person who is most like Gu Mingda in this family, showed his cleverness far beyond that of ordinary children and said, "Grandpa can weave. I saw him weave before. Let him teach us."

Countryside children are tough and don't have much safety awareness. A group of little radish heads started to dig in the reed marsh.

Thanks to the dry weather today, the ground of the reed marsh has long been dry, and there is no swamp that can trap people.

Niuniu is small and struggles to find those reeds that are easier to pull down.

It seems that whatever she wants comes true. She can pull the reeds that are usually deeply rooted in the soil. She pulls deeper and deeper. Gradually, she can't even hear the sound of her brothers and sisters fighting.

The surroundings are deadly quiet, even without the sound of the wind. Niuniu finally knows how to be afraid.

The reeds on the left suddenly moved, and Niuniu stepped back in fear, her feet twisted, and she sat on the ground.

Just as she was about to get up, she suddenly saw a round thing on her right hand.

Turning his head, he saw only seven or eight round white duck eggs covered with brown spots.

A silly head popped out from the reeds where the noise was heard earlier: "Niuniu, why are you here? We've been looking for you everywhere!"

Niuniu moved her body, revealing the seven or eight wild duck eggs behind her.

Gu Zhao looked at these wild duck eggs and drooled all over the floor: "Wild duck eggs! We'll have scrambled eggs tonight!"

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