Sister Han is good at farming

Chapter 293 Teaching Apprentice

After the Lantern Festival, the New Year was considered over, but the atmosphere inside and outside the City Lord's Mansion was still festive.

Yan Muyang, guided by his father, knelt on the mat and offered tea to Ruan Qingqing. Ruan Qingqing took it, took a sip, and handed him a sheep-fat jade pendant. On one side of the jade pendant were three lifelike bamboos, and on the other side was a traditional Chinese character for Yang.

When the jade pendant came out, the people watching the ceremony couldn't help but gasp.

"Master, this is too big a deal!" Lu Dunren couldn't help but say.

Ruan Qingqing took a sip of tea slowly and calmly, "This child can handle it!"

She put down the teacup, stood up, and helped Yan Muyang up with her own hands.

"In the future, study hard. We look forward to you using what you have learned to lead everyone to live a free and easy life in the future."

Yan Muyang bowed to her solemnly, "Disciple will remember Master's teachings!"

"Have you remembered this? Your master will see your actions."

"Disciple will prove it with actions!" Yan Muyang clenched his fists and said firmly.

Ruan Qingqing looked at him steadily for a while, then curled up her lips slightly, "Okay!"

In this situation, even Yan Qufeng and his son, who were usually extremely serious, couldn't help but smile.

After the apprenticeship ceremony, Yan Muyang officially moved into the City Lord's Mansion. In the morning, he practiced martial arts with Chi Jingxiao and others before dawn, and during the day, he ran around with Ruan Qingqing to understand the people's sentiments.

After the beginning of spring, it is not immediately that there will be warm breezes, grass growing, birds flying, and green leaves standing on branches.

The cold wind left over from the harsh winter will make one last dying struggle, bringing a chill to the earth in spring and two heavy snowfalls.

Ruan Qingqing was determined to go to various places in the three cities to inspect. First, to ensure everyone's safety, and second, to assess the difficulties that everyone might encounter in spring ploughing, and then to formulate practical plans based on the actual difficulties of the people in various places.

This was not an easy job, especially in the cold wind. Ruan Qingqing had not planned to take Yan Muyang with her. After all, for a four or five-year-old child, this kind of running was too hard. Seeing that he insisted, Ruan Qingqing followed him. She just asked the craftsmen in the City Lord's Mansion to help replace the curtain covering the carriage with a thicker one.

In the car, Ruan Qingqing would take out the atlas she had drawn and explain to him the place they were about to inspect, what problems might occur in that place due to the terrain, how to get information from the locals, and how to investigate and verify the information so as not to be deceived or led in the wrong direction.

These were all new things to Yan Muyang, and he listened very carefully. When they got there, Ruan Qingqing would demonstrate it herself and then encourage him to do it. Even if he didn't do it well or made a mistake, Ruan Qingqing would not criticize him, but would always encourage him that he was much better than other people of the same age.

After following Ruan Qingqing to several places like this, Yan Muyang gradually relaxed.

On the way back that day, Yan Muyang clenched his fists and unclenched them, his face flushed and there was a hint of water on his forehead.

"Mu Yang, do you have any questions?"

Ruan Qingqing took in his entire expression.

Yan Muyang hesitated for a moment, "Master, my father always taught me to treat people with sincerity. Just now, that old man Niu asked about borrowing oxen. Obviously, our City Lord's Mansion has many oxen in the pen, and we can borrow them. Why didn't you agree to it at that time? This is not in line with the principle of treating people with sincerity."

Ruan Qingqing smiled and nodded, "This is a very good question. If you want to know why I did this, you might as well think about it. If I agree to his request today, what will he do if he encounters a similar situation in the future? What impact will his future behavior have on our City Lord's Mansion and other ordinary people?"

Yan Muyang lowered his head and thought seriously.

"Next time we encounter a similar situation, Grandpa Niu will definitely be the first to go to the City Lord's Mansion for help. After all, the City Lord's Mansion's help is the fastest and most timely, and he doesn't have to spend any extra money."

"As for the others..." Yan Muyang hesitated, "Others will follow suit after hearing the news. By then, the City Lord's Mansion will be crowded with people seeking help, which will cause great trouble to the City Lord's Mansion. Especially the oxen kept in the City Lord's Mansion may not be able to help."

"Then is it very likely that I will not be able to fulfill my promise?" Ruan Qingqing asked him with a smile.

Yan Muyang nodded.

"As the lord of a city, if I can't keep my promise, will they still listen to me when I ask them to do something in the future?"

Yan Muyang shook his head.

"On the other hand, if we set a precedent of free assistance and let the people taste the sweetness, but we are unable to afford the cost of continuing free assistance, how will the people react? This may be a little difficult for you. Let me give you an example. If I give you a candy you like every day, and suddenly one day I stop giving it to you, what will you think?"

"I..." Yan Muyang glanced at Ruan Qingqing, "I would feel uncomfortable, even unhappy."

"This is the story of a favor being paid and a grudge being paid. Instead of waiting until later to fall out, we might as well kill the chance of a fall-out right from the start."

Yan Muyang's eyes brightened instantly as if he had suddenly been enlightened.

"So, Master is not unwilling to help Grandpa Niu, but asking him to exchange something of equal value with us. But why did Master tell him that we would find a way to help solve it?"

Ruan Qingqing continued to persuade with a smile, "Under what circumstances would your father tell you that he would come up with a solution?"

"It's something that can't be done immediately." Yan Muyang blurted out without even thinking this time.

"What kind of things can't be done immediately?" Ruan Qingqing asked again.

"A difficult matter, or a shortage of materials." This is not a problem for Yan Muyang.

"Is it because we helped him solve the difficult problem that he is more grateful for? Or is it because we made the problem easier that he is more grateful for?"

Yan Muyang stood up excitedly, "I understand. Through this, we can secretly tell Grandpa Niu that it is not easy to allocate a separate ox to him. It is not easy for us, does he still want to use our oxen for free?"

Ruan Qingqing smiled gently, "Yes! These people are a little lazy. If we help them unconditionally, after a few times, they will take it for granted and will not think of solutions on their own, after all, there is ready-made help.

When other people see this, they will follow suit. They don't even lack oxen, but everyone went to the City Lord's Mansion to ask for them. He didn't go. Doesn't he feel like he didn't get any advantage? Doesn't this go against our goal of helping the people live a good life?"

Yan Muyang nodded solemnly, and then he said shyly: "Master, I was wrong again. I didn't consider the problem carefully enough."

Ruan Qingqing smiled and shook her head, "You can't look at the problem this way. Consider it from another perspective. Did Mu Yang gain a lot today?"

Yan Muyang was stunned at first, then his mouth widened.

"Well, I learned a lot today. I learned to think about problems from multiple perspectives. If you really can't think of a solution, you can ask multiple questions and eventually find the crux of the problem."

"That's right, this boy is teachable!" Ruan Qingqing was also surprised by his words, and she got so excited that she even spoke classical Chinese.

Yan Muyang touched the back of his head happily, showing quite a bit of childish liveliness.

From then on, he stuck to Ruan Qingqing even more. Even Chi Jingxiao couldn't help but feel jealous, "You didn't accept a disciple, you accepted a son."

Ruan Qingqing raised her eyebrows. "Once a teacher, always a father. Haven't you heard of this saying? Is there a big difference between an apprentice and a son?"

"Master, Mu Yang is almost occupying all your attention. We also need your guidance." Yue Linlang said with a pout.

"You're already grown up, and you're still fighting over this?" Ruan Qingqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Of course! Our boss is a god-like existence. It is our great honor to attract your attention!" Yue Linlang said exaggeratedly.

"Okay, stop being naughty. I will care more about you in the future, okay?" Ruan Qingqing looked helpless.

"It's done, it's too good to be true!"

While they were joking around, the people of the three cities gradually came out of their homes and began to carry out spring ploughing in an orderly manner.

The cuckoo was not willing to be lonely and kept calling "cuckoo cuckoo".

I never expected that they would call two unexpected people over.