Wanyu glanced at the wall clock and saw that there was still plenty of time. She clapped her hands together, stood up with an imposing air, and said, "Mianmian, Lanlan, let’s go. I’m taking you to the bookstore to buy books. We must make every second count when it comes to studying and not waste any time. Xiao Li, you stay at home and look after the house, okay?"
The two little girls followed Wanyu out the door, excited, while the unfortunate Wang Li was left to stay at home.
Wanyu spent a good half day at the library with the two children before they finally found four beginner-level textbooks.
That day Wanyu was full of enthusiasm and even made up a timetable.
Four classes a day: English and Russian in the morning, German and French in the afternoon, her entire day was packed full.
After dinner, Changhai came out of the kitchen with a pot of tea and saw Wanyu and her daughter sitting on opposite sides of the dining table, studying seriously.
He approached curiously and asked, "Wife, what are you doing? Why are you buried in books now?"
Mianmian immediately raised her hand to show she knew the reason, "Dad, do you know? My mom is so amazing, she knows four languages: English, French, Russian, and German!"
She had hoped to impress her dad, but Changhai’s face remained calm, "I know that."
"You know?" Mianmian’s attempt at boasting had nearly left her choked with frustration.
Seeing her daughter’s deflated expression, Wanyu couldn’t help but snicker.
She stretched out her hand and gently pinched Mianmian’s cheek, saying with a laugh, "My daughter, you must have forgotten that I’ve known your dad for much longer than you have."
Changhai was even more proudly holding his wife’s hand, "Exactly, I know everything about your mother."
Mianmian, who again felt like she was forced to swallow a mouthful of dog food, was too tired to speak.
For the first two days, Wanyu taught with great dedication, but by the third day,
her laziness kicked in again.
She wanted to call it quits, but felt a bit embarrassed about it.
After all, she was an adult, and giving up halfway in front of two children would be detrimental to her illustrious image.
Then she had a stroke of inspiration and came up with a great idea.
Wanyu, holding a French textbook, spoke earnestly, "Mianmian, actually, learning a foreign language is quite simple. It’s all about finding one key to unlock them all, they all follow the same pattern. I’ll teach you the basics of these languages first, and then you should mull over them. I believe with your genius little brain, you’ll be able to understand them quickly and well. Once you get them, you can teach Lanlan. By revising what you’ve learned, you’ll definitely get even better."
Watching her mom spin a lazy-theory so grandly, Mianmian’s mouth twitched, but she nodded obediently, "Mm, Mom, you’re right, I’ll study hard."
Mianmian had known all along that her mom’s stamina would not last long, and true enough, it barely lasted three days.
Thankfully she could listen to master classes in the system, or else she really would have been tricked by her mom.
Afterward, Mianmian diligently tutored Li Lan, becoming more fluent and perfecting her pronunciation to the point that Li Lan admired her even more.
The little girl looked at Mianmian with stars in her eyes.
Even the study-averse Wang Li found her intelligence scary, "Mianmian, is your head filled with nothing but brains? You’ve only been learning for a few days and you’re already teaching Li Lan."