Two of the three kids were injured, and Shen Jun was eagerly longing to start studying. Before Shen Yu could even collect himself, he was forced to plunge into a flurry of learning.
Yet Shen Xingshuo had no sense of tact and kept wandering into the study, making Shen Yu squawk. The two trash-talkers were like fire and water.
Only when the tutor Shen Xubai had hired arrived did the brothers temporarily cease fire. Shen Yu signaled to his second brother with his eyes that they would fight another day.
Considering that his three younger brothers had uneven foundations, Shen Xubai contacted an easygoing, experienced university lecturer, planning to give the little fellows a proper chance to broaden their knowledge.
Carrying a thermos, Teacher Zhang entered the study right on time. Seeing the three boys waiting obediently, the teacher could not help nodding in satisfaction.
The teacher had originally assumed that tutoring for a wealthy family like this meant unruly children being forced to study by their parents, but unexpectedly, the children looked full of enthusiasm.
Thinking of the rumors that had spread yesterday because of a Moments post, Teacher Zhang made a point of looking at the two children with bandages wrapped around their lower legs. Presumably, these were the two children who had been found.
Teacher Zhang thought, Though the brothers don't look alike, their injuries are in exactly the same place. But strangely, why does the other child beside them look a little similar too?
Though Shen Yu did not know what the teacher was looking at, the instant he was scrutinized, he puffed out his chest and placed both hands obediently on the desk, wishing he could write "I'm very well-behaved" in huge letters across his face.
Facing Zhang Ting, who looked refined and kindly yet still carried a teacher's intimidating presence, Shen Jun and Shen Jin instinctively straightened up too, waiting attentively for the lesson.
Though this was elementary-school tutoring, as a university lecturer, Zhang Ting still inadvertently mentioned many novel theories while teaching. Even Shen Yu widened his eyes in surprise at the variety of ways to solve the problems.
"Shen Jin has a very good grasp of this." Teacher Zhang looked with satisfaction at Shen Jin, who could apply what he learned to other problems, and offered praise generously. "Even I hadn't thought of that method."
Every problem had different solutions. If they could follow their own thinking beyond their comfort zones, then other problems would be quite easy.
"Little Jin, you're amazing!" Biting the end of his pen, Shen Yu did not forget to play the supportive sidekick, giving Shen Jin an admiring thumbs-up.
"We're in class..." Seeing that the boy beside him looked ready to applaud in celebration, Shen Jun bashfully tugged Shen Yu's hand down.
Shen Yu was clearly the one embarrassing himself in front of the teacher, so why did he have to feel embarrassed too!
Teacher Zhang was naturally no stern stick-in-the-mud. Besides, university classes were usually a one-person show, so seeing Shen Yu applaud now only made the teacher smile and praise the two brothers as well.
"Shen Jun and Shen Yu are learning very quickly too. You don't seem to lack a foundation." After all, before the tutor came, Shen Xubai had explained that though the three little fellows were old enough for middle school, they needed to start with third-grade basics.
Zhang Ting had originally thought the three would be unable to keep studying, but unexpectedly, their progress was heartening. Especially in math, which required comprehension, explaining a unit took just over twenty minutes.
All the extra time could be used to tackle the humanities subjects, especially English, which none of the three were good at.
Correcting his mangled pronunciation until his tongue tied itself in knots, Shen Yu began rolling his eyes. Completely unable to keep up with his two younger brothers' learning pace, he was so frustrated that he kept biting at the air.
After finally enduring until the lesson ended, a thoroughly dispirited Shen Yu was just about to complain when he discovered that Shen Jun and Shen Jin were reviewing what they had learned.
"Ah, how pitiful!" Shen Xingshuo leaned against the study doorway, leisurely holding a fruit platter. Even as he enjoyed it, he did not forget to show off on the sly. "English takes a long process of accumulation."
Seeing Shen Yu's little face filled with envy and jealousy, Shen Xingshuo became so smug he lost all sense of restraint. "Once you..."
"Once your semester starts, you'll have to take the CET-4 and CET-6!" Shen Yu forcibly tore his gaze away from the bright red strawberries and puffed out his cheeks, dealing his second brother two verbal blows.
"You know quite a lot." Shen Xingshuo paused, then shook his head and regained his composure. "That's child's play to me!"
"But I heard from our eldest brother." Shen Yu looked up at Shen Xingshuo innocently, though his little mouth refused to let the matter go. "Once, when you went out to eat, you only ordered two pieces of music."
With his embarrassing past brought up, Shen Xingshuo immediately dropped his leisurely expression. Before he could explain, he heard his youngest brother cheekily add another remark.
"Rich people really are different. Just listening to music fills them up."
Having taken a jab at his second brother, Shen Yu was delighted. This time, he had not only avenged Shen Xingshuo mocking him as a little pauper, but had also slyly mocked his second brother's mangled English.
"You little dimwit, are you itching for a beating?" Feeling that his youngest brother was becoming increasingly deserving of a thrashing, Shen Xingshuo deeply recognized the importance of establishing his authority as an older brother.
"And you said you wanted to debut. By then, you won't even be able to get an English song out of your mouth... mmph!" Shen Yu's words were muffled in his mouth, his big eyes full of confusion.
Who? Who had the gall to cover his mouth!
Shen Jun looked despondently at Shen Yu, who had no filter, then sighed helplessly.
If this kept going, none of them would have any peace! Though the Shen Family had a relaxed atmosphere, even that couldn't withstand trash-talking every day.
Receiving a gentle warning from his younger brother, Shen Yu aggrievedly chose to keep his mouth shut. While miserably doing his homework, he still did not forget to sneak sidelong glances at Second Shen's reaction.
Naturally, Shen Xingshuo was hopping mad, but Shen Jun had stopped the culprit, and he could not forcibly interrupt his younger brothers' studies. Otherwise, his dad would skin him alive.
Thinking of the embarrassing incident that had been exposed, Shen Xingshuo ground his teeth loudly and turned away in a huff to settle the score with someone.
Exposing his embarrassing past in front of his three younger brothers-didn't Second Young Master Shen have any dignity to preserve!
Once the childish Second Shen left, Shen Yu immediately claimed the abandoned fruit platter for himself, holding the bright red strawberries and smiling happily.
"One for Little Jun, one for me."
"One for Little Jin, one for me."
After talking himself dry while dividing them up, Shen Yu stared at the three obviously uneven piles of strawberries and questioned his life, his brain racing to figure out where he had gone wrong.
Seeing that his newly acquired older brother wanted to divide them again, Shen Jin took the strawberries and bit into one at lightning speed. "Close enough. Let's just eat."
He had been wrong. He really shouldn't have suspected Shen Yu of having complicated thoughts.
He was practically regressing into a single-celled organism!