Zhu Zhanji's apprenticeship ceremony was simpler than Hua Shi's. At any rate, Hua Shi's mother Yun Niang accompanied Hua Shi through the entire apprenticeship ceremony.
However, Zhu Gaochi left in a hurry after Zhu Zhanji served him the apprenticeship tea.
Only Chen Kan and Zhu Zhanji were left staring at each other in the auditorium of the Hou Mansion.
Watching Zhu Gaochi's fat back go away, Chen Kan and Zhu Zhanji slumped down at the same time.
As if his spine had been removed, he leaned limply on the stool, his sitting posture and expression were exactly the same.
Chen Kan touched his mouth and murmured: "It's a bit hot."
Zhu Zhanji nodded in agreement: "It's indeed a bit hot, otherwise go play in the water outside the city."
Chen Kan shook his head: "Hua Shi and I can go, but you can't."
Hua Shi poked her little head in from the door: "Teacher, did you call me?"
Chen Kan waved to him: "Hua Shi, come here."
"Ms. mist mist."
Hua Shi trotted up to Chen Kan, his little face full of anticipation.
Chen Kan said sickly: "When I was young, you were responsible for teaching pinyin and Arabic numerals to your senior brother in the past few days. When the progress of your studies is about the same, I will teach you new knowledge."
When he heard that he wasn't going to take him swimming, the look of anticipation in Hua Shi's eyes dimmed visibly.
But when he heard that he was asked to teach Zhu Zhanji pinyin and numbers, his big eyes suddenly lit up again.
Just as Chen Kan was about to send the two of them away, Yuncheng hurried in.
"What happened?"
Chen Kan looked feebly at Yuncheng, who was roaring anxiously.
"Hou...Master Hou..."
"Calling the soul."
Chen Kan sat up lazily.
Yuncheng ran to Chen Kan and gasped: "Master Marquis, it's not good, the King of Han is here, right outside the door."
"King of Han?"
Chen Kan glanced sideways at Yuncheng: "When the King of Han comes, he will come. The King of Han does not eat people."
Yun Cheng breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly explained: "No, Lord Marquis, the King of Han also brought a little boy and said he would send him over to become his disciple."
Chen Kan was stunned and asked with some uncertainty: "You said that the King of Han brought a little boy to be my disciple?"
Yun Cheng nodded, and just as he was about to say something, he saw Zhu Gaoxu, fully armed, walking towards a few people outside the auditorium, carrying a thin little boy in his hand.
When Zhu Gaoxu wanted to enter the Hou Mansion, the concierge of the Hou Mansion naturally couldn't stop him.
But wearing a suit of armor is too arrogant.
Striding into the auditorium, Zhu Gaoxu threw the little boy at Chen Kan's feet and said calmly: "Chen Kan, don't you like to have disciples? My son is five years old, smart and smart, and I have taught it to you."
This posture is like throwing a kitten or puppy.
Chen Kan frowned and looked at Zhu Gaoxu. Hua Shi and Zhu Zhanji hurriedly helped the thin little boy up.
The little boy had obviously just cried, with tears still hanging from the corners of his eyes.
Instead of being thrown to tears by Zhu Gaoxu, he felt a little aggrieved after being helped up by Hua Shi and Zhu Zhanji.
But when Zhu Gaoxu glared at him, the look of grievance on his face instantly disappeared.
"Brother He."
Zhu Zhanji saw the little boy's face clearly and couldn't help but exclaimed.
Then he glared at Zhu Gaoxu with dissatisfaction: "Second uncle, how could you treat my brother like this?"
The little boy is Zhu Gaoxu's eldest son Zhu Zhanhe. He is one year younger than Hua Shi and is only four years old this year.
Zhu Gaoxu ignored Zhu Zhanji's questioning, but stared at the frowning Chen Kan intently, and asked, "Do you accept it or not?"
As soon as he said this, Zhu Zhanhe glanced at Chen Kan cautiously.
Then he wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, broke away from Hua Shi and Zhu Zhanji's hands, came to kneel down in front of Chen Kan, kowtowed and said, "Teacher, please accept a disciple."
Looking at Zhu Zhanhe kneeling in front of him, Chen Kan couldn't help but look at Zhu Gaoxu reproachfully.
He could clearly see that when Zhu Zhanhe knelt down for him, there were bruises on his little arms, and his figure was much smaller than that of an ordinary four-year-old child.
Obviously, Zhu Gaoxu was not interested in this eldest son.
As for the bruises on his body, you don't need to think about it to know that it is Zhu Gaoxu's work. Others don't have the courage to abuse the dignified grandson.
Chen Kan didn't speak, Zhu Zhanhe just knelt in front of Chen Kan and bowed to the ground.
Zhu Gaoxu didn't urge him, he just looked at Chen Kan, his eyes full of inquiry.
After a moment of silence, Chen Kan turned to look at Zhu Zhanji: "Prepare apprenticeship tea for your junior brother."
Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi looked at each other, turned around and ran towards the kitchen.
After a while, he rushed to Chen Kan with a tea cup in his hand.
When Hua Shi helped Zhu Zhanhe up, Chen Kan could clearly notice that Zhu Zhanhe's body was trembling slightly, and there was fear in his eyes.
Chen Kan didn't say much and motioned to Zhu Zhanji to pass the tea to Zhu Zhanhe.
Zhu Zhanhe took the tea cup and refused to put it down even though his white and tender hands were burned red by the incredibly hot tea cup.
It wasn't until the tea cup was no longer so hot that Zhu Zhanhe respectfully handed the tea cup to Chen Kan and said in a trembling voice: "Teacher, please drink tea."
Chen Kan took the tea cup, took a symbolic sip of tea, and then looked at Zhu Gaoxu: "Your Highness, the King of Han, Zhu Zhanhe has accepted it."
"good!"
Zhu Gaoxu nodded, turned around and strode out of the auditorium, never looking back at Zhu Zhanhe again.
Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi helped Zhu Zhanhe up. Chen Kan frowned and said, "Little guy, what were you afraid of just now?"
Zhu Zhanhe raised his head and said stubbornly: "Teacher, this disciple is not afraid."
Chen Kan stretched out his hand, rubbed his head, and said in as gentle a tone as possible: "Don't be afraid, from now on, this is your home. They are your senior brother and second senior brother. Tell the teacher, you just What are you afraid of?"
Perhaps it was the first time that someone had treated him so gently, and it was also the first time that someone had made such an intimate gesture to him. Zhu Zhanhe's eyes suddenly turned red.
But he still said with a stubborn look: "Teacher, this disciple is really not afraid."
Chen Kan nodded: "Okay, teacher believes in you."
After saying that, Chen Kan reached out to hold Zhu Zhanhe's little hand.
But Zhu Zhanhe suddenly took a few steps back like a frightened deer.
It's a pity that no matter how he retreats, he is still just a four-year-old child. How can he escape from Chen Kan's clutches?
In just a blink of an eye, Chen Kan caught him.
"teacher......"
Before he could speak, Chen Kan had already opened his sleeves, revealing bruises one after another, mixed with whip marks that were about to bleed.
Zhu Zhanji exclaimed: "Brother Hey, why are there so many injuries on your body? How did you get them?"
Hua Shi's pretty little face instantly twisted up. He stretched out his finger to poke the whip mark on Zhu Zhanhe's arm, and asked with a sad look on his face: "Junior brother, does it hurt?"
Zhu Zhanhe's eyes were red, but he still said firmly: "It doesn't hurt, I dropped it myself."
Chen Kan clamped Zhu Zhanhe with one hand and quickly took off his clothes with the other hand. Sure enough, his little body was covered with scars.
Chen Kan pursed his lips and said calmly: "Yuncheng, get the medicine."
"yes."
Yun Cheng looked at Zhu Zhanhe's injuries with a look of unbearable expression on his face.
How could such a young child do this?
His clothes were stripped off, and Zhu Zhanhe's little face was a little shy, but his body was clamped by Chen Kan and he couldn't even move, let alone struggle.
Tears already filled the eyes of Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi.
"Brother He, did my second uncle hit you? I'll tell Grandpa Huang and ask him to vent his anger on you."
Seeing the shocking whip marks and bruises on Zhu Zhanhe's body, Zhu Zhanji had never been so angry.
Now in his heart, that second uncle has been equated with a beast.
How could he kill his own son?
After Yuncheng retrieved the ointment, Chen Kan carried Zhu Zhanhe back to the room.
Zhu Zhanhe was lying on the bed, always feeling that there was something wrong with this look.
Especially the three pairs of eyes staring at him naked made him so ashamed that he wanted to run away.
The two little guys seemed to notice his embarrassment, and each held his hand.
Hua Shi comforted her with a serious face: "Little brother, don't be shy, the teacher is giving you medicine, we are children, it's okay to take a look."
However, the time spent comforting did not have the effect he expected, so Zhu Zhanhe buried his face in the quilt.
Chen Kan smeared the ointment on the palm of his hand and applied it bit by bit on Zhu Zhanhe's wound.
Some of the blood marks from the whip marks did not break the skin, but blood stasis had accumulated in the scars.
Zhu Gaoxu's attack was so serious that Chen Kan couldn't help but tremble.
After applying the ointment, Chen Kan said calmly: "I will use a needle to prick the scar to release the blood inside. It may hurt a little, so please bear with it."
Zhu Zhanhe nodded, buried his face in the quilt, and let Chen Kan do whatever he wanted.
As soon as Chen Kan injected the needle, Zhu Zhanhe couldn't help but tremble, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead from the pain.
But never said a word.
Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi looked worried and tried their best to find topics to distract Zhu Zhanhe.
After a stick of incense, Chen Kan drained away more than half a bowl of blood on Zhu Zhanhe's body.
Handing the bruised blood to Yuncheng who was waiting on the side, Chen Kan turned Zhu Zhanhe's little face to face him.
Then he looked at Zhu Zhanhe's little face that was reddened by pain, and said seriously: "From now on, this is your home, as a teacher, your wife, and senior brother; the second senior brother is your family, and our family is very free. , no one will hit you, and no one dares to bully you, you don’t have to live so cautiously in the future, do you understand?”
Chen Kan could tell that although this little guy was not as old as Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi, he was very wary and a little precocious.
So he could only try to communicate with him in a gentler tone.
Zhu Zhanhe put on his clothes skillfully, got up from the bed, and nodded hesitantly: "I understand, teacher."
Then he cautiously saluted Zhu Zhanji and Hua Shi: "I have seen the first... senior brother and second senior brother."
The words "First Senior Brother" and "Second Senior Brother" immediately made the two little boys smile with joy.
Zhu Zhanji put his arm around his shoulders manly: "Don't worry, little junior brother, if my second uncle dares to hit you again in the future, I will tell Grandpa Huang and let Grandpa Huang teach him a lesson."
Hua Shi came to his side and said with a serious face: "Junior brother, I will protect you in the future."
