Chapter 12

"Xiao Jia, are all these things you prepared for Xiao Zi?" Old Mr. Luo looked at the books and materials that took up half the coffee table and asked in surprise.

"Yes, I have always thought that the educational methods of the great scholar Zhang Wenzhong were excellent, and I plan to apply them to Luo Li... Zi." Jia Hongjian nodded slightly and said.

"Zhang Wenzhong?" Wang Koulan repeated the four-character name, which sounded a bit like a Japanese name, with a puzzled look.

"That's Zhang Taiyue... Zhang Jiangling... Zhang Shuda... Alright, it's Zhang Juzheng." Jia Hongjian, pretending to be honest, started by using a serious expression to say Zhang Juzheng's posthumous name, Wenzhong, and called him Zhang Wenzhong Gong, as scholars often call Ouyang Xiu "Ouyang Wenzhong Gong." When the other party didn't understand, he then called Zhang Juzheng "Zhang Taiyue," similar to how scholars call Li Bai "Qinglian Jushi" or "Li Qinglian." When the other party still didn't understand, he called Zhang Juzheng "Zhang Jiangling" using the traditional method of surname plus birthplace, and finally called him by his courtesy name.

After this series of actions, Jia Hongjian was confident that he could impress anyone! He wasn't like those people who only knew how to act cool in a low-level way; he always looked up to Guo Jing and followed a high-end route of acting foolish and cool at the same time!

After giving the other party enough time to be shocked and feel ashamed, Jia Hongjian continued sincerely, just like Brother Jing: "Mr. Zhang Juzheng was the Chief Cabinet Minister of the Ming Dynasty. He was once authorized by the Empress to educate the young emperor. He had to handle official business during the day and teach the young emperor, and after returning home at night, he had to prepare for the next day's lessons. To make the young emperor interested in the lessons, he would even draw pictures of the next day's content for him to see..."

When Jia Hongjian said this, Old Mr. Luo, Wang Koulan, and the young girl who opened the door were all shocked. In this era, just a few years after the reform and opening up, "Sinology" wasn't popular yet, and there were no TV programs like "Hundred Schools of Thought." Ordinary people didn't have much in-depth knowledge about ancient times. They might know that Zhang Juzheng was a high-ranking official in the Ming Dynasty, but they never imagined that he used such a method to educate the young emperor.

To them, this level of dedication was truly awe-inspiring! Even in today's era, how many teachers could achieve such a level? And Jia Hongjian wanted to emulate Zhang Juzheng's method?

However, at this point, Jia Hongjian didn't plan to act cool in front of the adults anymore, even if one of them was Wang Koulan, who had a beauty score of 85. He was ready to show his professional side and start teaching the little girl. People say that men look their best when they are focused on something, and after impressing everyone with his talk, Jia Hongjian was ready to deepen this impression by focusing on his task.

He picked up the little girl and sat her on his lap, smiling and asked, "Loli-Zi, shall we learn about myths today? What myths do you know?"

"Um... I know about Nüwa creating humans... and Yu the Great controlling the floods..." the little girl thought for a long time before answering.

"Okay, today I'll tell you the Chinese myths from the beginning, and I'll also tell you the Greek myths, okay?" Seeing the little girl nod happily, Jia Hongjian started his lesson.

"First, many, many years before Nüwa created humans, the universe was a chaotic mess, like a mixture of egg whites and yolks. In Chinese mythology, Pangu appeared, and in Greek mythology, this chaos was a god named Chaos, who gave birth to the Earth goddess Gaia..." Jia Hongjian began his teaching.

His teaching was truly unique. The topic he chose today was quite broad and could be written into a scholarly paper like "A Discussion on the Primitive Cosmology and Worldview of Ancient Humans from the Myths of China and Greece." However, he made it very accessible, breaking down all the content into stories that the little girl loved to hear.

While telling the stories, he didn't read from a children's book like a parent telling a bedtime story. He added many human elements to the mythological characters and paid great attention to interacting with the little girl. He would change the pace of his storytelling based on the little girl's expressions, explaining in detail when she didn't understand something, and even used examples from the little girl's life to illustrate points. He would occasionally pause to ask the little girl a question, such as what she would do if she were a mythological character.

This approach greatly increased the little girl's engagement, making her eyes wide and bright with interest. Even the three adults listening were completely captivated. They weren't just impressed by Jia Hongjian's teaching method, but by the content of his teaching. No one had ever told the myths of two countries in this way before!

"Alright, that's the end of the first lesson. Little Loli, take a break now." Jia Hongjian looked at his watch and suddenly stopped.

"Eh? Why, Uncle, I want to hear more, I want to hear more!" The little girl grabbed Jia Hongjian's collar and pouted.

Jia Hongjian pinched the little girl's cheek and smiled, "Little Loli, be good. Your attention span is only 40 minutes. If you go longer, you won't be able to focus in the next lesson. So, go run around a bit, relax, look at something far away to rest your eyes, and we'll continue after a 10-minute break..."

The little girl, who had become very dependent on Jia Hongjian, although she still wanted to listen, obediently followed his instructions and ran to the balcony to look at the distance. Seeing the little girl run off, Old Mr. Luo, who had finally come to his senses, stared at Jia Hongjian for a long time and said, "Xiao Jia... you will surely become a great talent in the future! Have you ever thought about becoming a teacher?"

"Where, where, with more preparation and considering Xiao Zi's perspective, anyone can do it," Jia Hongjian said humbly, "As for being a teacher, I don't have that plan for now..."

Wang Koulan, with her beautiful eyes full of curiosity, suddenly asked, "Xiao Jia, how did you come up with the idea of teaching myths from two countries at the same time?"

"Because I believe this is a globalized era, and as a person of the new era, one must have a global perspective. How to strengthen this perspective? When studying history, study world history, and even when studying world history, learn about major events happening around the world in the same year..." Jia Hongjian said seriously. "When I read history books, like the Cambridge World History, I found that these books are mostly national histories, telling the history of each country in chronological order. I think there is room for improvement in this method..."

In fact, he loved this kind of serious and sincere act, constantly throwing out impressive points. It was 1993, and how many non-professionals in China knew about the Cambridge History series? There was no internet in China at that time, and the intellectual property system wasn't as developed as it is in the 21st century. Ordinary people couldn't compare with the knowledge breadth and depth of 21st-century internet users!

In the 21st century, amateur history enthusiasts like Jia Hongjian could easily download the Chinese and English versions of the Cambridge History, and freely download "Guns, Germs, and Steel." He could even participate in discussions on niche forums for history professionals, using photos of physical books to debate historical events, or join archaeology forums to discuss the details of the Tsinghua Bamboo Slips and various fossils. He could see photos of flight envelope data for various domestic aircraft in military forums, and even create satirical articles like "Professor Zhang Shimai Criticizes High-Speed Rail" on forums with high-level discussions of military history, which could fool professional journalists. None of this was possible in 1993.

After thinking for a moment, Jia Hongjian began to explain his tutoring plan to the little girl's parents: "My lesson plan is designed to start with global ancient history, beginning with myths, gradually guiding into the early stages of human civilization, and then moving on to the history of human civilization from geographical, environmental, plant, and animal perspectives, eventually focusing on ancient Chinese history..."

Although Jia Hongjian spoke with a relaxed expression, Old Mr. Luo and Wang Koulan didn't feel relaxed at all. They felt that this curriculum seemed more suitable for training master's students in history rather than a preschool girl.

"Isn't this a bit too deep? I mean, isn't it too difficult for Xiao Zi?" Old Mr. Luo, who was genuinely impressed, asked Jia Hongjian in a low voice. His attitude was like that of a patient consulting a renowned doctor, not daring to use a slightly stronger tone, for fear of offending the other party.

"Please trust me, and please trust Xiao Zi. Since I promised you, I won't just go through the motions or just fool around with Xiao Zi. My goal is to make Xiao Zi the best 5-year-old girl in China! My aim is that in any situation, as soon as Xiao Zi appears, other children will automatically step aside because there will be nothing left for them to do! From now on, Xiao Zi will be the pride of the Chinese people, the epitome of the most outstanding women in China's 5,000-year history!"

Was this statement grand? Of course, it was! It was almost like talking nonsense! But Jia Hongjian had the capital to say it! He had already proven himself to be an educational expert in just a few minutes! Even now, Old Mr. Luo and Wang Koulan, when looking at Jia Hongjian, no longer saw a 15-year-old boy who had just graduated from junior high school!

Moreover, Jia Hongjian really had the ability to turn his grandiose statements into reality! As long as he, this talented and charming genius, got into the swing of things, no one could stop him!