It was, in fact, their own shortcomings.
However, Teacher Shen and the two students he brought along didn't mind at all and even tried their best to help them.
Mayor Liang found it a bit strange that Su Xiaotian, as Shen Zizhen's student, also possessed medical skills.
This child, at such a young age, was quite capable!
Thinking this, Mayor Liang couldn't help but look at Su Xiaotian more.
At Su Xiaotian's age, to be so highly regarded by Shen Zizhen, she was definitely not ordinary.
The more he looked, the more he felt this young girl was truly remarkable.
He would have to maintain a good relationship with her in the future.
Previously, he had harbored some selfish thoughts.
As a leader, being constantly overshadowed by others over the years wasn't a pleasant feeling.
This time, he felt it was a rare opportunity for him.
Therefore, he considered putting the booklet written by Su Xiaotian under the name of the town government, turning it into his own political achievement.
However, Mayor Liang was a man of principle. The thought flashed through his mind and he abandoned it.
He, an adult, couldn't bully a little girl.
As a leader, even at the grassroots level, he couldn't engage in such self-serving behavior for fame.
"Teacher Shen, I truly envy you for having such outstanding children by your side."
Children from other families!
Shen Zizhen smiled proudly. The children around him were indeed all excellent.
Whether it was his stepchildren or the Su family children, they were all top-notch.
From this day on, the trio became a quartet.
Yuan Guoqing followed them for a day, being very diligent, taking care of all the odd jobs, busy and happy.
Moreover, unlike Mao Xiaoming, he could genuinely help.
A graduate from an agricultural university was quite at home here, able to handle many tasks without needing to be taught hand-in-hand.
Shen Zizhen was very pleased with this.
Starting from the second day, Shen Zizhen assigned Yuan Guoqing some tasks, all peripheral work.
Yuan Guoqing completed them excellently.
Seeing the work Yuan Guoqing had done, Shen Zizhen was even surprised.
This child was truly good, with great talent and diligence.
He was almost comparable to Su Sangong.
If his character was good, he could indeed be kept and nurtured.
In an instant, Shen Zizhen felt a sense of appreciation for talent.
As for Yuan Guoqing, he also cherished the opportunity to learn by Shen Zizhen's side.
He knew that this was purely a stroke of luck, to have encountered such a good teacher, and if he missed it, he might never have another chance.
The shy young man even took the initiative to ask Shen Zizhen about some knowledge points he hadn't understood before.
Shen Zizhen was even more satisfied seeing such a young man.
But while satisfied, he decided to observe for a longer period.
What if he turned out to be someone with poor character?
Mao Xiaoming had also performed well when he first arrived.
Later, practice proved his inadequacy.
More than ten days passed in a blink of an eye.
Yuan Guoqing consistently maintained his diligent and eager-to-learn attitude.
His respectful attitude towards Shen Zizhen and the Su siblings made Shen Zizhen even more pleased.
Shen Zizhen was not stingy with good students. His attitude towards Yuan Guoqing became even better, almost indistinguishable from his own students.
Su Xiaotian teased, "Third Brother, if this continues, you'll be out of favor!"
Looking at his mischievous sister, Su Sangong couldn't help but pinch Su Xiaotian's fair little cheek.
This little girl was getting more and more naughty.
If he were to be jealous, wouldn't he be jealous of this little girl Xiaotian first?
"Naughty!"
"Third Brother, aren't you jealous?" Su Xiaotian was genuinely curious.
Why could Third Brother be so calm?
Did he really not mind having another competitor?
"Not jealous," Su Sangong shook his head gently.
"Our team still has too few people. I also hope more people can join Teacher and work together for a bountiful harvest."
Teacher had spoken about the importance of grain, and he himself had experienced the hardship of food scarcity in his youth.
Grain is the root of life. Land cannot be increased; only by increasing grain yield can more people be fed.
This is not a task that one or two people can accomplish; it is a goal that requires the efforts of tens of thousands of people.
Their research group had done many things over the years, but they always felt it was not satisfactory.
In the final analysis, it was still too few people; people are the most precious resource.
Shen Zizhen alone is far from enough.
How wonderful it would be if many people like Shen Zizhen could be cultivated.
And now, having finally found someone useful, Su Sangong was eager for it.
Su Xiaotian also smiled.
Indeed, men are generally more magnanimous and don't worry about not being valued because of an additional student.
Especially with Third Brother's personality, it was even more so.
Su Xiaotian was also quite happy about Yuan Guoqing joining the group.
Since Yuan Guoqing arrived, she felt much more relaxed.
On the fifteenth day in Tongliang, as discussed with Mayor Liang, Su Xiaotian gave a day-long lecture at the town's middle school.
The students were young men and women from the twelve villages of Tongliang, four from each village, all young people who had attended school, with the least being good students who had graduated from junior high.
Su Xiaotian didn't find it difficult when explaining, and these people could barely understand.
When she returned in the evening, Su Xiaotian felt much more relaxed.
She even had the interest to chat with her brother for a while.
As they talked, they somehow ended up discussing Shen Zizhen.
"Uncle Shen has worked too hard these past few years; his aging has accelerated more than when he was in the village. If more talented people could be found, perhaps Uncle Shen wouldn't have to worry so much."
It was rare for Uncle Shen and Aunt Taohua to live so harmoniously after forming their new family, and Su Xiaotian also hoped that Shen Zizhen would live a long life and always accompany Aunt Taohua.
"Perhaps, in the future, we shouldn't just focus our attention on our school, but also look into other agricultural universities. Who knows if there might be suitable candidates?"
From Yuan Guoqing, Su Sangong seemed to have found another path.
Although this path might not be successful, it would be a gain if it were.
He would need to suggest to Teacher Shen that they look for talent from all over the country.
"Third Brother, I think this is feasible. However, there might not be many who meet Uncle Shen's criteria."
Su Sangong nodded.
Shen Zizhen was actually quite picky; otherwise, out of the entire large school, he wouldn't have chosen only seven or eight people in the end.
"Xiaotian, is your booklet almost finished? We have to go back in a few days."
"It's almost done. I'll finish it today or tomorrow, and then I'll give the manuscript to Mayor Liang."
Su Xiaotian only intended to do the preliminary work. As for how the booklet would be published and distributed later, it wouldn't be of much concern to her.