Chapter 103.2
When the daylight had fully illuminated the sky, Xue Shi arrived at the entrance of An Mansion in a carriage.
A young man came to the mansion last night when A Heng had not returned. He said Zhaoxuan had sought refuge with An Shi, who kindly took them in.
Xue Shi had heard about An Shi's kind and generous family background, but she never expected her good fortune to come knocking on her door like this.
Standing at the entrance of An Mansion, she felt a sense of unreality.
Jian Ning, the young man, helped her down from the carriage, and she looked at the dazzling golden plaque under the sunlight. Turning her gaze, she saw a young man walking out of the door, wearing a narrow-sleeved moon-white robe, exuding nobility and looking like a statue of a god in a temple.
She was momentarily entranced.
"Grandma!" Zhaoxuan's cheerful voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
In the blink of an eye, the young man led Ah Heng towards her.
"Madam," Li Wenjian placed his hands on his chest and bowed deeply to her.
Xue Shi was startled by his gesture of respect and quickly supported him to stand up, saying, "Young Master, please get up quickly. How could I, how could I accept such respect?"
Li Wenjian looked up and saw Xue Shi.
Having raised her son alone, she had painstakingly raised her granddaughter after losing her son in old age. The marks of time were deeply engraved on her face, with silver hair and deep wrinkles.
She carried an old bamboo basket in her arm, filled with leftover dried vegetables from home.
At this moment, she looked somewhat anxious but her eyes radiated kindness and gentleness.
This weathered old woman, who had nurtured his wife so well in the past life, had suffered so much hardship. Li Wenjian felt a surge of guilt and shame welling up inside him, trying to muster a smile that looked worse than crying.
"Madam, you have traveled a long way, please come inside and have a seat," Li Wenjian said.
Xue Shi, seeing a young man as bright as a deity showing such respect to her, felt a mix of emotions she couldn't quite understand, wondering to herself.
Back in Qingyuan, Li Wenjian busied himself arranging everything, carefully organizing the affairs in the courtyard. Physician Xu had been waiting in the courtyard and examined her pulse.
Xue Shi's poor health was due to excessive labor and she needed time to recover.
Li Wenjian had the doctor prescribe some medicine for her and instructed the maids to brew it for her.
"Qingyuan is not big, there are only three maids serving here for now. If Madam feels that there are not enough people, I can send more over." Li Wenjian said.
Xue Shi was shocked, as she wondered if he had not brought them here to work.
She looked at Zhao Heng in confusion, and Zhao Heng looked back at her equally puzzled.
Li Wenjian seemed to sense their confusion and explained with a smile, "Ah Heng is very intelligent, a good seedling, and I want to keep her at the mansion to teach her."
Xue Shi asked, "What does the young master want to teach her?"
"Anything is fine," Li Wenjian knelt in front of her and asked, "What does Ah Heng want to learn?"
"To cook!" Zhao Heng answered without hesitation.
Li Wenjian furrowed his brow slightly, paused, and then said, "Besides that?"
"To plant vegetables!" Zhao Heng blurted out, "I also want to learn to grow snow peas."
Li Wenjian lowered his eyes, gently persuading, "The essentials of governing the country, opening and closing strategies. Would you like to learn?"
Looking up at him, her innocent eyes wide, Zhao Heng asked, "What is that? Can we eat it?"
Li Wenjian was momentarily speechless.
Seeing him remain silent, Zhao Heng looked at her grandmother, who was as puzzled as she was, unsure of what to do in that moment.
She had promised him to work diligently this morning, so if learning those things he mentioned was considered work, then she should work hard.
After all, this was her promise and a person should not go back on their word.
A moment later, she spoke softly as if whispering, "If Shu Lang gege thinks I should learn, then I will learn..."
"I will definitely study hard..."
She brushed his palm with her delicate fingertips like a cat, her clear eyes earnestly looking at him.
*
After Li Wenjian left, Zhao Heng helped Xue Shi to rest on the bed. Xue Shi lay on the soft and comfortable bed, feeling like she was dreaming.
She had thought that An Family Mansion had taken them in to work at the mansion, but she did not expect the young master to want Zhao Heng to be his apprentice.
Not only did they have food and shelter, but her Zhao Heng could also learn literacy and knowledge like a man. This stroke of luck was probably something she couldn't even pray for in front of the Buddha.
However, she also had doubts. Men who were called to serve could enter official positions, but what was An Family teaching Zhao Heng to do?
Zhao Heng also had these doubts and was taken by Yingque to the clan school. An Family believed that both men and women should be literate, hence a girls' school was also established in the clan's school.
Currently, there were about twenty girls in the school, with Yingque setting up a table and chairs for her at the front.
She started attending classes at the school.
She was not yet enlightened, so the lessons were too difficult for her. The words in the books in front of her seemed to flutter like moths under a light, flashing before her eyes, and after several days, she still didn't recognize a single word.
Reading was truly a dull task.
Having arrived at the school not long ago and not knowing anyone, she sat in the classroom every day, uninterestedly staring out the window at the swallows.
Several times, watching the swallows flying outside, she would think of her days in the village.
Gathering herbs, picking wild vegetables, hunting...she was busy and happy.
At An Mansion, Yingque taught her to speak softly, walk quietly, even eat slowly and chew thoroughly.
She did not think this kind of life was bad.
Now she could eat well every day, wear warm clothes, and her grandmother had money for medicine, obtaining everything she had dreamed of.
But she still missed her carefree days in the past.
Her thoughts drifted afar, and she twisted her leg hard to bring her focus back. She grimaced in pain, tears shimmering in her eyes.
She reminded herself to behave, promised Brother Shulang to study hard, and vowed to do well.
She clenched her fists silently, continuing to stare at the words in the book, as the myriad of fluttering moths came back into her view.
It was truly terrifying.
After persisting for seven or eight days, she arrived at the clan school one day to find everyone already there, even Wei Wanyu, who usually arrived the latest, was sitting upright, reading aloud from a book.
"What are they doing?" Zhao Heng asked softly to Yingque.
Yingque rearranged her books and papers, saying, "Today the old master will come to check the girls' studies."
"The old master?" Zhao Heng blinked.
Yingque looked at her clean books and explained, "It's the young master's grandfather. He is very strict, especially when checking studies. Those who fail to pass will be punished."
Zhao Heng's face changed.
Yingque reassured her, "You've just joined the clan school, so the old master shouldn't punish you for not knowing yet."
Zhao Heng nodded, silently praying not to be punished.
Before long, a lean elderly man entered the clan school. Zhao Heng held her chin in her hands, watching him. He had white hair in his beard, and though his face was stern, his eyes and eyebrows were gentle.
After he entered, the young girls in the clan school instinctively put their books away, sitting upright and greeting him.
He briefly spoke a few words and then had the first girl in the first row start reciting the articles they had been studying in the past few days, with each girl reciting one sentence in turn, sitting down after finishing and the next one standing up.
Zhao Heng nervously fidgeted with her palms.
She had heard the things they were reciting in the past few days, but she couldn't remember them or understand their meaning.
After An Qinghan finished reciting beside her, she stood up hesitantly, pondering for a moment, her fingers almost tearing her skirt in her anxiety, but she couldn't squeeze out even two words.
The other girls all looked at Zhao Heng with wide eyes, sweating nervously for her.
Wei Wanyu, sitting behind her, kicked her chair, anxiously reminding her, "With five mu of land, planting mulberry trees on it, a fifty-year-old can have enough cloth to wear..."
Zhao Heng furrowed her brow, "What?"
Wei Wanyu mumbled, "With five mu of land, planting mulberry trees...oh, quickly recite it, I almost forgot what the next line was."
Zhao Heng looked bewildered.
An Jingliu, with a stern face, walked over to her with a ruler in hand.
Wei Wanyu wiped her face regretfully, closing her mouth.
"What's your name?" An Jingliu asked her.
"Zha...Zhao Heng." She glanced timidly at him.
An Jingliu asked, "How do you write it?"
Zhao Heng picked up the pen, but she didn't even know how to hold it, sweating in her palms as she struggled.
"You don't even know how to write your name?" An Jingliu couldn't believe it.
Zhao Heng whispered, "I've only been in the clan school for a few days."
An Jingliu said, "How long does it take to learn to write your name? If your heart is not focused on studying, then of course you wouldn't put effort into learning your own name."
Zhao Heng hung her head, remaining silent.
Not far away in the Jingfeng Pavilion, Li Wenjian was having tea, observing everything in the clan school.
However, he was too far to hear what the elderly man was saying.
The girl stood desolately in front of the elderly man, timidly extending her hand. The two-inch wide white wax ruler fell into her palm.
Seeing this, Li Yicheng followed Li Wenjian's gaze, scratching his head in confusion and asking, "What's so interesting about punishing people, An Xiong? Shall we go find Xingyan and play polo?"
"Not going." Li Wenjian sipped his tea from the bone china cup, his brow furrowed. Seeing the girl who had been punished walk out of the clan school disheartenedly, he set down the cup and stood up, saying, "I have other matters to attend to. I'll leave first. You can go play on your own."
After nearly ten days at the clan school, Zhao Heng couldn't even write her own name, which really irritated An Jingliu. It would have been fine if she couldn't recite articles, considering she had just started studying and everyone's aptitude was different, so she shouldn't be forced.
But even among An Family's servants like Yingque, they were all literate and knowledgeable. Zhao Heng's lack of interest in studying and learning was evident.
An Jingliu told her to go back and think about it.
Zhao Heng lowered her head and walked back. She had just been punished and was in a bad mood. Clearly, she didn't expect to encounter someone ahead. As she raised her eyes, she saw Li Wenjian.
The frosty disappointment on her face had not yet faded when Li Wenjian waved at her with a smile, "Ah Heng, come here."
Zhao Heng walked up and stood still.
Li Wenjian knowingly asked, "You're still in class, why did you come out?"
Zhao Heng lowered her eyes, feeling embarrassed.
"Brother." After a moment, she raised her eyes to look at him earnestly, hesitated, and finally asked nervously, "Do you still need a maid to do odd jobs? I can help you with heating, cooking, running errands, and cleaning."
"Why?" Li Wenjian suddenly chuckled, "Don't you like studying?"
"I don't like it." Zhao Heng shook her head, thought for a moment, then firmly shook her head again, "I hate studying."
Li Wenjian nodded, "I didn't like studying when I was young either. I always got punished because I couldn't recite the articles the teacher taught."
"Do you also get punished?
"Of course, the old master has a two-inch wide wooden ruler, which hurts when you get hit."
Zhao Heng nervously rubbed her palms, not telling him that she had also been punished.
"That sounds really tough."
"It is, too tough." Li Wenjian only hesitated for a moment, then smiled at her and ruffled her hair, "So you don't need to force yourself to read and study. Just learn what you want to learn."
Even if she wasn't as diligent as in her past life, it was still good to live freely and happily.
He had crossed mountains and rivers, traversed the currents of time, all to make her life easier, right?
His large hand caressed her head, warm and gentle.
Zhao Heng looked up at him, staring at Li Wenjian without blinking. Why did he enjoy smiling so much?
When he smiled, it was as if ice and snow melted, his noble eyebrows and eyes unbelievably attractive.
"I have tried." Zhao Heng defended herself, "I also want to study well, but I don't know what it means to study well. I've been staring at those words for a long time, but I still don't recognize them. I must be too stupid."
"It's not that you're stupid." Li Wenjian smiled, "It's my fault for not telling you how to study. I forgot, you're still a child now."
Zhao Heng felt puzzled.
"Zhao Heng, if you like to cook, then learn to cook. If you like farming, then learn farming." Li Wenjian stared at her, saying seriously, "It's good to be literate and knowledgeable, but it's also okay not to be. Studying requires a certain opportunity, and cannot be forced."
Zhao Heng lifted her small face, her eyes sparkling.
"Really?"
Li Wenjian nodded, secretly thinking that if she wanted to learn cooking, he should arrange a small kitchen in Qingyuan for her; and if she wanted to learn farming, he should prepare a small plot of land for her.
"Really."
Zhao Heng was delighted to hear that she didn't have to continue studying. Her eyes curved with joy, as she turned her head to ask him, "Brother, what do you like to eat? I'll grow it for you."
Li Wenjian pondered for a moment and replied, "Braised potato and green beans."
A smile played on Zhao Heng's lips, "Your favorite dish is the same as mine!"
"Is it?" The young man's features softened, showing her a smile, "We are truly on the same wavelength."