Chapter 51 - 26: Stuffy Atmosphere
"Since there’s nothing to do, I might as well teach you how to hold the brush and grind ink!" Sang Wan said with a smile.
Xingzhi and Hong Ye were more than happy, immediately smiling and agreeing. Hong Ye then laughed and said, "I’ll add a few more candles to make it brighter for us!"
The candlelight flickered, making the small study room bright and well-lit. Xingzhi and Hong Ye each sat at one side, watching intently as Sang Wan demonstrated how to grind ink, and then had them sit and taught them how to hold the brush.
Merely holding the brush was not interesting, so Sang Wan decided to write a few simple characters with fewer strokes to teach them and let them practice the feel of holding the brush. She instructed Xingzhi, while Liu Ya guided Hong Ye. The four of them concentrated with all their hearts.
When Shi Fengju returned under the faint starlight, he saw such a scene.
There were four people in the room, but his gaze unconsciously fixed on one person. Under the soft light, she was wearing a light green, elegantly simple dress, standing gracefully behind Xingzhi, her head slightly lowered. One hand was holding Xingzhi’s hand, moving the brush while softly whispering something.
The light outlined her softly curved profile: faint eyebrows, soft lips, erect nose tip, round and small earlobe. A green jade round gold hairpin was worn on her raven-black hair at her temples, and the round and lustrous pearl tassels hung beside her ears. From his angle, she appeared gentle and beautiful, irresistibly making one wish to cherish and protect her in their palms.
For a moment, Shi Fengju stared, captivated, with a peaceful and soft feeling in his heart. Unwilling to disturb this exquisite scene, he decided to quietly leave, but Liu Ya suddenly looked up and saw him.
"Young Master!" Liu Ya, who was teaching Hong Ye, hurriedly let go of her hand and stood up straight.
The other three were also startled and stopped what they were doing. Xingzhi and Hong Ye quickly stood up and greeted him, looking somewhat embarrassed as if they had done something guilty.
Shi Fengju smiled and stepped in, glanced at Sang Wan, and asked with a smile, "Are you teaching them to read?"