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墨書 Inktalez
Hearing Huo Yun'ai's words, Qing Wu suddenly understood that Zheng Ning taking her as a disciple was just a pretense. The one who would truly teach her was Huo Yun'ai.
Seeing her look of surprise and joy, Huo Yun'ai couldn't help but smile faintly.
He tested the temperature of her hand and found it warmer than before, so he relaxed a bit. He then took out a book and began to flip through it carefully.
Qing Wu leaned in to take a look; it was the same poetry book they had seen together at Wen Mo Xuan earlier. She moved closer to him, watching as he flipped through the pages.
Noticing her proximity, Huo Yun'ai's smile deepened. He tilted the book toward her and pointed to a passage, asking, "How about we learn this one first?"
With the experience from last time, Qing Wu understood that he intended to teach her how to recite poetry to help her speak more smoothly. Feeling grateful, she nodded repeatedly without even looking closely.
As a result, he lightly flicked her nose with his finger.
It was a gentle touch, like a feather brushing against her skin; it didn't hurt at all and even felt a bit ticklish. But it caught her off guard.
Qing Wu quickly covered her nose with her hand and stared at him wide-eyed.
"Fool," Huo Yun'ai said, both helpless and amused. He pointed at the page and said, "Am I right about everything? This is what we just learned last time. Nodding without even looking… Aren't you afraid I'll trick you?"
His voice was originally cool and clear, but now it carried a hint of warmth due to the laughter behind it.
Upon hearing this, Qing Wu turned her head to look at the page of the book.
Sure enough, it was the third poem they had read before. Because she had read it quite smoothly, she remembered it well. If she had paid closer attention just now, she would have recognized it immediately.
At that moment, Qing Wu suddenly noticed that compared to when she had seen this poem last time, there were slight changes on the page.
The originally blank spaces were now filled with many annotations in regular script. Almost every word had notes beneath it—like "easy to read," "not accurate," "fluent," and "struggling," among others.
Thinking carefully, she realized that these notes corresponded with her grasp of each word's pronunciation.
…It turned out he had already recorded her efforts one by one. Not only in his mind but also in writing within the book itself.
Qing Wu stared at the calligraphy for a long time before slowly turning her head to look at Huo Yun'ai, softly saying, "I'm not afraid."
In the previous moment of silence, Huo Yun'ai had been carefully considering how to bring her along to study better. At this sudden remark, she was momentarily confused, "What are you not afraid of?"
"I'm not afraid that you will deceive me," Qing Wu slowly shook her head, "You won't."
Huo Yun'ai never expected the girl would suddenly say such a thing.
After a brief pause, he raised his hand and gently rubbed her head, sighing, "You really are a bit silly."
If Qin Shuying had made such a remark in a teasing manner, Qing Wu might not have felt much about it.
But at this moment, Huo Yun'ai said it with such a serious tone...
She didn't know how to respond.
Seeing her tense face and sulky expression, Huo Yun'ai couldn't help but chuckle. He lightly tapped her nose with his finger and before she could react, he pulled her to sit beside him. "Although you've learned quite a bit now, today we will only read four new pieces. Then we'll review a few times what we learned last time. How does that sound?"
Qing Wu nodded.
Having been in the room for quite some time now, she felt warm all over. She thought it was a bit hot and wanted to take off her outer clothes. When Huo Yun'ai noticed, he helped her remove her cloak and outer garment and set them aside.
Just as Huo Yun'ai was about to start, he suddenly remembered something and closed the book. "Since you have to call Zheng Ning 'Mr.' outside, it wouldn't be right to let him have that title for nothing."
"You mean..."
"From now on, you should come here regularly. If I have time, I'll come over. If I'm busy, you can follow Zheng Ning to learn some practical lessons so that your trip won't be in vain. How does that sound?"
Qing Wu thought for a moment and asked, "What does Mr. Zheng like to teach?"
Earlier when Zheng Ning was teaching her, he seemed somewhat distracted. Now that she knew it was because he was waiting for Huo Yun'ai, she wondered if he would still be attentive in teaching her in the future; otherwise, it could be troublesome.
Zheng Ning is casual and unrestrained in his actions. If one could understand what he teaches and be patient enough to learn from him, it would be more effective in the future.
Huo Yun'ai was delayed today due to an urgent matter that suddenly arose, which led her to have this thought. She hadn't considered it too deeply until she heard her words and thought about Zheng Ning's temperament. After some contemplation, she said, "I will discuss this matter with him later. Let's talk about it next time."
This matter was temporarily set aside. The two of them held their books and began to read carefully, word by word.
Qing Wu had suffered greatly in her past life and now found it much smoother to speak. In her joy, she became a bit impatient. For instance, when reading characters she had already mastered, she no longer approached them with the same caution but instead relied on her memory.
Huo Yun'ai, however, would not allow her to treat it so casually; he insisted that she read each character as carefully as if it were the first time.
"Only by being steady and meticulous can one achieve success. No matter what it is, it must be done with enough detail and seriousness to succeed."
Qing Wu knew how busy he was. Even so, he still took the time to teach her how to read. With such concern and attentiveness, how could she afford to be careless?
Qing Wu kept his admonitions in mind, suppressing her impatience and focusing on reading carefully with him.
...
After finishing four poems and preparing to review the previous verses, Huo Yun'ai was still flipping through the pages when he heard the girl beside him softly ask, "Can I go out for a moment? I'll be back soon."
Her cautious tone made her already soft voice even more delicate.
Huo Yun'ai instinctively wanted to agree. However, remembering her previous lack of seriousness, he feared she was looking for an opportunity to "take a break," so he resolutely refused, saying, "No. Once you've made up your mind, you must persist from start to finish before you can rest."
Qing Wu understood his meaning and felt both embarrassed and annoyed. Unfortunately, what she needed to do was something she was too shy to mention in front of him.
She stood up and sat down again, lowering her head as her face turned red while battling with herself. After much hesitation, she finally mustered the courage to say those few words to him. Unexpectedly, Huo Yun'ai suddenly leaned closer and hesitantly asked in her ear, "Could it be that you... want to go to that place?"
He had to be subtle, but she understood; he was referring to "that place" where one goes when nature calls.
Being called out on such a matter by a young man left Qing Wu feeling awkward as she could only nod in embarrassment, feeling the heat on her face intensify.
Huo Yun'ai seemed to be unaware of her discomfort, lightly nodded and immediately stood up, saying, "I'll go call Dou Mama to accompany you."
Without waiting for Qing Wu to speak, she hurried out to find someone.
Dou Mama was already waiting outside the courtyard. Upon hearing this, she rushed over, took the outer garment and cloak, and was about to drape them over Qing Wu.
However, just as she unfolded them and hadn't had the chance to put them on, the clothing was snatched from Dou Mama's hands. Immediately after, a larger and thicker cloak was shoved into her hands.
"Let her wear this," Huo Yun'ai said. "Go quickly and return quickly."
Putting on one thick garment was indeed faster than putting on two.
Although she knew he meant well, hearing the words "go quickly and return quickly" still made Qing Wu feel a bit embarrassed. With her head down, she murmured a thank you in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, and then she left with Dou Mama.
Previously, it was because Huo Yun'ai had taken the initiative to come over that Dou Mama was able to enter the room. However, Huo Yun'ai had already instructed that when he was teaching Qing Wu, the surroundings must be kept quiet enough, and no one was allowed to disturb them.
Since he had given such strict orders, who would dare disobey?
When they returned, Dou Mama only opened the door a crack without looking inside and let Qing Wu enter alone.
Huo Yun'ai's cloak was a bit too large for Qing Wu as she walked. She had to hold up the hem with both hands to keep it from dragging on the ground.
As she walked in while being careful not to step on the pure white fabric behind her, she finally raised her head when she reached the window, smiling as she was about to greet the young man. But upon closer inspection, she froze.
The young man sat by the window, leaning against the window frame, his eyes tightly closed in sleep.
In his arms were her outer garment and cloak.
The opening and closing of the door had actually made some noise. But evidently, it hadn’t woken the young man.
At this moment, he held those two pieces of white clothing close to him; the matching soft fabric brushed against his face, making him look gentle and serene.
In such a short time, she had fallen into a deep sleep, indicating that she must have been exhausted before.
Qing Wu felt a bit guilty.
If it weren't for her, he wouldn't have to be so busy and would surely have experienced much less fatigue.
Thinking this way, she slowed her pace even more, carefully trying not to make any noise. She finally managed to take off the thick, oversized cloak and placed it on the nearby table.
Then she picked up a book and sat down beside the young man. Quietly, she looked at the poetry she had just read, trying hard to recall the pronunciation of each word.
She intended to study diligently until he woke up so they could go out together. However, feeling too at ease beside him, she unknowingly fell asleep as well.
In her dreams, various matters surged in. She felt somewhat powerless to resist. Just as a terrifying nightmare was beginning, suddenly, a gentle voice called out to her.
This voice carried a powerful force that calmed her, allowing her to slowly awaken and gradually open her eyes.
Huo Yun'ai saw that she was awake and let out a sigh of relief. Not wanting to mention the nightmare she had just experienced, he instead said, "I didn't expect that upon meeting you again, I would fall asleep once more." With that, feeling a bit regretful, he sighed and said, "But this delay may mean we don't have enough time. I need to leave quickly."
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