Time Travel: The Noble Family
Chapter 308 - Chapter 308 Chapter 113 Show Off Skills_4

Chapter 308: Chapter 113: Show Off Skills_4 Chapter 308: Chapter 113: Show Off Skills_4 Ruo Lan’s mouth still held a smile.

Cai Yun looked down on Lady Xiao Ma. She did not even bother asking her own daughter before inviting a scholar, as if she truly thought of herself as the lady of the house.

Yueyao glanced lightly at Lady Xiao Ma and said, “Aunt, I’ve been practicing by copying from model calligraphy works. However, you could invite a teacher skilled in the plum blossom calligraphy style. It shouldn’t be difficult to find one.” It would actually be strange if it weren’t difficult, for although there were teachers proficient and capable of instructing students, these individuals were extremely selective, only willing to teach daughters of prestigious families. If it was a case of attending classes informally, they wouldn’t mind, but no amount of money could entice them to provide private instruction.

Amused, Ruo Lan said, “Come, write a few characters for me to see.” It wasn’t that Ruo Lan doubted Yueyao’s character; she simply couldn’t believe that a nine-year-old child could write so beautifully. If Yueyao had been learning since a young age, that would be one thing, but having only studied for a year was almost supernatural. Ruo Lan needed to confirm for herself whether Yueyao was embellishing the truth.

Yueyao didn’t want to offend her cousin-in-law, “All right, cousin-in-law, please don’t mock me if it isn’t good.” In truth, there were many aspects of her that invited speculation, but as this was a matter of skill, others would only suspect her of possessing exceptional talent, not of being otherworldly.

The maid fetched paper, ink, brush, and inkstone, then began to grind the ink.

Observing the maid grinding the ink swiftly and splashing a few drops, Yueyao said, “Allow me to do it.” Poorly ground ink could greatly affect the writing, making the characters turn out too dense or too light.

Ruo Lan, who had also practiced calligraphy for a time and stopped after reaching a certain standard, watched Yueyao take the task seriously. Ruo Lan had witnessed such seriousness only once by chance when her father practiced calligraphy in his study. It was odd to her, comparing Yueyao with her father. Zhuang Ruo Lan’s father might not have been a dutiful parent, but his calligraphy was well-known throughout the Capital City.

Yueyao wrote a line of characters: Absolute knowledge is without worry, to what extent does it differ from folly? Good and evil, how much do they differ? What the masses fear, cannot be feared.

After writing, Yueyao looked embarrassed, “It’s not very good, cousin-in-law, please don’t laugh.”

Cai Yi, standing by Ruo Lan, couldn’t help but burst out, “Cousin Miss, your writing is almost as good as a plum blossom. If one didn’t know better, they’d think plum blossoms had fallen onto the paper. To still be modest after this, you are being too humble!” She might not be able to critique it, but she liked what she saw.

After examining the writing, Ruo Lan nodded repeatedly, “Cousin, being overly humble is prideful. I saw you write it myself, your writing is truly authentic, without a trace of falsehood.” Ruo Lan sighed, envious of her cousin’s prodigious talent, good at everything she did. She still hadn’t seen her cousin’s strongest skill, her painting, and wondered what it might be like. However, Ruo Lan was sensible; with the family in mourning, it was not the right time for Yueyao to paint.

Lady Xiao Ma couldn’t understand what was so special about the writing and asked, “What is this you’ve written? It’s such a tongue twister.” It wasn’t her fault that Lady Xiao Ma didn’t understand; when she was a young girl, she studied with other students just enough to understand the Female Precepts and account books, and then stopped studying. Old Grand Lady Ma scolded her for it, but Lady Xiao Ma stubbornly refused to learn any more of the esoteric and difficult materials.

Cai Yi wanted to laugh but dared not, so she simply bowed her head to hide the amusement in her eyes. It didn’t matter if she didn’t know what it meant, but it’s better not to ask in front of so many people. Asking privately would have been more appropriate.

Yueyao spoke softly, “These are the first two lines from the ‘Tao Te Ching,’ Chapter Twenty.”

Lady Xiao Ma’s face finally flushed red. She had been about to criticize Yueyao for always studying peculiar things but hadn’t realized the text was from scriptural texts.

If Yueyao knew that Lady Xiao Ma considered the Tao Te Ching to be scriptural texts, she would probably faint.

Ruo Lan seemed not to have heard Lady Xiao Ma’s words and expressed some regret, “Girl, with such beautiful writing, you should pen a couple of verses of poetry. The Tao Te Ching doesn’t seem quite fitting!” Although it was casually written, one could tell that Yueyao had studied the Tao Te Ching, and if she had studied even the Tao Te Ching, one wonders what she hasn’t learned.

Loo Ying, however, didn’t care about the Tao Te Ching. She truly found these characters beautiful, and if she too could write such beautiful characters, just the thought made her happy. Loo Ying stared intently at Yueyao and asked, “Cousin, how did you manage to master such writing?” She wanted to learn too; being able to write such a beautiful calligraphy style would certainly bring her honor when mentioned.

Yueyao smiled and said, “Learning to write doesn’t really have any tricks. Just practice with a model text, and with enough practice, the writing naturally gets better.”

Ruo Lan couldn’t help but laugh, “If writing were as easy as you say, why are there so few in the Capital City who have learned it? Yueyao, being too modest isn’t good either. Letting others hear how effortlessly you speak of it could lead to trouble.” Generally, the daughters of prominent families all wanted to learn, but very few truly mastered it. This not only tested one’s perseverance but also required insight.

Eager to learn well, Loo Ying eagerly said, “Sister, please tell me how to master it. No matter how hard it is, I am willing to learn.”

At that point, Hua Lei joined in saying, “Miss Cousin Luying, my young lady gets up early every morning and practices her calligraphy for one Shichen Chinese Time in the morning, at noon, and in the evening. At the beginning, her hands developed large blisters from writing so much, and we had to lance them every day. Later, the blisters disappeared, but her hands became calloused.” Yueyao’s hands had indeed become calloused, and although she used the best ointments every day, she couldn’t preserve her delicate hands. This worried both Hua Lei and Qiao Lan to no end, but Yueyao persevered and continued to toil in writing every day.

Of course, it wasn’t as exaggerated as Hua Lei had described. While it’s true that Yueyao’s hands had become calloused, it wouldn’t have happened in just one year.

Yueyao glanced at Hua Lei and scolded, “Mind your own business.”

Ruo Lan was somewhat surprised, but upon reflection, it made sense: even with great talent, one must practice diligently. Only talent combined with sweat could lead to success; perhaps if Yueyao continued like this, she might become a master in calligraphy someday.

Ruo Lan looked at Yueyao with her nonchalant demeanor and couldn’t help but ask with a smile, “What else does your lady do besides practicing writing?” Three Shichen Chinese Time a day spent on writing–what did she do with the rest of her time? Ruo Lan knew Yueyao well enough to be sure it wasn’t spent in idle leisure.

Hua Lei didn’t heed Yueyao’s warning and answered, “Besides practicing writing, our young lady does embroidery, reads books in her spare time, and walks around the courtyard when she is tired.” She really felt their young lady’s life was too monotonous, so monotonous that it was hard for her to bear. After saying this, Hua Lei added, “Our young lady now spends most of her time copying scriptures.”

Ruo Lan became interested and asked, “What books does she usually read?”

Yueyao replied, “I read The Classic of Tea, medical books, travelogues, and sometimes poetry. I read books to pass the time, so I don’t restrict myself to one category.”

Ruo Lan sincerely exclaimed, “Cousin, you are truly diligent.”

Such praise made Yueyao somewhat embarrassed.