Bai Qingzhou began to feel anxious.

Shen Mianmian was both amused and exasperated. "I appreciate your kindness, but I'll write it myself. I've always wanted to learn to write. I've always admired people with beautiful handwriting, but I've never had the chance to learn."

What she meant was that she didn't have the opportunity to learn calligraphy before transmigrating into the book, but Bai Qingzhou interpreted it as the "slender horse" training institution deliberately not teaching her to write in order to tailor their teaching to her individual needs.

Looking at the cheerful girl, Bai Qingzhou said sincerely, "You are so strong."

"???" Chen Mianmian asked, puzzled. "Why are we talking about being strong again?"

Although she is indeed quite strong.

Bai Qingzhou smiled wryly, "Even though I'm not living the life I wanted, I'm still so optimistic. Even though it's punishment to write scriptures, I can treat it as a form of learning."

Chen Mianmian gave an awkward laugh, "Ah, well... okay."

Even with her silver tongue, she didn't know how to smooth things over.

That's it. One lie requires hundreds of cover-ups. Tell fewer lies, and you'll have to cover them up less often and lose fewer brain cells.

Bai Qingzhou asked earnestly, "Whose calligraphy do you like? I have quite a few calligraphic works by famous calligraphers. If the famous calligrapher you admire is in the capital, I can try to invite him here."

Those who are good at calligraphy are usually scholars.

Many scholars aspire to climb the social ladder and become wealthy, so they would be happy to accept an invitation from the Marquis of Anning.

Looking into the boy's earnest eyes, Chen Mianmian blinked and said, "I like your handwriting."

Bai Qingzhou was taken aback, "Mine?"

"Yes, I don't like that kind of writing—to put it nicely, it's like dragons and phoenixes scribbling; to put it bluntly, it's like scribbles on a big sheet of paper, with all sorts of different sizes and uneven handwriting... Of course, I'm not saying their writing is bad, it's just that I can't appreciate it."

As he spoke, he pointed, "On the contrary, I prefer this kind of neat and upright small regular script."

Bai Qingzhou pursed his lips—he had dabbled in all fonts, but his forte was regular script.

"I'll teach you."

...

Peony Courtyard.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Hanrong secretly came and described what had just happened.

"The young master said he had a secret to tell Consort Shen, and then he chased me out. I couldn't hear what happened after that."

Inside the room, Jiang Yinjin, dressed in a light purple silk satin dress, sat leisurely on a soft couch. Unlike her dignified and meticulous image during the day, she was as languid as a kitten at this moment.

Beneath its soft exterior lies the danger unique to hunters.

Jiang Yinjin smiled faintly, "I see. You've worked hard. It's getting late, you should go back and rest."

As soon as Jiang Yinjin finished speaking, Chuxue handed over five taels of silver and stuffed it into Hanrong's hand.

Chu Xue had prepared the silver early on and warmed it in her hand, but Han Rong found it too hot to handle.

Holding the silver, she knelt and kowtowed to the young mistress before taking her leave.

Walking on the road,

Hanrong's hands trembled—this silver was burning her hands, but she had to take it. Her family had already spent all their savings and were heavily in debt to treat her younger brother's illness, and they desperately needed the money.

But she felt guilty because the money came from selling her employer.

Before the prince's wedding, Aunt Shen, though eccentric and unconventional, refused to make her kneel and insisted on dining at the same table with her, making her feel extremely apprehensive.

After the prince's wedding, Aunt Shen said she didn't want to pretend anymore and stopped telling her that everyone was equal, but she never treated her like a servant.

After my aunt got up early, I didn't need her to help me with my hair and dressing. I dressed and washed myself. At most, she would ask me to help her comb her hair, and she would specifically remind me to do it simply and whatever was convenient for me.

My aunt cleaned the room herself, saying that she didn't get enough exercise every day and needed to get some movement.

Aunt never made any excessive demands. She would usually sit quietly at her dressing table or play cards, and as soon as it got dark, she would urge her to go downstairs and rest.

Aside from not offering any direct help, Aunt Shen treated her extremely well at other times.

But she betrayed her aunt for money.

Hanrong walked along, tears streaming down her face, her heart growing increasingly heavy.

In another room.

After Han Rong left, Jiang Yin Jin remained nestled on the soft couch, neither getting up nor moving an inch, quietly lost in thought.

First Snow stayed by her side, while First Rain tiptoed into the room.

Jiang Yinjin snapped out of her thoughts, looked up, and asked, "What happened outside?"

Just now, Chu Yu was called out by people outside.

Chu Yu looked slightly panicked, but forced herself to remain calm. "Reporting to the young mistress, I just received news that the head of the household has investigated the young master's whereabouts over the past few days. Some people have even secretly questioned him in our Peony Courtyard. Because of the head of the household's request, the subordinates dare not report it. I gave Cui'er a bracelet yesterday, and she struggled for a long time before telling me about this."

Chu Xue was taken aback. "Oh no! Could it be that Madam has guessed that the young master's request for a concubine's position is related to our Peony Courtyard?"

Jiang Yinjin's eyes also turned cold, and her fingers clenched tightly. But soon, her brows slowly relaxed, and she said calmly, "I was careless. I thought that since the young master was like this, the madam had already lost all interest. It seems that the madam is not to be underestimated, even though she appears relaxed on the surface."

Chu Xue asked worriedly, "Then what should we do? The young mistress wants to gain power in the Marquis's mansion. If this continues, I'm afraid the madam won't relinquish power!"

Jiang Yinjin pondered for a moment, "Don't be afraid, I have a way."

Chu Yu looked worried. "Miss, do you think we should try to find out the secret the young master mentioned?"

Jiang Yinjin scoffed, "No need to ask, I know what the secret is."

"Huh?" The two were surprised.

Jiang Yinjin didn't hide anything from the two of them, "Before Hanrong left, the young master mentioned that the Anning Marquis's mansion was gradually declining. I guess the secret he wanted to tell me was that the Marquis was injured fifteen years ago, and that his legs were injured. Later, his legs were healed, but he was unable to have children."

The two were stunned. "Young Madam, how did you know?"

“I’ve heard someone mention it by chance before,” Jiang Yinjin knew from her reborn memories. “This is a matter of their Marquis’s mansion, so you two shouldn’t say anything more.”

"Yes! Young Madam, rest assured, this servant will never reveal it!" The two swore an oath.

Jiang Yinjin stood up. "Alright, that's all for you. Go and rest. I'm tired too."

"Yes, young mistress."

The two men helped the young mistress to rest before respectfully leaving the room and gently closing the door.

After instructing the maids on night duty, the two returned to the side room and breathed a sigh of relief.

Chu Xue said, "I was really scared just now! I was afraid that the young mistress would fail at the last minute!"

Chu Yu teased, "You're worrying too much. Do you think the young mistress is as useless as you and me? The young mistress is amazing. Not to mention anything else, even with such a big matter, the young mistress can sleep peacefully. With that calm mindset, ten of us can't compare."

"you're right."

After that, the two chatted for a few more minutes, quickly washed up, and went to sleep.

How could they know that Jiang Yinjin wasn't asleep? She just wanted to get rid of them so she could calm down and think of a solution.

...

The night grew deeper.

The bright moon hangs high in the sky, its light silvery white; the Moonlit Courtyard on the ground is also brightly lit.

"How is it? How is my handwriting?" Chen Mianmian picked up her pen and excitedly examined the regular script character she had written, which she considered perfect.

The boy was also happy for her and gave her detailed comments, saying, "Her strokes are neat and tidy, and her style is elegant and graceful. She writes very well."

Shen Mianmian was already in a good mood, and being praised so earnestly made her even happier. "As expected of a cultured person, even her flattery sounds so good."

A blush crept across Bai Qingzhou's fair cheeks. "What rainbow... Don't use such foul language."

Although he didn't know what "rainbow fart" meant, he could guess that it was definitely not a nice thing.