Chapter 32: Sister Xueyuan Wants to Learn to Read

Maybe my aunt accidentally lost the book borrowing details when she asked someone to replace the equipment?

Thinking it was no big deal, Su Ying picked up one of the booklets with a white silk cover, picked up a pen and wrote the three words "Borrowing and Returning Record" at the beginning of the volume. Then she turned a page and copied the previous details again from memory.

It gets dark early in winter, and now with the lamp, she can stay in the study for a few more hours.

As I was holding the catalog and continuing to count the books, I suddenly heard the door being pushed open.

"Hello, cousin. Xue Yuan greets you."

Su Ying looked in the direction of the voice and saw Xue Yuan beside Cheng. She was a little puzzled. Could it be that Cheng wanted to see her for something? Just like when the old lady asked Zhao Xia to come before?

"Hello, Sister Xueyuan."

She was as kind as ever. She put down the book in her hand and greeted Xue Yuan.

"Miss, you are so polite."

Su Ying noticed that although Xue Yuan and Zhao Xia were both personal servants of the Du family, their behavior was vastly different. She remembered that day, Zhao Xia, while silent in response to her salute, had stopped her from bowing. Meanwhile, Xue Yuan, while paying respect, remained motionless.

Not knowing why Xue Yuan came, Su Ying took the initiative to ask, "Sister Xue Yuan, do you have something to talk to me about?"

Xue Yuan then bowed to her and, without waiting for Su Ying's response, she stood up. As she looked around the library, she exclaimed with a smile, "I didn't know there were so many books here!"

"Don't laugh at me, cousin. I'm a common man and can't read a few words. I was passing by today and saw the door was ajar. I was curious and came in to take a look."

Su Ying understood and nodded with a smile, "I see. Sister Xue Yuan, do you want to learn to read?"

Xue Yuan nodded and said, "To be honest, Miss, I do have this intention. I thought that in the future, I could also help the master share his worries."

It was already dark, the light from the lamp insufficient to illuminate the entire room. Su Ying noticed a flicker in Xue Yuan's eyes as she spoke, a hint of shyness. She dismissed it as the lack of light, a misreading. Little did she know that Xue Yuan's inner thoughts had nothing to do with their conversation. Her supposed sharing of worries was merely a wishful thinking about the day when she could serve her young master and add to his splendid life.

Su Ying nodded: "Sister, please wait a moment. I will find a simple and easy-to-understand book."

While Su Ying was going to the bookshelf, Xue Yuan looked around more carefully.

Unexpectedly, having just given Madam Li instructions the day before, she heard something different today. As the mistress's maid, she used the excuse of inquiring on her behalf to go to the storehouse and check the details of the supplies for the West Courtyard study. Sure enough, she saw a clue: only a few days had passed, and the young master's study had received a new batch of the Four Treasures of the Study, as well as other items.

Although she had never served in the study, she was always aware of the expenses in the madam's room. After taking a look at the details and the time, she knew something was wrong.

After she waited for her wife to get up from her lunch break, she had been somewhat absent-minded. Until she hurried over to check on her daughter under the pretext of checking on the dinner, she never expected that Su Ying was still in the library.

So she found an excuse to learn calligraphy. After looking around, Xue Yuan's heart sank. All the items listed on the warehouse receipt list were actually in the library.

She didn't understand what the Four Treasures of the Study were, but she knew the glass lamp on the desk at a glance.

Although glass lamps were not luxurious, not every household could afford them. To help the young master study at night without straining his eyes, the mistress had the storekeeper purchase the lamps from Yuhuifang, the finest glass shop in the capital. All glassware from Yuhuifang bear a crescent-shaped mark.

In order to find out what was going on, Xue Yuan unconsciously walked closer to the desk and lifted up the lamp. Sure enough, there was a crescent moon engraved in the center of the bottom, and three words engraved below, but Xue Yuan could not quite recognize them.

The glass lamp in the wife's room didn't have this mark, and the quality of the wife's lamp was not as transparent and warm as this one. She could conclude that Qingquan had indeed sent all the items taken from the warehouse to the library.

"I was worried there wasn't a copy of the Thousand Character Classic here. Luckily, I checked the catalog and found that my aunt and uncle do have a rich collection of books."

Su Ying came over with a book in her hand. Xue Yuan quickly put down the lamp, collected her thoughts, took it with a smile, and said tentatively, "Miss, this glass lamp is so transparent."

Su Ying didn't notice much. Her maternal grandfather also used glass lamps, and her family could afford them because of her father, Su Jianrong, was a businessman. She didn't notice the difference and just said casually, "I have to take care of the library, so I asked my aunt to help me replace some of the equipment. These are new additions, and perhaps because they are new, they look transparent."

Xue Yuan's heart tightened. Did her cousin say this to her on purpose, or did she really not know?

She suppressed her thoughts and thought it would be better to wait and see, so she didn't say anything more about the lantern, but looked at the book in Su Ying's hand.

Su Ying opened the book and handed it to Xue Yuan, explaining in a gentle voice, "This is the Thousand Character Classic. Sister Xue Yuan, if you want to learn to read, it's a good start."

"This book is also called 'A Thousand Characters in the Same Rhyme as Wang Xizhi's'. It has four characters per sentence and is very catchy. If you'd like, you can come to the library every few days and I'll teach you sentence by sentence. As long as you persevere, after you finish studying this book, you'll be able to learn the characters you use in daily life. If you want to learn some poetry and prose in the future, it won't be difficult either."

Xue Yuan thought for a moment, then took the Thousand Character Classic. With a different look in her eyes, she asked Su Ying, "Cousin, do you really want me to come?"

Su Ying nodded, thinking that Xue Yuan was flattered and had no idea that she had other intentions.

"Taking care of the library won't be completed overnight. I'll be here every day after noon. If you're free, just come. I can teach you how to read regularly, so don't worry."

This not only gave Xue Yuan an excuse to come to the library frequently, but also allowed her to wait and see, hoping to find an opportunity to exploit. So Xue Yuan readily agreed, bowed to Su Ying, and then picked up the book and prepared to leave.

Unexpectedly, Su Ying stopped her and said, "Sister Xueyuan, please stay."

Xue Yuan was confused and turned to look at Su Ying.

Su Ying took out a booklet, opened a page, and started writing.

After a moment, Su Ying handed the pen to Xue Yuan and asked, "Sister Xue Yuan, can you write your own name?"

Xue Yuan nodded, but didn't understand Su Ying's intention.

"Because the library has so many books, if we take them away at random, it will be inconvenient to take care of them later. From now on, anyone who borrows a book must write down the title and date of the borrowing on this 'Loan and Return Record' so that we can keep track of it."

Su Ying picked up the Borrowing and Returning Record and showed it to Xue Yuan. "This is today's copy. This is the title. If you can sign it, that would be great. If not, I can do it for you."

Only then did Xue Yuan realize that the book she had secretly hidden that day contained a piece of paper with the young master's name on it, and it was used for this purpose. She couldn't help but sigh inwardly, fortunately she didn't impulsively complain to the mistress, otherwise she might have been implicated as well.

No, she must make detailed plans, set up a perfect scheme, and then push this cousin down!