Chapter 41 Why are the objects on my sister's desk so similar to my brother's?

She is not a stupid person, she is just ignorant about the meaning of love.

She clearly read something in Du Heng's eyes, but she felt that her thoughts were a bit ridiculous.

The scene of their first meeting emerged in her mind. He called her by her full name, and although he added the word "cousin" at the end, it seemed very unfamiliar and polite.

Afterwards, because of Cheng's warnings, she consciously kept her distance from him, even considering him a plague. Whenever she met him, she turned around and walked away. Even if she couldn't escape, she would just bow and avoid him.

That time of picking plum blossoms in the snow was probably her most rude act. She still remembered that he seemed to want to say something to her, but she fled in panic.

It seemed that he understood from then on, and when he saw her again, he turned around and left, leaving her stunned.

After much thought, she and he really didn't have much contact anymore.

After sorting out her thoughts, Su Ying was no longer confused. She must have been overthinking it. What happened just now must have been a coincidence. She believed that if it wasn't him, someone else would not stand idly by if they encountered it.

As for the maid sweeping the snow in the side courtyard that morning, the reason was clear. Borrowing books from the library was a way of getting to know Qingquan, much like agreeing to teach Xueyuan how to read. Over time, he'd gotten to know more people. Though they were servants, they were quite prominent, even more influential than he was in the mansion. Qingquan must have casually asked the maid to sweep the snow while accompanying Du Heng through the garden.

After this, she felt much clearer, no longer feeling flustered. She closed her eyes and leaned against her aunt's shoulder. The carriage creaked along at a steady pace. She was indeed a little exhausted today. Unconsciously, she touched the Ganan incense beads on her wrist one by one, and fell asleep quietly.

As soon as Laba Festival was over, the female teacher came to the house to teach as promised.

The teacher's surname was Bai. She came from a family of scholars. Her husband died young, and she remained chaste, maintaining her status by tutoring the wives of officials. Initially, she had few students, but it wasn't until one of them married a princess from a distant vassal state that her reputation spread far and wide. Everyone said that any student taught by Mr. Bai was impeccably well-mannered, well-mannered, and well-educated, and upon marriage, their in-laws would look upon them with respect.

Such a teacher cannot be hired just by paying real money. The reason why Mr. Bai was invited to teach Wanyi was, firstly, because of Lord Du's position as the Minister of Rites, and secondly, because of Du Heng's status as the top scholar. Fortunately, Wanyi's teaching has been rewarded now, and Mr. Bai is also proud of her selection of scriptures.

The first day of class went quite smoothly. When Mr. Bai learned that Su Ying was also on the list of candidates, he talked about the chapter on diligence in the "Inner Training". He also specially included the last sentence of the chapter: "Ah! It is easy not to be lazy when you are poor and humble, but it is difficult not to be lazy when you are rich and noble. You should strive for the difficult things and not neglect the easy things." as homework, and asked them to write down their thoughts and feelings for their appreciation next time.

After the class, Wanyi said with a gloomy face, "I thought Mr. Bai would give me less homework like my grandmother did after I was selected for the scripture. But I didn't expect that, not only did he not receive any praise, but the workload has become even heavier than before!"

In the past, Mr. Bai only explained the article in class and asked her to copy it after class. Now she has added her own thoughts, and she doesn't know where to start.

In the past, she only had one lesson every seven days, so she could find time to slowly copy. But now, classes were held every other day, and tomorrow was the deadline. She looked distraught, not knowing what to do. "This morning, I saw the Nei Xun that my sister had finished reviewing for me. I was curious and wanted to go with her to the library to take a look. But now that I have this homework, I don't have the heart to play at all."

Su Ying comforted him, "You're not the only one doing this homework. I'm here with you too. Why don't we meet in the library at noon and finish the homework together? It will save you from having to go back to your room and think hard about it."

When Wanyi heard this, she nodded quickly, and her worries immediately disappeared.

After lunch, Wanyi arrived as promised, but as soon as Ke Fang stepped into the library, she exclaimed, "Huh?"

Su Ying was confused and looked at her.

"Why are the items on my sister's desk so similar to my brother's?"

Su Ying was startled and said, "These were all bought by my aunt. Maybe the steward bought them all, so they look familiar?"

Wanyi shook her head, reached out and took the ink screen from the table and said, "Sister, do you remember that day when I learned that the scripture was selected, my brother promised me an ink screen as a gift?"

Before that day, her impression of Du Heng had always been that he was a young scholar. He was not only the hope of the Du family, but also someone she had to stay away from.

However, after that day, her understanding of him couldn't help but have a warmer feeling. He was also a brother who doted on his sister. Compared to the hostility of her two half-twin brothers and sisters towards her, she actually envied Wanyi for having such a sibling who could give her such gentle encouragement.

So, Su Ying nodded and said, "I remember that cousin Du Heng asked you to go to his study to get it yourself."

"Sister, look at this inkstone screen." Wanyi held it up and explained to Su Ying, "Ordinary inkstone screens are made of wood or jade, but this one is made of mica. When my father was alive, he happened to have a pair. One is the Red Plum Blossoms in the Snow, which I took from my brother's study, and the other is the Snow Bamboo in the Wind."

"Because mica is fragile and shouldn't be used frequently, my brother put this one in the storeroom and only left one with him." Wanyi was a little puzzled and asked, "This inkstone screen is registered in my brother's name. Are you sure it was bought by Second Aunt?"

After Wanyi said this, Su Ying hesitated. The inkstone screen was indeed an elegant object. Her maternal grandfather had a jade one. She thought that because her maternal grandfather had one, her aunt had specially bought one for her. She had never thought that it was made of mica. She had always thought it was just ordinary ceramic.

Wanyi wasn't the type to push people too hard. Seeing that Su Ying really didn't know, she consoled her, saying, "Perhaps the warehouse staff had an errand, and when they saw Second Aunt wanted an inkstone screen, they took it without even checking."

Seeing that Su Ying was still lost in thought, Wanyi regretted her hasty words. She pulled Su Ying aside and said, "Sister, please teach me how to write my reflections. If I only have one sentence to write, I wonder if Mr. Bai will be angry if he reads it."

When Su Ying saw that the library had been renovated, she thought her aunt had spent a lot of money. But now that she thought about it carefully, she realized that there was something fishy going on.

She had thought that her aunt had gone to the storehouse to buy these things after reading the list she had made, but the list only included two booklets, candlesticks, and some items for book repairs.

If my aunt had really been following the list, why would she have added items that weren't on it? Not just the inkstone screen, but also the glass lamp and the top-quality four treasures of the study. Now that I think about it, even if my aunt was very interested in the library, she wouldn't have bought these exquisite items that weren't even available in the side courtyard.

While she was thinking, the door of the library was suddenly pushed open. Su Ying and Wan Yi were both startled and looked out the door at the same time.