The next morning, Minglan took the calligraphy practice book to the old lady, intending to finish the remaining "Thousand Character Classic" in a few days so that she would not have to pretend to be illiterate in the future. Just as she walked to the main hall with her short legs, she did not expect that Wang came to pick up Nanny Kong early in the morning. She looked like a disaster victim who came to collect relief food and was afraid that it would be gone if she came later.

She sat at the head, listening respectfully to what Old Lady Sheng said: "... Last night I put aside my pride and begged Madam Kong to let her work harder. When she teaches the eldest girl, she can also take the other little girls with her. Although they are still young, they can improve their cultivation by listening and watching..." Wang was naturally willing. She felt that it was a rare opportunity to hire such a high-standard tutor, and she must not waste it. So Minglan's calligraphy class had to be interrupted first, and she was sent to Hualan by Madam Cui after breakfast.

After walking around Dianxi Bridge and through half of the small garden, they came to Hualan's Weiruixuan. As soon as Minglan saw Hualan, her eyes lit up. Hualan was wearing a willow-colored short brocade jacket with silver and gold double phoenixes, a light green waisted long skirt with soft willow patterns, a cloud-like crescent bun on her head, and a gold belt inlaid with gold threads and gems. She looked like a white magnolia bud, so bright and beautiful that even Madam Kong couldn't help but look at her a few more times. Minglan thought to herself: That guy surnamed Yuan is so lucky.

Seeing her eldest daughter so graceful, Wang was extremely proud. She turned to look at the other two. Rulan was clearly in a bad mood, standing listlessly to the side. Molan, on the other hand, was full of energy. As soon as she saw Madam Kong, she politely asked about her well-being. This made Wang irritated. She scolded her, "Ruru, why don't you greet Madam Kong when you see her? You're so rude! Watch out for your hide!"

Upon hearing this, Rulan immediately pouted and lowered her head angrily.

After Wang left, Madam Kong began teaching, focusing her attention on Hualan. The other three were merely accompanying guests. Rulan, whose learning attitude wasn't strong from the start, was basically slacking off, and soon she was sitting off to the side playing crisscross with the other maids. Minglan didn't really want to learn either, but she lacked Rulan's confidence or her resentment. Forcing herself to study was commonplace for Minglan, a habit she'd long since become. Compared to the modern exam-oriented education system, Madam Kong's actions were nothing more than a drop in the bucket. Did Yao Yiyi draw hyperbolic curves over and over again because she loved trigonometry? Did she get up early every day to memorize bird language vocabulary because she loved the Anglo-Saxon accent? Did she choose the boring political science and law major because she loved memorizing? Don't be ridiculous, you're just trying to get by.

Now that she has changed her environment, the same principle applies. If Minglan wants to gain a foothold here, she has to start her studies from scratch.

"It's said that a girl's family's moral character is the most important thing, and her manners and upbringing are just empty formalities. However, most respectable families like to emphasize this empty formality. The impact can be big or small. If you do well, you may not be praised, but if you do something wrong, you will inevitably be ridiculed. Girls are all smart people, you should understand the importance of this."

Grandma Kong spoke earnestly to the girls, and she made it clear at the beginning that the necessity of learning was important, and then everything else would be easy. Grandma Kong's lectures were very good, she first pointed out the key points in a simple and easy-to-understand way, then demonstrated and corrected them, and gave practical examples from time to time. Even if Hualan Molan did not do well, she did not get angry, and let the girls slowly understand it on their own.

Molan followed Hualan closely, doing whatever Hualan did, holding herself to high standards and strict specifications. From time to time, she would ask, "Mammy, am I doing the right thing?", "Mammy, do you think this is okay?", almost taking over as the real student. Hualan bit her lip, trying hard to restrain herself from losing her temper and scolding others in front of Mammy Kong.

Minglan's learning attitude is not as good as others, but better than some. She practiced a few blessings and walking postures for the whole morning, but she felt that the more she learned, the more awkward it became. She has only been in this world for more than a year, but she has spent most of the day lying in bed pretending to be dead. Not to mention her elder sister Hualan, even compared with the other two, she knows nothing about the etiquette of this world. How can she keep up with the progress in a short time?

So during lunch, she asked Mother Cui to cut out some plain paper and bind it into a small booklet. She would first recall and write down the knowledge points learned in the morning. Then when she went to class in the afternoon, she asked Xiaotao to bring her small brush, small inkstone, small ink stick and the plain paper booklet in a bamboo hand-woven basket. When Mother Kong was teaching again, she did not rush forward to practice. Instead, she spread out the brush, ink, paper and inkstone on a small table made of pine, bamboo, plum, rosewood and pear wood, then lifted her sleeves and lay on the table to take her class notes.

Nanny Kong was instructing Hualan on several different ways to serve food, and she glanced at Minglan calmly.

Taking notes during training classes is an instinct for Minglan, a comrade who has been trained in exam-oriented education. If she doesn't have a pen in her hand when the teacher is lecturing, she will be a target of the teacher's attention. With a pen in hand, Minglan immediately gets into the state. More than ten years of quality education have not been in vain. She summarizes every clause very clearly.

The so-called rules and etiquette is a very general concept, including every move in daily life, such as greeting, walking, talking, smiling, dealing with people, and even holding a cup of tea and taking a sip of water. There are established practices. Originally, young ladies from wealthy families would naturally develop such behavior habits due to being influenced by them since childhood. Madam Kong came here just to remind the girls that the etiquette of top-level aristocrats is very different from that of middle-level eunuchs like the Sheng family. To put it bluntly, it was a crash course.

The master leads the way, but it is up to the individual to practice. After several Miss Lans practiced, Minglan was born with deficiencies and was making up for them later, Rulan had more strength than spirit, and she didn't fish much for two days and didn't do much, Molan was smart but she was still young, and her age and understanding were limited, so her movements were not clever and regular enough. Finally, of course, Hualan stood out, she learned quickly and remembered well.

After a few days, initial results were seen. Hualan was no longer overbearing, Molan was no longer shy, Rulan was no longer wild, and Minglan was no longer dazed. The girls seemed to suddenly become gentle and dignified, speaking generously and appropriately, and behaving in a graceful and graceful manner. Sheng Hong was very satisfied with this and praised them for several days in a row. Even Wang Shi began to truly respect Nanny Kong.

"After all, she is from the palace, so she is capable. She took care of these maids without beating, scolding or getting embarrassed." Wang clicked her tongue repeatedly.

"It's all thanks to mother. I heard that when Kong Mama was in the capital, ordinary noble families couldn't invite her. You can't put on airs in front of her, or she will laugh at us for being ignorant."

Sheng Hong was a cautious and calculating man, but after being nurtured by Old Madam Sheng, he developed a broad mind and a long-term vision. He knew that to maintain his position long-term, he needed to be discerning, both in terms of both self and antagonism. These past few days, he had frequently sought to inquire about the mysteries of the capital with Madam Kong. Madam Kong, out of respect for Old Madam Sheng, even briefly touched upon the complex and hidden relationships among the powerful and aristocratic families within the capital. Madam Kong had spent decades in the inner court, interacting with mostly the highest echelons of society, and possessed considerable insight. After several conversations, Sheng Hong had learned so much that he almost considered her his own elder, wishing she would stay with him. However, Madam Kong, nostalgic for her homeland, adamantly refused, and Sheng Hong had no choice but to relinquish the offer.

Nanny Kong's training class was very humane. After ten days of hard study, she asked everyone to take a day off. It happened to be a good day, so Hualan took the lead and took Rulan and Minglan to play in the garden. Nanny Kong, who was also on vacation, went to Shou'an Hall to chat with Old Lady Sheng.

"I'm afraid I have underestimated your Sixth Young Lady." Madam Kong sat on the kang, sitting across from Old Madam Sheng on the kang table.

"What do you mean?" the old lady was very interested.

Madam Kong brought the teacup to her eyes, examined it carefully, and said leisurely, "I originally thought this child was kind and honest, but dull. I never thought I was wrong. He turns out to be a wise man who appears foolish."

"You are talking nonsense again. I taught you the rules for a few days, but you turned out to be a wise man who appears foolish." Old Lady Sheng smiled and shook her head.

Madam Kong lifted the lid of the teacup and gently stirred the tea leaves in the bowl. "Don't disbelieve me... After these few days of teaching, your eldest daughter is fine. She's smart and quick to learn, but she just lacks patience. Not to mention the fifth daughter; it's understandable that children enjoy playing. The fourth daughter may seem weak, but she's actually very strong-willed and insists on learning. You know, those tedious rules aren't meant for children to learn. They haven't grown up yet, so many movements are impossible to perform. The fourth daughter insisted on showing off, and yesterday alone she broke four tea bowls and two saucers, and even dropped her chopsticks while setting the table."

Mrs. Sheng listened, saying nothing but shaking her head. Madam Kong glanced at her, her lips curled up, and she added jokingly, "Only your precious Sixth Miss, who seems so quiet, figured this whole thing out in just this morning. She came with pen, ink, paper, and inkstone the previous afternoon, and didn't bother to argue with me. She just wrote down the most important things I said, did, and corrected Hualan and Molan. I took a peek and saw that it was quite good."

Old Madam Sheng still didn't believe it. She smiled and shook her head, "Ming Ya'er only knows a few words. How could she remember it? You're trying to trick me again."

"If you don't believe it, just ask someone to get her booklet and take a look at it." said Madam Kong.

Old Lady Sheng also felt childish and immediately asked Mama Fang to fetch Minglan's portable book box. Mama Fang asked Mama Cui for the book basket and handed it over. The old lady immediately opened the square bamboo basket. Sure enough, there were pens, inkstones and another small thick white paper book neatly placed inside. The old lady was surprised when she opened it.

The booklet clearly records the contents of the classes in those days, and summarizes the contents into different categories, such as "diet", "rest", "daily life", etc., with items under each category, and sub-items under each item, and it is neatly written with "one, two, three, four", and each item and sentence is clear and understandable; probably because the teacher can't read much, half of the booklet is full of typos, either missing strokes or wrong borders, and some places also have a few funny little pictures drawn on them. For example, when serving food to elders, how should the sleeves be rolled up and how many inches should they be rolled up? Minglan probably didn't understand it clearly, so she simply drew a short fat arm next to that line of words, with the sleeves slightly rolled up, and then annotated detailed instructions with arrows.

Old Madam Sheng flipped through a few pages, feeling both amused and infuriated. Perhaps the further she turned, the more content there was. Minglan had even carefully marked important places with a thin red line. Madam Fang leaned over to take a look and said with a laugh, "I was wondering why Danju asked me for cinnabar the other day. Turns out it was for the Sixth Young Lady. That's a good idea. The dense black writing everywhere was dizzying, but these few red markings make it stand out clearly. A good idea from our Sixth Young Lady."

The old lady saw a few strange symbols inside and pointed at them and asked Madam Kong, "What are these? They don't look like words."

Madam Kong put down her teacup and said with a smile, "I asked the Sixth Miss too. She said she couldn't write some characters, so she memorized the symbols as a precaution, then looked up the Chinese Characters and Correct Characters to fill in the blanks later. ... Don't assume she just scribbled. I looked carefully and saw that each of these crooked symbols had its own pattern, perfectly executed."

The old lady was a little dumbfounded. She looked at Madam Kong, only to see her smiling and shaking her head, sighing, "When I was learning from the old palace lady, I also took notes, but none as good as this one. It's so neat, detailed and clear. It shows that she has a clear mind. I'm sure she will be able to act decisively in the future. She also has a gentle and kind personality. Alas... it's a pity that she didn't reincarnate into Madam's womb..."

The old lady remained silent for a long while before she said, "The quality of life does not lie in wealth. If she can understand this, she will have a happy and comfortable life in the future."

Madam Kong nodded slowly: "I think this girl is not confused, she will definitely understand your painstaking efforts."

…

As the training continued, the sisterly tensions grew inversely proportional to their academic progress. As time went on, Molan fell further and further behind Hualan's pace. This was perfectly natural, as the learning curves of elementary and middle school students were inherently different. But Molan, seemingly delicate, was actually quite determined. She desperately clung to Hualan's side, pestering Madam Kong with questions. Sometimes, even when Hualan was clearly ready to learn a new lesson, Madam Kong had to slow down her progress for Molan's sake.

Hualan endured it again and again, and went back to complain to Wang countless times. Wang was helpless, and after telling Sheng Hong, she only got some nonsense like "Mo'er is also studious, sisters should be close to each other"; how does the saying go, either explode in silence or become perverted in silence. There was no stable hospital in ancient times, so Sister Hualan chose to explode.

That afternoon, the weather was a bit dry and chilly. Just as Madam Kong finished a lecture, her throat felt dry and her breath was parched. So she asked a few other girls to practice offering comfort to their elders while she went back to the inner room to moisten their lungs with a few spoonfuls of Poria cocos paste. Hualan watched Molan panting as she sat down on a brocade stool to rest. She felt a wave of suffocation in her heart and couldn't help but sneer, "Fourth sister, you're really working hard. There aren't many places where these complicated rules and etiquette are needed. Your dedication today seems like it will definitely be useful in the future."

Molan blushed and said softly, "Mammy said that even though these are just empty formalities, it's better to learn not to use them than to avoid being laughed at. My sister is stupid, and I'm afraid of bringing shame to the family in the future, so I'll just work harder."

Hualan was a grown-up girl after all, and after she had calmed down a bit, she didn't want to argue with the children. She sat alone by the window, turning her head to look at the scenery. But Rulan was different. She had been listening to Wang's nagging for days, and she was furious. She jumped out and took over the quarrel, saying coldly, "Since Fourth Sister knows that she is stupid, she should be more sensible and stop pestering Madam Kong all day long. She is only dragging down Big Sister."

Molan looked terrified and argued, "How am I pestering Madam Kong? My father simply told me to study hard with you. He'll test me on every subject later, and I dare not disobey. I'll ask for clarification on anything I don't understand."

Rulan snorted and looked at Molan with contempt, "Don't use my father to pressure me. Madam Kong was invited by the old lady specifically for Big Sister. Big Sister is her real student. Teaching us is just a side job. You always try to get ahead of Big Sister and prevent her from asking Madam Kong for advice. Do you think you're right?! Humph, I really don't know where you learned this despicable trick. When you see someone doing well, you like to steal their things!"

Molan's face suddenly turned red, tears gathered in her eyes, and she said in a trembling voice: "What are you talking about, fifth sister? I don't understand at all. What despicable means? What about stealing other people's things? We are all born of the same father, but you just bully me because I am a concubine's child! Well, well, I am redundant. Why should I stay in this world and get in the way? It would be better to die!" As she said that, she fell over the desk and burst into tears.

Rulan was anxious. She rushed to Molan and shouted, "You're crying again! You're crying again! Every time something happens, you cry like a fool. If Madam Kong sees you, you'll say I bullied you so Father can punish me! You, you, you..." She was furious and anxious, stamping her feet but unable to speak. Hualan saw that she couldn't ignore it anymore, so she came over and said indifferently, "Fourth sister, please stop crying. We won't dare to mess with you anymore. Whenever something happens, you cry like your mother has died. We're really scared of you."

Molan cried even harder, her sobs growing more intense, and she gradually began to feel breathless, her body twitching. Rulan stamped her feet, Hualan sneered, and Minglan was sorting out her notes, watching the drama unfolding nearby. She felt a headache, but if she stayed out of it now, she would suffer in the future. She could only scratch her head, jumped off the round stool, and came to Molan's side, saying softly, "Fourth sister, don't cry. It won't be good if Madam Kong sees you. She'll think our daughter of the Sheng family has no manners."

Molan ignored her and continued to cry, crying at the top of her lungs, as if she was determined to make things worse. Minglan majored in law, not psychology, and sighed sadly in her heart, but she had to continue. So she went over and pulled Molan's sleeve, saying, "Fourth sister, let me ask you, how long can Madam Kong stay in our house?"

Although Molan was crying loudly, her hearing was not impaired. When she heard Minglan's inexplicable question, she calmed down a little and looked at her. Minglan shook her head and continued, "I heard the old lady say that when spring comes and the weather gets warmer and the ice and snow melt, it will be easier to travel. Then Madam Kong will leave. There won't be many days left. Fourth sister, let me ask you, in the remaining days, should Madam Kong teach more or less?"

Molan choked up, staring at Minglan with red eyes, her voice choked with breath. Minglan saw her finally look up and hurriedly advised, "I know Fourth Sister wants Madam Kong to give her some more advice, but if you follow your instructions, firstly, Big Sister will be burdened, and secondly, Madam Kong won't be able to teach her much. Why don't you just bear with it and just write down what Madam Kong teaches you. Then, when you have time, you can slowly ponder it yourself. That way, you won't hurt the sisters' feelings, and you'll learn more. Isn't that better?"

After saying this, Minglan felt very proud. With her eloquence, it was such a waste to be a court clerk. She should be a lawyer.

Hearing Minglan's words, Molan gradually stopped crying. Seeing that the situation was under control, Rulan suddenly said, "Why bother with so much trouble? My eldest sister is marrying into the Earl's Mansion. Don't we all have this blessing? I say, Fourth Sister, it's better not to be so wishful about some things!"

Adding fuel to the fire!

Molan struggled to stand up, pointing at Rulan and Minglan, shaking with anger, and said hatefully: "Okay, you look at me as a bastard, and you insult me with words left and right, and don't treat me as a human being! Why should I live in this world in vain!" Then she fell on the table and burst into tears.

Minglan sighed to the sky, she was also a concubine's daughter, why did she have to be counted in?

At this moment, the sound of the curtain was heard behind her. Nanny Kong came back. She asked her maid to help her back. When she saw the scene in the room, her face was frosty.