Who else could it be?

"Forget it, let's not investigate." Jing Li said, "I was the one who hid the truth from him first. Next time we meet, I'll take the initiative to tell him the truth."

Qin Zhao nodded: "Okay."

At night, Jing Li coaxed Xiao Yuzi to sleep and went to the study to accompany Qin Zhao to read.

Before, when Qin Zhao didn't know that he was writing a storybook, he could only hide in the house and write a few paragraphs secretly. Now that his identity has been exposed, Jing Li no longer hides and spends every night in the study with Qin Zhao.

While Qin Zhao was reading, he sat beside him and wrote in a storybook.

Occasionally, when he felt tired of writing, he would wrap himself in clothes and snuggle into Qin Zhao's arms, taking a comfortable sleep. After Qin Zhao finished reading the book, he would carry him back to the house.

These days are very ordinary, but every day feels extremely fulfilling.

Jing Li's mind wandered after a while, tilting his head to look at the man beside him. The candlelight cast a particularly gentle shadow on his figure, as if coated with a layer of warm light.

Even after spending such a long time with Qin Zhao, I still feel that this face is too good to be true.

No wonder so many people miss him.

"Come back to your senses." Qin Zhao tapped Jing Li lightly on the head without raising his head.

You said you wanted to write storybooks to make money, but why do you always get distracted after writing a few sentences?

"I didn't look at you—" Jing Li subconsciously explained, but then realized that he had let the cat out of the bag. He quickly made up for it, "I was just thinking... I was thinking that the prefect's birthday is in half a month, and what gift we should give him."

Jing Li is the only one who knows these things.

Qin Zhao was usually busy teaching Gu Heng and preparing for the Autumn Examination, so he rarely paid attention to these trivial matters. Moreover, given his status, he didn't need to deliberately remember the birthday of a prefect.

However, they now live in the provincial capital, and the prefect has always admired Qin Zhao. He helped them a lot in the case of Boss Chang, so they should be grateful.

Qin Zhao said, "The prefect has lived a life of integrity. I'm afraid he won't accept a gift that's too expensive."

"I know, that's why I wanted to discuss this with you." Jing Li had been thinking about this for the past few days and suggested, "It's the spring tea picking season right now. We can write back to the village and ask the village chief to collect some tea and send it over. We could also send some local mountain products. These things aren't expensive, but they'd be a token of our appreciation."

Qin Zhao nodded: "Okay."

"Then I'll write the letter now." Jing Li took out a piece of letter paper and picked up the pen to write.

Qin Zhao sat next to him and watched him write.

Jing Li is now very skilled in using a brush. Because he imitated Qin Zhao when practicing calligraphy, his handwriting already has a hint of Qin Zhao's style.

Although it's still a long way off.

Jing Li started practicing calligraphy just to make his life easier. He had no intention of becoming a good calligrapher, so he did not force himself to do so.

Jing Li wrote the letter neatly and concisely, put it in an envelope, and said, "I will mail it tomorrow."

"Thank you for your hard work." Qin Zhao said.

"What's so hard about this?" Jing Li said unconcernedly, "This is our family's business. It's my duty to do this."

Qin Zhao stroked his hair and whispered, "Just hold on for a while longer. When our lives get better... you won't have to do these things anymore."

You don’t have to learn how to deal with people, nor do you have to force yourself to make a living.

Jing Li paused for a moment and laughed, "If I don't have to do all this, what should I do? You want to raise me into a little fish cub, who only needs to eat, drink and have fun every day?"

"Don't you want to?" Qin Zhao asked him.

"I don't care about that." Jing Li put the sealed letter aside and picked up the manuscript again. "As long as I can be with you, any life is fine."

He lowered his head as he spoke, his slightly curled eyelashes drooping, casting a small shadow on his cheek. Qin Zhao stared at his face, his brows furrowed slightly.

.

About seven or eight days after Jing Li sent the letter, the reply from Linxi Village finally arrived.