The situation is now one of no return; the arrow is on the bowstring and must be released.

Wan Anran displayed a fearless and heroic expression, as if facing death. She concentrated her mind, held her breath, focused her energy, dipped the wolf-hair brush in ink, and in the next second, she vigorously swung the brush and wrote a large character in a flowing and elegant style.

Judging by the actions alone, it deserves a perfect score of 10. Now look at the words...

For the first time, the usually composed Emperor Kangxi could not control his expression. He looked at the large characters in disbelief, then looked up at Wan Anran.

The emotion in Kangxi's eyes can be described in four words: heartbroken and indignant.

Emperor Kangxi never expected that there would be such an ignorant and clueless person as Wan Anran in his harem. Just looking at the words made Kangxi so angry that his liver, gallbladder and lungs felt like they were about to burst. He trembled and roared, "She is not even as good as three-year-old Wan Fu!"

Wan Anran: …………

She glanced furtively at Wan Fu's large characters and said rather indignantly, "It should be... better... than Wan Fu's, right?"

The veins on Kangxi's forehead began to throb like they were tap dancing.

He stared at Wan Changzai in disbelief, never expecting this man to be so shameless. Comparing a ten-year-old to a three-year-old? Where is your shamelessness?

Wan Anran quickly covered her mouth, her head drooping lower and lower.

She felt a dull ache in her conscience, and she had a thousand apologies to her predecessor. Although her predecessor was not good at writing, she could still recognize characters. As for her calligraphy, although it was not the graceful and beautiful small regular script, it was still quite standard, at least not like hers which was missing horizontal and vertical strokes.

But the former is the former, and Wan Anran is Wan Anran.

Firstly, Wan Anran had never practiced calligraphy in her previous life. Secondly, after transmigrating to this world, she spent a long time bedridden, and being able to read and recognize characters was already quite an achievement; getting up to practice calligraphy was absolutely out of the question. After finally recovering from her illness, she was immediately faced with a series of other matters (such as eating), so naturally she had no time to think about practicing calligraphy.

Even now, Wan Anran, her head bowed to her chest under the shocked gazes of Emperor Kangxi, Consort Xuan, and Noble Lady Nara, looks like a student from later generations who usually listens attentively in class but gets a zero on the exam, trembling under the sharp eyes of the three teachers.

Kangxi's face was gloomy.

Although he disliked the infighting among the concubines, Kangxi could not tolerate such lazy, greedy, and unambitious concubines in the harem! Flames erupted behind him as he darkened his face and gave the order: "Consort Wan."

Wan Anran secretly groaned in despair.

She could only step forward and bow deeply, saying, "This humble servant is here."

Emperor Kangxi said sternly, “From today onwards, you will copy ten large characters every day. I want to see the results by the time of my birthday celebration.”

After giving instructions to Consort Wan, he turned his gaze to Consort Xuan: "Consort Xuan, you will supervise this."

There are still more than three months until Emperor Kangxi's birthday celebration.

Consort Xuan felt a slight sense of relief and cautiously replied, "This concubine obeys the decree."

Before Wan Anran could even breathe a sigh of relief, Kangxi's sharp gaze fell directly on her: "If your handwriting is still like this on the Emperor's birthday... then you can forget about being a concubine."

Wan Anran's expression tightened.

This concerned her rank, her allowance, and her food; Wan Anran was instantly filled with fighting spirit. She solemnly replied, "Your Majesty, I obey."

Of course, Wan Fu did not escape disaster either.

Emperor Kangxi glanced at Wan Fu, who was hiding in a corner trying to make his presence known: "Wan Fu is only three years old. Writing too many characters a day is not good for his growth and development."

Does this mean we don't need to write anymore?

Wan Fu's eyes lit up. The listless little mushroom straightened up again, its round eyes filled with excitement and joy.

Wan Anran glanced at Wan Fu listlessly and sighed sadly.

This silly little guy.

They don't even realize that the Emperor's trap is already prepared, just waiting for some silly little chick to jump right in!

As for Consort Xuan and Noble Lady Nara...

The two understood the Emperor's meaning and had no intention of refusing. The future prospects of a prince who was favored by the Emperor and one who was not were very different.

Wan Fu gazed at Kangxi.

Kangxi gazed at Wan Fu, then revealed a wolf-like smile: "Writing is exempt, but memorizing is fine. My requirements are not high; as long as Wan Fu can memorize the Three Character Classic and the Thousand Character Classic, that will be enough. Your elder brother, the Crown Prince, has already begun studying the Four Books and Five Classics, so I think Wan Fu should have no problem memorizing these two, right?"

There's a problem! A huge problem!

Wan Fu really wanted to get to the point, and perhaps it was his animal instincts that reminded him, so Wan Fu reluctantly agreed.

Kangxi's tightly pursed lips relaxed.

He reached out and ruffled Wan Fu's hair before walking gracefully out of the study.

Consort Xuan and her entourage escorted her to the door.

Upon arriving at the main gate of Xianfu Palace, Wan Anran's expression suddenly froze—Xu Changzai, dressed in an extremely exquisite manner, appeared before her...

Good heavens!

It turns out that the one who was missing was her.

Xu Changzai stepped forward with a look of anticipation.

Compared to the three drunkards, she, with her rationality and clarity, was the most dignified and virtuous, and would surely please the Emperor...

Emperor Kangxi didn't even glance at her.

He left Xianfu Palace without looking back, accompanied by his palace servants.

The palace gates were completely silent.

Consort Xuan pretended not to see the frozen Xu Changzai, and together with Noble Lady Nara, dragged Wan Anran and Wan Fu aside to give them a lecture.

Lady Nara was incredibly talkative.

Consort Xuan's target was naturally Wan Anran. She reached out and picked up the large characters written by Wan Anran. After just one glance, she couldn't help but sigh and rub her forehead: "You... how could you..." write such characters?

It's already a stroke of luck that Consort Wan wasn't forced to leave the palace because of her stupidity, isn't it?

Consort Xuan's thoughts shifted. Now that the Emperor had set a clear objective, she dared not slacken her efforts and immediately began to supervise Wan Anran as she practiced calligraphy.

"Raise your hands!"

"The movements must be steady."

"Don't use too much ink... You used far too little this time."

Consort Xuan's nagging echoed in Wan Anran's mind until she fell asleep. She shakily crawled into bed, the thought of having to continue copying large characters the next day bringing tears to her eyes. A wisp of Wan Anran's soul drifted out, murmuring to herself, "If only there were a way to immediately write beautiful characters..."

Haitao, who was serving nearby, tucked the corner of the quilt for her mistress.

She gently advised, "My lady, go to sleep early. Don't dream about it."

Wan Anran was distressed about her calligraphy, while Emperor Kangxi, who was sharing a bed with the Empress in Kunning Palace, was also complaining about it: "I think Consort Wan is useless except for her expertise in eating! Her calligraphy is uglier than that of three-year-old Wan Fu, truly..."

Empress Niohuru chuckled to herself.

Emperor Kangxi sighed with worry and patted the Empress's hand: "And Wan Fu, Your Majesty, you also need to pay more attention to him. The Crown Prince has already started studying the Four Books and Five Classics, but Wan Fu still misspells words in the Three Character Classic. He seems so innocent and romantic, so we still need to teach him properly."

Although dissatisfied with Wan Fu's academic performance, Emperor Kangxi was still quite pleased with him. He had so many sons he couldn't count them on one hand, and he held considerable expectations for each of them.

If Wan Fu's studies were better than the Crown Prince's, would the Emperor still praise him like this? If she believed the Emperor's words and took Wan Fu under her wing to begin his education... would the Emperor speak like this? Empress Niohuru's mind was racing with thoughts, but her smile remained unchanged as she happily agreed.

---

the next day.

Early in the morning, Consort Xuan ordered Wan Fu and Consort Wan to go to the study, one to recite and the other to copy words. Noble Lady Nara was also not idle, as Consort Xuan entrusted her to supervise and examine the students.

Ten large characters per day.

Each sheet should have about fifty characters written on it. If there is an ink stain, it must be rewritten. If a mistake is made, it must also be rewritten.

Just hearing the requirements makes my vision go black.

Wan Anran stared blankly at the Xuan paper, already feeling her wrists starting to go numb.

I don't know how many times the first large-character print was reworked.

Anyway, it would be an hour later before Consort Nara announced that the candidate had passed. Wan Anran breathed a sigh of relief. Hai Tao quickly took a handkerchief and stepped forward to wipe the sweat from her mistress's brow, while Zi Su and Ju Bai waited behind with a food box.

In the palace, only two meals are served: breakfast and dinner.

After morning and evening greetings, if one's stomach is empty, one can have a breakfast. If it's a little later, there will be snacks, and in the evening, there will be wine and dishes prepared.

For example, the palace servants are bringing us breakfast now.

Today's breakfast is xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), which Wan Anran ordered yesterday. The fragrant aroma could be smelled even before the lids were opened, and besides, she was starving after copying a page of large characters.

Wan Anran looked longingly at the breakfast.

Noble Lady Nara closed the book and said slowly with a smile, "Let's have our meal first, and then we can continue."

It just so happens that she and Wan Fu are also a little hungry.

Their breakfast was much lighter, consisting of a bowl of black rice and bean porridge, and three small dishes of light and refreshing pickles. They only had a slight taste, focusing on health.

Just because Lady Nara likes it doesn't mean Wan Fu likes it.

He ate a couple of bites without much interest, when he heard Wan Changzai's low gasp and couldn't help but turn his gaze over.

The steamed buns, steaming in the bamboo steamer, release a burst of hot steam as soon as the lid is lifted. Scooping one up with a soup spoon, you can see that the outer skin is so thin it's almost transparent, and you can feel the juice inside when you gently shake it.

Wan Anran took a big bite.

Her mouth was filled with juicy meat and minced meat with water chestnut pieces; the aroma was so enticing that she wished she could swallow her tongue whole.

Wan Anran was pleasantly surprised: "This craftsmanship is really good."

Hai Tao replied with a smile, "This was made by Chef Zhao himself, as a way of thanking you for sharing the recipe!"

Chef Zhao's culinary skills were naturally different from others.

While Wan Anran was pleasantly surprised, she quickly took out the other two drawers and had Zisu bring them to Consort Nara and Wan Fu: "Sister Nara, Ninth Prince, you should try some too! It's really delicious!"

Noble Lady Nara has always been particular about maintaining her health.

The young palace maid was about to refuse Consort Wan's offer, but she didn't expect her mistress to be one step ahead. Consort Nara agreed in a good mood: "Alright, alright, let's try it."

If it were just a simple meal at home, it would be fine, but Wan Chang next to me is enjoying a delicious steamed bun, while the black rice and bean porridge in front of me tastes awful.

Not to mention Wan Fu.

He happily scooped one up and stuffed it all into his mouth in one gulp. Then, Wan Fu, mouth wide open, gasped for breath: "Hot! Hahahaha—"

Even so, they still couldn't bear to spit it out.

With a hearty appetite, Wan Anran ate two whole trays in one go—which sounds like a lot, and it actually is a lot, a total of twelve!

Lady Nara felt a little full after eating only two. She frowned slightly, looking at Wan Anran's slender and thin figure, and swallowed her words after a long while.

The most important thing right now is to get Wan Changzai back to health. As for her slightly large appetite and eating a bit too much... we can deal with that later.

After Wan Changzai finished eating and cleared away the bowls and chopsticks, and washed his hands and rinsed his mouth, Nara Guiren pointed to the Xuan paper on the table and said, "Let's continue."

Wan Anran: "...Should I rest first after eating?"

Lady Nara sighed wistfully, and pulled out a bronze mirror from somewhere to look at her beautiful face: "At this rate, I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep until the middle of the night."

She paused for a moment and then smiled gently at Wan Anran: "Wan Changzai should know, right? Staying up late will damage your appearance."

Wan Anran: …………

For some reason, she seemed to see countless black lotuses blooming behind Noble Lady Nara. Wan Anran shuddered. Without Noble Lady Nara saying another word, she silently lowered her head, grasped the wolf-hair brush, and began the next round of struggle with the Xuan paper.