"There is a beautiful leaf in your hair."
As she heard those words, Qingchen was looking into her teacher's eyes. Those dark eyes, seemingly smiling yet not quite, held a hint of indifference, yet also a touch of tenderness; she felt as if she were about to fall into them.
"That's not right!" Qingchen quickly turned his head away. In front of his teacher, he was a man, so his words were perfectly normal.
Qingchen took the leaf, cleared his throat, and said casually, "Oh, thank you, teacher."
Song Yue observed her expression and said lightly, "Oh, no need to be so polite."
After saying that, he looked out the window.
Qingchen tucked the leaf into the book.
She used to like using leaves as bookmarks, to preserve both the leaves themselves and the memories associated with them. This small ginkgo leaf in front of her represents an unforgettable journey she took during the Ming Dynasty, a journey she shared with her teacher.
In the outskirts of Beijing, where autumn transitions into winter, ginkgo leaves flutter down, the sunlight is warm and gentle, and the horse-drawn carriage continues its unhurried journey. Silence returns to the carriage once more.
Song Yue occasionally glanced out the window, but most of the time he stared straight ahead, looking calm and silent.
Qingchen sat properly, her body swaying slightly with the carriage, the cool breeze gently ruffling the downy hair at her temples.
Every now and then, she felt she needed to say something, anything at all. Although the quiet atmosphere was very comfortable, she felt there should be more conversation to make the journey more complete.
"Teacher." Qingchen turned her head, and sunlight shone in from the window on Song Yue's side, making her squint slightly.
"Hmm?" He didn't look at her, only responded casually, his tone indifferent.
After saying the word "teacher," Qingchen paused for a moment. She hadn't actually thought of what to ask yet, but the quiet time seemed to be urging her to speak.
Her teacher, Mr. Song, was once an idol worshipped by countless people in history, but now he seemed almost too real to be real. Qingchen had always harbored many curiosities about him, big and small, like bubbles in a dream. Sometimes, no matter how hard she thought about it, she couldn't pop them; other times, they burst with just a thought.
Qingchen called for help, but remained silent for a while. Song Yue didn't press the matter, simply letting time flow quietly between them, waiting, yet not quite waiting; indifferent, yet not quite indifferent.
"...Why does the teacher like purple bamboo? Was it because someone gave it to him?" Qingchen racked his brains and finally chose a less glaring question. As a man, he thought he shouldn't find it inappropriate to ask this question.
Song Yue turned around, resting one hand on the windowsill, and looked at her with his chin in his hand. "You still remember that pot of purple bamboo?"
The question that had made her hesitate for so long was actually about the purple bamboo. Why was she curious about this? Did she think it was some kind of important token?
For example, a token of love?
"I like purple bamboo because someone very important to me likes it. This little plant was planted by that person himself back then."
Looking at his serious expression, Qingchen noticed a hint of emotion in his previously composed demeanor. His delicate features remained strikingly handsome. Qingchen thought to herself, "He really does love everything about me."
She couldn't help but think of a line: "There is a loquat tree in the courtyard, which my wife planted in the year she died. Now it stands tall and spreading like a canopy."
The teacher is still unmarried, probably because of the owner of this purple bamboo... Thinking of this, she stopped asking and just murmured "hmm".
"Aren't you going to ask me who this person who is so important to me is?" He turned slightly, one arm still draped over the windowsill, looking at her full head of black hair.
"Since she is an important person in the teacher's heart, it is inappropriate for the student to ask her questions rashly..."
He looked at her, and after a long while nodded, "You're right."
After he finished speaking, the carriage fell silent for a moment.
Qingchen couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. If she had known, she wouldn't have asked. Asking now made her feel even emptier than if she hadn't asked at all.
She held her small bundle, turned slightly, and looked out the window.
The ginkgo leaves are still falling in large swaths, and there are more and more farmhouses and fields on both sides of the road, but for some reason, there seems to be a sense of desolation in the world.
A moment later, someone nearby suddenly said, "This important person is a man."
Qingchen was taken aback... It turned out she had been wrong. Feeling a little guilty, she didn't dare turn around to look at him, but then someone gently patted her shoulder. "Turn around."
When she turned her head, Song Yue already looked completely at ease. "Who do you think is the most important person to me... He is my teacher, Wang Yangming, the founder of the School of Mind. Your patriarch."
Qingchen nodded silently, somewhat embarrassed. What a jumble of thoughts were going through her mind—the loquat tree, the graceful, canopy-like branches…
"Are you thirsty?" someone next to me asked.
Qingchen's mind was a mess, and he didn't hear clearly before replying with an "Mm." Then he saw someone hand him a water bag. "The climate is dry, and your lips are all dry. Drink some water."
She took the water bag, staring blankly at the already opened opening for a moment. This was his water bag; wasn't it... impolite of her to drink directly from it?
Well, being so hesitant and fussy isn't manly enough; one shouldn't be so concerned with such trivial matters.
Shen Qingchen lifted the water bag and gulped down a few mouthfuls. The still slightly warm water flowed down his throat, sweet and refreshing, and very thirst-quenching.
After putting down the water bag, Qingchen wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She couldn't help but think that although she considered herself a man, she had still shared a water bag with her teacher, and even...
Looking at his thoughtful student, Song Yue thought to himself, "You don't need to overthink it. I haven't even drunk this water yet."
Shen Qingchen was a little flustered. Just as she was about to stuff the bag shut, she saw Song Yue reach out and take the water bag back. The sky-blue robe sleeve swayed in front of her eyes.
Her gaze involuntarily followed the water bag, and she saw him naturally raise the water bag, his lips touching the opening where she had just drunk, and gulp down a few mouthfuls!
Song Yue put down the water bag and, seeing her somewhat stunned expression, asked, "What's wrong? Do you still want to drink? I'll give you a couple more sips."
Qingchen felt a flush on his face, quickly shook his head, sat up straight and said, "I'm not thirsty anymore, teacher."
Song Yue's lips curved slightly.
The carriage traveled onward, having already left the inner city and was nearing Tongzhou.
Qingchen peered out the window, letting the cool breeze caress her face and calm her mind. Nothing had happened along the way; the weather was fine and time seemed to move slowly, yet her emotions had been fluctuating. If she didn't calm down soon, her teacher might notice.
At this moment, the coachman's tune abruptly stopped, the carriage paused for a moment, and then suddenly came to a halt.
"What's wrong?" Song Yue lifted the curtain and asked.
The driver's voice quickly came over, "Sir, it's nothing, there was just a little thing on the road, I almost ran it over."
Qingchen's curiosity was piqued, so he peeked out to take a look, but he didn't see anything.
"Let's go down and take a look," he said.
She nodded.
Lying on the official road was a kitten that was only a few months old. It had snow-white fur, a thin body, big eyes, and tiny pink paw pads, and looked very weak.
Looking at the fragile little creature, Qingchen couldn't help but walk up to it, squat down, and gently stroke it twice. It looked at her timidly, its weak body involuntarily curling up, and it softly let out a "meow".
The driver said, "There aren't any houses around here. I don't know where this kitten came from. It looks like it got separated from its mother. In this cold weather, it'll probably freeze to death if it doesn't starve."
Song Yue looked at her student, who was squatting on the ground with her slender body and delicate face full of pity. Sunlight fell on her, leaving a long, pale shadow on the ground.
Qingchen petted the kitten a few times, then gently picked it up and placed it on a pile of weeds by the roadside. She really wanted to take it with her, not wanting it to fend for itself, but unfortunately she had to attend a gathering, and doing so would seem like neglecting her duties.
She should be a resolute and decisive woman, and should not show any weakness or softness as a woman. This is especially true as graduation approaches and she faces the complexities of officialdom.
The coachman said, "Young master, let's go. Everything has its own destiny."
Qingchen nodded, and as he walked toward the car, he couldn't help but glance back at the kitten twice.
Song Yue looked at it, then walked to the pile of weeds and picked up the cat, thinking to himself, "It's just a cat."
Qingchen stared blankly at him, only to see him walk back to her side carrying the cat and hand it to her. "Teacher..."
He gently patted her head. "There are already so many difficult choices in life, why make things harder for yourself? If you like it, take it with you. When you go to the gathering, you can ask the driver to watch over it for you. After you return to the capital, you can keep it in the courtyard."
Looking at the trembling kitten in his arms, Qingchen was overwhelmed with emotion.
Not long after getting into the carriage, Song Yue noticed that the students seemed to be in a particularly good mood.
A faint smile remained on her lips as her slender fingers teased the cat, warming it and feeding it water. In short... she ignored the teacher.
He had been sitting there casually, yet he could still sense the students' subtle attention on him. Now, even as he stared at her intently, she seemed to show no reaction.
"Let's give it a name," Song Yue said after looking at it silently for a while.
Qingchen turned around immediately, "I almost forgot, teacher, it doesn't have a name yet."
He thought to himself, "You've forgotten more than just this one thing."
"What should I call it...?" Qingchen stroked the kitten's fur, thought for a moment, and said, "Teacher, shall I call it Little Fish?"
It's clearly a cat, so why call it a fish? He stared at her intently, then shook his head. "No good."
"Then how about calling him Big White?"
He raised an eyebrow. "...Does it sound good?"
Qingchen pursed her lips, as if it didn't sound very pleasant.
Her gaze fell to the window; a gentle breeze blew, and the autumn scenery was unparalleled… Suddenly, an idea struck her. Excitedly, she turned to him and said, “Teacher, we found it on the road in October. How about we call it October?”
He looked at her, as if he was thinking about something. After a while, he reached out and patted the head of the kitten in her arms. "Then let's call it October."
Seeing that he also liked the name, Qingchen was very happy and whispered to the kitten, "My October."
After a while, Song Yue stopped the carriage and said to Qingchen, "Get out of the carriage."
"Have we arrived yet?" she asked.
"No."
"So we are..."
"I'll take you out to eat with October."
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