A life of clearness

Chapter 10 Begonia

Rong Qing said nothing more. She said goodbye to Dugu Zhi, then turned around and took Zhong Xiu away.

"What kind of books do you usually like to read?" Rong Qing looked at Zhong Xiu. His forehead was still covered with sweaty hair and he looked disheveled, but his mental state had stabilized a lot.

An embarrassed look appeared on Zhong Xiu's face. "I can't read many words, so I can only read some comic books on weekdays." Then she lowered her head again, "I'm sorry to make you laugh."

"I heard from Aunt Qin that your father runs a bookstore, and you loved reading new picture albums when you were young." Rong Qing paused, "I don't know why your father didn't want to teach you more or send you to a private school. But if you want to learn more words and read more books, I can teach you."

"This... this, is it true...?" Zhong Xiu was obviously agitated and spoke incoherently, "I can't afford the dowry either, it's really difficult. But..."

"No tuition is required." Rong Qing stopped and said, "I will just teach you some characters in my free time. I won't be as dedicated as I am in the academy. Are you willing to do this?"

"I am willing to do it." Zhong Xiu nodded repeatedly, "I am grateful to you for your kindness. Since you have exempted me from paying tuition, I must pay you a gift as my disciple." As she spoke, she raised her hand and touched her hair. The jade hairpin she used to hold her hair was not expensive, but Zhong Xiu was anxious to finalize her status, and she did not care about how Gong Xiaolang would question and beat her if she lost the jade hairpin.

"Hey." Rong Qing grabbed her arm and stopped her. "The gift of becoming a disciple is about the sentiment behind the gift. The jade hairpin is your favorite thing, but it's not mine. If you want to give me something I like... there are begonias in this season, so you can give it to me."

The begonia that Rong Qing pointed out was right beside the gate of Gong's house. Seeing this, Zhong Xiu quickly picked it up and handed it to Rong Qing.

The broken branch crushed by the rubble looked extremely pitiful to the two. Only a few dark red petals were left, like the tears of a beauty, about to fall but not falling.

Zhong Xiu put Jia Jia in his arms at his feet, turned his wrists up, and held the begonia in both hands towards Rong Qing.

“I, Xiuniang, present a branch of begonia to you today. I am grateful that you have not given up and have taught me knowledge. Please give me more guidance in the future.” As she said this, she bent her knees and was about to kneel down.

"No need to kneel." Rong Qing had anticipated this and held her arms. She took the flower branch in front of her puzzled look. "I accept the gift. From now on, you don't have to call yourself a concubine or a disciple. In front of me, you only need to use the word 'I'."

"Yes, concubine...I will listen to you, sir."

"Sir." Jia Jia, who was at Zhong Xiu's feet, hugged A Niang's legs and imitated her pronunciation again, but this time, she read it very clearly.

Rong Qing smiled and squatted down. "The pronunciation is very standard. Jiajia is really smart." She looked up at Zhong Xiu. "Is it Jiajia, right? Jia as in Jiaren or Jia as in Jianjia, or something else?"

"It's the Jia for commendation. Gong Jiajia." Zhong Xiu replied.

"Gong Jiajia," Rong Qing whispered, "From now on, you can also read books and write, and become a female teacher who can earn money to support yourself, okay?"

Jia Jia stared at Rong Qing with her dark eyes, but there was no emotion in them. Her tender little mouth was tightly closed, and she refused to say another word.

Rong Qing was already used to not getting any response to her questions when she was talking to Jia Jia. She didn't feel frustrated at this time.

Instead, Zhong Xiu quickly explained, "I don't know what's wrong with this child. She doesn't like to talk at all. Other children of this age... She has only called Dad and Mom, and the rest..." She lowered her mouth bitterly, "I don't know if she has learned it even after I taught her. She never says it."

Rong Qing was thoughtful after hearing this. She didn't believe that Jiajia hadn't learned it. She thought of the gentleman that Jiajia had mentioned several times, and it was not a coincidence. Judging from her performance alone, she could still judge that she had the ability to imitate pronunciation and correspond to the characters. The key to the problem should be that she was unwilling to say it.

Why doesn't she want to say it?
Rong Qing lowered her eyes and said nothing more. She simply picked up Jia Jia and walked towards the Gong family courtyard.

It was obvious that a side house had collapsed in the Gong family's yard, but seeing that they didn't do anything to clean it up, it could be guessed that no one was hurt.

A large number of medicinal herbs that were drying on the roof were shaken down, and the clothes that were originally hung on the drying racks in the open space in the yard were scattered on the ground, rolled into a pile of mud and dust.

This horrific and dirty scene made Zhong Xiu unable to raise his head in front of Rong Qing for the umpteenth time.

"Are the other two masters of the mansion still busy looking for Jiajia outside?" Rong Qing simply ignored the scene in front of her and asked about the thing that was most concerned in her mind.

"Yes. I lost Jiajia at that time." Zhong Xiu replied in a low voice, "Although the husband was very angry, he was still worried about Jiajia, and so was the wife. They all went out in a hurry to look for Jiajia. No one knows where they are now. Sir, do you have anything to ask? We can only wait until they can't find her and come back to rest."

"No, nothing." Rong Qing shook her head, not letting her see what she was thinking. "Since Dugu knows that Jiajia has returned, he must have sent his subordinates to call them back. I guess... it will be quick." She snorted and laughed.

She could sense that Dugu Zhi had some prejudice against Zhong Xiu.

"Doctor Dugu is really a person you can't judge by his appearance. It's ridiculous that I always thought he was just a doctor." Zhong Xiu laughed at himself, but it made Rong Qing think, you think he should not be underestimated, and he also thinks you are not simple.

"I was also fooled by his appearance before." Rong Qing chuckled, "We are the same."

Thinking back to that time, she had been respectfully addressed as Mr. Yu by a group of young students aged 17 or 18 for so long that she had become a little arrogant. In addition, the people of Jing country always respected scholars, so she was deeply displeased with Dugu Zhi's somewhat lazy attitude when she first met him. Perhaps reading this from Rong Qing's micro-expression, Dugu Zhi said to her provocatively, "Since you want me to address you as Mr. Yu, why don't you show some ability. If you win, I will not only respect you as Mr., but also I will not charge any consultation fees for anyone who needs my medical treatment in the future, as long as they are brought by you. Of course, if you lose... I will just call you Xiao Yu."

The result is obvious. Rong Qing lost, but the other party was so good at making her lose without feeling aggrieved. In the end, they became friends for some unknown reason. Therefore, she also got the benefit of introducing friends to see doctors at home without paying any consultation fees.

Rong Qing also knew that this so-called free gift was just another kind of favor, and it was only worth using it when he met a senior like Mr. Woyu. But the one who made the most money was Dugu Zhi. In this social environment where favors are more important than anything else, the favor from Mr. Woyu also made two promising young men have a good impression of him. Although they didn't know what Dugu's ultimate goal was, the benefits left for the future were inevitable.

Unused favors are always a good card at the gambler's table.

"Let's not talk about him anymore. Let's discuss the time and method of contact." Looking at Zhong Xiu, "I think you have to keep your calligraphy learning a secret from those two."

"As expected of you, sir, you can tell at a glance." Zhong Xiu smiled bitterly, "My husband goes to work in the state government during the day, but my wife is with me. No matter whether it's morning or night, she will know if I go out. I can only go out alone, like today to buy some snacks, or..."

"Or maybe go out and have some chicken wonton soup to relieve your stress." Rong Qing knew that Zhong Xiu couldn't go out for a long time, so she simply said, "Then eat the wontons during that time. When your husband comes back, I'll help you find a way out."

"This..." Zhong Xiu had no other choice but to agree. At the same time, he was curious about how Rong Qing planned to get through.

(End of this chapter)