Rebirth of an abandoned woman

Chapter 26: Frustration

"Well, since we're all idling now, why don't I teach the two of you how to rub ink on your ink slab and how to hold your brush?" Sang Wan smiled.

Eager to learn, Zhide and Hong Ye nodded immediately. "Then this servant shall light a few more candles to brighten up the chamber!" Hong Ye smiled.

The flame on the candles swayed; the chamber was brightly lit. Zhide and Hong Ye stood at a side and stared deeply at Sang Wan as she demonstrated how the ink should be rubbed. After the demonstration, Sang Wan had them settled down before teaching them how to hold a brush.

However, it was senseless to just have them hold a brush in their hand. As such, Sang Wan simply went on to write two simple characters that had only a few numbers of strokes and have them learn how to write them while getting them used to the feeling of holding a brush at the same time. She assigned Liu Ya to guide Hong Ye while she taught Zhide. Not too long later, the four, master and servants, were all absorbed in the session.

Under the dim moonlight, Shi Fengju returned and was faced with a sight.

In the chamber were four people, but his sight was subconsciously set on one of them. Against the soft and gentle lighting, the person who was dressed in a plain turquoise colored clothes had her body leaned against Zhide's back and her head lowered. Her mouth was opened as she spoke of something very softly and her hand was firmly grasped onto Zhide's hand as she guided her to write.

The light outlined her entire side with soft lines. Her eyebrows, earlobe, and the tip of her nose were faintly outlined, but the most distinct were the lines that intersected at the edge of her lips. Right above her temples that were behind a curtain of black hair slid a hairpin with a rounded jasper head, and a smooth-rounded pearl hanging from her ear. From his angle, the woman looked gentle and beautiful to a point where one could not help but want to embrace her from behind.

At that moment, Shi Fengju was in a daze and his heart was overcome with tranquility. He could not bear to destroy such a beautiful sight with his presence and thus decided to leave quietly. However, Liu Ya lifted her head all of a sudden and he was spotted.

"Sir...Sir!" Liu Ya, who was teaching Hong Ye, frantically let go of her hand and stood up.

Startled, the other three immediately stopped what they were doing. Zhide and Hong Ye hurriedly stood up and bowed uneasily, as if they had committed a bad deed.

Since he was already spotted, he laughed and stepped into the chamber. Sweeping a glance, he smiled at Sang Wan and asked, "Teaching them how to recognize characters?"

"Yes," Sang Wan smiled, "There was nothing to do, so I thought it would be good to teach them how to recognize a few characters and have them prepared!"

"That is true!" Shi Fengju did not mind and continued, "It's already nightfall. Teaching them tomorrow when the sun is up again isn't too late."

"That was my intention, but I'd just wanted them to get used to holding a brush tonight, that's all!" Sang Wan answered.

Zhide restlessly smiled, "Then, has Sir had dinner yet?"q

Sang Wan's face suddenly reddened and she spoke embarrassedly, "I wasn't sure when you'll be back, but I was hungry so I went ahead to have mine first! Still, the food is warm. If you haven't eaten anything yet, would you like to have them now?"

In that instant, Shi Fengju felt a sense of disappointment. He was disappointed at his 'wife' for not showing any concern towards him as it was not her who asked first but the maidservant, Zhide. Looking at Sang Wan's expression, it seems that regardless whether he returned or not, her appetite would not have been affected, right? The more the thought circled in his mind, the more uncomfortable his heart felt.