"It’s quite interesting," the Master chuckled while looking at Xia Chuyi.
Xia Chuyi felt a bit embarrassed; she had called out without thinking upon seeing the Master and became a bit excited.
She steadied herself and earnestly told the Master, "I sincerely want to become your disciple."
This meant she was determined to stick with them, so calling her ’Master’ in advance was not inappropriate.
The Master smiled and said, "You’re an interesting child, I like you."
"But I heard from Old Guan that you are a student at Kyoto University? Why are you thinking about learning a craft?"
"A student at Kyoto University should have better prospects, right, learning a craft? Do you want to be a chef?"
The Master’s smile was warm, yet her blunt question was sharp.
Honestly, Xia Chuyi was much more nervous facing the Master than facing her husband.
Her husband, although experienced and broad-minded, was straightforward and didn’t beat around the bush.
But the Master was truly a wise person!
Xia Chuyi composed herself and seriously said, "I like culinary arts."
Her answer was straightforward too.
She didn’t need to play any mind games with her Master; being "sincere" was enough with them.
Hearing her answer, the Master was slightly stunned, then sized her up, nodding her head and smiling, "Old Guan is right, you are clear-eyed, smart, and honest."
"Interesting, interesting!"
Seeing that Xia Chuyi remained composed and undisturbed by the praise, the Master appreciated her even more and suddenly said, "Hey, if Old Guan doesn’t take you, why not... come learn embroidery with me? Calligraphy is also an option."
"My skills are much greater than Old Guan’s!"
The Master’s smile held a half-serious, half-joking implication.
Xia Chuyi’s eyes twinkled, and she quickly said, "Actually, I also really like embroidery!"
Upon hearing this, the Master was taken aback.
Xia Chuyi calmly looked at her Master and earnestly said, "That’s right, at the university, a professor’s wife taught me some basic skills in embroidery."
"Because of that, I developed a strong interest in embroidery."
When the Master heard this, she laughed and said, "Isn’t that a coincidence?"
After glancing at Mr. Guan, she turned back to Xia Chuyi and asked with a smile, "What kind of embroidery did you learn?"
Xia Chuyi replied, "Gu Embroidery."
She looked intently at the Master.
This was a good opportunity to gauge the relationship between the Master and Mrs. Gu.
The moment the words "Gu Embroidery" were mentioned, her husband’s expression immediately changed.
However, the Master appeared quite calm.
Quickly, the Master stared deeply into her eyes, her tone carrying an indescribable nuance, and asked, "Gu Embroidery? Are you sure you didn’t misspeak? What you learned was indeed Gu Embroidery?"
"Yes, I’m sure. That mistress really taught me Gu Embroidery," Xia Chuyi nodded her head, answering very seriously.
The Master pondered for a moment, then asked, "So, has Gu Embroidery started being practiced in Capital City now?"
Xia Chuyi shook her head and said, "I don’t know if anyone else in Capital City is embroidering Gu Embroidery, but my mistress, she is."
After a brief silence, the Master said, "I guess I was mistaken; there are thousands of disciples in the Gu Xiu Sect, and not necessarily every one of them is forbidden from teaching..."
Her tone carried a hint of regret.