Zhao Rong shook his head and pulled out a stack of papers from his sleeve.
He stepped off the platform and began distributing the papers one by one, patiently giving feedback as he did so.
Zhao Rong first approached Li Xueyou and handed him his paper.
He smiled and said, "Brother Xueyou’s small script is delicate, graceful, refined and meticulous, improving with each passing time. The writing truly reflects the person, which is excellent."
Upon hearing this, Li Xueyou’s face turned red, and he lowered his head.
He softly responded with a word of assent.
Seeing his shy demeanor, Zhao Rong chuckled and shook his head, then turned to walk toward Fan Yushu’s desk to hand over his paper.
He looked at Fan Yushu seriously.
"Brother Yushu’s cursive is not bad: free and elegant, yet still orderly. In the upcoming midterm exam by Teacher Zhu, there isn’t a restriction on the script type, and Brother Yushu’s cursive is already sufficient. By the way, how did you practice? Did you often write in cursive before?"
The surrounding students of Shuaixing Hall were quite surprised upon hearing this, with many casting doubtful glances.
Fan Yushu blinked but ignored the gazes of those around him.
With a carefree smile, he said, "Ziyu, didn’t you just say it yourself? It’s ’the writing reflects the person.’ So, my writing, um ..."
Zhao Rong’s mouth twitched slightly, and he nodded at Fan Yushu, who was winking and gesturing, before moving on to another student.
Afterward, he continued in this manner throughout the classroom, distributing papers.
He provided feedback to each student.
However, it was nearly all praise and encouragement, and although some handwriting genuinely did not meet standards, Zhao Rong had his own considerations.
He primarily offered encouragement and did not want to dishearten them, especially with the examination approaching.
However, there were some exceptions.
For instance, Yu Huaijin, because Zhao Rong had exceptionally high expectations for him.
Zhao Rong walked over to Yu Huaijin’s seat and softly called out to him.
Yu Huaijin appeared just as usual, looking up calmly.
The two made eye contact.
Zhao Rong looked at him for a few extra seconds, recalling the incident from the dream about the landscape painting a few nights ago.
But he did not bring it up.
And it seemed Yu Huaijin’s demeanor was similar to his.
They both acted as if nothing had happened.
Zhao Rong frowned, handed him the paper, and said earnestly,
"Your script is not yet acceptable, not good enough, too artificial. Calligraphy is not practiced in the manner that you do. I have corrected this many times before—don’t be so rigid and serious when writing a character, just stay focused; otherwise, it will be too much ..."
Zhao Rong tirelessly repeated the principles he had already explained countless times.
Yu Huaijin listened seriously the whole time.
However, after a few glances, Zhao Rong felt that it probably remained the same as before.
He was listening, but changing was difficult.
Zhao Rong shook his head internally but then nodded and said, "Brother Yu, let us encourage each other."
Yu Huaijin bowed to him.
Zhao Rong returned the bow and then walked away.
About the time it took to burn one stick of incense later, Zhao Rong had distributed all the papers to the students of Shuaixing Hall, with one exception.
Zhao Rong turned his head to look at Wu Peiliang, who wore an indifferent expression not far away.
He smiled, walked over, and handed the last paper to Wu Peiliang.
"This writing is very good, capable of ranking at the front in Shuaixing Hall."
Zhao Rong spoke earnestly.
Wu Peiliang nodded with a smile, clasped his hands together, and glanced around at his classmates, "Teacher Zhao is too kind."
Zhao Rong also smiled and waved his hand, "No flattery, just the truth."
He sighed gently, "Brother Wu’s Attendant Student has really improved a lot; perhaps one day I could invite him to sit in on classes at the school with Brother Wu so I can get to know him."
Wu Peiliang’s smile stiffened.
The expressions of the students of Shuaixing Hall turned peculiar.