Wuxin held the bamboo tube in his hand, still feeling the warmth emanating from it.
Nan Jin Yu was practicing calligraphy in the study. After receiving permission, he dared to enter, "Master, it’s something that Miss Gu’s second brother sent over. It’s something fresh that Miss Gu just made, specially sent to you. From what her second brother said, Gu Nian probably knows about the effort you went through to save her by emptying the lotus pond."
Nan Jin Yu was momentarily distracted, and a drop of ink spread across the half-written paper, completely ruining it.
Nan Jin Yu placed the brush on the brush rack. Wuxin had already prepared a bowl and spoon, pouring the milk tea from the bamboo tube into the bowl and placing it on the study desk in front of Nan Jin Yu.
Nan Jin Yu first cleansed his hands before picking up the small silver spoon.
Few people knew that although Nan Jin Yu was a man, he had a preference for sweet flavors.
And this milk tea, made with white sugar, tea leaves, and goat milk, perfectly suited his taste.
Wuxin watched the slight curve at the corner of Nan Jin Yu’s lips, feeling a shock in his heart.
Perhaps due to lunch not sitting well with him, the master had been in a gloomy mood since after the meal.
Practicing calligraphy in the study was also an attempt to calm his mind.
Yet now, the master was smiling, all because of a seemingly murky bowl of soup!
"Master, would you like to give a reward?" Wuxin asked tentatively.
Nan Jin Yu paused his actions, truly contemplating.
Finally, he let out a soft laugh, pulling a book from beside the desk, and looked at its cover with an intriguing smile.
"Give this to her," Nan Jin Yu said.
Wuxin looked perplexedly at the book he received, wanting to say that no matter how good Miss Gu’s cooking was, she was just a rural girl, still so young and illiterate. Yet the master was giving her a book, was he mocking her? ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ NovᴇlFɪre.ɴet
But the manners instilled in him since childhood left him no room for objection, so he obediently left.
Watching Wuxin’s departing figure, Nan Jin Yu fell into contemplation.
That Gu Nian seemed young, but she was by no means simple-minded. Moreover, her demeanor and behavior were not like those of an ordinary rural girl, unworldly and naive.
The days here were dull anyway; having someone to amuse was not a bad thing.
The question was whether that girl could understand his intentions!
Outside, Erhu looked baffled as he went home with the book Wuxin handed over.
Gu Nian, however, was extremely excited, "Second brother, did Young Master Nan say anything when he gave you the book?"
Erhu scratched the back of his head, frowning in a silly manner, "Say anything? I didn’t even see Young Master Nan. It was the person beside him who gave the book to me and told me to pass it on to you."
After speaking, Erhu added, "You know, there’s no one in our family who can read. What does it mean that Young Master Nan is giving us a book? Could it be he can’t afford to pay for the food, so he’s using a book to settle the debt?"
Even if that were the case, there was no need to specifically instruct him to pass the book to his little sister, right?
Gu Nian openly rolled her eyes at him, "Second brother, if Young Master Nan and his people hear you say that, you’d better watch out or you’ll get a beating!"
Just from the way he carries himself, it’s clear he’s no ordinary person. Using a book to settle a debt, it’s amazing that Second Brother could come up with such an idea.
Gu Nian returned to her room with the book, unable to put it down.
Back in the modern world, she was still in college, and seeing textbooks gave her a headache, wishing desperately to bid farewell to books forever.
Yet now, apart from seeing words on shop signboards when visiting the town, she felt cut off from the world of words, realizing how convenient a world with words truly was.