The Marquis Mansion's Elite Class-Chapter 189

He Zheng’s tactfulness made Zong Jincheng smile involuntarily. He sneaked a glance at Xu Wan… only to find her asleep.

Hmm, he was going to sleep too.

The little devil leaned against the carriage and yawned, then drifted off. Asleep, the child unconsciously leaned to one side, eventually ending up resting against Xu Wan.

Xu Wan slept lightly and woke up at the slightest touch.

Turning her head, she saw the little devil resting on her arm. His eyes were tightly closed, his mouth slightly open, his breathing steady and rhythmic.

Xu Wan felt both helpless and tender. This kid truly had a natural charm; even when asleep, he could still win people over.

She didn’t move, allowing him to lean on her, until the carriage stopped at Marquis Manor and the children began to wake up.

The little devil opened his eyes, feeling his face pressed against her arm. He sprang up like a firecracker, guarding himself defensively, afraid she might jab at him again.

Xu Wan stretched her tired arm and said to him, “Let’s go. Go back to your room and get some proper rest.”

“Okay.” The little devil responded in a daze, following her out of the carriage.

Xu Wan walked ahead, and he trailed behind at a moderate distance.

Zong Jincheng was momentarily caught off guard.

She really was at peace with him now, not mocking him anymore, and her tone was gentle, free of any sharpness… She must like him, right? She must really like him. She was probably just waiting for the right moment to lower her defenses.

The little devil figured it out, his lips curling into a smile as he trotted after her, feeling exceptionally good. “I’ll start practicing calligraphy tomorrow.”

She had always wanted him to practice calligraphy. If he obediently took it up, she would certainly grow fonder of him, maybe even take the initiative to hold his hand or ruffle his hair…

Yes, ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‍it had to be like that.

A smart son should learn to provide his mother with the right steps.

“Huh?” Xu Wan turned back in shock. “Is this something you’d say?”

Every time they talked about practicing calligraphy, the little troublemaker would try to weasel his way out of it. Now, he was bringing it up himself? Was the sun rising in the west tomorrow?

The little devil pouted and glared at her. With a huff, he said, “Don’t underestimate me. I know the importance of calligraphy. I’ll start tomorrow!”

He walked toward his courtyard, leaving Xu Wan standing there, stunned, before she finally shook her head and smiled to herself, “This kid…”

When the little devil said he’d practice calligraphy, he meant it. However, his calligraphy had deteriorated into an indecipherable mess for too long. Even if he slowed down, he still couldn’t make much progress. At best, he could make his writing legible, but it still looked awful.

“Jincheng, while you practice calligraphy, you can also memorize some texts. I’ve found a book you haven’t studied yet. I’ve copied a few pages for you to practice from, and I’ll keep copying the rest.” Pan Hongzhi’s refined calligraphy was on display once again.

“Okay.” Zong Jincheng accepted the pages and obediently switched the purple ink for black, beginning to practice with focus.

When Xu Wan arrived, she overheard this conversation. Practicing writing while memorizing indeed saved the little devil a lot of time on his studies. However, his progress in calligraphy was still slow, making the entire process quite time-consuming.

She chimed in, “Master Pan, there’s no need to copy books for Jincheng anymore. Have him repeatedly practice these few characters.”

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Both Pan Hongzhi and Zong Jincheng looked over.

The little devil’s eyes lit up faintly. Was she going to teach him some fantastic method again?

Pan Hongzhi also handed over his brush and paper, humbly saying, “Please, madam, share your wisdom.”

Xu Wan took the brush and wrote ten characters on the paper: Human, Heart, Eternal, Heaven, Fire, Inch, Ancient, Work, Mouth, Female.

Each character was incredibly simple yet included fundamental strokes: horizontal, vertical, dot, pie, na.

Practicing was easy, and the results came quickly.

Pan Hongzhi understood at a glance and nodded repeatedly. “Madam’s expertise is truly remarkable. I’ll rewrite these characters right away.”

The little devil leaned forward, admiring the delicate handwriting on the page. “Can’t I just practice this style directly?”

Pan Hongzhi quickly seized the opportunity to explain, “This style is called Zhanhua Xiaokai, created by Lady Wei, the teacher of the Calligraphy Saint Wang Xizhi. The characters are graceful and delicate, with a refined and elegant charm. It’s commonly used by women in our capital.”

“Oh…” The little devil’s face fell. “Then I’ll stick to practicing the Hanlin North Academy style.”

Xu Wan couldn’t hold back her laughter. She patted the little boy’s shoulder and left the study.

The little devil watched her retreating figure, feeling renewed vigor. He grabbed the paper Pan Hongzhi handed over and buried his head in practicing again.

The effects of practicing writing soon became apparent. In the September monthly exam, the Zong brothers finally climbed onto the rankings.

There were two hundred students in the elementary class. Zong Wenxiu ranked eighty-eighth, and Zong Jincheng ranked one hundred and eighth.

After checking the results, the little devil returned and complained bitterly to He Zheng, “Qin Ye is still the first place. Annoying. Isn’t there anyone at Qingbo Academy who can compete with him?”

He Zheng looked puzzled. He had been in the advanced class for almost two months and hadn’t seen Qin Ye once. However, he had heard the class motto countless times and Zong Jincheng’s complaints about Qin Ye numerous times, which piqued his endless curiosity about this Qin Ye.

Zong Wenxiu silently added in his heart: No one at Hanlin North Academy can compete with Qin Ye either.

But on the surface, he had to gently console him, “Qin Ye is just too strong. But one day, we’ll definitely beat him.”

Zong Jincheng snorted heavily. “We’ll let him be arrogant for a while longer. Just wait, I’ll quickly surpass him!”

“Yes, you certainly will!” Zong Wenxiu chimed in to boost his confidence.

The little devil grew inspired. He looked up proudly and shouted loudly, “Come on, let’s recite the class motto again!”

“Down with Qin Ye, we must ace the top rank!” He Zheng shouted with all his might, rallying behind his friend.

Zong Wenxiu: “…………”

General Pang's Mansion.

After half a month of investigation and brutal interrogation, Miss Luo the Third’s personal maid and the imperial physician confessed to her secret pregnancy and revealed the name of the midwife.

The midwife knelt on the ground, her face streaked with tears and blood, sobbing, “It was a boy, a boy!”

They had once sworn to take the secret to their graves, but oaths were nothing but empty words. When the rods and irons were applied to their own bodies, any oath or loyalty flew out of their minds.

General Pang was overjoyed to finally hear this news. He excitedly exclaimed, “Where’s the child? Where is the child?”

The midwife shook her head tearfully. “I don’t know. As soon as the child was born, many people broke in and knocked us all unconscious. When we woke up, the child was gone, and Miss Luo the Third had taken her own life.”

General Pang looked at the executioner beside him, who replied, “General, they’ve confessed. Their testimony is consistent, and they were interrogated separately.”

“What distinctive features did the child have, like birthmarks?” General Pang asked again.

The midwife shook her head frantically. “No, there were no birthmarks at all.”

General Pang felt like he’d been doused with a bucket of cold water. He tried to calm himself down, muttering, “Miss Luo the Third’s memorial day was July 6th… Investigate! Find every boy born on that day, within the age of eight, throughout the capital, inside and out! Leave no stone unturned!”