Chapter 18: Big Characters

Yan Fengru kept a stern face and completely ignored the two of them. Gu Qingbai, being a clever little thing, immediately took his sister’s hand and led her into the house. Gu Yuzhu still wanted to watch the drama unfold, but alas, the circumstances didn’t allow it, so she had to give up.

Inside, she saw that her brother had brought back quite a few good things—brushes, inkstones, and xuan paper—all of which made Gu Yuzhu’s eyes light up with envy.

The old Daoist had been a fanatical lover of traditional Chinese studies. And as a Daoist, how could one not know how to draw talismans? Because of this, Gu Yuzhu had practiced her calligraphy with the old Daoist from a young age.

Now, seeing the calligraphy set, her fingers itched subconsciously. She tilted her head slightly upward, unaware that the light in her eyes was almost blinding her freshly returned older brother.

“Big Brother, can I borrow these treasures of yours?”

Gu Qingbai was a generous and good-natured big brother. The moment he heard his little sister wanted them, he agreed without hesitation.

Even though these things were expensive at the time—any of the better-quality ones could be worth a fortune—he didn’t hesitate.

Yan Fengru came in from outside and saw her fair and obedient little daughter clumsily holding a brush and doodling on paper, while her silly son stood on the other side of the low table grinding ink for her. It was a heartwarming scene of brotherly love and sisterly respect. By all rights, she should have felt pleased.

Then, something suddenly struck her mind. Yan Fengru let out an “Aiya!” of alarm, startling Gu Yuzhu so much that her little hand trembled and her stroke landed heavily on the page, leaving a bold, dark mark on the xuan paper. Yan Fengru hurried over, but as a woman who had once been a meticulous head maid, she quickly realized she shouldn’t frighten her daughter. She carefully lifted the xuan paper and looked at the characters written on it.

Yan Fengru: “……”

She had originally been illiterate, but as a top maid, knowing how to read and write a few characters made one more valuable in front of one’s masters. So she had secretly studied with the tutor hired for the young master of the household for a few years. Though not a true scholar, she knew enough to get by and wasn’t completely illiterate.

Sure enough, her literacy had earned her even more trust from her lady back then.

Now, she stared at the xuan paper, stunned.

“You… You wrote this?”

Gu Yuzhu inwardly knew this was bad. She had gotten carried away.

She was only five years old in this body now, and given her background, she should absolutely be a little girl who couldn’t read or write. Fortunately, though, even with a new body, her calligraphy wasn’t that good after just picking it up again. She also peeked at the xuan paper in Yan Fengru’s hand—those characters were written in her preferred simplified script.

While it was more common in modern times to practice in traditional script, Gu Yuzhu most liked to write in simplified running script. To Yan Fengru, the characters appeared “missing arms and legs.”

“Little sister wrote it. She’s amazing!”

Just as Gu Yuzhu was trying to come up with an excuse, her own brother exposed her.

The look Yan Fengru gave her daughter made Gu Yuzhu feel even more guilty.

“Oh my precious baby! Zhuzhu, tell Mama—who taught you to write?”

Yan Fengru was not like the average rural woman. In the current dynasty, most village women were illiterate. While gender separation wasn’t overly strict, it was still a normal patriarchal society where men worked outside and women stayed home. Women weren’t expected to be well-read—in fact, most couldn’t read at all.

Gu Yuzhu sneaked a glance at Yan Fengru and saw her eyes sparkling with excitement. She immediately understood that her mother was happy about her being literate.

“I… I copied it from a book. Mama, did I write well?”

Yan Fengru’s eyes lit up even more. Her daughter was truly a clever little darling! There weren’t any scholars in the family, so there were no books at home. This meant her daughter must have seen it somewhere else and remembered the strokes after a single glance. Even if she missed a few radicals or components, for a girl her age, that was remarkable.

What a pity she was a girl! That thought flashed briefly through Yan Fengru’s heart.

It wasn’t that girls were bad—Yan Fengru loved her daughter like a precious jewel. It was just that, in this era, girls did not enjoy the same opportunities as boys.

A boy could study and take the civil service exams, but even if a girl were a walking encyclopedia, she would still end up marrying, giving birth, and being confined to the back courtyard.

So she sighed. The child was smart and capable, but unfortunately a girl—unable to pursue scholarly success. Still, she quickly turned the thought around: as long as her darling was happy, even if she couldn’t become an official or a marquis, it didn’t matter.

Yan Fengru quickly figured it out and her smile became even gentler. “Does Mama’s good little girl like writing?”

Gu Yuzhu eagerly nodded. “Yes!”

“Then Mama will work hard to earn money so Zhuzhu and your brother Bai can both go to school.”

“Wonderful! My sister and I will go to school together!” Gu Qingbai clapped in delight.

Gu Yuzhu’s eyes lit up even more. What? Girls could go to school in this dynasty?

Yan Fengru, unaware of her daughter’s inner thoughts, simply found her darling adorable. She’d even be willing to give up her own life for her precious baby.

Looking at her son and then her exquisitely beautiful daughter, her anger softened. Thank goodness both children were safe. If anything had happened to them, she wouldn’t have let those siblings off the hook—even if she had to come back as a ghost.

…

Meanwhile, Gu Qingshan and his wife Li Shi had also returned from town. Only upon arriving home did they hear about the incident with their niece falling from a tree.

Gu Qingshan didn’t think his younger sister had ordered her daughter to do such a thing. She was just immature—not malicious. There was no way she would instruct such a young child to do something like that.

It must’ve been an accident. Still, his younger sister had never hidden her dislike for her stepmother and the children born of that woman—Gu Qingshan knew this very well.

Regardless, Gu Qingshan was quite the doting brother. Now that his sister was suffering at her husband’s home—reportedly being bullied by her mother-in-law all because the stepmother had gone there and stirred up trouble—he wasn’t about to let it slide.

He had not expected his stepmother to completely ignore him.

Gu Qingshan’s face darkened. Li Shi, heavily pregnant, didn’t dare provoke him and prepared to hide in the kitchen. But as soon as she walked in, she saw her stepmother-in-law, Yan Fengru, inside.

Li Shi didn’t know what to do with her hands. After a moment of awkward silence, she asked, “Mother, is there anything I can help with?”

Yan Fengru had just come out of her children’s room. She had made handmade noodles with dried wild mushrooms, scrambled eggs, and fresh greens in broth. The handmade noodles were chewy and springy, the broth flavorful and rich. Just smelling it made one’s appetite awaken.

Li Shi hadn’t had much of an appetite lately due to her pregnancy, but the sight of the steaming bowl of noodles in Yan Fengru’s hands—greens vibrant, eggs golden, fragrance overwhelming—made her instinctively swallow.

She had always known this mother-in-law had excellent culinary skills, probably learned from a noble household. Just look at these noodles: the noodles were noodles, the soup was soup, and even the green vegetables seemed specially prepared. It was mouthwatering.

What’s more, Yan Fengru was generous with oil and salt. Unlike most village women who skimped on ingredients and cooked up bland dishes that tasted like nothing, Yan Fengru’s cooking was richly seasoned and full of flavor.