Chapter 25: Support and Encouragement

After much thought, Xu Qingyi felt that she couldn’t act like a strict elder when dealing with Lin.

Firstly, her relationship with him hadn’t yet reached that level.

Although he called her “mother” verbally, no one would want a stepmother to control them.

Secondly, Lin was not a child anymore, so using a disciplinary approach wouldn’t work.

Thus, she could only adopt an attitude of support and encouragement, treating him equally as a friend, softening him up.

She needed him to see her sincerity.

When Lin came out, he saw Xu Qingyi sitting at his desk, carefully admiring his calligraphy.

“Sorry for looking through your calligraphy without permission,” Xu Qingyi raised her head, smiling with a sincere expression. “Your handwriting is so beautiful, it looks like a perfect imitation of whoever you’re trying to copy.”

“Skin is easy to paint, but bones are hard to mimic.” Lin replied flatly.

He was well aware of how good—or not—his imitation of others’ writing was. He wasn’t pleased by Xu Qingyi’s compliment.

Xu Qingyi wasn’t flattering him insincerely; she was speaking from the heart: “You’re only twelve years old. Every step of progress at each stage deserves recognition. There’s no such thing as instant success.”

“Along the way to greatness, don’t forget to praise yourself.”

Lin, with his high ambitions and equally high expectations for himself, always compared himself to those who were more accomplished, which made him feel his own efforts were unworthy of praise.

Though he thought this in his mind, he said nothing.

Xu Qingyi, a woman of the inner chambers, who wasn’t proficient in calligraphy…

“Do you think I know nothing, and that my praise means nothing?” Xu Qingyi hadn’t come here to discuss this, but seeing the expression on Lin’s face, she couldn’t help but add, “Lin, if you continue to approach learning with such arrogance and prejudice, you won’t ever write characters you’re truly satisfied with.”

Xu Qingyi may not have been an expert, but at least she knew that calligraphy was not just a skill—it was a mindset.

And mindset had no clear measure of superiority or inferiority.

Ultimately, all paths lead to one thing: kindness.

Lin, still young, was far from the aloof and cold-blooded powerbroker he would later become. After Xu Qingyi revealed his thoughts, he felt a little embarrassed.

He then wondered what Xu Qingyi was really here for. Could it be just to reprimand him?

“It’s fine, I wasn’t here just to talk to you,” Xu Qingyi secretly sighed with relief, seeing how easy it was to read Lin’s expression. “A few days ago, I was busy. Even though I noticed you didn’t have a book boy, I didn’t have time to help you pick one out. Now that I have some free time, I want to ask if you’d rather go choose one yourself, or would you prefer I help you pick?”

Not every scholar who attended the academy had a book boy, and Lin didn’t bring one because he felt he didn’t need one. Having someone follow him around would only be in the way.

Just as he was about to refuse, Xu Qingyi added, “If you want to go pick one yourself, I’ll give you the money.”

Lin swallowed the refusal he was about to speak, and said instead, “I’ll choose myself.”

“Alright.” Xu Qingyi didn’t say much more. She took out a purse filled with silver—coins and silver notes totaling about three hundred taels—and handed it to Lin. “You’re an adult now. Keep the rest of the money with you, in case something happens and you can’t pay.”

No matter what, she wanted to prevent Lin from ever being in the awkward position of not having money when he needed it.

Some problems could be solved with money, and there was no need to get involved in things unnecessarily.

“Alright, I’ll go call your brothers for dinner,” Xu Qingyi said, slipping the purse into Lin’s hand. Fearing he might feel awkward, she stood up and left.

As she reached the threshold, she casually turned back and said, “Home is your safe haven. No matter what happens, remember to talk to us. Your father and I will always support you.”

“…”

After Xu Qingyi truly left, Lin stared at the purse in his hand for a long while.

Then, he opened it and looked inside. The amount of silver was more than he expected—three hundred taels, in fact.

With this much silver, he could hire a whole house full of book boys.

It made Lin wonder if Xu Qingyi had come specifically to give him the silver.

And indeed, he needed it.

Although the silver didn’t solve his most urgent problem, it had, for now, saved a scoundrel’s life.

Lin had gone to the brothel the other day because of his biological father.

A few years ago, his father had received a beating from Xie Yunzhi and a sum of money, after which he disappeared without a trace.

That was until half a year ago, when, perhaps having heard about Xie Yunzhi’s fall from grace, he began to harass Lin again.

Lin had been giving his father money, helping him pay his bills.

If he didn’t, the man would send people to the academy to cause trouble.

After a few times, Lin realized that his father was like a bottomless pit—no matter how much he gave, it would never be enough, and sooner or later, this would bring him a heap of trouble. That’s when the thought of killing him arose.

But the main reason was that Lin didn’t have the silver to spare.

The little bit he had was barely enough for his own expenses, let alone for that scoundrel’s drinking, gambling, and debauchery.

If he could, Lin would rather not get his hands dirty.

*

Today, the Marquis took the bloodied Xie Huaian to the Yong’an Marquis’s residence to apologize. Xie Huaian had been whipped and once again missed the evening meal.

The Marquis’s wife despised Xu Qingyi.

Since Xu Qingyi married into the family, her son had never known peace.

“Has obedient Qingyi been out all day today?” Madam Qin asked, her tone heavy with insinuation.

The new bride wasn’t at home keeping things in order; was she out giving Xie Yunzhi a cuckold?

Xu Qingyi spoke candidly, “Yes, I took Heng out to find a tutor and also sought a martial arts instructor for Zhen.”

“Oh?” Both the Old Madam and the Marquis turned their attention to her, clearly intrigued.

Xu Qingyi continued with more detail, “The tutor is a graduate, named Shen Zhijie. He’s exceptionally talented, and I have a strong feeling that he’ll pass the imperial exam, so I specifically selected him for Heng.”

The Marquis nodded with approval, his eyes filled with admiration.

Supporting promising students was a common practice among nobles. As long as one had a keen eye, it was a highly profitable endeavor.

Xu Qingyi then added, “The martial arts instructor is a former soldier who served under the Eldest Young Master, named Pei Che. The Eldest Young Master greatly admired him, but unfortunately, Pei Che had to return home due to family duties, and he lost contact. I took the chance to inquire about him, and to my surprise, I was able to find him.”

It turned out that Xu Qingyi had been busy all day running errands for the children. The Old Madam sighed in admiration, “You truly put in effort, making sure everything is in order. With you as their mother, I feel reassured.”

She wasn’t unaware of the changes happening at Danhuai Courtyard. Over the past few days, she had heard that the once quiet and desolate place had transformed. It no longer carried the same cold emptiness.

After all, a place lived in by people should always have a lively atmosphere.

Madam Qin sneered, “You had no dealings with Yunzhi before, how do you know that Pei Che was someone Yunzhi praised? What if you’ve been deceived?”

Before Xu Qingyi could respond, the Marquis glanced at her, lifting his eyelids slightly, “I’ve heard Yunzhi mention Pei Che before. He’s indeed a talent. You don’t care to put in the effort, but you’re meddling in how others show care for Yunzhi’s children. What sense does that make?”

Madam Qin face turned pale.

But how did Xu Qingyi know that Yunzhi had praised Pei Che? Did she secretly harbor feelings for Yunzhi?

If that were the case, wasn’t her son wearing a huge green hat all along?

She wanted to question further but feared angering the Marquis, so she swallowed her words.

Fortunately, she didn’t ask, or she would have been scolded by the Marquis again.

Although not widely known, Yunzhi’s admiration for Pei Che wasn’t exactly a secret.

If one bothered to ask around, they could find out.

Xu Qingyi knowing about it meant she had indeed started to pay attention to Yunzhi, something the Marquis was happy to see.