Chapter 43: Chapter 37, Putting on a Sack_l
Translator: 549690339
Master Qin’s face was gloomy as he returned to the Virtue and Art Court. While passing by the classroom, he glanced at Daohua, who was sitting at the back, his eyes somewhat sinister. Thinking of Madam Li’s attitude just now, he had no choice but to suppress the suffocating anger in his chest and quickly retreated to his own room.
As soon as Master Qin left, Daohua, who had been diligently grinding ink a moment before, looked up and gazed out of the window.
Watching Master Qin’s hasty departure, a flicker passed through Daohua’s eyes. How does the saying go?
Getting along with people—a good first impression is very important.
Clearly, she and Master Qin were the kind that did not get along at first sight.
The first time she saw Master Qin, she felt that this man had a bitter look, was too strict and rigid, and his aura clashed greatly with hers.
Look at this, they hadn’t interacted much yet, and she was already being targeted.
What did her mother say to her?
Seeing her ugly expression just now, even if he didn’t target her again in the future, she guessed he wouldn’t show her a good face either.
What should she do?
Dealing with a teacher who didn’t like her and was always looking for trouble was very distressing.
Moreover, she didn’t like Master Qin’s teaching style—it was too dogmatic and oppressive, a far cry from the relaxed and joyful classroom atmosphere she preferred.
How could she get a different teacher?
She had to think this over carefully.
On the classroom floor, Xu Keke, Zhu Xiuyun, and Fan Siran from outside the estate all sneakily glanced at Daohua, who seemed unconcerned, then turned their heads towards Yan Yishuang, Yan Yihuan, and Yan Yile, whispering to each other.
“Your eldest sister is really something, contradicting the teacher and still avoiding punishment.”
Yan Yishuang didn’t look too pleased and muttered, “What’s the big deal about that? She even dares to talk back to my father.”
“Ah!”
The three Xu Keke were taken aback.
Zhu Xiuyun’s face was full of disbelief, “She has quite the nerve; when I see my father, I don’t even dare to speak more than necessary, let alone talk back.”
Yan Yishuang gave her a sidelong glance and said somewhat haughtily, “That’s because my father has a good temper, unlike yours. As an educator, he’s always talking about rules and etiquette. It’s not just you—I’m a bit afraid of him too.” Xu Keke pursed her lips, her tone somewhat annoyed, “Your father has a good temper? You haven’t seen him scold people. Just yesterday, my father got scolded by him!”
Yan Yishuang furrowed her brow. “That must’ve been because your father deserved the scolding. My father never scolds without reason. Besides, my father is the County Magistrate, and your father is the county second-in-command. Isn’t it appropriate for my father to scold yours?”
Hearing this, Xu Keke became angry and turned her head away, “I’m not talking to you anymore.”
Yan Yishuang also turned her head aside, “Don’t talk then, who cares.”
Seeing the two quarrel, Zhu Xiuyun was anxious, “Weren’t we discussing your elder sister? Why did you start arguing?” Then she looked towards Yan Yile, “Yile, why don’t you tell us about your elder sister?”
Yan Yile was about to say something, but after getting a glare from Yan Yihuan, she ended up saying, “I haven’t finished my homework, I can’t talk right now.”
Zhu Xiuyun looked towards Yan Yihuan and Fan Siran, but both of them kept their heads down, busy with their work, not paying her any attention.
Seeing this, she had to suppress her gossipy heart.
Just then, Master Qin walked in with books in hand.
“Greetings, Teacher!”
Daohua, along with the others, stood up to greet him, her actions impeccable.
Master Qin glanced at Daohua and nodded, signaling everyone to be seated, then began the class.
The curriculum did not change, but unlike before, from that day on, Master Qin never called on Daohua again.
Without being called on, there were, of course, no corrections to be made.
Wasn’t she targeting Miss Yan before? Now that she’s not asking questions, she can’t find fault with her anymore, right?
Yan Yishuang and others were somewhat disappointed to see Master Qin no longer targeting Daohua. However, being young and forgetful, they soon cast the matter aside.
The classroom seemed to return to its calm state.
However, both Master Qin and Daohua were aware that the issue was far from resolved.
Master Qin completely ignored Daohua, no longer asking her questions or correcting her—essentially leaving her to fend for herself, her learning wholly dependent on her own efforts.
As for Daohua, she held an indifferent attitude toward Master Qin’s approach.
Being an adult soul, she could self-study the ancient boudoir textbooks; sitting obediently in class now was first to put the elders of the An Family at ease, and secondly, to comply with the life norms of ancient times.
She didn’t want to be the one to break the rules and stand alone, but also didn’t wish to be completely assimilated by ancient norms; the parts she disliked or disagreed with, she generally just glanced over, understanding them but not accepting them.
Master Qin’s lessons typically involved reading and recognizing characters in the morning and practicing needlework in the afternoon.
Regarding needlework, Daohua really found it troublesome.
Before studying it, she thought it wasn’t a big deal.
As an adult, couldn’t she just embroider a few small flowers?
But faced with scores of silk threads of various colors, she truly felt dizzy.
The worst part was that the embroidery needle kept pricking her fingers.
Having only learned for a short period, nearly all of her ten fingers had been pricked.
“Miss, shall we not learn this for now?” Wang Manman looked at Daohua, who had been pricked by the needle again, with a face full of sympathy.
Because Daohua’s skin was fair, the punctures from the needles were very noticeable. Seeing the dense red puncture marks on her fingers, Wang Manman wished she could do the embroidery for her.
Unfortunately, her hands were even less dexterous than Daohua’s.
Having run with the Escort Bureau for many years, she had always trained with her father and was raised to be forthright and robust. She felt dizzy just looking at such delicate women’s work.
Daohua, without looking up, continued with her embroidery: “No, if I don’t finish this sachet today, who knows how Master Qin might punish me tomorrow?”
Master Qin might not care about her anymore, but if she made a mistake, she couldn’t avoid being punished.
Her punishments were always reasonable, leaving her no excuse to cause a fuss, so she could only bear with it for now.
Wang Manman looked worried: “Miss, you lack the basics of needlework, and Master Qin only cares about the other girls, not stopping to explain the stitches to you or anything, and just lets you embroider haphazardly. How will your needlework improve?”
Daohua smiled faintly: “All experiences are surely useful; consider this practice for developing a feel for it.” Her circumstances were known both by Madam Yan and Madam Li. She dared say that if things continued this way, Master Qin would not get the best of her without her doing anything.
Although she could also make a fuss about it, that would give people the impression that she couldn’t endure hardship.
This yard behind the County Magistrate’s Office was not Yan Village. Even though she had the protection of Madam Yan and Madam Li, with everyone talking, and in an ancient time where reputation was everything, she didn’t want to get a bad name.
Besides, she didn’t do very well in needlework, but she didn’t detest it either. Embroidering her own sachet or handkerchief was quite interesting in these times devoid of entertainment.
It was best to continue learning for now.
Wang Manman tentatively said, “Miss, shall we talk to Madam about it?”
Daohua shook her head: “Master Qin was hired to teach by my father, and without his permission, my mother would not simply dismiss her.” Since her arrival, she had already caused several scenes and it wouldn’t be good to do so frequently, lest she really become a nuisance.
Her eyebrows furrowed, Wang Manman said, “Are we just going to let her bully you like this? Otherwise, I could secretly give her a beating?”
Upon hearing this, Daohua raised her head in shock, looking at Wang Manman with a serious and earnest expression.
Thinking that Daohua doubted her abilities, Wang Manman quickly explained, “Miss, I’m really strong. I used to fight with people in the Escort Bureau regularly. If they offended me, I would sack them, making sure no one noticed. If Master Qin gets injured, you could relax for a few days.”
Daohua swallowed: “Manman, we don’t need to resort to violence, right? Although Master Qin isn’t likable, she hasn’t gone as far as to harm others, don’t you think?”
Wang Manman disagreed: “Miss, you’re just too kind-hearted.”
Daohua gave a sheepish smile: “I’m not kind-hearted; I just think that sacking people isn’t very nice. We should convince others with reason.”
What she didn’t say was that this was the County Governor’s Office, and it would be foolish to think the government officials her father employed were just idly eating their rice.
Wang Manman frowned: “Why use words when you can use your hands? Talking is so troublesome.”
Daohua chuckled, looking Wang Manman up and down.
She hadn’t expected this girl to be so hot-tempered, resorting to sacking people at the drop of a hat…. She liked this kind of personality!