After returning from Ganquan Temple, everyone was exhausted. Zhou Shaojin fell asleep as soon as she touched the bed and slept until dawn.

It had been a long time since she’d had such a good sleep!

Zhou Shaojin stretched lazily and lay in bed listening to the birds chirping for a while before getting up.

Today was the ninth day of the fourth month. After the Bathing the Buddha Festival, she had to go to the Jing’an Study for classes.

After paying her respects to Old Madam Guan, Chun Wan carried her writing supplies and attended Zhou Shaojin to the Jing’an Study.

Cheng Jia hadn’t arrived yet.

The Jing’an Study was the same as before. The four-bay open hall was divided by floor screens. In the first room on the east side was the teacher’s large desk, below which were several smaller desks arranged in a staggered pattern, armchairs, a curio shelf, a three-legged gilt incense burner, and on either side of the teacher’s large desk hung a couplet personally written by the Cheng family’s old ancestor Cheng Zhi: “Stand beside hundred-year trees, read ten thousand volumes of books.”

Zhou Shaojin stood still in silence, speechless for a long time.

Chun Wan carefully called out “Second Young Miss.”

Zhou Shaojin came back to her senses and saw a young maid hurrying in. “Second Young Miss, you’re here!” She continued, “Why did you come so early today? The teacher is still having breakfast and will come over later.”

Zhou Shaojin recognized this maid’s face and knew she served Madam Shen, but not having seen her for so long, she couldn’t remember the young maid’s name no matter how hard she tried.

She could only smile and say, “It’s fine. I came early today. You don’t need to worry about me. I’ll practice writing for a while.”

The young maid breathed a sigh of relief and helped Zhou Shaojin brew a pot of tea.

Chun Wan set out the writing implements. Zhou Shaojin calmed her mind and practiced her calligraphy.

After writing two large sheets of paper, Cheng Jia arrived.

“Why didn’t you wait for me?” She scowled, looking as if she wanted to flip the table.

Only then did Zhou Shaojin remember that in the past, she would wait for Cheng Jia every day at Little Rainbow Bridge on their route to the Jing’an Study.

“I waited for you for nearly a quarter of an hour and you didn’t come.” Cheng Jia’s face was flushed with anger. “If a young maid hadn’t told me you’d come early, I’d still be waiting there like a fool!”

Zhou Shaojin decided not to argue with her and said, “This is my fault. Don’t wait for me anymore in the future. We’ll each come to the Jing’an Study on our own, so we don’t waste time waiting back and forth on the road.”

Cheng Jia was not a slow-witted person. On the contrary, she was quite clever and quick, which was why she had gained the favor of the Cheng family elders.

“What do you mean?” she questioned, though her eyes held more confusion. “Do you mean you want to break off our friendship?”

Breaking off friendship was not quite it—she just didn’t want to be constantly stuck together like before.

But Zhou Shaojin had never been the kind of person who could easily hurt others. She said tactfully, “I have to copy sutras for Old Madam Guo—the ‘Shurangama Sutra,’ a full ten volumes, this thick.” She gestured. “It won’t be finished until whenever I finish copying it all. Where will I have any free time in the future? Today I didn’t wait for you, so I took the time to write two large sheets!”

Cheng Jia looked at the two large sheets on Zhou Shaojin’s desk, deflating like a punctured ball, but her mouth still wouldn’t relent. “You should have told me! What’s the meaning of doing this without a word?”

“I’ll tell you in the future.” Zhou Shaojin said peaceably, deciding to take this opportunity to make things clear with Cheng Jia. “Not only can I not wait for you to go to class together, I also can’t wait to leave class together—Old Madam Guo said that if necessary, I should have the midday meal at her place. I can’t make my elders wait for me, can I?”

“I see!” Cheng Jia looked completely dejected. “Then, can we play together during holidays?”

“Definitely not until the sutras are finished copying.” Zhou Shaojin said. “We’ll talk about what happens after when the sutras are done.”

Cheng Jia was full of energy and rarely had idle time. If she ignored her for half a year, she would probably make other friends, and the two of them would naturally grow distant.

Zhou Shaojin had made up her mind. She pulled out another large sheet and began practicing calligraphy.

Cheng Jia tilted her head and watched from the side, saying with surprise, “Shaojin, I’ve discovered that after just a few days of not seeing you, your writing has gotten so much better!”

“Really?” Zhou Shaojin said perfunctorily.

But she wouldn’t quiet down. “Really! Look at this stroke—in the past you were always timid and would stop halfway through, but now it’s done in one smooth motion. It feels much more fluid.”

Zhou Shaojin’s hand paused. She murmured, “Is that so?”

“Yes, yes!” Cheng Jia said excitedly. “And this dot—it’s also done very decisively. At a glance it looks clean and crisp…” She chattered away with her commentary.

A gentle voice interrupted: “That’s right, Shaojin’s writing has improved considerably.”

The two turned their heads and saw Madam Shen, wearing a dark blue plain Hangzhou silk jacket, her hair graying, standing behind them.

“Teacher Shen!” The two rose together and curtsied.

A gentle smile appeared on Madam Shen’s thin face. “Get up! Let’s look at Shaojin’s writing.”

In her previous life, Zhou Shaojin’s impression of Madam Shen was vague.

She too had originally been a young lady from a family with scholarly traditions, wrote beautiful calligraphy, and at twenty had become a widow before marriage. But when her natal family declined, her husband’s family also began treating her harshly. She simply taught female students in the large households of Jinling, making her living by tutoring.

Though Madam Shen had a good temper and was gentle with people, she had never really constrained them. Once Cheng Sheng had mentioned it, even suspecting that she “believes in Laozi and Zhuangzi or something.”

Zhou Shaojin stood respectfully beside her, listening to Madam Shen critique her writing, and couldn’t help thinking of her brother-in-law’s aunt, Liao Zhangying.

She too was an unfortunate person, of high moral character and great learning, yet she had spent her entire life in the lonely light of a bean oil lamp.

The morning lesson covered “Meng’s Mother Cuts the Weaving” from the “Biographies of Exemplary Women.” Having studied it once before, and thinking about going to Old Madam Guo’s place in the afternoon, Zhou Shaojin inevitably became distracted.

Madam Shen tactfully asked her a few questions. She answered them all correctly, so Madam Shen let her be and didn’t bother her further. This made Cheng Jia somewhat indignant yet helpless. So after class ended, she pulled Zhou Shaojin aside and asked, “Did you have someone teach you privately?”

Zhou Shaojin, afraid she would keep pestering her like this, coaxed her saying, “I studied it once on my own at home.”

Cheng Jia didn’t believe her and said hesitantly, “Wouldn’t that require studying day and night?”

“Yes!” Zhou Shaojin said. “Wasn’t I sick at that time? I couldn’t go out either. So I thought I might as well read through the books a few more times.”

Cheng Jia twisted her handkerchief, hesitating whether to learn from Zhou Shaojin.

Zhou Shaojin quickly said, “I need to hurry back, or I’ll be late for my time at Cold Jade Retreat.” She parted ways with Cheng Jia at Little Rainbow Bridge.

Cheng Jia returned to the Auspicious Pavilion in low spirits.

Jiang Shi was directing maids and servants to change the door curtains at the Auspicious Pavilion. Seeing her condition, she quickly felt her forehead and asked with concern, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

“No!” Cheng Jia entered the inner room and said, “Shaojin was only sick for a few days, but it’s like she’s become a different person. She talks less, doesn’t come to the Auspicious Pavilion much, and her studies are better than mine…”

Seeing her daughter like this, Jiang Shi’s heart tightened. She held her daughter in her arms and said, “Don’t worry, no matter what, I’ll get you into Cold Jade Retreat.”

Cheng Jia frowned. “Is that why she’s ignoring me?”

“What else would it be?” Jiang Shi sneered. “She’s just the daughter of a mere fourth-rank prefectural magistrate. How could she turn the world upside down!”

Wasn’t Mother single-mindedly hoping that Brother would succeed in the imperial examinations?

Why was she now belittling Shaojin’s father like this?

Cheng Jia wanted to speak but stopped herself.

Zhou Shaojin naturally didn’t know what had happened at the Auspicious Pavilion. When she returned to the Fragrant Wisteria Residence, she saw Wu’er, Cheng Gao’s personal servant, sitting under the eaves of her side room drinking mung bean soup.

Hearing the sound, he quickly set down his bowl and hurried over, pulling a small box painted with black lacquer and white magnolias from his chest and handing it over. “Second Young Miss, you’re back! The Young Master heard you were going to copy sutras for Old Madam Guo and specially sent me to deliver this box of ink sticks. He said it’s Luo ink left by the Old Master, hard as rock and black as lacquer, for you to use when copying sutras.”

Good ink was needed to write good characters.

If it was left by the Old Master, then it was meant for Cousin Gao to use during the examinations!

How could she accept it!

“No, take it back.” Zhou Shaojin refused. “Cold Jade Retreat will prepare the ink for copying sutras. Using this would be a wasteful extravagance.”

“The Young Master guessed Second Young Miss would say this.” Wu’er smiled. “Our Young Master said this ink isn’t given for free—he wants to trade it for a few sheets of Chengxin paper. The Young Master has a classmate whose father is celebrating his birthday, and they’ve invited the young masters to the birthday feast. The Young Master wants to give it as a birthday gift.”

Chengxin paper from Huizhou was firm and pure as jade, fine, thin, smooth, and lustrous—truly exceptional, worth its weight in gold.

Zhou Zhen had sent the Zhou sisters a ream during New Year, specifying that the sisters would each get half.

In the past, Zhou Shaojin certainly wouldn’t have understood, but with the experiences of her previous life, she knew clearly that for families like theirs marrying off daughters, having such things in the dowry was more dignified than any gold, silver, or jewels.

This was one of the dowry items Father had prepared for the sisters.

Zhou Shaojin sent Shi Xiang to open the trunk and get the paper, but wouldn’t accept the ink.

Wu’er said with a bitter face, “If I just take the paper back like this, won’t the Young Master skin me alive?”

Cousin Gao was the most gentle person—how would he punish Wu’er?

However, Wu’er’s words also reminded Zhou Shaojin.

When would Cousin Gao ever lack a few sheets of paper? He was just saying this to let her keep the ink with peace of mind. If she kept pushing it back and forth, she would be disappointing Cousin Gao’s good intentions. Better to accept it for now and find an opportunity to return it later. As for whether she used the ink he sent to copy sutras for Old Madam Guo, if she didn’t say anything, how would Cousin Gao know?

The more she thought about it, the better this plan seemed. She accepted the ink with a smile, rewarded Wu’er with two eight-fen silver ingots, wrapped some pastries for him, and then had Shi Xiang see him out while she personally locked the box of Luo ink in her trunk.

Looking at the copper lock on the trunk, Zhou Shaojin became somewhat dazed.

Speaking of which, in her previous life, to pass the time, she had not only embroidered Guanyin and raised two-toned peonies, but had also made ink, made Buddhist incense, and made fragrant dew—all following ancient recipes that she had continuously refined. The things sold in ordinary shops weren’t as good as what she made.

Why not make a few ink sticks to give as gifts to Cousin Gao!

When she had leisure in the future, she could make other things to give to her sister, grandmother, aunt, Cousin Gao and Cousin Yi… and Father… and stepmother… At least it would be her sincere intention.