My Wife Is A Sword Immortal
Chapter 338 - 252: If cold water shocks your teeth, then drink something hot. _2

Chapter 338: Chapter 252: If cold water shocks your teeth, then drink something hot. _2

Thud, thud—

Zhu Weirui slightly lifted her chin, her hands normally resting at her waist, as she freed one to knock gently on the desk in front of the man with a stack of rolled-up scrolls, her voice clear, "Zhao Ziyu, where is your writing?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Rong looked down, reopened the heavy book he was holding, and then reached out his right hand. On his right side of the desk, a few red maple leaves quietly lay, brought by the earlier Jiang Feng. He picked up a perfectly red maple leaf and tucked it into the page of the book, then closed it.

Amid numerous gazes, Zhao Rong looked up and shrugged as he confessed, "Mr. Zhu, with my classmates setting such brilliant examples, I find myself uninterested in writing and dare not exhibit my poor skills, so I choose to abstain."

Laughter erupted around him.

Fan Yushu, beside him, frowned and sighed, feeling that he had put too much pressure on Zhao Rong, which led his friend to lose even the courage to write. Fan Yushu’s eyes conveyed an apologetic look toward Zhao Rong,

Zhao Rong noticed Fan Yushu’s expression and pursed his lips and shook his head at him, signaling him not to blame himself.

Zhu Weirui couldn’t bear it any longer. She quickly turned to take the ruler from Yu Huaijin’s hand. Her jade-like face was tense as she stared at Zhao Rong, lightly pressing one end of the bamboo ruler three centimeters from his hand, her voice crisp and clear.

"Abstaining is not allowed. Others write their own; you write yours... even a few words will do."

Zhao Rong did not look at the ruler by his hand, demonstrating defiance. He glanced at her bright eyes and the corner of his mouth slightly twitched, knowing she was trying to coax the words out of him.

He shook his head and sighed, "I am truly sorry, Mr. Zhu, but Senior Yu tutored me yesterday, teaching me painting ’Zheng’ and playing the qin. My hands have been busy all day and I hardly rested last night; currently, my fingers might not even hold a brush steady, please forgive me, sir."

Zhu Weirui’s eyes, slender as willow leaves, widened slightly.

Zhao Rong raised an eyebrow, looking up to meet her gaze.

Their eyes locked, in a silent and tense standoff.

Gradually, Zhu Weirui realized he simply did not want to write, and further persuasion would be futile and Zhao Rong also knew that she was trying to "cheat" the words out of him, so he decided not to write for Zhu Weirui.

Somehow, the two of them developed a tacit understanding.

Slowly.

The length of time Zhao Rong and Zhu Weirui stared at each other grew longer, and as the students waited for Zhu Weirui’s expected rebuttal and reprimand, the atmosphere in the room, eerily quiet, began to feel somewhat strange.

Wu Peiliang, who had been impatiently waiting, gradually furrowed his brows.

Xiao Hongyu, who had been watching interestedly, turned her head and exchanged a look with Li Xueyou, who blinked back.

Fan Yushu, nearest to Zhao Rong and Zhu Weirui, kept turning his head, looking left at Zhao Rong and right at Zhu Weirui.

Behind Zhu Weirui, Yu Huaijin, who was holding back the ruler, felt particularly profound as both had once journeyed together southward to this remote Confucian Academy in Wangque State.

She watched her teacher’s pursed lips and beautiful profile, and the reflection of someone’s face in her eyes.

Yu Huaijin’s gaze shifted, earnestly studying Zhao Rong’s expression.

At this moment, Zhao Rong was still making eye contact with Zhu Weirui, not yielding an inch, while also aware of the various speculative glances around him, and he slightly knitted his brows.

Suddenly, just when the classroom atmosphere was becoming increasingly eerie, Zhu Weirui turned her body, drawing everyone’s attention.

She turned to Yu Huaijin, "Xuanji, is what Ziyu said true?"

Yu Huaijin bowed, "Teacher, it’s mostly accurate, it’s just that merely learning the qin and painting ’Zheng’ shouldn’t prevent one from writing a few words."

Zhu Weirui slowly nodded, glanced at Zhao Rong, and then suddenly turned to face the many students on the ground, instructing, "I need to grade these papers. Everyone, please proceed with the calligraphy practice quietly. After a while, once I select the best writing, we will continue the lesson."

The students paused, then bowed and replied in unison, "Yes, teacher."

As their words fell, they busied themselves with their tasks, but Zhu Weirui remained among the seats in the open area, not moving. The students, especially the males who had too many things on their minds to focus, found little else to do in a calligraphy class besides writing and drawing. They were also restless, waiting for their papers to be graded by the teacher.

The attention of the students from Shuaixing Hall still lingered here, the recent drama feeling somewhat unfinished, unknowing if there would be more to follow...

Zhu Weirui ignored them, content as long as they were quiet; the art of calligraphy abhors disturbance. As for classroom discipline, she never had to worry or supervise personally because she had Yu Huaijin, a diligent and thorough assistant.

Zhu Weirui turned back, casting another glance at Zhao Rong.

He casually reached out to take a delicate purple brush of fine quality from the pen holder beside Fan Yushu, examining and playing with it.

Yu Huaijin suddenly said, "Teacher, why don’t you give me the ruler instead?"

Let me handle it.

Zhao Rong abruptly grabbed the brush, looked up, and glared at this conservative woman, Yu Huaijin. "Lady, I advise you to leave room for maneuver, otherwise, I will... call someone! Behave yourself."

Yu Huaijin ignored his varied expressions and looked up at the teacher standing before her.

Zhu Weirui glanced at her disciple’s serious expression, shook her head, "No need. Xuanji, go fetch that small bamboo tube for me and bring one of these kneeling cushions as well."

Yu Huaijin was momentarily startled but still nodded and turned around.

Soon, she returned, holding the bamboo tube in one hand and carrying a cushion in the other.

This bamboo tube, filled with Zhengguan Well Water, also captured the attention of all the students around.

Zhu Weirui took it one by one, her clever eyes briefly glancing at Zhao Rong.

Zhao Rong frowned, his expression skeptical.

Zhu Weirui smiled; under the gaze of everyone present, she placed the cushion opposite Zhao Rong and then, lifting her robes slightly, knelt down gracefully, facing Zhao Rong across a small table.

The crowd watched from the side.

Zhu Weirui tilted her head towards Yu Huaijin, "Xuanji, if there’s something you need to do, you may go."

Yu Huaijin nodded, but didn’t leave; she still stood behind Zhu Weirui, her expression as puzzled as Zhao Rong’s and the other students’.

At that moment, Zhao Rong was also speechless.

Zhu Weirui sat with proper posture, placed the stack of scrolls on Zhao Rong’s desk, then held the green bamboo tube between two fingers and gently shook it. Subsequently, her gaze shifted to Zhao Rong, her lips curving up, "Ziyu, don’t you want to taste this well water?"

Zhao Rong’s gaze returned to calm, and he continued to fiddle with the exquisite purple brush that was very popular among scholars and artists at the foot of the mountain, "No, thanks. Cold water gets stuck in my teeth."

Fan Yushu’s lips twitched.

Wu Peiliang sniffed disdainfully.

"Pfft..." Li Xueyou quickly ducked her head and covered her mouth.

Zhu Weirui was also momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing. She placed the small bamboo tube beside the stack of scrolls, her smile ambiguous as she observed Zhao Rong, nodding, "Ziyu’s taste is indeed different from that of ordinary people..."

Implying something, Zhao Rong’s mouth twitched.

Zhu Weirui chuckled, "Then let’s drink it hot."

Just then, before anyone could react to her words, Zhu Weirui flipped her hand, and suddenly another green bamboo tube appeared, but this one was several times larger than the small one beside the scrolls. She shook this new bamboo tube a bit, muttering to herself, "Seems like there’s still quite a bit left."

The students from Shuaixing Hall stared wide-eyed, "Is this also Zhengguan Well Water!?"

Zhu Weirui waved her wide sleeve, and suddenly a set of purple sandalwood tea utensils appeared on Zhao Rong’s table, both antique and understated.

While everyone was still stunned, she took out clean water to rinse her hands, then began to set everything up methodically, elegantly pouring out some well water from the bamboo tube to start brewing the tea.

Soon, the delicate fragrance pervaded the entire area.

At that moment, Zhu Weirui lifted the teapot by the handle, her wrist raised, the tea brewed from the Zhengguan Well Water poured into the cup, white steam rising. She lowered her head to gently sniff, her face momentarily covered by the tea mist, her cheeks seemingly tinted with a blush from the rising heat, a vague smile visible behind the cloudy veil.

But soon as the white mist dissipated, everyone regained their senses. By then, the rosy glow on Zhu Weirui’s face had faded. She placed the tea cup on the table, tapped it lightly with two fingers, and pushed it slowly towards Zhao Rong.

"Try it, Ziyu. It shouldn’t get stuck in your teeth."

Zhao Rong: "..."

Yu Huaijin and the students of Shuaixing Hall: "???"