"Shall we stop here for today?" Xue Ruyun asked mildly.
Tong Aning nodded like a chicken pecking grain, then, afraid Xue Ruyun would think she was not diligent, hurriedly said, "Master is clever, but your student is terribly slow-witted. I need to study this carefully."
Xue Ruyun looked at her. Seeing the utterly earnest expression on Tong Aning's fair, clean little face, she felt like laughing.
Tong Aning had probably racked her brains to come up with that.
Tong Aning was indeed not especially bright. Some things others could grasp after one explanation took her two or three. Xue Ruyun had also made inquiries in the manor and learned that Tong Aning's enthusiasm often lasted only briefly. Perhaps she would soon abandon medicine and stop studying.
But after spending these past days with Tong Aning, she had discovered that once Tong Aning set her mind on something, she would see it through.
Besides, Tong Aning treated people with sincerity. Even if she was not all that clever, Xue Ruyun liked her very much.
"Master?"
Unaware of how Xue Ruyun regarded her, Tong Aning raised a hand and waved it before her eyes.
Xue Ruyun came back to herself, averted her gaze, and gave a quiet cough. "What is it?"
Tong Aning: "?"
Why did she feel as though her master had a guilty conscience?
An illusion. It had to be an illusion!
Tong Aning smiled sweetly. "Let me take you home, Master."
Xue Ruyun nodded. "Very well."
Tong Aning picked up Xue Ruyun's medicine chest.
The medicine chest was already very old, yet Xue Ruyun was still unwilling to discard it. Clearly, there were many treasures inside.
Xue Ruyun smiled. "How about I pick out a medicine chest for you in the next couple of days?"
Tong Aning's eyes lit up. "Thank you, Master."
Like her delicate, lovely face, Tong Aning's voice was clear and fresh, like spring water striking jade.
Xue Ruyun could not resist stroking Tong Aning's hair.
Tong Aning stood rooted to the spot, like a little kitten reluctant to leave Xue Ruyun.
Xue Ruyun's hand paused. A few days earlier, a friend's cat had given birth to a litter of orange kittens, and the friend had asked whether she wanted one.
She had refused.
Thinking about it now, keeping one did not seem so bad...
Xue Ruyun's home was not far from the marquis's manor. Tong Aning often accompanied Xue Ruyun home, taking the opportunity to ask about things she had not understood during the lesson.
Yingtao accompanied Tong Aning while A Shu drove the carriage outside. Both marveled in unison at how diligently their young lady studied.
"Let go of me! I don't even know you!"
A woman's furious voice rang out from the bustling street ahead.
Tong Aning lifted the carriage curtain and looked over.
She gave a surprised little sound.
Xue Ruyun asked, "Someone you know?"
Tong Aning said, "She's Lord Cen's friend. Master, I'll go take a look."
Xue Ruyun nodded.
A Shu stopped the carriage. In the blink of an eye, Tong Aning had jumped down, and Yingtao and A Shu hurried after her.
"Wife, stop being angry with me."
Wen Taofei's eyes widened. "Who's your wife?"
"You're my wife, of course. Stop making a fuss, wife. Our child is waiting for you to come home."
Unable to break free, Wen Taofei was so anxious she nearly cried. When she looked around, everyone was criticizing her. Not a single person intended to help.
Just as she despaired, someone caught her arm and pulled her behind them.
It was a young girl, not even as tall as her, but astonishingly strong. Her face was flushed as she glared fiercely at the man trying to approach.
The man was not afraid of a little girl, but there were also A Shu and Yingtao. She was clearly a young lady from a wealthy household, which made this troublesome.
"What are you doing?" Tong Aning asked, her brows knitted.
"Miss, please give me back my wife."
Tong Aning turned to ask Wen Taofei, "Are you his wife?"
Wen Taofei quickly shook her head. "I don't know him at all."
Tong Aning looked back at the man. "You heard her?"
The man laughed in anger. "Just because she says she isn't, that makes it true? Aren't you being a little too hasty, miss?"
"Because I know her."
The man: "..."
So she was just toying with him.
Seeing that things were going badly, the man tried to run.
"A Shu, pin him down."
A Shu was a guard at the marquis's manor to begin with, and pinned the man down in a single move.
[A Shu does know some martial arts.]
A Shu: "..."
He barked, "Stop moving!"
The man immediately began playing the victim. Was it wrong for him to want his wife? Even a wealthy young lady could not steal his wife!
Tong Aning: "?"
[Me?]
[Host, this man is a human trafficker. They've abducted quite a few people, too.]
Tong Aning: "!!!"
[Xixi, do you know where they took the people they abducted?]
[The Daoist temple outside the city.]
"Taofei." Looking grave, Cen Yu strode over and asked quietly, "Are you all right?"
Wen Taofei threw herself into Cen Yu's arms. "Cousin, I was scared to death! Thank goodness Miss Tong was here."
Cen Yu half-curled his hand into a fist and patted Wen Taofei's back. After comforting her, he had something more important to do. He had heard every word of Tong Aning's thoughts just now.
He walked up to Tong Aning. "Fourth Miss Tong, could you hand this man over to me?"
"Of course."
Tong Aning not only handed the man over, but also told him that the man was a human trafficker and where the abducted people had been taken.
Cen Yu was deeply grateful.
But just as Cen Yu was about to take the man away,
the young girl suddenly drew a silver needle from inside her robes and smiled a little bashfully. "Can I stick him with this?"
Cen Yu: "..."
Sensing a teaching opportunity, Xue Ruyun said eagerly, "Come, come, come. Let your master teach you."
Cen Yu: "..."
Was teaching her like this really all right?