You're Very Talented

"Mother, you're so good to me," Zhao Ruxi said, then added, "Father is good to me too."

This was exactly what she had planned to tell Lady Zhu, wanting her to find a good school for Xu Chongwen.

Xu Yongyi and Madam Xie's greatest hope was that their children would be successful and that they would live a good life. Xu Xue entered a girls' school and also learned to write storybooks, supporting herself with her own abilities, so she didn't have to worry about anything. But Xu Chongwen was still in that private school, studying desperately.

As a top student, Zhao Ruxi was very curious about the teaching methods of private schools run by ancient scholars and those who had passed the imperial examinations. She specifically asked Xu Chongwen about it after she had just transmigrated.

Then she discovered that Mr. Xu Chongwen's teaching process was as follows: Mr. leads the reading - students follow along - students read on their own - students recite - students copy - students write from memory. This process repeated itself endlessly.

Explanation? There isn't one. If you ask, the teacher will tell you, "Read a book a hundred times, and its meaning will become clear." Just read it honestly, don't cause trouble, or else you'll get a beating with a ruler.

Zhao Ruxi strongly suspected that these people themselves did not understand the meaning of the book, so they did not explain it to the students, but only asked them to memorize it.

Compared to such a private tutor, her teachers at the Women's Academy were of a much higher caliber, more knowledgeable, and their teaching methods were extremely sophisticated; they were worlds apart.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. The teachers at their academy were all top talents who easily passed the imperial examinations and ranked highly. In contrast, the teachers at Xu Chongwen's private school were all failed scholars or students who had only completed the preliminary examinations. Their intelligence, knowledge, and experience were worlds apart.

That's why everyone wants to go to a prestigious university.

Therefore, Zhao Ruxi wanted to repay the Xu Family. She felt that simply providing a recipe for a cold dish was not enough; she needed to find Xu Chongwen a good private school. Only then could she repay the Xu Family for their heartfelt kindness.

Unexpectedly, Lady Zhu's idea coincided with hers, and she even helped her choose a private school.

With such a mother and father, she would be willing to do anything for this family.

"Should I tell them about this tomorrow?" she asked.

"Alright, go ahead and say it. Your father already spoke to the private school today. They said there's no problem," said Lady Zhu.

Zhao Ruxi nodded. "Mother, could you ask Father to inquire if anyone in our clan has a house for rent? Chongwen can stay in a rented house when he comes to school; my uncle also has a place to stay because he does business in the capital."

"Doing business?" Lady Zhu asked. "What kind of business?"

"That's what I wanted to tell you too," Zhao Ruxi said with a smile.

"A while ago, I came up with a recipe for my uncle to sell as a cold dish business. His business is doing quite well now, earning him several dozen taels of silver a day. It's a partnership; I contributed the recipe and covered the costs, taking 40%; they contributed the labor and effort, taking 60%. Originally, I didn't want the money, but my uncle and aunt are honest people; they'd rather not do the business than take advantage of me. So I had to give up on that. That's why I wanted to do my best to help them."

Lady Zhu nodded, "Of course." She then touched her daughter's cheek, "My daughter is a grateful child. Your father and I are very pleased, and even more grateful to the Xu Family. They have raised you very well."

Zhao Ruxi accepted the praise on behalf of the Xu Family. Although she wasn't raised by the Xu Family, the Xu Family was indeed good.

She said, "They want to expand their business to the capital. But they're unfamiliar with the area, so problems are likely to arise. It would be great if they could rent a house from our clan. That would save them a lot of trouble and prevent them from being bullied. Even if someone causes trouble, we live nearby and can help them."

The second one is the important one.

The capital was teeming with nobles and high-ranking officials, not to mention countless minor bureaucrats. It wouldn't have mattered if Xu Yongyi's business hadn't been booming. But once it did, there would inevitably be envious people looking to cause trouble. Not only local thugs and ruffians, but also some officials would be envious and want to seize it for themselves. They wouldn't openly rob him, but underhanded tactics would be unavoidable.

Although the Earl of Suiping's Residence had fallen into decline, its foundation remained, and at least some of the censors in the imperial court knew it. These noble families and officials dared not touch the Marquis of Suiping's Residence's business if they didn't want to be impeached.

"Okay, no problem. I'll definitely treat this as our own business," said Lady Zhu.

"The house you mentioned, I can tell you about it right now, no problem at all."

She pointed in the direction where the clansmen lived. "There's a house over there that belongs to a distant relative of ours. He has many houses, but he's not well-off, so he rents it out. However, we all live in clan-based communities here, so it's not good to rent to people we don't know, and it hasn't been rented out yet. If your uncle and his family come, they can move in right away. The rent isn't expensive, only one tael of silver a month. It's a two-courtyard house with more than a dozen rooms. And it's not far from here, only a short walk away."

"That's wonderful!" Zhao Ruxi Gao Xing hugged Lady Zhu. "Thank you, Mother."

Lady Zhu hugged her daughter for a while, then, seeing that it was indeed very late, she reluctantly stood up and asked with a smile, "Are you alright now? If you are, I'll go back now. You should get some rest."

"Yes, it's alright. Mother, you should rest early too." Zhao Ruxi saw Lady Zhu to the courtyard gate before returning.

Remembering the storybook Xu Xue had given her, she sat down under the lamp and began to read it.

The next day, Zhao Ruxi still got up early and went to school.

Today is the North Academy's promotion exam, and she's really looking forward to it.

Zhao Ruxi entered the academy and went straight to Class Ding, where she saw Xu Xue practicing calligraphy alone.

"Xiaoxue," she called softly.

"Sister!" Xu Xue called out Gao Xing, putting down her pen and looking at her expectantly.

Zhao Ruxi knew what she was waiting for. She took out the storybook Zhao Ruxi had written from her bundle and praised, "Your storybook is really well written."

After Lady Zhu left last night, she argued with the system for a while, then carefully read the storybook Xu Xue had given her.

After reading it, Zhao Ruxi couldn't help but sigh: Writing really does require a lot of talent.

She only provided an outline, Xu Xue wrote a novel of nearly 20,000 words in a very professional manner.

Aside from the somewhat immature and awkward writing style, and a slightly off-key portrayal of a supporting character, the novel's pacing, main character development, immersion, and satisfying moments are all quite good.

Zhao Ruxi, this old bookworm, was completely engrossed in this novel last night, unable to put it down and still wanting more.

She told Xu Xue about her reading experience, and Xu Xue excitedly asked, "Really? You really think it's good?"

"It's really good," Zhao Ruxi said. "Didn't you show it to your brother after you finished writing it?"

Although Xu Chongwen studied diligently, he would occasionally borrow storybooks from his classmates. The storybooks Xu Xue read came from her brother.