A New Use for the System
Although she only got one point, Xu Xi was not discouraged. Her calligraphy showed no improvement in the first character, but by the time she wrote the last character, it was already about 50% similar to the model calligraphy.
She believed that if she practiced two more papers, she would definitely be able to achieve a score of two.
She put down her pen, stretched her neck, and walked around the room. Seeing Qingfeng standing there, she ordered, "Make me a cup of tea."
Qingfeng quickly pointed to the steaming cup on the round table in the center of the room and said, "Miss, this is a cup I specially brewed for you, as I saw you were almost finished writing this piece. Please see if you can still drink it. If not, I'll brew you another cup."
Xu Xi raised an eyebrow, walked over and sat down at the table, picked up the teacup and took a sip. The tea was neither too hot nor too cold, the temperature was just right. Moreover, the tea should be a top-quality green tea, fragrant and mellow, with an excellent taste.
She couldn't help but praise, "Excellent, the temperature is just right." Then she looked at Qingfeng, "Qingfeng, you are so capable." Such a talented person can only be a second-class maid in the old lady's courtyard, which shows how many talented people the Marquis's mansion has.
"You flatter me, young lady." Qingfeng stepped forward and curtsied, feeling somewhat at ease.
To be honest, although she has been promoted from a second-class maid to a first-class maid and has become Xu Xi's Daya, giving her more autonomy than she did in the old lady's courtyard, and at least fewer people are supervising her, she is still uneasy.
If she had a choice, she would rather stay in the old lady's courtyard than become Xu Xi's Daya.
Rumors suggest this girl has a rather bad temper. Considering she grew up in the countryside, she's not familiar with manners and is very likely to make all sorts of mistakes.
If the master makes a mistake, they shouldn't be punished too harshly, otherwise the servants will be the ones who get punished.
Judging from what happened in just one hour, although this fifth young lady's temperament is as bad as rumored, she is not an unreasonable person, much less mindless.
Thinking of the old lady and Matron Jin's evaluation of Xu Xi, Qingfeng made up her mind to treat this mistress with sincerity and serve her wholeheartedly. Once the Fifth Miss thought she was good and was willing to listen to her, she would offer more advice and guidance in the future. Once the young lady gradually adapted to life in the manor, things would go smoothly.
Xu Xi sat down, drank a few sips of tea, and feeling rested enough, he sat down at the table again to practice calligraphy.
This time, she practiced even more diligently.
She has a high IQ and a strong comprehension, so she learns everything quickly. Practicing calligraphy also requires comprehension; understanding the structure of characters, the coordination of strokes, and the application of brush pressure—as long as one is diligent, analyzes, and comprehends, a smart person will always learn faster than a dull one.
Therefore, after the second chapter ended, Xu Xi finally heard the system announce as she had hoped, "Wisdom Points +2".
She was Gao Xing and was about to keep up the good work to get three points of Wisdom Points as soon as possible when she heard the system speak. The system's voice was panting, as if it had run a long way to get back.
"Host, if you can reach the level of the best calligraphy master of this era, you can earn one hundred points for each piece of calligraphy."
Xu Xi's eyes darted around, and she thought to herself with delight, "Really? One hundred points? If I reach that level, twenty thousand points is just a matter of practicing two hundred calligraphy pieces?"
"Yes, yes, yes." The system Gao Xing. This rogue host not only returned to the Marquis's mansion according to the original plot, but also knew how to work hard and improve himself. It almost cried tears of joy.
Although it thought it would be extremely difficult for Xu Xi to reach the level of a calligraphy master, that didn't stop it from trying to persuade... no, to encourage its host. As long as you're willing to climb, even if you don't reach the top, climbing halfway up the mountain is not bad, right? It's better than being a lazy bum at the foot of the mountain.
Thinking of this, it began to rack its brains, intending to use words to encourage Xu Xi.
Unexpectedly, Xu Xi was very cooperative. Before it could even speak, Xu Xi asked, "What's that calligraphy master's name? Where is he now?" She stroked her chin, "If I could become his apprentice, I wouldn't have to climb the ranks slowly. With his guidance, even if I can't reach his level immediately, I could at least be half as good as him. I could get fifty points for writing a single piece of calligraphy, right?"
The system's mood plummeted from its peak.
It said dejectedly, "That master has been dead for over fifty years."
"..."
Xu Xi blinked. "Then he must have disciples or descendants, right?"
"Disciples and descendants?" the system muttered hesitantly, then fell silent again.
Xu Xi smiled and looked at the single character she had written, feeling happier than ever before.
"Young lady, the old lady invites you over for some refreshments," Matron Yuan suddenly announced as she entered.
"Ah?" Xu Xi turned her head in surprise and looked at Matron Yuan.
If you ask her what she found most difficult to adjust to in ancient times, one is the lack of computers and mobile phones, which made her incredibly bored; the other is the habit of eating two meals a day.
The Xu Family wasn't wealthy, Madam Xie was extremely frugal. They rarely ate meat, let alone cooked, and they wouldn't even add a few drops of oil when cooking. Their meals were mostly watery and bland, with only two meals a day, one in the morning and one in the evening. For the first two days after Xu Xi transmigrated, she felt like her eyes were glowing green. Every day at noon, she would count down the time, eagerly awaiting dinner.
It was Wushi, and the Marquis's residence seemed to have no intention of having lunch, so Xu Xi assumed that the Marquis's residence, like the Xu Family, would go hungry at noon.
Fortunately, she has gradually gotten used to this pace of life, and although she is still hungry, she can endure it.
She didn't plan to rely on others for food. She just wanted to earn money as soon as possible so she could buy her own pastries, rice, flour, oil, and salt. Then she could eat whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted, without having to worry about what others thought she would eat, and without having to endure hunger anymore.
Thinking she hadn't heard clearly, Matron Yuan repeated what she had just said.
Xu Xi suppressed the surprise in her eyes and nodded calmly, "Okay, I'll pack my things and head over."
Yicui stepped forward and said, "Leave it to me, Miss, however you wish to do."
With someone else doing the work, Xu Xi was naturally happy to slack off. She gave Yicui some instructions, then followed Matron Yuan and took Qingfeng out the door.
The Chess Watching Courtyard is a guest courtyard within the inner courtyard. To avoid entanglement with other areas, it is located on the outer edge, very close to the hanging flower gate, but quite far from the main courtyard and the residences of the other three branches.
As Xu Xi stepped out of the gate of the Chess Watching Courtyard, he saw Zhao Ruyu leading Fushu over.
Upon seeing her, Zhao Ruyu hurried over, curtsied, and asked with a smile, "Where are you going, sister?"
Regardless of whether the person in front of her had good intentions or bad intentions, Xu Xi did not intend to have much interaction with her.
She said, "The old lady called me, I'll go over for a moment." As she spoke, she nodded slightly to Zhao Ruyu and walked forward, her attitude rather cold, without offering any polite words of invitation for Zhao Ruyu to come in and sit down.